Posted by Darius on June 30, 2009 at 22:15:02 EST.
Wasn't sure whether to put this on the portable site or main but I picked up a netbook for my Bday. Very cool little machine, cheaper and way more convenient than a normal laptop. If you can get over the fact that there's no internal disc drive I highly recommend them.
I got an Acer Aspire One, 1.6Ghz Intel Atom, 1GB RAM (upgraded to 2GB), 160GB HDD = $400CAN.
Follow Ups:
I have a Samsung NC10 and it may be my favourite computer ever. I've never even thought about the fact it doesn't had a disc drive. (n/t) (aerisdead) (22:22:07 06/30/09 EST)
I've been thinking about getting one for a while, but I have this laptop on long-term loan from work, so I'm just using that for now. (n/t) (exodus) (22:43:48 06/30/09 EST)
Some of my friends have them, and obviously for the money they are fucking amazing, but I guess I just need something more like a real computer. A netbook is great for checking IMDB while watching TV, or IMing, and since they cost less than some iPods you don't have to worry too much about being so careful with them, but the screens suck, the trackpad sucks, they won't run "real" apps, at least not well. Also, being able to watch DVDs on the go is a big benefit of a full sized notebook. Unbeatable for the money, but certainly beatable. I might get one just to use with the stand alone ECU I'll eventually be getting for my car since space is at a premium, I won't mind getting it dirty so much, etc. (n/t) (SignOfZeta) (00:09:01 07/01/09 EST)
"Unbeatable for the money" is questionable too, since you can get a used laptop for peanuts. (n/t) (Jason) (00:30:20 07/01/09 EST)
I can use Photoshop CS2, Word, Firefox and WMP on mine, running them all at once completely fine. (n/t) (aerisdead) (01:08:41 07/01/09 EST)
Checking the stats on the NC10 I see that it has a 10" 1024 x 600 screen. While I'm sure its possible to run CS2 at that resolution, I personally would go fucking crazy within minutes since the menus alone must eat nearly 1/3 the screen. I feel claustrophobic on my laptop, and its 13" 1280x800. Of course Word though, yeah, no problem. I guess your machine in fancy since it actually runs XP? Anyway, yeah, I'm not hating on these things. I think they are great, they just don't deliver full sized computing on the go, which is what I want. If I'm carrying a computer around with me it better to everything the one I left at home does or its not worth carrying. When I was at the autocross the other day they were checking people in with these things. I think the check-in software is something that runs in a browser anyway, so these things are great. They are cheap, portable, durable, and if it rains...or well. The club is out only 1/3 the money of a nicer machine. (n/t) (SignOfZeta) (03:29:41 07/01/09 EST)
Although indeed the first machines ran linux, every machine nowadays runs xp. (n/t) (Mental) (11:38:13 07/01/09 EST)
1024x600 suits me fine, I tried a 1280x800 netbook and everything was just too small for my liking. I don't mind the big menus etc of CS2, works fine for me! To be completely honest I don't even know what you mean by "full-sized computing"; I know you don't play PC games so I can't really work out what you need you can't get from a netbook. The only thing that mattered to me, actually, was a good keyboard, and the NC10's is perfect. (n/t) (aerisdead) (12:38:34 07/01/09 EST)
I need to run the latest versions of things, or close. I'm sure these things will probably run Reason 2.5, but probably not 4.0 since my PPC 1.4 ghz Mac Mini struggles with it, hard. CS2 is nice, but I'm using CS4 now, and like I said I just can't get into Photoshop/Illustrator at that resolution. Way way too cramped. Some programs nowadays will outright refuse to run at those resolutions (Garageband comes to mind). Also, as I said before, the trackpads on these things aren't that great. They work, but I'd absolutely require a mouse for...just about anything. Then there is the DVD thing, of course. Like I said, they are nice, and from what I've read the NC10 is exceptional, but I'm spoiled by this Macbook. All the little things that are great about it don't mean anything on paper, but once you get used to it (me anyway) all other laptops seem like garbage. The Thinkpads at work, for example. Why are they so thick? Why do they have so many seams? Why is the track pad a greasy, imprecise little postage stamp? There is always going to be a market for stuff that does the job, but there is (hopefully) always going to be a market for stuff that just kicks ass too. (n/t) (SignOfZeta) (00:32:31 07/02/09 EST)
I guess if you really need all of the most recent things then, yeah, a netbook isn't for you. But for me, a laptop is my second computer and I've never needed to do anything - except game - that's required a perfectly up-to-date PC. There's a few other things that make us different too possibly: I find the trackpad on the NC10 completely usable (I don't know why people even complain about it), I haven't bought a DVD other than TV episodes since the Blade Runner box and have never watched DVD on a laptop (seriously; who doesn't just watch downloaded AVIs etc. now?) To me, the NC10 kicks ass just as hard as any Macbook. (n/t) (aerisdead) (13:19:27 07/02/09 EST)
Well, different people have different needs. I "need" HDCP output, a giant-ass trackpad, a screen as big as I have at the bare minimum, etc. Other people say they need a Macbook Pro, which has a fucking gigantic screen, dual video, etc, but I want something that isn't as big as a table (and costs way less) so I have what I have, and you have what you have. As for the DVD thing, I sometimes spend days at a time out of town with slow-ass internet so Netflix doesn't work and I will just stop by someplace a buy a DVD and watch it before I go to bed. I still buy DVDs regularly, but I usually watch them at home on a normal TV. I do download lots of .avis, but unless I'm going for something really new and popular it usually takes several days to download shit. That doesn't work when I'm on a two day trip with limited internet access and I want to watch Funny Face on a whim. (n/t) (SignOfZeta) (03:52:10 07/03/09 EST)
I also have the Acer Aspire one, same as you but the older 120GB harddrive model that was on sale for $300 CAD since they were phasing them out. A nice laptop, I just can't figure out what to really do with it. There are no really good hotspots out here in Calgary, it's nicer in Toronto. (n/t) (Comic-Kaze) (03:17:49 07/02/09 EST)
