Mark Prigg gets the measure of pocket-sized personal computing.
Apple may have broken new ground with its ultra-thin Air notebook, but even the Air looks positively giant-like compared with the latest trend to hit mobile computers – the “netbook”.
Kick-started by the relatively unknown computer firm Asus, these tiny laptops are primarily designed to let you access the internet and carry out simple editing tasks on the move. With typical screen sizes of between seven and nine inches, these really are take-anywhere machines which will slip into a briefcase or bag.
They all feature wireless networking and most will work with the latest 3G dongles to give you high-speed web access wherever you are. The small screen also comes at a much lower cost and, in this market, £400 is considered top-end – a far cry from Apple’s Air, with its £1,719 price tag for the highest-spec version.
Of course, there are trade-offs with these tiny machines – screen and keyboard size being the most obvious. Storage can also be an issue, with some of the gadgets here using memory chips rather than a hard drive. This means faster operation but, obviously, a lot less space to store files.
However, this isn’t always a bad thing, and just means you’ll probably want to carry an iPod for your music collection rather than keep it on your PC. You also won’t have a DVD drive, but we found this really never became an problem, particularly if you also carry a memory stick just in case you do need to swap files around.
There are also some interesting choices of operating system. Initially, Asus used – and indeed still offers – Linux, an operating system popular with computer enthusiasts and, crucially, one which is free. It has the Firefox web browser and a host of other software which is the equivalent to pretty much anything you can get on Windows. However, if you are considering the Linux option, it’s worth checking with your IT department to see if they’ll support it.
The other option is, unsurprisingly, Microsoft’s Windows. Even Microsoft has seen the promise of this burgeoning new market, designing a version of Windows XP just for the diminutive notebooks, and this offers exactly the same experience as “normal” XP – just generally on a smaller screen. Any Windows XP software will work, so you can carry on with Powerpoint and Excel just as before.
Overall, these machines offer exceptional value for money, and for all but the most demanding work (or game-playing), they really are a revolution in portable computing.
HP 2133 Mini-Note PC
£349
hp.com/uk
HP has brought the might of its brand to the netbook space and has not disappointed. The Mini-Note is an exceptionally well thought-out piece of kit. It measures 165 x 33 x 255mm, making it slightly wider than Asus’s Eee PC 701 and, at 1.3kg, it’s also heavier.
Due to its extra width, HP has managed to get a rather good keyboard into the 2133. The mouse trackpad is a little more annoying, and the buttons seem to be in the wrong place, at the sides rather than above them. The 8.9-inch screen is superb, although a little glossy for use in bright light. The rather underpowered 1.2GHz VIA C7-M processor is a bit sluggish, but 120GB of hard-drive space and 2GB of RAM help it along. Battery life is also a little disappointing, at around two hours.
But despite the sluggish behaviour, the 2133 is an impressive machine – it looks superb, and has a great hard drive. For most tasks, it will be perfect, and if style is important, this is well worth the extra money.
Pros Superb design
Cons Relatively expensive and the processor is slow
Asus Eee PC 701 Linux
£200
asus.com
This is the computer which started the entire netbook revolution, and as you’d expect, it’s a really interesting little machine. The seven-inch screen gives it its diminutive size, just 225mm wide and 170mm deep – that’s small enough to fit into any bag – and it weighs only 928g.
Turning it on is a bit of a shock, as instead of Windows you get Asus’s custom-built version of Linux. However, it’s very, very simple (almost toy-like in fact), and is quick to get the hang of. Applications include OpenOffice, a Microsoft Office-compatible suite of business software, music-playing software and, most importantly, the Firefox web browser.
This is a full version of the browser, and looks great on the Eee’s little screen. The display quality is good, and you can watch movies easily – if you’ve enough room to store them.
There are several variants of the Eee, and the one we used had a 4GB flash disk rather than a conventional hard disk. This is actually just about enough memory, but you’ll definitely want to use a USB stick for films and other large files. Battery life isn’t great, and we found it gave up after about two and a half hours. There’s also Skype, which can take advantage of the neat little webcam built into the case.
Overall, this is a really impressive little machine. However, for serious business use the operating system and, unfortunately, its rather toy-like appearance, might mean there are better options out there. The keyboard is also slightly irritating as it’s a bit too cramped for serious typing. However, for those who are after a bit of “hacker chic”, it’s worth a look.
Pros Affordable and easy to use
Cons Limited memory, a bit too basic
Asus Eee PC 901 XP
£300
pcworld.co.uk
The big brother of the Eee PC 701, the 901 boasts a nine-inch screen and is supplied with Microsoft’s Windows XP (although a Linux version is also available). Although the screen is larger than the 701, this machine is virtually identical in terms of its looks, with the same small, slightly cramped keyboard and full complement of ports. However, the processing power of this unit has also been beefed up considerably, and it runs Intel’s 1.6GHz Atom chip, which is specifically designed for the new generation of netbooks. This new chip is paired with 1GB of RAM, and for storage, 20GB for the Linux version or 12GB if you choose Windows XP (which really does show how much space Windows takes up).
Overall, we found this a far nicer experience that the 701. Although the keyboard is still cramped, the machine feels a lot snappier to use, and the familiar XP interface makes it easier to add software – your IT department would probably prefer it too.
However, storage is still a major issue – you’re really limited to editing the odd document or storing everything online, rather than keeping all your data on your laptop. For most people, though, this isn’t too much of a problem and, as with the 701, you can store some of your data on USB sticks if necessary.
Crucially, the use of XP also means this will work with the high-speed 3G data sticks which are now popular, and we used both T-Mobile and Vodafone products without any problems. Battery life is decent at about four hours, and we found that it was just about enough to cope with a day’s work – and the machine is so light that it’s not really an issue having to carry the power supply everywhere.
Overall, this is a solid, decent all-rounder. Build quality is good, but again it shares the almost toy-like looks of the 701, meaning you might get the odd strange look during board meetings.
Pros XP operating system
Cons Limited storage, sluggish behaviour
Acer Aspire One
£200
acer.com
Acer’s Aspire is a classy machine, although possibly a little too glossy, and its blue colouring somehow allows it to pull off the small form-factor without looking too much like a dinky toy (take note Asus).
With an 8.9-inch screen and 8GB memory, the Aspire isn’t going to win any performance awards, but with its Linux operating system it is very easy to use. There are twin SD card-slots for expanding the memory, and a 1.3-megapixel webcam built in.
Measuring 249 x 29 x 170mm, the Acer is about 25mm wider than the Asus PC Eee 901, but it’s also marginally thinner and, at 995g, it’s pretty light. However, it’s easy to see where weight has been saved – the battery lasts around two hours, so the power supply isn’t great. The energy source is not, therefore, really effective enough for a machine which is supposed to spend all its time with you.
Saying that, the keyboard is surprisingly good, and virtually indistinguishable from a full-size laptop. There’s also a basic Windows XP model using the same 1.6GHz Atom CPU, but getting 1GB of RAM plus an 80GB hard drive, all for around £320.
Overall, this is a really impressive attempt at a small, take-anywhere laptop. We’d probably say the extra storage of the XP version has the edge, but remember you’re still going to be hampered by the poor battery life.
Pros Good value for money
Cons Poor memory in the Linux version, awful battery life
Elonex Webbook
£250
elonex.com
Elonex is a name that’s well known for its low-cost machines, so it is only natural they should move into the netbook market. Available exclusively from Carphone Warehouse, the Elonex Webbook has a 10.2-inch screen, comes with a virtually full-size keyboard, and measures 252 x 183 x 31.8mm. Weighing 1.3kg, it’s one of the heavier machines here, but it’s also pretty well-powered with its 1.6GHz VIA C7-M processor.
There’s an 80GB hard drive and 512MB of memory. Our machine had Windows XP loaded on it, but there’s a Linux version as well. In use, the machine is relatively speedy, although a little more memory would be nice. The keyboard, while big, suffers from a problem which really cripples the whole machine – poor build quality.
At no point does this feel like a well-built machine and, despite the good spec and decent screen, ultimately it just looks and feels awful. In the face of some really high quality machines – the HP and the Advent in particular – this level of finish just doesn’t cut it.
Pros Affordable, with a great quality screen
Cons Looks and feels cheap
Advent 4211 Netbook
£280
pcworld.co.uk
Advent’s 4211 looks very professional – from the moment you open the box you can tell this is a far more serious proposition. It’s much closer to a “real” laptop than the Eee PCs – obvious as soon as you switch it on. It’s fast and there is a real 80GB hard drive hidden in its bowels. The 10.1-inch screen also gives you more of a sense of this being a real laptop, despite it still being diminutive in size.
An Intel 1.6GHz Atom processor certainly helps speed things along. The keyboard is reasonably good, although still a little on the cramped side – for anyone who can’t touch-type though, it should be fine, and my highly unprofessional two-fingered typing style found no problems with it. Screen quality is very good, and there’s also a webcam on top of it.
Overall, this system performed brilliantly. The addition of a hard drive does make it a little louder than the competition, but having more storage space definitely outweighs that slight problem. We did experience one or two wobbles where the system crashed for no apparent reason, but this seemed to stop once we installed the latest Windows updates.
At 1.12kg, it’s a little heavier than the Eees, but the improved spec and performance make this one of the best netbooks on the market – and from the units we had on trial, this was the one we used most often. There is also a more expensive version of the same laptop available, labelled as an MSI Wind, but this is up to £50 cheaper and identical.
Pros Great design and performance
Cons It has some stability issues
BlackBerry Bold
From free, depending on contract
While notebooks have got smaller and smaller, smartphones are getting smarter and smarter, and can now do virtually anything even the highest-spec laptop can do.
Blackberry, which dominates the email phone market, recently unveiled the Bold, it’s top-of-the-range handset. The first thing that strikes you about the Bold is its size. Although roughly the same dimensions as the iPhone 3G, it feels a lot larger, and is a bit thicker, giving it a bulky feel.
The screen is superb, and the widescreen display shows the redesigned menu system well. However, it is the keyboard which really gives the Blackberry an advantage. It’s excellent, and far better than any other portable device we’ve used. The keys are very tactile, and typing speeds are far quicker than with an iPhone. Rather than Apple’s touchscreen, a trackball under the display is used to navigate, and it’s easy to get used to.
Blackberry has also tried to improve its image as a personal phone, rather than a business one, and the software supplied makes it easy to load music and films, although there is only a measly 1GB of storage. (This, however, can be expanded to 8GB via a memory card.) There’s a full-size headphone socket, and sound quality is impressive. The 2-megapixel camera can record video and has a flash, and there’s also sat nav, wifi and 3G speeds.
To sum up, this is, by quite some margin, the best Blackberry ever and a must-have for mobile email addicts.
Mark Prigg is the Science and Technology Correspondent of the London Evening Standard
