Which netbook would work best for me?
November 5, 2010 5:45 PM Subscribe
My 4-year-old laptop crashed and appears unrevivable. I would like to buy a netbook to use until I'm ready to invest in nicer laptop 6 to 8 months from now. I know very little about computers, and would like some advice on what models would be best for me.
I am a full-time undergraduate student. I need good word-processing capability and the ability to download and read PDFs and similar documents. I need to be able to have multiple documents or webpages open at once without slowing the computer down. I would also like to be able stream movies and music on the computer. I do not play games of any kind, so I have no requirements in this respect. For internet at home, I use the ClearWire "mobile" internet (I don't have a router or modem, I just plug a USB device into my computer and it connects to ClearWire's "4G" network). Would this type of internet work well with a netbook (I realize I would need to get an external CD drive to install the ClearWire software for the USB device)?
Which netbook models would meet these requirements? I am cost-sensitive, and would really like to keep the price under $400. Cheaper is a big plus, but only if it can do the things listed above. I plan on getting an external keyboard with it to make longer writing projects more comfortable.
Thanks for any advice on this subject!
I am a full-time undergraduate student. I need good word-processing capability and the ability to download and read PDFs and similar documents. I need to be able to have multiple documents or webpages open at once without slowing the computer down. I would also like to be able stream movies and music on the computer. I do not play games of any kind, so I have no requirements in this respect. For internet at home, I use the ClearWire "mobile" internet (I don't have a router or modem, I just plug a USB device into my computer and it connects to ClearWire's "4G" network). Would this type of internet work well with a netbook (I realize I would need to get an external CD drive to install the ClearWire software for the USB device)?
Which netbook models would meet these requirements? I am cost-sensitive, and would really like to keep the price under $400. Cheaper is a big plus, but only if it can do the things listed above. I plan on getting an external keyboard with it to make longer writing projects more comfortable.
Thanks for any advice on this subject!
I know this is a tangent, but are you sure your laptop is unrecoverable? If the hard disk died, (which is most likely) replacing it may be easier and cheaper than you think- a laptop hard disk is around 40-100 dollars. Throw Unbuntu on there or reinstall windows from the disks that came with your computer, and you are good to go.
Another note is that you can almost certainly get the driver for your Clearwire USB modem here:
One issues is that it doesn't appear that your USB modem will play well with Linux, but I'm not sure about that.
You do not want to buy an external drive- they are 80 bucks unto themselves, for something that you will almost never use.
As for doing the things you want to do- many(most) of them will do that. I defer to others for specific recommendations.
posted by rockindata at 6:47 PM on November 5, 2010
Another note is that you can almost certainly get the driver for your Clearwire USB modem here:
One issues is that it doesn't appear that your USB modem will play well with Linux, but I'm not sure about that.
You do not want to buy an external drive- they are 80 bucks unto themselves, for something that you will almost never use.
As for doing the things you want to do- many(most) of them will do that. I defer to others for specific recommendations.
posted by rockindata at 6:47 PM on November 5, 2010
Best answer: Consider paying $500 for a non-atom laptop with 2GB of ram that will make a good primary computer for more than a year. Unless the $400 is a hard limit or portability is a primary concern, getting a cheap 15" laptop will serve you better in the long run.
posted by demiurge at 6:50 PM on November 5, 2010
posted by demiurge at 6:50 PM on November 5, 2010
Not really a netbook comment but... take a look around over at http://www.dfsdirectsales.com/, nice prices for pretty nice equipment.
I recently purchased a refurbed D520 for under $300, already loaded with XP. No problems whatsoever. I currently am using a Verizon Broadband USB modem without issues.
They have other models available, so for your $400 you should be able to get something worthwhile. But don't discount the other poster's comment about just replacing the hard drive for even less money.
Good luck! :)
SandPine
posted by sandpine at 7:37 PM on November 5, 2010
I recently purchased a refurbed D520 for under $300, already loaded with XP. No problems whatsoever. I currently am using a Verizon Broadband USB modem without issues.
They have other models available, so for your $400 you should be able to get something worthwhile. But don't discount the other poster's comment about just replacing the hard drive for even less money.
Good luck! :)
SandPine
posted by sandpine at 7:37 PM on November 5, 2010
The Samsung NF210 just came out, and seems to satisfy your requirements. It's got a dual-core Atom CPU, which should be okay for streaming video. I'm actually considering getting one very soon, but it's sold out everywhere.
posted by Simon Barclay at 7:43 PM on November 5, 2010
posted by Simon Barclay at 7:43 PM on November 5, 2010
I loooooove my Acer 1410, which I bought for $400 last year. Sturdy, reliable, streaming-video-ready, full-size keyboard, 12" screen, long battery life. My requirements were pretty much exactly yours, minus the 4G dongle (but there are 3! USB ports).
Since everyone else is throwing out shopping ideas, here's mine: Start browsing www.slickdeals.net every day. This is a community of uber nerds (no offense to anyone there-- I'm also a member!) that often posts really good deals on netbooks and notebooks. Just wait until something comes up for less than $400 and pull the trigger.
posted by samthemander at 9:28 PM on November 5, 2010
Since everyone else is throwing out shopping ideas, here's mine: Start browsing www.slickdeals.net every day. This is a community of uber nerds (no offense to anyone there-- I'm also a member!) that often posts really good deals on netbooks and notebooks. Just wait until something comes up for less than $400 and pull the trigger.
posted by samthemander at 9:28 PM on November 5, 2010
Hmm, I can't tell which has replaced my Acer 1410 as the latest in the series, but it seems to be one of the below:
Acer AO721 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-AO721-3574-11-6-Inch-Netbook/dp/B003N3GG0Y/ref=dp_cp_ob_pc_title_3)
Acer 1551 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-AS1551-5448-11-6-Inch-Laptop/dp/B003N3A86C/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_0_0)
or the expensive Acer 1810/1830 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Timeline-AS1810T-8638-11-6-Inch-Display/dp/B002TEDANO/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_1_1).
posted by samthemander at 9:40 PM on November 5, 2010
Acer AO721 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-AO721-3574-11-6-Inch-Netbook/dp/B003N3GG0Y/ref=dp_cp_ob_pc_title_3)
Acer 1551 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-AS1551-5448-11-6-Inch-Laptop/dp/B003N3A86C/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_0_0)
or the expensive Acer 1810/1830 (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Timeline-AS1810T-8638-11-6-Inch-Display/dp/B002TEDANO/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_1_1).
posted by samthemander at 9:40 PM on November 5, 2010
Walt Mossberg just published his Fall computer buying guide. I think it will be useful for you.
posted by jchaw at 9:44 PM on November 5, 2010
posted by jchaw at 9:44 PM on November 5, 2010
I got an Acer Aspire One off of Craigslist for <$200, and it's proven to be a surprisingly decent computer. I usually bike everywhere, so I was delighted to have a laptop light enough that I didn't have second thoughts about keeping it on hand. I don't know if the Aspire One is particularly good among netbooks, though.
Your requirements aren't particularly strict - except for streaming movies, I've done word processing / reading PDFs / web browsing on a computer that would have seemed old a decade ago. Bad wiring fried my desktop, but my dumpstered firewall running OpenBSD was good enough for writing my term papers. You know the blue Linksys wifi access points? As computational resources go, one of those is good enough for writing and checking e-mail. (They don't usually have monitor ports, though.)
Most netbooks will probably be ok with playing video (and definitely fine for music), but they don't usually have DVD drives.
posted by silentbicycle at 9:50 PM on November 5, 2010
Your requirements aren't particularly strict - except for streaming movies, I've done word processing / reading PDFs / web browsing on a computer that would have seemed old a decade ago. Bad wiring fried my desktop, but my dumpstered firewall running OpenBSD was good enough for writing my term papers. You know the blue Linksys wifi access points? As computational resources go, one of those is good enough for writing and checking e-mail. (They don't usually have monitor ports, though.)
Most netbooks will probably be ok with playing video (and definitely fine for music), but they don't usually have DVD drives.
posted by silentbicycle at 9:50 PM on November 5, 2010
If you are going to be doing any serious typing on a netbook, get an external keyboard (and you might as well get an external mouse while you're at it). I have very small hands - it seems like most women have fingers at least an inch longer than mine - and I still can't type on a netbook without a ton of typos.
posted by IndigoRain at 10:02 PM on November 5, 2010
posted by IndigoRain at 10:02 PM on November 5, 2010
Definitely make sure to get one of the new dual-core Atom netbooks. I believe ASUS recently released one, and other manufacturers should be releasing models soon, if they haven't already.
posted by 6550 at 2:04 AM on November 7, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by 6550 at 2:04 AM on November 7, 2010 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
EBay.
Already points to Laptops/Netbooks, as I'm wondering similar things to you!
TigerDirect
Staples gets expensive when you factor in the warranty, but their warranty's good for extending manufacturer's one.
posted by SaharaRose at 5:51 PM on November 5, 2010