Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with subnotebook

Help me find my ideal subnotebook (if it exists...)

-1 — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:57:37 -0800

I need some help picking a new laptop to replace my current laptop (early-2008 MacBook), as it no longer suits my needs. Full details inside. I've been using an early-2008 MacBook (last of the BlackBooks) for the past couple months, and for the most part it's been great.

That said, I'm finding that I need more portability than the MacBook offers (the MacBook's fairly heavy), so I'm looking for a subnotebook/smallish notebook to replace it. I've also decided to start transitioning away from OS X to Linux (which I used for several years prior to OS X).

Here's a list of criteria for my new notebook along with the relative importance:

Long battery life (4 hours or greater.) Preferably using stock battery, but will use aftermarket or extended battery if necessary. Importance: 5/5

Full hardware support under Linux. Any distro is fine (barring Gentoo). And I do mean full hardware support -- that includes things like suspend-to-RAM, suspend-to-disk, all audio features (including IO jacks), etc. Doesn't have to be out of the box support, but I don't want to have to piece together a bunch of hacks that "usually work". I'm willing to spend a couple coffee-fueled nights getting everything set up, but the end result needs to be reliable and fully functional. Importance: 5/5

Lightweight. The lighter the better. Importance: 5/5 (less than 3 lbs), 4/5 (less than 2.5 lbs)

802.11b/g. Importance: mandatory.

Usable screen size. IMHO, the Asus eee 701's screen is way too small to be usable. A 9 or 10 inch screen would be fine. Importance: 3/5

Usable keyboard. This is subjective, I realize, but for comparison's sake I should point out that I am completely incapable of typing a single word without mistakes on the 701's keyboard. I'm happy to try out a machine in person, so this isn't a deal-breaker for a recommendation. Importance: 2/5

SSD. Would be nice. Not necessary (provided the normal-sized disk isn't dog slow...). I can always add one later if the HD is replaceable. Importance: 2/5

SD slot. I'd like to be able to use SD cards for extra storage. I can always use an external drive, but I think SD/SDHC might be a bit more elegant. Importance: 1/5

Cost. $1000 or less. I looked at the ThinkPad X300 and X61s, but they ended up being too expensive for me, given that they didn't have solid Linux support. If they did, I would have bought one, as I'm happy to pay a fair bit for a good Linux notebook. How the laptop meets the $1000 or less price point doesn't matter -- if I have to write to a man in Estonia to request a magical coupon that will get me a gift certificate for 15% off when I purchase the machine on eBay on a Tuesday, so be it. Importance: 4/5

Durable. I'm fairly careful with my electronics, but since I'm often on the go, accidents sometimes happen. The ideal notebook should be able to survive a fall from a chair or desk to the floor (when closed) with no ill effects. It at least needs to be able to deal with the usual impacts that come from using your notebook in 5-10 different locations each day. Obviously this requirement is one of the "more is better" ones... Importance: 5/5

So that's my nitpicky list. :D Hopefully somebody knows of a subnotebook that fits these criteria. If not... well, any recommendations would be appreciated. I'm not _that_ hard-headed, so if my dream subnotebook doesn't exist, I'm open to other recommendations.

Thanks!

Where to follow the booming subnotebook/ultraportable market online?

meso — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:01:25 -0800

What's the best online place to follow the latest subnotebooks and ultraportables to arrive on the market? I'm particularly eager to be in the starting blocks when Dell's E becomes available. Bonus points if the website isn't USA-centred, but also features international updates.

Will 12" satisfy me?

mendel — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 17:41:43 -0800

Am I going to regret getting a 12"-screen ultraportable laptop? I'm going to b-school in the fall for an MBA and am shopping for a refurbished laptop to use for school. Since I'm going to be lugging it around, I'm thinking of picking up an HP nc4000, a 12" subnotebook. It's got a full-size keyboard and otherwise meets my specs, but I'm wondering about that 12", 1024x768 screen and the general practicalities of subnotebooks.

Currently I've got a work-provided 14" screen laptop with 1400x1050 resolution. (I don't want to use my work laptop for school.) The refurb places around here have had no SXGA laptops, so the alternative to the nc4000 will probably be a 1024x768 14" screen.

Am I going to regret going with a little laptop with a 12" display? (By which I mean: Do you regret having had or not had an ultraportable 12" laptop?)

boot to the header

Zed_Lopez — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 11:40:50 -0800

What's a USB 5.25" external enclosure in which I can install an optical drive and boot a CD? How can I know? Please note: I'm well aware that some BIOSes allow you to boot from USB and some don't. I'm talking about a situation in which the BIOS allows it, but shortcomings of the enclosure might prevent it.

I'm getting a subnotebook without an optical drive. I want to get a cheap enclosure, like, say, this, in which to install an existing DVD-RW so I can install OSes, etc.

It seems that you can't boot from USB with some external optical drives. Since learning this, I haven't wanted to assume I could from a given enclosure/drive combo, but I haven't been able to find conclusive data for specific models.

So, does anyone know something I don't regarding how I could tell? Or does anyone have personal experience with a model you've booted from?

(I don't have firewire -- I'm looking for USB 2.0 on the outside, IDE on the inside.)

Old IBM sub-sub-notebook information?

dreamyshade — Sun, 25 Jun 2006 02:27:39 -0800

Asking for the boyfriend: I saw an extremely small IBM ThinkPad sometime in the mid-90's. It ran DOS and had an external floppy drive, and it sparked my love of sub-sub-notebooks. Does anyone else remember the machine I've described, or know its model number or where more information can be found?