What's a Netbook Anyway?

Computers and I never really had an easy relationship. As a kid, my family didn't have a direct need for a computer. My sisters and I meticulously hand-wrote our school papers in blue or black pen, and for the big projects, used an electronic typewriter inherited from my cousin Jeremy.

It wasn't until high school that we purchased a Dell desktop for school and work. (Ahem, not to mention three teenage girls desperate for access to AOL Instant Messenger.) When it came time to go to college, I stuck with what was familiar, and again chose a Dell desktop package, complete with printer, flat screen monitor, and speakers. And as some of you may know, I discovered the world of Macs when I graduated from college.

For years, a desktop was all that I needed. I used iTunes to play and store music, iPhoto to organize photo albums, internet to connect with friends, Garageband to work on music projects, and Myspace to publish them. A simple Excel spreadsheet helped me track my budget, and Word helped me write any correspondence that was needed for work. It was the perfect situation.

So you can imagine how I surprised myself when I went to BestBuy in search of a laptop this past weekend. As a new graduate student at NYU, and with only a week of classes under my belt, I could already recognize the need to be increasingly mobile and flexible with computing. As it stood, I could only do my homework in one place, my desk at home, which meant doing work late at night, and at a small wooden desk. The thought of being able to do work in the library, at a cozy café, or even the park by my house was looking more and more inviting.

I walked into Bestbuy with a list of three laptops which I had researched, paying close attention to customer reviews and affordability:

-Toshiba Satellite Laptop with Intel Celeron Processor
-Compaq Presario Laptop with Intel Celeron Processor
-HP Intel Atom Processor N455 Laptop

My list of needs was short – I needed a machine for Word documents, Power Point, Excel, and internet. My real computer was my Mac desktop at home, so the main function of the new laptop was simply to improve mobility. I checked out the three models above and decided to go with the Compaq. With 3 hours and 45 minutes of battery life, and 2 gigabytes of memory, it was also the most affordable of the three. That’s when Will sauntered up.

“Can I help you with something today?” he asked. I told him why I was on the market for a laptop, and he raised his eyebrows when he realized what I was looking for.

“Sounds like you really just need a second computer to travel around with. Have you thought about getting a netbook?”



A whatbook? I was practically still figuring out what a laptop could do, let alone a netbook.

Turns out laptops and netbooks are almost the same thing, except the netbook is smaller and more manageable in terms of staying mobile. Weighing in at a miniscule three pounds, a netbook can have an 8 or 10 inch screen, and usually lacks a CD/DVD drive and number pad usually found on its bigger laptop cousins. Those items aside, all of the functions are the same, and the netbooks smaller size means MUCH longer battery life; some were marketed at close to 10 hours.

After snooping around the netbook section of the store, I found a model that seemed perfect for me – the HP Mini 210-1092DX. At 2.99 pounds, this little machine boasts a 10.1 inch screen, 9 hours and 45 minutes of battery life, and 1 gigabyte of memory. While that may not be a great deal of storage, it will do the trick for the few papers and emails that I will save on it at one time.



After making the purchase and playing around on the HP mini for a few days, and as I sit typing away from my comfy couch, I can honestly say that I am happy with my choice.