Netbooks R Us
We purchased a Toshiba Netbook NB305-00F back in June, mostly in preparation for our East Coast Trip. We wanted to have some computing power on the road, needed one for the conference, and maybe once in awhile, to check email and watch video and music.
All in all, it was very worthwhile. The Netbook comes with: 1gb RAM, a 250Gb harddrive, an Intel Atom N450 processor @1.66GHz, 3 USB ports, external VGA, external mike, external headphones, builtin mic and webcam.
The only downside we have found is the audio… not quite loud enough to watch movies. Battery life has been excellent. Easily 8 hours during some of the conference days.
The only downside is the Windows 7 Starter. We attempted an in place upgrade to windows 7 home but it failed for no readily apparent reason. It did screw up enough that I had to restore from factory default.
I am so tempted to try out Ubuntu or Fedora 13 on it! But that would require purchasing an external USB optical DVD Drive for about $90.
The wired and wireless networking has worked very well. So much better than Vista.
The technical specs are:
* 1.66GHz Intel Atom N455 processor
* 1GB memory; Expandable to 2GB
* 250GB hard drive
* 10.1” wide TFT colour LCD with LED sidelight
* Windows 7 Starter
* Integrated microphone and 1.3MP Webcam
* Connectivity options include 10/100 Ethernet LAN, Bluetooth v2.1+EDR and Wireless LAN (802.11 bgn)
* Ports include 3 x USB and Bridge Media Adaptor (SD, Multimedia Card)
* Up to 8 hours battery life
* Energy Star qualified
* Colour: Mocha Brown
* Dimensions: 0.95”/1.21”(H) x 10.47”(W) x 7.57”(D)
* Weight: 2.6 lb.
* 1-year limited warranty
Keep a watch out for sales… this one came from Staples.