Building the perfect Netbook

Smaller and cheaper have always been big tech buzzwords, and the currently hot category of Netbook laptops seems to be embracing that spirit better than anyone else in recent memory. After all, we used to be crazy for 11- and 12-inch ultraportable laptops, which combined uninspiring performance and poor battery life into packages costing upward of $2,000. Now we can get comparable performance and (sometimes) better battery life in small 9- and 10-inch systems for $400-$700.

With low-power processors, tiny screens and finger-cramping keyboards, most of these Netbooks aren't good for much more than surfing the Web, checking e-mail, working on office documents, and maybe a little light multimedia playback--but that's 90 percent of what we do with our laptops anyway.

Still, the Netbook craze may be getting out of hand. Even without upcoming entries from Dell and Lenovo, we've looked at five new models recently, and consumers who may very well be interested in a second or travel laptop are confused by the different components, prices and even operating systems available.

To help clear up the confusion, we looked at a bunch of current Netbooks and created a handy chart to show you what's inside each one, as well as battery life, and most importantly, price.

CNET's handy Netbook comparison chart

Name	CPU	Hard Drive	RAM	OS	Screen	Battery	Price
Asus Eee PC 901	1.6GHz Intel Atom N270	12GB SSD	1GB	XP	8.9	315	599
Asus Eee PC 1000	1.6GHz Intel Atom N270	40GB SSD	1GB	Linux	10.0	356	699
Acer Aspire One	1.6GHz Intel Atom N270	8GB SSD	512MB	Linux	8.9	134	379
MSI Wind	1.6GHz Intel Atom N270	80GB HDD	1GB	XP	10.0	116	499
Sylvania G Netbook	1.2GHz VIA C7-M	30GB HDD	1GB	Linux	7.0	183	399

Do you want a more detailed comparison? Check out "Searching for the perfect Netbook."

To our surprise, we found that none of these Netbooks hit all the benchmarks we were looking for--some were underpowered, some had terrible batteries, and others simply cost too much for what should be almost an impulse purchase.

The Eee PC 901 hits most of the marks, and we love its extended battery life, but at $600, it's just as expensive as a comparable 15-inch budget laptop. The Eee PC 1000 is even more expensive, thanks to its best feature, a 40GB SSD drive, but again, excellent battery life, topping five hours.

Acer's Aspire One is great-looking Netbook, and at $379, it's also one of the cheapest. However, by saving a few bucks, you have to accept a measly 512MB of RAM and a battery that lasts only about two hours. It also has a Linux OS instead of Windows XP. While that certainly has its advantages (cheaper, runs well with less RAM), we generally prefer Windows XP in our Netbooks--it's more familiar to people, and makes it easier to install new software or troubleshoot problems.

The MSI Wind came close to fulfilling our Netbook dreams, but we'd rather have a smaller SSD drive (for less weight, better battery life, and hopefully more reliability, thanks to its lack of moving parts), than an 80GB standard platter drive. Also, at less than two hours, this is one of the worst batteries we've seen on anything besides a massive desktop replacement.

The Sylvania G Netbook has some decent component choices, but it was totally undone by a tiny 7-inch screen, virtually unusable touch pad, and a sluggish older VIA processor (we're still waiting to see something with VIA's new Nano Netbook CPU, which has been garnering some positive buzz).

If you're in the business of making PCs, listen up, because we're about to tell you how to build the perfect Netbook--a Frankenstein-like system, combining our favorite parts from all the Netbooks we've tested.

Our dream Netbook

• CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270--We're open to new challengers, but this has quickly become the default Netbook CPU.
• Hard Drive: At least 20GB SSD--We know SSD drives are expensive--but that's our minimum for useful storage and expansion.
• RAM: 1GB--Perfect for running the stripped-down version of XP found in many Netbooks.
• OS: Windows XP--Netbooks are supposed to be especially consumer-friendly--having a familiar operating system helps, plus it's easier to install new software or troubleshoot problems.
• Screen: 8.9-inches--The best marriage of usability and portability.
• Battery: At least 180 minutes--We know longer battery life requires bigger, bulkier batteries, so we'll compromise for a solid three hours.
• Price: $499--Here's the most important part. A Netbook needs to come in less than that magic $500 mark to stand out from the scores of cheap mainstream laptops on the market.

So there's our challenge to the computer industry. Build one of these, and you'll not only likely sell a ton of units, but you'll also have the satisfaction of saying you built the perfect Netbook.

Or, if you have a better idea of what the perfect Netbook would include, let's hear it--there's plenty of space for comments below.

[muestro]

Add: the ability to choose linux and have it be cheaper. I don't want to have to pay for something I won't use.

[Noodle8173]

i would love to see the new Acer aspire one with XP on that list. With 120g HD 1g of RAM and going for around $400 why would you pick anything else? :P

[C433Z]

exactly. that's what i've come think anyways.

[priyadutta]

hey.. i hav heard about the one u mention.. can u pls tell me is that one fyn for doin 3D animation work..? anyone who can please help.. :)

[budman_45]

walmart $348bought one what i am using now

[philinboston]

I agree with the above comment that the Acer Aspire One with XP and 1 GB memory at $399 seems to hit all the sweet spots and I have seen it available online. Have the reviewers had a chance to look at it? There is also supposed to be a 6 cell model but have not seen that one. Has anyone?

[Fernyyy]

The eee PC 1000H is getting close to these requirements. The 10" screen is bigger and it has a 80gb hdd instead of ssd, but with a price around $550 and real life battery of about 4 - 4.5 hours (they list 7+ hours) it's sounding better and better.

[TechnoMan475392]

Where is the 701? :'-(

[cvk55]

NCIX has the Aspire one in stock with XP, 1 gig RAM, 120 Gig HD AND 6 cell battery for $424.02 Can$ .

[fwiedmer]

Looks like a another model was missed. Because they've been advertising a lot during the Olympics, I went over to the Lenovo site. They have a IdeaPad S series (http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:category.details?current-catalog-id=12F0696583E04D86B9B79B0FEC01C087&current-category-id=02695ADDF94544E5A11D24AEBC064493). Pretty neat specs for the price though they're stingy on the RAM and not clear what ports are there (i.e. SD card for more RAM). Perhaps there can be a follow-up Crave post looking at this unit and the Dell "mini-Inspiron" (when it comes out).

[Kev50027]

I love my Acer Aspire One. I'm thinking of putting a HDD in and installing XP, but for now, Linux is working just fine for me. I like that it's the very best deal out there, and I installed an 8GB SD card for memory expansion, but honestly I haven't used it at all, I thought I would put all my music on there and stuff, but I end up using it to chat and surf the web mostly. Sometimes I'll download a song or watch some online videos.

[bobbrew]

I'm not as computer savvy as most of you, so can someone explain why this 2nd Fujitsu P1510D, tablet, bluetooth, WiFi, 1Gig, 60G HD I just bought for $550 isn't the perfect Dream Netbook? My 1st is still loaded with Microsoft bloatwear and many other programs and was taking too long to boot up so I bought a backup for Cloud computing. I CANNOT BE HAPPIER. Quick bootup / shutdown and I'm doing 98% of things I normally do without the Bloatwear. Plus it's nice having two computers for multitasking. When I travel, I'm looking at 4.4 pounds for both! Typically less than what most manufacturers specify as a lightweight notebook.

[geneven]

You got a good deal. It's not listed for that price anywhere I can see it.

[bobbrew]

I got it on Ebay from a guy in NY state. Curiously, it does not show up on "Completed" items on Ebay. Most of the machines that are there now aren't quite as loaded as this one but not by much. My recent problem is that the P1510D doesn't seem to accept SDHC cards in the SD slot.

[CyberBob859]

I want something like the HP Mini-Note, but with an Atom processor running Mac OS/X.

[miggy_san45]

they commented upon both the upcoming dell and lenovo netbook, but decided to exlclude them as they have not been released yet.

[aximuser]

I bought the Acer Aspire One about a month ago. I replaced Linux with Windows XP. XP works comfortably with 512MB RAM. The SSD is only 8GB but after installing MS Office 2002 (XP Professional), the .NET framework plus a bunch of other application and developer tools (I program in APL) and I still have over 2GB of free space on the C drive. This netbook comes with two SD slots so I have dedicated one with a 4GB SD card to store data and videos so in total I have 12GB of solid state storage. I use the VideoLAN player to play back divx videos.

I am impressed the Atom processor. Net books are sold as light-weight PCs but I have been able to run multiple programs and generally do more than I was told

Given the choice, I probably would have opted for the newer Aspire One model with XP installed and the 120GB hard disk drive if it were available when I was buying but for my purposes I can live with what I have.

The portabiity of the Aspire One is amazing. It is really light and small and fits into my gym bag easily. I do not notice it is there Battery life is about 2 1/2 hours. Not great but OK.

[DougC-3]

While I agree that netbooks should be as inexpensive as possible, I think models with more features should be available at extra cost for people who want more features.

It makes no sense to compare netbook cost to that of a six-pound budget laptop--they are intended for entirely different purposes. This is like comparing the prices of the Morris Mini-Cooper, VW New Beetle, Honda Fit, etc., with those of the cheapest full-sized Ford or Chevy. They are designed for and marketed to different people with different needs.

[michaellauthebest]

it definitely has to have bluetooth and a webcam plus microphone. bluetooth is a key feature for ultraportable computers for convenience with your other mobile devices while webcam and camera allow you to use skype and messengers to their full potential on the road.

[vinthan06]

for this u could buy a dell inspiron 1520 for $499 which is way better

[devang]

what about the Gigabyte W251U? Thats 12.1 inches though but its great for the price.

[markwoodbury]

Dan,

I am sure you all know this, but Acer released the Windows XP version of the Aspire ONE; I purchased mine at Microcenter for $399.00. It has a 100-120? Hard Drive and 1 GB of Ram. It does have the 2 hr battery life that you hovered on from your show.

I bought the machine and I am very happy with its performance. My opiniion is this was the best one I had seen. I am still a believer that more memory is better than a smaller SSD Hard Drive. I would defenitely review this machine.

Thank you for your excellent reviews and keep up the great work!

Mark

[nutta_guy]

"RAM: 1GB--Perfect for running the stripped-down version of XP found in many Netbooks. "

This is inaccurate.. they have a fully functioning, no different to standard desktop, Windows XP Home installed on them.. you would think that Cnet would no better.. stripped down versions are installed by advanced users using nlite...

[kirikiri_star]

i have an msi wind with a 6 cell battery. on it, i get 5.5 hours when i turn down my screen and turn off the wifi. with internet on, i get around 5 hours.
it cost me 530+tax, and it works amazingly.

another person has the eee 1000h (with 80GB) and i prefer the msi wind over it. the 1000h has an awful trackpad and keyboard, and the screen is fingerprint unfriendly.

[vasu_k]

There is compaq laptop at microcenter for 499.. which is high end and 1000 times better than netbook.. i understand two differ in term of light weight/portability, but the price should also be different..