Crave

Mac OS X loading onto the Dell Mini 9.

(Credit: Gizmodo)

My brother-in-law Ken IM'd me the other day with this message: "Did you see they're loading OS X on Netbooks?" He sent me a link to a Gizmodo article that explained how to hack a Netbook into running Apple's OS X. He also pointed me to a chart that BoingBoing put together showing how compatible various Netbooks are with OS X.

Obviously, none of this stuff is geared to the average consumer--and there are certainly some bugs to contend with--but with some tweaks, techies have gotten certain Netbooks to run OS X shockingly well. Perfect or not, those articles and some videos had my brother-in-law, who's a total Applehead, champing at the bit to get his hands on an Apple Netbook.

Here's the conversation that followed:

Ken: "Apple really needs to do a Netbook."

Me: "Yes, now. It's the biggest growth category in laptops. They're missing out on a big opportunity to take Windows' share away."

Ken: "Apple keeps saying it doesn't want to go near the low-end and make crappy notebooks with low margins. Would tarnish the brand, hurt the bottom line."

Me: "They're lying. They know they have to go there."

Ken: "Agree."

Me: "So they slap a little design flair on the thing, put one model out for $599 and another for $699. Sure, the Windows version would cost you $350-$450, but I'd have no problem paying the Apple premium on one of these."

Ken: "A lot of people would pay $599 for an Apple Netbook."

Me: "No one's buying the Macbook Air at $1,800."

Ken: "I wouldn't say no one."

Me: "OK, but it's sort of the Apple TV of laptops. It's just not that relevant. Most people would prefer buying a more powerful notebook that weighs a little more for a grand."

Ken: "I agree. I almost bought an Air when it first came out, but I'm glad I didn't pull the trigger." [Note: Ken uses a MacBook Pro but he wants a Netbook for nonbusiness travel].

Me: "Apple always talks about design--and they do have great designers--but what people want now is cheap. As I said, this thing doesn't have to be a masterpiece. I'd rather see them keep things simple and elegant and keep the cost down to $599."

Ken: "You should write a column."

Me: "I will."

I have a feeling a lot of other people are having similar conversations. And while I believe that Apple's on the verge of missing an opportunity here--and think it needs to move quickly to put out a Netbook--I also think that it's well aware of the market dynamics.

Microsoft has made it a point to say that Windows 7 is designed to run on entry-level machines, and it's clearly targeting low-cost Netbooks as the next big frontier.

At the same time, Apple is heading toward its own release of a new operating system, Snow Leopard, which is also designed to run faster and more efficiently. So, you'd think that it, too, is ultimately looking toward more inexpensive PCs, including a so-called MacBook Mini and the much-rumored next-gen Mac Mini.

As far my Netbook experience goes, I've been working on and off on a Lenovo S10 loaner unit, and like it enough to strongly consider one of these machines over the next few months.

My brother-in-law is encouraging me to convert the Lenovo into an OS X machine (the S10 is on the list of Netbooks that do pretty well with OS X), though he knows that neither Apple nor Lenovo would be too keen on me doing this. As Gizmodo says, "Hackintoshing" violates the OS X EULA, and should you want to return your hacked Lenovo S10 or Dell Mini 9 for service, you'll probably get the cold shoulder.

"I'm really tempted to buy one of these things and put OS X on it," he IM'd me last night. "I can get a loaded Dell Mini 9 Linux version for just over $400. 2 gigs of RAM and a 32GB flash-based drive."

He'd rather wait for the Apple Netbook, of course. But I have a feeling that if it doesn't come soon, he's not going to be able to wait any longer. The force is strong for the Apple lover who longs for a Netbook.

What do you guys think?

Helpful links:

CNET's best Netbooks (full reviews)

Gizmodo's step-to-step guide to turning the Dell Mini 9 into a Mac Netbook

BoingBoing Netbook compatibility chart

Wired's running OS X on a Netbook (Apple made Wired pull the video)

Wake up and restore from MSI Wind Netbook with Mac OS X (YouTube video):

Acer Aspire time trial with video running (YouTube video)

These won't last, so I'm going to make it quick: Dell's outlet store has the Inspiron Mini 9 Netbook on sale for as low as $178 shipped.

That price is for the low-end model, which features the 1.6GHz Atom processor, 512MB of RAM, a 4GB solid-state hard drive, and Ubuntu Linux. It's available in Alpine White or Obsidian Black.

Once you land at the outlet store page, click Outlet Laptops, then Inspiron & Mini Laptops, and then Inspiron Mini. Under Inspiron Mini 9, click Continue, then Check Availability and Prices. In the ginormous list of recertified models that appears, click the Price column to sort low-to-high. You should see the aforementioned Mini 9 models for $209. Add the one you want to your cart, then apply coupon code $C$TXXP1CT3BLC to bring the price down to $177.65.

To Dell's credit, refurbished ("recertified") Netbooks get the same one-year warranty and 24-7 tech support as new units.

Wow. That's a seriously low price on a Netbook, especially one that CNET Reviews liked. The specifications are actually OK for a Linux-based system, though the limited storage is likely to be problem for most users. Ah, well. You can always pop in a cheap 8GB SD card to triple your available space.

Update: Alas, it appears the coupon code is already dead. So what do you think: Is this deal still attractive at $209?

Update #2: Users are reporting that the coupon is working again, so perhaps Dell extended the deal. Get it while you can!

Dell Mini 9--now with 3G in the U.S.

(Credit: Dell)

The Inspiron Mini 9 can now be ordered with built-in mobile broadband, Dell announced Tuesday.

Just last week, CEO Michael Dell confirmed the company was signing up more wireless providers as partners on its new line of Netbooks, but gave no specific date. Dell has offered 3G capability with Vodafone for European customers since the device's September launch.

Now U.S. customers get their turn. For $125 more, the 9-inch Netbook can now be configured with embedded WWAN (Wireless Wide Area Network). But right now, AT&T is offering a $120 rebate to those who sign a new two-year service contract.

The new wireless offer is only available on new Windows XP versions of the Mini 9.

(Credit: Dell)

The recently released Dell Inspiron Mini 9 is getting a face lift. Depending on your taste, that is. What I'm trying to say is that if you like hot pink, you're in for a treat.

On Thursday, Dell launched new colors and graphics designs for the Mini 9. OK, not just hot pink, but you'll have your choice of cherry red as well. If, however, you'd actually like to leave the house with your computer, Dell is also offering Mini 9s with art by "designer toy" designer Tristan Eaton.

I must say, a couple of the Tristan-designed cases are cool-looking, but personally I'd probably stick with plain, boring colors to match my plain and boring life. Now, if I was Paris Hilton or Seen it's possible that I'd be more excited.

Dell's new Mini 12. We assume the pen is there for scale.

(Credit: Dell)

We first got a glimpse of Dell's 12-inch take on the Netbook behind closed doors a few months ago. After that, it kind of vanished from our radar screens, only to pop up Sunday, in an announcement that the system is making its debut in Japan.

It's an interesting hybrid of the ultraportable and Netbook formats, combining a 12-inch laptop chassis with the basic heart of a Netbook, namely the Intel Atom CPU. Most Netbooks have a 9- or 10-inch display, so the jump to 12 inches makes for a very different experience. Less portable, to be sure, but perhaps just big enough to win over those who say tiny Netbooks are too small and too hard to use, even for a quick trip to the coffee shop. Even with the bigger footprint, it still starts at 2.7 pounds and tapers from 0.92 to 1.09 inches.

We're already big fans of Dell's current Netbook, the Inspiron Mini 9--it's pretty much the same as almost every other Netbook out there, but Dell offers more configuration options than most. The new 12-inch version has a few notable differences--the hard drives are traditional 60GB and 80GB platter drives, not the SSD drives found in the Mini 9, and the OS choices have been expanded from XP and Ubuntu Linux to also include Windows Vista Basic (in fact, Vista Basic is the launch OS, XP and Linux are expected by the end of the year).

At first, the Mini 12 is only going to be available at select retail outlets in Japan, but it should show up stateside by late November, for less than $600.

We've known for some time that Dell was working on a Netbook-style laptop--the same kind of small, low-power, inexpensive system made popular by Asus and the Eee PC line. And even though there are not many surprises in the just-announced Inspiron Mini 9 (previous leaks revealed the system's design and features), it's still exciting to see a major player back the Netbook concept in a big way.

Component-wise, the Mini 9 is similar to other recent Netbooks, such as the Eee PC 901 and the Acer Aspire One, and includes Intel's Atom CPU. But in typical Dell fashion, there are more customization options than we've seen in a Netbook before.

Our test unit arrived with 1GB of RAM, a 16GB solid-state hard drive, and Windows XP. That config costs $514 and comes very close to hitting the benchmarks we set out in our "Building the Perfect Netbook" feature, which asked for similar components, but maybe a slightly bigger SSD hard drive and an impulse-purchase $499 price tag.