by Isuru Wijeyaratne

There is a new guy in town. Netbook is indeed the new kid on the block and it has separated itself from the traditional laptop (notebooks), palmtops and the ultra portable PCs to create a massive market which has been growing exponentially. So what is exactly a “Netbook”? If I say that it is a stripped down version of a laptop I might be able do justice to the word. But matter of fact, “Netbooks” maybe the answer to so many computer users who are not and will not be using their laptops for serious computing. The truth is that a general person who carries a laptop would not usually use that computer for very complex tasks. He would usually use it to check emails, read documents or to browse the internet. These tasks do not need high end processors and also would not consume a lot of memory. So the question is, why spend money on a laptop which has a lot of processing power and a large memory if only a fraction of it is going to be used.

History

 Do you know the “One Laptop per Child” (OLPC) program? This was the program that was started in 2005 by the members of MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Media Lab pioneered by Seymour Papert and Alan Kay. The ambition of this program is to educate children around the world through the use of low cost laptops which allowed them the access to information from all around the world. Their first product was XO-1 which was also known as the “$100 laptop” since it was intended to cost $100. These computers did not have hard drives but instead ran on flash drives. The operating system was Linux rather than Microsoft Windows which most of you use. But these computers were sophisticated on their own. It was given access to WiFi or wireless networks so children could use the computer at their own comfort. Although at first most of the big names in the computer hardware industry turned down this idea, including Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and CEO of Intel, it did not take much time for them to see big money in it. Although many would give credit to Asus Eee PC as the birth of the netbook market which was release back in 2007, it was the “OLPC” program that ignited this massive portable computer market.

2008 was the year of netbooks as many brands put out their version. Brands such as Asus, Acer and MSI were the first to get the bite but the other big names like Lenovo, HP, Sony VAIO and Dell were not far behind. Software vendors are also backing up the industry such as Microsoft and also community developed Ubuntu. Netbooks are flooding the market as new names are merging with many different specifications and designs. Below are details of few of the popular netbooks in the market.

 Asus Eee PC

 Eee PC has always looked up to by the others since it was the first to start off a commercially viable market for the netbooks. Asus did not disappoint this time at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas by introducing new netbook models. Asus came up with two tablet versions, T91 and T101H. The T91 has an 8.9 inch screen (diagonally) where as the T101H has a 10 inch. T91 is powered by Z520 Intel Atom processor and is also equipped with a TV tuner and a built-in GPS. The T91 would have Microsoft XP home as the operating system. The most interesting thing is like all tablets; it has a “multi touch” screen which is quite rare in the netbook market. There is not much information about the T101 but it is expected to have much bigger capacity in the hard drive than its little brother. Asus also introduced other netbooks in their line up such as Eee PC 1002HA and Eee PC S101. Both are powered by Intel Atom 1.6GHz processor and 1GB of RAM. What next to be expected in the Asus lineup is Eee PC 1004DN which comes with the newest Atom chip and also comes with a DVD drive (which is very new to netbooks). The price of Eee PC 1002HA would be in the range of $350 - $450 and Eee PC S101 would vary between $600 and $650.

 Sony VAIO P Series

 This was the most talked about netbook at Consumer Electronics Show this year. This probably would be the most elegant of all netbooks. It is thin, light and short with just enough space to give room for the screen and the keyboard. It houses a track point that removes the need to space a touch pad. For people who want a palm rest, this is not the laptop for you. With a resolution of 1600 X 768 it can make it harder for some people to read. But it does come up with a feature to zoom in so that a lengthy document can be read with much ease. The power cable is too is very compact and it also includes a small breakout box that includes a VGA and the Ethernet port. Although it comes with Vista as an option, it would be bit of a load for the small VAIO P. But the good news it that it did well with Windows 7 which would be the next operating system coming out of Microsoft. With a price tag of $899 for the basic model it is bit more expensive than an ordinary netbook.

HP mini Series

 The HP mini series have become more popular since its first model HP 2133 Mini-Note. The newest editions of the HP mini series have taken a bold move by replacing the VIA chipset which was used by their predecessors and using the Intel Atom instead. The HP mini 1000 was announced last year that was equipped with Intel Atom 1.6 GHz with 2GB RAM, 10 inch display, 60GB or the option to select 16GB or 32 GB SSD (solid state drives) and Microsoft XP. This model ranges from $330 to $550 according to the configuration selected. The HP Mini 2140 is actually the next model which is to replace much loved HP 2133 Mini-Note. It retains the case of its predecessor but includes an Intel Atom chip instead of the VIA. But the best thing being it having better options such as to include a USB external optical drive, 80GB SSD, and a 6 cell battery to increase the battery life would help a great deal. It can range from $500 to double the price if 80GB SSD option was chosen.

Dell Mini