How to buy a netbook

Four months ago, we published a buyers guide for small, lightweight laptops titled, 'How to buy a mini-laptop.'

Mini-laptops are now generally called netbooks -- a name coined by Intel -- but the devices remain popular for their small size, half to two-thirds the size of a normal laptop and far lighter. With the holidays fast approaching, we decided it was the right time to revisit this product segment and lay out the issues users will want to consider before they make a purchase.

Netbooks have caught on because they offer people a mobile, easy way to wirelessly access the Web. And over the past few months a dozen or more new netbooks have hit the market, giving people a wider range of choices.

Most netbooks sport small LCD screens, 8.9-inches to 10-inches, versus an average of 15.4-inches for normal laptops. Netbooks generally weigh around 2.2 lbs (1 kilogram) each, far lighter than most laptops, and carry batteries that last up to 8 hours. They cost between US$199 and $799.

For anyone looking to buy now, here are some tips for your first netbook, compiled after reviewing about a dozen of them.

1. Make sure you want a netbook and not a full-fledged laptop computer.

What do you want to use this netbook for? Do you want a lightweight device for easy Internet access? Or are you really looking for a device to carry around that you can edit video on, play games, or use for other applications that test the computing limits of a netbook?

Don't buy a netbook if you're really looking for a laptop, it would be a mistake.

To ensure longer battery life, some key components on a netbook, such as the microprocessor, are less powerful than common laptops. That's why they're good for surfing the Internet, sending e-mails, or doing homework.

Anyone looking to do more should shop for a more powerful laptop, not a netbook.

2. Buy a netbook with an 8.9-inch screen or larger.

I tested an Eee PC with a 7-inch screen, the Surf, and found screen too small. I was not able to view an entire Web page on the cramped display. On a screen that small, you have to scroll left and right as well as up and down to see an entire Web page. Scrolling up and down is normal, but left and right was annoying.

That's less of a problem on the slightly larger-sized screens and, in the 8.9-inch screen size, the weight and size of the netbook is nearly the same as devices with 7-inch screens.

The 10-inch screens are even better, yet add size and weight to the netbook.

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