Netbooks

I can't believe that this subject hasn't really been fully breached on these forums until now. These little devils of computing, while lean on anything resembling modern hardware, are my go-to for Word Processing/Games/Internetz beyond the domain of my home.

I'm using the Dell Inspiron 1010, a tiny thing with a 10" screen and no disk drive, but I'm loving it.

I mean, I'm in the Bahamas right now, outdoors, posting on Gamespot. In just seconds, I can power down, toss it in with the other crap in my backpack, and be on my merry way...I've done this already literally a dozen times on the trip thus far. Its just the kind of portability that you don't get with other Laptops.

sure, the hardware is about as good as a desktop from nearly 3/4 a decade ago, but there are so many free retro games out there that take only moments to download, and not to mention DOSBox, with hundreds of games available. Plants Vs. Zeds? Check. Diablo 2? check. Audiosurf? Check.

The average netbook is just under $400. If you've got a desktop, and are thinking of buying a Notebook for Word/Business/other stuff I don't care about, then go for the cheaper, more portable netbooks. But be warned: there are some REALLY crappy ones out there. Do you research FIRST.

Sounds sweet, Im needing a new laptop for work soon, might checkem out but honestly Im just a sucker for the 17" screens. Massive laptops woo woo! =/

Sounds sweet, Im needing a new laptop for work soon, might checkem out but honestly Im just a sucker for the 17" screens. Massive laptops woo woo! =/

trijity

In the most recent PC Gamer there is an entire article on gaming with a netbook. And while you won't exactly be playing Crysis (or even CoD4, for that matter), there are tons of truly excellent games to play on a netbook. Basically any of the indie titles available on Steam or Impulse (i.e. World of Goo, Plants vs. Zombies, Darwinia, DEFCON, etc...), most of Blizzard's online offerings (Warcraft, Starcraft, and Diablo series), and a slew of other, older games (Deus Ex, Thief 2: The Metal Age, Baldur's Gate series, etc...) should all be playable on any of the little netbooks that are available (even with their integrated GMA950 chipsets...although, with the ASUS N10J netbook, you do get a dedicated nVidia 9300M GPU).

Actually theres been a few netbook threads around, i myself have an msi u100 and have got a few games on there myself.(Warcarft3+DOta,openttd,plants v zomies, world of goo, fallout2, planescape torment, crayon phys deluxe and others)

They are great little machines when you're on the go. Ive even been able to use photoshop on it though the small screen dosen't help.

It's true -.thanks to their size and weight, they're the first properly portable PCs. Once more decent graphics chipsets start making their way onto these units, laptop users are going to become a dying breed. I got myself a cheap, relatively unknown bog standard N270 + 945gse netbook, and I find myself using it as often as my gaming pc and far more than any laptop I've owned.jimmyjammer69

I can't believe that this subject hasn't really been fully breached on these forums until now. These little devils of computing, while lean on anything resembling modern hardware, are my go-to for Word Processing/Games/Internetz beyond the domain of my home.

I'm using the Dell Inspiron 1010, a tiny thing with a 10" screen and no disk drive, but I'm loving it.

I mean, I'm in the Bahamas right now, outdoors, posting on Gamespot. In just seconds, I can power down, toss it in with the other crap in my backpack, and be on my merry way...I've done this already literally a dozen times on the trip thus far. Its just the kind of portability that you don't get with other Laptops.

sure, the hardware is about as good as a desktop from nearly 3/4 a decade ago, but there are so many free retro games out there that take only moments to download, and not to mention DOSBox, with hundreds of games available. Plants Vs. Zeds? Check. Diablo 2? check. Audiosurf? Check.

The average netbook is just under $400. If you've got a desktop, and are thinking of buying a Notebook for Word/Business/other stuff I don't care about, then go for the cheaper, more portable netbooks. But be warned: there are some REALLY crappy ones out there. Do you research FIRST.

IMaBIOHAZARD