How I Got Rich

Samsung NC20

I finally got my netbook.  In the end I went for the Samsung NC20.  This is a ‘larger-screen netbook’ and it has a 12.1″ screen as opposed to the 9″ and 10″ screens more commonly found on netbooks.  It has a screen resolution of 1280 x 800 which again is bigger than most other netbooks on the market.  The downside of this extra screen space if of course a heavier and larger netbook but I was pretty sure the smaller resolutions would not be practical and a smaller netbook would end up not being of as much use as I hoped it would.

Samsung NC20

I’ve had it a day now and I am used to the smaller keyboard already.  The right shift key is quite short but I am now hitting it every time as I type.  The Windows key and the right-click key have been swapped over for some reason which is a bit annoying but what can you do?

So far I am very happy with it.  The battery seems to last for five hours so it will be perfect for taking out with me in the day and doing some work from various locations.  I think five hours of work will be enough!

The Samsing NC20 comes with 1gb of ram but I have also ordered a replacement 2gb stick of ram but at the moment it is doing everything I ask of it without complaining but I have yet to install Photoshop and Dreamweaver.

If you want a very portable laptop for a reasonable price I can’t recommend the Samsung NC20 enough.

Samsung NC20

Which Netbook?

I went into town today and whilst I was there I had a look at the netbooks that are currently available.  I’ve had my eye on a netbook ever since the first ASUS Eee PC came out.  The screen on that one was too small but as more netbooks were released I got more interested.

From the reviews I’ve read and the products I’ve seen in the stores the Acer netbooks and the Samsung netbooks seem to be the leaders of the pack.  Although that first ASUS netbook cost around £200 the newer ones can cost as much as £350 which is almost the price of a full-sized laptop.

The Samsung netbooks get the better reviews but are higher priced whilst the reviews for the Acer Aspire One netbooks are almost as good but cost a little less.  But the choice isn’t as clear as Samsung vs Acer as both have many netbooks with more appearing all the time.  The main Samsung netbooks seem to be the NC10, the NC120 and the new NC310.  But there is also the NC110 and the NC120.  The NC310 looks the best and has a rubber looking case with rounded edges and comes in an array of colours.  It also has the scrabble type keyboard which is pretty nice to type on.  There doesn’t seem to be much difference between the Samsung NC10 and the Samsung NC120 apart from the latter costing about £50 more.  All three have 10″ screens.

The Acer Aspire One netbooks are a bit cheaper and have the same spec as the Samsungs although the Aspire One 751 has an 11.6″ screen and a reported 7 hour battery life which would be nice to have on the road.

My main concerns are battery life and screen resolution.  As an affiliate the main task I will be doing on it, apart from web browsing and email, will be web design and the odd bit of logo design.  Due to this my main priority is screen resolution which doesn’t seem to be mentioned in most of the specifications for these netbooks.  I use my current laptop with a resolution of 1280 x 800 which is good enough for me at the moment.

I’m still not sure which one to get.  I am currently using a 4 year old Acer laptop with a 13″ screen which is still working well although a little short on disk space and a well worn down battery. Do I spend £350 on the Samsung or Acer and have it as a replacement to my current laptop or go for a cheap Asus Eee PC netbook for under £200 that I can take around with me and not worry too much about damaging or losing.  When I go away next month I plan to do a lot of work on the road, away from home so perhaps something a bit cheaper might be best.

Have you got a netbook?  Which one have you got and how do you find it?  What do you use it for?  It would be good to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for the comments.  Then general consensus seems to be that the screens as too small to do anything practical on the netbooks.   Since finding that out I’ve been looking at the Samsung NC20 which has a 12.1 inch screen and resolution of 1280 x 800 which is the same as my 13 inch screened laptop.  It retails for about £350 so I will definitely be considering it.  Anyone used one?