Netbooks were cute, back in 2007. When Asus introduced the Linux-running, low-powered, inexpensive and plasticky EeePC, it was more of a hobbyist item, for the curious few looking to make a challenge of working with limited hardware.
Then everybody started to put work – and play – online, and the browser became the most important application on a computer. Computing’s gone retro; our computers have become dumb terminals again, relying on the remote server to do the work and store the data.
Then the financial crisis hit, and it’s no longer trendy to blow $1500 on a new computer when $500 would do.
Which brings us to the HP Mini 1000, the netbook I bought for Sui last month to replace her older HP laptop. It was too heavy for her daily campus treks, and she recognized that her schoolwork (Google Docs), along with her media consumption (abc.com for video, Winamp radio stations for audio) were all accomplished via a stable internet connection. Black Friday deals and solid reviews made HP’s 2nd generation netbook a perfect fit.
Of course, using a netbook necessitates lowered expectations: most run Linux or Windows XP, saving the remaining power for the hungry browser; they have no optical drive, minimal RAM and a small solid-state drive; the display is low-resolution screen and tiny; the speakers, if there are any, are pretty bad.
Fortunately, the HP Mini measures up pretty well.
Liked
- Cheap price. $350 to start, $500 fully-spec’ed. Fast(ish) 1.6 GHz Atom processor, 1 GB RAM, and Windows XP is pretty good for the price.
- Great keyboard. Netbooks tend to have small, squishy keyboards to save space and cost, but the Mini’s setup is just like a regular notebook.
- Loud speakers. Much better than expected out of such a tiny and economically priced machine.
- Good build quality. The shell feels solid and doesn’t have that toyish, white plastic build. The placement of ports, trackpad, and speakers maximize the space available.
Hated
- Limited solid state storage. I went with the 60GB hard drive, but I would have paid more for even a 32GB solid state drive.
- Non-standard trackpad. Still trying to get used to the side mouse buttons.
- Crappy resolution. Although this is a problem with most netbooks, dealing with 1024×600 (non-standard and smaller than what most modern websites/applications expect) is a pain.
- Iffy battery life. HP is using a 3-cell battery, which lasts for 3 hours – new. Can’t netbooks break the mold of laptops being forever leashed to a power outlet a year after they’re unwrapped?
- A webcam. Why bother putting one in when it’s so bad?
For me (and I suspect for most people), the relevant question is whether a netbook in general is worth the purchase, with the Mini delivering on many of the category’s selling points. Sui certainly seems happy with it, so for non-power-users it seems to work well as a lightweight notebook replacement, and great as a secondary or ternary computing platform.
And it’s cheap. I like cheap.