Netbooks

[Samwise]

My wife got a cheap Acer during a wootoff ($200, I think it's normally $250).  I might have to get one for myself because I keep wanting to play with it.  It fills that "websurfing on the couch" niche that the iPad is supposed to tackle, except I can actually play web games on it since it has proper Flash/JS support.

[Rasix]

I recently got a Dell netbook for my wife and we ended up returning it (and eating a restock fee).  It just felt really slow and my wife didn't like using it.

Now we're in the market for a smallish (13-14" screen or smaller) notebook that doesn't feel completely gimped, but at the same time isn't very expensive. 

[Nerf]

While not a netbook, Wal-Mart still has some emachines for $298 - 15.6' screen, core2duo T4400 2.2ghz processor, win 7, and 3gb of ddr3 ram.

Edit:  In-store only, and the ones I went to didn't actually have them on display, you have to look for them in the cage under the laptops or ask for them.

[rattran]

I just set up a su7300 based laptop for someone, a 15.6", but it looks like the same processor or similar are used down to 11.6" Zippy little machine with a damn fine battery life.

[schild]

I recently got a Dell netbook for my wife and we ended up returning it (and eating a restock fee).  It just felt really slow and my wife didn't like using it.

Now we're in the market for a smallish (13-14" screen or smaller) notebook that doesn't feel completely gimped, but at the same time isn't very expensive.  

Alienware M11x.

Edit: That's my response for everything notebook related until new processors come out.

[stray]

there are also some slick looking, cheap toshibas that are pretty nice netbook alternatives atm. no dvd drive/13" or less/long battery life. there's a few models at best buy. almost got one myself, but i still think a disc drive is pretty necessary.

[CmdrSlack]

I'm debating getting one of these for my kid and locking down the browser so she can only go to the two or three sites she ever looks at. Problem is that for watching movies, she'd be stuck with whatever is available on our Netflix instant queue. That's not a big deal, and maybe someday I"ll put together a media center PC with some of her other movies backed up on it.

I'm just wondering how "kid tough" your average netbook happens to be.

[Engels]

If you get an SSD for it, pretty tough, in terms of jolts and bangs. Now, no netbook/laptop in the world is going to stand up to a full sippy cup of OJ dumped on the keyboard.

[Righ]

Some Panasonic Toughbooks are sealed to IP65 compliant levels. They will indeed survive the full sippy assault, and you can hose them down at residential water pressures. Better than that does exist, but only as custom (re-cased) builds.

[Engels]

Uhm, ya, I guess I should have mentioned those. But I CmdrSlack was probably not looking to spend over a grand.

[CmdrSlack]

Yeah, I was shooting for the 250-300 range. Based on her current propensity to destroy her things, we may be pushing it back towards the holidays and hoping that the intervening nine months changes that a bit.

[stray]

Anything with Hello Kitty on it.

[raydeen]

Anything with Hello Kitty on it.

http://www.crunchgear.com/2008/11/21/onkyosotec-releases-hello-kitty-netbook/

[Lucas]

I got a white netbook Asus EeePC 101X as a gift: a very nice piece  (you can also expand the memory from 1GB to 2)

Very useful while you travel, study ecc. : I can play 720p videos smoothly , use social networks at their fullest (including G+ hangouts with the integrated cam, for example) and also dump in there all the GOG.com games I feel a hitch to play (Ultimas, various adventure games...you name it) . There is also a "Cloud" interface that you can use without loading up Windows at all . A perfect purchase for my needs without having to spend the crazy Apple prices.

http://notebookspecificationreview.com/netbook-2/specification-review/