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The idea of a netbook isn't exactly new. Microsoft first touted the concept of a small laptop-style device with a long battery life as far back as the late 1990s. Back then it was pushing its Windows CE Professional operating system.
What about connectivity?
As the name suggests, netbooks are really aimed at people who want an easy-to-use device that gives them access to the internet, and they certainly seem to deliver on this front.
All of them come with Wi-Fi built in and an increasing number now also have Bluetooth on board, so they can be connected wirelessly to a 3G mobile phone for internet access on the move. Some of the latest models are even being offered with built-in 3G, so that they can be used straight out of the box with mobile broadband services.
Do you need it for work?
Of course, as well as sending emails, updating your Facebook page and watching TV on the web, most of us have to use our laptops for boring work stuff from time to time. In this regard the netbooks on the market today equip themselves pretty well.
Instead of Microsoft Office, the majority come with one of the less expensive or free alternatives, such as Star Office, Open Office, Word Perfect Office or Microsoft Works. While both Star Office and Word Perfect Office take a while to adjust to, they have much of the same functionality as Microsoft Office and are mostly compatible with Office file types so you should have no problems opening, editing and saving documents sent to you by work colleagues.
Although the small keyboards and screens on models like the smaller Eee PCs and Acer Aspire One make it a bit of a chore to work on long documents, this isn't such a problem on larger machines like the Eee PC 1000 and MSI Wind.
Speed-wise, we didn't experience many problems when working on Word, Excel or PowerPoint files on a variety of netbooks. File opening and saving times were fairly nippy and even cutting and pasting large images or lots of tables and graphs didn't slow things down too much. However, if you keep a lot of documents open at the same time and are constantly switching between them, it can place a strain on a netbook's limited spec.
This is mainly because netbooks tend to come with a limited amount of memory, but it's also due to the nature of the Atom processor, which isn't a patch on the dual-core and quadcore processors found in full-blown laptops when it comes to multi-tasking.
On the whole, we'd say that for day-to-day office tasks, netbooks have enough processing power to get the job done without feeling too sluggish.
Do you want to play games?
At a time when some laptops are starting to rival desktop machines in terms of gaming performance, the current crop of netbooks fall woefully short when it comes to gaming prowess.
The latest laptops come with dedicated graphics chips that help them produce stunning frame rates and amazing graphics in the latest and most demanding games. And while these represent the pinnacle of mobile gaming performance, even the cheapest and most basic notebooks have enough power to play slightly older titles at a decent frame rate.
However, the same can't be said for netbooks. Any 3D game that requires relatively demanding graphics – even titles that are a two or three years old – run so slowly as to be unplayable and some titles just don't work at all. For example, we tried the Crysis demo on the Medion E1210, but it refused to run, announcing that it wasn't compatible with the Mobile Intel 945 chipset.
Nevertheless, you will be able to play some ageing classics. The original version of Half Life worked without any problems, as did Halo I, although you'll need a USB optical drive to be able to install both titles. Still, it's clear that if you're a gamer and you want to be able to play titles created in the last four years or so, then a netbook will not provide sufficient power to even scratch your itchy trigger finger.
So, should you go for a netbook or a notebook?
There's no doubt that netbooks are an exciting addition to the world of mobile computing. However, we wouldn't really recommend a netbook as your sole computer unless you're a fairly undemanding PC user.
For more intensive tasks, you'll find that a netbook's limited performance really gets in the way. However, as a companion for your existing laptop or desktop PC, a netbook is hard to beat. They're highly portable and the good battery life is also a boon. Add to this the fact that they're so competitively priced and you've got a really tempting device.
