Netbooks: Sub-20K and 20K+

MSI Wind U130

When compared on looks, the Wind U130 gets a complete

makeover with respect to the voguish high-end Wind U160. The 100 gram lighter

U130 (with adapter) came to us with a minimalist white profile that vaunts a

250GB SATA HDD which is the maximum amongst the netbooks under the 20k price-tag

and DDR II 1GB RAM.

The 10-inch VGA LED screen is a non-gloss, which is always

the preferred one to have. The keyboard key placing works well and the large

squarish touch-pad adds convenience for the scroll and is the best in its

segment. The netbook comes with 3 USB 2.0 ports, a D-Sub VGA out, a 802.11b/g/n

wireless LAN and the standard mic-in and headphone-out sockets.

 Another point to be considered is that the competitively

priced Wind U130 comes with a 2 year warranty from MSI as compared to the 1 year

warranty from Dell and Simmtronics. The netbook is balanced in features and

performance, scoring PC Marks 1407 and has a decent enough battery backup.

Verdict: Competitively priced with necessary

features and good performance.

Dell Inspiron Mini

The intelligently designed dual colored Dell Inspiron Mini

comes with a wedge shape design and an upper lid that rests smartly on the deck

making the hinges almost unnoticeable. The posterior of the base neatly shapes

the battery in (than the usual bulge) giving it a solid monolithic design. The

otherwise standard privilege from Dell to customize its product comes as a

welcome feature to the netbook segment with Inspiron Mini. The options available

are on operating system (Windows XP SP3 or Windows 7 Starter) and the screen

(10.1 inch WSVGA TrueLife or HD TruLife).

The netbook comes with the standard DELL marked glossy

black (7 optional colors otherwise) upper lid cover incorporating an equally

neat overall design inside. The black non-chiclet keypad has comparatively

larger keys compromising the spacings in-between and makes typing a bit

discomforting initially. The elongated rectangular touch-pad makes the cursor

scroll a bit inconvenient. With the usual array of I/O ports, the Mini is high

on performance but loses on some basic features like underside heat vents,

touch-pad design and warranty.

Verdict: A smartly designed performer at the given

price.

Simmtronics Simmbook

WThe Simmbook comes with exceptions like the Intel Atom

N270 which pales as compared to the newer Atom N450 and Ubuntu 9.10 OS that is

available at no extra cost. Beyond doubt, the netbook pinches the least on your

pocket and tries to make a good effort to provide the basic features and

performance of a netbook. The Simmbook's glossiness extends from the lid to the

deck making it more prone to fingerprints. The “matte finish” backlit LED VGA

screen is an intelligent exception.

On the positive side, it is amongst the few netbooks that

provides an easily upgradeable HDD panel at the rear besides the usual RAM

panel. The keyboard is of good quality with minimal typing errors when it comes

to key placing. However, the battery backup is average.

On the negative side, the netbook loses on the creaking

hinges and the right- left click buttons placed at the extremes of the elongated

rectangular touch-pad. The worst is that the netbook heats up making it

uncomfortable to “lap-place”.

Verdict: A decent performer at the least price with

some negatives on features.

Related Articles:

Ultra High-end and Gaming Laptops

Entry Level and Mid-Range Notebooks

MSI Wind U160

As you press the blue-illuminated power button,

side-profiled on the cylindrical hinge of the U160, MSI vivid white logo lights

up the radiant golden scratch resistant lid to add to the external aesthetics,

while the sleek “pricey” netbook boots up the Windows 7 Starter Edition to make

you experience the sharp 10 wide-screen backlit VGA LED display. The chiclet

keypad was comfortable to work on, as compared to its U130 variant, but the

otherwise attractive looking seamless rugged tactile touch-pad was

disappointingly unresponsive. Also, the glossy screen made it highly reflective

and finger print sensitive. However, the 2 channel stereo speakers besides being

placed beneath the netbook were loud on sound reproduction. Further exploration

revealed a single DIMM 1GB RAM slot, making it possible to upgrade with a single

piece of RAM. For security, the netbook comes bundled with Easy Face Manager, a

face identification login software.

The MSI U160 comes as an undisputed winner by conquering

the domains of performance (PC Mark Score: 1569), battery back-up (over 6 hours)

and average power consumption (approx. 29W).

Verdict: A true performer which is also stylish.

Samsung N210

The Samsung N210 comes as a strong contender in the 20k+

netbook segment, being equipoised on performance, features and price. The glossy

exterior of the lid bezels inside a matte finished 10.1 inch LED backlit screen

and opens to a chiclet keypad which merges neatly with the black base and

touch-pad with just a bit of silver chrome that runs stylishly, contouring most

of the netbook's interior perimeter.

Powered by an Intel Atom, the typical netbook processor,

clocking at 1.66GHz, the book comes with 160 GB HDD which is the least in the

segment. The speakers placed upfront above the keypad give the best sound

quality and the web-cam gave sharp and natural colors though blurring-in-motion

exists negligibly.

There are two striking features in N210. One, HyperSpace

"Instant On" OS, which opens a customizable dashboard making you on-line and

providing multimedia and notepad utilities. Two, “Easy SpeedUp Manager” that

instantly facilitates you to switch to silent (high battery backup,least

performance), normal and speed (high performance, least battery backup) mode.

Verdict: A feature rich performer that comes at a

decent cost.

Acer Gateway LT2107

The LT2107 opens a fresh configuration gateway to netbooks

with 2 GB RAM, leaving behind the rest in the shootout in this respect, though

the Intel Atom processor remains standard. The power-on and Wi-Fi buttons neatly

fit-in near the hinges. The viewing angles of the 10.1 LED back-lit screen,

incorporated in the cherry glossy exterior lid, are at par with competition.

A unique feature comes in the form of a responsive

multi-gesture touch-pad that has a side-scroll but the netbook lacks a chiclet

keypad. Another negative comes in the form of placement of heat circulation

vents when compared to the side profiled vents in most of the netbooks which

might be a concern while it on the lap. The high definition audio speakers also

give an average sound reproduction.

The other major letdown is the approx 4 hour battery

back-up which is a good 2 hours down from the benchmarks of its segment rivals.

Overall, it does offer a good package at the price, but faces stiff competition

from the Samsung N210.

Verdict: The notebook is well-balanced on both price

and performance.