Late Christmas present to myself...

[Dedicated_Dad]

Like an idiot, I failed to pull the trigger on any of the real good netbook deals I posted here until it was too late.

I thought prices would drop drastically after Christmas, but didn't factor in the desperation of the retailers' hoping to profit from all the gift cards handed out. Continuing to feed my head with the iTouch as a primary 'net device just isn't an option, so I went looking for a netbook.

In a compUSA store I was looking at netbooks, was just about sold on a $329 unit but a "clearance" tag down the line caught my eye...

The "clearance" machine is a real laptop, though lower-powered. It weighed only 4/10 of a pound more than the netbook, and had up to 9 hours of battery life! I had to look closer...

It has a ~12.5" screen, but when I laid the NB with the 6- cell battery on top they're the same depth within 3/4" in width and about the same thickness.

Unlike the netbook, the LT has a Core2 ULV processor, a 250gb HDD and 2GB RAM (4 max).

It also has a multi-touch pad, Full HD screen with VGA and HDMI-out ports, and came with a free upgrade to Windows 7 "Ultimate."

Processor's only a 1.4GHz but with 3MB L2 Cache on board and an 800mHz FSB. Being ULV it's power consumption is extremely low (5w) and it puts out almost no heat. It's 3-6x as powerful as the average Atom in a NB.

The screen is also just a bit bigger and much better viewing angle and clarity than the Acer models. It's *TOO* bright, I keep it on the lowest setting most all the time, when it kicks up because I hit the wrong key-combo it really bugs my eyes. I'll eventually figure out how to stop myself from doing that...

So...

More processor power, bigger screen, double the RAM, almost double the HDD, a full-size KB/touchpad - and more battery life - all in a package that is just a bit wider and a few ounces heavier than the NB?

For $50 more? Heck yeah -- I'll take it!

So... Here I am typing on my shiny new Gateway ZH7 - which is apparently identical to an Acer "timeline" 1410 but with a bigger battery. They seem to be going for ~$599 - where they can be found - and thus I really think I got a good deal. I can't even find a used one for less than $400...

Anyone in the market for a NB might want to check CompUSA - if you really want it and can't find it locally let me know and I'd be willing to do a pick&ship for you...

DD

[Dedicated_Dad]

Does anyone know of a util that would let me remap keys on my keyboard?

One downside: This KB has no home/end key -- they're a "fn" combination that actually requires two hands to activate. I'd really like to make my Pause/break and Ins key function as a page-up/down... Alternatively, if I could make the "windows" keys (one on each side between Ctrl and Alt) act as a "function" key then I could at least hit the combos one-handed....

Any ideas appreciated... I'm a KB junkie and rarely use a mouse or touchpad if it's possible to do with keystrokes... I can no doubt learn to work with this KB but would sure love to be able to remap the keys...

Thanks again!

DD

[Dub_James]

I hear the netbooks are getting squeezed between the new iPhone type devices and full laptop machines. Seems they don't provide much extra above the iPhones, and a lot less than the laptops.

Probably best to stay away from the netbooks, so it looks like you did well.

[blackeagle603]

Yeah, here come the "Smartbooks."

Biggest difference for the user is the always on 3G or 4G internet connection.
That changes the game a bit if you think about it. Content can get pushed in realtime to the Smartbook vs waiting to log on to internet. Shaping to be a battle royale between QCOM's Snapdragon and Intel's Atom processor.

*disclaimer: long QCOM
They are the primary company trying to move Smartbook idea forward
(fwiw, QCOM has >90% share of non I-phone smart phone processor market and even the 3G I-phone Infineon processor is built under royalty bearing QCOM license)

[Dedicated_Dad]

Yeah, here come the "Smartbooks."

Biggest difference for the user is the always on 3G or 4G internet connection.
That changes the game a bit if you think about it. Content can get pushed in realtime to the Smartbook vs waiting to log on to internet....

You know... I agree with the premise, however...

It's still going to be dependent on the user to open the device and view the content. From a practical perspective - given the ubiquity of wireless (whether wifi or cellular) - we're largely already there with the only real difference I see being the "push" vs "pull"...

Back to the street-level, the difference between the two is incredibly slim. I'll still have to fire up a device of some sort to view the data, so I find it hard to see the practical difference between a "push" to my device or an app which does the "pull" upon opening...

A number of years ago I was pretty heavily involved with the genesis of SIP - basically a "universal/permanent phone number" that would allow me to be reached through one address/number, platform independent. If I was in my office, my phone would ring. On the road? Cell. Home? Either of the above, or perhaps a skype-like connection. The difference was the caller didn't need to keep 4 different numbers for me.

Seems to me this will likely end up being a similar "multi-platform" thing... A "push" sends an alert to your handheld device - at which point you can either view it on said handheld - with the limitations of such hardware being the tradeoff for convenience - or move up to your "smartbook" if appropriate and desired...

The iTouch - and a couple of weeks without a laptop - really opened my eyes to the potential in such a device. I'm still stunned at the possibilities and the implementation. I'm also jonesing for an iPhone like never before, though it's just not an option due to AT&T's lousy network in the places I tend to haunt... If the iTouch had a built-in microphone I could easily use it as a phone, so long as I had a wifi connection... Of course, the typical Apple-crap is also frustrating -- free applications allow FTP file transfer to and from the device but the content can't be used in the "usual" way because Apple won't let it. Stupid and frustrating.

Likewise Bluetooth: My LG phone allows full BT connectivity, including file transfer, using the phone as a 3g modem without a cable, dialing the phone from my PC and using the PC for mic & speakers, syncing contacts... It's basically wide open and able to do most anything I could think of.

Meanwhile I have this other device (iTouch)that's exponentially better in all ways, but the aforementioned capabilities are totally disabled for the most idiotic of reasons.

Sorry - as usual, I digress...

Bottom line - I figure eventually we'll see an ever more functional pairing of "book" device and "handheld/mobile" devices. Personally, I see no need for a 3/4-g card in my "book" if it can access broadband through my handheld... Not only is it a duplication of unneeded HW but there's the extra cost as well.

Sorry for the brain-dump, hopefully there's something coherent and useful herein...

DD

[blackeagle603]

I'll still have to fire up a device of some sort to view the data,

nope. always on. always connected. just like any other 3/4G mobile.

(Same QCOM disclaimer still applies)
Smartbooks should pick up more steam when IMod (Mirasol) displays scale up to Smartbook form factor and color displays get to production ramp. They'll just destroy the power consumption assumptions: not to mention outdoor/bright light viewing. I've personally seen proto color Mirasol displays. You'd think I was lying or a total shill if I said anymore or tried to give a description that does those displays justice.

Just the facts about IMod displays:

• Fraction the power consumption.
  Double the intensity of competing display technology.
  Plenty fast enough for video.
  Reflective technology so it gets brighter instead of dimmer when in bright light.
  No temp sensitivity (semi-conductor MEM based instead of liquid or organic).
  No polarizer, ergo no sunglass conflicts.

[blackeagle603]

Speaking of smartbooks, just saw this link at another forum about Lenovo's first smartbook:

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd on Monday formally took the wraps off its first "smartbook," a device that breaks free from the traditional Wintel hold on the mobile computing segment.

Lenovo's new Skylight runs on Qualcomm Inc's Snapdragon chip, which is also used in smartphones, and features an operating system built on Linux, rather than Microsoft Corp's Windows.

The Skylight is one of the first in what could be a wave of so-called smartbooks, hyper-connected consumer devices based on the power efficient ARM chip architecture, rather than Intel Corp's x86 platform, which currently dominates the netbook market.

With a 10-inch screen and weighing less than 2 pounds...

...link

[Dedicated_Dad]

I'll still have to fire up a device of some sort to view the data,

nope. always on. always connected. just like any other 3/4G mobile....

Understood, but still I must open a clamshell, press a button to wake the display, presumably enter a password or something to "unlock" it... It can't be used one-handed or carried in a pocket or belt-clip... I just don't see how it can be as constantly and instantly available as a handheld.

Maybe I really am a luddite, but I just don't see the huge advantage over a typical "mini-netbook" when considered in these terms...

Now, if it's truly possible to have performance equivalent to the machine I'm using with the sort of battery life we've come to expect from a handheld, then that's something to get excited about IMHO. I'm sure there are factors I haven't considered, and I don't have the depth of knowledge you do, but I'm a pretty typical tech-geek and thus I wonder whether a big market (outside the gadget-junkies) there really is for such a device...

In any case, I look forward to being able to check it out, and very much appreciate your sharing your knowledge with us!!!

DD