Most powerful Netbook?

[Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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I bought a netbook recently and really love the format. I have as much computing power as I need at home but need something portable for when abroad.

I prefer a Netbook over a normal laptop for the longer battery life and portability. I also don't need that much power while away just basic internet access and the ability to do a fair amount of typing.

I know Netbooks are being dropped in favour of Ultrabooks but those are massive overkill for my needs (and budget).

I want to buy another Netbook but do want the best available from this platform.

What is the most powerful Netbook? If its not currently on the market new, I can look on eBay.

My current one has an AMD c-50 in it.

Comments

  • StigStig Posts: 12,446
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    Netbooks have low power CPUs by definition, almost.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    Stig wrote: »
    Netbooks have low power CPUs by definition, almost.

    Err okay, thanks.
  • alan1302alan1302 Posts: 6,336
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    Think yours is about the best you will get as a Netbook - if you don't mind getting something slightly bigger an Ultrabook may be an alternative. Netbooks never got a proper powerful version and no one makes them now.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    Thanks, I realise they aren't powerful by nature but they fit my need perfectly. So much so that I want another. But since I am looking for one I may as well try and get the fastest available.

    There are still some available and I'm happy to scour eBay.
  • alan1302alan1302 Posts: 6,336
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    Thanks, I realise they aren't powerful by nature but they fit my need perfectly. So much so that I want another. But since I am looking for one I may as well try and get the fastest available.

    There are still some available and I'm happy to scour eBay.

    Have look here - it shows you some of the more powerful oes that you may fine:

    http://www.tlbhd.com/most-powerful-netbooks-and-mini-laptops-best-picks-right-now-9284/
  • QuackersQuackers Posts: 4,830
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    Macbook Air 11" ? i5 processor and 4 gig ram, with SSD drive.
  • TheBigMTheBigM Posts: 13,125
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    1) The Surface RT with a type cover might fit your needs but at £400 maybe not your budget.
    2) LOL to the poster suggesting an MBA 11" - whilst that be similar to a netbook in usefulness (i.e. not very), the budget difference is massive.
    3) Deely, have you considered a Chromebook? Think that's ideal for your needs a portable secondary machine primarily for browsing the internet.
  • chandlerpchandlerp Posts: 4,924
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    TheBigM wrote: »
    1) The Surface RT with a type cover might fit your needs but at £400 maybe not your budget.
    2) LOL to the poster suggesting an MBA 11" - whilst that be similar to a netbook in usefulness (i.e. not very), the budget difference is massive.
    3) Deely, have you considered a Chromebook? Think that's ideal for your needs a portable secondary machine primarily for browsing the internet.

    Although probably not much use for mobile needs as requires connection to the cloud for use
  • TheBigMTheBigM Posts: 13,125
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    chandlerp wrote: »
    Although probably not much use for mobile needs as requires connection to the cloud for use

    Chromebook would meet the stated needs of the OP which were:

    1) Basic internet access
    2) Typing

    http://www.zdnet.com/yes-you-can-use-the-new-chromebook-offline-7000006103/
  • ArcanaArcana Posts: 37,521
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    Having recently acquired a Samsung Series 3 Chromebook I have to say it's not nearly as limited as it might appear on paper...especially after dual-boot installing Ubuntu on it.

    I can't vouch for how 'powerful' it is compared to the competition but, though never having been keen on laptops up to now, I'm very pleased with it for an outlay of a little over £200.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    Arcana wrote: »
    Having recently acquired a Samsung Series 3 Chromebook I have to say it's not nearly as limited as it might appear on paper...especially after dual-boot installing Ubuntu on it.

    I can't vouch for how 'powerful' it is compared to the competition but, though never having been keen on laptops up to now, I'm very pleased with it for an outlay of a little over £200.

    What I worry about is the access to the net thing. What happens if there is no access? I'm assuming some programs will let you work offline?
  • jonner101jonner101 Posts: 3,410
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    I bought a netbook recently and really love the format. I have as much computing power as I need at home but need something portable for when abroad.

    I prefer a Netbook over a normal laptop for the longer battery life and portability. I also don't need that much power while away just basic internet access and the ability to do a fair amount of typing.

    I know Netbooks are being dropped in favour of Ultrabooks but those are massive overkill for my needs (and budget).

    I want to buy another Netbook but do want the best available from this platform.

    What is the most powerful Netbook? If its not currently on the market new, I can look on eBay.

    My current one has an AMD c-50 in it.

    What about a tablet and bluetooth keyboard. I had one with an atom N570 dual core and it was still dog slow.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    A tablet with a keyboard is the alternative that I'm drawn to and the decision between the two for me is the Netbook (purely for cost reasons). I paid £115 for mine yet it does everything I need. I can't get a tablet and keyboard for close to that.

    I'm also not convinced about having two items. It would mean I need to carry around the keyboard everywhere I go anyway. So the portability of the tablet is lost.

    I'm also very attached to traditional computing. So I tend to be more at home with portable units that mimic my standard desktop. That may change of course with the full on charge of tablets and mobile computing in general (I don't think its reached the point yet where I'm compelled to change).

    If it comes down to it and Netbooks (in their current form) disappear I will most likely accept that I need to increase budget and get the smallest form factor notebook instead.
  • ArcanaArcana Posts: 37,521
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    What I worry about is the access to the net thing. What happens if there is no access? I'm assuming some programs will let you work offline?

    There is a growing section in the Chrome Web Store for apps that work offline but atm it is a limitation I would say of Chrome OS.

    That's why I mentioned installing Ubuntu on the Chromebook. You can whack it on fastish SD card (or even a flash drive I believe) without disturbing your Chrome installation or using up any of the limited hard disk space.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    Arcana wrote: »
    There is a growing section in the Chrome Web Store for apps that work offline but atm it is a limitation I would say of Chrome OS.

    That's why I mentioned installing Ubuntu on the Chromebook. You can whack it on fastish SD card (or even a flash drive I believe) without disturbing your Chrome installation or using up any of the limited hard disk space.

    I must confess I hadn't considered that. So hardware wise if I stick Linux on it, its no different to any other laptop?
  • jonner101jonner101 Posts: 3,410
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    A tablet with a keyboard is the alternative that I'm drawn to and the decision between the two for me is the Netbook (purely for cost reasons). I paid £115 for mine yet it does everything I need. I can't get a tablet and keyboard for close to that.

    I'm also not convinced about having two items. It would mean I need to carry around the keyboard everywhere I go anyway. So the portability of the tablet is lost.

    I'm also very attached to traditional computing. So I tend to be more at home with portable units that mimic my standard desktop. That may change of course with the full on charge of tablets and mobile computing in general (I don't think its reached the point yet where I'm compelled to change).

    If it comes down to it and Netbooks (in their current form) disappear I will most likely accept that I need to increase budget and get the smallest form factor notebook instead.

    The other alternative is a very lightweight linux distribution that is optimised for a netbook if you're technical enough.

    The OS is optimised to run on lower end hardware so it will not seem like you're running an underpowered machine. Linux won't have any of the bloatware that you typically get on a Windows laptop as well which is one of the issues that suck the performance out of lower end hardware.

    You have to careful as it can be tricky getting windows back.

    I assume the netbook you are running is windows 7 starter. I think that is just too overblown for a netbook. My netbook came with a lot of bloatware, anti-virus stuff and a version of photoshop elements, which was unusable but it did work pretty well with linux
  • cnbcwatchercnbcwatcher Posts: 56,681
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    Quackers wrote: »
    Macbook Air 11" ? i5 processor and 4 gig ram, with SSD drive.

    Agreed. I love mine. It can do most everyday tasks very well. I could even run Windows on it if I wanted or had to :p
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,583
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    jonner101 wrote: »
    The other alternative is a very lightweight linux distribution that is optimised for a netbook if you're technical enough.

    The OS is optimised to run on lower end hardware so it will not seem like you're running an underpowered machine. Linux won't have any of the bloatware that you typically get on a Windows laptop as well which is one of the issues that suck the performance out of lower end hardware.

    You have to careful as it can be tricky getting windows back.

    I assume the netbook you are running is windows 7 starter. I think that is just too overblown for a netbook. My netbook came with a lot of bloatware, anti-virus stuff and a version of photoshop elements, which was unusable but it did work pretty well with linux

    It did come with Windows 7 Starter, considering Linux as I have that on a couple of other spare PC's in the house. Only thing is I wanted to try out Starter first because once I wipe the HD it appears I won't be able to go back to it. It is a refurbished unit and didn't come with discs etc and there doesn't appear to be any method of making a recovery disc.

    It came with tons of bloatware but I have removed everything that is superfluous to my needs and tbh everything runs well enough for me atm.

    The only thing is it seems to hang slightly when I shut down. Saying it has to force shut a program that is still open. Everytime I work out what is still open, it appears to find something else. Some stuff on web said change the windows exit sound. I did that and it sorted the problem for abit. But then I noticed the other day when I shut down I got the problem again. This time it shuts down faster than I can read what the open program is. Its only a slight niggle.
  • fletchemfletchem Posts: 2,212
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    I have an ION powered netbook which is quite fruity. The GPU/CPU combo works quite well. Needs more RAM though.
  • jonner101jonner101 Posts: 3,410
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    It did come with Windows 7 Starter, considering Linux as I have that on a couple of other spare PC's in the house. Only thing is I wanted to try out Starter first because once I wipe the HD it appears I won't be able to go back to it. It is a refurbished unit and didn't come with discs etc and there doesn't appear to be any method of making a recovery disc.

    It came with tons of bloatware but I have removed everything that is superfluous to my needs and tbh everything runs well enough for me atm.

    The only thing is it seems to hang slightly when I shut down. Saying it has to force shut a program that is still open. Everytime I work out what is still open, it appears to find something else. Some stuff on web said change the windows exit sound. I did that and it sorted the problem for abit. But then I noticed the other day when I shut down I got the problem again. This time it shuts down faster than I can read what the open program is. Its only a slight niggle.

    There is usually a hidden recovery partition on netbooks, which can normally be activated on boot up by something like Alt-F10 on start up, which allow you to restore to factory settings.

    It should be possible to install a linux netbook optimised distribution and have it so it can dual boot with windows 7.

    There are many guides online how to do this and you should be able to install the linux OS and and have it so it will repartition the hdd on the fly so you get the option of both systems and won't lose your current windows system
  • rottweilerrottweiler Posts: 2,569
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    MacBook Air for me also, nice kit
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