Keep in mind that these netbooks have the ability to display great graphics, not only on their little screens, but output as well. I am an affluent movie watcher so for this thanksgiving break i will be throwing around five to ten movies on my 10" eeepc, and with a simple vga plug-in to my father's 60" wide screen Sony I will be able to watch Burn After Reading in no time. The only thing I would say these devices are limited to is the lack of a cd/dvd-rom, but for someone who is a little tech savy... cough torrents cough cough... then they should have no problem finding almost any application or media to use on it.
I'm an architecture student owning a netbook. Of course it's not my only system, but I like traveling light on the campus. At first I thought it wouldn't be capable of doing the more heavy tasks, but I was surprised that it did.
AutoCAD is fully loaded in 20 secs. Working with even the larger drawings (e.g. masterplans) goes smooth. The netbook was able to run AutoCAD, Sketchup, Photoshop and Cinema4D simultaneously. Don't expect superb performance, but be assured that you can do your thing when you're on the go.
I own the Aspire One from Acer btw (1gb Ram).
Only thing to watch out for is the resolution/screen size. Working with CAD programs on a 8.9" screen is not ergonomic at all. Illustrator and InDesign wouldn't even install at the 1024x600 resolution.
Cory ~ awesome to hear your insights ~ if i were in college right now, i could definitely see using this little eee PC a ton! With fast wifi and those teeny tiny desks ~ and definitely typing faster than writing... although doodling less! Which might mean more focusing =)
To answer your question: I purchased a netbook to have a more portable computer on which I could write and blog and listen to music and surf the internet without having to carry around a heavy ass Dell or a big ass Mac. It's super light, it's smaller than most of my textbooks, and just WORKS. I take it to work and it easily fits on my desk without taking up any valuable space I'd otherwise need. I take it to class and have it on just in case I need to take notes a bit quicker than my hand can take. Yuh.
A netbook is a computer that is foremost smaller and more portable than other laptops.
After this major idea, netbooks can vary. Currently, I have an Asus 900 HA netbook and I use it as a 'secondary' computer to my other, much less portable 17" laptop. It has an ATOM processor which is smaller and requires less power to run, thus allowing more battery life.
My netbook has a HDD -- not a SSD, which is most common in netbooks -- for the capacity; not only did I want an ultra portable computer that I can much more easily take with me to class, the library, to lunch, etc., but I wanted space to contain a significant portion of my music library.
I suppose all of that information is tangential to the topic. A netbook is for someone that needs a computing machine that is easy to carry around and start up quickly, such as photographers, journalists, and the like. Netbooks' portability is key.
I love my netbook. It effectively helps my doing homework in the library and elsewhere by being small enough to fit inside of my bookbag comfortably, and its being able to do everything I'd need to do.
However, the netbook is not for those wishing to do heavy movie, image, or music editing. The processors generally included in most netbooks cannot handle the necessary processing speeds. But, another key feature of most netbooks is their ease of upgradeability. My Asus 900HA has both the RAM and the HDD placed in a very accessible position, and both are easily replaceable.
I'm typing this early in the AM in the midst of a paper, so I hope this is somewhat coherent and helpful.
Keep in mind that these netbooks have the ability to display great graphics, not only on their little screens, but output as well. I am an affluent movie watcher so for this thanksgiving break i will be throwing around five to ten movies on my 10" eeepc, and with a simple vga plug-in to my father's 60" wide screen Sony I will be able to watch Burn After Reading in no time. The only thing I would say these devices are limited to is the lack of a cd/dvd-rom, but for someone who is a little tech savy... cough torrents cough cough... then they should have no problem finding almost any application or media to use on it.
I'm an architecture student owning a netbook. Of course it's not my only system, but I like traveling light on the campus. At first I thought it wouldn't be capable of doing the more heavy tasks, but I was surprised that it did.
AutoCAD is fully loaded in 20 secs. Working with even the larger drawings (e.g. masterplans) goes smooth. The netbook was able to run AutoCAD, Sketchup, Photoshop and Cinema4D simultaneously. Don't expect superb performance, but be assured that you can do your thing when you're on the go.
I own the Aspire One from Acer btw (1gb Ram).
Only thing to watch out for is the resolution/screen size. Working with CAD programs on a 8.9" screen is not ergonomic at all. Illustrator and InDesign wouldn't even install at the 1024x600 resolution.
Cory ~ awesome to hear your insights ~ if i were in college right now, i could definitely see using this little eee PC a ton! With fast wifi and those teeny tiny desks ~ and definitely typing faster than writing... although doodling less! Which might mean more focusing =)
To answer your question: I purchased a netbook to have a more portable computer on which I could write and blog and listen to music and surf the internet without having to carry around a heavy ass Dell or a big ass Mac. It's super light, it's smaller than most of my textbooks, and just WORKS. I take it to work and it easily fits on my desk without taking up any valuable space I'd otherwise need. I take it to class and have it on just in case I need to take notes a bit quicker than my hand can take. Yuh.
A netbook is a computer that is foremost smaller and more portable than other laptops.
After this major idea, netbooks can vary. Currently, I have an Asus 900 HA netbook and I use it as a 'secondary' computer to my other, much less portable 17" laptop. It has an ATOM processor which is smaller and requires less power to run, thus allowing more battery life.
My netbook has a HDD -- not a SSD, which is most common in netbooks -- for the capacity; not only did I want an ultra portable computer that I can much more easily take with me to class, the library, to lunch, etc., but I wanted space to contain a significant portion of my music library.
I suppose all of that information is tangential to the topic. A netbook is for someone that needs a computing machine that is easy to carry around and start up quickly, such as photographers, journalists, and the like. Netbooks' portability is key.
I love my netbook. It effectively helps my doing homework in the library and elsewhere by being small enough to fit inside of my bookbag comfortably, and its being able to do everything I'd need to do.
However, the netbook is not for those wishing to do heavy movie, image, or music editing. The processors generally included in most netbooks cannot handle the necessary processing speeds. But, another key feature of most netbooks is their ease of upgradeability. My Asus 900HA has both the RAM and the HDD placed in a very accessible position, and both are easily replaceable.
I'm typing this early in the AM in the midst of a paper, so I hope this is somewhat coherent and helpful.
FerreA ~ i think you're right ~ it's totally an intro machine for young'ns and a cheap gateway machine for others...
And Yuka ~ so we either need an even lighter, yet still powerful adobe solution? or a more beefed up machine to handle it?
A cheap semi PC for kids and the poor. What we need is a pocket version for business.
I have been wondering the same thing! If netbooks could run Adobe, I would definitely buy one, but until then, I am not so sure.
I sometimes use sumo paint http://www.sumopaint.com/web/ for really simple stuff, but i don't think it is enough.
www.swyyne.com