Originally Posted by
seeker333
Lot of reviews on netbooks here:
http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCateg...&name=Netbooks
I've read that some of the EEEs are slow/underpowered. It is challenging to read from a 7" screen and type on a small keyboard. I personally would get the HD version and some sd flash memory, which is cheaper than SSD last time I looked. Cost for these netbooks is nearly the same as a full blown laptop.
I have a 13" toshiba that weighs 4.5 lbs and runs 4+ hrs on battery, cost $650. Its a good compromise. Unfortunately its got Vista. Spend a lot of time doing updates. I recommend XP or if you're proficient with Win OSs, Win 7 beta, which doesn't expire till August,IIRC.
Another idea - HTC Touch Pro - you need good vision + lots of patience to interface with such a small screen.
http://www.htc.com/us/product.aspx?id=74294
Alltel, verizon are providers, as well as others. About the smallest device you could carry on tour. You need to be a hardcore geek to be happy with these devices.
Then there's always the venerable pocketmail
http://www.pocketmail.com/us/products/devices/
And finally, the lowly mead comp. These are rarely stolen from campsites.
http://www.amazon.com/Mead-Compositi...ef=pd_sbs_op_1
I have been using my Eee for 7 months and have not found any of your concerns to actually be true. Mine has a 9 inch screen, not a 7 inch screen. I can read it fine, even at my advanced age. I have very large hands and haven't had any problems with the keyboard after the first hour.
I am not sure what you do with your laptop, but I only use my netbook as a netbook. For web surfing, emailing, light word processing, saving pictures, etc, power is really not a problem. if you are planning on playing World of Warcraft than you definitely don't want a netbook.
The Asus PC 900 is currently selling for $279 at Amazon with free shipping. This is less than 1/2 the price of a low end laptop. It is even cheaper than a 16GB Itouch. Of course, an Itouch has a lot cooler games.
At 2 pounds, without a harddrive, it is toally unobtrusive in your panniers.
Finally, SD cards have gotten incredibly cheap if you want to expand the storage capacity.