Question for netbook owners

[Kerry]

I'm currently looking at purchasing a netbook to take with me on my travels..Apart from web browsing/emailing, I will be using it for photo storage and doing a bit of editing...
I had decided on an Asus 1000HE but a friend at work has put me off the 10in models saying that the keyboard is too cramped and she would take her 15.6in laptop with her in future which defeats the whole point of me buying something smaller/lighter..Obviously there's going to be a compromise going to a smaller machine, but I guess I'd like to ask those who use one, how they find the keyboard...Is it something that you get used to, or if given the chance, would you opt for something a bit larger?
The other machine I'm considering is the MSI X320 which has a 13.4in screen with a res of 1366x768 (which I've read is required for Adobe RAW)...
Probably the only thing that puts me off this one is it runs Vista which I have on my laptop and don't really like...
Side by side comparison, I'm leaning towards the MSI but I'm not really familiar with the brand, so would be interested to hear if anyone has any experience with them..
And finally, I have no idea about CPUs...How does the Asus N280 compare with the MSI Z530?
Thanks for any advice as this is really starting to do my head in!

[yummymummy]

Hi Kerry, My son has the 10 imch asus netbook, the keyboard was a bit cramped for him at first, but he's used to it now, and said he has no issues with it, it's actually a really good little machine, and the battery life is unreal!

[Dizzy Photographics]

I'm not sure that the small netbooks would be capable of running a program such as photoshop

[Kerry]

Thanks Kirsty and Deb..
I have read some people use PS on the small machines, albeit much slower, but I'm open to suggestions on other editing software as I'd be doing most of the editing when I get home..
I guess I just want something to play around with whilst I'm away, especially when I'm travelling alone and have a couple of hours to kill in my room at the end of the day..

[abitfishy]

I went through the same thing recently. The Netbooks are great for what they are - and in my opinion thats a portable email/web browsing machine, and thats all. They sit well between PDA type mobiles and full size laptops. However for practical purposes I ended up with a Toshiba L300 Dual core 2 CPU machine with 4gb ram and a decent screen for $695. Faster than my main desktop and does anything you want it to. Given its bigger and heavier than a Netbook and the battery isn't as good, but its not 'heavy' (a lot lighter than my wifes HP business laptop). If you will won't need more than 3 hrs usage between access to charging, go for it. I love it.

[J.davis]

I bought an Asus 1001ha netbook for our trip OS and will be using it for internet access and photo storage. Elements 7 for pic editing and posting. Works well for me.

[peterb666]

Most of these machines come with 1MB of ram and have a maximum 2MB of RAM. None of them have dedicated graphics so some of that RAM gets stolen.

Size and weight are nice. There are models with 12" and 13" screens but these are more expensive than laptops with 15" screens. Go figure.

I would think that you could find the performance a bit wanting with PhotoShop.

[Old Skool]

Hi I have a Toshiba NB200 Netbook. I tried a few Netbooks in the shops and bought this model because the keyboard felt the best to use. Basically almost a full size keyboard on a 10" Netbook. Upgraded the Ram to 2 Gb and it runs Lightroom & Paint Shop Pro OK. It came with Win XP on it but I put Win 7 on and it works great. Get the bigger battery as they last 6hrs+. They are a compromise but a great computer for travel.

[Kerry]

Thanks heaps for the replies everyone - I really appreciate it!
I've spent much of the day thinking about it and image editing isn't really that important - I'm more concerned with image storage during my travels..
I'd stumbled upon the Toshiba NB200 last night and thought it sounded good, so it's good to get some feedback from someone who has actually used one! Will look into it a bit further as I like the idea of the almost full size keyboard...Thanks again!

[dmdigital]

I spent 3 months travelling last year with a 13" Macbook Pro. I found this to be an excellent sized machine and one of the things that made it stand out was the number of times I encountered people struggling with smaller Netbooks or larger 15" laptops.

Whilst I'm a Mac convert I do believe that size wise the 12" - 13" laptop is a better option in any design. The other thing that to consider is the number of peripherals you may need to carry with a netbook. From memory the Asus still don't have a DVD drive built in which limits backup options to USB and may mean carrying another device to plug in. Personally I travel with two USB HDD's to back up on and even this becomes a excess to carry around sometimes.

[bobt]

I have just got back from OS having bought a netbook for that purpose. It was an excellent idea and one I do not regret.

The only thing I would recommend is that you buy a small portable HD to go with it. I filled the 160 gig HD up but had the HD to go on with - it holds another 500 gig !! No need to worry about storage as 500 gig will do a lot of photos! The portable HDs are so small now you hardly notice it as an extra.

[ameerat42]

Hmm! I just got one, especially for the "relatively generous" keyboard size, and for the other reasons you mentioned. I wanted lightness and portability, hence the size. And to boot, the screen is LED. (We'll see how it calibrates.) As a second boot, my model (from a famous local Peanut Butter maker's electronics chain) comes with WINDOWS 7 (alas, only Starter, but then it's only got 1GB RAM.) The same model from other stores came with XP Home.)

BUT, so far I haven't got it to look past my modem. Am...

[Kerry]

Finally, after much research and indecision, today I purchased an Asus 1005P...I'm pretty happy with it and think it will serve my purposes - I just have to rememeber to carry a pair of reading glasses to wear over my contacts!

[ameerat42]

E-gratulations on your purchase!!! After all, e-everything's e- these days. e-Am...