A Quick Introduction to Netbook
You may have been hearing the term 'Netbook' for the past two years, but chances are you do not know what exactly a netbook is. Most people's understanding for a netbook is that it's a small and low cost laptop. That's true. But it can be confusing sometime for many people when there are some ultra-portable notebooks on the market that have almost the same size and price as netbooks. This article is written to clear up the confusion. It will explain what netbook is and how it is different from the standard size laptop.
The easiest way to identify a netbook is by looking at the size and weight. Typically, a netbook will have a screen size of 10-inch or below, while the weight is around 2 to 3 pounds. Also, a netbook does not have a full-size keyboard.. normally just 80 to 90 percent of a standard size keyboard.
In terms of price, a netbook will normally tagged below US$500. Any mini-laptops that are priced higher than that will not be considered as netbook by many people. One example of such mini-laptop is the Sony VAIO P that comes with a price of $700++.
In terms of specifications and features, while they continue to evolve, all netbooks that released in 2008 seemed to have a standard specs like this: Intel Atom CPU, Screen resolution 1024x600, Wi-Fi B and G, Ethernet at 100Mbps, A slot for a flash RAM memory card, External VGA output jack, Integrated graphics, Two or three USB ports, Built-in camera, Headphone and microphone jacks.
A few obvious differences between netbook and full-size laptop includes: lower capacity battery, the use of solid-state disks (SSDs) and SD cards as storage medium, and the lack of optical/CDs/DVDs drive in netbook. The reason for these differences is because netbook have to make some sacrifices in order to keep its size, weight, and robustness.
In terms of operating system, netbook normally does not run resource-intensive operating systems such as Windows Vista or OS X. These operating systems required too much resources to run well on a normal netbook. Although company like HP do offers Vista on their netbook, it is too expensive that some people might not consider it as netbook.
Netbook has become a highly demanded electronic gadgets. This is because it provides solution for many people who want something with more flexibility than a smart phone but less overhead than a traditional laptop. People are buying netbook not as their primary computer but as a gadget that they can used for Internet access and some light-weight computing.
Other than that, netbooks are the perfect match for some form of built-in connectivity. Current netbook comes with WiFi, and some with built-in 3G modems, which give access to network-based applications regardless of where the users are. And that is a huge deal for many people.
The most attractive part of netbook is of course the price. For a few hundred dollars, you can walk away with a portable computer that adds to, rather than replaces, your existing computing setup. This certainly sounds like a great deal for most people. And because of this, netbook is going to continue to gain popularity in the coming years!
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Translations of laptop buzzwords
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