Toshiba is marketing its latest netbook as the `ultimate in entertainment devices’. But does it really live up to this bold, multi-functioning claim?

It’s a device to take on family holidays (according to Toshiba) … for watching movies, playing games when wet weather puts the beach out of action, and using as a great stereo system around the night-time barbecue.

The reason this 10-inch netbook (really more like a small notebook) can also lay claim to being an all-round entertainment device (rather than just for productivity), is because it’s the first netbook  to come with built-in Harman/Kardon speakers, making it much more powerful for music/movie playback. Add to this a powerful Fusion graphics engine, and this netbook also supports some serious 3D gaming.

So it’s a very small, portable, entertainment device that also comes with all the productivity benefits of a laptop -  you can write a quick letter or e-mail, surf the web, shop online for your next big purchase - all within the familiarity of Windows 7. And the netbook comes in five different colours with an easy-grip surface.

Under the clam-shell hood of  the Toshiba NB550D there’s the new dual-core AMD C-50 Fusion CPU, which has a Radeon HD 6250M GPU. This really ramps up the HD playback performance, very important if you want to use the HDMI-out to connect to a large TV screen at full 1080p. Not using the netbook’s own LCD display all the time will, of course, extend its 8-hour battery life considerably.

Wrapping up the package is a 6-cell battery, Dolby Advanced Audio to bolster audio playback, and some good features to enable charging and audio speaker use when the NB550D is powered down or asleep.  Toshiba only provides 1GB of RAM, but you can upgrade to 2GB.

RRP of  Toshiba ND550D Entertainment Netbook is $499.

Find more netbooks on Lasoo.

The new MSI Wind U160 is a fairly standard netbook in most respects, with its battery life being one of its few standout features.

The extended battery life is thanks to its six-cell battery, which MSI claims offers up to 15 hours of performance. (Though this quoted figure of course depends on how you’re using the computer - more intensive applications will not give you 15 hours of battery life.) Unfortunately, the battery adds a fair bit of bulk to the back of the unit, which is somewhat of a contradiction when you consider most people buy a netbook for the portability factor.

On the inside, the U160 isn’t vastly different to other netbooks. It features a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 processor and GMA 3150 graphics card, plus a 250GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM and the Windows 7 Starter Edition operating system. Similarly, there’s nothing too remarkable on the outside either - the screen measures 10.1-inches with 1024×600 pixel resolution and connectivity consisits of a VGA port, three USB connection and an SD card reader.

The MSI Wind U160’s Australian RRP is $549.

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By Caroline Warnes

These days there are so many laptop and notebook options available that it’s hard to make an informed decision when it comes to buying one - but this guide will give you a broad overview of the different types.

Laptops / notebooks fall into five main categories based on size and functionality. In descending order, starting from the largest, these are:

Desktop replacement laptops

The heaviest and most cumbersome of laptops are those that fall into the desktop replacement category (as the name might suggest). They can weigh anywhere up to 6kg and have very large screens, often of 17-inches. Desktop replacement notebooks are not a great option if you travel around a lot due to their sheer size and limited battery life, however if you want a limited amount of portability with power approximate to a desktop PC then this is the laptop for you.

Best desktop replacement laptops include the Apple MacBook Pro, HP EliteBook and Dell Studio.

Mainstream laptops

Mainstream laptops are more portable than their desktop replacement counterparts, but still aren’t ideal if you are on-the-go all day, every day. They tend to have screens on the larger side (say, over 14 inches) and decent-sized keyboards. They are especially suited towards business users who require some portability, say, people who work from home occasionally.

Many people believe the best mainstream laptops are made by Toshiba, particularly those in the Toshiba Satellite range (pictured here is the L550 model).

Thin-and-light laptops

Sitting right in the middle of the notebook spectrum, thin-and-light laptops appeal to a broad range of users (and especially students) because of their balance between portability and features. Screen size is generally between 13- and 15-inches. If you’re on the fence about which type of laptop you require, mainstream is always a fail-safe choice for most uses.

Best thin-and-light laptops include the MacBook Air and the Lenovo ThinkPad.

Ultra-portable laptops

The second smallest class of notebooks - ultra-portable laptops - have much in common with the thin-and-light category, but tend more to the side of portability, thanks to their smaller size (most screens are under 12-inches) and slimmed-down features. Performance isn’t really that great a step up from netbooks (see below), making these laptops suitable for business people who travel a lot.

Best ultra-portable laptops include the Dell Inspiron and the Toshiba Portege.

Netbooks

Netbooks are the smallest category of laptop and are designed for basic web surfing and emailing but can’t really handle any heavy-duty tasks. Our netbook buying guide can help you make a decision on the best netbook if you’re looking to make a purchase in this category.

Buy a cheap laptop on sale

Guide originally published October 15, 2009; updated July 15, 2010.

By Caroline Warnes

Forget laptops and notebooks: today, ultra-portable computing lies in the form of the netbook. Our buying guide will explain what they are and which one is right for you.

Netbooks explained

A netbook is an ultra-compact laptop designed for basic day-to-day functions such as emailing and surfing the web. Because of their basic functionality, netbooks are smaller, more portable and cheaper than full-sized laptops and notebooks. They can even be used for working from home if you use a lot of web-based applications in your daily work. However, if you tend to use a lot of software programs and applications that need to be installed on your actual computer, you will most likely find that a netbook isn’t the right portable computer for you.

Which netbook?

When it comes to purchasing a netbook, there isn’t a whole lot to get your head around - the difference between models aren’t that great. Most run off an Intel Atom processor and integrated graphics, so it’s up to you to decide what screen size you need, what type of storage and battery size.

Netbook storage

When it comes to storage, you can either get a netbook with a hard drive or SSD. Hard drive-based netbooks have much higher storage capacity, so this is desirable if you’re going to be storing a lot of larger files (video and music, for example). These netbooks are also easier to upgrade or replace.

Meanwhile, flash memory-based SSD netbooks offer less on-board storage, but are generally more shock-proof than their hard drive-counterparts and often have a better battery life.

Netbook battery life

Battery life can come into play, depending on how you intend to use the device. Netbooks come with either a 3-cell, 4-cell or 6-cell battery. A 3-cell battery will probably only keep you going for a couple of hours, while you could get up to six hours of use from a 6-cell battery.

Best netbooks

When it comes to netbook manufacturers, you’ll see the same names popping up that you would expect with standard-sized laptops and notebooks. One of the best known is the ASUS netbook - particularly the ASUS Eee PC netbook series (the Eee PC 1000 is pictured here). The HP Mini netbook series is also considered to be fairly reliable, as is the Dell Mini range of netbooks.

Buy a cheap netbook on sale

Guide originally published June 3, 2009; updated July 1, 2010.

By Caroline Warnes

The new Acer Aspire One 532h is a nice basic netbook for under $600.

While it lacks most of the bells and whistles of the most expensive netbooks, for $599 you’ll get a solid performer that handles all the basic essential tasks well.

Under the hood, you’ll find the usual specifications for netbooks, including an Intel Atom N450 CPU and 250GB hard drive. The good news is that this new Intel processor provides excellent battery life, so you can expect up to 10 hours when perfoming low-power tasks.

The 10.1-inch widescreen display with 1024×600 native resolution is also a fairly standard specification for an entry-level netbook. There’s also a touch pad, which is unfortunately on the small side and may prove tricky for anyone with larger hands.

Acer has also equipped the Aspire One 532h with 802.11n Wi-Fi (but unfortunately no Bluetooth).

The Acer Aspire One 532h is available now for $599.

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By Caroline Warnes

The new Samsung N210 netbook is a solid performer that is available for under $600.

As long as you’re not expecting miracles from Samsung with the N210, you shouldn’t encounter any unpleasant surprises. Similar to many netbooks, the N210 runs an Intel Atom N450 1.66GHz processor with 1GB of memory, a 250GB hard drive and Intel GMA3150 graphics card, all of which are just powerful enough to cope with the basic functions most people perform with a netbook, such as web surfing and email.

Samsung has also equipped it with some other fairly standard specifications, including 802.11/b/g/n Wi-Fi and the latest Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity. The 10.1-inch WSVGA screen (1024×600 resolution) is good without being great, as you’d expect from a netbook in this price range.

The one standout feature of the Samsung N210 is its battery life, which is above average for a netbook. It can deliver up to 12 hours of power when used for basic functions. Battery life is obviously an all-important consideration for netbooks, which are designed with portability in mind.

The Samsung N210’s Australian RRP is $599.

Buy a cheap netbook on sale in Australia

By Caroline Warnes

The new Asus Eee PC 1201N Seashell is one of the first Atom netbooks on the market to feature a dual-core processor.

That means that compared to its single-core Atom processor counterparts, the Asus 1201N and its Atom N330 dual-core processor offers much improved performance, especially when you want to run several programs at once. Single-core Atom netbooks tend to experience significant slowdown when you’re trying to switch between different programs. Unfortunately, these turbo processors do take a toll on the battery life.

Yet another performance bonus is the inclusion of a Nvidia Ion graphics processor, which once again is something of a rarity for a netbook. This offers a step-up when it comes to graphics performance, especially when it comes to multimedia applications such as gaming and video playback. It handles high-definition (HD) video nicely and comes with software that will upscale your standard definition content to HD. You can then share your HD content thanks to the inclusion of a HDMI port.

Of course, if you’re going to include a superior graphics processor, you’ll want to make sure the screen is up to scratch. Asus has equipped the 1201N with a glossy 12.1-inch screen with 1366×768 resolution, which performs very nicely for a netbook screen. Sitting above the screen you’ll find a built-in webcam, complete with Cyberlink YouCam software.

Since the Asus 1201N is intended to be a multimedia netbook, storage had to be a consideration and most users will be happy with the 250GB of internal storage, plus 500GB of online storage provided by Asus.

The Asus Eee PC 1201N Seashell is available in Australia now with a recommended retail price of $699.

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By Caroline Warnes

The new Samsung N150 is one of the first netbooks to hit the Australian market carrying the Intel Atom N450 processor chip, extending the unit’s battery life significantly.

The new chip, which was designed specifically for netbooks and entry-level desktop PCs, comes with its graphics processor built directly into the Central Processing Unit (CPU), eliminating the need for a second chip and thus extending the battery life. This results in a power reductions of around 40% over previous Intel Atom processors. Basically, this means that the Samsung N150’s battery can last up to 12 hours when the netbook is used in low-power modes. Unfortunately the new chip doesn’t really offer any other significant performance advantages.

Aside from this innovation, nothing else about the Samsung N150 is terribly groundbreaking. It has a relatively common-looking chassis, fashioned from black plastic, with a slightly cramped keyboard - this may prove to be a dealbreaker for anyone with larger hands and fingers.

It features a 10-inch matte display, which excels at eliminating glare and reflection, with 1024×600 resolution. Connectivity options include three USB ports, as well as Ethernet, VGA video output plus the standard microphone and headphone jacks.

Samsung has also equipped the N150 with 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but unfortunately no 3G connectivity.

The Samsung N150 is available in Australia now with a recommended retail price of $599.

Buy a cheap netbook on sale in Australia

By Caroline Warnes

As the name suggests, the new BenQ Joybook Lite U121 Eco is being billed as a netbook that is more environmentally friendly than the competition.

Ben Q claims that it uses less power than most other netbooks, thanks to the Intel Atom Z530 processor which only requires a maximum of 2 Watts of thermal design power (TDP). 2.5 Watts is the average for other netbooks.

The BenQ Joybook Lite U121 Eco is also sold in recycled material, with minimal packaging used.

The other main “green” feature of this netbook is the 11.6-inch screen, which BenQ says is mercury-free and uses a low-energy LED backlight.

This netbook comes in two versions, Windows XP Home and Linux. Both versions are equipped with Bluetooth 2.1, 802.11b/g/n wireless and 10/100 Ethernet.

The BenQ Joybook Lite U121 Eco sells in Australia for $899.

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By Caroline Warnes

The upcoming Samsung N310 is yet another netbook that is a combination of basic functionality and slick design.

The fact of the matter is that netbooks are by definition basic, compact laptops that are used for tasks such as email and web browsing, so there isn’t a lot of wiggle room when it comes to features. One of the main areas in which netbooks can distinguish themselves is in terms of design, and that’s the route Samsung has taken with the N310.

The Samsung N310 was designed by renowned Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa and comes in black, orange, dark blue and light blue. It’s not the lightest netbook you’ll come across, but is still fairly portable, weighing in at just under 1.3kg.

Specifications of the Samsung N310 include a 10.1-inch screen with 1024×600 resolution, 802.11g Wi-Fi and three USB ports. It’s powered by an Intel Atom N270 processor.

Australian pricing for the Samsung N310 netbook will be confirmed closer to the release date.

Buy a cheap netbook on sale

By Caroline Warnes