Toshiba Mini NB505-N508BL Netbook Review - Editor's Choice

Easy grip design and generally good build and specifications make for a very satisfying netbook. A definite keeper and mobile road warrior.

It has always been my dream to get an ultralight, ultraportable computer. After going through the last 8 years lugging around a ton of bricks on my shoulders, I was more than ready to shed some pounds and ease the weight upon my shoulders. That's when I started looking around for netbooks and chanced upon the Toshiba NB505-N508BL.

For someone who can't live without Skype, the Toshiba NB505-N508BL has an integrated webcam in addition to a 10.1 inch back-lit screen at 1024 X 600 native resolution. Yes this is pretty standard as netbooks go with size being a major consideration for manufacturers. The in-built speakers are decent (Harmon Kardon) and everything works pretty much out of the box. Just pull it out and plug it into your broadband connection and the world awaits!

There are also the standard connections and specifications available such as the Wifi adapter (b/g/n), a 250 Gb hard disk, a 1.66 Ghz atom processor, Ethernet LAN availability, 1 Gb of DDR2 RAM (which is easily upgradeable) and a Windows 7 Starter OS that oversees everything. Bluetooth was missing however. For those who consider this a deal-breaker, a Bluetooth adapter is easily available (and cheap) and simply plugs into one of the USB ports on your netbook. There, it's no longer a deal-breaker!

One of the nice features Toshiba has worked into this netbook model has to be the non-slip, easy-grip, finish. This helps to prevent accidents where a netbook has slipped out of your hand(s) because the surfaces are slippery. Even though this netbook will only set you back approximately $300 or so, it's still not something you want dropping onto the floor ever so often!

Speaking of the price, many people tend to compare netbook with tablets. I say that in most cases, netbooks are better due to the amount of memory you get, 250Gb versus 64Gb; the real keyboard versus a virtual one AND it's a lot cheaper!

In keeping with Windows 7, the touch pad is multi-touch capable and the 6-cell battery lets you keep working or watching videos for up to 9 hours! Oh and it comes with Google Chrome pre-installed - that gets this so many bonus points on so many levels!

All in all, the Toshiba NB505-N508BL has worked out to be a constant companion and fantastic investment; definitely money well spent. I no longer lug my larger notebook around with me and I'm still able to remain as productive as before. The main difference is that I now have to head to the gym to build up those shoulder muscles. Trust me, I'm not complaining about that one bit!

For more reviews and product info, visit Toshiba NB505-N508BL Netbook. For reviews and info on other laptop models, visit http://www.honest-laptop-reviews.com

Netbook Review

You may or may not have heard of the term "Netbooks". They seem to be all the rage in personal computing these days. So what are they? Netbooks are the new class of mobile computers that offer an alternative to laptops. Basically, they are a smaller version of the laptop, both in form factor and computing ability to execute resource intensive computing applications. They may very well be the next revolution in mobile computing. Computer manufacturers are now offering a scaled down version of the ubiquitous laptop. The alternative they are offering is one that is smaller, thinner and inexpensive. Inexpensive as compared to the price of a regular laptop and in some cases even less expensive than a mobile phone. So is this scaled down version of a computing platform for you? Are you willing to give up your laptop for a netbook?

Before you decide on purchasing a netbook, it would be good idea to identify and understand your requirements for a mobile computing platform. What do you do with that current laptop of yours? Chances are that you use it more often to surf the web, run office applications for document processing, spreadsheets, presentations, email, etc. If you are a savvy web user, you probably could do all of this on the web. Is there any local application on your laptop that could utilize the entire computing resources of your laptop? This probably is a rarity for most laptop users. Games, photo, video, music editing applications, etc., could be part of the mix but even some of these have online alternatives.

Most netbooks run windows software. The operating system that comes installed is mostly Windows XP. So there is nothing new on the OS front that users would require to learn. Specifications in general include the Intel Atom N series chip with a clock speed rating of 1.6 GHz and installed RAM at 1 GB with the ability to expand to 2 GB. A screen size of 10.1" TFT may be a limiting factor for some users, but given the clarity of screens today and the primary motivation being a smaller form factor, this could be easily overlooked.

Netbooks are available from most major computer manufacturers most notably from Acer and Asustek. Both Acer and Asustek have a wide product variety and attractive price points, especially suitable for students and business users. Netbooks could serve as the standard computing platform for students in schools, colleges and universities. Small and medium business owners and corporate executives who are out and about, could also benefit from netbooks. Sales force personnel who are constantly on the move visiting customers, could use netbooks to connect with back office applications over the web from a customer location.

Today, more work is being done on bringing netbooks capable of working with different operating systems (e.g. Linux), chip sets etc., to make low cost computing feasible for all user groups. Looking forward into the future, you can expect to see faster, thinner and less expensive computing platforms. Click on Netbook Review to see a list of the latest netbooks available. Compare features and specs to find one that would suit your needs the most.

Greg S

Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T 10.1-Inch Netbook Review

Specifications: The Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T netbook comes with a Intel N280 processor (1.66GHZ), 1GB of RAM and a 160GB hard disk. It has a 10.1-inch LED backlit LCD display and is powered by a 3-cell battery. In terms of connectivity, this model has 2 USB ports, an Ethernet (10/100) port, a VGA output, a SD card slot, Memory Stick Duo card slot, headphone jack, microphone jack, wi-fi (802.11b/g/n) and Bluetooth connectivity (2.1).

Design: The Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T netbook comes in brown, pink and white (yes, no black). It measures at 10.5 x 7.1 x 1.3 inches and weighs in at 2.6 pounds. The external casing has a stylish matte surface. All they keys on its keyboard is isolated (like those on Apple computers) and it feels pretty good to type on despite its size. The memory card slots are located on the front, while the other ports and jacks are located on the side.

Features & Performance: The Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T netbook works just like any netbooks in the market. It runs on Windows XP and can handle most simple computing tasks pretty well. A feature that makes this model stand out from the rest it's the VAIO Multimedia Streaming software that enables data stream between DLNA-enabled appliances (like your PC or PS 3). Besides that, there is nothing much that differentiates this model from the rest. Its battery lifespan hovers around just 2.5 hours, which is not much compared to many other competing models (such as the Asus 1005HA and the Toshiba Mini)

Overall: One of the major characteristics of the Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T netbook is its price. It currently costs around $499 a piece, which is more that $100 more that other popular netbook models. As much as I would like to justify the price (being a Sony fan), there really isn't much good reason for a consumer to fork out the extra dough on this model. Maybe the premium is paid for the 'glitz and glamour' that comes with the brand name. The Sony VAIO VPC-W111XX/T netbook is best left for Sony fans and those who just can't get over its gorgeous design.

For more reviews and product info, visit Sony Vaio Netbook. For reviews on other laptops and netbooks visit http://laptops.treeso.com/reviews.html