netbooks - News, Features, and Slideshows

Features

• Ten ways to upgrade your netbook

  Netbooks are universally regarded for their portability, but no two netbook models are exactly alike, and each seems to come with different trade-offs.

• Five netbooks Microsoft has crushed

  Think most netbooks have single-core processors, 1GB of RAM and a 160GB hard drive because their manufacturers like conformity? Right. The reality -- never officially acknowledged -- is that Microsoft doesn't cheaply license its operating systems to netbooks with specs that are too good.

• Hands-on: HP Mini 110

  HP's newest netbook is an economy-class version of the company's popular Mini 1000 line. What corners get cut, and is this mini-laptop worth its weight? Read our first impressions.

• Choosing between netbooks and notebooks

  What goes up must come down, and lately what's coming down are netbooks, as more and more articles talk about the compact computers disappointing customers. However, we can't blame netbooks for that. We can only blame vendors who overhype and customers who underbuy. Before you buy a smaller, cheaper and less powerful netbook, determine if you need a notebook instead. If so, you can spend about the same money and get more power, albeit in a larger package.

• Never mind the netbook, here's the smartbook

  If you still blanche at the term "netbook" for being an ungainly piece of vendor-speak, then prepare to be nauseated later this year as "smartbook" supporters start to bang that marketing drum.

• Windows 7 Starter Edition for netbooks loses 3-app limit

  A reversal seemed highly likely from the moment Microsoft announced a three-application limit in the Windows 7 Starter Edition OS planned for netbooks.

• Netbook or ultraportable for the job?

  Netbooks are starting to look like ultraportable laptops, while some ultraportables are beginning to resemble netbooks. In a tight economy, the question arises: Should you keep costs low by buying an inexpensive netbook, or spend a few hundred dollars more to get a full-featured lightweight laptop?

• Hackintosh netbook, anyone?

  It seems unlikely that Apple will enter the netbook market, though Mac OS netbook rumors continue to circulate. Apple COO Tim Cook dissed the hot product category and suggested those wanting a Mac netbook should just buy an iPhone or iPod Touch instead.

• A buyer's guide to laptops -- from mighty mites to mobile monsters

  Whether you're buying for yourself or outfitting a department, shopping for a laptop today is a double-edged sword. The good news is that there's a huge variety to choose from, all with pros and cons. The bad news is that for many buyers there are just too many choices, leading to frustration and fatigue.

• 9 ultraportables and netbooks we can't wait for

  Thinking of buying an ultraportable laptop or a netbook soon? Check out this list of upcoming portables before you open your wallet.

• 57 amazing things you didn't know your tech could do!

  We've worked long and hard to come up with the best tips and tricks for your PCs, smartphones, cameras, game controllers, music players, and the Web. Let's start with PC, laptop, and networking tips.

• Rise of the netbook

  The evolution of mini-laptops

• Intel, Microsoft look away as beefed-up netbooks blur lines

  Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp.'s attempts to confine netbooks to the low end of the market to protect mainstream notebook PC sales have taken another hit.

• Netbooks in the business: Do they make sense?

  With the some of the most recognized names in the high-tech industry -- Intel, Arm, Microsoft, Linux, Acer, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Sony, and many more --hyping netbooks as the next big thing, we decided to take a look at a category whose exact definition is still in flux to see how and where they fit into business usage.

• Netbook popularity reshapes tech sector

  We've all heard about the netbook phenomenon. They're small, low on power, ultra-cheap, super portable and the fastest growing segment of the computer industry.