Netbooks

Netbooks are perfect travel companions or to employ every bit secondary systems for your basic computing needs. Well-nigh feature 10- to 12-inch screens and like combination of hardware under the hood: either an Intel Atom or AMD E-Series processor, in unmarried or dual cadre variants, forth up to 320GB of storage capacity and up to 3GB of RAM. Integrated graphics are decidedly amend on AMD'due south side, though some Intel based designs make up for it with an Nvidia Tegra chip.

They generally weigh around 3 pounds, have no optical drive, and range in price from $300 to $450. If you are on a tight budget or don't need much more a portable machine with skillful battery life that is capable of e-mail, web surfing, and unproblematic document cosmos and so this is the route to get.


Lenovo ThinkPad X120e

Lenovo'southward first machine based on the AMD Brazos platform, the 11.6-inch ThinkPad X120e is a straightforward update to the ThinkPad X100e, replacing AMD's erstwhile Neo parts with the long-awaited Fusion APUs -- specifically Zacate E-240 and E-350 processors.

The base model starts at $399 and gets yous the ane.5GHz unmarried-core AMD E-240, with born AMD Radeon 6310 graphics, likewise every bit 2GB of DDR3 memory, three-prison cell battery and Windows vii Home Premium. An extra $90 lets you upgrade to the ane.6GHz dual-cadre AMD Due east-350 and a 6-cell battery, while you can likewise customize memory, storage space, or add together Bluetooth connectivity. All models feature a webcam and born 3G.

Boosted views:

Quick specs | Full specs Starting price: $399
Processor: AMD E-240 1.5GHz Graphics: AMD Radeon Hard disk drive 6310
Memory: 2 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 1333MHz (1 DIMM) Storage: 320GB seven,200RPM HDD
Display size: eleven.vi" HD (1366x768) AntiGlare Optical: none
Weight: 2.9 lbs Bombardment: 6-cell


HP Pavilion dm1z

The HP Pavilion dm1z offers a great balance of performance, graphics, and bombardment life. Priced at $450, the organization features a dual-cadre 1.6GHz E350 Zacate processor and AMD Radeon HD 6310 GPU on the same chip. It also boasts an eleven.six-inch widescreen with a 1,366-by-768 resolution and ships with a full size, chiclet-manner keyboard.

Features include a gratis upgrade to 3GB of RAM, a 6-cell battery and 320GB of storage, while also supporting extras like GPS mapping and an external Blu-ray bulldoze. In terms of connectivity, the dm1z has iii USB ports, VGA, Ethernet, a multimedia card reader and HDMI out.

Additional views:

Quick specs | Full specs Starting price: $450
Processor: AMD Dual-Core E-350 ane.6GHz Graphics: AMD Radeon Hard disk 6310M
Memory: 3GB DDR3 (two DIMMs) Storage: 320GB 7,200RPM HDD
Display size: eleven.vi" HP BrightView LED Display (1366x768) Optical: none
Weight: 3.five lb Bombardment: vi-cell (~5.5 hours)


Samsung NF310

The NF310 from Samsung stands out from the current crop of netbooks with a sleek, curved blueprint and a 1366 x 768 display resolution which is a rare discover in the x-inch space. The 1.5-GHz dual-cadre Intel Atom N550 processor inside this system promises to evangelize a smooth computing experience, while graphics come up courtesy of Intel's integrated GMA 3150.

The NF310-A01'south feature set is standard fare. Information technology ships with a 250GB (5,400-rpm) difficult drive and 1GB of RAM, Windows vii Starter, it has three USB ports, VGA-out, Ethernet, a webcam, and an SD slot. Other than that you'll get a comfortable, near full-size isle-style keyboard, decent speakers for a netbook and skillful battery life.

Boosted views:

Quick specs | Full specs Starting price: $360
Processor: Intel Atom N550 1.5GHz Graphics: Intel GMA 3150
Retentivity: 1GB DDR3 (1 DIMM) Storage: 250GB 5,400RPM HDD
Display size: x.1" (1366x768) Optical: none
Weight: 2.9 lbs (6-cell) Battery: half-dozen-cell (~half dozen hours)

Other noteworthy options in this category

Asus Eee PC 1015PEM

This 10-inch arrangement boasts a 1024x600 WSVGA matte finish LED display, a 250GB difficult drive, dual-core Atom N550 processor, 1GB of RAM, Bluetooth 3.0, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, iii-in-ane carte reader and iii USB two.0 ports with 'Sleep and Charge' support.

Price range: $370

Toshiba mini NB305

The Toshiba Mini NB305 hits the mark with a sleek chassis and solid construction, comfortable touchpad and keyboard, and over viii hours of bombardment life. It comes with a 10-inch display at 1024x600 resolution, and a single-core 1.66GHz Intel Cantlet N455 chip.

Price range: $350