Peewee Netbook Emerges

Netbooks may be mainly designed for business folks and college students, but you can never count manufacturers out when it comes to trying to sell netbooks to a wider range of audience.Peewee Netbook  is designed to let your kids get more done in their classrooms. It certainly looks like a fun toy to play with. The PeeWee Premier PC has a rotating screen which easily converts from traditional laptop format with keyboard entry to a resistive touch tablet. That is exactly why I have trouble calling this a netbook. It’s really a tablet PC, and the price is also out of the range of what you would pay for regular netbooks.

Peewee tablet is certainly capable and very solid, so your kid won’t be breaking it anytime soon. It’s a cool gadget for kids, but not what you can call a real netbook.

Lenovo To Introduce Thinkpad Netbook?

Lenovo has some of the most innovative laptops on the market. It is already involved in the netbook market with Ideapad S10, but that hasn’t stopped the company from contemplating a Thinkpad netbook line. And it is going back to the basics by asking people about their reaction to such a move. David Hill wrote on Lenovo’s blog:

What if Lenovo was to make a ThinkPad branded netbook?  Would you say, “What a relief, finally a netbook that really means business” ?  What would you like to see in such a hypothetical offering?  How black and square  should we make it?  Maybe it should come in colors like the IdeaPad S10. Could I interest you in a PinkPad?

While I am a fan of asking people about what they think when designing new products, it’s not exactly the best practice if you want to innovate and think outside the box. Think about it. Apple did not create the iPod because people were asking for it. It was smart enough to observe people and find out about their needs before designing the product. When it comes to netbooks, we already have a lot of information on what people need. Now we need a company to come up with a more powerful, more portable, and energy efficient netbooks. Anything beyond that is going to come down to what the innovation teams in these companies come up with.

Your take: do you want to see a Thinkpad netbook?

Dell Inspiron Mini IM12-2868 Review

Dell is one of the top laptop manufacturers in the world. So it’s no surprise to see them enter the netbook market, and you can be sure that they are in it to win it. Mini 12 is a larger version of Mini 9 that is not only capable but very portable at the same time. The 12 inch screen that you get with your netbook is more than easy on the eye. Mini 12 is known for being the perfect netbook for tweeters. It’s the perfect gadget for those who spend a lot of time on the Internet. The CPU is more than capable and you get more than enough memory to get things done on your Dell netbook. The Intel Atom Z520 uses a brand new 45nm (nanometer) design structure with new hafnium-infused circuitry–which reduces electrical current leakage in transistors to conserve energy. You do get only 3 hours of battery but you can always buy a 6 cell battery.

I find the device to be very well designed. In addition to a 12.1″ screen, you also get TrueLife high-gloss technology that reduces the glare you get on this netbook. The Wi-Fi support and blue-tooth let you get more work done without worrying about wires. And if you want to conduct video-conferences while you are on the go, you can easily do so using the 1.3 MP camera available on this netbook. The 3 USB 2.0 ports make it easy to connect more accessories as you need them.

What I was impressed about with Dell Mini 12 is the online storage that you get with Box.net. You can expand your storage to 25 GB if you prefer. This feature allows you to put your precious files online and protect them against hard drive accidents. Dell Inspiron Mini 12 weighs only 2.72 lbs, which makes this netbook a dream come true for tweeters on the go.

Verdict: B+. Overall, Dell Mini IM12-2868 is cool netbook that makes a great Internet gadget. It’s light and very well designed. The battery could be much better. I also like to see a faster CPU. And the price is a bit on the high side. Nevertheless, Dell Mini 12 is a solid choice if you are looking for a top netbook.

Android Netbooks Coming…

For weeks people have been speculating about the possibility of Google Android showing up on netbooks. A few analysts have gone out of their way to dismiss the challenge that Android can pose to Windows 7. That, however, doesn’t mean Android netbooks are not in the works. Alpha 680 is the first netbook that will rely on Android as its operating system. It will cost only $250, which should make it affordable to a whole lot of folks.

The problem with Alpha 680 is it does not come with features that you would expect in a top netbook. You get a 7 inch screen, a 533 MHz CPU and a poor battery. Alpha 680 is what you can call a budget netbook. It’s designed for folk who want to take a chance on netbooks but don’t want to pay too much. Having said that, one would expect slightly better features for the price.

Windows 7 netbooks will be the top dogs on the market for a while. There is no question that a lot of people are used to Windows and would rather have the software on their netbooks. Linux and Android netbooks will be used on more affordable netbooks. The market is growing, and there is no reason high-end and low-end netbooks can’t co-exist.

Your take: will you take a chance on Alpha 680 and similar Android netbooks?

Toshiba Mini NB200 Preview

Toshiba has finally introduced an upgrade over NB100 by introducing NB200 netbook to the market. NB200 is not your everyday netbook. Sure. You do get a 10.1 inch screen, and N270 or N280 for your CPU. You also get 9 hours of battery life, which puts NB200 among the top energy-efficient netbooks on the market.

What keeps me excited about NB200 is the 3D-accelerometer that comes with the netbook. That allows your device to detect freefalls, shocks and vibrations and protects the integrated HDD to secure against the loss of any personal data. So no longer do you have to worry about losing everything if you drop your notebook. I am not suggesting that you should test this feature out, but it’s a nice insurance policy to have.

Toshiba NB200 will cost you about $500 and will be released in May.

Sharp Mebius Netbook and the Next Level Touchpad

Sharp certainly knows how to spice up its netbook line. Sharp Mebius NJ70A is a cool new netbook that takes the idea of a touchpad to the next level. If you think you’ve got a good touchpad on your netbook, think again. Sharp Mebius has a revolutionary touchpad that lets you use your netbook like you would your iPhone. You can rotate things and move things around easily using Mobius’ touchpad.

The main problem with this device is going to be the price. Paying $800+ for a netbook doesn’t seem logical. Nevertheless, Sharp needs to be applauded for its latest innovation.

Video [Akihabara News]

MSI Wind U100-432US Netbook

MSI is known for making some of the best netbooks on the market. MSI netbooks are not only portable but are powerful as well. MSI Wind U100-432US is no exception. The Wind actually stands for something — Wi-Fi Network Device. MSI Wind U100-432US is a 10 inch netbook that is highly portable and perfect for business professionals on the go. The 10-inch LCD screen has a 1024 x 600-pixel resolution, which is decent for a netbook. And the screen quality is superb, especially with the LED backlit technology used on this device.

You get the standard netbook features that you get with the most popular netbooks. You get ATOM N270 CPU, 1 GB Ram, and 160 hard drive on this netbook. You also get wireless N capability, a web cam, and bluetooth. As far as connectivity features are concerned, you get a lot of options with this netbook:

• 4-in-1 SD/MMC/MS/MSpro Card Reader
• 3 USB 2.0 Ports
• 1 Mic-In Port
• 1 Headphone Port
• 2 Internal Speakers
• SoundBlaster Audio

Insert Mold Roller (IMR) technology used on this netbook is very interesting as it keeps your netbook looking new and without fingerprint marks for as long as possible. MSI Wind U100-432US also comes with text magnification technology that helps you read all kinds of documents without hurting your eyes.

You also get a 6 cell battery that lets you use your netbook for 6 hours between each charge. MSI Wind U100-432US weighs only 2.6 lbs. That means you can get more done on the road without having to carry a large weighty laptop with you around.

Verdict: A-. Overall, U100-432US is a portable netbook that is designed for small business owners. It comes with wireless N capability and a decent set of features for a netbook. It’s energy efficient too.  MSI Wind U100-432US Netbook is going to cost you about $300, making this netbook an affordable option for most folks. Having a faster CPU would have pushed this netbook over the top, but N270 is a decent enough CPU to let you get your work done without too much trouble.

*check our latest netbook ratings to find out where U100-432US stands.

Toshiba Goes With Larger Screens

It seem Netbook manufacturers are finally realizing that some of those smaller netbooks are too hard to use for many consumers. We are all for more portable laptops, but if the screen is too small to read, you are going to have trouble justifying paying $300 for a netbook. That’s probably the reason Toshiba is going with 10 inch netbooks. Many companies stay away from larger screens to keep their netbooks’ weight below a certain number. But in reality, you can have a super portable netbook that has a larger screen as well. It really comes down to how well you design it.

Toshiba’s new netbook is only one of many larger netbooks that will be launched this year. Some companies are planning to launch 13.3″ netbooks, but that’s where the line between laptops and netbooks becomes blurry.

Your take: does screen size matter when it comes to buying a netbook?

Can Sony Lifestyle PC stop Netbooks?

The netbook market has been growing in a fast rate even in these tough economic times. The netbooks are great gadgets as they are recession friendly and highly portable. There are a lot of manufacturers that are planning to launch their own netbooks in the near future. But not everyone seems to be focusing on recession-friendly gadgets. Sony is known for its legendary VAIO product lines. It has now taken its game to the portable notebook market by introducing Lifestyle PCs. These are 8 inch highly portable notebooks designed for folks who are constantly on the go. And they are super slick too!

Can Lifestyle PCs really stop netbooks? A lot of folks have already classified Sony Lifestyle as a netbook. I don’t believe that’s a good classification. Sony P beats its regular netbook counterparts in many areas and is more pricey as well. Sony Lifestyle is a great gadget. It’s highly portable and very good looking. Best of all, it’s a premium netbook. Sony certainly hasn’t cut any corners when it comes to adding features to Sony P. But there is one major question mark on this device: the price! Netbooks are supposed to be highly affordable. Sony P is going to cost you a cool $900 which is more than you would have to pay for some of the fully-fledged laptops on the market. The device is certainly worth the price but will netbook owners take that into account?

The battle between regular netbooks and Sony’s netbooks comes down to price vs. premium quality. Apple has been playing that game for years, and while it has earned a lot of money and success, it hasn’t managed to dominate the PC market. Sony netbook is a great gadget, but I doubt it has what it takes to dominate the netbook market. It’s simply too expensive to be adopted by recession-friendly gadget lovers. Now if Sony drops the prices we will be looking at a whole new game.

Your take: is Sony P’s $900 price tag a deal breaker for you?

Nettops To Follow The Foot Steps of Netbooks?

What is it with these “net” gadgets? It seems by adding the word “net” to any gadget, you can literally double your sales. Let’s not get overboard here. Netbooks are great gadgets. They are portable, capable, and very affordable. But can nettops follow in the foot steps of netbooks? Can nettops help computer manufacturers sell more PCs?

The reasons netbooks have been very successful is due to the fact that they are portable and cheap! All-in-one desktops have been around for years, and the jury is still out on them. iMacs are highly popular, but I am not sure other companies have had too much success with their all-in-one products. The problem with all-in-one desktop is that they are often too expensive for most folks. And they can’t be easily upgraded. You are still going to have some of those issues with nettops, but if computer manufacturers come up with nettops in the range of $250-400, there is no reason why people won’t buy them. The key here is performance and price. Nettops will probably be Internet PCs. So you can’t expect to create 3D animations with Maya on them. But if you are a business person and want to track your business via the Internet, nettops make a great investment. Let’s face it. The Internet will be a bigger part of our lives in the near future, so nettops could provide PC manufacturers with the break they have been waiting for.

Will nettops catch fire like netbooks? It’s hard to tell. Desktops are getting cheaper, and a lot of folks expect better performance from Desktop PCs than laptops. So I am not sure how many folks are willing to settle for Internet PCs. But as long as they are cheap enough you never know.

Your take: would you consider buying a nettop instead of a regular PC? Why?