Netbooks

YouTube video courtesy of demomoblin

Ack! I still haven't gotten around to installing Ubunut Netbook Remix 9.10 on my Acer Aspire One yet (currently running 8.04). Now, here comes...

Moblin v2.1 project release for netbooks and nettops - it's here

I tried Moblin briefly a while back after its initial public release, didn't like it, and haven't revisited it since. Like the One Laptop Per Child XO Sugar OS, I think Moblin's UI violates my end-user expectations too much for me to even begin to accept it. However, if you try it, here's what's new or enhanced:

- Web browser with plug-in support
- 3G data modem support
- Application installer (ya, I guess that would help :-)
- Bluetooth device support
- Connection manager for Ethernet, WiFi, WiMAX, & 3G
- Nettop UI scaling support
- Improved instant messaging
- Localization improvements

If you were planning to buy a cheap Atom-powered netbook and hacking Apple's Mac OS X to turn it into a so-called Hackintosh, don't try it with the upcoming Snow Leopard update (10.6.2)...

Hackintosh Netbook users take note: Snow Leopard 10.6.2 update kills support for Atom Processor

Of course, there's nothing to stop you from using the older OS X Leopard 10.5.x release to build a Hackintosh. I'm not condoning this idea, of course, I'm just saying... ya know?

So, if you happen to have your pre-upgrade Leopard DVD lying around, there's some nice Hackintoshable netbooks here and there. Again, I'm just saying... But, if you ever see Apple release an OS X 10.5.9 upgrade, you might want to consider not updating your Hackintosh...

Photo courtesy of Amazon (probably by way of Asus)

I don't see any sign of the Eee PC T91MT Windows 7 based multi-touch tablet netbook on Asus' websites. But, I did see it for pre-order on Amazon.com for $549. So, despite a few reservations about it, I clicked the "Pre-order: Add to Cart" button over the weekend. So, what are my reservations?

- Storage is limited to a 32GB SSD (Solid State Drive - flash drive). Amazon's product description says 500GB of online storage is also included. But, what will that cost after the first year? And, how fast is it over relatively slow WiFi hotspots? And, oh yes, is access to it encrypted?
- Screen size is 8.9-inch instead of the 10.1-inch screen I've been using since September 2008. I have an 8.9-inch Acer Aspire One netbook. So, I know I can work with an 8.9-inch screen. But, still...
- Battery is said to be rated at 5 hours. So, in real life, I'll probably get 2.5 to 3 hours of actual useful life. This will not get me through the day at, for example, a conference with spotty A/C outlet access.

So, why do I currently have it on pre-order (I could change my mind)?

- I've bought two Asus netbooks so far. They have both worked well over the past year.
- The T91MT is the only multi-touch netbook I could find
- It is a convertable (keyboard or tablet configuration)
- Although 32GB of storage is not much, it is SSD and could me fast Windows 7 startups
- I played with a Dell desktop PC with a touchscreen while in Costco over the weekend and was very impressed by Windows 7' touch user interface (see video below)

Dell's blog announced...

Create a Mini for Me with Dell Design Studio

It means that people purchasing Dell netbooks like the Mini 10 and Mini 10v can pay an extra $85 for a custom paint job which includes Major Leagure Baseball team designs in either conservative or bold styles. I couldn't actually see any of this on the Dell.com site since its incredibly Flash-heavy (let's call it ponderous) site kept crashing (see typical error message in the screenshot above). I wish Dell would provde an option to see their site quickly in a Flash-free view.

Netbooks do not include optical drives. So, how can netbook owners install Windows 7 from a DVD? The simple answer is from an external DVD drive connected to the netbook via USB. However, most people probably don't have an external DVD drive and don't want to purchase one.

Microsoft's newly introduced solution for installing Windows 7 on a netbook is to purchase it from their online store, download the ISO image file and using...

Microsoft's Official USB/DVD Download Tool Helps you Upgrade Netbooks to Windows 7

You need to supply a USB flash drive with at least 4GB of available space. The tool deletes anything on the flash drive and creates a bootable Windows 7 installation drive.

You can find and download the tool from the Microsoft online store...

Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool

The first, and honestly, the only Linux tweaked for netbooks I've used is Ubuntu Netbook Remix (UNR). Intel's Moblin for netbooks didn't seem as interesting during my brief testing period (testing was brief because I didn't like it :-). I admit that Ubuntu Moblin Remix looks more interesting, but I have not tried it yet.

However, if you have an older pre-Atom netbook, neither UNR nor UMR will scratch your netbook Linux itch. I just noticed a Linux distro that seems to be running on old netbooks like the Asus Eee PC 701 or 900 in various YouTube video demos...

eeebuntu

However, there are also demos of it running on the Atom-powered Eee PC 1000.

If you've been running Eeebuntu on a netbook for a while, let me know how it is working out for you.

Fudzilla.com says that the...

New Atom N450 for netbook launch is January

...specifically Jaunary 3, 2010. Fudzilla notes that the processor combines graphics processing on the processor thus reducing space requirements in netbooks. They note that it does not provide battery life or performance improvements compared to the N270. However, earlier discussions about the N450 (aka "Pinewood") noted that its 7 watt power requirement is about half of the power required by the current combination of a N270 and graphics processor. If this is true, we should see a noticable increase battery life in netbooks usig the N450.

The crop of summer rumors about the N450 had its debut scheduled fro this month (October). So, let's hope Intel hits the early January 2010 availability date noted by Fudzilla.

So, how does a poor blogger show a 3D LCD product? I think the answer is you don't if everyone is looking at a 2D display as we do today. But, Geek.com tries to tell us about this one...

Acer unveils world's first 3D laptop

The...

Acer Aspire 5738 (product page)

...has a special screen that can display 3D graphics by presenting a polarized image in combination with 3D polarized glasses like the ones used to watch recent 3D movies like "Up!".

Acer's product page notes that the Aspire 5738PG screen is also a multi-touch screen. The display is full HD with a 1366x768 resolution. The notebook ships with 4GB RAM and can be upgraded to 8GB (2 slots). As you might expect for a notebook with an 18-inch display, the 5738PG is on the heavy side weighing in at 6.2 lbs. Its 6-cell battery has a rated life of 3.5 hours. I didn't find a suggested retail price for this product.

I think I proved my point about manufacturers like Acer confusing potential customers with difficult to decipher model names and numbers in my earlier item about the Acer Aspire One D250. Now, let's talk about a completely differnt Acer product, the Acer Aspire One AOD250-1613. Um, uh huh. netbooked.net noted that this...

10.1" Acer Aspire One Android Netbook Now On Preorder in US

You can find it here for pre-order on Amazon.com for $349.99 (including free shipping)...

Acer AOD250-1613 10.1-Inch Black Netbook - Up to 9 Hours of Battery Life

This dual-booting netbook (Windows XP and Android) netbook is very similar to the Acer Aspire One D250 except for two aspects:

1. The AOD-250-1613 dual boots while the D250 will have Windows 7 Starter Edition installed
2. The AOD-250-1613 has the more common 1024x600 LCD resolution compared to the D250's 1280x720 HD video resolution

I wonder what happens to the dual-boot configuration if you try to upgrade the Windows XP side of this netbook with Windows 7?

First, let's not confuse Ubuntu Netbook Remix (UNR) with Ubuntu Moblin Remix (UMR)...

But, if you are interested in UMR, ars technica has a detailed review of it as pre-installed on Dell's Inspiron Mini 10v netbook...

A review of the Dell Mini 10v, Ubuntu Moblin Remix edition

The Mini 10v is the low-end of Dell's netbook line with the old Atom N270 processor and other 2008 specs: 1GB RAM, 160 GB HD, 1024x600 display, etc. Its standard battery is a wimpy 3-cell with the option to upgrade to a 6-cell battery.

ars' UMR review begins on page 2. So, you can skip the entire first page of their review if you just want to know about the OS.

ars reports a reasonably fast (compared to XP) 22 second boot on a hard disk based 10v. But, this is not blindingly fast. The reviewer encountered several crashes before testing. But, it should be noted that Dell advertises this as a "Developer" edition. It is not meant for production use.

I'm comfortable with UNR's always maximized windows. But, I couldn't get comfortable with the way UMR does the same thing for some reason. ars' reviewer seems a bit uncomfortable with it too.

ars' conclusion is that UMR is intersting but needs a lot of work.

The same can probably be said about the UNR (Ubunut Netbook Remix) that I use. But, I've gotten comfortable with it over the months and will continue to stick with it instead of experimenting with Moblin.