Cheap Netbooks, Notebooks, and Mini Laptops ~ renisaazalia

Cheap 10 inch netbooks

Toshiba Mini NB255. This one is the cheaper version of the Toshiba NB305, one of the best netbooks on the market, combing the hardware inside that one with the looks of my old Toshiba NB205. You get the standard hardware and OS (N455 processor, 1 GB of memory and 160 GB HDD, Windows 7 Starter), standard display (10.1 inch glossy) and a sturdy matte casing (only available in black). There’s also a proper battery (capable of 8 hours of life on a single charge), so there’s not much to miss, but the great chiclet keyboard available on the bigger brother and Bluetooh. Still, for its price, this Toshiba NB255 is right now unbeatable if you want the best budget netbook.

HP Mini 210. When compared with the Toshiba above, this HP Mini 210 is pretty much the same in terms of specs. However, it looks better, as it is a higher class laptop with a huge discount these days. You get a bigger 10 hours battery, chiclet keyboard and a couple of different color schemes to choose from, all for around 300 bucks. Sounds good ay? Oh, and since this discount, my experience tells me HP is trying to get rid of stocks, so I doubt this offer will be available for too long. Thus better grab fast it if you find it interesting.

matte Samsung N150. Samsung netbooks aren’t that popular in US, however they top bestselling lists in Europe. so they are very very good. This one has the advantage of being completely matte, that includes a non glare screen as well as a smooth matte casing. It is only available in Black for this price, with a nice red strap (see pic). Specs are pretty much similar to the ones of the other devices in this class and you do get a chiclet keyboard for this Samsung as well. So if you look for a light budget netbook great for outdoors (because of that display), this is it right now.

Acer AO532h. Last but not least, there’s this Acer 10 incher. Available with a nice price and in a couple of different colors, this one is completely glossy. So will be your pick if you’re a fan of these sparkly finishes, I for one ain’t. Everything else is standard, from specs to features. You only get a flat keyboard (with a special design Acer uses), 8 hours battery and no Bluetooth.

Cheap 11.6 -12 inch mini notebooks

Acer Aspire Ao721. This is one of the thinnest (1 inch) 11.6 inch notebooks on the market right now. Packs a single core AMD processor with ATI graphics, 1 GB of memory and 250 GB hard-drive. That hardware is capable of running the OS snappy and face HD content (Flash or self stored), plus some older games. Battery life is only around 5 hours and while the device is reasonably well built, that plastic used for the casing ain’t that great looking. Still, for a budget mini notebook, this is one of your best picks. Reviews from experts and regulars users stand as proof as well.

Toshiba Satellite T115D. For this kind of money you will get the single -core AMD powered version. Specs are pretty much the same as on the Acer above, although graphics are somewhat poorer and there’s more memory installed by default (2 GB). You do get slightly better looks and a better keyboard (chiclet), while battery life remains around the 5 hours margin on a single charge. Plus, you get 64 bit version of Windows 7 Home Premium preinstalled, while the Acer above came with Starter. Still, this one is quite heavy for an 11.6 incher, weighing around 3.5 pounds.

Dell Inspiron i11z. Unlike the devices above, this Dell comes wit Intel inside, so it is slightly faster in everyday tasks. It’s still a single core processor, packed along with 2 GB of memory, 250 GB hard-drive and Windows 7 Home Premium. The device is also more compact and lighter (weighs around 3 pounds), but because of that only comes with a 95% Full-Size keyboard (slightly smaller than a regular one) and smaller battery (capable of only 4 hours of life). It is 50 bucks cheaper than all the other options in here though, so if on a budget, that should matter a lot too.

Asus EEE PC 1201PN. Unlike the devices above, this EEE PC is slightly bigger, with a 12 inch display. It is also better built and better looking, available in a couple of different colors. Inside you get an Atom N450 processor usually found on smaller 10 inch devices, but there’s also the Nvidia ION2+Optimus for graphics (so it will run HD content, including 10180p, plus some games). However, since there’s that single core processor on board, don’t expect too much from the little fellow. Still, it is affordable, comes with a very nice Full-Size chiclet Keyboard and Bluetooth (which other devices in this price range lack) and because it packs Optimus, battery life can get up to 7 hours of light use.

Acer Aspire Timeline AS3810TZ. This is an ultra thin (1.1 inch) and light (3.5 pounds) 13.3 incher and is quite a nice machine to have. Packs a single core Intel SU4100 processor, 4 GB of memory, 320 GB hard-drive and Windows 7 Home Premium. There’s also a nice island keyboard and a 6 Cell battery capable of 8 hours of life. So pretty good, considering you can get it discounted these days. See the link for more details.

Toshiba Satellite T235D. This is a new generation 13.3″ mini laptop from Toshiba, boosting the new design and the chicket keyboard/trackpad combo (perhaps the best in its class) . You get a dual-core AMD processor with ATI graphics, so it’s better than the Acer above in terms of performances, but battery life has to suffer (only around 6 hours on a charge). So quite a machine if you’re on a budget, as proven by the great reviews scored with buyers.

Toshiba Satellite L645D. This is the bigger Toshiba, the 14 incher. It packs a triple core AMD processor for even more power and a DVD-writer, but it is quite bulky and heavy when compared to all the other machines in this post, weighing nearly 5 pounds. So not that portable, but fast and with a great price. These qualities in fact make it one of the most popular laptops of all in the States right now and the best sold in its class (14 inch).