Anyone here use a Netbook for productivity? How is it? What’s it like to manipulate 100,000 row by 50 column spreadsheets on a 10" screen with a handicapped processor? Am I going to want to kill myself? Thanks.
I have something that is a little better than a netbook. It’s an Acer Aspire 1410, which cost me about $450 at J&R (after tax) and has a CoreSolo processor. It’s definitely not a powerhouse, and I see the processor maxing out at times - I think it’s the preinstalled software that is dragging it down; I’ve read that it’s not a big problem if you remove it… I just am not sure what parts I can remove without causing other problems. I bought it because 1) my MacBook Pro 15" seems heavy to drag around in some situations, 2) because it is cheaper to lose that machine than my mac, 3) the keyboard is full sized (unlike many netbooks), 4) it fits nicely in my briefcase, 5) I wanted to run Windows without using up almost all of my Mac’s RAM doing it. I don’t know how it would handle 100k x 50 data points in Excel - my sense is that if Excel is the only thing running, and the formulas are not enormously calculation intensive, the machine could handle it, especially if I removed the preinstalled bloatware.
Samsung nc-10 with 2gb of ram… 120gb of storage and full size keyboard, I love it. 5 hour battery life and does everything I need it to. Just curious - why do you want to work spreadsheets on a netbook?
Forgot to say, I find having an external mouse is a really big help if using a netbook or micro-laptop.
bchadwick Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Forgot to say, I find having an external mouse is > a really big help if using a netbook or > micro-laptop. As well as an USB 10 key.
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I bought mine while I was in college and used to slingbox from my direct TV during class. Then, I just stopped going to class and watched it on my 42" LCD in my apartment instead. I use it for productivity all the time. It does take time to get used to using Excel on such a small screen but I don’t leave home without it.
If by netbook you mean an Atom-powered computer, I recommend spending a few hundred more and getting a full capability computer. It’s not so nice to manipulate large Excel files on machines that don’t even have the power to play high definition video.
i got mine about a month ago. an optical or wireless mouse is essential for spreadsheets but this is also the case with regular laptops as well. for spreadsheeting, you don’t really need anymore. i can watch regular video on it, and i don’t think i’d even want HD on it, i mean, it is 9", so what’s the point. mine is an Atom, 1.6 Ghz, 2GB Ram and works fine. the worst part is that i’m not used to using wireless internet anymore and load times are often frustrating. also, the portability is awesome. I don’t know why you’d ever want a 12"+ computer when the added functionality is often useless. then again, I build and add to my own tower at home, its basically a $2000 computer I built for $500. if you have a powerful computer at home, don’t even consider a powerful computer for on the road. think size! bigger is not always better in this case only. haha.
Oh, I didn’t mean that I would be playing high definition video itself on the netbook. I meant that it would be very cumbersome for me to run large spreadsheets on such an underpowered machine. This would vary by user, of course. I tend to run huge macros and complex queries - other people might not have these same requirements.
I agree with Matt. I’m looking to get a netbook for basic web surfing, email, and the occasional spreadsheet or word doc. I don’t need lots of horsepower, I just want portability.
I have a netbook. It doesn’t stream porn as well as a notebook. I even replaced the 1GB stick of ram with 2GB! Oh well.
Yeah, size matters when you’re talking about RAM.
I’ve got a Dell netbook but barely use it unless I’m traveling. Good for in-flight, airport waiting, but a pain if working with spreadsheets; I like my 24’’ screen.
bchadwick Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I have something that is a little better than a > netbook. It’s an Acer Aspire 1410, I have this same machine and it’s great. They’re down to ~400 now, so for $100 more than a netbook you get a CPU (“CULV”) with 2-3x the speed. I haven’t tried to melt it with a 5M cell spreadsheet. The rough comparison in CPU speed is with the old Pentium-M processors, which were state of the art for ultraportables earlier this decade. (There are now dual-core CULV machines available if you need to surf the web at high speed at the same time you’re turning your spreadsheet. But they’re another ~100 or so higher.)
I have one. Love it.
Nice - I just bought one. I’m a hopeless consumer…
I should say that although I like my Acer netbook, I really do prefer my Mac, and using it just hammers home how much slicker the Mac is on almost every front other than weight (I suppose I could get a MacBook Air, but that’s about 3x the price of the Acer)