With prices around $400, everyone can afford a netbook these days. But how do you go about finding one when top manufacturers like HP, Dell, and Asus all seem to make a dozen different models? Here are hand-picked top 10 best netbooks, and just what sets them apart from the pack.
Tag Archive: Acer
Top Windows 7 Netbooks: A Review of the Best Windows 7 Netbooks
Why do people love netbooks? They’re ultraportable, inexpensive, fast and connected, and they’re just too darn adorable. Netbooks featuring Windows 7 operating systems have all of these qualities and more—like an improved user interface, faster start-up, and better graphics capabilities. Here’s our pocketbook-friendly picks for the best netbooks featuring Windows 7.
Acer Aspire One AOD250 Netbook
The AOD250 has a 10.1″ wide-screen LED-backlit LCD screen and a reasonably sized keyboard. This Acer Aspire does a dual-boot with Google’s Android 2.0 for a faster start-up. The prices start at $349 and go up from there depending on the specs.
Acer Aspire AS8940G Notebook Packs Core i7 and an 18.4-inch Display
Taiwan’s Acer has been inching up the global PC market share ratings, challenging Dell and Hewlett-Packard for the top spots—and today the company is making a grab for the high-end multimedia and gaming notebook market with its new Acer Aspire AS8940G-6865. The new notebook is a behemoth with an 18.4-inch full HD LCD display, an Intel Core i7 processor, Nvidia GeForce GTS 250M graphics with 1 GB of dedicated video RAM…and lets not forgive copious storage options, including a Blu-ray optical drive.
Best Windows 7 Laptops, Desktops, and DIY Home or Business PCs
Suddenly as of late, I’ve been getting a raft of questions about which particular laptop and PC models stand out for use with Windows 7. It must be shopping time, and my guess is that a bunch of you are tired of the aging desktop and notebook products you are using and are now on the hunt for something new. Here, I’ll walk you through the products that I think stand out in this regard, from low-cost netbooks to business laptops, desktops, and the sweetest DIY options out there. And away we go…
Acer Jumps Out with 3D Display in Aspire 5738DG Notebook
Sure, 3D technology might require people to put on a pair of awkward-looking glasses to appreciate the depth of field and experience visuals jumping out at them—but soon all the cool kids will be doing it right? Computer maker Acer sure hopes so, announcing its new Acer Aspire 5738DG notebook with a 15.6-inch 1,366 by 768 display with TriDef 3D technology: with the right software (and the right glasses!) users can experience pop-out 3D content as it was meant to be seen. Plus, the system can take 2D content and jazz it up with 3D effects—and users can pop back to a standard 2D experience for email, the Web, and everyday tasks with a single click.
Acer Aspire AS1410 Brings More Power to Netbook Form Factor
There are some folks who like the idea of netbook computers—especially the price and form factor—but are dismayed by the lack of screen real estate and processor capability. Computer maker Acer is hoping to appeal to some of those user with its new Aspire 1410 ultraportable, featuring an 11.6-inch display, 2 GB of RAM, a 1.3 GHz Intel Celeron processor, and Windows 7 64-bit pre-installed.
Experts Question the Future of Netbook PCs
Thought the heretofore booming netbook industry was on a major upswing as price-conscious PC owners flocked to score one of the low-cost, highly portable laptops that emphasize performance over power? Guess again, as industry experts warn that the companies producing these systems and actual consumers buying them may be on different wavelengths.
With the holidays nearing and the machines’ stocking-stuffer-ready size and cost, netbooks are anticipated to be a big buy this gift giving season. But with the introduction of 12-inch screens, ION processors and rising sticker prices, some technology insiders say the lines may be getting a little blurry for these pint-size PCs. Many industry analysts noted that, in the coming months, we may see netbooks grow rather than shrink—a little “switcheroo” for the technology world—as unlike most machinery, dwindling in size with advancement, this hardware is growing and ultimately defeating its original purpose.
Acer Oils Android’s Gears with Liquid Smartphone
Like a brilliant sergeant leading a squad of slackers, Google Android has never been the weak link in most of the smartphones it ends up on. As AnandTech editor in chief Anand Shimpi once so thoughtfully pointed out, every Android on the market today uses the same relatively anemic processor. Hence the load times, sometimes choppy scrolling, and other manifestations of sloth. But not for long.
Dell Slips to Third Place in Worldwide PC Shipments
It wasn’t so many years ago when both U.S. and worldwide PC shipments were dominated by one company: Dell. But how the mighty have fallen—or, perhaps in corporate speak, embarked on a retooling phase. First, Dell lost its first-place status in worldwide and U.S. PC shipments to a resurgent Hewlett-Packard, and now—according to both IDC and Gartner—Dell has lost the number-two position in worldwide PC sales to Taiwan’s Acer, although Dell remains solidly in the number two position for U.S. PC sales.
Acer’s rise to be the second largest manufacturer of PCs worldwide is being attributed to the company’s success in the netbook and low-cost notebook computer markets.
Acer Packs Android into Aspire One Netbooks
Acer has been putting its considerable manufacturing muscle behind netbooks—something that’s been reflected in its 2009 PC shipment figures—and now the company has debuted something new in its Aspire One line, the Acer Aspire One AOD250. Like its brethren, it’ll run Windows XP Home Edition so users have access to their favorite Windows applications…but the AOD250 also dual boots Google’s Android mobile operating system, for quick access to Internet functionality without waiting for Windows XP to start up and shut down. The AOD250 also features a multi-gesture trackpad for intuitive navigation through Web pages, documents, and media.
