I'm currently in the market for a new laptop. After years of buying top of the line, $3k+ computers, i'm looking to move to something much cheaper (basically as cheap as possible) and fairly small/light weight.

I'll be finishing my undergraduate degree this coming spring and will need something very portable for medical school. Lots of expenses to deal with coming up soon so if I cant find something cheap, I'm not even going to bother.

I've been looking around online as well as in certain retail stores and have found a lot of ultra-portables in the range of $300-$450. I will only be using this laptop for emails, word documents, and simple internet functions (TS of course) so I dont need anything more than a basic laptop.

I'm open to staying with XP as I dont really like Vista to begin with, and i'm mostly looking at Intel Atom instead of AMD processors.
Less than a 15" screen would be nice, but up to 15.6" i guess is alright. Any of the mainstream or "big" name brands are fine.. Acer, HP, Dell, etc.

Again, i'm trying to stay under $450 if at all possible because med school applications will ultimately end up costing over $2k and I'll be moving back to Hawaii for about a year and I'm going to be finding an apartment so I dont have to live with my parents. For those of you who don't know, property and thus rent here is quite expensive ($1k+ for a simple studio apartment) so I'm trying to minimize unnecessary expenses.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

 

I would highly suggest the HP DV2Z.

HP Official Store — Buy an HP Pavilion dv2 and dv2z series notebook PC from HP


It's like a hybrid netbook/laptop. The ultra portables you referred to are nice for the price but I find their cramped keyboards and 8 inch-10 inch screens slightly annoying.

This new HP is a 12.1 in screen, still thin and light...and starts at $500 bucks. I of course would upgrade it. It does use AMD processing but it uses AMD's new mobile platform "Neo", which has a dual core (Turino) option that I would definitely get. It is at the least AS good if not better than Intel's "Atom".

Anyways this laptop has gone under the radar for some reason but it's small, portable, cheap, and powerful. It will do everything you listed, and has the punch for even more should the need arise...all for a great price.


GL,

-J

 

my bp just picked up a samsung NC10 and it is probably just what you are looking for. he said in his research he found it had the longest battery life and best mix of features.

you can find it here for $359 -> SAMNPNC10KA02 | NC10-14GB 10.2" W Netbook Metallic - Blue | BuyDig.com

Description: Intel Atom Processor N270 1.6GHz, 1 GB DDR2 (Upgradeable to 2GB), 10.2" Wide SuperBright WSVGA, 160 GB (2.5" 5400 RPM), 3 W Stereo Speaker (1.5 W x 2), Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, long life Battery (up to 8 hr) with Windows XP Home SP3

Here's a review as well -> YouTube - Samsung NC10 Netbook Review

 

Great suggestions guys. i've looked at the HP but i've had some bad experiences with AMD in the past. As far as the samsung goes i have never seen it before, but it looks like a great option.

whats a "bp?" lol

 

I strongly suggest you give AMD another chance. They definitely have had their ups and downs but I think this mobile platform is solid.

I've used that samsung, and the HP mini, as well as the new asus netbook (my favorite of the netbooks)

there is just no comparison when you look at how much more you get, especially considering that price point.


-J

 

i was considering an asus as well, just not so sure about the reliability of the brand. what are the main pro/cons of AMD compared to Intel Atom?

Edit: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10216940-1.html
i guess i should go to some stores and just play around with some of the laptops there with amd/intel and maybe the via nano as well.

 

Anyone have any experience with MSI Wind netbooks?

 

business partner

 

makes sense.

Still haven't decided what i'm gonna pick up. Will be buying one within the next couple of weeks though. any other suggestions?

 

you should get that NC10, what's better value wise with those specs? bp is a member on here but never really posts, i'll try to get him to post a review when he gets back from the bahamas.