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notebooks

2009: Netbook or notebook?

2009 may be the year of the Netbook. But there's a big if.

Here's the choice: Will consumers buy a thin, light, relatively fast $1,800 MacBook Air or a thin, light, ultrasmall, not-as-fast $450 Hewlett-Packard Mini 1000 Netbook? (Correction: the HP Mini 1000 configuration cited here was originally stated incorrectly as $700.)

If many people, fully aware of this choice, opt for a Netbook then we have the foundation of, at the very least, a rethinking of the pricey ultraportable.

At most, we have many more consumers buying into the Netbook concept--particularly if 3G broadband wireless comes … Read more

Get a dual-core Compaq laptop for $379.99 (after rebates)

In the market for a new notebook? Office Depot has a humdinger of a deal: a fully loaded dual-core Compaq Presario for $379.99 (after a pair of mail-in rebates--sorry). Shipping is free, but you may have to pay sales tax.

Highlights of this model include a 2GHz Athlon X2 QL-62 processor, 160GB hard drive, a DVD burner, and a 15.4-inch screen. It also has a six-cell battery and 5.8-pound travel weight. You get a one-year warranty and 24-7 toll-free tech support.

In other words, this system has all the computing power most people need, and it's … Read more

Free crapware removal from Support.com

If you get a new PC for a holiday gift this year, it's almost guaranteed it'll come filled to the brim with trialware. Knowing this, Support.com says it's got another present for you: free removal of the unwanted pre-loaded software.

The online tech support service has just begun offering the service for free. It works like this: Go to Support.com, or call them at 1-800-PC-Support. A customer service representative (from North America, they promise!) will remotely access your PC and blast away at the bloatware.

You can watch as they do it, Support.com says. … Read more

Which keyboard will emerge victorious in our Logitech civil war?

Back in September, we introduced you to Logitech's newest diNovo Keyboard for Notebooks. CNET's Rich Brown expressed confusion as to why we actually need a "for Notebooks" model, and after doing a full-length review, I must agree. There's absolutely nothing about the diNovo for Notebooks that makes it strictly for laptops. Well, there is one tiny little key: the eject button. Although, that can still be used for desktops, so I guess that designator means nothing- it's all marketing.

That's not to say that we didn't like the keyboard itself, though. It … Read more

Disappointed in this year's Black Friday deals? Well, fear no more...Our very own Shopper blogger, JT, will be scouring the internet bringing you all the information you need to find the best deals in cyberspace.

It only gets better from here on out. From now through December 3, HP is having a sweet deal on its HP dv5z Notebook. Savings includes a $150 instant rebate, FREE upgrade from 1GB to 4GB of memory ($175 value), FREE upgrade from a 160GB hard drive to a 320GB hard drive ($125 value), upgrade to genuine Windows Vista Ultimate for $99 ($60 value), and FREE shipping ($49 value). Check out HP's Deal here

Are Netbooks real?

Earlier this year, I expressed my skepticism that Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) and Netbooks (essentially scaled-down, low-cost notebooks) would come to pass as mainstream product categories. My reasoning boiled down to an assertion that these things were neither fish nor fowl. As usually envisioned, a MID is a form factor that is neither as portable as a smartphone nor as full-functioned as a notebook. A Netbook is a notebook that is underpowered and otherwise compromised.

I've seen nothing over the past few months to change my mind about MIDs. If anything, Apple's continued march with the iPhone and … Read more

Memo to Intel: Netbooks morphing into notebooks

Looking for signs that netbooks are catching on? And even morphing into notebooks? Here's a few.

Netbooks were the big end-user gadget on display at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference that ended Friday.

And all the Netbooks at a Microsoft booth were running Windows 7, Microsoft's next-generation operating system due next year.

A Microsoft person on the floor said that a lite version of Windows 7 will run on 1GB of memory and 16GB of (solid-state drive) storage. Higher-end Netbooks will have a 160GB hard disk drive, according to Microsoft "guidance."

This person also said something … Read more

HP considers bundling Netbooks, wireless service

A day after rolling out a new line of Netbooks, Hewlett-Packard says it's looking at selling them in conjunction with wireless service providers.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Kevin Frost, who heads up HP's consumer notebook division, said the company is considering selling Netbooks at a deep discount to customers who sign a wireless service contract.

On Wednesday, HP introduced a new line of Netbooks called the HP Mini 1000.

Frost said, "The big picture for these Netbooks is that kind of model," but described it as a "longer-term" plan. He … Read more