Coffee Break — Netbooking in Denny’s
I am sitting in Denny’s with a full tummy, sipping some fresh-brewed coffee from a bottomless cup while working away. No, this is not an ad for the restaurant chain, it is me blatantly using their free Wi-Fi for getting some work done.
I am using the HP Mini 5101 netbook, and the more I use it, the more I feel that it is my favorite netbook so far. I’ve used a lot of them, but the 5101 with the chiclet keyboard and small size is simply a great mobile computer. I am currently working in Google Chrome with seven tabs open, and the performance is decent.
This unit has one GB of RAM and I’m wondering how it will be with two GB installed? I just may have to find out. HP has made RAM upgrades easy to do, with the access panel that requires no tools. Microsoft won’t let HP sell the Mini with 2 GB of RAM with XP onboard, but they can’t stop me from adding it. :)
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Netbooks won’t be selling for very long with XP, so that 1GB limit is a non-issue. Do yourself a favor and get a 2-for-1 deal by waiting for Win 7. You’ll not only get a better OS but manufacturers will finally ship those units with more than 1GB RAM.
That said, Intel may just get its act together and push out Pinetrail by years end, promising even better performance.
The second generation of netbooks coming out within the next 12 months will blow away anything that’s been on sale yet.
Windows XP will still be cheaper for OEMs to include on netbooks than Windows 7, recent information has emerged. So why do you think netbooks will not be sold with XP? It think many netbooks will still be shipping with XP onboard.
I’ve also not seen any concrete information from Microsoft that the 1 GB limit on netbooks will be eliminated for Win 7.
I was getting worried though, it’s been a few days since you mentioned Pinetrail. :)
HAH! No worries James, you know I’m bursting at the seams to mention the word at any time! :)
AFAIK, MS will be pulling XP off retail once Win 7 goes on sale. I don’t see them selling three generations of an OS at once. At some point or another XP has to go, and if Vista didn’t kill it, MS should make sure Win 7 does.
Whether netbook manufacturers follow this though may depend on Pinetrail. For the last year or so new notebook chipsets have been driver-exclusive to Vista, making XP installation on recent hardware difficult at best, and impossible at worst. I would be very surprised if Intel releases XP drivers for Pinetrail, unless their intention is to keep netbooks in the stone age.
Actually, Microsoft has said that XP will continue to be made available to OEMs, and for lower per unit cost than Win 7 Starter Edition. It always comes down to cost in the netbook game. Performance is not even a consideration.
Strange; the Denny’s free wi-fi must be local to you. I tried free loading at Denny’s just Wednesday and was told they didn’t have wi-wi for customers’ use there.
I had to use my X70 via AT&T 3G.
Hi. Are you still going to review the mini 5101? Kind of curious why HP didn’t put that broadcom video accelerator in it. HP seems to be the best with netbook materials but they are slow with the internal tech. It’s beyond me why the hd screen is an option on the 5101 and the older 2140 with hd screen is no longer in production. Unless a mini 5101 with a larger hd screen is a month or so away. Thanks.
How bulky is the 5101 with the 6 cell battery? I had the mini 1000, and I’m currently testing the 110 with the 6 cell battery. I don’t really like how the battery raises the bottom of the computer. I’d much prefer if it stuck out of the end as in traditional extended batteries.
Check it out on video:
http://jkontherun.com/2009/08/04/hp-mini-5101-netbook-stalked-on-video/