I have to admit that I’m a Netbook Junkie.
Ever since I first laid eyes on a “black beauty,” that little capsule of joy, all 7 inches of Linux packing, Skype weilding, Firefox ready and Thunderbird enabled, I was hooked. I was so hooked I bought my first one in France, only to find of course it had a French keyboard (duh) so said jonesin’ wasn’t satisfied until a model, with a USA keyboard was found and imported from Taiwan. Yes, those of us who are hooked, will go to any length to get our fix. But that was a “white wonder” and even though it satisfied my need for a fix, I just had to find a “black” beauty. And I did. Like the “white wonder” it was also an Asus 701.
Then came the Asus 901s in Linux and Windows. I ordered both. Then the 1000H too, also in both flavors, as the bigger they got the more potent the jonesin’ became. I had to have them all.
The came the rivals. The Acers. The MSIs. Lenovos. Dells. HPs. Samsungs, GigaBytes and more.
I quickly grabbed one, then another, then another. Buying importing, I even had a taste of a converted Linux to Windows Acer Aspire One for myself, then one for my wife. She was hooked too. All of a sudden the homeless Asus Linux devices found new homes with her staff who became hooked as well. When it came time for holiday presents and Bar Mitzvah gifts, we opted to give three teens their entry to the world of Netbook Nirvana. And yes, they too are hooked each with their own Acer Aspire One “Blue Bombers.”
You see, the Netbooks are so small, and do so much, and so easily, for you that deciding which one is best for you is the biggest challenge. 8.9” or 10.1” whichever the size the addiction is there.
What’s my favorite? That’s tough. On one hand it’s my “blue” Acer Aspire One with built in 3G that you can only buy through RadioShack. Great for on the go rocket fast data connectivity in the USA but I have yet to figure out if it is unlocked or not. Then there is my Asus S101, perhaps the most gorgeous of the bunch, but that’s been rivaled by the new “blue magic” from Asus too. It’s the Asus 1000HE with the more potent, faster acting and smoother running N280 from Intel that also has a 9.5 hour, but very compact battery which I’ve also nicknamed “blue.” With it comes amazing audio that really rocks. Plus an amazing built in Super Hybrid Engine overclocker, smooth WiFi connectivity and it sure works great with VoIP and Video confencing too. Just add a 3G USB stick and your “flyin high.”
My wife has her own special Netbook too. It’s a GigaByte M912 nicknamed “Gigi” which was obtained via the most reliable “dealer” in the Netbook business for only the best “imported” and really special “high end stuff,” the great folks at Dynamism.
But like a real junkie, I’ve always wanted more (and in reality had it all the time.) It’s my Flybook V5. But given the price point and what it has inside, it’s not really a Netbook, its an amazing work of laptop engineering, in a class by itself…The Flybook really does fly and boy does that satisfy anyone’s NetBook lust. Even my wife’s. While mine is Silver, her’s is of course Gold. And yes to complete the story, the “Flybooks” even have nicknames. “Fly” for mine and “Flyette” for hers.
Hooked? You bet. But still as good as they are, none really replaces Mackie. None of the four of mine ranging from Air, to the two Pros or iMac. But Mac Addiction is something even more. It’s religious like perhaps rivaled only by those with BlackBerries, I mean, “crackberries.”
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