Computex 2009 is now over. It’s a pity I didn’t get to the show, but I was quite busy this week with stuff at school. Over the week of the show, Craig has noted some trends in computing that will take hold in 2009: Android, larger netbooks, better connectivity and SSDs are getting LARGE. But most importantly, battery life is now decent.
I’m getting to the point of wondering how far netbooks will go in replacing lower-end notebooks or laptops. With sale prices, the two categories seem quite blurred now except in two respects: battery life and power. If you want more battery life, then a decent netbook is now giving you upto about 9 hours. But for power, lower-end notebooks just don’t have equipment or processing power.
While the Compaq Presario CQ40 is a refurbished model, it sports a dual core processor with 3GB ram. and an ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics RS780M card, and multi-media drive. Sporting Vista Home Premium, modem, network card, and even an HDMI socket. All for $399.99.
Now compare that with the Asus Eee PC 1000HE, which doesn’t run Vista or have a dual core processor. It also lacks a 14″ screen and a multi-media drive (though you can attach both externally). However, it has a 8700mAH battery that allows for up to 9.5 hours in use, an amount almost confirmed by practical use. And it’s approximately $10.00 less.
For most users, though, netbooks are sufficient for more than 80% of our daily use: office-type work, netting, email, even listening to MP3s. So if you have extended battery life, lighter weights, it’s a very attractive package. And all for less than I paid for my Acer AspireOne.