NetbookTech

AT&T expanded their mobile broadband-enabled netbook product lineup today with the introduction of three netbook models – the Acer Aspire One, the Dell Inspiron Mini 10, and the Lenovo S10. All three models will be available for purchase soon online at www.att.com while the Acer Aspire One will be available throughout stores nationwide. The Dell Inspiron Mini 10 and the Lenovo S10 will be available in several stores around the country.

Each netbook will be available for $199.99 after a mail-in rebate (AT&T Promotion Card) and a new two year service contract.

Here’s a quick rundown of specs on the three netbook models.

Acer Aspire One:

• Weighs 2.53 lbs
• Intel Atom processor
• Windows XP Home
• 160GB HDD
• 1GB RAM
• Stereo speakers
• Built-in webcam
• Wi-Fi

Dell Inspiron Mini 10:

• Weighs 2.86 lbs
• Windows XP Home
• 160GB HDD
• 1GB RAM
• Built-in webcam
• Intel GMA graphics
• Wi-Fi

Lenovo IdeaPad S10:

• Measures less than 1 inch thin and weighs 2.63 lbs
• Wi-Fi
• 1GB RAM
• 160GB HDD
• Windows XP Home
• Built-in webcam
• VeriFace facial recognition technology
• Multi-touch touchpad

AT&T also announces three new AT&T ConnecTech services specifically for netbook customers – with prices ranging from $99 dollars for remote online support to $199 for in-home technical support. Check out the AT&T press release for more information.

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The good folks at LaptopMag have published a comprehensive head to head comparison of five 10 inch netbook systems – the Samsung NC10, the MSI Wind U100, the Lenovo IdeaPad S10, the HP Mini 1000, and the ASUS Eee PC 1000H. Comparisons were made across performance, Wi-Fi, design, screen, connectivity, keyboard/trackpad, battery life and value.

Wondering who won at the end? Well the publication chose the Samsung NC10 as the overall 10 inch netbook winner stating:

“Of these five netbooks, the Samsung NC10 came out on top in six categories–Design, Screen, Keyboard, Trackpad, Battery, Value–and got decent scores in every other area, earning its place as the best 10-inch netbook we’ve seen so far.”

Very cool – congrats Samsung – you’re late to the party but you’re rocking!

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As the popularity of netbooks increase, it’s no surprise that we’re seeing more and more netbook reviews appearing on the web. Case in point – NetworkWorld.com has published two new netbook reviews – one for the Acer Aspire One and the other for the Lenovo IdeaPad S10. Unfortunately the reviews are not exactly comprehensive (forget about performance numbers etc) as NetworkWorld gives very brief overviews of the systems. Guess you can’t have it all eh?

In any case, the first review is of the Acer Aspire One netbook which is certainly one of the best deals out there. It’s arguably the best bang for the buck when you consider what you get for around $350 dollars – an Intel Atom processor, a 8.9 inch display, 1GB of RAM, a 120GB HDD, and Windows XP Home. Unfortunately the Aspire One suffers from a nutty touchpad design and a somewhat loud internal cooling fan. Although the NetworkWorld review is a bit lacking in content, the site does give the Aspire One four stars and has this to say:

“The device is really meant for basic computing and Web functions – for heavy duty usage and applications I’d probably want a better, faster and slightly larger notebook. But this could be a very useful notebook to keep powered up and running in living areas in the house, for those times when you need to check a quick e-mail, sports score or other such Internet-enabled activity.”

When it comes to the Lenovo IdeaPad S10, the review is just slightly longer with NetworkWorld having this to say about the system.

“Honestly, I like this computer. Screen size aside, it’s a capable little machine, and it was fun to use. If you can deal with a small screen, and aren’t interested in playing too many extreme games, this is definitely worth a look.”

The tested system had your Atom processor, a 10 inch display, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB HDD, and Windows XP Home.

Having received the Windows 7 pre-beta last week at the Microsoft PDC, I decided to try the OS out on the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook. Remember that Steven Sinofsky, Senior VP of the Windows and Windows Live Engineering Group, mentioned last week that they intended to make sure Windows 7 was usable on a netbook system. This makes complete sense since Microsoft would love to see Windows XP finally die. Well.. I wanted to see if the pre-beta build would in fact work well on the Lenovo S10. For those of you that missed the Windows 7 feature list announcement last week (and where the heck were you anyhow), check out our day 2 keynote coverage over at Krunker.com for additional info about the upcoming OS.

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Lenovo’s popular IdeaPad S10 netbook is starting to make an appearance in European retailers with stock expected to become available in approximately two weeks. Unlike folks in the U.S., the Europeans have a few more choices to pick from when it comes to the S10 netbook. One website has several options listed including:

• Lenovo IdeaPad S10, 1536MB, 160GB, Linux, schwarz (40684JG) -  € 389
• Lenovo IdeaPad S10, 1536MB, 160GB, Linux, weiß (40684KG) -  € 389
• Lenovo IdeaPad S10, 1536MB, 160GB, Linux, rot (40684LG) – € 389
• Lenovo IdeaPad S10, 512MB, 4GB SSD, Linux, schwarz (406846G) – € 329
• Lenovo IdeaPad S10, 1024MB, 160GB, Windows XP Home, rot (40684YG) – € 399

Another big difference with these European models – they come with a six cell battery unlike the three cell ones found in the U.S.

[Check it out via Fudzilla]

Here’s another look at the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook – this time it comes in the form of a “First Look” review by the folks at APC Magazine. The article gives a summary of their initial impressions with the netbook noting that the keyboard was “disappointing” and that it was “sorta 3G-ready” thanks to the ExpressCard/34 slot. Here’s an excerpt from the article:

“The S10’s design took us by surprise. The generally boxy shape is redeemed only by a slight curve at the leading edge and a subtle yet attractive grill along the very front of the unit, behind which the speakers are sensibly placed.”

Read the rest at APC Magazine.

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After reading about how OS X was installed on the Dell Inspiron Mini 9, I began toying with the idea of installing OS X on the Lenovo IdeaPad S10. After all, the S10 has all the makings for a potentially great MacBook-like system – it has a bright 10.2 inch display, a fairly comfortable keyboard, a touch-pad WITH mouse buttons below it, upgradeable hard drive and memory, and a form factor and design that’s reminiscent of the MacBook itself.

Yet, would the same OS X distribution work on the S10?  The answer as it turns out is yes but not without some problems along the way. After combing through various forums and threads, I’ve decided to compile as much information as possible into a single web page so without further ado, here’s our guide to installing OS X on the IdeaPad S10.

It’s certainly not a complete guide but hopefully it’ll help get you started down this road. 

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Seems like Michael Horowitz over at CNET is pretty psyched about the IdeaPad S10 netbook. In a posting entitled “The Lenovo S10 Netbook is here, count me in”, Mr. Horowitz writes:

“The S10 is here, I ordered one yesterday and I’m psyched..

My shoulder is looking forward to carrying a 2.5-pound Netbook rather than a 6-or 7-pound laptop/notebook.”

Having used the S10 for well over a week now, I can say that Mr. Horowitz will definitely enjoy the experience of carrying around a 2.5 lb-ish netbook.

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I was doing a little virtual window shopping at CompUSA this afternoon and I noticed that they had a growing collection of netbooks for sale. Some models of interest for all of you include:

ASUS Eee PC 901

• Pearl White color
• Intel Atom processor
• Bluetooth
• 802.11 b/g/n
• 1GB RAM
• 12GB SSD
• 8.9 inch SVGA display
• Built-in webcam
• Windows XP Home
• Price of $499.99

Acer Aspire One AOA150-1649

• Golden Brown color
• Intel Atom processor
• 802.11b/g
• 1GB RAM
• 120GB HDD
• 8.9 inch WSVGA display
• Built-in webcam
• Windows XP Home
• Price of $399.99

And finally, the pink version of the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 is still available:

• Intel Atom processor
• 802.11 b/g
• 512MB RAM
• 80GB HDD
• 10.2 inch WSVGA display
• Built-in webcam
• Windows XP Home
• Price of $429.99

“The Best Netbook We’ve Seen All Year”. That’s the statement made by Wired.com for the new Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook reviewed here on their site. The reviewed unit appears to be similar in specs to what other reviewers received – a system with 1GB of RAM, the Intel Atom processor, a 160GB HD, and Windows XP. (keep in mind that if you try and buy an S10 right now from Lenovo.com, you’ll only have the option to buy a system with 512MB of RAM). Here’s what Wired.com had to say about the netbook:

Amazing combination of price and performance. Sophisticated, decidedly non-toy-like styling. Touch-typing is as easy as it gets in this category.

On the down side, they did have this to say:

White laptop, white power brick, black power cable: Epic design fail! Some trouble getting USB hard drives recognized. Sub-two-hour battery life and slightly dim screen are letdowns on an otherwise near-perfect device.

I’d like to correct their statement by noting that the white netbook being shipped to customers does in fact come with a white power cable (and white power brick etc etc). I’m guessing Lenovo sent a review system with mixed cables not knowing they were going to be graded on color matching! You can read more of their short review here.