Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Laptop VS Notebook VS Netbook

I just finished reading a netbook review and the 126 comments crawling with ideas and opinions about the distinguishing features of a Netbook, a Notebook, and a Laptop. It seems that on every new product model that comes out, the lines between them get blurrier and blurrier which strikes me as odd.

In the interest of simplicity, I researched more on what the official definitions of each is:
Laptop - From what I understand, this is your desktop replacement. Huge 17in screen and works as a desktop that you can carry. Typically, powerful enough to run the latest games and other productivity apps you want to run. This category is also heavy. I have heard they can weigh around 8-10 lbs but it comes with almost all the bells and whistles that a desktop can have.

Notebook - This would be the lighter version catered more for the mobile office user. In this category, you deal more with office productivity apps and other office-related tasks. You need it to be portable if you switch desks to sit with clients, create presentations for a meeting, or just check your office mail. They are not as powerful as the Laptop but that is compensated for mobility and longer battery life. 

Note: There is a sub-category for the notebook called a sub notebook. This is a much more lighter version of the notebook usually by taking out the optical drive and replacing it with more USB ports or better design for cooling.


Netbook - This is a relatively new category in the market of mobile computing. I am actually writing on one right now. The Netbook is more for the casual user who wants to surf the web and is very light by a pound or two from the Notebook. It is also the cheapest among the aforementioned but is not as fast and runs apps at minimum speed. I chose this category since I do not plan on doing heavy graphics from games plus I do more light writing and browsing. The battery life is a little better than the Netbook and theoretically some manufacturer claims to provide up to 15 hours battery life which I have yet to experience.

By this time you may be wondering why the lesson of distinction for this category. I'd like to hear from you folks if the ASUS 1215N is a netbook or a notebook? I am considering selling this one and start getting something much more powerful. 

You think it is worth the upgrade from an ASUS 1000HE?

2 comments:

iyassantos said...

all along i thought the netbook and notebook were the same. hehe!

[C]hicken [G]od said...

It's a misconception but the Netbook is dying soon.