Whether you call them Netbooks, mini laptops, or subnotebooks, these small, low-cost, low-power systems are the hottest thing to hit laptops since the touch pad. We suggest at a minimum an Intel Atom N450 CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB or larger hard drive, and Windows 7 Starter Edition, with Bluetooth as a preferred option for tethering a smartphone for mobile broadband access. Higher-end options are becoming more prevalent, with 11.6-inch displays, higher screen resolutions, and new graphics hardware, such as Nvidia's Ion GPU, helping Netbook prices move out of the $299-$399 range.
Asus Eee PC 1018PB
Asus reboots the Eee PC series (at least aesthetically) with this slick-looking metallic Netbook, the Eee PC 1018.
As shown: $349.99
Samsung NF310 A01
The curved, eye-catching Samsung NF310 is a bold 10-inch Netbook with some premium features for its price, but in the end it's not different enough to break out of the pack.
Price: $338.00 - $406.43
Asus Eee PC 1015PN-PU17 (black)
The compact 10-inch Asus Eee PC 1015PN offers a dual-core Atom processor and Nvidia Ion graphics for decidedly better-than-average Netbook performance, but premium ultraportables that aren't much more expensive can do better still.
Price: $346.99 - $357.50
