| As of September 5, 2010, CVS drugstores are selling | | | | of a quality Telex headset, fwith which the recording |
| a Sylvania netbook for $99. There's been plenty of | | | | of my voice was tinny and soft. I used an older |
| buzz in the press, but no complete reviews. | | | | dynamic microphone for tape recordings; it provided |
| We bought one of these yesterday and plan to | | | | a quality, rich sound to my voice. There was |
| return it today. It's not bad, it just doesn't serve our | | | | noticeable background hiss on files recorded with this |
| needs. | | | | computer. Other audio files, such as videos and mp3s |
| What we wanted was a substitute for our laptops | | | | sounded fine. |
| so we didn't have to lug them around on short trips. | | | | SOFTWARE |
| What we got is, for all practical purposes, an | | | | L: WinXP or Vista --- easy to find programs |
| oversized PDA. | | | | N: Windows CE 6.0, similar to Windows Mobile- limited |
| Following is a comparison and contrast list. "L" stands | | | | programs. Some websites will identify it as a mobile |
| for WinXP/Vista laptop, "N" stands for the Sylvania | | | | device and set their screen display for it. Three are |
| netbook. | | | | plenty of Windows Mobile or CE applications available |
| HARDWARE | | | | if you know where to find them on the net. |
| L: 4 lbs or more | | | | L: Full function browser choices, i.e. IE, Firefox, |
| N: 2 lbs (so light, this is the best thing about it!) | | | | Chrome, Opera |
| L: Professional build quality | | | | N: IE, looks normal although somewhat crippled. IE |
| N: Feels more like a toy | | | | won't play some Flash and other videos. N requires an |
| L: Slow boot | | | | external program to play YouTube. It comes with |
| N: Fast boot | | | | Windows Media Player, which doesn't stream |
| L: Intel or AMD full processors, gigs of RAM | | | | YouTube. So it also comes with TCIMP (Core Player), |
| N: Via 8505 processor, 128 mB RAM | | | | a popular video player that allows streaming. I tried |
| L: Battery life 3-4 hours | | | | to fast forward through "Nosferatu" on YouTube, |
| N: 2 hours after first charge | | | | and the player locked up, requiring ALT-CTRL-DEL to |
| L: Hard drive (operating system susceptible to | | | | end the program. |
| viruses) | | | | L: You're going to have an email application |
| N: Flash drive (easily reset to factory specs with a | | | | N: I found no email application (e.g. Outlook), only an |
| paper clip if it crashes); SD card slot (not SDHC) | | | | IM application. You can, of course, use web based |
| L: 2-3 USB ports | | | | email such as Hotmail, Yahoo, and Google. |
| N: 3 USB ports | | | | L: MSWord and Excel are available. |
| L: Good looking screen, at least 1024 x 768. | | | | N: Only a Word reader and Excel reader are installed. |
| N: Bright screen lacking contrast, 800 x 480 pixels. It's | | | | It does have Wordpad, which will save docs in |
| ok for browsing, although some websites are wider | | | | MSWord format. |
| than 800 pixels and you'll need to use the slider bar | | | | The desktop is similar to WinXP. There are choices of |
| to see the right side of the screen. Being a small | | | | desktop backgrounds, two of which seemed to be |
| screen, 7", icons in the bottom tray are quite small. | | | | from anime, targeted to pre-teens or early teens. |
| With some screen content, pixel columns are visible, | | | | Applications open quickly. Browsing is reasonably |
| indicating non-uniform pixels. This is not a big problem | | | | quick. |
| if you are absorbed in the content. | | | | CONCLUSIONS |
| L: Reasonably full sized keyboard | | | | The bottlenecks for me are the limitations of |
| N: Barely touch typeable. Space key feels recessed, | | | | Windows CE and associated software. I can get used |
| requiring more than a tap to operate. Touchpad on | | | | to the little keyboard and screen. If it used alkaline |
| tested unit was erratic. I used a USB wireless mouse, | | | | batteries rather than rechargables, I might be inclined |
| which somewhat defeats the benefit of extreme | | | | to keep it as an emergency device. It's wonderfully |
| portability. | | | | stowable. But rechargeables don't hold the charge |
| L: WiFi 802.11 b/g or better, plus ethernet (wired) | | | | over several months of inactivity like alkalines do. This |
| N: WiFi 802.11, plus ethernet (wired) | | | | is the same problem I have with the portable TV I |
| L: Internal speakers, headphone jack, microphone | | | | keep in the trunk of my car. |
| jack, built-in microphone, Line In jack (optional) | | | | As a single use computer, such as watching YouTube |
| N: Internal speakers, headphone jack, microphone | | | | or simply surfing, it could work well. Notwithstanding |
| jack (no built-in mic). Speakers are tiny and tinny; I | | | | web surfing concerns, it could make a good children's |
| recorded with two microphones. The first was part | | | | laptop. |