Acer :: AS1410 (Comparison With Asus N10J)

I owned an Asus N10J-A1 for about a year and ended up selling it. It was a great little machine, but I didn't really think I needed a netbook any more. Plus I grew tired of issues with the stupid 1024x600 resolution and anemic Atom N270. It was a fun toy to tweak, but in reality, it wasn't practical. Nice to have a strong GPU like the 9300m GS but the other components really didn't push it to its full potential. Plus watching flash based video like Hulu and YouTube was less than ideal, manageable, but not ideal.

My biggest issues with netbooks have been the keyboard size, screen resolution, and enough CPU power for flash video (i.e. Hulu, YouTube, etc). This notebook seems to correct that. The keyboard looks close to having regular size keys, and the screen resolution is at least somewhat normal (16:9 and with compatability with 1024x768). The CPU is much more powerful than the Atom can ever want to be, and battery life isn't compromised really. I think it's better on this Acer than the N10J anyhow.

I was waiting for the ION platform, but it seems that will be a while and still contains the Atom CPU. It will have its caveats as well to work out. Since I realize it would be nice to have a smaller, lighter notebook with a longer lasting battery, I decided on the Acer AS1410. I have ordered it but haven't received it yet. The specs to me are perfect, and dimension-wise it's not much bigger than the N10J (only 0.4" longer and wider).

Here's the specs:

Acer AS1410
CPU: Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500 @ 1.4GHz
Chipset: Intel GS45
Screen: 11.6" 1366x768
Memory: 2GB expandable to 4GB (comes with 2 slots, and only one populated with a 2GB module - nice!)
Hard Drive: 250GB 5400RPM
GPU: Intel GMA 4500MHD
Network: Gigabit LAN, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n
Ports: 3xUSB, 1xVGA, 1xHDMI, 1xMic, 1xheadphone, 1xwebcam, 1xcard reader
Battery: 6-cell
No Optical Drive
OS: Windows Vista Home Premium.............................