The Wind, an acronym for Wi-Fi Network Device,” features a speedy and energy-efficient Intel Atom 1.6GHz Processor to provide longer operation hours and better mobile lifestyle. This notebook is lightweight and ultra-portable, measuring about 7 inches wide by 10.23 inches long, and weighing just 2.6 pounds. Being small doesn’t mean ultra-small keyboard, the Wind features an ergonomically designed keyboard that is only 20% smaller than a full sized notebook keyboard, with keys spaced a comfortable 0.68 inches apart. The Wind comes equipped with a 10″ backlit LED screen that provides superior color quality and brightness giving you better comfort while reading reports, watching online videos and viewing photos. In addition, the 1024 x 600 screen resolution can fully display web pages, which makes it ideal for Internet browsing. With the 802.11b/g/n wireless built-in, you can enjoy the convenience of accessing the Internet anywhere and video chat with family and friends with the built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and microphone. Another wireless feature that comes with the Wind is Bluetooth, this enables you to wireless connect to headphones, or other Bluetooth devices making it more convenient by not carrying around a bunch of tangled cords. With the Wind notebook weighting less than 3 pounds, makes it a great second computer to use at school, work and to take on vacations. 10 Widescreen (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Built-in 802.11b/g/n Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN Integrated Bluetooth 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro Ports – 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.6 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars The Best MacBook Nano !!!!
I installed in it OS X 10.5.5 and works very good. There are some issues with the sound but

it can be worked out by buying a very cheap ( 8 dollars ) USB adaptor.

I have several Mac boxes at home and in the office and I happy that now I also have

a MacBook Nano

5 Stars love it!
I love my new laptop. It is easy to carry to school with all of my books. Works great too!

5 Stars great little product
[[ASIN:B001LNUJ5Q MSI Wind U100-280US 10-Inch Netbook (1.6 GHz Intel Atom Processor, 1 GB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, 6 Cell Battery, XP Home) Pink]

I did some comparison particularly with the samsung n10 the biggest difference seem to be the keyboard, mainly the right shift key placement on the samsung (less awkward was the sentiment) and a tad longer battery life. But I find the Wind keyboard to be quite comfortable (especially for the difference in price). I will mainly be using this at home so battery life (extra 45 mins or so on samsung) is not a great issue for me either.

So far, I love my Wind and I really love the PINK.

4 Stars MSI Wind versus Acer Aspire One
Let me start off by saying I have owned both of these laptops so I can make a good comparison.

I bought the Acer Aspire One about a month ago. It is very pretty and stylish. The battery life was almost seven hours and the keyboard keys were very responsive and had a nice feel to them. However it did have some problems. I noticed that the cooling fan on the Acer was abit loud and was noticably slower while using for internet than my other laptops.

Also about a day after I bought it you would hear a beep about once every 30-45 minutes from the system board so it had to be sent back as faulty.

I guess you are wondering if I am reviewing the Acer or the MSI at this point? Well I am reviewing both.

Now as for the MSI Wind. I received it a few days ago and yes it was more money but after using it for some time it was well worth it. The screen can display full web pages. It seems like just the slightly larger screen on the MSI makes a huge difference in viewing ease.

The battery last about 4.5-5 hrs on the MSI still very good and the keyboard is spaced better the the Acer but the keys are somewhat mushy and don’t feel as responsive but can get used to it. I also found out that enen though both the MSI and Acer share the same cpu and memory size the MSI Wind was noticably fast in all respects including internet use. What I did not like about the MSI is that it is a little tippsy when on your lap if not carefull it could possibly tip over. That would be really bad.

PROS: MSI larger screen displays full web pages.

Screen is much easier to view than the Acer

Keys are spaced better than the Acer

Battery life is 4.5-5 hrs

Much quiter than the Acer both fan and hardrive noise

Feels much better build quality than the Acer

Surfs web faster than the Acer.

The speakers on the MSI sound better and get louder than the Acer

Comes with a really nice white with pink beading protective bag.

Much nicer bag than the Acer non-padded sleeve.

CONS: Not as stlyish and pretty as the Acer

battery has slightly less run time than the Acer

Cost more than the Acer

Can be somewhat tippsy on your lap

I would for sure recommend the MSI Wind

5 Stars Perfect for its purposes!!
I bought this netbook for my daughter who’s 13 and pink in every sense, and I don’t regret it. It is perfect! It works great, it’s fast, no problems at all with internet, or even the bluetooth. The screen is 10″, so it’s a little bigger than the usual 8.9″, and the keyboard is soft and easy to work with. Sound is ok, nothing extraordinary but if you want something else there’s always the chance to connect speakers. Battery is great, worked for over 5 and a half hours. In All an excellent purchase! I recommend it!

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U100 280US 10 Inch Netbook 1 6 GHz Intel Atom Processor 1 GB RAM 160 GB Hard Drive 6 Cell Battery XP Home Pink is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

The Wind, an acronym for “Wi-Fi Network Device,” features a speedy and energy-efficient Intel Atom 1.6GHz Processor to provide longer operation hours and better mobile lifestyle. This notebook, or “netbook” is lightweight and ultra-portable, measuring about 7 inches wide by 10.23 inches long, and weighing just 2.6 pounds. Being small doesn’t mean ultra-small keyboard, the Wind features an ergonomically designed keyboard that is only 20% smaller than a full sized notebook keyboard, with keys spaced a comfortable 0.68 inches apart. The Wind comes equipped with a 10″ backlit LED screen that provides superior color quality and brightness giving you better comfort while reading reports, watching online videos and viewing photos. In addition, the 1024 x 600 screen resolution can fully display web pages, which makes it ideal for Internet browsing. With the 802.11b/g/n wireless built-in, you can enjoy the convenience of accessing the Internet anywhere and video chat with family and friends with the built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and microphone. With the Wind notebook weighting less than 3 pounds, makes it a great second computer to use at school, work and to take on vacations. 10 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Built-in 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.3 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Nice Bang for the Buck
Pros: I decided to wait a little while before I wrote a review so that I could provide some insight that went beyond just my initial impressions. My OBE (Out of Box Experience) was fantastic. I had looked at a number of different models before I chose this one. I was leaning very heavily towards getting an Acer until a friend of mine lent me his MSI for an overnight test drive. The display was very impressive and I found being able to fit the full width of a web page very helpful. I’m a rather clumsy typist and I found the keyboard to be sufficient enough to accommodate my paw and hope technique.

My main purpose in getting a netbook was to get something that was as portable as possible and still be able to surf the web with relative ease. I recently purchased a notebook for my wife, she is an accountant and insisted that the keyboard be full sized and have a 10 key pad on it as well. I got her a very nice machine with an incredible display with all of the bells and whistles. The problem was that at about 9 pounds, it was not anything that I would care to lug around.

With portability, ease of surfing and price my key factors I happily made the purchase (300 bucks). This computer quickly exceeded my expectations. I found that not only could I easily surf the web, but this computer was more than I hoped for. It easily runs office and most any other application you care to throw at it with relative ease (heavy gaming excluded). I suspect that this is due in part to the fact that it comes with XP Home Edition instead of Vista. This machine will never be a good choice as a primary computer but it does what it is meant to do extremely well and then some.

In an effort to keep the weight and cost down I opted for the 3 cell battery. I knew that this would limit my time that I could spend away from an outlet and I am getting about 1:45 worth of actual time on a full charge. Keeping the brightness on the monitor down as low as practical and turning off unnecessary features definitely helps. I have an adaptor in my vehicle that I bought at Sam’s club which allows me to plug any small to medium sized AC powered device into my cigarette lighter. I would highly recommend getting one as this really helps! I think I paid something like 30 bucks for a two pack a couple of years ago. I have one in my truck and one in my wife’s SUV.

The WIFI on this is excellent. I am able to pick up signals very easily and the dropouts are at a very acceptable level. The Webcam although not great, gets the job done. I am not sure if this thing has Bluetooth or not. The Bluetooth software is there but the box that the computer comes in indicates that there is no Bluetooth. Since I do not have any Bluetooth devices I can’t determine if Bluetooth is there or not.

The processor is better than I expected and runs programs faster than I thought it would. Even with just 1 GB of RAM this thing runs very well. Here is where I am very confused with respect to the processor. It was my understanding that the Atom 270 was a single core, however when I bring up task manager, there are two cores present. When I monitor the task manager CPU usage window it behaves exactly like a dual core would. Each core is displayed separately and is acting independently from the other. I either received a dual core processor or I am missing something here.

Cons: As I indicated, my OBE was exceptional and had I written this review the day after I received the computer I would have easily given it 5 stars.

After about three weeks my computer stopped being able to run on battery power. I have no idea what happened but one day it simply stopped working. It still worked fine on AC but I didn’t buy a desktop. I treat my computers with great care and I typically get 6 or more years out of a computer. I suspect there was simply a loose wire inside.

Amazon made it very easy to return the item and I received the replacement in short order. If I remember correctly I filled out the RMA on a Sunday and I received the replacement the following Thursday. I sent the defective unit back via parcel post and I paid for a receipt notification. I received notification back both from Amazon and the USPS that the return had be received.

Although the replacement came in very short order, the OBE fell way short of the first computer. The first annoyance was that the processor was not as fast as the first one. I cannot gripe too much on this point because the Atom is clearly marketed as a 1.6 GHz processor and I got that both times. The cool thing about the MSI bios is that it allows you to overclock the processor. You can select an 8, 15 or 24% increase in the rated processor speed. The basic process is to start low and work your way up until you hit 24% or your computer locks up whichever comes first. Not to worry though, if your computer locks up you can simply re-boot and then lower the speed.

The first computer that I received allowed me to ramp it up an additional 15%, the second computer only allowed me to bump it up 8%. I treat this as a disappointment but nothing that can really be held against MSI since Intel clearly has rated the processor at 1.6 GHz and nothing more. Anything above that is gravy and is due to minor defects in the silicon that determine the amount of over clocking that can be obtained.

My second issue however is something that I feel I can hold against MSI. There must have been a difference in the image that shipped on the two computers. The first one was flawless and everything worked perfectly the first time. The second computer suffered from a MAJOR memory leak when using Internet Explorer 6. I had heard about this before but I had never actually seen a computer that had it. Basically when I got on the web, each page was taking up about 50-75 MB of memory that was never released. It took me quite some to figure out that this was happening. I would go online and after about 15 minutes of surfing I would get a memory full error. If I closed IE and then re-opened it I could continue for about another 15 minutes.

Clearly there was something very wrong. Even though I had installed all of the patches I still got the memory leak. I could monitor the memory leak by having the task manager open while I surfed; I even upgraded to IE 8 and although the memory leak was not as bad it was still unacceptable.

I finally bombed the computer by hitting F3 during the boot process when F3 appears in the upper left hand corner of the screen. This did a complete re-install of the image including formatting the drives. After I re-imaged the computer and installed all of the necessary updates I took IE6 for another spin and things were much improved although there was still a noticeable memory leak. The leak was small enough that I could have a decent surfing session and not run out of memory. It was something that I could live with if I had to but I wanted a better fix.

Finally I decided that the best course of action was to give Mozilla’s Firefox a try. I installed Firefox and “poof” the memory leak disappeared! Although I have just started using Firefox I have to say that it is sooooo much faster than IE! It may not have all of the bells and whistles that IE has especially in terms of interoperability with other Microsoft applications, but in terms just browsing, this thing has IE beat hands down!

Other thoughts: Overall I am very happy with this computer. The price is fantastic and given its diminutive size this thing delivers better than expected performance. I can only give this item a rating of 4 stars because I should not have had to go though all of the hoops that I did in order to fix my memory leak. Given what I know now, I would not hesitate to buy this computer; however, I would save myself some hassle and install Firefox right away. I am very happy with Amazon’s return policy and they made it very easy to return the item.

As an additional piece of advice, make sure you keep EVERYTHING when you receive your package. Just set it aside in a nice safe location because you never know. This is an old habit of mine and I even keep the shipping materials. That way if the need to ship it back arises then you can ship it back exactly the way you received it. This can save you time money and hassles. You can be charged a restocking fee if you do not send it back properly. Also (and my wife had fun laughing at me for this one), I document the entire repackaging process with my digital camera so that I have additional proof that I sent everything back. Just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean that someone isn’t out to get me

4 Stars Inspiring, Fast, Efficient, and Easy-to-Use (mostly)
I would have given 4.5 stars if possible.

I waited to write the review until I’d had the tiny netbook for about a month, just so I could really give a comprehensive review. I have the Gig of RAM recommended by an earlier review here on my couch still in the box. The computer is so fast that I haven’t found I need it and I wanted to make 100% sure I was keeping the computer before I installed anything.

The MSI Wind U100 is nothing short of incredible. I wish they made these 10 years ago. It fits in my ordinary-sized purse and it’s light enough to carry around anywhere I go (and I do). I have the 3 cell battery, but I’m probably going to upgrade to the 6 cell, since the battery life is ok, but not fantastic. I tried many netbooks and the keyboard on the MSI U100 is the easiest to use (except for the trackpad, which I’ll explain below). The webcam quality is good enough to make me look like a celebrity, but not so good that it’s possible to see that I just woke up (I’d enclose a video, but I wanted to make sure it was read– I never watch video reviews). The wireless is so good that I was able to pick up a signal from two blocks away. The computer itself is fast and fun to use. I never sit around waiting for it to catch up (ok, once I did, but I restarted and everything was ok… I think I had some pretty heavy stuff processing in the background). Though the MSI website is really terrible, their support forum is really fantastic. People are there to help and are quite eager to do so (at least, in my experience). Apparently, it’s possible to do a lot of modifications on the MSI U100, but I’m not technically inclined enough to try it. The keyboard is just fine for me, and even the controversial “.” key is not too small for me now that I’ve gotten used to it (they made it about half the size it usually is, so some people complain that they can’t hit it).

Now for the drawback. There’s only one, but it’s REALLY annoying. The trackpad that came with mine has tap-to-click enabled and it’s not possible to disable it. I went to the forum with this issue, and it seems that it’s a crapshoot if you get the bad trackpad (mine) or the good one. When I’m typing, my thumb occasionally hits the trackpad and moves my cursor or clicks whatever it happens to be hovering over. This has lost emails and forms and has resulted in much frustration while typing. I’ve had to become really proactive about watching my thumbs, and even then, I am accidentally clicking around quite frequently. And my thumbs are not large… I have what people say are “piano player” hands. This would not be *such* a huge issue, but it’s not even possible to disable the trackpad in general. Even if I plug a mouse in, the only way to disable the trackpad is to uninstall the driver. The forum suggested a new driver that has click-to-tap as an option, but I installed that driver and still have no way to turn off click-to-tap.

However, even with the trackpad issue, I still would not hesitate to buy another. I recommend them to everyone I know and even started a website just for fun: [...]

I am planning on buying a bigger external hard drive, a big monitor, and a USB DVD drive. In my opinion, it’s better to have that stuff as components rather than lugging everything around in a single laptop that doesn’t even fit in my purse.

2 Stars Had to return it, Wifi didnt connect to my router
I updated all the drivers to the latest ones on MSI’s website. I upgraded the firmware of my router, which isnt some obscure router its a Linksys WRT54G. Still the Wind despite being one room away from the router and having 4 bars wouldnt hold a connection to the router. It would work for a few minutes then the connection would freeze. This wasnt some minor annoyance all laptops will drop a connection once in a blue moon. This was chronic and rendered the netbook unuseable. So I returned it to Amazon. If you look on the web it seems this isnt an uncommon phenomena. Many people seem to give up on the internal wifi card and buy an external card to maintain a solid connection.

The most impressive thing about the unit was the keyboard which I liked and the low weight of the unit. The speakers were also acceptable, and could reach a decent volume. Some netbooks at full volume are almost inaudible. Also the overclocking functions are useful if you want to play some basic 3d games on the unit. A 25% overclock is quite significant.

Compared to other netbooks I thought the polish of the unit was lacking. The plastics on the unit are pretty cheap feeling compared to plastics on Asus netbooks. When you look at the rather large vents on the bottom you can see exposed circuit boards. Seems like a weak design as dust, crumbs, etc can easily get in there and I would imagine could cause potential hardware failures.

The screen was fairly weak, similar to most netbooks. Theres a speckled look to the screens which prevents them approaching the quality level of full size notebooks. I think this comes from the fact netbooks use screens intended for portable DVD players not for computer text. I would expect future netbooks to improve screen quality.

The instructions that came with the unit were lacking and incredibly sparse. One not very well written poster page and thats about it.

Overall if you just want a basic netbook that isnt by anyones estimation the best netbook out there but is the cheapest then this could fit the bill. That is if the wifi connects for you, for me it didnt.

However there is some merit to the saying ‘you get what you pay for’. Though the Wind is acceptable overall I think there are better options out there even if they cost a little more money.

5 Stars BEST Notebook
$ for $ this is the best notebook u can buy. Its runs so smooth and the 3cell battery is not as bad as many people make it out to be. The keyboard is a lil smaller but it is very comfortable to type. I upgraded the ram to 2gb and installed vista. Its runs so much smoother than XP. I think MSI didnt want to add the extra ram and vista for their own cost savings. But this thing with Vista business runs smooooth and fast. Try it out for yourself

4 Stars Love this Laptop!
I love this little machine. It does everything I could possibly want and at a ridiculously low price. Only minor reservation is regarding battery life, which is only 2 hrs. Of course, 6 and 9 cell batteries are available, if you need more non-AC time.

A bonus is the ability to overclock very easily, pushing the processing speed to about 2 GHz. I HIGHLY recommend the MSI Wind U100!!!

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U100 451US 10 Inch White Netbook 3 Cell Battery is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

This Eee PC by Asus comes in Fine Ebony style that is created with cutting-edge Infusion casing technology. Inlaid within the chassis itself, the motifs are an integral part of the entire laptop and will not fade with time. The Infusion surface also provides a new level of resilience; scratch resistance and beautiful style while you’re out and about. The Eee PC has a sturdy display with a high-resolution screen. At 1024 x 600 pixels, images are clear and sharp, making it more comfortable on the eyes reading and editing documents. On the top of this screen is the 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera that works synchronously with the 802.11n wireless to provide web conferencing anywhere, anytime for easier web communications and increased work efficiency. Preinstalled on the Eee PC to provide you a familiar interface is Microsoft’s Windows XP Home, Windows Live Messenger and Works for numerous office applications, that allows anyone to learn, work and play. With all of these features the Asus Eee PC makes for a fantastic purchase as a well-equipped second notebook or a Web access tool, so beat the crowds, and get yours today before they sell out! Intel UMA Graphics Card 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera WiFi 802.11b/g/n Wireless Bluetooth 10/100Mbps LAN Hi-Definition Audio Speakers and Microphone Memory Card Slot – MultiMedia Card (MMC), Secure Digital (SD) Card, SDHC Connections – 3 x USB, VGA, Headphone, Microphone, RJ-45 (LAN) Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.47 (W) x 7.53 (D) x 1.12 ~ 1.50 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 3.2 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Everything excellent, minor flaw in kwyboard layout
ASUS did a great job in packaging this monster at this price. It’s a steal and performance is crisp for browsing, chat and quick media doses.

The only flaw i found was one horrible mistake in keyboard layout. This however was promptly corrected in a newer revision. So PLEASE buy the newer, better revision. This is quite a neat package.

4 Stars Petite Computer
One of the best purchases I’ve made. Only complaint is the “Enter” key on the right side of the keyboard is too small and in the wrong place for me.

5 Stars Absolutely Great product

I travel a lot and needed a reliable computer to keep connected

to the web. The ASUS Eee PC is much more. Came in two days,

no problems getting it ready & going and it works marvelously.

Love this machine – best thing I have purchased in a long time !

Ted B.

5 Stars Excellent Netbook
I was reviewing all the netbooks and this one had all the features I wanted specially the Bluetooth and wireless N. I’m planning to use this for travel because my laptops gets heavy after lugging it all day. I upgraded the memory to 2gb, the HDD to 500gb and bought an external DVD reader/writer. I also put Vista Ultimate in it. The speaker is loud and clear.. louder than my laptops! The screen is gorgeous with the LED backlighting.. the images are bright and crisp. Battery life is 4 hours or more on balanced power setting with internet using mid brightness. For Power Saving mode it lasts at least 5 hours. The only downside is the shift key on the right side but once you get used to it it’s fine.

2 Stars Would like it if the keyboard wasn’t so crazy!
I have really tried liking this computer, it’s tiny, it can go anywhere, overall things work well…EXCEPT…the keyboard is absolutely CRAZY.

I need to be able to type….alot, but this computer invariably and suddenly jumps several lines up and inserts what you are typing in the wrong place. I spend more time fixing what went chaotically wrong. For the longest time I assumed it was me, and now after very careful observations, it is definitely this computer. Ironically as I type this comment, it hasn’t happened once. It typically happens about every 3rd sentence, way too much!!!!

Again, I really want to LOVE this computer, if only it wasn’t so crazy!

On a positive note, the battery lasts a long time.

Buy/More Info

ASUS Eee PC 1000H 10 Inch Netbook 1 6 GHz Intel Atom Processor 1 GB RAM 160 GB Hard Drive XP Home 6 Cell Battery Fine Ebony is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

Intel Atom 1.6 GHz / 1GB RAM / 160GB Hard Drive / 1.3 Webcam / 802.11G / 4-in-1 Card Reader / 6-Cell Battery / Windows XP Home / 2.6 lbs / Sleeve 10.2 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Built-in 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro Ports – 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.6 Pounds

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U123 002US 10 2 Inch Red Netbook 6 Cell Battery is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

The Wind, an acronym for “Wi-Fi Network Device,” features a speedy and energy-efficient Intel Atom 1.6GHz Processor to provide longer operation hours and better mobile lifestyle. This notebook, or “netbook” is lightweight and ultra-portable, measuring about 7 inches wide by 10.23 inches long, and weighing just 2.6 pounds. Being small doesn’t mean ultra-small keyboard, the Wind features an ergonomically designed keyboard that is only 20% smaller than a full sized notebook keyboard, with keys spaced a comfortable 0.68 inches apart. The Wind comes equipped with a 10″ backlit LED screen that provides superior color quality and brightness giving you better comfort while reading reports, watching online videos and viewing photos. In addition, the 1024 x 600 screen resolution can fully display web pages, which makes it ideal for Internet browsing. With the 802.11b/g/n wireless built-in, you can enjoy the convenience of accessing the Internet anywhere and video chat with family and friends with the built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and microphone. With the Wind notebook weighting less than 3 pounds, makes it a great second computer to use at school, work and to take on vacations. 10 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Facial Recognition Software for Security Built-in 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.3 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars excellent value & performance
perfect solution for commuter to work in the train, or play some games.

perfect form and function

5 Stars good compact netbook
I got his computer for my mom and she loves it. Eventhough the screen is too small for me, she seems to like it.

It is also the perfect travel netbook for college students looking to use it for note taking.

I got

4 Stars Reviewing the MSI Wind U120 Notebook
Works good. It has met all my expections. Haven’t had any problems with the computer. Using it just for e-mail.

1 Star Disappointed
Negative:

Speakers are two tin cans with a string. Why bother?

Seller did not mention that you could not upgrade memory–amazon even promoted that you buy memory with this product!

System is a bit slow at times and have not added any additional software!

Mouse would be better positioned in the center.

6 cell battery lasting 3.5 hours

Top heavy….tips back…be careful!

Would have bought the U100 if I had it to do all over again and WOULD NOT HAVE BOUGHT FROM THE SELLER I BOUGHT FROM!

Would return it, but need it for class and no time to reorder

Positive:

It’s small and light-weight.

5 Stars Caution–No Memory Expansion
Seeking a way to present my PowerPoint lectures conveniently, I investigated the very popular netbooks. The MSI Wind looked dandy, and I requested one from the Amazon website. “Purchased with this item”, a common Amazon addendum, included a one gig memory stick add-on. This I ordered as well. Imagine my surprise when, after trying unsuccessfully for 20 minutes to remove the netbook bottom, I went on line and learned that THIS MODEL WILL NOT ACCOMMODATE MEMORY EXPANSION!!! This little fact was not mentioned in the product description, and the come-on to buy a memory stick was further misleading.

Now, the product itself is terrific. Even without the added memory, it is fast, clean, in fact perfect. I highly recommend the MSI wind netbook as a light, highly portable, classic windows machine.

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U120 001US 10 Inch Gray Netbook 6 Cell Battery is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

Intel Atom 1.6 GHz / 1GB RAM / 160GB Hard Drive / 1.3 Webcam / 802.11GN / 4-in-1 Card Reader / 6-Cell Battery / Windows XP Home / 2.6 lbs / Sleeve 10.2 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Built-in 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro Ports – 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.6 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars 4.5 stars
After comparing the various currently available netbooks, I had a toss up between the 6-cell MSI Wind U123, Samsung NC10, and Asus Eee PC 1000HE. Although I liked the longer battery life of the Samsung and Eee PC, I wound up going with the U123 because it’s lighter and more compact than the Eee PC (2.6lbs vs 3.2lbs), and has a newer processor than the Samsung (Intel Atom N280 vs N270). It didn’t hurt that the U123 is slightly less expensive than the Samsung NC10 and Eee PC 1000HE. I also briefly considered the U123′s predecessor, the U120, but decided against the U120 because its 1GB memory isn’t upgradeable.

* The U123′s construction is solid. The glossy lid looks nice but attracts fingerprints (no surprise here).

* The battery is fatter than I had expected. With the battery attached, the U123 is around 1 3/4″ high in the back. Balance-wise, it makes the U123 somewhat back heavy and easy to tip over if you have the display angled back far enough.

* The 6-cell battery is rated 5200 mAh. In normal mode, I am averaging a little over 5 hrs with wifi on while doing mostly web browsing. The U123 has a battery-saving “Eco” mode (Fn + F10), which I usually forget to use. The U123 doesn’t seem to remember that it was in “Eco” mode the next time you start up or come out of standby or hibernation.

* The keyboard is a good size with good feel. The layout is standard except for one quirk: the Fn and left Ctrl keys are reversed from their usual positions in most non-Mac notebooks.

* The U123 runs fairly cool. Even at peak activity with the fan running full, it never gets uncomfortably warm.

* The speaker sound quality is bad, as expected in a netbook.

* The U123 comes with 1GB of memory. To upgrade the memory, you have to remove the entire bottom cover. This involves removing 10 screws, one of which is covered by a scary-looking “Warranty Sticker Void if Tampered” sticker. (I’ve read posts elsewhere that report that the warranty is *not* void if you’re just upgrading the memory.) My U123 came with a Transcend 1GB DDR2 800 SO-DIMM in the single memory slot. I will be replacing it later this week with a 2GB stick that I’ve ordered. Having to remove the bottom cover to upgrade memory is a hassle because of all the side ports (USB, headphone, mic) that have openings in the cover, but it’s something you’ll probably only need to do once or twice. Still, it would’ve been nice if the U123 had an access panel like the Samsung NC10 or Asus Eee PC to get at the memory.

* No Bluetooth (or at least I couldn’t figure out how to turn it on). Interestingly, the U123 does have Bluetooth drivers and settings software installed, but I guess this is meant for other U123 models. A little disappointing since I had incorrectly assumed that any netbook these days would automatically have Bluetooth. However, not a deal killer for me since I don’t use Bluetooth that much anyway.

* When starting up the first time, the U123 spent quite a bit of time installing Windows. I lost track, but I’d guess it was around 10 min. Later, I had a minor scare when the U123 couldn’t find any wireless networks. It turns out the wireless was disabled. I had to actually read the documentation to figure out how to turn on the wireless: Fn + F11.

I give the MSI Wind U123 4.5 stars (rounded up to 5 stars for the ratings system).

5 Stars NOT a review–Just clarifying RAM upgrade question
Hi,

I don’t own this but I know what people are referring to with upgrading the RAM thinking it might void the warranty.

Basically, usually every piece of RAM will have a sticker on it with a barcode that identifies what it is. The sticker usually says “warranty void if removed.” But what it’s actually referring to is the if you remove the STICKER from the RAM–not the RAM from the computer. If you remove the sticker, it voids the warranty for the RAM itself–not the whole computer. So you can upgrade the memory. Hope that clarifies it!

5 Stars H
Finnaly i got my MSI U123-001 blue 6 cell bat.

guys

NO BLUETOOTH IN THIS NETBOOK

MSI U123-003 IS HAS BLUETOOTH WICH IS SOON IN MARKET

I wanna clerup to ram problem

I buy this ram and i have no problem with

CORSAIR CGM2X2GS800 G

2GB DDR2 800 MHZ PC2-6400

PC2-5300

PC2-4200

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001AO2P5I/ref=asc_df_B001AO2P5I807686?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=us-pricegrabber-premium-ce-20&linkCode=asn

5 Stars Good news for DIY upgraders!
UPDATE ON MEMORY UPGRADES: Contrary to what I have read on the web–and my own previous post on this page–installing the RAM upgrade will NOT void the MSI warranty. I have received written confirmation of this from Tom Ho at MSI.com.

MY ADVICE: Don’t even think about buying one of these without upgrading the RAM–it’s the easiest and cheapest way to boost performance, and netbooks are notorious for their slow processing speeds relataive to standard notebooks.

NOTE: My five-star rating is based on reviews I’ve read of alll of the netbooks now on the market; I will be buying one shortly.

5 Stars MSI Wind U123 first impressions
Just got the Wind today in the mail. Very nice little computer.

Took about 14 minutes to get all booted up initially but it starts up very quickly after that.

So far I have surfed the internet, played online poker, and messed with the settings. Nothing too amazing. It handles everything well, not discernably different from my 2.2Ghz Core 2 Duo macbook. I’m not going to attempt too much with this anyways. Youtube worked fine, but netflix instant movies wasn’t working tonight. I don’t know what the deal is with that, whether it’s the comp or the site. **Update, Netflix was messed up. The Wind plays Netflix instant view movies just fine.**

Graphically it’s ok. The 10″ screen isn’t going to make me faint or anything. Everything looks fine with the brighness at all levels. The application windows get a little choppy when I move them around, but that happens in every Windows machine I’ve used.

It is quiet, the fans come on every now and then. I don’t mind. My girlfriend is watching netflix on her MacBook Pro and it is way louder than the Wind.

The hinges are sturdy, in fact, the whole machine is sturdy. And it’s attractive. The blue shell has little sparklies. The mouse buttons are chrome, which I like (in tasteful amounts).

The webcam is ok, and the speakers are ok too. Ok is actually an overstatement. So far they are pretty junky. But I wasn’t expecting much.

The internet response is plenty fast. However, it seems like it only has wireless b/g. This version DOES NOT HAVE wireless N. That’s disappointing, the specs do note that it has g/n on the Amazon site. Again, no wireless N.

The box says no bluetooth but the hardware info in windows says yes. I haven’t tried to verify which one is correct.

Typing is not a problem. I would rather have regular sized comma and period keys than a full sized shift bar, which the Wind has. It’s taking a bit of adjustment, but I can type pretty fast on it after just a couple hours.

Brightness at the lowest level is fine on my eyes. It’s very bright all the way up, which I appreciate when it’s plugged in.

Battery life seems to be about 5 hours with wireless on and brightness all the way down. We’ll see if that changes.

It is a little rear end heavy, but so are Porsches. It balances fine so far, I haven’t tried it in every situation. I mean, you gotta watch out

if the screen is open and you’re setting it on an uneven surface, but it’s fine in my lap and on the table. Just be extra careful when you are setting the Wind down.

**In response to comment 4 – 3 USB ports, VGA for monitor, the 4-in-one card reader, ethernet, headphone jack. No firewire/hdmi I will try to hook it up to my 22″ LCD tonight and see if it can handle it.**

**I read some reviews at another site, apparently the U123 uses 800Mhz RAM, and the upgrade requires a 2GB stick to max it out. I have not confirmed this, but I’ve got a 2GB in my MacBook. I’ll do a switcheroo and see how it works.**

I really like the trackpad, but only after downloading the Synaptics drivers. Make sure to do that right off the bat (http://www.synaptics.com/support/drivers)!! You can get scroll function and corner tap functions, i.e., when I tap the bottom left I have it set to go back in the web browser, and when I tap the upper left it minimizes the window. Awesome! Almost like expose in OSX, but different (We can’t have everything). It’s definitely the best Windows XP navigating experience I’ve had so far.

I plan on installing OSX on this, but I need to do more research on how to do it. Apparently I need an external DVD drive, which I’m not prepared to shell out the $$ for. **Update, there seems to be a way to do it via USB stick. So now I gotta get myself a legit copy of OSX and an 8GB stick, and I’m golden.**

As shipped, right out of the box, with the 1.66 Ghz processor and 1GB RAM, I am very impressed.

Remember to press Crtl + F11 to activate the wireless!

Very nice little machine.

I will update as time goes on.

Let me know if you need any answers, i.e., have any questions!

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U123 001US 10 2 Inch Blue Netbook 6 Cell Battery is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

The Wind, an acronym for “Wi-Fi Network Device,” features a speedy and energy-efficient Intel Atom 1.6GHz Processor to provide longer operation hours and better mobile lifestyle. This notebook, or “netbook” is lightweight and ultra-portable, measuring about 7 inches wide by 10.23 inches long, and weighing just 2.6 pounds. Being small doesn’t mean ultra-small keyboard, the Wind features an ergonomically designed keyboard that is only 20% smaller than a full sized notebook keyboard, with keys spaced a comfortable 0.68 inches apart. The Wind comes equipped with a 10″ backlit LED screen that provides superior color quality and brightness giving you better comfort while reading reports, watching online videos and viewing photos. In addition, the 1024 x 600 screen resolution can fully display web pages, which makes it ideal for Internet browsing. With the 802.11b/g/n wireless built-in, you can enjoy the convenience of accessing the Internet anywhere and video chat with family and friends with the built-in 1.3 Megapixel Web camera and microphone. Another wireless feature that comes with the Wind is Bluetooth, this enables you to wireless connect to headphones, or other Bluetooth devices making it more convenient by not carrying around a bunch of tangled cords. With the Wind netbook weighting less than 3 pounds, makes it a great second computer to use at school, work and to take on vacations. 10 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Web camera and Microphone Facial Recognition Software for Security Built-in 802.11b/g/n Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN Integrated Bluetooth 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, Multimedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.6 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Just as described
Everything written about this item turned out true. Reliable, comfortable keyboard, nice screen in size and color fidelity, length of battery time, pretty and compact. Even the fact that it is slightly top heavy or “tipsy”. But nothing unmanageable or bothersome. Strongly recommended for netbook use. Especially the XP OS!! The included pouch is extremely useful and attractive and one does not need to buy another carrying case like I did.

4 Stars definitely usable and useful
i got this netbook a couple days ago and have since had time to play around with it a bit. I’m not an advance user and won’t be soldering new parts to the MB but i’m pretty tech savvy:

Pros:

-Fit and finish of the computer is quite good, no screen wobble keyboard is solid. the contrast black and white looks good.

-quick learning curve to type on the keyboard

-screen is nice, even when in eco mode easily viewable in a bright room

-about 4 1/2 hrs of battery life doing internet type tasks in eco mode.

-very little bloatware, if you’ve ever gotten an HP or Dell you will find this refreshingly bare (can’t speak for the U100).

-Touchpad works quite well except issue mentioned below

-It has decently loud speakers, not great by any means, but you can hear them. Anything you wish to get any sound quality out of should be through earphones.

-it’s downright usable for almost all basic tasks, can’t really encode video on it but can play some older games, have multiple internet windows and media software open. Also surprisingly easy to type on.

cons

-cannot, as far as i can tell, upgrade RAM to 2gb. that is to say there is no apparent slot for an additional stick. Most benchmarks show minimal performance gain from this anyway but as i bought a stick with the computer i was slightly PO’d

-no touchpad scrolling, tried a couple different drivers, no luck. Not even the corner of the pad tap to scroll appears to work as of now. Seems like there would probably be a solution to this once people smarter than I start trying to solve the problem.

-charger plug sticks out of the the side of the computer pretty far. It’s about 1.5″ and seems like it could be a long term issue with durability.

2 Stars If you dont mind a small, underpowered, unbalanced computer
I bought this with high hopes, which may have been the problem. I’ll cut to the chase:

1. The position of the battery makes the computer completely unbalanced while on your lap. It wants to rock back onto its screen. Gets annoying.

2. The track pad is waaaay too small.

3. The mouse buttons are hard to press.

4. If you don’t mind your palms hanging off the computer while typing or you have small hands, then you’re fine. (I’m 5’10″ so I’m no giant, but the keyboard was a little small for me.)

5. I know its a netbook, but it seemed slow.

6. The screen was a little smaller than I was hoping.

7. I was hoping to be able to windows key + arrow to rotate the screen so I could hold it like a book, but the graphics card doesn’t seem to allow it.

8. The battery life was great!

5 Stars 5 Stars
I have had this Netbook for over a week and have to say this is by far the best looking of them all! The white with black trim really makes this netbook look sharp and very professional. Key pad is excellent, touch pad and build quality is way better then the older U100, excellent sound quality for a netbook. I have no need for 2gb and in fact it is way over rated as far as netbooks are concerned this netbook with 1gb is just as fast as my older U100 w/2gb which by the way I am replacing with the U120 and am much happier with the superior touchpad, performance, looks and solid build quality of this model.

Buy/More Info

MSI Wind U120 020US 10 Inch Netbook White is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

Be the toast of your office with the new Eee PC 1002HA. Built-for-business netbook that is sure to impress both your colleagues and clients alike. Its Argent Grey chassis lends an instant air of professionalism, and its long 5-hour battery life – thanks to ASUS’ exclusive energy-saving Super Hybrid Engine will see you through lengthy meetings and presentations. Furthermore, its 10″ LED Backlit display and large keyboard will allow you to work in absolute comfort for hours on end, and its generous 160 GB of in-built storage – along with an additional 10 GB of online Eee Storage – will enable you to store, share and access your important data anytime, anywhere. Intel UMA Graphics Card 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera with Digital Array Mic WiFi 802.11b/g/n Wireless Bluetooth v2.0 10/100Mbps LAN Hi-Definition Audio Stereo Speakers Memory Card Slot – MultiMedia Card (MMC), Secure Digital (SD) Card, SDHC Connections – 3 x USB, VGA, Headphone, Microphone, RJ-45 (LAN) Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.39 (W) x 7.13 (D) x 1.09 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.65 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Good buy and a good competition for other netbooks out there
I’ve been looking all over for a netbook that is both light and can perform fast enough for daily activities. This little guy is both in one. I can’t say it’s perfect because I think Asus can improve some aspects, but for now, this is the only light weight netbook out there that is worth the money. The newer Asus netbooks are getting heavier and other companies make light netbooks for over $500. I got this with the $50 rebate, so I paid $365 for it and I’m perfectly happy with it.

Pros:

*light, 2.6lbs instead of the average 3-3.6 lbs

*compact and great for travel

*comes with a beautiful casing, doesn’t attract dirt and grease as much as other laptops/netbooks

*battery life is good, make sure you use the energy toggle to last longer

Cons:

*there is no scroll bar on the mouse pad..Why? Not sure but that’s a serious default for me, I’ve yet to get used to it

*Sort of a con is the shift key, but honestly, I’ve gotten used to it in about 2 hours of use

*resolution..can’t say this was a pleasant surprise, but it works and it doesn’t hurt the eyes, just wish they had higher rez so I can look at high quality pictures

The pros outweigh the cons though, and I recommed this netbook to anyone who wants to save their back and shoulders when traveling. It’s also great for students to bring to class (that’s what I do).

4 Stars ASUS 1002HA 10 Inch Notebook
We bought the ASUS Notebook for my wife to take back and forth to the office. While the screen is smaller than standard laptops, it’s small size and light weight make it easy to slide in her bag and take back and forth. One detriment in my eyes is the lack of a 2 button touch pad ala most windows based machines. Bought a microsoft bluetooth mouse to overcome the shortfall, however she usually leaves it at home as it is one more thing to carry in her bag.

5 Stars A Worthy Netbook!
I had tried many different netbooks over the months, and hated nearly all of them for one reason or another, usually because the keyboard was too small. The Eee 1002HA is a good netbook. The keyboard, while not perfect, is adequate for most typing jobs, even for someone with rather large hands, like me. The processor, while not the newest model, will be more than adequate for this kind of work. The battery life claim of 5 hours is a bit low, actually. I have pulled 6 hours from the battery, with the Wi-Fi off, but about 5.20 with it on. The entire netbook feels very high quality. No shakes or flexes, and the aluminum finish is very nice. I slapped the RAM upgrade in, booted it up, and havn’t had an issue yet! Very pleased!

Pros: Useable keyboard, good quality, price!

Cons: A bit tough to open the screen, card slot in weird place (back), AC adaptor gets VERY hot when charging.

5 Stars Great little notebook
Got it yesterday, Thursday instead of next Monday. Got the recommended card from Crucial, and easy install. Connected to the network with ease.

So far, I could not be happier with this little computer and it really looks sharp!!!

3 Stars This should be bought as a second computer
PROS: Little, if that is what you are looking for. It has a great webcam that is really good quality. Great for traveling. Probably one of the best, if not the best, netbooks

CONS: I found myself wanting to use everyone’s computer but my own. My problem was that I thought that I could use a netbook as my main computer and I was wrong. It has an incredibly small screen and everything is really pixelated on it. It is kind of slow, considering the fact that it was brand new but that is probably because it only has 1 gig of ram. The right shift key was in a very odd spot and you don’t understand how weird it is until you actual go to use it.

OTHER THOUGHTS: If you are looking for a netbook, I would recommend this. If not, I would recommend it only as a second computer, possibly for traveling or maybe for your children to work on??

Buy/More Info

ASUS Eee PC 1002HA 10 Inch Netbook 1 6 GHz Intel Atom Processor 1 GB RAM 160 GB Hard Drive 10 GB Eee Storage XP Home Brushed Aluminized is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

This Eee PC by Asus comes in a white style that is created with cutting-edge Infusion casing technology. Inlaid within the chassis itself, the motifs are an integral part of the entire laptop and will not fade with time. The Infusion surface also provides a new level of resilience; scratch resistance and beautiful style while you’re out and about. The Eee PC has a sturdy display with a high-resolution screen. At 1024 x 600 pixels, images are clear and sharp, making it more comfortable on the eyes reading and editing documents. Typing has also gotten easier with the new chicklet keyboard, which gives you wide keys that are spread out to help prevent mistyping. On the top of this screen is the 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera that works synchronously with the 802.11g wireless to provide web conferencing anywhere, anytime for easier web communications and increased work efficiency. With all of these features the Asus Eee PC makes for a fantastic purchase as a well-equipped second notebook or a Web access tool, so beat the crowds, and get yours today before they sell out! Intel UMA Graphics Card 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera WiFi 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100Mbps LAN Hi-Definition Audio Speakers and Microphone Memory Card Slot – MultiMedia Card (MMC), Secure Digital (SD) Card, SDHC Connections – 3 x USB, VGA, Headphone, Microphone, RJ-45 (LAN) Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.47 (W) x 7.53 (D) x 1.12 ~ 1.50 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 3.20 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Excellent netbook
Computer is great. Well built. None of the “shaking” issues that others have found. Shocked at how great the picture quality is on the monitor. It isn’t a huge monitor, but it is extremely bright and clear. Keyboard feels comfortable to type with. Upgraded to 2GB of RAM (simple to do), but memory usage remains low, even when I’ve got a number of apps running (gotta love Win XP). Takes a little getting used to the sensitivity on the touchpad, but the two finger scrolling is a nice feature. I haven’t looked into lowering the sensitivity on the touchpad yet. Occasionally, machine has an hourglass for 3-5 seconds when in battery mode (not sure exact power settings at the time it happens), but it is quite bearable. Computer looks nice, though the cover is very shiny and picks up fingerprints quite easily.

I’d recommend it. For the price (with the Amazon/Asus rebate), it is worth it. For other reviews, see link below. Looks like with Amazon as the seller (and the lower price), for some reason there aren’t as many reviews. The link below for another seller on Amazon seems to have all the good reviews.

http://www.amazon.com/10-Inch-Netbook-Processor-E-Storage-Battery/dp/B001GIPSAC/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

4 Stars $300 Well spent
Great computer for $[...] rebate. Sound quality ain’t the best but it really does a nice job overall. Super nice is the ability to upgrade ram to 2 gig for $20 and 2 screws. See Youtube for instructions. Easy change on hard drive as well. This alone make it a great choice. Enjoy!

4 Stars Netbook is great but keyboard is cheap plastic
I have no problems what so ever as far as performance and stability.

The only biggest concern is that when i type i can see the whole body of the keyboard shaky. I bought the chiclet keyboard when i saw apple have the same, but the quality of workmanship at asus is way pathetic vs apple. I think they need to re-design this for sure, users won’t like it.

I have typically : Yahoo and MSN messangers and Skype and 3-4 tabs of Firefox running all at the same time with no issues, although the CPU is running at about 80% when i use skype with video. So for performance its great for my use.

Also this netbook starts to have choppy video when i try any HD video. I expect that, afterall when do you expect out of a 1.6Ghz single core CPU, however regualar youtube videos runs fine.

Overall i am happy but disappointed from Asus for the chiclet keyboard.

3 Stars Just ok
It is a neat piece of equipment. It runs decently, very simple, and has almost all of the features you can use. My main purpose of purchasing it is to use it for my online class activities. When I used it for live online voice chats, the feedback coming from the other line (which is my professor) appeared to be very choppy and staticky. I tried to observe and give it several more tries before deciding on what to do with it. I even upgraded it into a 2gig memory to see if the choppy feedback was just a one time event. I used it again the following week of my classes and even recorded the whole session, there has been no improvement. It may be the hardware because the drivers for the sound system were updated. Just didn’t worked out for me due to the reason for my purchase.

2 Stars Just Ok. Keyboard and touchpad sucks
I bought this notebook 2 weeks back without the $30 rebate. Today I saw the Acer Aspire One 10 inch notebook at the same price with a much better quality and finish (with metal body for handrest) at Costco. Simply put, This Asus at $350 at nowhere in front of the Acer. Details below:

Pros:

-Intel Atom processor does its bit. It powerful enough unless you run multiple apps together.

- Asus has a 1 button power saving control

- battery lasts long enough, but dont go for the 7 hr figure, 3.5 hrs is the normal.

- not too heavy

Cons:

- the chicklet keyboard just sucks. The support plastic of the keys is loose(design issue) and the whole keyboard goed up and down while typing making noises similar to WW-II typewriters. I am really upset with this keyboard.

- The first time I booted up the machine, within 5 mins it crashed making a squeaking noise, most likely from the HDD. It does make that squeaking noise if I tilt the machine at a particular angle but didn’t crash again yet. I guess its a cheap hard disk inside.

- The display is not very sharp, just ok.

- The touch pad gets automatically clicked. I guess the sensitivity of the touch pad is not good. I tried to customize it from the tool provided, but to no help. The touch pad buttons are too hard.

Overall, I say Asus has tried to make a big profit out of this machine by giving poor quality cheap components. Its not a notebook you’d like to carry in meetings. Acer’s Aspire One is more suited for that.

Buy/More Info

ASUS Eee PC 1000HA 10 Inch Netbook 1 6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor 1 GB RAM 160 GB Hard Drive 10 GB Eee Storage Chiclet Keyboard XP Home 7 Hour of Battery Life Pearl White is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com

At less than 3 pounds, this notebook is perfect for any lifestyle – indoors or out. The Wind, an acronym for “Wi-Fi Network Device,” features a speedy and energy-efficient Intel Atom 1.6GHz Processor to provide longer operation hours and better mobile lifestyle. This notebook, or Netbook is lightweight and ultra-portable, measuring about 7 inches wide by 10.23 inches long, and weighing just 2.6 pounds. Being small doesn’t mean ultra-small keyboard, the Wind features an ergonomically designed keyboard that is only 20% smaller than a full sized notebook keyboard, with keys spaced a comfortable 0.68 inches apart. The Wind comes equipped with a 10″ backlit LED screen that provides superior color quality and brightness giving you better comfort while reading reports, watching online videos and viewing photos. In addition, the 1024 x 600 screen resolution can fully display web pages, which makes it ideal for Internet browsing. With the 802.11b/g/n wireless built-in, you can enjoy the convenience of accessing the Internet anywhere and video chat with family and friends with the built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and microphone. With the Wind notebook weighting less than 3 pounds, makes it a great second computer to use at school, work and to take on vacations. 10 WSVGA (1024 x 600) LED Backlit Display Two internal Speakers Built-in 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera and Microphone Built-in 802.11b/g Wireless 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone out; Microphone-in, VGA, RJ-45 Approximate Unit Dimensions – 10.23 (L) x 7.08 (D) x 1.24 (H) Approximate Unit Weight – 2.3 Pounds

User Ratings and Reviews

2 Stars Had to return it, Wifi didnt connect to my router
I updated all the drivers to the latest ones on MSI’s website. I upgraded the firmware of my router, which isnt some obscure router its a Linksys WRT54G. Still the Wind despite being one room away from the router and having 4 bars wouldnt hold a connection to the router. It would work for a few minutes then the connection would freeze. This wasnt some minor annoyance all laptops will drop a connection once in a blue moon. This was chronic and rendered the netbook unuseable. So I returned it to Amazon. If you look on the web it seems this isnt an uncommon phenomena. Many people seem to give up on the internal wifi card and buy an external card to maintain a solid connection.

The most impressive thing about the unit was the keyboard which I liked and the low weight of the unit. The speakers were also acceptable, and could reach a decent volume. Some netbooks at full volume are almost inaudible. Also the overclocking functions are useful if you want to play some basic 3d games on the unit. A 25% overclock is quite significant.

Compared to other netbooks I thought the polish of the unit was lacking. The plastics on the unit are pretty cheap feeling compared to plastics on Asus netbooks. When you look at the rather large vents on the bottom you can see exposed circuit boards. Seems like a weak design as dust, crumbs, etc can easily get in there and I would imagine could cause potential hardware failures.

The screen was fairly weak, similar to most netbooks. Theres a speckled look to the screens which prevents them approaching the quality level of full size notebooks. I think this comes from the fact netbooks use screens intended for portable DVD players not for computer text. I would expect future netbooks to improve screen quality.

The instructions that came with the unit were lacking and incredibly sparse. One not very well written poster page and thats about it.

Overall if you just want a basic netbook that isnt by anyones estimation the best netbook out there but is the cheapest then this could fit the bill. That is if the wifi connects for you, for me it didnt.

However there is some merit to the saying ‘you get what you pay for’. Though the Wind is acceptable overall I think there are better options out there even if they cost a little more money.

4 Stars Nice Bang for the Buck
Pros: I decided to wait a little while before I wrote a review so that I could provide some insight that went beyond just my initial impressions. My OBE (Out of Box Experience) was fantastic. I had looked at a number of different models before I chose this one. I was leaning very heavily towards getting an Acer until a friend of mine lent me his MSI for an overnight test drive. The display was very impressive and I found being able to fit the full width of a web page very helpful. I’m a rather clumsy typist and I found the keyboard to be sufficient enough to accommodate my paw and hope technique.

My main purpose in getting a netbook was to get something that was as portable as possible and still be able to surf the web with relative ease. I recently purchased a notebook for my wife, she is an accountant and insisted that the keyboard be full sized and have a 10 key pad on it as well. I got her a very nice machine with an incredible display with all of the bells and whistles. The problem was that at about 9 pounds, it was not anything that I would care to lug around.

With portability, ease of surfing and price my key factors I happily made the purchase (300 bucks). This computer quickly exceeded my expectations. I found that not only could I easily surf the web, but this computer was more than I hoped for. It easily runs office and most any other application you care to throw at it with relative ease (heavy gaming excluded). I suspect that this is due in part to the fact that it comes with XP Home Edition instead of Vista. This machine will never be a good choice as a primary computer but it does what it is meant to do extremely well and then some.

In an effort to keep the weight and cost down I opted for the 3 cell battery. I knew that this would limit my time that I could spend away from an outlet and I am getting about 1:45 worth of actual time on a full charge. Keeping the brightness on the monitor down as low as practical and turning off unnecessary features definitely helps. I have an adaptor in my vehicle that I bought at Sam’s club which allows me to plug any small to medium sized AC powered device into my cigarette lighter. I would highly recommend getting one as this really helps! I think I paid something like 30 bucks for a two pack a couple of years ago. I have one in my truck and one in my wife’s SUV.

The WIFI on this is excellent. I am able to pick up signals very easily and the dropouts are at a very acceptable level. The Webcam although not great, gets the job done. I am not sure if this thing has Bluetooth or not. The Bluetooth software is there but the box that the computer comes in indicates that there is no Bluetooth. Since I do not have any Bluetooth devices I can’t determine if Bluetooth is there or not.

The processor is better than I expected and runs programs faster than I thought it would. Even with just 1 GB of RAM this thing runs very well. Here is where I am very confused with respect to the processor. It was my understanding that the Atom 270 was a single core, however when I bring up task manager, there are two cores present. When I monitor the task manager CPU usage window it behaves exactly like a dual core would. Each core is displayed separately and is acting independently from the other. I either received a dual core processor or I am missing something here.

Cons: As I indicated, my OBE was exceptional and had I written this review the day after I received the computer I would have easily given it 5 stars.

After about three weeks my computer stopped being able to run on battery power. I have no idea what happened but one day it simply stopped working. It still worked fine on AC but I didn’t buy a desktop. I treat my computers with great care and I typically get 6 or more years out of a computer. I suspect there was simply a loose wire inside.

Amazon made it very easy to return the item and I received the replacement in short order. If I remember correctly I filled out the RMA on a Sunday and I received the replacement the following Thursday. I sent the defective unit back via parcel post and I paid for a receipt notification. I received notification back both from Amazon and the USPS that the return had be received.

Although the replacement came in very short order, the OBE fell way short of the first computer. The first annoyance was that the processor was not as fast as the first one. I cannot gripe too much on this point because the Atom is clearly marketed as a 1.6 GHz processor and I got that both times. The cool thing about the MSI bios is that it allows you to overclock the processor. You can select an 8, 15 or 24% increase in the rated processor speed. The basic process is to start low and work your way up until you hit 24% or your computer locks up whichever comes first. Not to worry though, if your computer locks up you can simply re-boot and then lower the speed.

The first computer that I received allowed me to ramp it up an additional 15%, the second computer only allowed me to bump it up 8%. I treat this as a disappointment but nothing that can really be held against MSI since Intel clearly has rated the processor at 1.6 GHz and nothing more. Anything above that is gravy and is due to minor defects in the silicon that determine the amount of over clocking that can be obtained.

My second issue however is something that I feel I can hold against MSI. There must have been a difference in the image that shipped on the two computers. The first one was flawless and everything worked perfectly the first time. The second computer suffered from a MAJOR memory leak when using Internet Explorer 6. I had heard about this before but I had never actually seen a computer that had it. Basically when I got on the web, each page was taking up about 50-75 MB of memory that was never released. It took me quite some to figure out that this was happening. I would go online and after about 15 minutes of surfing I would get a memory full error. If I closed IE and then re-opened it I could continue for about another 15 minutes.

Clearly there was something very wrong. Even though I had installed all of the patches I still got the memory leak. I could monitor the memory leak by having the task manager open while I surfed; I even upgraded to IE 8 and although the memory leak was not as bad it was still unacceptable.

I finally bombed the computer by hitting F3 during the boot process when F3 appears in the upper left hand corner of the screen. This did a complete re-install of the image including formatting the drives. After I re-imaged the computer and installed all of the necessary updates I took IE6 for another spin and things were much improved although there was still a noticeable memory leak. The leak was small enough that I could have a decent surfing session and not run out of memory. It was something that I could live with if I had to but I wanted a better fix.

Finally I decided that the best course of action was to give Mozilla’s Firefox a try. I installed Firefox and “poof” the memory leak disappeared! Although I have just started using Firefox I have to say that it is sooooo much faster than IE! It may not have all of the bells and whistles that IE has especially in terms of interoperability with other Microsoft applications, but in terms just browsing, this thing has IE beat hands down!

Other thoughts: Overall I am very happy with this computer. The price is fantastic and given its diminutive size this thing delivers better than expected performance. I can only give this item a rating of 4 stars because I should not have had to go though all of the hoops that I did in order to fix my memory leak. Given what I know now, I would not hesitate to buy this computer; however, I would save myself some hassle and install Firefox right away. I am very happy with Amazon’s return policy and they made it very easy to return the item.

As an additional piece of advice, make sure you keep EVERYTHING when you receive your package. Just set it aside in a nice safe location because you never know. This is an old habit of mine and I even keep the shipping materials. That way if the need to ship it back arises then you can ship it back exactly the way you received it. This can save you time money and hassles. You can be charged a restocking fee if you do not send it back properly. Also (and my wife had fun laughing at me for this one), I document the entire repackaging process with my digital camera so that I have additional proof that I sent everything back. Just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean that someone isn’t out to get me

4 Stars Inspiring, Fast, Efficient, and Easy-to-Use (mostly)
I would have given 4.5 stars if possible.

I waited to write the review until I’d had the tiny netbook for about a month, just so I could really give a comprehensive review. I have the Gig of RAM recommended by an earlier review here on my couch still in the box. The computer is so fast that I haven’t found I need it and I wanted to make 100% sure I was keeping the computer before I installed anything.

The MSI Wind U100 is nothing short of incredible. I wish they made these 10 years ago. It fits in my ordinary-sized purse and it’s light enough to carry around anywhere I go (and I do). I have the 3 cell battery, but I’m probably going to upgrade to the 6 cell, since the battery life is ok, but not fantastic. I tried many netbooks and the keyboard on the MSI U100 is the easiest to use (except for the trackpad, which I’ll explain below). The webcam quality is good enough to make me look like a celebrity, but not so good that it’s possible to see that I just woke up (I’d enclose a video, but I wanted to make sure it was read– I never watch video reviews). The wireless is so good that I was able to pick up a signal from two blocks away. The computer itself is fast and fun to use. I never sit around waiting for it to catch up (ok, once I did, but I restarted and everything was ok… I think I had some pretty heavy stuff processing in the background). Though the MSI website is really terrible, their support forum is really fantastic. People are there to help and are quite eager to do so (at least, in my experience). Apparently, it’s possible to do a lot of modifications on the MSI U100, but I’m not technically inclined enough to try it. The keyboard is just fine for me, and even the controversial “.” key is not too small for me now that I’ve gotten used to it (they made it about half the size it usually is, so some people complain that they can’t hit it).

Now for the drawback. There’s only one, but it’s REALLY annoying. The trackpad that came with mine has tap-to-click enabled and it’s not possible to disable it. I went to the forum with this issue, and it seems that it’s a crapshoot if you get the bad trackpad (mine) or the good one. When I’m typing, my thumb occasionally hits the trackpad and moves my cursor or clicks whatever it happens to be hovering over. This has lost emails and forms and has resulted in much frustration while typing. I’ve had to become really proactive about watching my thumbs, and even then, I am accidentally clicking around quite frequently. And my thumbs are not large… I have what people say are “piano player” hands. This would not be *such* a huge issue, but it’s not even possible to disable the trackpad in general. Even if I plug a mouse in, the only way to disable the trackpad is to uninstall the driver. The forum suggested a new driver that has click-to-tap as an option, but I installed that driver and still have no way to turn off click-to-tap.

However, even with the trackpad issue, I still would not hesitate to buy another. I recommend them to everyone I know and even started a website just for fun: [...]

I am planning on buying a bigger external hard drive, a big monitor, and a USB DVD drive. In my opinion, it’s better to have that stuff as components rather than lugging everything around in a single laptop that doesn’t even fit in my purse.

5 Stars BEST Notebook
$ for $ this is the best notebook u can buy. Its runs so smooth and the 3cell battery is not as bad as many people make it out to be. The keyboard is a lil smaller but it is very comfortable to type. I upgraded the ram to 2gb and installed vista. Its runs so much smoother than XP. I think MSI didnt want to add the extra ram and vista for their own cost savings. But this thing with Vista business runs smooooth and fast. Try it out for yourself

4 Stars Love this Laptop!
I love this little machine. It does everything I could possibly want and at a ridiculously low price. Only minor reservation is regarding battery life, which is only 2 hrs. Of course, 6 and 9 cell batteries are available, if you need more non-AC time.

A bonus is the ability to overclock very easily, pushing the processing speed to about 2 GHz. I HIGHLY recommend the MSI Wind U100!!!

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MSI Wind U100 641US 10 Inch Black Netbook 3 Cell Battery is a post from: BestNetbooksReviews.com