<p>Hi! :)</p>
<p>Okay, so I'm trying to figure out whether or not I need to upgrade my netbook or buy a laptop before college.</p>
<p>Right now I've got an Acer Aspire One with Windows XP and a 160 GB HDD. I've also got a 4 GB flash drive that I can use for extra storage. </p>
<p>So these are my questions:
1) Should I get Windows 7 for it?
2) Do I need to buy extra RAM?
3) Should I skip all of this and just buy a proper laptop?</p>
<p>Thanks. :)</p>
<p>Get a laptop. A netbook is the ideal notetaking device, but for extended periods of editing and paper writing, it can be quite cumbersome. I recently purchased a netbook after having to endure an entire semester of outlet hunting thanks to my meekly 1.5 hour pavilion battery life, and it’s by far one of the best investments i have ever made. But I don’t plan on using it as a substitute for my laptop because the small screen can, at times, be a hindrance to editing. Not to mention that it’s small and punitive speakers don’t do HD movies or music any justice. I don’t think it would be long until colleges begin offering netbook and laptop packages to their students because you just can’t be satisfied with just one but not the other. As for the upgrades, I highly recommend you get windows 7 for both the netbook and the laptop- but if you can’t have both, then buy the laptop with windows 7 on it. On the other hand, if you ultimately decide to simply upgrade your netbook, then definitely upgrade it to 2GB of ram, and install windows 7 because it’ll make your work that much easier.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Don’t bother with getting a laptop. For the “extended periods of editing and paper writing” that Zenbadabing mentions, all you need is an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Just plug all 3 in, close the netbook’s lid, and you’re good to go. This gives you the portability of a netbook and the convenience of a desktop in one machine, and at a much lower price.</p>
<p>You can get an excellent 19" external monitor (such as [this</a> one](<a href=“Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more - Newegg.com”>ASUS 19" WSXGA+ LCD Monitor 5 ms 1680 x 1050 D-Sub, DVI-D VW198T - Newegg.com)) for little more than $100 (though I would recommend spending a little extra to get a larger one - I recently picked up a 24" from Newegg for $180), and you probably have a spare keyboard/mouse lying around somewhere (just make sure they’re USB, and not PS/2 - the circular connector). If not, USB keyboards/mice are [dirt[/url</a>] [url=<a href=“Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more - Newegg.com”>Microsoft Wheel Mouse Optical - Newegg.com]cheap[/url</a>]. And if you’re getting both a monitor and a keyboard or mouse, don’t forget to take a look at [url=<a href="Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more - Newegg.com; combo deals](<a href=“Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more - Newegg.com”>LITE-ON SK-1688U/B Black Wired Keyboard - Newegg.com).</p>
<p>However, you should definitely get Windows 7 for your netbook and make sure that it has at least 2 GB of RAM. If not, you can upgrade it yourself in about 10 minutes. You can get a 2 GB stick of laptop RAM [url=<a href=“Laptop Memory | Newegg.com”>Laptop Memory | Newegg.com]here[/url</a>] for ~$40.</p>
<p>Windows 7 is great, but not necessary for what you do with a netbook. As soon as you install it you’ll likely notice your netbook is significantly slower. That’s because Winows 7 is a larger OS than XP. Much larger. However, if you upped your system to 2 GB RAM, you’d definitely end up increasing your overall performance.</p>
<p>If money’s an issue, or if you really aren’t doing anything more than taking notes, watching youtube and general websurfing, there’s really no reason to get a laptop, as with an external monitor and a larger keyboard/mouse combo, you can do everything you need (be sure, though, that your netbook has 4 USB ports, or else you’ll need to get a USB splitter, or you won’t be able to use any external storage device in conjunction with your monitor, mouse and keyboard). And you may not even need to close your netbook’s lid: especially with Windows 7, using dual monitors makes work very nice.</p>
<p>I personally find netbooks great.
I’ve got an Acer Aspire One d250. it’s the size of a paperback book.
if I turn the screen down and disable things and underclock it, I can squeeze 4.5 hours out of it on a full charge(3 hours with the screen on default and basic webrowsing, 2.5 hours playing super nintendo games) I want to buy the better battery(6cell battery should roughly double those numbers)
I have small fingers so keyboard size is a non-issue to me. if you have large stubby fingers, it might be an issue.
I have what is by most standards an over powered desktop system at home(PhenomII x4 @3.5Ghz, 8GB RAM, 4870 video card, three 20" monitors) and that’s sufficient for long essay writing sessions. As is my school’s computer lab.</p>
<p>my personal conclusion is that going for a jack of all trades system fails. Have a solid desktop/workstation system for the heavy lifting and a cheap netbook for basic tasks and battery life. if you’re in a dorm or small room and are worried about space constraints, go the micro ATX route, and place the unit behind the monitor</p>
<p>also 7 is great
also sell the 1GB RAM which comes with most netbooks and go for a single 2GB module. should cost $20-30ish overall.</p>
<p>Forget about upgrading. The netbook will serve you just fine, and if you have any issues, you can wait until after college starts to address them. In fact, at most colleges, a laptop is just a major convenience, not a requirement. A netbook will, without a doubt, get you by.</p>
<p>So, wait until college starts and then judge. I currently have a 15" laptop and even I’m thinking about getting a netbook because I figured it’d be nicer to carry around. The weight difference is that of one textbook. And of course, I have to admit, it’s a huge luxury!</p>