In my past trips, I always checked a bag. However, on this trip I decided to take a backpack Rick Steve's style carry-on bag and an over the shoulder laptop bag. The great advantage was zooming past the baggage carousel not having to wait for anything. The other advantage was that I could move at a faster speed especially over terrain. However, my full sized laptop and the fact that I had two bags (versus one) weighed me down especially when I had a long stretch to walk with the two bags. It did become cumbersome although I could move faster then the other people with wheeled bags.

I have decided that my laptop will become my new desktop and I will purchase a netbook for future trips. Netbooks have been out for a while, but only recently have the machines become fast enough to be interesting. HP just introduced a new mini with a dual core for example.

http://www.bloggerisme.com/hp-mini-5103-netbook-with-intel-atom-n550-dual-core-review.html

Next year, I hear, they plan on introducing a newer faster version of the Atom processor which might double the speed of the current crop.

So, for myself, on these next trips I will no longer have a seperate laptop bag, but find a way to fit everything into my carry-on backpack. I just need something to do email, surf and other simple applications. I am not a person who can utilize anything smaller then the 10 inch netbook like some others can. I prefer having a keyboard.

Ill be taking my netbook to medellin in a few weeks. Im hoping it will be good enough for the basics as i really dont want to lug around my 15" work laptop. Ill be sure to report back on it.

I am thinking about getting this one. $60 rebate meaning $319 for the entire rig.

http://www.jr.com/asus/pe/ASU_1015PEMP17B/#productTabDetails

The N550 is the newest fastest Intel Atom processor. I read on the net that in a year they plan on offering an Atom that will be about twice as fast.

There are netbooks with the AMD Neo processors which offer twice the performance of the Atom, but at the expense of battery time. I think I saw tests on the web where they said those AMD Neo processor netbooks get like 3-5 hours of time whereas the Atom netbooks get like 6-8.

Just a note, none of these netbooks are particularly fast even the AMD Neo processors. I believe they are as fast as this 5 year old desktop computer that is lieing dormant at my feet and that one isnt all that fast. They all take about a minute to boot up so you have to leave it in standby all the time. However, you do save time, space and energy in lugging a 2.5 lb netbook around versus the 5-8 lb laptop. As well, if your $350 netbook disappears then you are far better off then if your $1000+ laptop disappears or gets damaged...

So you're reporting on a computer that you don't own yet? You're not asking any questions about the computer just stating it's the perfect mongering computer. You make complaints about the computer without first testing it.

Hmmm, the typical Portege report.

For what's it's worth, I own (and am typing this note) on this computer. I'd review it for you, but you'd probably just bitch about my report and doubt it's validity. No thanks.

EA

I dont own the Asus in the link, but I have a pile of many other computers, notebooks, cell phones and gadgets of all different shapes and sizes. Some I use and some are lieing in the closet. I believe everyone else has a similar situation to my own in that regard.

I have one of the early netbooks which no longer works and has contributed to the pile in the closet. The Atom N550 based netbooks should be much faster, but I am holding out until next year when they introduce an even more powerful species. It is tempting though to hit that link and purchase it, but every time I have bought technology at the end of the year then they go ahead and introduce a more powerful device at the start...then the technology junk pile seems to grow larger.

I dont need to ask any questions about computers anymore. I have a huge pile in my closet in which to reflect upon and familar with how they work...if I had questions then I would simply go down to Best Buy and resolve those questions on my own. What do I need to know more of in which the technology heap in my closet has not taught me?

(Message edited by Portege on October 12, 2010)

Portege:

I think your last sentence explains everything.

The closet has taught you a great many things.

I don't think there is anyone on this board that would disagree with you.

MM

I did go down to Best Buy and checked the models out. Basically, the HP is more expensive and that is because it has a more thought out better build. The HP mini has larger keys and other features a business traveler might desire. It is definately easier to type a document on an HP mini. I thought the display was better for movies. The Acer is a more basic netbook and has smaller keys, harder to type, but good for casual surfing, coffee house duty and the non-business traveler who just wants to look at email. HP seemed to stream movies better while the ACER was a bit choppier.

I would just love to throw my money at one of these babies, but I know when I do they will just come out with something better next year.

I'm in Thailand for 3 weeks & I've used my iPod Touch throughout my journey to check & answer e-mail, surf the Internet, & I'm posting this response while lying in my hotel bed. So far, I've been able to do everything that I need to do on my Touch. If I need to write a long letter, I'll compose it on the notepad, then copy & paste it to an out-going e-mail.

The real nice thing about the Touch is that it fits in your shirt pocket. There are many hotels, bars & restaurants with Wi-Fi so it's easy to stay connected. Although notebooks are small, they still aren't small enough for me. You can also listen to your music, download foreign language Apps, etc.

I just got rid of my HP mini - its been sitting around since Cartagena trip last year. I personally didn't like it. It doesn't do anything my G2 call phone can't do faster and better and it's another bag to carry around. I'd go for a tablet before I bought another netbook, but that isn't happening either.

Check out the iPad. Took mine last trip to Rio and it did everything I needed, not to mention its light. If you stay at a place that isnt wireless, take along an Airport Express.

I got my IPAD about a month ago and it is "excellent". Highly recommended by me! Flying to Panama in a few weeks and will definitely take it instead of a notebook. - Hemp

Just remember like the iPhone you cannot wipe the drive like you can a "real" computer, or run some of the software that a lot of us use.

Any photos you put on there are going to stay on there until you do a restore on it.

I've got a little el-cheapo 11' Dell netbook which I effectively wipe and install a default Umbuntu operating system in 20 minutes flat in the plane on the flight home. Cheap and simple seems the most practical goal. If I got robbed it would piss me off but I wold not loose any sleep over the cost.

I wipe my phone too but it is not a true wipe of the internal storage other than the SD card so I am less confident as to what it has in there and where so I would never use my phone for anything too embarrassing.

What do you mean wipe? Can I wipe my dell laptop clean of any incriminating evidence? How?

LL, I dont think they make a program that is powerful enough to clean up your computer. I would start with Lysol.

The FASTEST way to TOTALLY wipe is to run M$ Windows with Truecrypt full disk encryption in the field and then when it is time to come home, change your password to gibberish which you could not possibly ever reproduce even if they waterboarded you. Then "effectively" the disk is destroyed. Then install a new operating system which will overwrite the Truecrypt bootloader effectively driving a death nail into the former already killed disk. Umbuntu's live USB loads quick and generally everything "just works" so it is good for that purpose but you could reload M$ Windows or run Dell's system restore as well and accomplish the same goal.

When you get home restore your drive to however you prefer.

Of course this TOTALLY and IRREVOCABLY forever destroys ALL the data on the disk so any data you may wish to keep needs to be preserved somehow prior to this operation.

Sancho,
Got it, thanks!