Dell has launched an inexpensive laptop with a small keyboard and screen, dubbed a netbook, four months after it was originally anticipated that the Texan firm would enter the netbook market.
IBM has won the contract to build and supply the NSW Department of Education and Training's wireless network for 463 state schools.
The return rate on Linux-powered netbooks may be higher than that for Windows netbooks, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing for Linux, according to Linux vendor Canonical.
The NSW Department of Education and Training has picked Microsoft Windows XP and Office software and Lenovo hardware to run on its impending roll-out of 200,000 student netbooks funded through Kevin Rudd's Digital Education Revolution, leaving the Linux alternative out in the cold.
Microsoft has confirmed that it will be providing a version of Windows 7 specifically developed for netbooks and sub-notebook computers, as well as at least one version for consumers, and one for enterprise users.
The NSW Government's release this week of an expressions of interest tender to give low-cost laptops to every senior public school student in NSW is a big step, but will these systems be Windows or Linux?
By choosing the safe Windows XP choice for student laptops, the NSW Department of Education and training is turning its back on the chance to turn hundreds of thousands of students into armchair developers and handcuffing itself to a rocky Windows 7 upgrade path.
Swelling the ranks of 11.6-inch netbooks, the Asus Eee PC 1101HA impresses with its design and battery, but having to overclock a slower version of Intel's Atom CPU is a dodgy workaround.
The netbook market is so tight, you need some sort of competitive advantage to stand above the crowd. ViewSonic brings a standard netbook with two negatives instead poor battery life and a bad touchpad.
The NC10 betters previous Samsung netbooks with a built-in HSDPA SIM card reader and the portability this provides. Optus wireless broadband bundles seem like excellent value.
Asus does a good job of combining a netbook and a touchscreen in the Eee PC T91, even if the system hits a couple of first-generation snags.
While the new HP Mini 110 is less expensive than the Mini 1000 and doesn't stray far from the same mould, there are some subtle design changes and they're not always for the best.
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