Myquestions

Much can be said for progress. As engineers continually find new ways to improve performance and efficiency, new technologies are born. The netbook is one such technology taking the world by storm. Current netbooks are powered by Intel Atom or Via C7 microprocessors. These processors are engineered to provide adequate performance at very low power consumption. I picked up an Acer Aspire One (AAO) at a steal.

Acer Aspire One A110L specifications:

• Intel Atom N270 “Silverthorne” 45nm microprocessor at 1.6GHz
• Intel 945GSE Express chipset
• 512MB DDR2 RAM
• Intel 8GB Solid-State Drive
• 8.9″ Widescreen LED-backlit LCD @ 1024 x 600
• 1 x long-term-storage SD card reader
• 1 x short-term-storage multi-card reader (SD, XD, MMC, MS Pro)
• 3 x USB 2.0 ports
• 10 / 100 LAN NIC
• 802.11b/g Atheros Wireless NIC
• External VGA output
• Linpus Linpux Lite, modified by Acer

Few netbooks can claim to have brought a software giant like Microsoft to its knees. The AAO forced Microsoft to reschedule its discontinuation of Windows XP. Windows Vista just doesn’t run that well because of its resource-hungry ways. And reschedule they did.

What could be better than having a computer with you at all times? And in a better way than lugging your 2kg notebook with you everywhere. The AAO weighs less than 1kg, and can be suspended and brought back to life in less than 5 seconds.

When I bought an AAO, I was slightly skeptical, but now I’m finding more and more uses for it! Surfing on the couch, mail in the car, music while running errands, gaming during spells of free time. The possibilities are endless. And the AAO’s SSD and low Thermal Design Power (TDP) make it ideal for moving around. The only moving part is the CPU fan!

But the best part about this little miracle is not the sleek looks, the plethora of features, the gorgeous LED-backlit LCD or the cool-factor. The best part is the price. The A110L model can be had for as little as R1999. That includes an 8 gigabyte Solid-State Drive (SSD), and Linpus Linux.