There really isn’t a lot to differentiate the various netbooks that have been released in 2010. Pretty standard screen resolutions, features and ports. When a netbook comes out and breaks that vanilla mold it certainly deserves some attention.

The upcoming LG X140 is one of those such netbooks. It has a couple noteworthy features that don’t often come in a netbook. That said, you may not see this LG X140 available in your country. I will updated availability as it becomes known.

First off, this LG netbook comes with a 1366 x 768 display. Secondly, this netbook comes with 3G embedded which means you can synch your smartphone with it. More details to follow!

A recent story from Digitimes.com about an ABI Research study suggests a strong future for the netbook market. They are predicting 60 million netbooks will be sold in 2010. Beyond 2010, they are expecting the 60 million to double by 2013. The fact is the netbook market is expanding into other areas of the world. The article suggest a strong educational market for netbooks.

Hard to argue with this research. There are always real threats to the future of netbooks, but I feel the organic nature of their rise, will lead to their growing market strength. People do want secondary computers and they don’t want to spend a lot of money on them. There will always be a more expensive option out there and that’s the role of the manufacturers. They are always trying the upsell. They are always trying to maximize profit. The netbook is all about what we want, not what they want.

As you may or may not be aware, the new Intel Atom N455 enables the use of DDR3 Ram instead of DDR2 Ram found in the older generation Intel Atom N450. The short of the story is, it’s not a deal breaker in the least. The DDR3 upgrade will be so insignificant that it should not enter you buying decision over a netbook vs another netbook. Take the better deal. If you want improved performance, then get 2 gigs of Ram. Just don’t expect DDR3 Ram to offer some incredible improvement.

[source:NetbookNews.de]

I thought it would be fitting to show a photo of the AMD executives. The landscape of netbooks is about to take a drastic change. The reason? AMD and their upcoming “Ontario” chipset which is designed for netbooks. It’s a direct attack on the Intel Atom. The AMD netbook will have graphic performance that is a game changer. Another code name for this processor is actually “Brazos”. It will also include a dual-core version. This AMD netbook will be DirectX 11 capable.

As in previous posts, I’ve mentioned that I know the industry and have followed it closely from a netbook perspective. What was always lacking was a threat to Intel and the Atom. Now we have it. And it’s coming very soon. We should all praise AMD and wish them success because if their product and technology can compete, the monopoly of Intel will change. We will get more out of our netbooks simply because Intel has to. They will be forced to provide better power and better graphics from Atom because AMD will start to take their business away.

Late 2010 is going to be an amazing time for netbooks. The AMD netbook is indeed the game changer that certainly I’ve been waiting for. Thanks AMD.

I’ve been following netbooks and their progression of lack thereof since their inception a couple years ago. My theory is pretty logical in my mind.

Intel create Atom, which in turn created the netbook computer. The low cost and portability struck a chord with the public and you have what is now the netbook computer segment of the market. One problem. Well one really big problem.

Intel created a big problem for their buddies like Dell, HP and other big name laptop makers. The issue is profit. See, netbooks don’t offer great profits for the manufacturers. The netbook steals away their customers who were forced to buy bigger, heavier and yes, more expensive laptops.

In my theory, Intel realized their boo boo. As a quick action, they have the ULV processors which create the ultra thin laptops which in theory should offer the big boys better profits and steal away some of the netbook buyers. When Intel has no real competition they can pretty much dictate the pace of the processors and the speeds at which they run.

See, I’ve had the theory that the netbook can actually do a lot more if it weren’t for the conflict of interest involved. The past year has seen a steady stream of vanilla netbooks coming to market. There is no way that you could convince me that the Atom processor upgrades up until now couldn’t have involved getting more speed. Intel has essentially stunted the natural growth of the Atom processor.

In a perfect world, the ULV would be the Atom. That way the big boys profit and the public doesn’t even know about this cheaper alternative Atom processor. But because we are where we are, the Atom has only improved on battery life which is great, to a point. The degree of Atom processor speed improvements over the past year has been rather curious to me.

Aha. Then Intel comes along and announces a couple months ago that you can expect to see dual core Atom netbooks in the fourth quarter of 2010. Great news. I write this now because netbook announcements have been few and far between lately. My theory is pretty simple.

Dual core netbooks are going to be the new netbook standard. In other words, when there are single core Atom netbooks selling at the same time as the dual core netbooks, which do you think is going to sell more? Perhaps there is a gag order out there so that the announcement don’t cause the public to wait out for the next wave of dual core netbooks.

So to summarize, Intel is creating a monster. It’s the netbook monster in fact. A faster or more capable netbook will become an even better choice than the ULV laptops which were brought in to compete with netbooks. So is Intel admitting the ULV failure? Perhaps. It’s also possible that the recent AMD netbooks and 11 inch laptops are causing Intel to make a move forward.

I’ve always believed that the netbook is only being held back for political reasons. Once we get 8 hours from a netbook I suggest we all would prefer to be getting speed improvements in future processor upgrades. Should a netbook NOT be able to play games or watch HD video? Of course we would want that from a netbook. It’s technology. The only limit is the ones that are created. I know Intel has the brain power to do it. They just have to allow it to happen.

Looking for cheap netbooks are we? I think you may be happy with this Asus Eee PC 1001PX model. It’s probably the cheapest netbook that you’re going to find. You will have to take the less battery life to save the most money. That said, you get the Asus brand netbook at a really cheap price. It has b/g/n wi-fi and no bluetooth. I can’t say there is a big issue aside from the battery life. If you don’t need 8 hours, and are happy with just over 4 hours of battery life, then this cheap 1001PX model is right for you. Oh, you will get the 160GB hard drive but that’s hardly a big deal right?

If you’re looking to buy netbook computers, we hope to bring you the best. As we get through the summer vacations, expect some real juicy netbook deals. Cheap netbooks should be common during the build up to the back to school marketing machine. I would expect mid August to be a great time to find cheap netbooks.