In terms of netbooks, I'm not aware of many manufacturers who are shipping them with Vista - just Linux and Windows XP from what I can see. I don't think most will transition to Vista any time soon either, rather, I think they'll transition to Windows 7 Starter when it comes out.
...I was thinking something small just for typing on that's fast but not too pricey. I'm doing a Web Development course, but they have so many computer labs there, i'm not going to need to do practical work on it...
What is your price range?
If you buy a netbook, are you only going to use it to surf the Internet, listen to music and read documents etc...? Do you have another laptop of desktop PC of your own which you're going to use at University as well?
I ask this because I am a University student myself. I bought a 10" Eee PC to use for my studies, but shortly afterwards I sold it on eBay, then got a HP 2510p 12" ultraportable. The reason? While it had excellent battery runtime and was very light and compact, the screen was too small, and the performance was not good enough for me to be able to work productively - tasks including coding, researching and typing essays & reports.
However, not long after buying the 12" 2510p, I sold that on eBay as well, and bought a larger and faster 14.1" Thinkpad T400. The reason? The same again - the 2510p's lack of performance was hindering my productivity.
Perhaps hopping across laptops is an illness of mine, because just a few months after buying the T400, I stopped using it and bought an aluminium Macbook! :freak:. Anywhoo, my advice is to purchase a full size laptop. If you choose to buy a netbook, then I suggest getting one with a 12" screen, like the Samsung NC20 or the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 (configured with a 6-cell battery of course). It's worth noting though, that top end 12" netbooks approach the prices of full size laptops, so think about it.
Whatever you decide to get,
Laptops Direct is a great place to get cheap laptops.