Sub $100 Laptops about to hit the market

[Brinson]

$98- HiVision NB0700: $98 laptop from China

$99- JoinTech - Laptops and GPS Navigators

$89- $89 MenQ EasyPC makes $98 HiVision laptop look expensive

First one runs linux. Second two run Windows CE. If the first one sells in the US for $98 I am 99% sure I'll end up buying one.

 

[mikee]

they need one with atleast 9 inch screen. 7 seems too small especially for big webpages

 

[Brinson]

I only listed the sub $100 versions here. Hivision has 4-5 models with bigger screens listed on their site, but pricing hasn't been announced for them yet.

 

[Jorsoft]

Do they all use a MIPS proc? I guess x386 is too much to ask. Still you can play older games via Dos emulators and SCUMM VM.

 

[Brinson]

I believe either MIPS or ARM from what I hear on other forums.

 

[CalcProgrammer1]

What's the difference between these and a PDA? It's not really a true PC without x86 these days, I have an ARM based device with all the fancy stuff these laptops have and I can stuff it in my pocket, it's called a Dell Axim x50v, and it came out 3 years ago. These laptops are nothing new, they're just PDA boards with a bigger screen and keyboard.

 

[Jorsoft]

Pretty much. I have an Axim x50 as well, heckuva nice pda if you ask me. I just stopped using it after a certain point and haven't really touched it. But it's pretty much the same thing. That's why I'm really waiting for x86 procs in notebooks in this price range. With MIPS/ARM procs they're severely limited.

 

[Brinson]

It all depends on the OS. The OS on these runs a full version of Abiword and a full featured web browser (couldn't tell which from the pics). The CPU is not THAT important when doing things like browsing the web or word processing.

The cpu does not make the machine.

Pute a Quad Core processor in a palm and it would still be a palm.

Put a palm processor in a laptop and its still a laptop. Its just a low powered laptop.

The Operating system is FAR more important than the cpu. The reason the Axim is what it is is because of the OS designed to run on the CPU. These netbooks run a more feature-rich and netbook operating system, and they are therefore netbooks.

I am not going to take notes in class on an Axim. I would with this.

Its a low-powered laptop. Not a PDA. There is a very big difference. Its not as minute as the type of CPU it runs.

I just learned these systems are running Firefox.

That will obviously have to be changed...

Firefox on a system with 64mbs and a 400mhz CPU?

Ehhhh...We need to get epiphany or Konqueror on there.

Maybe even Dillo if its compiled with all its features.

 

[CalcProgrammer1]

If you put Firefox on a PDA, it'd be the same as a mini laptop with equivalent specs running Firefox. Yes, the OS is different, but since OS is software, it can be ported to whatever device you want (theoretically). For instance, my X50v was designed for WM2003 but I have a hacked WM6 ROM on it now. WM6 wasn't designed for the X50v, but it runs great. If they ported Linux to the X50v, that'd be even better. I'm actually hoping for a Chrome port because the fast JS engine would be great for embedded processors like the ARM chips.

My X50v has a 624MHz CPU with 64MB RAM. It runs Minimo 0.2 (a Mozilla [pre-Firefox] port using the Gecko rendering engine) quite well, better than that lame excuse that Microsoft made with Pocket IE. It even does JS decently, allowing for things PIE could never do, and it has desktop rendering rather than distorting the page into a hideous mess for tiny phone screens (X50v has a 640x480 screen).

 

[KurrentEweser]

I'd like to see these come with bluetooth linkage to cell phones. I haven't seen any that do.