Lenovo S10-3 unboxed

Brad from Liliputing got his Lenovo S10-3 demo unit, and promptly uploaded an unboxing video.

Some first impressions, the netbook is pretty thin, the lid is not glossy and has a textured feel to it which seem to be fingerprint resistant. The keyboard is isolation-style, which means there's space between keys. There's no distinct buttons for the trackpad, as they're built into the trackpad surface itself.

Overall, a pretty nice look netbook which I won't mind getting.



check out Laptop Magazine's review of the Lenovo S10-3

Lenovo S10-3 gets reviewed

I have always considered the Lenovo S10 netbooks to be one of the better choices in a crowded netbook market. The design of both S10 and the S10-2 were very appealing to both consumers and business users.

Laptop Magazine has published a detailed review of the new 2.6 pound Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3. The reviewer finds Lenovo has done a lot of things right with the S10-3. They managed to improve what was already a good keyboard into a better one. The speakers in particular is "positively booming" for a netbook.

On the inside, the S10-3 is kitted out with Intel's new 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 processor and GMA 3150 graphics. It has a 10.1 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display and runs Windows 7 Starter Edition.

However, in the interest of saving space, the touchpad buttons for the S10-3 is integrated into the touch area, much like how Dell has done for its past few netbooks. This could need some getting used to. The reviewer was not impressed, "The cursor jumped around at times, especially when trying to select a block of text. Also, the buttons are somewhat stiff."

Read the full Lenovo S10-3 review at Laptop Magazine

Samsung NB30 unboxing

Samsung’s latest netbooks are starting to make the rounds in Europe, and Netbook News has posted an unboxing video of the Samsung NB30.

The Samsung NB30 is kind of a business version of the Samsung N150, and features the Intel Atom N450 processor, GMA 3150 graphics, 1GB of RAM, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, and a 10.1-inch anti-reflective screen.

NB30 also features a hard drive free-fall sensor which parks and protects the hard drive if the netbook is dropped. This helps to prevent data loss and damage to the drive. It is also has a water tight seal to prevent damage to the system if up to 50cc of water is spilt on the system, and removed within 10 seconds. Absolutely great for clumsy hands.

Moblin Linux in a MSI U160

Even though the folks behind the Moblin Linux interface for netbooks announced they are merging with the Maemo project to develop a new OS called MeeGo. This hasn't stopped netbook makers from installing the latest version of the Moblin netbook operating system on their latest models and showing them off.

This week the folks at Notebook Italia spotted the OS running on a MSI Wind U160 10inch netbook. Check out the video.

More Pine Trail netbooks appearing

First it is was the Asus Eee PC 1005PE, now more hardware makers are joining the Pine Trail party.

Pine Trial is Intel's optimizations for the 2nd generation of Atom platforms. It comprises of a simpler chipset that includes the memory controller, graphics and CPU all in the same package. This will give a good boost to the performance as well as some very good power savings.



Some of the other offerings includes:

• HP Mini 210
• Fujitsu MH380
• MSI Wind U135
• Dell Mini 10

Price and exact availability dates are not in yet, but we should be hearing more next month.

SITEX 2009: Netbook offers II

Here are more SITEX netbook ads as found in Today and Straits Times.

Prolink Glee (S$439/S$539)


HP Mini 5105 (S$999)


Pico DJV ($599)


MSI Wind U100 Plus 7 ($599)


Lenovo S10-2 (S$599)

SITEX 2009: Netbook offers

SITEX, the year-end digital playground is upon us again. The event starts tomorrow Thursday 26th Nov and will end on Sunday 29th Nov, and is held at the Singapore Expo. Given that Friday 27th is a public holiday, expect the population of Singapore to crowd the Expo more so than previous outings. Avoid if you don't need to go.

Advertisement for various IT gadgets are popping up everywhere now, and here are some of the netbook ads I've spotted.

Samsung N310 (S$649)


MSI Wind U100 Plus 7 (S$688)


Fujitsu M2010 (S$788)


Will update more as I see them.

The litl netbook with style.

We see netbooks everywhere now, and frankly, it's starting to get a bit stale. The powerhouses just keep churning out one 'me too' after another. So it's a wonderful break from the monotony to find a netbook like the litl.

Pronunciation aside, the litl netbook won't match up to the latest netbook in the market in terms of price or specifications, but what it does have is elegance and oodles of style. Netbooks were first devised as thin-client devices, and it's great to see the makers of litl go back to basics and refine the idea, and make owning a netbook accessible to the mass of non-techies out there.

The litl resembles a digital photo display more than the standard netbook. It comes with the Intel Atom 1.6GHz processor, 1GB RAM and a 12" display. But instead of the usual hard-disks or solid-state-disks, it only has 2GB of flash storage, and the screen on this baby can twist all the round and almost fold back onto itself. And it comes with a very unique keyboard design too, and even a HDMI port for hooking up to large screens, a feature rarely seen in netbooks.



In Easel mode, it takes up very little footprint, it has a control wheel on the bezel for controlling the content when keyboard is hidden away. The same control wheel is featured on the remote so that the control experience is the same.

The litl uses it's own proprietary OS, and focuses everything on the web. Practically nothing is stored locally. There are no folders, menus, icons, it's just one giant web browser and a web search bar. As the makers put it, "litl users get an interface to the web, not the computer".

At a retail price of US$699, it make the litl a pretty expensive machine, but for people who aren’t really that tech savvy and shy away from owning a "normal" netbook, the extra you pay for the simplicity and convenience may just seem reasonable. The litl will sit nicely next to the giant LCD TV in your living room, and most importantly won't freak your grandma out!

Check out how the litl works in this great exclusive video from CrunchGear.


Visit the litl site.

Starhub brings in the HP Mini by Studio Tord Boontje

The HP Mini 110 is probably not the most cutting edge of netbooks in HP's line up, but with a designer treatment by Tord Boontje, the HP Mini by Studio Tord Boontje suddenly becomes a conversation piece.

At first glance it looks like just another intricate pattern printed on the lid, but the incredible lace effect, rendered in multi layers through the casing, gives the netbook a classy feel. This is all thanks to the new three-dimensional surface technology called "HP imprint 3D".

Since Starhub is bringing in the netbook, you will have to sign with them for either the MaxOnline Premium Plus home broadband plan or subscribe to MaxMobile Elite HSDPA+ for two years to get it for free. For current subscribers in Hub Club and Home Hubbing Pack, you can get it at S$699.

In addition, Starhub and HP has jointly pledge to donate S$10 to the Singapore Zoo for every unit sold. The money will go to the conservation and breeding efforts for one animal species. Visit Starhub for more information.

HP Mini 311's guts gets revealed

Some dude with the handle teknokracy at myHPmini.com forum got his hands on a HP Mini 311 and promptly tore it apart to see what makes this little netbook tick.

He commented that its pretty sturdy and quite well built. There's not much room for much customization. HP has made the machine easy to take apart and put back together, using the same screw type throughout the whole thing.

Check out his posting of the Mini 311 teardown.