A Netbook is essentially a small laptop; most have a smaller than usual screen (10”) as well as a smaller keyboard. One of the components sacrificed for size is the optical drive. Netbooks do not come with a CD/DVD drive, which isn’t necessarily a drawback. Typically Netbooks come with very little memory, storage and processing power. For most basic computing needs, this is perfectly sufficient.  They run in the $250-$500 range on average and use a stripped down version of popular operating systems (XP, Linux, Win7). Netbooks are not intended to be used as a primary computer but work very well as a supplemental machine to a desktop or more powerful notebook. All in all Netbooks are small, cheap, and low powered.

Netbooks do a very good job at what they were designed to do; which is light computing like email, web browsing and running basic applications. If you are a traveler, business person or student looking for a highly portable second computer you might like Netbooks. If you are a developer, media lover or heavy application user you will probably be very frustrated with a Netbook. 

If you want something small and light for basic computing when away from your primary PC another option would be a Smartphone.    If email and light web browsing are your primary needs an Iphone, Blackberry or Windows Mobile Smartphone might satisfy your needs. 

At the end of the day, if you need a cheap portable PC to email, browse the web, or take notes with, a Netbook is a great option. Just know that while they’re perfect for doing light computing, they cannot do very much more. Keep your eyes open for deals as the holidays approach. You might just find yourself buying a Netbook for Christmas!