MSI Wind Netbook

[usayit]

For the past few months, I've been researching and researching for a small image tank to replace my now obsolete Epson P2000. My search has lead me to something quite different. Keep in mind, I am a rangefinder shooter and my typical shoulder bag cannot hold even my small Powerbook 12 inch G4. I like to travel light. Also keep in mind, I prefer mac os x. It has to have good battery life. My search turned up absolutely nothing.... (Love Apple but they have been pretty disappointing lately and Windows hardware... eek). More research and several hours of tinkering, I ended up with this

MSI Notebook Website

U100-432US
Intel® Atom Processor N270
1GB DDR2-667 RAM
160GB Hard Drive
4-in-1 Media Card Reader
10/100 Network
802.11b/g/n Wireless Network
Bluetooth Wireless
10" WSXGA+LED Nonglare Display
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
6 cell li-ion battery
10.23" x 7.08" x 1.24"

Added to my purchase was 1gb SODIMM crucial notebook memory. Be warned, possible void of warranty.

What? An Apple user defecting back to the Windows XP?? Nah.. also included in my package was a license of MAC OS X Leopard. I have 3 MACs at home and purchased a 5 client pack back when it was first released. (Please do not pirate software!!!)

After a following install instructions and tweaking a bit, I now have a dual boot Windows XP and MAC OS X netbook weighing half the weight of my Powerbook G4 and about 25% smaller. It fits in my very small shoulder bag!!! Battery runs approx 4 hours (tweaked) and it even has a built in SD/SDHC card reader! Everything a photographer on the run needs, to backup images, review them, and even login for an upload. Final cost was about the same as an image tank but this is so much more flexible. NOTE: make sure you get the 6 cell version. 3 cell battery version runs 2 hours.

To my surprise, MAC OS X 10.5.4 is almost 100% functional. Enough to make it absolutely useable. Even my bluetooth stereo headset (Motorola S9) were operational. A big plus, is that I can dual boot into Windows for work (Their secure remote access only supports Windows).

Pros:
* COMPACT... The keyboard is still a good size. I have small hands.
* LIGHT WEIGHT.. I have lenses that weigh more.
* BATTERY.. Double of most full sized laptops
* For those of us using SD/SDHC cards, no need to carry a separate reader.. there is one built in
* MAC OS X can be close to 100% functional: including wifi, bluetooth, card reader, touchpad.. etc.
* MSI Wind is VERY easy to open and tinker with. SATA and miniPCI Express slot are very accessible. (My Powerbook requires me to practically disassemble it completely just to upgrade the hard drive).
* Screen is a lot brighter than I expected. I haven't calibrated it yet.
* Cost is at par with low end but larger laptop cousins.
* Multi-boot with Windows, Linux, MAC OS X, and others...
* Performance with the memory upgrade to 2GB is fine. We are not talking screaming performance but good enough for most tasks.


Cons:
* The build quality (although good) is no where close to what I am accustomed to from Apple products. The screen moves a little as I touch type on the keyboard.
* WebCam is non-functional in MAC OS X. (they are working on it and it is not important for photogs)
* Mic is not functional (also working on it)
* The touch pad is a bit sensitive and is recognized in MAC OS X as a mouse. Takes a bit getting used to. Unable to disable tap-to-click. (they are working on it)
* The "." and "/" keys were shrunk. It took a little practice to adjust so that I stopped typing in "www/google/com". I'm pretty good now.
* Mac OS X users have be wary of performing kernel or system updates. I'm on 10.5.4 with no issues... I hear there are people running successfully on 10.5.5 and 10.5.6 but with extra work to get things working again (builtin keyboard and mouse)


For photogs on the run, I can fully recommend this Netbook, MSI Wind U100. It is wonderfully compact with more than enough performance than your typical internet appliance. Windows, Linux, and Mac users can be happy with this little companion. For Mac users, MSI Wind makes an ideal choice for "hackintosh" builds as much of the hardware is operational with the proper drivers and workarounds (do a google search there are very detailed instructions that I won't post here). The Hackintosh install is more straight forward than most other competing netbooks. The 120GB (feel free to upgrade.. it is easy), built-in card reader, and non-propriatry OSs (Mac, linux, windows) further adds to the convenience as the role of an "image tank".

Oh yes... as a final touch, I did place an apple logo sticker (used two for appropriate thickness) on the front of my netbook to cover the MSI logo. The "geek" side of me won that argument.

I'll post a picture of it next to my 1D MII to give yall a sense of this netbook's size. I am currently at work.


Happy Holidays!!

 

[netbuk]

good stuff!
samsung netbooks have 9hrs battery while hp have very fast bootup.so msi might not be the best solution...

 

[Big Mike]

With the price of these netbooks getting so low, it almost doesn't make sense to buy a simple 'image tank'.

Thanks for the write up.

 

[NateWagner]

Another good netbook for putting OSX on is the Dell Mini... I believe they have it to full functionality (with the exception perhaps of the touchpad being viewed as a mouse).

 

[SpeedTrap]

I have been running Windows 7 on my Original Aspite One with no problems, but I may update it this year.

 

[icassell]

I'm running Windows on my Wind and have been pretty happy with it. Haven't used it for photo applications yet, though. I use it mostly with Sun Open Office stuff.