The Gateway LT2105u Netbook for just $249.95

This is an interesting netbook under the Gateway brand, which is now part of Acer and so therefore, we can suspect that much of design comes straight out of an Acer Aspire One.

Nevertheless, having said that, this is the Gateway LT2105u Netbook and it offers the buyer a nice but predictable 10.1 inch widescreen back light LED display with a native resolution of 1024 x 600. It will also be running the 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N450 Cache L2 512 KB processor and the graphics come through the integrated Intel GMA 3150 with 64 MB dedicated graphics card.


As netbooks go, the Gateway LT2105u comes with the backing of Acer and despite that has a nice individual styling to it, it comes with average specs and it not going to set the computing world on fire, but then again this is a netbook with a $250 price tag, you cannot have everything!

This is a netbook designed to look good and make computing on the move, fun and easy, it does that with issues. The 3 cell battery will give the user a good three to four hours of use and the whole thing only weighs in at less than three pounds, so it is ideal for the user who is out of the office for half a day or so!


Here are the specs for the value for money Gateway LT2105u Netbook finished in Night Sky Black, it comes with the now standard 10.1 inch 1024 x 600 pixel resolution LED back light display, running an 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, an Intel GMA 3150 graphics card, a 1 GB RAM, a 160 GB hard drive, a web cam, Wi-Fi, a 3 cell battery and is pre-installed with Windows 7 Starter the 32 bit version operating system.

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The Google Chrome OS Cr-48 Cloud-Based Netbook

Reports are in for the new Google Chrome OS Cr-48 netbook, the first notebook to feature Google’s Chrome browser as an OS.  This limited release computer is a cloud based netbook that runs the Chrome browser and is designed exclusively for online use.  Is this the future of mobile computing, or just a clever marketing exercise by Google?

The Chrome OS Cr-48 netbook is fairly unexciting on initial inspection, comprising of a 12.1 inch screen, an Atom processor, minimal ports, and a rubberized plastic chassis.  The chassis looks good and doesn’t show any fingerprints however, although the build is quite heavy for a netbook at 3.8 pounds.

In terms of connectivity, this computer certainly isn’t going to win any prizes.  You get a single USB, VGA, an SD card slot, and a headphone jack – yes, that’s it.  The 12.1 inch display features a 1366 x 768 pixel resolution and a matte finish, and people seem happy enough with the colours and contrast on offer.

However, there seem to be a number of problems with this netbook, and in many ways it looks like an incomplete piece of technology.  For example, the screen flickers when the brightness is changed, the heat it generates is worrying for such a resource-light OS, and the fan is noticeable even under light conditions.

The keyboard looks a lot like a Mac design, with island-style keys and a fairly similar layout as well.  However, the function row has been replaced with dedicated buttons for Back, Forward, Full Screen, Next Tab, Screen Brightness, and Volume – all of which will come in very handy on a dedicated Internet computer.

The system has been reported to boot in 14 seconds, which is very fast indeed, and also comes out of hibernation practically instantly.  A WiFi connection prompt comes on as soon as you boot up, along with a Google account login which takes another 10 or so seconds.

The reason it is so quick is simple – the entire desktop is nothing more than the Chrome browser.  A list of downloaded Apps and most visited websites comes up when you open a new browser tab, a process that is seamless and will no doubt get you where you want to go quickly.

Overall, the Chrome OS Cr-48 netbook seems to be a cool computer, but it also seems a little incomplete.  This computer was never intended to be a mass production model however, but the first example of a new cloud-based OS paradigm that we are likely to see more and more over the next few years.

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The Google Chrome Cr-48 “browser-based” Netbook

The Google Chrome Cr-48 may still be a prototype, but Google are doing their best to make everyone believe it is the future.  However, is the world ready for what is really nothing more than a “browser in a box”, or are the cloud-based services of the Internet still too immature and unfamiliar to make us give up our desktops.

The Google Chrome Cr-48 features a 12.1 inch matte screen with 1280 x 800 resolution, an Intel Atom N455 processor, and the Google Chrome OS.  The rest of the specs are pretty standard for a netbook, with 2GB of DDR3 RAM, integrated Intel graphics, WiFi, Bluetooth, and a single USB 2.0 port.  In terms of storage, well – there is nothing except a 16GB SSD.

The simple and rather boring design of the exterior is a little surprising, especially when you consider the potential revolution in terms of the concept of the Cr-48.  It is clamshell, traditional,  and matte black, with a practical and understated look.   Reviewers have all said how durable the chassis feels, so it is good news in that regard.

However, the strength does mean extra bulk, which is a shame as it makes this computer very heavy – 3.8 pounds – when you consider the (lack of) technology that lies inside.  Essentially, the Chrome Cr-48 is an average Atom processor, a large battery, a couple of ports, and a web browser.  While the concept may be exciting and potentially even revolutionary, the weight doesn’t seem to add up.

If Google are right and there is a market for the “browser in a box” concept, the hardware should really match up in terms of its physicality.  If the Chrome Cr-48 looked and felt a little more like the Apple Air on the outside, the vacant interior would have made a lot more sense.

In terms of real world usage, most people lucky enough to have had some hands-on time seem very impressed with the speed of the Cr-48.  It takes only 5 seconds to reach the login screen and about 15 seconds to boot up.  Battery life is also reasonable at between 6 and 8 hours, although some other netbooks do deliver more than 10.

While the Google Chrome Cr-48 is only a concept at this stage, Google are obviously interested in making it a reality at some stage.  However, the heavy design and lack of internal storage will not appeal to many people, which essentially makes this computer a brick anytime you are away from Internet access.

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