Help Me, Laptop: I Need a Long-Lasting Portable Notebook

Back-to-school season may be six months away, but some are already looking ahead to the laptop they’ll need when they hit the books in the fall. One such person is Joyce, who’s looking for a notebook she can take on her overseas volunteer trip this summer, and then to school.

I will be entering first year university for Concurrent education this coming September, and will be volunteering overseas this summer. I have a very well-equipped desktop system at home, so all I need is something extremely portable, with a long-lasting battery life. Streaming videos on youtube is a nice bonus. The primary use is note-taking, so something that works well with Microsoft Office would be great. (I am open to other alternatives for word processing, though.) I am thinking about buying a netbook, and my budget is pretty flexible. HELP ME!!! PS: Is there a recommended time to purchase a netbook? (ie: Holidays? Back-to-School?)

Best, Joyce Lin

Well Joyce, there are a number of different options, depending on how much money you’re willing to spend.

For less than $300, you can pick up either the Toshiba mini NB505, which lasted 7 hours and 32 minutes, or the HP Mini 1103, which lasted 8:27. Keep in mind, though, that these two are 10-inch netbooks, so while you’ll be able to stream videos on YouTube, Hulu might get a bit choppy.

If you want something a little larger, the AMD Fusion-powered HP Pavilion dm1z weighs 3.4 pounds, has an 11.6-inch (1366 x 768) screen, costs $479, and lasted 6:37. Not only that, but it provides more than enough power for watching videos and taking notes.

If you feel like splurging, then we suggest two systems: The  Lenovo ThinkPad X220, ($1,299) which also weighs just 3.4 pounds, but has a larger  12.5-inch, 1366 x 768-pixel display, and lasted 7 hours and 51 minutes with its six-cell battery. If you want really ridiculous endurance, then pick up the 9-cell battery and optional battery slice, which extend the X220′s battery life to over 20 hours. If you’re looking for something really slim, the 13-inch MacBook Air ($1,299) weighs just 2.9 pounds, is 0.68 inches thick at its widest, and lasted 6:36.

Regardless of what you choose, be sure to invest in some sort of security, such as a Kensington lock. The last thing you want is for your brand-new laptop to disappear.

As for your other questions, Open Office is a good–and free–alternative to Microsoft Office that you can download.

And while you can find some good deals around the holidays and back to school time, you needn’t wait until then. Also, if you buy a notebook through your school, you may be able to get an education discount, which will leave you more money for late-night pizza.