Mini Notebook Computer Features to Keep in Mind

Do you often find yourself out on the road, wishing you had a computer to take with you to do some web browsing or work from just about anywhere? If so, then you may want to start looking for a mini notebook computer.

Mini notebooks have really started booming over the past few years because of their very compact size and built-in wireless compatibility. They are also usually much more affordable than your average notebook computers, which was a big help in the boost to their popularity as well. However, besides size, what makes them different from your standard notebook or laptop computer? There are a few key differences to keep in mind before actually shopping for and especially purchasing these computers.

The first factor to keep in mind is that they tend to have far less hard drive space than other types of notebooks. A mini notebook computer will likely have anywhere from 10 to 60 gigabytes in hard drive space, which is very tiny by today's standards. For this reason, they are best combined with external hard drives or thumb drives if you intend to use your mini at home or need to store a lot of work on it. However, this is not the only thing to keep in mind when looking for a mini notebook.

These computers also tend to have weaker video cards and less RAM than larger notebook computers as well. This is due to their small and compact size, which is made so small due to smaller, and hence less powerful, components. However, if you do not intend to be playing any games on your mini notebook computer then this should not be a problem. Also because of that same small size, the monitor will also be understandably smaller. Many minis have monitors that range anywhere from 10 to 14 inches, which may be too small for you to see easily. So keep this in mind as well.

Most big computer manufacturers make mini notebooks these days, so if you have a brand preference then it should not be hard for you to locate a mini by that brand. Large manufacturers such as HP, Sony Vaio, Dell, and Toshiba all make mini notebook models. However, smaller manufacturers make them as well so you will be able to choose from a wide variety of companies.

Make sure you pay attention to the monitor size, video card, RAM, CPU, hard drive space, number of USB ports, and whether or not a mini notebook computer you are interested in has a CD/DVD drive. These factors vary greatly between mini models so it is especially important for you to pay close attention to these factors when looking for your own mini model.

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