Typical Hardware Configuration: Laptop Mini

In this post, let me share the typical hardware configurations of mini laptops. These devices, sometimes also known as netbooks, are specifically crunched for hardware resource. The main idea behind the hardware design is to remove any movable parts, thereby saving on battery life. Additionally the processor in these devices are optimized for power management and high instruction execution speed is only a secondary requirement.

The hardware used in designing these devices also dictate the operating systems that can be loaded. Typically the hardware configurations are focused on either Linux or Windows XP. However, most of the available devices support both the operating systems.

Battery life: It is one of the most important features which can considerably improve the user experience. The typical battery life of a traditional laptop is around 4 hours whereas a laptop mini can run much longer on a single charge. Since there is no free lunch, these devices achieve this impressive feat by sacrificing processing power and opting for flash memories instead of traditional hard disk drives. Hence the major advantage of using a mini notebook is that you can stay much more mobile and connected, since the battery life is much longer than traditional laptops.

Processing Power: Processors used in netbooks are are specially designed for what are known as Mobile Internet Devices (MID) with the aim of keeping the size small enough to fit in a sleek device. Another focus is to keep the power consumption of the processor to a minimum by employing latest power management techniques.

One of the most used processors for these compact devices is the Intel Atom. Some mini notebooks also use the Intel Mobile family of processors, but Intel Atom is preferred in most devices. The Intel Atom also has better battery management and is more suitable for wireless consumer devices. It is worth mentioning that ARM processor, which is used in PDAs and mobile phones, is not the favorite processor for these devices. For example MSI netbook, which is one of the highly sold mini laptops, comes equipped with Intel Atom processor.

Wireless Connectivity: Mini laptop typically comes with the built-in connectivity to WLAN so that you can connect to your favorite WiFi hotspot. Some latest mini laptops like Kipno N03 might also have an integrated chipset which allows connectivity to WiMax and 3G networks, in addition to WiFi networks. Moreover, a lot of these computers also have Bluetooth connectivity, allowing friends to share files and photos instantly.

Memory: These devices have a typical memory specification of 512MB or 1GB RAM on the motherboard. Moreover, they come equipped with over 100GB of flash drive for local storage of digital media. These computers typically use flash memory as the primary medium to increase the battery life of the computer.

Physical Size: The typical mini notebook (or laptop mini) has a screen size of 9 or 10 inches with 1024×576 or 1024×600 screen resolution. Since this resolution is little less for Internet, it requires a lot more scrolling for  the webpages.

Related posts:

1. Android Smartphones More Prone To Hardware Issues