MSI U230-033US 12.1-Inch Netbook - 4 Hour Battery Life

#1: MSI U230-033US 12.1-Inch Netbook - 4 Hour Battery Life Reviews!

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I'd never heard of MSi - before browsing online for a laptop a couple months ago, but must say I am very impressed with the quality of this little laptop! It's nicer than the 00 Dell I use at the office.

At 12", this computer was the perfect size for me. I was underwhelmed by the traditional 10" netbooks when I tried them out at a local retailer - screen was too small for me, and I didn't care for the cramped keyboard. Nor the Windows 7 starter edition or slow CPU.

Enter the MSi U230 - I've got the single core AMD Neo MV-40, but rarely ever notice any slow down. I would have spent the additional for the dual core version, but it wasn't released yet when I bought my computer (it's still hard to find from most online retailers!).

Pros:

-Faster CPU compared to traditional netbooks with Intel Atom chip
-Windows 7 Home Premium (runs fast)
-2 gb Ram, upgradeable to 4 gb (I did this on a whim, wasn't really necessary as Ram doesn't max out at 2 gb most of the time)
-Full sized keyboard makes typing easy with little frustration
-1366x768 resolution, lots of space for desktop icons, web browsing, watching videos
-SD card slot, webcam, 3 usb connectors
-ultraportable size and weight (but you don't get a cd/dvd drive - I suggest picking up an external one)

Cons:

-4 hour battery life as advertised is a stretch
-Won't perform as well as larger, dual core CPUs notebooks

In reference to battery life, it's advertised as 4 hours but I've found around 3 hours is more realistic. However, you can undervolt the CPU by about 20%, without losing any performance. I get stable performance at 0.85v at 8x and 0.70v at 4x using RMClock. Doing so I've stretched the battery life to over 4 hours with light computer tasks (running spreadsheets, web browsing, etc.).

Overall I highly recommend this laptop, especially if you are just looking for a laptop to compliment a desktop system, and aren't happy with traditional netbooks.

MSI U230-033US 12.1-Inch Netbook - 4 Hour Battery Life Features

• 1.6GHz AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 Processor; Chipset AMD RS690 + SB600
• 2GB System Memory (4GB Max)
• 250GB SATA Hard Drive; Wireless 802.11b/g/n; 2 HD Audio Speakers
• 12.1? HD WXGA 16:9 LCD Display, Resolution 1366x768, ATI Radeon HD3200 Graphics; 1.3MP Webcam
• Windows 7 Home Premium; Battery 6 cells (5200mAh); 4 Hours of Battery Life