We’ve heard that netbooks have been selling like hot cakes among all the computer gadgets around. People have realised that they don’t need heavy and big laptops when something half that size can perform the basic tasks needed. In a market where many brands are releasing their netbooks, the MSI Wind U100 manages to stand out with its affordable price just as the Asus Eee PC.
Design
It looks and feels great with its rounded edges and glossy texture with pearl white finish. The same can be said for its build quality which looks a bit like the HP Mini-Note. The MSI Wind U100 has a 10-inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. The LCD is bright and can be viewed clearly. We had no problems reading document and surfing the net with it. Viewing angles are both wide in vertical and horizontal planes.
Keyboard
The keyboard on the Wind U100 is great with its large spacious keys. It feels great when typing on it. The only problem comes when typing in symbols. They are so close that you can accidentally hit something else. It would have been better if these keys were slightly smaller. Nevertheless, we found that by using it frequently we finally got a grip on it. The touchpad has been made smaller. It has great sensitivity in its small detection zone.
Connections and Ports
There are connections and ports such as 802.11b/g wireless, Bluetooth 2.0, with USB, VGA-Out, Ethernet and headphone/microphone jack. Also included are a 1.3-megapixel webcam and a card reader that supports SD/MMC/MS/MSpro.
System
This MSI netbook features the Intel Atom processor. It works fine and there’s no waiting time when opening Internet Explorer, Firefox, Pidgin, Word, and Excel. Heavy stuffs like watching a 720p video might be difficult to view it perfectly on the screen and the same can be said with playing heavy games. Sound is fair enough especially when it comes to watching videos on websites such as youtube and such. Headphones are better when watching something or even listening on the netbook. There’s a 1GB RAM in this netbook.
Battery
The 3-cell battery on the Wind U100 can last for about 3 hours and under normal conditions (web surfing, viewing images and such), it would last for about 2 hours or so. We tried using on the road but it’s difficult considering the number of hours it can stay on. There’s the optional purchase of a 6-cell battery that might last for 4 to 5 hours.
Conclusion
This is one of the best netbooks we’ve reviewed. The MSI Wind U100 comes with a 10-inch display, Intel Processor and Wi-Fi including Bluetooth, all in this affordable netbook. The keyboard is great, it’s got a great design but the only downside would be its short-lived battery life. So go for it if you will use it in the office or at home but it clearly cannot be used as a travel companion.
After doing some research and comparing reviews about netbooks, I decided to buy the MSI Wind U100. It was great. The performance was excellent so far. The keyboard was easy to use. It has sharp display and nice contrast colors. The sound was good but not great. It didn’t have a long battery life, so the power adapter was very helpful. Overall, I love it and satisfied with it.