They say that every cloud has a silver lining and that there is never a shortage of people who benefit from a financial crisis. With that being the case it is worth wondering what pieces of technology have gained ground now that people have a bit less spending money to throw around.
One previously unexpected winner from the global economic slowdown is the nettop market. If you think about it then it makes sense. Anyone who needs a PC but doesn’t drive it that hard can just as easily use one of these slim machines instead of a full desktop computer, and save the price difference.
This means that you can pay a lot less for your technology without losing out on anything other a little bit of power. The latest models, such as the Lenovo IdeaCentre Q150 and the Giada D2301, give users all the functionality they could hope for from a PC and they both cost a lot less than traditional computers.
As well as being cheaper and consuming less energy than bigger machines, nettops are also a lot more portable, which means that they are ideal for someone who works long hours from home and likes to change their scenery every now and then, or maybe follow the sun around the house during colder days.
With this new option on the market it is no wonder that a lot of people are seeing that it is a good idea to look at quality nettops these days. This model of PC has been popular in Japan for a big longer then in the USA and Europe, and if the rest of the world follows the Japanese experience then we can expect sales figures to carry on climbing.
It remains to be seen if 2011 is going to be the year of the nettop but the signs are certainly good.
When it comes to home computers the size of them has changed quite dramatically with the release of a wide variety of Nettop machines. One particular machine that is going to prove a hit this year is likely to be the Acer Aspire Revo R3600.
This is a very sleek, compact and quiet machine that can be used anywhere in the home. However, not only is this Nettop ideal for surfing the net or doing basic document work on it. Because of the nVIDIA ION Graphics Processor inside it makes the perfect machine for gaming.
There are many other Nettop machines available today but it is only the Acer Aspire Revo R3600 that has been fitted first with an Ion processor. This includes the previous versions of this machine on the market and which simply didn’t have the grunt to be able to smoothly play back HD videos.
This particular model of the Acer Aspire comes with a dual core Atom 330 rather than the original 1.6GHz Atom 230 processor. Also as mentioned above it comes good quality graphics technology courtesy of the nVIDIA Ion. Plus this machine unlike any others on the market today has 4GB of DDR2 Ram along with an HDMI socket.
On the front of the machine you will find a 4 in 1 card reader along with an eSATA port that allows you to connect the latest external storage units to it. Plus not just at the rear but on the top and front of this Nettop are situated 6 USB ports.
For those looking for a machine that allows them to quickly and easily surf the net and doesn’t need copious amount of energy to do so then the Aspire Revo R3600 from Acer is a machine worth considering. Because of the Atom processor within it these machines require only minute amounts of energy to power them and create far less noise. In fact you will find with this particular Nettop it makes little or no noise at all.
When it comes to what operating systems to run on yours although they already have Windows Vista on them you can install Windows 7 instead. In fact you may discover that the system runs far better by doing this. However, if you do intend to load Windows 7 on to yours although it will find all the drivers you will need to download the latest ION drivers for it from NVidia to run it at optimum levels.
The biggest advantage to be had from purchasing the Acer Aspire Revo R3600 over other Nettops although it does not come with a monitor, you do get a wired mouse and keyboard with it. Plus it has a power cord and AC adaptor and has the facility to allow you to hide it away by being able to mount it on to the back of your monitor.
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For some time now the number of people purchasing large stand alone PC’s has been on the decline. Now with the invention of the Nettop the sales of traditional PC’s are likely to fall even further. This is because Nettops such as the Veriton N260G allow you a machine that allows you to carry out basic computer functions and serve the net at a fraction of the operating costs.
This is the perfect solution for parents to purchase a computer for their child as it requires little space. Plus as it comes with a VESA mounting interface as standard on it this means that if you have an LCD monitor the Nettop can be snapped onto the back of it.
Just like other Nettop machines available today this one is fitted with an Intel Atom processor that needs far less energy to power it compared to the more traditional processors found in PC’s and laptops. Yet although the machine may be considerably smaller the quality of its performance is not compromised in any way.
With this particular Nettop unlike some others you are able to surf the net or email friends as it has a built in 802.11b/g/Draft-N wireless LAN and gigabit LAN. Plus it is installed with 2GB of DDR2 SDRAM which is available through two memory slots along with 160GB SATA hard drive.
Other features that you will find on this Nettop not to be found on similar machines that cost considerably more include the following:-
1. Multi-in- One Card Reader that supports memory sticks, multimedia cards, secure digital or XD picture cards.
2. Has an integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500m processor.
3. Both VGA and High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) ports along with embedded high definition audio that comes with two channel support.
4. Ports that allow you to connect headphones and microphone to this Nettop.
5. Also allows for you to connect a PS/2 style keyboard and a USB optical mouse to it.
What makes this like so many other Nettops on the market is its size. If space is of a premium then at only 7.6 inches wide by 7.6 inches deep and 1.4 inches high this really is perfect. Although you can stand it on a desk to increase space further making sure that you purchase an LCD monitor with yours enables you to tuck the Veriton N260G Nettop out of sight but using the connectors to attach to the back of your monitor.
So not only will you have a compact sleek computer if you purchase one of these you are helping to reduce your energy bills as they require far less energy to power them. Plus of course the amount of noise they make is non existence as the Veriton N260G does not have any fans inside as they don’t create enough heat when running to keep them cool.
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