Net-worthy notebooks

If you have shoulder aches and pains from lugging around a large laptop, a new category of mini-laptops can lighten the load and get you online.

These computers weigh in at just 2 to 3 pounds, compared with about 6 pounds for a traditional, full-featured laptop. When we tested the least expensive Windows models on the market, we found plenty of trade-offs among weight, battery life, size, storage capacity, and ergonomics.

Here are three that had particular advantages:

Asus EeePC 904HA
$400

 

Its battery lasted more than 5 hours. We liked the large track pad, which lets you use "multitouch" gestures to scroll horizontally and vertically, zoom and rotate photos, scan and zoom Web pages, and more. But the track-pad buttons are difficult to press. The Asus also is a bit larger than the other netbooks, is the heaviest (3.1 pounds), and has the dimmest screen. You get 1 gigabyte of memory, a 160GB hard drive, Microsoft Works, and Skype for Internet phone calls.

Lenovo IdeaPad S10
$400

 

Lenovo did the best job of building a 10-inch screen into a compact package. There's also an impressive set of features, including an ExpressCard slot for connecting peripherals, such as cellular Internet cards, and a disaster-recovery system to protect you from losing work. Battery life was relatively short at 2 hours 40 minutes. You get 504 megabytes of memory, an 80-gigabyte hard drive, and Norton Protection Center. Weight is 2.7 pounds.

MSI Wind U100-016US
$400

If a large screen, superior keyboard, and easy-to-use track pad are most important, this is your best choice. Its 10-inch screen was one of two we tested in that size. It's matte rather than glossy, minimizing reflections. Battery life was a short 2 hours 23 minutes, though. You get 1 gigabyte of memory, a 120GB hard drive, and 60-day trial versions of Microsoft Office 2007 and Norton Internet Security. The Wind weighs 2.5 pounds.

Others to consider

The Dell Mini 9 ($425) and HP Mini 1000 ($400) are both very light, thanks to solid-state drives. But those drives are very small at 8 to 16 gigabytes each and slowed the computer noticeably. You can choose an HP Mini with a traditional 60GB hard drive. The Acer Aspire One A150X ($410) had a long battery life and includes Microsoft Works but has a quirky trackpad and shallow wrist rest.