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Freshly unboxed and taking questions
I just received the mini 311 in preparation for a trip and I'm taking questions. Please note, since I ordered this before 10/22 it came preloaded with Window XP SP3 and not Windows 7. I'll try to answer any questions to the best of my ability. This is my first netbook, making it my third computer in my current have list.
Dude I want! I will trade you my mini 9 for your mini 311... I will even hackintosh this thing for you heh.
But seriously, do you plan to upgrade it to Windows 7, and if so, is a free upgrade available? How is the trackpad? (I know you're coming from primarily using ThinkPad with the TrackPoint and I had a tough time getting used to not having that on my mini 9) Also, how does the overall build quality feel, sturdy or cheap and weak?
Phew, so many questions!
But seriously, do you plan to upgrade it to Windows 7, and if so, is a free upgrade available? How is the trackpad? (I know you're coming from primarily using ThinkPad with the TrackPoint and I had a tough time getting used to not having that on my mini 9) Also, how does the overall build quality feel, sturdy or cheap and weak?
Phew, so many questions!
Thanks for the offer Sam, but I'll have to decline.
Unfortunately, there doesn't look to be a free upgrade available for this thing, which is odd because HP is offering the Windows 7 upgrade for just about every other computer they're selling. I may or may not upgrade, though I've heard reports that upgrading will unlock the full potential of the nVidia 9400M GPU, so I may change my mind about that. I'll probably dual boot this thing with either debian, fedora or ubuntu, but I haven't decided yet.
The trackpad is ok, nothing will be able to get me away from the pointing stick on the ThinkPad I own or the G5 mouse that I have, so I was ready to be disappointed. The trackpad is flush and smooth to the palm rest, which isn't really optimal. I'd rather it have some grain to it for traction when navigating, but I'm a keyboard shortcut guy, so I don't really use the mouse all too often anyway.
In terms of build quality, it's really lacking and does feel pretty weak, but that's expected for something so cheap. There is a great amount of flex and I feel like I have to be much more careful with this thing that my ThinkPad. It's also heavier than I imagined, but I'm liking the larger/higher res screen that isn't generally found on other computers.
Unfortunately, there doesn't look to be a free upgrade available for this thing, which is odd because HP is offering the Windows 7 upgrade for just about every other computer they're selling. I may or may not upgrade, though I've heard reports that upgrading will unlock the full potential of the nVidia 9400M GPU, so I may change my mind about that. I'll probably dual boot this thing with either debian, fedora or ubuntu, but I haven't decided yet.
The trackpad is ok, nothing will be able to get me away from the pointing stick on the ThinkPad I own or the G5 mouse that I have, so I was ready to be disappointed. The trackpad is flush and smooth to the palm rest, which isn't really optimal. I'd rather it have some grain to it for traction when navigating, but I'm a keyboard shortcut guy, so I don't really use the mouse all too often anyway.
In terms of build quality, it's really lacking and does feel pretty weak, but that's expected for something so cheap. There is a great amount of flex and I feel like I have to be much more careful with this thing that my ThinkPad. It's also heavier than I imagined, but I'm liking the larger/higher res screen that isn't generally found on other computers.
I am looking for a netbook that can push video decently. I know for a while now, netbooks that have an Atom processor have not really been able to do this, but I noticed that this netbook has HDMI out. Doe this indicate that it is able to decently output video? Have you tried hooking this up to an HD TV and tried running something like Hulu or Netflix? If so, how does it perform?
Video on this is better than I expected, I tested a 720p video and it went very smooth and there were no issues, 1080p is kinda unwatchable. As for flash video content, it plays decently well if that's the only thing you're doing. While I haven't tested flash HD video content, I don't think it'd play very well, since there isn't any GPU acceleration involved yet, which Flash 10.1 is supposed to finally address when it gets released next year.
As for output to other screens in HD, I haven't tried yet, but will give it a go and let you know how it is tonight. I'm hopeful, but we'll see.
As for output to other screens in HD, I haven't tried yet, but will give it a go and let you know how it is tonight. I'm hopeful, but we'll see.
The video playback of video is outstanding on mine. I'm able to play 720P on a TV with ease and looks impressive for the cost. However you should know that flash playback, even with the latest beta of flash (10.1) is subject to lag. I've found that some sites work great and others are horrible. With this said if you are wanting it to watch TV online you might be disappointed.
I have Windows 7 Professional on my 311 and have for the week of ownership and it runs better than it did with XP. I say buy it and go for it.
Also grab a ram upgrade and you should have no issues with the video playback.
Also grab a ram upgrade and you should have no issues with the video playback.
I'd love to hear details of how you did your upgrade to Win 7.
*Which version of Win 7? Did you use an external DVD drive or do it via thumb drive?
*Did you just download the various Win 7 drivers and apps from HP's web page? Any tips or tricks?
*Did you blow away the recovery partition?
*Did you blow away the Linux pre-boot OS that lets you quickly get to e-mail, Internet, Skype?
I am considering buying this model with XP SP3 and doing the upgrade myself to Win 7 Ultimate (from my Technet subscription). The downside is that Office Depot appears not to allow product returns except for defective products. So I'm taking a small gamble I can get this thing upgraded correctly (cost of $400) versus buying direct from HP at roughly $500 with Win 7 pre-installed.
Thank you!
*Which version of Win 7? Did you use an external DVD drive or do it via thumb drive?
*Did you just download the various Win 7 drivers and apps from HP's web page? Any tips or tricks?
*Did you blow away the recovery partition?
*Did you blow away the Linux pre-boot OS that lets you quickly get to e-mail, Internet, Skype?
I am considering buying this model with XP SP3 and doing the upgrade myself to Win 7 Ultimate (from my Technet subscription). The downside is that Office Depot appears not to allow product returns except for defective products. So I'm taking a small gamble I can get this thing upgraded correctly (cost of $400) versus buying direct from HP at roughly $500 with Win 7 pre-installed.
Thank you!
just got my mom one for christmas
1.66 N280 (it was like a 25 buck upgrade and the bus speed is higher, why not)
160 GB HD (momz doesn't have that much media haha)
3GB RAM (the more ram the better, it was like 25 bucks a gig, worth it for simplicities sake)
Windows 7 (duh)
should be everything she needs without slowdowns and problems arising using a few apps at once from lack of ram and HD video streams like other netbooks.
Excited to show her how to plug it into the tv too so she can stream Netflix or other vids she wants
1.66 N280 (it was like a 25 buck upgrade and the bus speed is higher, why not)
160 GB HD (momz doesn't have that much media haha)
3GB RAM (the more ram the better, it was like 25 bucks a gig, worth it for simplicities sake)
Windows 7 (duh)
should be everything she needs without slowdowns and problems arising using a few apps at once from lack of ram and HD video streams like other netbooks.
Excited to show her how to plug it into the tv too so she can stream Netflix or other vids she wants
I have a Mini 311-1025R, which came with the updated graphics as well as Windows 7. I'm curious if any of you guys are having problems with it pausing for 10 seconds or so when you let it sit for a while. Its as if the hard drive isn't coming back on even though I have it set to never sleep. I can move the mouse but the keyboard is unresponsive. Really loving it but this is getting annoying for sure.
Cheers
Cheers
Actually, if you run XBMC live (rather than XBMC on windows), you can play 1080p video on the mini 311 without any issues. The atom cpu usage is < 30% playing that file.
XBMC live supports offloading the video decode to the GPU. Unfortunately this only works on Linux or Live (which is based on Linux). The Mac and windows versions of xbmc run video only from the CPU.
For best results, dual boot Xbmc Live and windows 7 :)
XBMC live supports offloading the video decode to the GPU. Unfortunately this only works on Linux or Live (which is based on Linux). The Mac and windows versions of xbmc run video only from the CPU.
For best results, dual boot Xbmc Live and windows 7 :)
The best tip I can give any mini311 owners is get CoreCodec AVC v.2.0. You will be able to play h.264 with ease and with minimal cpu. Wonderful project corecodec.com. I don't work for them not am I associated with them in any way other than being a big fan.
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