Cheap and cheerful
Having almost entirely missed the consumer netbook boat, computing giant HP is continuing to try and capitalise on its strength in the business and public sectors with a new netbook aimed specifically at the school market.
The HP Mini 100e Education Edition focuses on the two factors that completely out-weigh any others when giving a computer to a child: durability and price. So what we get is a ruggedized, basic netbook, that's expected to cost less than $300.
"HP is committed to helping schools adapt to students' changing needs and to creating solutions that provide better interactivity, connectivity and learning," said Dan Forlenza, VP and GM of business notebooks at HP. "The HP Mini 100e is an affordable, feature-rich device that helps ensure every student has the tools needed for success in their academic endeavours."
The HP Mini 100e runs the perfectly adequate Intel Atom N455 CPU with the NM10 Express chipset. It has 1GB of DDR3 memory and has three or six cell battery options.
A nice extra touch is the deal HP has done with Microsoft to offer reduced functionality versions of Word and Excel, and you can choose between Windows XP Home, Windows 7 Starter or SuSE Linux operating systems. It will be available worldwide from July.
