Planning to buy yourself a netbook? Here are some of the things you need to check when you buy one for yourself.

If you have finally decided that you need to add a netbook to your gadget col-lection, you must keep certain things in mind. Here are some dos and don’ts that you need to consider before buying a netbook.

DOS

> Check the keyboard. Some of keypads can be   stiff and uncomfortable to use for some users. Always ask for a working demo piece so that you can use the keyboard hands-on

> Familiarize yourself with the track pad on the   demo piece. You must know if your track pad mouse has a decent response speed, consider-ing that you might take the netbook outdoors and may not enjoy the comfort of carrying a mouse around.

> Pick an operating system which will fit your   needs. If you are using a Windows OS and want to work with Microsoft Office, you might have to shell out more. While Windows offers familiarity and better compatibility with most peripherals, Linux uses fewer resources to run, is lighter on the system and comes with bundled utilities.

> While netbooks are shrinking in size, a 10-inch   screen is ideal to work with. There are netbooks with smaller screens too, but they might get a bit difficult to work with considering if you use applications similar to those used on a laptop.

> Since a netbook offers the bare minimum in   terms of features, you may need to buy a few peripherals. Check the number of USB ports, external VGA ports, and Ethernet jacks.

DON’TS



> Avoid processors like Celeron that cannot keep   up with heavy processes. If you pick a Windows-based system, the Atom processors work well.

> Don’t go for a 512 MB RAM; you might fi nd it a   bit difficult to upgrade it later. Opt for 1 GB or 2 GB RAM instead and a fairly spacious hard disk. 

> Don’t buy a netbook if you need to work with   heavy applications like Adobe Photoshop. You can use a netbook as an interim measure, but don’t buy it as a replacement for your laptop or desktop PC.

> Don’t settle for Wi-Fi connectivity lower than   802.11 b/g. The norms are shifting and its time to move with the times.

> If you do plan to use the netbook outdoors a lot,   and don’t have a charging port handy, invest in an extended-range six-cell battery, so that it can last longer.