Customer Reviews

HP Mini 210-1085NR 10.1-Inch Blue Netbook - 9.75 Hours of Battery Life

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

Trying to buy a netbook after their explosion in popularity is proving to be difficult, as manufacturers pump out far too many variations.

In addition to the listed specifications for each model of the HP Mini 210 (cpu, memory, disk, exterior color/finish), there are other physical variations depending on model number.

Depending on which HP Mini 210 model you get, some differences are:
- A different keyboard ("island" keyboard or traditional keyboard)
- A matte or glossy screen
- A different physical size of battery
- Different wireless support (802.11b/g vs 802.11b/g/n vs 802.11b/g+bluetooth)

At the time of writing, existing reviews and photos make it difficult to tell what you'll end up with. According to the HP website, there are a dizzying one hundred ninety different HP Mini 210 models.

Some of the popular models that I saw had these attributes:
210-1010NR: Matte screen, traditional keyboard
210-1030NR: Matte screen, traditional keyboard
210-1040NR: Glossy screen, island keyboard

I ended up with a 210-1040NR. I prefer the island keyboard, it seemed to have less flex than the traditional keyboard. Touch typing on either keyboard was not an issue, punctuation is in the correct place, and both the shift keys and the spacebar are nice and large. The multitouch touchpad works better than the competition. I installed Ubuntu Netbook Edition 9.10 and everything works out of the box. (Although the internal fan appears to be on regardless of temperature)

For me, knowing the limitations of the cpu, keyboard, and build quality, the 1024x600 resolution of the display is the weak point. I see there's also a HP Mini 210 HD lineup with a higher resolution display, which may be worth considering.

As far as 10.1" netbooks on the market as of February 2010, after handling and typing on competing models from Acer, Asus, Toshiba, and Sony, for me the HP Mini 210 is the winner.

I shopped around looking for deals and at different models for about 2-3 months. Did lots of research on features and performance, and was overwhelmed at how man of these netbooks have the exact same internals as all the others. I finally went with the HP Mini 210-1055NR because it has the full glass over the entire screen and bezel that makes it look so much better than the 110 or similar dells. This just creates such a more aesthetically pleasing look to the entire netbook. It also had a little better specs than all the other clones that were budget priced all over the web (Acers, Dells, HP 110s) and with the extra RAM I bought for it, and the easy access panel that allows you to remove the entire bottom cover of the netbook, the upgrade was simple and performance is great!

I recommend this to anyone looking at getting a netbook for either easy writing or surfing. I haven't played with HPs linux instant on software that comes preinstalled, but Windows 7 starter works just fine, despite previously hearing bad things about its limitations, I with it and am happy I chose it over the severely outdated XP.

One thing that is crucial to do is remove as much of the bloatware that HP installs by default on their new systems. You will see a significant performance boost and less harddrive space taken up by clearing off all the trial games and software that come with your new HP.

I just wanted to warn others about a major drawback of the Windows 7 Starter Operating System that this netbook comes with. I wasn't aware of it when I made my purchase, and I wish I had been. Windows 7 Starter is a very scaled back version of Windows 7 that is only available pre-installed on netbooks. It does not have full-featured functionality. It does not, for example, allow a user to change their desktop background. The stock blue Windows background it comes with is what you're stuck with, unless you use third-party workarounds. You also cannot change window colors or sound schemes. Additionally, it does not offer DVD playback. So, if you had planned on attaching a portable drive to watch movies--think again. I highly recommend doing your own research into the limitations of Windows 7 Starter before you buy, if you plan to use it as your primary operating system.

Sorry but I can only give this mini laptop a one-star review. There are two things wrong with it. The second day I owned it I went to plug it in to recharge the battery only to find that the connection was loose and I had to wiggle the cord and actually prop the cord up on a stack of papers in order for it to stay in the computer. The second problem was the same thing with the ethernet cord. The ethernet cord would not plug in properly to the computer. I actually went to a store that carries the same laptop. He tried plugging in the ethernet cord for me only to find out that it would not snap in. He tried the HP mini they had in the store and the same thing happened. He was a little confused also. Then he took the cord and plugged it into an Acer, a Dell and a Toshiba and the cord snapped right into place but on this model of the HP mini the cords fell right out of the computer. I highly suggest just going to your local Best Buy, Staples or some place that carries the HP minis and trying it out for yourself before making the purchase on Amazon. If I had done that I could have saved myself a trip to purchase a different brand of computer while away from home. I have an HP 16" laptop and it works great that is why I thought the mini would be a perfect purchase.

I'm sorry I'm not able to offer a well-informed opinion as I am practically techno-illiterate. Really. Just a step above a Luddite.

But I needed something that I could actually consider portable (as opposed to my beloved laptop-which I love, but is just too bulky for me to throw in a bag and run). Anyhoo, after looking in a few stores and online and reading the various folks reviews of similar products here, I decided on this. And, Yay! It's everything I wanted. I can't vouch for how well it manages more complicated aplications but for me to just acess email when I'm away from home (because I have sausage fingers, and don't think I could manage IPhone use), and surf a few sites on the web, it's been great. The battery life is always more than enough. The set up was easy and use is easy. Easy for me = Win.

I got the sleeve they offerd her to go with it, and a small "Kensignton" wireless mouse (though the touch pad on this unit is easier to use than others I have tried, so I don't always need the mouse).

The unit arrived in a timely manner and was well protected in its pakaging.

I purchased 4 of these. Amazon recommends under "Bought Frequently Together" a case and some additional memory.
I bought both. Case is nice. The memory suggested was Crucial 2GB 256Mx64PC2-5300 CT25664AC667 DDR2 200-Pin SODIMM Laptop Memory
Unfortunately, even though the documentation seems to claim that PC5300 memory is supported, none of the machines would
boot with this memory. I tried multiple sticks to confirm. What comes with the machine is PC6400 memory, so I ordered 4 sticks of the same Crucial memory, except the faster speed. Sure enough, the machines all booted fine.

One other thing to note is these HP minis change the top row of keys. Rather than the usual press the Fn key to get at alternate functions like turning off wireless, changing volume, brightness, etc, for this model you press Fn to access F1-F12. Just something different, you eventually get used to it.

The 1024x600 screen would be nice if it were larger, but they have the HD model to do that. But it's annoying to have Microsoft Works tell you that your screen resolution is lower than recommended. But the price on this model vs. the HD is so much better that I went with this model.

Lastly, the case does seem to attract fingerprints, but they are nice enough to include a cleaning cloth.

All in all a nice machine for what it is designed for. Small, light, usable for light tasks like e-mail, internet browsing, document editing.

Bought the machine for it's technical specs. It lines up as advertised beautifully. While the bloatware was a little annoying, it was not abnormal for an out of the box configuration.

The big thing that makes this machine a great buy is it's nearly 10 hours of battery life. I spent nearly an entire, mindless weekend unplugged, with full screen brightness, and the device did just fine. My bigger laptop gets cranky after 90 minutes, though it's advertised life is much longer.

That said the Firefox browser (for how I like it configured) does not fit well on a 10.5 inch screen. This is not the device's fault, though. Still getting used Windows 7 behaviors, though it is a solid upgrade from XP.

The WiFi is fantastic, and the screen clarity is beautiful. I know the iPad will be out soon, but I'm not even tempted, now that I have this HP. Having a comfortable keypad can never be replaced by a touchscreen IMO.

This is one of the best purchases that I invested in this year. I'm a full time grad student and I also work full time. The mini allows me to work on the go at my convience. I throw it in my purse and keep going. Very light weight. Battery life is good. I didnt charge for 2 days and still was going strong. Of course it doesnt have a large memory so I back my info to my laptop. Overall its great.

The netbook lived up to all of the reviews I had read before making the decision to purchase this model. I have used it while traveling as well as from my home and am very happy with the speed of access while using the wifi connection to access the net.

The windows 7 starter is easy to use and fills all of the needs I have for this netbook.

The only downside is that it will not connect to the shared files and printer on my main PC that is still running windows XP on my home network. So I do have to copy files that I want to print or email them to my home email address.

But overall it has been a good purchase and I am very happy that I made it.

I bought two of these HP netbooks at an incredibly low price here at Amazon. I wished I read the reviews first. One review mentioned that the cable for the ethernet port would not snap into place. That's very true. One would argue to just use wireless. Well, you never know when you would need to use a wired connection. I suggest people who own any of these HP minis to check if they have this issue. Please share what you find out.

As for me, these two are going back. It just bugs me to buy something new and find out something's not working right.