Why I Have an HP Mini Laptop

I bought my HP mini last year. I got it because I no longer have access to a computer in the states when I am on the road. One of my friends had a Compaq and two other of my friends have Dells. I'm able to use them whenever I'm in Europe. I found the Compaq frustrating. The mouse button was unreliable. While using it the cursor would suddenly go somewhere else unrelated to where I had directed it. I like the Dells. I had a Dell PC for many years. I just loved it until it quit of old age. But at the time, the Dells were too large for me to cart through the airport.

I've been looking for a couple years, looking at the netbooks. I even bought one, then returned it unopened because it didn't feel right. Then I saw an opportunity online, to consider the line of HP laptops. I already had an HP multifunction printer which I've been so satisfied with that when I needed to replace it I got another HP multifunction printer.

I went to the netbook page on HP and researched what they offered. I read the reviews on the netbook. They weren't very favorable. Then I went up the scale on the small laptops and found the mini. It had very consistent, good reviews. So I decided to order one. I changed out the stock Wi-Fi card and ordered the top of the line Wi-Fi card, a mouse and ear buds.

The base price of the unit was in the mid $300's and with the additions I ended up paying nearly a $100 more.

When I first received my mini I was disappointed because it was a lot bigger than I was hoping for. But when a friend of ours hooked up our router to my PC and I turned on my mini I decided to give it a chance. I spent some time playing around with it and setting it up for the road. I found that I liked it. I also liked the mouse button, except that I need to be careful to keep the cursor on the line I am typing on or it will jump to where the cursor is pointing.

I had originally planned to pack the mini in my carry-on instead of my briefcase because of the weight. But I always pack a lot of items to give away and this time was no different so I had no extra room for it. I packed it in my briefcase. It really didn't feel that much heavier than when I carry my briefcase without it. I was also concerned about the size of the power cord and how much room it could take up in my luggage. I looked for a travel cord which might take up less room but I was told that there wasn't any. I found that if I wound up the cord and fastened it with the Velcro strap that came with it and tucked it in along the edge of my carry-on it took up less room than I expected.

I've taken this on two trips so far and have found it to be very useful and easy to use. I have had no difficulty in getting Wi-Fi everywhere I have gone from the airports, motels to private homes. It picks up Wi-Fi easily.

I have seen others using the netbooks in the airport and I realized that watching them in use that they would been too small for my needs.

The only complaint I have is that the lettering on the screen is small. But that is easy to deal with by just increasing the font size on the window. I also wouldn't order the mouse if I had to do it over again because I ordered my mini without a DVD player to keep the weight down. The mouse came with software which I can't use.

Sources:

http://www.compaq.com/country/index.html

http://www.dell.com/us/p/laptops.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=mn

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/can.do?landing=printer&category=all-in-one&catLevel=1&storeName=storefronts&jumpID=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/ipg/lateralnav_multi_function_printers_home

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/series_can.do;HHOJSID=KH1TNhJXNmxJTNhNBzhY7Kh13kqfCHXtFhr3vKdwC3dn1dGVDqKf!1535676568?storeName=computer_store&landing=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=Mini&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/lateralnav_mini_notebooks_home