Cheap laptop for internet use?

If you were in need of a cheap laptop, just for browsing the internet when traveling, and checking email (and HBT!) out at your cottage, which one would you get?

I fried my decent laptop, and there isn't much money for replacement. It has to have a modem (dial up at the cottage) as well as wi fi capabilities, but it doesn't need anything else.

Considered a netbook?

ASUS Eee PC - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
EEE PC | Easy to Learn, Work and Play

Go on ebay and get an old laptop (circo 1990's) and install damn small linux on it. For $40 you could have a sweet and retro firefox surfing machine.

I am using this to monitor fermentation temps...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/temperature-logging-system-112020/

Coastarine said:

Considered a netbook?

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No- I'd never heard of them! Are they pretty easy to type on, or are they a bit small?

I'm a total computer idiot- I know nothing about them, besides how to turn them on (and how to moderate a brewboard! )

My wife just bought an HP netbook, she loves it. You need to try them out in person, though, see if you like them; the keyboards on different models can be different, too, some work better for different people. It was only a couple hundred bucks, has built-in wireless, and just runs XP Home so there's no learning curve or any difficulty getting anything to work. Basically, just a small computer without a lot of power and a small screen.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

Go on ebay and get an old laptop (circo 1990's) and install damn small linux on it. For $40 you could have a sweet and retro firefox surfing machine.

I am using this to monitor fermentation temps...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/temperature-logging-system-112020/

Click to expand...

This is actually a great idea. I think I would try to find one from the 2000's era rather than 90's...but that is just me. I have found Ubuntu to be the most stable and it also includes all the software you would need as well. However, that would require more hard drive space. Going the linux route would save you money on virus/spyware protection as well. I love my Ubuntu box and would love to have it on a laptop. Good Luck!!

I suggested DSL (Damn Small Linux) because the whole operating system including all the normal programs (i.e., word processor, internet, excel, and all the other stuff) fits on 100 Mb of space. My Sony from 1992 runs almost as fast as my brand new work computer.

Yoop. If you want to do it, I am sure we can walk you through the install on chat.

+1 on the Netbook.

I so want one for a Brewlogger.

Coastarine said:

Considered a netbook?

Click to expand...

I was going to say netbook too, but do they have modems?

I don't think they have modems just ethernet connections. I wonder if anyone sells an external dial-up USB modem.


Why yes they do...
Zoom - 56K V.92 USB Mini External Data/Fax Modem
Model: 3095F | SKU: 8397923

search for it at best buy.com

kanielb1 said:

This is actually a great idea. I think I would try to find one from the 2000's era rather than 90's...but that is just me. I have found Ubuntu to be the most stable and it also includes all the software you would need as well. However, that would require more hard drive space. Going the linux route would save you money on virus/spyware protection as well. I love my Ubuntu box and would love to have it on a laptop. Good Luck!!

Click to expand...

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

I suggested DSL (Damn Small Linux) because the whole operating system including all the normal programs (i.e., word processor, internet, excel, and all the other stuff) fits on 100 Mb of space. My Sony from 1992 runs almost as fast as my brand new work computer.

Yoop. If you want to do it, I am sure we can walk you through the install on chat.

Click to expand...

You just don't understand how dumb I am! It'd be like walking a horse through the install. I can remodel a room, but can't even begin to tell you how inept I am with computers. I can't even operate my GPS!

We decided on this, I think: Toshiba - Satellite Laptop with Intel® Celeron® Processor - Matte Silver - L305-S5919

Very similiar to the one I fried, but this one won't read my x-d picture card. I can just get a memory card reader, though, or take the one from home when we travel. $299 seems like a great deal to me. It includes a modem, which is a must.

My husband said he was really concerned about a small keyboard- he sends a lot of wordy emails, and told me that he didn't want a netbook.

I saw that I can buy a cordless mouse for the notebook for about $30, which I will do.

This laptop I am typing on right now was a cheap one. Around $250 three years ago. I had bought it to write a book, so it only needed minimum functionality. That's what I thought, anyway. I soon found out that even a cheap laptop is way better than that 6 year old desktop upstairs that only gets turned on these days when I need the printer.

You can always buy a wireless keyboard for hubby, as well. The netbooks are nice because they are so small, the_Wife brought one to bring around campus with her. Just a thought...

the_bird said:

You can always buy a wireless keyboard for hubby, as well. The netbooks are nice because they are so small, the_Wife brought one to bring around campus with her. Just a thought...

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good point! Except.........by the time you haul the memory card reader, the cordless mouse, and the wireless keyboard, you could just get a little bit bigger laptop!

I'd go with the netbook, but Bob said no way. Apparently, bifocals and small screens don't mix!

Fair enough, although I'm pretty sure her netbook already has the memory card reader and I hate cordless mice, personally (they're way too small for my hands). The screen size *is* an issue you can't really get around.

iPhone?
have you seen brewpal? Brew Pal for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Toshiba is decent maker. You'll be happy with that.

If you have BeerTools, look out when you buy a netbook.

Typical netbook resolution is 1024 x 600. BeerTools requires 1024 x 768. The upshot is that you cannot expand the ingredients window and therefore cannot create any new recipes.

bdavanza said:

iPhone?
have you seen brewpal? Brew Pal for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Click to expand...

No, no iphone or cellphone! We live in an area with very spotty cellphone coverage (that's why we put a phone line in our cottage- no cellphone reception at all).

We bought the Toshiba I linked to. I'm sure it'll be fine for our needs. For $299, it's definitely priced right, too.

We just bought a 'cheap' laptop for this very purpose... I'm not sure what your budget is but we got one for $350 brand new.

It was a sale at Staples - Compaq laptop. The ad said it was kind of crappy with only 1GB (or was it 2GB) ram, smallish harddrive (160GB), and AMD processor but I went to check it out anyway.

Luckily they got substitutes that had 3GB ram, 250GB harddrive, and intel processor. It has a DVD/CD burner and wireless and looks and works great for the price.

Not sure when another sale like this will come along - it was normally $500+ laptop I think - but keep your eyes peeled for something like this.

RoaringBrewer said:

We just bought a 'cheap' laptop for this very purpose... I'm not sure what your budget is but we got one for $350 brand new.

It was a sale at Staples - Compaq laptop. The ad said it was kind of crappy with only 1GB (or was it 2GB) ram, smallish harddrive (160GB), and AMD processor but I went to check it out anyway.

Luckily they got substitutes that had 3GB ram, 250GB harddrive, and intel processor. It has a DVD/CD burner and wireless and looks and works great for the price.

Not sure when another sale like this will come along - it was normally $500+ laptop I think - but keep your eyes peeled for something like this.

Click to expand...

We ended up buying the one I linked to at bestbuy.com- on sale for $299, with $14 shipping!

By the way, where have you been??!!!?? I haven't seen you around here lately.

hey Yoop, I love my ee pc netbook. I'd recommend getting one with a 10 in screen, the keyboard is much much better than the 8.9 size. The only problem for you would be the lack of modem, but it does have an ethernet port

YooperBrew said:

We ended up buying the one I linked to at bestbuy.com- on sale for $299, with $14 shipping!

By the way, where have you been??!!!?? I haven't seen you around here lately.

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Yeah - I see that now. LOL. My bad!

As for where I've been - I got off brewing a bit due to various reasons combined into one... 1) Work gets busy in winter (I'm an auditor) and it was particularly rough this year between December and April. 2) Then when things died down my (now) fiance and I started house hunting (still doing that actually) and ring hunting (got engaged 1 week 2 days ago) 3) Also its summer, so although I do love to brew my other hobbies have taken the forefront thus far - messing with my JEEP, kayaks, biking, fishing, travelling etc.

Looking forward to get back to brewing soon though... I miss it! I know I will especially 'get back on the horse' once we find our own single-fam home and we have more room, more time sitting at home (due to being more strapped so to speak), etc.

PS - sorry for the 'life story' - but thanks for remembering me!!

Mine is a used IBM thinkpad. My brother works for IBM, so I got it pretty cheap. He let me use his employee password to get into the certified used IBM machines. Don't think he'd appreciate me passing it on, though, even if I still had it...........

First thing I'd do is hit up dell.com. You can get a halfway decent, new laptop for $300.

check these out.

Dell Refurbished Laptops - Dell Latitude Laptops

A friend of mine got an Eeeeeeeeepc laptop thingy and loves it. Well, after it finally came back from the repair shop anyway. He was without it for several weeks. Bought brand new and returned right away for defective screen. took several weeks to get him a new one. I'd be like, "No, send me a NEW one right now!"

Oh well, he likes it now anyway. He's a computer guy like me (like me but 10x the knowledge) and probably has Slackware on it now.