Netbooks have come a long way in a very short time. Increases in screen size, keyboard size, and more advanced components make today's netbooks lightyears ahead of the first netbooks released a few years ago. They've come so far, that many people are starting to wonder if a netbook can be their primary machine. There are advantages to this, most notably that they cost substantially less than a full sized notebook. But can a netbook actually replace a mainstream laptop as your primary machine? I've gained some insight into this question (unwillingly) over the holiday weekend and will share with you my opinion.

The scenario: The power-brick of my 15.4" Lenovo laptop got fried, and due to the long holiday weekend, it would be at least until next week before I received my replacement AC adapter. So after draining my battery, what was I supposed to do for my computing needs? Well. I have a 10" Asus EeePC 1002HA netbook, so I would be using this as my primary machine for the long weekend.

The netbook: Asus EeePC 1002HA netbook. 1.6ghz Intel Atom N270, 2gb RAM, 100gb 7200RPM HDD, 10" screen. These specs are very similar to the majority of 10" netbooks on the market today, although I did upgrade my RAM and HDD.

So after using this netbook as my primary machine for the weekend, I have summarized my answer to 2 categories: Computing Power and Overall functionality.

Computing power: 90% of what I do on my computer (and probably most average computer users) consists of email, Microsoft Office, and Internet Browsing. I did this, as well as updating my blog layout (hopefully some of you have noticed the new layout!). Netbooks, are more than adequate for these tasks. To further support this, I generally use my netbook for work (hooked up to an external keyboard, monitor and mouse, the reason for this will be explained later) and it is more than up to the task for most of my basic needs. You will notice an occasional slowdown here and there, especially if something (i.e. heavy flash sites) taxing comes along. But overall, for the majority of average computer users, the power of a netbook is more than enough for their needs, thus potentially allowing you to use a netbook as your primary machine.

In addition, the hard drive (and the hard drive of most netbooks) has more than enough room to store all of your files (music, photos, documents, etc). Most hard-drives are 80-160gb, and since most netbooks come with Windows XP, the operating system doesn't hog up too much space.

Overall functionality: With regard to overall functionality, this is where, in my opinion, netbooks fail with regard to being a primary machine. The two aspects that hurt netbooks are screen and keyboard size. Screen size is less of an issue for me, but the screen real estate is substantially less and I can see how it could be tough for some to deal with if a netbook were to be your primary machine. The bigger issue, is keyboard size. My Asus netbook, although not sporting the biggest netbook keyboard, is above average for a 10" netbook. But still, it is noticeably smaller compared to a full-sized laptop. It affects the speed and accuracy of my typing a little bit, but continued use does improve your results. But more importantly, its just not as comfortable to type for extended periods of time on such a small keyboard. Adding to the keyboard woes, is that the palmrest area is smaller, making it awkward to rest/position my hands while typing. For me, this is the dealbreaker for me as to why a netbook cannot be my primary machine. However if your hands are smaller (I have fairly large hands) this may not be a dealbreaker.

In conclusion, don't take this article as a knock against netbooks. They are extremely useful tech equipment, and I personally love my netbook. As a secondary, portable machine, nothing can beat a netbook especially when price is taken in to account. The question that was posed was if a netbook could be used as your primary laptop. In terms of computing power, in most cases they can be used for this purpose. But for extended use, the keyboard and screen size are too small to warrant a netbook as being my only machine. However, if you're more accommodating to a smaller keyboard/screen, or if you hook up your machine to an external keyboard, mouse and screen, it could be your primary machine. In fact, I use my netbook as my primary work machine (I hook up to external components).

If you're looking into buying a netbook as your primary machine, but portability isn't a huge concern, consider getting a 14-15" mainstream notebook at the Dell or Lenovo Outlet. It is possible that you can get one of these for $400-$500 (don't forget to look for coupon codes!).

If portability and price is a concern, some exciting releases in the netbook world that may change this answer are the new "netbook hybrids". These are 12-13" lap/netbooks, with weak but energy efficient low voltage core2 solo chips, bigger screens and keyboards, yet still thin, light, and energy efficient. Although these will be more money than a typical netbook, they are priced substantially lower (~$800-1000) than most thin and light notebooks (which can cost up to ~$2000).

A number of new netbooks or refreshes of previous netbook lines have recently been released (or are about to be released).

Overall, nothing earth-shattering is different about these netbooks than previous models. But there are little things here and there that make them more appealing. And in many cases they are not more expensive, or not much more expensive, so you might as well get the newer models if you really want them (or snatch up deals on the previous generation models). Some of them are listed below

Asus EeePC 1008HA Sleeker and more stylish than previous EeePCs, this model hits the sweetspot for a combination of good looks, performance and price ($429)

Dell Mini 10V What sets this netbook apart from its competition is its price tag: $299. I'm actually quite baffled by this, since the original Dell Mini's were pretty expensive considering their specs. I'm still trying to find the catch, but maybe Dell is just trying to undercut the competition with price.

Samsung N120 and N310 Samsung has not found the need to undercut their competition, as consumers have consistently purchased their netbooks despite their relatively high price tags. For this high price you do get a sleek looking netbook, with one of the best keyboards on the market. This is especially true for the N120 (~$450), which comes with an even bigger keyboard than previous generation Samsung netbooks. The N310 I believe is their "style" line, and you pay more for it ($479).

Acer Aspire One 571 This model is probably the furthest from being released, but has some of the most interesting features. It sports the newer Intel Atom N280 (which many of the newer netbooks have, but honestly I can't imagine the speed difference is noticeable). But it also sports a 720P screen, a Quartics Q1721 Multimedia Processor to help with high def content, and a miniature optical drive. I'm really curious about the price point of this little machine.

After compiling this short list, I realized the absurd number of netbook models each manufacturer has and is about to have. Asus is the worst offender, with the 1000H, 1000HA, 1000HE, 1002HA (these are older models). Now they will release the 1008HA, and supposedly they are releasing a 1005HA-H and 1005HA-M which are variations of the 1008HA! All of these different offerings are good since it provides the consumer with variety, but the differences between these models in many cases are minimal. If anything it just seems to confuse consumers in terms of which model to pick

Anyway, good luck with your netbook search. There are definitely more netbooks to choose from. One of note that I left out, is the HP MiniNote series. HP MiniNotes are supposed to have the best netbook keyboard, and recently they have released a deal with Verizon allowing consumers to get a discounted MiniNote if they sign up for the data plan.

Click me for info and review!

At $429, this will pose a serious challenge to a lot of netbooks out in the market, in particular Samsung. Asus has improved and expanded their netbook line overtime, and this model is a good blend of price, performance, and looks. Of course Asus also offers more expensive netbooks if you want a really stylish netbook, as well as cheaper netbooks if price is your main concern. The Asus 1008HA in my opinion is the netbook that has enough of everything to satisfy a wide range of netbook consumers.

Click here! Of course this is just a mockup picture and I have not seen any official confirmation, but more will be here to followup.

More and more netbook manufacturers are beginning to offer 11.6" netbook models (Acer being another). This trend of releasing slightly larger screen sizes is in my opinion a good one. Netbooks in their early days were equipped with 7" screens, and have slowly increased in size over time. Currently 9-10" screens dominate the market, with several 12" models (Dell, Samsung) making a small dent. This trend is good, mostly due to the fact that many of the smaller screen models have a very thick frame surrounding the frame. By reducing the "frame" size, netbooks can maintain a similar overall profile, while allowing for more screen real estate. Of course, netbooks will reach a point where they cannot increase in size without becoming a regular, full-size notebook, but for the time being this is a welcomed addition for everyone's eyes.