Subnotebook
A subnotebook is an extremely small and lightweight portable
computer, with all features of a standard
laptop computer and running all its applications. Its overall size is much smaller than an
A4 paper
notebook , but they are oftentimes somewhat larger than a
handheld computer. Hence it often has smaller than 10" screen and weigh less than 1 kg; as opposed to full-size laptop with 15" screen and weighing 2 kg or more. These savings in size and weight are usually achieved by omitting ports and/or removable media drives; subnotebooks are often paired with docking stations to compensate.
Encyclopedia
A
subnotebook is an extremely small and lightweight portable
computer, with all features of a standard
laptop computer and running all its applications. Its overall size is much smaller than an
A4 paper
notebook , but they are oftentimes somewhat larger than a
handheld computer. Hence it often has smaller than 10" screen and weigh less than 1 kg; as opposed to full-size laptop with 15" screen and weighing 2 kg or more. These savings in size and weight are usually achieved by omitting ports and/or removable media drives; subnotebooks are often paired with docking stations to compensate.
History
The earliest subnotebooks were the
Poqet PC and the
Atari Portfolio, which were both released in 1989 and ran
DOS. In 1996, the Toshiba
Libretto 20 was first released with 6.1" screens, 270MB hard disk, weighing 840g and running on Windows 95. Originally, the
Libretto series used 486 processors from
AMD. The combination of compact form factor and performance proved popular with buyers in the far east. In 1996, Sony released their best known N505 series VAIO subnotebook, which has been recognised as the master design and symbol of a machine in this size. With carbon fiber structured TX, SZ and X505 series, Sony is still a leader in the subnotebook market. Recently, the subnotebook has lost the title to the
Ultra Mobile PC as the smallest and most portable full-blown computer.
Recent models
Examples of recent subnotebooks sorted by weight are:
| Model | Specifications | Dimensions | Mass | Year |
|---|
| Sony Vaio PCG-U3 | Transmeta TMS 5800 933 MHz CPU, 256 MB RAM, 20 GB hard disk, 6.4" XGA display | 184.5 x 139 x 30.6 | 820 | 2004 |
| Fujitsu Lifebook P1510 | Intel Pentium M 1.2 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB hard disk, 8.9" SVGA display | 232 × 167 × 34.5 | 990 | 2005 |
| Toshiba Libretto U100 | Intel Pentium M 1.2 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB hard disk, 7.2" LCD display | 210 x 165 x 29.8 | 999 | 2005 |
| Panasonic R4 | Intel Pentium M 1.3 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB hard disk, 10.4" XGA display | 229 x 183.5 x 24.2 | 999 | 2005 |
| Fujitsu Lifebook P1120 | Transmeta TMS 5800 800 MHz CPU, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB hard disk, 8.9" SVGA display | 231 x 158 x 34.5 | 1000 | 2002 |
| Dell Latitude X1 | Intel Pentium M 1.1 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 30 GB hard disk, 12.1" WXGA display | 287 x 196 x 25.4 | 1130 | 2005 |
| FlyBook V33i | Intel 1.1 GHz Pentium M, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB hard disk, 8.9" LCD display | 235 x 135 x 31 | 1230 | 2006 |
| Sony Vaio VGN-TX series | Intel Pentium M Ultra Low Voltage 773 1.1-1.3 GHz CPU, 512-1.5 GB SDRAM, 60-80 GB hard disk, 11.1" WXGA display, internal dvd optical write-capable drive | 272.4 x 21-28.5 x 195.1 | 1250 | 2006 |
|
Other examples
...
Actius PC-MM10, it's about a half-inch thick. It has a 1 GHz Transmeta CPU, 256
MB of memory, a 15 GB
hard drive, and built-in
Wi-Fi.
Other recent models include the Averatec 1xxx series,
Sony U-series,
OQO, and Vulcan FlipStart, although the latter two are much more often referred to as "Ultra Personal Computers", as they are barely larger than a typical palmtop.
External links
- - Webopedia single paragraph definition.
- - Computer Hope single paragraph definition.
- - classifies subnotebook as "3-pound ultraportables that rely on external drives".
- - defines ultraportable as "Weight: 4 pounds or less ... Display: Smaller than 12 inches ".
- - a section of an article reviewing a subnotebook, NEC Versa UltraLite, defines it as "trimmed down to just a display, a keyboard, a hard drive, and a few vital data ports".
- - Transmeta success story article.
- - Dynamism article.
- - NotebookReview August 31, 2005 article.
- - Cnet article.
-
-
- - Daily Updated.
See also
- List of computer size categories
