Netbook information

PC World compares performance of three versions of Windows 7 (Starter, Home Basic and Premium) with Windows XP on a Lenovo netbook.

Laptop Magazine's netbook buying guide is the most up-to-date we've found. It explains what netbooks are good for -- and what they're not -- and points out features to look for and ones to avoid. It also gets into the pros and cons of built-in broadband and subsidized netbooks from wireless carriers such as Verizon and AT&T. Both the report and five-minute video guide are easy to understand.

PC World and PCMag.com both offer articles on how to buy a netbook. They're a few months older than Laptop Magazine's guide, but both are very thorough.

Liliputing.com is a site specializing in netbook and mini laptop computing. It does a good job explaining the minute differences between the nearly identical netbooks that keep hitting the market.

HardOCP.com has an article benchmarking the Intel Atom and the Via Nano, which is appearing in some mini laptops, such as the Samsung NC20.

Manufacturer websites have detailed specification information, and most have downloadable product manuals:

Acer

Asus

Dell

Gateway

HP

Lenovo

MSI

Samsung

Sony

Toshiba