MSI Wind Review Ep. 2

More thoughts on the Wind. The CTRL key placement issue now less of an issue. I found this modified BIOS that switches the CTRL and Fn. When I touch type, it works like a charm. On the rare occassion I look at the keyboard when I press CTRL, I wonder why it doesn't work, then I remember the switch.

I'm thinking of writing over the keys with correction fluid. Not the most elegant solution I know.

Also the latest BIOS has overclocking support. Pretty nifty. I don't think other netbooks have the option. I won't be using the feature for now but it's good to know that if I change my mind, it's there.

MSI Wind U100 Review

I downgraded from a 15-inch Compaq powered by T2370 and 2 gigs of RAM running Windows Vista, to a MSI Wind—Atom N270 and 1 gig of ram. Why? Because portability and size are more important to me right now. Besides the Compaq was only used for netbook tasks. The most performance I needed from it was when I ripped CDs.

I settled on the Wind because of several favorable reviews online. It supposedly had the 2^nd best keyboard next to the HP Mini, standard netbook innards and a fair price.

It's been 3 days and I like it so far. I initially installed the Windows 7 RC on it but replaced it with XP after a day. The performance felt sluggish, much like how my previous laptop performed with Vista and only a gig of ram. The Atom, the 1 gig and Win7 just didn't do it for me.

XP is a much better experience. Using the Wind as a netbook doesn't feel like running a gimped CPU. The last time I used XP was with an Athlon64 3000+ with 2gb ram. The Wind seemed just as fast.

Besides the upgraded portability, the screen quality is also an upgrade from the Compaq. It has better viewing angles and is much brighter and it's matte surface has less glare than the Compaq's glossy screen.

Just 2 things I didn't see mentioned in all the reviews I read. One is the annoying placement of the left CTRL key. Its placement has been switched with an Fn key. And 2 is the HD noise—it sounds more audible than my previous laptop. The cause might simply be the quieter fan of the Wind which doesn't mask the HD noise. The loudness is comparable to the HD noise of my 120gb iPod Classic, if not slightly louder.

So do I recommend the Wind? Yep. Just remember you're using a netbook and not a laptop.

Here are some of the reviews I looked before I bought my Wind:

Techreport

HardOCP

LaptopMag

Album Art - Barbie's Cradle

Here are the album covers for all 3 Barbie's Cradle albums: the self-titled debut, Music from the Buffet Table and Playing in the Fields.

OPM Album Art - Bamboo

It's tough to find high res, high quality album art for OPM albums. Here's me sharing what I have. First up: Bamboo - As the Music Plays; and Bamboo - Light Peace Love.

Great Idea

Here's a blog with a great idea. I do hope it catches on and most of the music torrents off of Isohunt follow this standard.

Compaq C762NR Review Ep. 3

Here comes another bench. This time it's 7-Zip and comparisons are based on Xbitlabs.

This time the T2370 pulls ahead of the E2140. I think it's safe to say both are evenly matched. The E2140 pulls ahead sometimes because of its higher FSB while the T2370 wins a few where clock speed matters.

My Recommended Builds - March 2009

One of my friends is buying a new PC for gaming and video editing and asked what I would buy. Here's my recommendation.

Intel Q8200 Php7,600.00
MSI P43 Neo-F Php3,900.00
Powercolor 4830 Php5,300.00
Western Digital Caviar Green 640gb Php3,300.00
Kingston 2gb Php1,200.00
Liteon DVD writer Php1,500.00
Corsair 400CX PSU Php2,600.00
Antec 300 case Php3,200.00
Total Php28,600.00

Also an officemate asked me for a budget gaming build. Here's what I'm recommending. I have an AMD CPU there because the guy is obtuse and would not have an Intel CPU not for all the sensible reasons in the world. The only reason one should have an AMD CPU is if they must have integrated graphics only.

Athlon X2 5000+ Php2,900.00
Asus M2N-MX/SE Plus or Asus M2N-VM/DVI or MSI K9N6PGM2-V Php2,500.00
Powercolor 4830 Php5,300.00
Western Digital 160gb Php1,800.00
Kingston 2gb Php1,200.00
Liteon DVDwriter Php1,500.00
Generic case w/ PSU Php1,500.00
Total Php16,700.00

*The recommendations are mostly ripped off from TechReport. Prices are from PCHub.