Acer Aspire One

Acer's Aspire One bucks the trend for netbooks to be getting bigger and pricier, with a budget offering that still manages high levels of quality.

While many 8.9in netbooks are a nightmare to type on because of the size of their chassis, you can get up to a decent typing speed on the Aspire. That said, the mouse buttons are on either side of the trackpad rather than below it, which takes time to get used to.

The fine keyboard is matched by the quality of the screen. While a little grainy – for example, whites don't appear completely white but have a very slight mottled look to them – it's bright and sharp enough that browsing the web is a pleasure rather than a chore.

The chassis again feels like it belongs to a far more expensive machine. The screen's well protected and the whole thing feels like it could survive a few bashes in a rucksack.

Getting the sacrifices right

Inevitably, though, there are sacrifices. In the Aspire One's case, that means Linux rather than Windows – which many people won't consider a sacrifice at all.

Acer chooses Linpus Linux Lite, and most people will be quite happy with this. A logical layout makes it easy to find a web browser or launch the ubiquitous OpenOffice, and it's actually easier to hook up to wireless networks than with Windows.

Where it does fall behind Microsoft's OS, though, is power management, to the extent that the CPU is constantly being cooled by a fan – so there's a faint whine in operation.

And with a relatively small 2400mAh battery in place, the Aspire One was never going to excel for longevity in the first place: in practice, we eked two-and-a-half hours of life out of it.

It's all in the ecosystem

Fortunately, Acer has backed up the Aspire One with a collection of extras – including its very own carrying bag and external drives – and the ones we're most likely to buy are the extended batteries.

For example, you can buy a 6600mAH battery for around £50 (or a straight replacement for the 2400mAh unit for £30), and if you do you'll suddenly have battery life of around six hours.

The drawback is extra weight, but this is hardly a heavy notebook: we measured it at 1.06kg with the 2400mAh battery in place. Even the biggest battery will only add around 200g.

So yes, this isn't the perfect netbook. And yes, in terms of style it's some way off the Asus Eee PC S101.

But if you need a mini-laptop to sling in a bag, one to tap on during your travels perhaps, then it's an excellent choice.