I'm in the market for my first netbook and after reading and watching a million reviews I've narrowed it down to the Samsung NC10 or the Asus Eee PC N10J.

I have a normal sized laptop so I'm mainly looking for something to carry around for internet/e-mail when I don't feel like lugging my 17" Macbook around. With this being my intention the two contenders seemed to be the Lenovo S10 Ideapad and the Samsung N10, as their specs are both adequate and I find them to be the sleekest looking of the netbooks I've seen in person.

My dilemma came upon watching a video review of the Asus N10J, which seems to easily win as the most versatile netbook on the market, with a dedicated graphics card, 2GB ram, and a 320GB hard drive. These factors make it seem as if the N10J will last me far longer before becoming obsolete and allow for far more than just internet browsing and e-mail. What I want to know is just how superior the hardware of the Asus is when compared to the Samsung, so I can figure out if I need to get over the ugliness factor and go with the smarter machine.

All input is appreciated, but I'd especially appreciate bottom line comparisons of overall versatility. I'm also glad to consider a netbook other than these two if presented with a good review/comparison.

Thanks!

90% of people just use there computer for web browsing and typical media stuff.

i personally think its overkill for a 320gig hdd only if ur a nut that needs to fill a hdd with useless crap. the dedicated graphics card is cool and all but its a netbook for crying out loud.

the whole point is the fact its a cheap alternative to a laptop. i suggest that you either go to a msi wind if your willing to get a netbook, or go for a upgrade to the 12 inch screen laptops which will give u more bang for your buck when it comes to specs.

I'd go with the samsung nc10. The asus does have the advantage in specs but cost more. Get a netbook for what it is...surf the net, portability, good battery life (6 cell or higher), and sub $500. Almost forgot, the nc10 keyboard is one of the best keyboard available as well. Don't underestimate the use of the right shift key. Memory and hard drive upgrade are easy to do. I must say the nvidia on the asus is tempting but who play games on a 10 inch netbook? The onboard graphic on the nc10 is just as good for watching movies (eg. avi and mp4 movies).

I agree with Turismo29 - get the Samsung NC10. After 1 month of waiting, my NC10 just arrived (I wanted a Blue one - which was released a bit later - Amazon now has both White and Blue NC10's in stock for around $485).

My impressions - WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MACHINE!!! Excellent build quality, very solid, gorgeous screen (all 10.2 inches of it!) and very nice keyboard (with the best layout of any NetBook I've seen).

$485 might be a bit on the HIGH end of Netbooks - but look what you get : 6 cell battery (6 hours + battery life!!!), 10.2" screen, bluetooth, 1.3M video camera, 1G ram, 160G drive - and it's just beautifully built! Check out the reviews - people LOVE this Netbook.

Note: I'm not saying the ASUS is a bad system (haven't looked into it much), but it's certainly quite a bit more money, weighs in at 3.6lb (that's 25% more weight than the NC10 at 2.9lb), and don't expect to get 5-6hours battery life if your using the NVidia GPU.

I agree with the above.... also check out the msi wind, it's a beautiful machine and you can dual boot with OSX leopard!!!!!

Samsung

I have the S10 and love it - and there are some good deals for it too. The screen is great and I've had no issues with it. Sound is weak and anemic though. (use ear-phones) The wireless is phenomenal - fast connections anywhere and no dropping - better than my IBM laptop (pre-Lenovo).

That said I'd go with the Samsung NC10 for two reasons:

o Keyboard: slightly larger and better key layout - the S10 requires you to use the Fn key to get at Home & End - I use these a lot.

o 6 hour battery life. I get around 2 1/2 hours on the S10. At one time I used to think that 2 hours was great - the S10 is so portable that you want to take it everywhere - however the supporting S10 charging cord (long and heavy duty) could be used to run a space heater - it's large - so long battery is very important. It goes with the wonderful portability and usability of the Netbook configuration.

I also agree with the other comments above on use and cost.

Either will suit you - enjoy and good luck!

i hear a lot of people like MSI Wind.. sure i like msi quality and build but i think this is too fat and big as compared to most if if not all of the netbooks... isnt it?