X
CNET logo Why You Can Trust CNET

Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Reviews ethics statement

Get a Linux-powered HP Netbook for $299 shipped

The HP 2133 normally sells for $499, but Amazon is offering up a major discount.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida

Normally $499, the HP 2133 Netbook is now just $299. Amazon

In the market for a Netbook? Amazon has the baseline HP 2133 on sale for $299, down from $499. Right away that solves one of the HP's main problems: its high price. Best of all, this is a new unit--not a refurb--and you don't have to deal with any rebates.

The HP 2133 is the one Netbook I've actually reviewed, and I liked it well enough, except for two issues: price and performance. But my eval unit came with Windows Vista and a $799 price tag; the model Amazon is selling has SUSE Linux and costs $299. By all accounts, Linux runs much faster on the 2133 than Vista, so it should be much more usable.

What's more, HP's Netbook has a keyboard that's just shy of full-size, meaning you can actually touch-type on it. (Too-small keyboards are one of my main gripes with Netbooks in general.) Even so, the 2133 measures just over an inch thick and weighs a mere 2.8 pounds. It comes with 512MB of RAM (enough for Linux), a 4GB SSD, an 8.9-inch screen, and a built-in Webcam. (See Amazon's product page for full specs.)

Regular readers know I don't really care for Netbooks, but $299 for an HP 2133 is mighty tempting. Show of hands: who's pulling the trigger on this one?