1. USB PORTS
In a day and age when everything has gone USB its quite odd to see systems still coming with only 2 USB 2.0 drives. I generally have at least 2-3 USB devices connected to my notebook at once not to mention when I have to sync data from my Blackberry or update my media collection on my Zune. So buying a system with only 2 of these ever useful ports is a no no. And this is not taking into consideration the wireless mouse.
2. Graphic Options
You might not play many video games (or any for that matter) but I can assure you that even if youre just doing web surfing and document editing you need something more than integrated graphics. If you want to know the reason why, one word: Vista. Now Im not against the old man Microsoft but even without all the fancy features Vista Home Premium uses a lot of video resources, I know becuase I still have not converted to Mac.
3. Other Ports
When I say other ports Im talking about everything sans a USB port option. You may not need an HDMI port but basic things such as eSATA, S-VIDEO, Memory Card readers and such are all important. Since you can never upgrade these (unlike RAM, hard drive etc.) it is imperitive that you get what you need because if you dont you might be shopping for a new system sooner than you think.
4. Bluetooth
Everybody hates wires and you can see why with all the peripherals that are out. If you want to cut back on wires get a system with Bluetooth capabilities. While certain things can work over WiFi, others such as wireless phone as modem, mouse, headphones all need Bluetooth to operate. Now you might be tempeted to just buy a Bluetooth adapter later but may I remind you that those precious USB drives will have to suffer? Enough said.
5. Expansion Options
This is probably my biggest concern. Like most people I might not need 4-8 gigs of RAM when I buy my netbook, but I sure as hell would like the option. Or I might like to switch from an HDD to an SDD down the road. The option for that would also be nice. If I cannot find a system that allows me to do some good upgrading when the time comes I forget it and you should too. As software becomes more and more demanding its going to be harder and harder to do things on the existing system specs so being able to patch things up for a while with some new RAM etc would be very nice instead of having to buy a new system.
CONCLUSION:
So you want to know what two systems I decided on? The Sony FW and Z series. I was tempted to go with a Macbook Pro but after noticing its too major flaws (not enough ports, no BD or SSD option) I decided to stick with Sony. FW is upgradable to 8GB of RAM and carries options for both SSD and HDD (on the same system). And if a 16 inch screen is too much you can get everything mentioned above in the Z series (for a little more of course).
