Want to Build Your Own Netbook?

For PC buffs who always prefer to self-build their machines rather than take off-the-shelf offerings from the major manufacturers, OCZ  Technology has some great news which may appeal to you.

From mid-April the OCZ Neutrino barebones netbook will be available for you to get your hands on.

What’s included in the Neutrino?

Based on the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU and 945GSE chipset, the Neutrino barebones netbook comes complete with a 1024×600  10.1-inch screen, network (both wired and wireless) adaptors, speakers plus VGA and USB ports. The machine is supplied with a four-cell battery plus the charger.

What is not included?

Everything else! The rest of the decisions are up to you. The motherboard supports up to 2GB of DDR memory. Either a solid state or a traditional 2.5-inch hard-drive can be added, allowing storage capacities far beyond the mainstream netbook offerings. Any operating system of your choice can be added. (If you are after OS X, then watch the forums closely for someone to do it!)

Is it better than the leading brands?

Specification wise, we are a little disappointed that OCZ have opted for the N270 CPU rather than the more recent and more powerful N280. Expect to see an updated model with the N280 before long.

As for the rest, it’s comparible, and of course the fact that you can buy the right amount of memory and storage from the offset, should work out cheaper than upgrading.

Anyone with experience of putting PC components together already should definitely consider it. People without experience, or who feel that they don’t want all that faff – this is not for you, stick to a ready-build netbook.