MSI Wind: A Day In My Life

Posted by: dgoldring on Nov 07 2008

A few weeks ago, I introduced you all to my latest purchase, the MSI Wind netbook (Wind stands for Wireless Network Device.)  I unboxed it and briefly explained the reasons behind my purchase.  At that time, I promised a full review would follow.  In the interim, however, I have found that there is an abundance of traditional reviews of the Wind, including this fantastic head-to-head review of the MSI Wind and Asus 1000.  As such, I really did not think I would have anything to add through a traditional review.  I agree with much of what has already been said.  But, that does not mean I am without opinions on this one. 

So, rather than go through the Wind point by point, I am going to tell you why I bought the Wind and what my expectations were.  And we’ll see how it lives up to my preconceived notions.  Ready?  Let’s get started.

 

(Before)                                         (After)

The biggest reason I wanted a netbook, any netbook, in the first place was the weight.  I ride the train to work every day, and most mornings I carry a laptop so I can check email or do some writing during the commute.  Until now, my laptop was a 15.4 inch Toshiba Satellite.  A great computer, to be sure, but far from light.  The computer weighed in around seven pounds.  Toss in a padded laptop bag, gear bag with cables and accessories, external battery, and various other sundries; and I was typically lugging around nearly 15 pounds every day.  Just to get a little extra work done on the train.

Simply put, the MSI wind made my commute a whole new experience.  Swapping a seven pound computer for a 2.3 pounder made an incredible difference for my sore back and shoulders.  But the weight difference did not end there.  I quickly found that my large, heavily padded backpack was going to be overkill.  The padding, which was designed for a 15 inch laptop, did little good for my  10 inch Wind.  It just slid around in the padded area. 

Fortunately, the Wind came with a small, padded, zipper case…almost like a sleeve.  This was perfect for carrying it around.  I tossed it in the case and then threw it in my briefcase (I actually got out an old, light briefcase as well), and suddenly I had shaved another couple of pounds off of my commute.

(Before: almost 15 pounds)                         (After: 7 pounds)

Along with the new (old) briefcase, though, I also found that my gear bag would no longer fit.  That was OK though, as I was in a purging mood.  I grabbed a few essential accessories, tossed them in a spare pocket in my briefcase and away we went.  In the end, switching from my old laptop to the MSI Wind ended up shaving the weight of my commuting bag in half.  OK, I am in love, and I had not even turned it on yet.

But, turn it on, we must, because weight is only one facet of the equation.  If the screen is terrible, if it does not boot up quickly, if the whole whole computer is not able to meet my demands…well, then the wind could be weightless, and it would be completely  meaningless.  If all I wanted was a lighter back then I could just leave my computer at home altogether.

Most of the netbooks on the market when I bought the Wind were still sporting a sub-nine inch screen.  This was simply way too small for me.   A small handful of netbooks, including the Wind offered a ten inch screen.  That extra inch and change made all the difference.   I found the screen to be quite comfortable for surfing the Internet, checking email, and even writing.  Pretty much all of the basics. 

If you are doing something more complicated, like editing video or photos, this screen might feel a bit cramped.  But really, if you are using the Wind for those kinds of tasks, you will probably have more issues than just the size of the screen.  The Atom processor, while great for simple tasks, is simply not designed for heavy duty video editing or Photoshopping photos.

This also allowed the Wind to include a nice 80% sized keyboard.  This was a great keyboard for typing.  My hands fit well, resulting in no more typos than any other keyboard.  I did notice a few anomalies which I might have changed.  For example, on most keyboard, the CTRL key is on the outside of the bottom row.  On the Wind, the FN key is outside of the CTRL.  This led to my frequently striking the FN instead of CTRL key.  But other than my nitpicking a few minor placement of keys, the keyboard is extremely comfortable for typing.

Along with the keyboard is the touchpad mouse.  I had some real problems here.  I found the mouse to be overly sensitive, often jumping about the screen almost unbidden.  Then again, I am not a real fan of touchpad mice to begin with, so that may have played a role as well. 

OK.  So far, so good.  The Wind is keeping up with me pretty much every step of the way.  The screen is easy to read, and text input works great.  So, far, it is perfect for everything I need to do while I am commuting.  I can scroll through websites, check my email, write posts for JAMM, pretty much everything I used to do on my laptop while on the train.  Only the Wind weighs almost nothing.  But what about under the hood?  What is going on inside this thing while I am working?

Well, we can start with the 120 GB hard drive, which was even larger than is typically advertised with the Wind.  This was also significantly larger than the 80GB hard drive on my laptop.

Alongside the more than functional hard drive sat a full GB of RAM.  A lot of netbooks include only half a GB of RAM, so, I was pretty excited to find a full GB.  The RAM is even further upgradeable, but doing so was a bit frustrating.  In most laptops, upgrading the RAM is a simple matter of opening a door on the bottom of the case and inserting the RAM.  On the Wind, you have to completely remove the bottom of the case, in order to upgrade the RAM.  Of course, you cannot do so without getting past a sticker reading, “Warranty Sticker.  Void if Tampered.” 

The upgraded RAM and hard drive worked together with the fantastic atom processor to make a relatively fast computer.  I was pretty impressed by the boot up time, which really was only a few seconds.  By contrast, my laptop takes several minutes to fully boot up.  when you are working on the train, this can make an enormous difference.  The Wind is ready to go before I even leave the station.  My laptop used to take me all the way to the first stop, or even further, before it was ready.  Once booted, the wind remained a pretty speedy computer.  Not blazing by any stretch of the imagination, but fast enough for everything I needed to do.

The only real problem I had with the Wind was the battery.  The unit I purchased came with the three cell battery.  For me, this meant only about an hour of use.  Fortunately, the train ride is not much more than an hour.  So, I can use the wind pretty much the whole way in, charge it in my office, and then use it again on the way home.  Generally, however, an hour of battery is pretty much unacceptable for a computer which is designed to be used while on the move.  MSI and the other netbook manufacturers MUST find a way to sole this battery problem if netbooks are truly going to serve their intended purpose.

The final point to make is connectivity.  As I mentioned, I like to surf the Internet and check email from the train.  so, I need to be able to connect and stay connected.  Often, I have my mobile broadband modem with me, and this has worked well, but it is not always feasible (sometimes my wife insists I share.)  This is a computer called the Wi-fi Network Device, so I would expect it to do a fantastic job with wireless networking.  And it really did not let me down.  It had no trouble picking up the signal and was able to handle any version of security (WEP, WAP, WAP2,WPS) I tossed at it.  It certainly lived up to its name in that regard.

In addition to wireless networking, the Wind also offers Bluetooth connectivity.  This is fantastic, and allows you to connect an external mouse, headphones, GPS, or any number of other peripherals.  I had a little trouble connecting my Bluetooth mouse, but otherwise, this worked great.

               (That is the Wind on the left, and my old Toshiba 15.4 inch on the right)

OK, so where does that leave us?  Well, a whole heck of a lot more comfortable on the train, that is for sure.  But aside from lightening my load, the Wind really did make my life significantly better.  It lived up to every expectation and preconceived notion I had when I purchased it.  The screen looked great, the keyboard was easy to type on, and even the specs (120 GB hard drive and a GB of RAM) were amazing.  Simply put, this was everything I had hoped for…and more. 

So, what do you think?  I have told you about my needs in a netbook and how the Wind held up to my expectations.  How do you use your computer on the road?  Would a netbook like the Wind make your life easier?  Chime in by leaving a comment.

What I Liked:

• Great 10 inch screen
• Easy to use keyboard
• 120 GB hard drive
• 1 GB of RAM
• Wireless connectivity

 

What Needs Improvement:

• Battery…battery….battery

 

Where to Buy: MSI Mobile and various other retail sources, including Newegg (where I purchased my Wind)

Price: $449.99

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