If you’re tired of hauling that boat anchor of a laptop from one showing to another, perhaps it’s time to consider something thinner, lighter, and, believe it or not, cheaper. What you need, perhaps, is a netbook, which packs most of the functionality of a laptop into a smaller, more travel-friendly package. • Indeed, that’s really what a netbook is: a mini-laptop. To look at one is to see a fairly typical portable PC, only smaller. Smaller means lighter, and, in this case, it also means less expensive: Models start as low as $250. Of course, depending on your mobile computing needs, a netbook might not be the best choice. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of this fastgrowing product category. Netbook 101 Almost overnight, netbooks have evolved into the Next Big Thing. Why the sudden popularity? In a word, portability: Most models weigh less than 3 pounds and fit easily onto an airplane tray-table. Contrast that with the average laptop, which can easily tip the scales at 6 to 9 pounds and require unpleasant contortions in a coach seat. Netbooks also have compact prices, with the latest models selling for as low as $300-and some of last year’s coming in at $250 or less. In comparison, entry-level laptops start at around $500. If you’re a cash-strapped REALTOR®, that’s a pretty significant savings. However, there are some definite compromises to consider before going the netbook route. For starters, there’s screen size: Most of the latest models have LCDs measuring 8.9 or 10.1 inches diagonally. If you’re accustomed to, say, a 15-inch display, you may find a netbook too cramped for comfort. Likewise, netbook keyboards generally run 10 to 20 percent smaller than standard keyboards. That may not sound like much of a difference, but take it from me: Typing on cramped keys is no fun. For productivity’s sake, look for a netbook with a 10.1-inch screen, which should in turn have a larger keyboard. Next, netbooks tend to be slowpokes. Their small designs mandate small, low-power processors And to keep their prices low, they usually come with no more than 1 gigabyte (GB) of RAM and a smallish hard drive. (In fact, early models offered just 4 to 8 GB of storage, though these days you can expect at least 80 GB.) That can pose a problem when trying to run heavyweight software like Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Office. If those programs seem pokey on your current system, imagine how they’ll run on a machine with a fraction of the computing power. Likewise, most netbooks can’t even handle full-screen video without a bit of stuttering. That’s no good if you have a video walkthrough you want to show a client. Speaking of video, netbooks lack optical drives, so you can forget about watching a DVD movie (unless it’s one you’ve downloaded) on your next flight. No optical drive also means no easy way to install any boxed software you may own. Surely, a portable PC with a small screen, lightweight processor, and no optical drive can run all day on a single charge, right? Well, it depends on the netbook. Compact designs mean compact batteries, and some models barely manage 2 to 3 hours of runtime. If you need to work longer between charges, look for a netbook with a 6- or 9-cell battery-but don’t be surprised if it protrudes from the bottom and/or rear of the machine. It’ll also add to the weight, of course. Finally, consider the operating system. As you may have guessed, netbooks lack the horsepower for a power-hungry OS like Windows Vista-which is why many of them come with Windows XP. (Depending on your OS preferences, that may be good news.) Some less-expensive netbooks rely on Linux, which, while Windows-like in functionality and operation, doesn’t run Windows software. If you’re not in a hurry, you might want to wait until the late-October arrival of Windows 7. Though similar to Vista, it manages to run much more smoothly on low-powered Pcs-like netbooks. But Can They Play the Violin? With so many knocks against netbooks, you might be wondering why there’s so much fuss over them. To recap: price and portability. It’s easy to overlook a few shortcomings in a portable PC that doesn’t make your back-or your checkbook-ache. And I’ll admit that while I didn’t really care for it on paper, I found my Acer Aspire One netbook a lot more usable than I expected. (You can read my full hands-on report in the Business Hacks feature, The Netbook Diaries [http://tinyurl.com/b93j5l]). Ultimately, I don’t think a netbook makes a good replacement for a laptop, but it can definitely be a good companion-a system you take on short trips or when you don’t feel like lugging a 9-pound behemoth. And you have to be realistic about how you use it: Netbooks are ideal for checking e-mail, browsing the Web, editing the occasional document or spreadsheet, and other lightweight tasks. They’re also well suited to Web apps like Google Docs and Flickr, though it’s a common misconception that all netbooks have built-in Internet connectivity. While all models have Wi-Fi, just like laptops, only a few offer built-in wireless modems-and those that do require a monthly service plan with a carrier like Verizon or Sprint.