Advice on a portable device

[t3rm3y]

hi, I am in the UK, and I have been looking at getting a 10.1" tablet, i couldnt find a decent deal (still in stock) and then i started looking at the storage capacity and started to move away from tablets and look at 11.6" netbooks.

I am only looking for something cheap as it will get so little use, i want it for holidays so i can watch my blu ray rips on the plane / room, these are 1080 .mp4 format.
it may get used for some word updating (my c.v. etc)
and it will be used sometimes in the evening to look up forums or xbox game guides etc.
i currently use my 4" smart phone, but its useless for doing anything productive online - i cant even sign in to this site with it as it wont select the right username / password boxes.

i liked the idea of the touchscreen on a tablet and how quickly it boots compared to our current pc and laptop.

Touchscreen i can live without, but am thinking of loading ubuntu on the netbook for quicker booting. (is this usefull or should i forgt it?

our current laptop is a vaio VGN-FS115E and i think it has a fantastic screen. video looks great, and plays well, its just too heavy to cart around for a holiday...(plus its my girlfriends she wont let me tinker / load linux on it.
Would I be better off wit ha refurbished older high spec system or a tablet with a portable hdd, or something else entirely?

i have asked for similar assitance elsewhere, just wanted to see what the thoughts were here.

 

[gidgiddonihah]

Netbooks will not run 1080p content well. Get one of the Transformer tablets. The infinity has a 1080p screen and a really fast Tegra 3 chip. The Prime has a slower Tegra 3 and no 1080p screen but I believe it costs less.

 

[t3rm3y]

Thank you for the reponse Gid,
My only concern with the transformers are the costs, they are quite expensive and for what i`ll use them for i wanted something cheap. to be honest it will likely only get used on a flight. all the other stuff i listed will probably never be done on it, as istill prefer sitting at the tower pc to work.
what will prevent the notebook from playing 1080p? the power or the screen resolutuion? (will it just look slightly worse ot will it not even play?

 

[gidgiddonihah]

Netbooks lack the power, or the screen to show 1080p content. If you buy the extra dock you can do office/school work on the go too, but by that time you might as well buy a full on laptop.

 

[t3rm3y]

i hae looked at the transformer prime witout the dok and that is stil labout £350 which is out of my budget.
the Acer Aspire One 753 says it supports 1080p - it doesnt have to be clear like on a hd tv, just to get me throgh a long flght. I can pick one of these up for £275..this would be the very top end of my budget. i there anything cheaper that you think would work?

 

[gidgiddonihah]

If your set on a Netbook, the Acer brand is the way to go. You might try an old Tegra 2 tablet. The Tegra 2 could still do 1080p; I have the Toshiba Thrive, which is pretty cool... Other than that, not really.