A netbook is a lightweight and small version of the traditional laptop aimed at internet usage and emailing.

2009 has been the year of the netbooks, as new products coming to market from the manufacturers like Sony. Its Vaio P offers wider choices and features and compete with established brands like the Acer netbook.

So if you are planning to buy a cheap laptop this season, here are some options for you.

Acer Aspire One D150
Acer has recently introduced the new 10.1-inch Aspire One D150 at a price point of Rs. 20,999. After the 8.9-inch Aspire One, Acer hits the netbook segment with a 10.1 WSVGA LCD display offering 1024 x 600 pixels resolution and Acer CrystalBrite technology.

It sports the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, a Intel 945GSE chipset that features Intel GMA950 graphics. Also, it comes with 1GB DDR2 memory which can be expanded to 2GB DDR2 memory, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Acer Crystal Eye Webcam, and USB ports. The notebook has a multi-touch trackpad and a six-cell Li-ion battery which promises up to five hours of battery life.

For a change, Acer includes Windows XP with Service Pack 3 pre-loaded in the AOD150 as compared to Linpus Linux Lite OS available in previous models.

Samsung NC20
The Samsung NC20 is a Netbook that uses the VIA Nano Processor U2250 (1.3+GHz, 800MHz), and includes 1 GB of memory as standard. The 12.1″ screen size is larger than typical for this class of ultra portable PC.

The LED-backlit screen has a glossy display with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. An external display can be used through the standard VGA connector.

Other features include a full-size keyboard which is coated with anti-bacterial Silver Nano ions, with standard 18.5mm key pitch between keys, memory slot for 2GB RAM, and standard internal hard drive is a SATA 160 GB, Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3 USB 2.0, SD card reader, Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks. It carries a price tag of $549.

Lenovo IdeaPad S10    
The IdeaPad S10 is a line of consumer-oriented netbook which offer a variety of colors like pearl white, black, red, blue, and pink. They feature a 10.2″ TFT Active Matrix 1024×600 display with a 80 or 160GB hard disk drive and 512MB or 1GB DDR2 RAM, both of which are easily upgraded via a user access panel on the bottom of the netbook.

Priced at Rs 20,990, the netbook packs 1.6-GHz Intel Atom N270 processor and runs on Windows XP Home edition. They support 802.11 b/g wireless networking and come with two USB ports, an Expresscard expansion slot, a 4-in-1 media reader, weighs 1.25 kg, a VGA output, a 1.3 megapixel webcam and an in-built mic.

HP Mini 1109TU    
It is a small netbook with 10.1-inch LED backlit widescreen display, 2USB ports, headphone-out and mic combo jack. It weighs just 1.09 kg with a price tag of 21,490 plus taxes makes an ideal choice for the consumers.

HP Mini 1109TU runs Windows XP Home and powered by Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor with Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950, 1GB memory capacity and 80GB storage. It also sports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Norton AV and in-built memory card reader.

Sony Vaio P
Sony Vaio P comes with either a 1.33 GHz Intel Atom Z520 or a 1.6 GHz Atom Z530 processor, and 2GB DDR2 memory with 533 MHz FSB. It has an 8″ LED-backlit display with native resolution of 1600×768 and weighs just 1.4-1.7 pounds. It comes preinstalled with Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Business, dependent on model.

The Sony Vaio P is available in four color options; Black, Red, Green, and White. The other features includes an integrated webcam, built-in GPS, Bluetooth, 802.11 b/g/n wireless, mobile broadband, and an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 500 video card but there is no optical drive. Dependent on the model, storage is either a 60GB hard disk drive or 64GB or 128GB solid state drive. At a price tag of $900, user could not call it a netbook.