Vinod Yalburgi

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Posted on 27-08-2010

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Note: The performance ratings and pros & cons section to be displayed at the top have been omitted, since this is a comparison review. Thus the ratings, pros & cons are provided within the article itself.

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The MSI Wind U130 is built with a solid plastic body, strong and sturdy lid with a metallic finish on the outer surface. The lid has adequately flexible hinges. The netbook shows off a snow white keyboard with closely spaced keys and a small match-box sized touchpad. The special function keys are arranged sequentially at the top row of the keyboard and highlighted in blue. It includes keys to turn on/off Bluetooth & Wi-Fi (F11), sleep mode (F12), webcam (F6) etc, which can be accessed by the Fn modifier. Adding to the charm, there is a blue-lit power button at the top right corner of the keyboard. It has an integrated webcam on the top frame of the 10-inch LCD display. Overall, the netbook is very sleek and compact weighing just 1.2kg.

Specifications: Intel Atom N450 processor; 1GB DDR2 RAM (Max. 2GB); 250GB HDD; Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity;

Pros:

1) Sleek and stylish design
2) Very affordable price

Cons:

1) Overall, very ordinary performance
2) It does not ship with a travel bag
3) Slightly heavier than Wind U160

 Ratings: (MSI U130)

The MSI Wind U135 reveals exquisite colour patterns in four unique and attractive versions: Quick Silver, Wind Dancer Black, Trendy Blue and Cherry Red. Mirroring the sleek and stylish looks of its siblings – the U130 and U160, it poses an elegant design formulated by texture patterns on the cover lid and on the extended matchbox size touchpad. The tkeypad and the frame of the LED screen match each other in their glossy black colours. Its sculpted body contours adopt delicate curves, adding beauty and charm to the sleek form factor. It includes an integrated webcam at the centre, on the top frame of the 10-inch LCD screen.

Like its elder sibling the U160, it adds a second function (Fn) key right below the “Enter” key, to support dual hand operation of special function shortcut keys. The special function keys are lined up on the top row of the keypad and a blue-lit power button is placed at the top right corner of the keypad. The keys are adequately spaced from each other, providing comfortable room for typing the words quickly and accurately. In addition, we found the keys to be more responsive than the ones on U130 and U160 with consistent tactile feedback. Also, the wider touchpad enables hassle free navigation across the screen and makes it a pleasurable experience for the first time user.

It ships with the bundled accessories similar to the U130 and U160 models, with the addition of a wireless mouse. There is no difference in the port configuration nor the critical hardware components either, making one of three nearly identical siblings of the Wind series.

Specifications:

Intel Atom N450 processor; 1GB DDR2 RAM (Max. 2GB); 320GB HDD; Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity;

Pros:

1) Trendy and attractive colour patterns
2) Good integrated webcam
3) Ships with a travel bag and wireless mouse

Cons:

1) Slightly heavier than Wind U160
2) Average performance

Ratings: (MSI U135)

Read on to know about the MSI Wind U160 features, specifications, performance results and Verdict in the next page...