First Look: Toshiba NB200 netbook

If there was an award for ‘most improved’ in the netbook class of 2009, we reckon that’d have to go to Toshiba’s NB200. Stack it side by side with the NB100 and it’s like looking at products sitting a decade apart in style. Park it next to other laptops from Toshiba’s latest range and you can see it belongs to the same family.




Not only has the screen size been bumped up to 10.1 inches, which appears to have become the sweet spot for netbooks, but the edge-to-edge keyboard design provides a full 19mm pitch between the keys – the same separation as a conventional notebook – for easier typing with greater ease and fewer errors. The trackpad is almost wonderfully wide compared to the cramped pads of too many other netbooks.

Toshiba has three versions of the NB200 sitting on the launchpad and due for touchdown in local retailers next week. Just be prepared to see them tagged as 'mini notebooks' rather than netbooks: Toshiba is playing it safe since Psion chucked a legal tanty over claims that it invented the 'netbook' name and thus holds copyright on its use.

No matter what they're called, all three variants of the NB200 use Intel’s Atom N280. There's no performance pickup over the N270 as the NB200 sticks to Intel’s Atom 945GSE silicon instead of pairing the N280 with the peppier GN40 chipset. At least there’s a slight boost to battery life owing to the N280’s reduced power drain.



They also run Windows XP so you don’t get more than 1GB of RAM out of the box, although you can upgrade them to 2GB for a little extra headroom.

All three NB200 models are fitted with a 3D motion detector for the 2.5 inch hard drives (there’s no SSD option), while new Sleep and Charge software provides improved compatibility for charging a greater variety of devices through the USB port even when the netbook is turned off.

Toshiba has also preloaded Microsoft’s SyncToy utility for Windows XP to keep files and folders in sync between the NB200 and any other PC. (SyncToy is a free download so you might want to grab it for your own netbook).

In an effort to spur sales Toshiba is offering a $100 rebate on each of the new netbooks, although it’s estimated that as few as 50% of buyers actually submit their rebate forms. There’s currently no expiry date for the cashback deal and Toshiba promises buyers will have their $100 rebate cheque within a month of submitting their claim.



The entry-level NB200 costs $799, or $699 after the rebate, and is fitted with a 120GB hard drive and a three cell 2250 mAh battery which Toshiba says is good for 3.5 hours.

Bump your budget up to $899 ($799 after rebate) and you’ll get a 160GB platter plus a beefy six cell 5800 mAh battery rated for up to nine hours. Both of these models are decked out in basic black and have an amply-sized keyboard with large flat keys.


The premium model NB200 (selling for $949, of $849 after rebate) sports a very different look. The main chassis is decked out in a soft silver with a MacBook-style ‘chiclet’ keyboard, while the hinge and screen are finished in crisp white or dusky blue.

We’ve also seen a model in luxe copper (shown above) which way outclasses those other colour options, so fingers crossed that Toshiba adds this to the rack.


The specs are the same as the mid-range NB200 – a 160GB drive and long-life six-cell 5800 mAh battery – but with Bluetooth. Wireless remains at the same 802.11b/g as the rest of the lineup.

Toshiba intends to offer 3G as an option in August after the internal 3G HSDPA modem has undergone carrier certification. The company hopes to offer a choice between at least two carriers, with Telstra certain to be one of them.