This is either going to work fabulously or fail fantastically.

This review of the HP Mini 1001TU netbook will be written on an HP Mini netbook. Not a groundbreaking method, there, I’ll admit. But what is going to be different about this article, however, is that the entire piece is going to be a test of an element I consider paramount in choosing a netbook; typability.

Starting from the beginning of the next paragraph any typos that are caused solely by the keyboard (as opposed to my own sausage-fingered incompetence) will not be corrected. You’ll be able to see, from my mistakes, what you can expect from the keyboard on the HP Mini 1001TU.

And the test begins…here.

The first thing you’ll notice about the HP Mini is that, all things considered, it’s a nice looking machine. True, for a guy, the pretty swirling on the top iof the lid would look more at home on an evening gown than a dinner jacket, but at least it’s black and sleek.

HP boast that the keyboard is 92% of the standard size and I’ll go along with that. Having played with a nuber of netbooks since they first hit Australian shores, the ‘board on the HP does feel much, much bigger than most (seemingly twice the sizr of the oned on the Toshiba NB100, which is a shame as I’m a long-time Toshiba man). Typing on this machine is, with a little concentration, quite easy.

Reading is actually quite pleasant too, with the 10.1 inch screen coming in at the larger end of the netbook scale. And it’s BRIGHT! I’ve had to turn the monitor down a few trimes simply to avoid having my retinas permanently scarred. The image could be a little crisper, but I don’t imagine anyone is going to be looking at this screen for extended periods, that’s just not what a netbook is designed for.

Hardware-wise, the 1001TU is nothing new. It has a 1.6Ghz Atom processor, 1Gb of RAM and Windows XP SP3 pre-installed. One hardware short falling with yhe 1001TU is the missing USB port. Three USB sockets are the standard on most netbooks and the 1001TU feels a little under-equipped with only two, especially considering that, as a netbook, the potential need for external hardware is higher.

Finding the built-in webcam was a bonus, as I ddn’t realise there was one until after I’d bought the machine. Using it for the first time was a bit disappointing, however. In all but the most brightly-lit spaces, the image comes across as very dim and, in some casual use cases, even becomes unusably dark (I’m wondering now if that’s a hidden benefit of the ultra-bright screen; built-in lighting).

An interesting side note to this issue is that, according to some HP user forums, installing a Linux distribution (Ubuntu was mentioned by name) can actually increase the brightness of the camera image, leadinf some users to question the quality of the Windows driver. Considering I didn’t even know the thing had a cam to begin with, the quality of the image isn’t a deal-breaker for me. But it might be to you.

The side-button mouse layout is surprisingly easy to get used to and is actually a very effective use of the deck’s limited space. Also, having a convenient ‘Track-pad Off’ button at your fingertips is a clever little touch (no pun intended).

The output of the on-board speakers leaves a little to be desired – the sound is tinny and hollow – but I figure most users will be using headphones anyway, so again, not a big issue. They do, however, look awesome; encased in a long stretch of perforated silver sitting just beneath the screen that looks like it could conceivably julienne your fingertips if you’re not careful.

The software shipped on this machne is adequate, if not exuberant. XP rather than Vista is a good choice (I’ll never understand handicapping a lightweight netbook processor with Vista’s bloat) and the inclusion of a complete office suite is nice, even if it is MS Works and not Office (but thenm, considering the insanity that is Word 07, I‘m thinking I dodged a bullet here!).

All in all the HP Mini 1001TU is a perfectly serviceable mobile computer. It does what you need oit to, when you need it to, and it comes with just about everything you’ll need, ready to go, out of the box. The one noticeable exception to this is the lack of any pre-installed firewall and/or antivirus software. Netbooks are designed to go online – they’re NETbooks. With this in mind I find it a little disappointing that HP haven’t stepped up for users and, like a well-meaning uncle, arranged a little prophylactic protection.

Still, as I was saying, it’s a great little machne in all the right ways and understandably not so great in all the expected areas. But if you’re like me – an avid writer – this is probably one of the best netbook keyboards you’re likely to find. That was my deciding factoe and it appears to have paid off . Only fourteen typos in a nearly 900 word review. Not bad, not bad at all.