Netbook Review: Lenovo S10e (hackintosh'ed)

eoren1

So I am now the proud owner of a Lenovo S10e and thought I would share my thoughts on this netbook as it seems to be a great carry-with-you photo storage and more...

For starters, I purchased a refurb Lenovo S10e from the Lenovo Outlet for about $300. The netbook offers incredibly easy access to ram and hard drive (2 screws) and comes with a 160gig drive. I upgraded to 2 gigs ram for $25. As for the hardware/size, the keyboard is just a bit cramped (I think it is 92 or 95% of normal size). The screen is nice (I do need to calibrate it - note to self). It comes with an SD slot (wish it was a CF one), 2 USB and one Expresscard 34 slot. And the one I purchased has a 6-cell battery which gives 6 hours battery life and tilts the keyboard down slightly which makes it a bit more ergonomic.

The netbook came with XP sp3 which was cumbersome on the small screen. Tried Win7 briefly but was not overly impressed. I had originally bought the Lenovo S10e because I knew a lot of work had been done to get it running Mac OS X. After a few unsuccessful attempts, I found a wonderfully simple method to install the OS on there. I have to say that the Mac OS runs beautifully and works very well on such a small form factor. Everything works well (except the microphone). I have Lightroom running and, while I don't think I'll be using the Develop module, I was able to import RAW shots (via CF reader) from a Canon 50D and create 1024 size high quality previews surprisingly quickly.

The best part is that the netbook fits perfectly in the front pocket of my newly purchased Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home that holds my camera and lenses. Happy to answer any questions about the laptop and/or the install. I didn't want to put in links given that this is a bit of a 'hack'.

Hope this is useful information,
E

bon4ire

That's great to hear! I myself have a hackintoshed netbook but on a Dell Mini 10v. Process was a little more cumbersome than my Mini 9 (also with OSX).

It's great that you have LR2 running. I was thinking of doing the same thing myself but thought the netbook would be a little to weak. I guess I'll have to try now.

Also, what method did you use to install OSX on your netbook?

B

eoren1

Here's what I used:
http://s10lenovo.com/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=2760
[mods: feel free to delete if this is inappropriate to link to ]

It is very much Lenovo S10 specific though. I know that a LOT of work was done on the mini side and an entire forum exists for those users looking for install methods as well.

I was very surprised by LR2 and how well it runs. For keywording, rating and, possibly, culling through photos (setting pick/reject flags), I think it will do the trick when away from the home macbook and 24" monitor. That, and the 160gig drive, makes it a great alternative to those portable HDD photo units.

E

ziggy53

I moved this to the Digital Darkroom Gear forum where we discuss computers used for photography.

Understand that the Digital Grin does not endorse this "hack" and you should realize that the computer used would be at considerable risk. Any risk or liability is the sole responsibility of the user.

Pupator

I'm going to thread hijack just a little - if it's a problem I'll make a new thread.

I do all my Lightroom edits at home on the desktop and haven't bothered installing it on my laptop because I wasn't sure how I could transfer the images and edits over to the desktop when I get home from a trip. But it sounds to me like you can put the images on the netbook, set the flags (at least that much) for keepers and rejects, and then when you get home move all that information (pictures and flags and maybe edits too?) over to the desktop.

Does lightroom work this way? Is it a pretty easy to navigate process? What all do you have to copy from the netbook to the laptop when you get home?

Thanks - again, sorry to get slightly off your original topic!

eoren1

Hey Pupator
All you need to do is 'export as catalog' from the laptop/netbook then 'import from catalog' on the desktop. You do need to make sure to check off Export negative files and, if you want, Include available previews.

Pupator

eoren1 wrote:

Hey Pupator
All you need to do is 'export as catalog' from the laptop/netbook then 'import from catalog' on the desktop. You do need to make sure to check off Export negative files and, if you want, Include available previews.

Excellent - I'll give it a try!

Nice write-up on the netbook, btw. I thought about the netbook route but went with a Macbook Air instead. Then I got disappointed in the battery life and went with a new Macbook Pro. I'm a PC guy, but this battery life doesn't exist at this pricepoint in the PC world. Perhaps I should have considered a netbook again.