Today’s the day Walmart places it’s $298 laptop on sale. This device is notable because it’s not your typical stripped down Netbook with tiny screen (this model has a 15.4″ screen) and missing features (there’s a CD/DVD Writer included, 3GB RAM and 160 GB hard drive). To be sure this is not going to be the world’s speediest computer. However for someone who wants to use the Internet on a screen larger than the typical 10″ found on a Netbook – at a price that is no bigger than the typical Netbook – this may be the answer. There’s some question whether the Windows Vista Home Basic (32-bit) that’s pre-loaded will be eligible for a free Windows 7 upgrade (it doesn’t appear so) and the price to upgrade to Windows 7 may be almost half ($120) of what you pay for the laptop. Still, for home use – especially in situations where heavy processing isn’t needed – this could set a new price level for full sized laptops.
