Battery Life
While Lenovo tells us that a unit with a six-cell battery will be available at some point, as of this writing, all the configurations available on Lenovo.com feature three-cell batteries, as did our review unit. On our LAPTOP Battery Test (continuous Web surfing over Wi-Fi), the S10's battery lasted 2 hours and 23 minutes, which is comparable to the three-cell Acer Aspire one with XP, which lasted a nearly identical 2 hours and 22 minutes with a smaller, 9-inch screen. If battery life is important, we recommend holding out for an S10 with a six-cell battery; you’ll likely get around 5 hours of endurance, given that the the Wind and Eee PC 1000H, both of which feature six-cell batteries, lasted 5:13 and 4:28, respectively.
Verdict
More than half a dozen mini-notebooks are currently available with identical 1.6-GHz Intel Atom processors and Windows XP Home operating systems. With so few differences between competing models, any innovation—a stylish look, a better keyboard, a bundled piece of software, or even an extra port—becomes paramount. Lenovo’s first foray into the netbook space has some nice touches: a stylish and compact chassis, full-featured back-up software, a speedy hard drive, and a screen with great viewing angles.
Unfortunately, it also has a smaller keyboard and touchpad than its 10-inch rivals. At $449, the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 is within $30 of the street price for the three-cell MSI Wind ($479 street) and comparable to the six-cell ASUS Eee PC 1000H. Consumers who want the most compact and stylish 10-inch netbook on the market will look past these flaws and snap up the S10. But those who need long battery life should look elsewhere or hold out for an S10 with a six-cell battery.
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