Netbook Navigator has a habit of putting out products that don’t seem to fit the company’s branding. The first few Netbook Navigator computers were tablets, not netbooks. Now the company is introducing a 13.3 inch laptop it’s calling an ultrabook — even though Intel has trademarked the term to describe something a bit different.

Netbook Navigator Nav13X
The Netbook Navigator Nav13X certainly looks like an ultrabook. It features a 13.3 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel display and a thin and light case. It measures 0.6 inches thick, weighs about 2.9 pounds, and looks an awful lot like a MacBook Air or Asus Zenbook.

The difference is that the MacBook Air and ultrabooks feature speedy Intel Core i5 or faster processors, while the Nav 13X has a 1.86 GHz Intel Atom N2800 Cedar Trail processor.

While that’s the latest and greatest Intel has to offer in its Atom lineup, it’s no match for the company’s Core i-series chips, and Intel’s guidelines for ultrabooks generally require PC makers to use the more powerful chips. I can’t help but wonder if Netbook Navigator will run afoul of Intel’s marketing arm by calling the Nav13X an ultrabook.

That said, it certainly looks like a nice alternative to a typical netbook. The computer is available with a 32GB, 64GB, or 128GB solid state disk, 2GB or 3GB of RAM, WiFi, and Bluetooth. Unfortunately you need a special adapter to use Ethernet or VGA ports, but there’s a standard mini-HDMI port for output and the computer has 2 USB 2.0 ports and an SD card slot.

Prices start at $499.99 for a Nav13X laptop with 2GB of RAM, a 32GB solid state disk, and no operating system.

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22 replies on “Netbook Navigator Nav13X is a netbook in an ultrabook body”

  1. Netbooks are seriously underrated. I’ve been using a Samsung model with an Atom N550 and 2gb of RAM for about a year and a half. It’s not slow at all, and I have 6-core processor, 8gb RAM desktop to compare it to. I have no idea where people come up with things like it takes half a minute to launch a basic program like a browser. Chrome, Office, VLC Player and other programs like that launch in about 2-3 seconds, and I have no problem running them all and more at once. Not bad for a $300 running on the first dual core Atom. 

  2. ubuntu 12.04 / (free) windows 8 preview ??
    4gb ddr3 ram for around $20 on slickdeals ??
    Ya’ll honestly want to store your files on a netbook ?? 32GB is fine for programs, heck plug in a microsd card or two for an additional 32-64gb of storage. 
    $500 seams kinda high… would make a great convertible tablet 🙂

  3. This computer is an interesting take on the N2800-based KIRF (keeping it real fake) Macbook Air clone that first appeared last December, because, at great expense, one can stick 4gb of memory and a 128 gig SSD in this critter.

    The N2800 Air clone is somewhat notable as being the first Atom N2800 based computer available for sale; the Lol Buy D16 Netbook (64 gig SSD and 2 gig memory for $500 including shipping; 32 gig SSD version for $450) has been around since January.

  4. Too bad I want an ultrabook in a netbook body plus thinner bezels. I don’t understand the emphasis on thin when the footprint is large. For example, an 11.6 inch screen with a footprint of a 13.3 inch notebook.

    1.  Thin still means lighter and easier to squeeze into a bag with other stuff, even a small difference can be considered worth it depending on how much traveling the user does or what else they carry with them as well.

      While people who have to work actually prefer larger screens and keyboards.  So Ultra Thin & Light is the compromise they settle upon.

      You may see products more to your liking next year though when 22nm Silvermont comes out and gives the ATOM it’s first major spec boost since the ATOM was first introduced.  Competition in the mobile market is ramping up and that means higher performance is going to be offered throughout.

      If not then you may have to wait till 2014 when Intel reduces their FAB to 14nm and that should be small enough to get their higher end offerings into those small systems.

      1.  At 2.9 it is no lighter than most other latest gen netbooks. Maybe a tad thinner but not much. I’m with Tom on the bezel. The common netbook casing size could squeeze in a 11″ screen by dropping the bezel. And leaving wide plastic space on each side of a really small keyboard makes no sense at all. Another problem is the need for an ethernet adapter. One more unwanted thing to carry.

        All in all I’ll stick to a more vanilla netbook.

        1.  No, what you stated is not accurate.  The 2.9 pounds is for a 13.3″ system, which is significantly bigger than a 10″ netbook of the same weight!

          13.3″ systems typically weigh closer to 5 pounds for an accurate comparison!

          Like already pointed out there are customers who just care about the weight saving.

          Second, the bezel is there also to protect the screen, as well as make room for things like the webcam, and they can’t just eliminate it.  The screens itself isn’t even borderless yet.

          Third, this is a 13.3″ system, which means that’s not a tiny keyboard!  It’s the keyboard on a 10″ netbook that is smaller than standard. 

          It’s just that they usually don’t bother including the num pad and other dedicated keys except for the larger size laptops.  So 13.3″ usually gets a full size keyboard but still lacks the dedicated keys the larger laptops get.

          The only two problems with the system is the use of a ATOM instead of a Core i-series ULV and the pricing that’s too close to Ultrabook pricing.

    2.  Exactly, for people who travel foot print can be as  important as weight. Especially during flights or some other cramp makeshift work area during your travels. Why use an 11.6″ notebook when you could use a 13.3″ one with same footprint. That ~0.5″ less thickness doesn’t help a whole lot in my bag anyway.

      1. The main reason I don’t get a netbook is it’s just too slow. I prefer the smaller dimensions of the netbook but I can’t deal with the low performance.

  5. Wouldn’t be bad if they didn’t kill you on spec upgrades.  $100 for 2 more GB of RAM and $400 for 128 GB SSD is higher than one would pay for the “Apple premium”.  And ringing up $1200 for a netbook is laughable…

    1. Actually, Apple charges +$100 to go from 2GB to 4GB RAM, and the fully loaded version still costs hundreds less than the 128GB Macbook Air…

      1. Actually you’re wrong.  
        11″ MBA: 2 more GB of RAM and upgrade SSD from 64 to 128 GB: $200 

        Netbook Navigator: 2 more GB of RAM and upgrade SSD from 64 to 128 GB: $350

        And $1199 vs $1199 (11″ MBA) or $1299 (13″) is not “hundreds less”.  And that’s rocking an Atom vs an iCore!

        1. Check your math: The NAV13X (13″) with Home Premium, 4GB RAM and 128GB SSD is $1,099.  The same spec on a MBA (13″) is $1,299.  That’s a $200 difference, and the speed difference between the N2800 and Core i5 is negligible for everyday computing, unless you’re talking about running heavy duty applications.

          1. If N2800 is sufficient for everyday computing, netbooks would be dominating the PC market right now.

          2. “everyday computing” means very different things for different people.

            My mother for example uses Word, Excel, Surfs the web, watches her favorite TV shows via Streaming video and plays Angrybirds.

            She does that on a N270 singlecore atom with 2 gigs of ram and insists the computer she does that on is fast (to her).

            If you’re only playing casual/flash games, don’t need your video to be high def, and don’t encode video or SERIOULSY use photoshop, a dual core atom will do EVERYTHING people need their PC to do

          3. I have briefly used a stock Acer netbook (last year model) that my parents bought for accounting purposes. Opening IE easily took half a minute. It was definitely not adequate even for everyday computing.

          4. see, that is exactly the point.

            Not adequate….FOR YOU.

            stock netbook more often than not means 1GB of ram, 2GB easily makes a difference.

            not using IE for anything but windows update and going for a decent browser with an adblocker makes a difference aswell.

            and even with a 1GB netbook and IE….there are people who don’t mind a slow computer or don’t know that it could go faster.

            they’re conent with what a netbook offers.

          5. The same can apply to you. While it might be adequate for you, it may not be adequate for the majority. Not to mention the majority of consumers are not well-versed enough to know how to upgrade the RAM.

          6. The objections the people I know have against netbooks are not their speed as much as their size and lack of optical drive.  10 inches doesn’t work for a lot of people.

          7.  My main objection about a netbook is speed. I don’t have much use for an optical drive.

          8. You said “fully loaded version” which would include windows ultimate not the wimpy home version. Which brings it to $1199 – A hundred (singular) less than MBA.
            Negligible?  2X the bus speed, 3X the cache, and turbo to 2.7Ghz… 

            I guess if that extra speed wasn’t worth $100 more to someone they could just pick up the Acer S3 ultrabook with i5 core and 128GB SSD for $400 LESS

            So unless you use linux to do only word processing and don’t need much space for any thing… there are much better options.
              

          9. There’s just about a $200 difference in the chip cost between a Intel® Coreâ„¢ i5-2467M Processor (3M Cache, 1.60 GHz) and a Intel® Atomâ„¢ Processor N2800 (1M Cache, 1.86 GHz).

            So it would seem to be way over priced but Apple charges less for their OSX than MS does Windows, especially the Ultimate version, and that would otherwise put the price of the system at a little more reasonable pricing.

            Though Netbook Navigator caters to mainly to business consumers and that’s a usually higher pricing market than the regular consumer market.  So not surprised they would be willing to make such a high priced offering.

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