By outfitting an off-the-shelf netbook with a touchscreen, we were able to make our own finger-friendly PC.

And while I suppose I could just buy one of these machines, I thought it’d be more fun to make my own touchscreen PC out of last year’s “it” computer: the lowly netbook. The advantage: unlike these new tablets, my creation would also have a keyboard, making it far more practical for typing-heavy tasks such as e-mail and running Word.

First, I needed to gear up. I bought a Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 netbook (about R4 800) and a Hoda Technology Solderless Touch Screen Kit (under R1 000), which contained everything I‘d need to transform a netbook into a touch-friendly tablet. Hoda offers a variety of models that are designed to fit specific netbooks, so make sure you get the right one if you try this at home.

I wanted to be sure the new touchscreen was properly protected, so I bought a BodyGuardz transparent scratch-proof skin, which is designed to protect touch-screens without impairing their sensitivity. Before covering the new panel, I gave it a once-over with a can of compressed air – otherwise, dirt and dust could be forever trapped under the BodyGuardz.

Taking the PC apart
Next came the fun part. In order to wire in the new screen, I first needed to disassemble much of the netbook. I started with the easy stuff: I removed the battery, unscrewed the underbelly screws and took out the hard drive. Removing the keyboard and screen bezel was a bit trickier – they had to be pried off with a filed-down plastic knife (plastic is less likely to scratch than metal).