I have come to a point where I really do think that most desktop computers can be scrapped for laptop or notebook computers. Seeing as my home computer is a Pentium 4 and I’ve been using that for six years, with a few repairs along the way. The Gateway M-6750 provides enough processing power for all applications besides games and a 15″ monitor that gives enough desktop space.

For under $600 the Gateway M-6750 notebook computer comes with a nice shiny finish combined with polished aluminum looking edge around the keyboard. The looks are good, and that’s not bad for a nicely priced laptop.

The Core2 Duo processor, although a mobile version, will give enough power for office type applications, web browsing, listening to music or playing videos. The processor is combined with 3GB of RAM and the Windows Vista operating system.

Some of the main features are

• 1.66GHz Intel Core2 Duo CPU
• 3GB of RAM
• Windows Vista Home
• DVD writer
• Memory card port
• Speakers
• Webcam
• Network port
• 802.11n wireless

These features together will do well for a home office or personal use.

The 3GB of memory is good for Windows Vista as it needs more memory than previous operating systems, which is usually true anyway I guess. The dual core processor helps too.

Networking features are good, and having 802.11n wireless, which supports up to 300MB/s transfer speeds allows the fastest possible speeds over wireless networks.

The graphics uses up to 384MB of main memory. This is good for increasing the graphics quality, but not so good as it uses up more of the memory that could be used by other programs on the computer. With that said however, there is plenty of memory to go around and programs won’t be left wanting with still 2GB of memory after the graphics and Windows’ needs.

There are three USB slots and an Express Card slot for system expansion.

Finally, the 15 inch monitor supports up to 1280 x 800 screen resolution. This is spot on for a monitor of this size and gives enough extra room to squeeze two web browsers side-by-side, but keeps them at a readable size.

For just under $1000, the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 offers a well-rounded package with fairly high performance processor, decent sized screen and enough extras to keep most users happy.

The screen is a around 14 inches and offers 1280 x 800 screen resolution. I always find this a little disappointing. The screen resolution doesn’t allow much more than a standard amount of desktop space, that is to say it will fit a document or a webpage, but struggle to fit both. I suppose that’s reasonable for the size, but even if the text is small, I like to be able to fit two windows comfortable beside each other. On the other hand, I do use a 1280 width monitor for work and it’s usually enough.

The dual-core processor gives a bit of punch, and allows multiple programs to be run simultaneously, whilst the load is spread over the two cores.

Here are some of the main specs for the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510:

• Intel Centrino Core2 Duo
• 3GB of memory
• 250GB hard drive
• DVD writer
• Windows Vista Home
• 3 USB ports
• Wireless 802.11b/g/n
• Fast Ethernet
• Up to 4 hours battery life

A major plus is the amount of memory and hard drive space. 250GB of hard drive space is enough to store plenty of photos, songs and videos. 3GB of memory gives a lot of memory for Windows Vista to play around with. Windows Vista needs at least 1GB and this gives it more than it needs.

Wireless connectivity supports up to 300Mb/s, faster than most internet connections. The Ethernet port only supports up to 100Mb/s, which is a little strange, because the wired networks usually support much faster speeds than the wireless. However, there are probably more fast wireless networks around than Gigabit wired networks.

At a tad under 3kg, this is not a light notebook, but makes up for the extra weight with a full house of features. Add to these Lenovo’s VeriFace security software, which verifies users by their facial features and you get a very capable machine quite worthy to be a desktop replacement laptop.

For under $600, this Acer computer offers a lot of features for a fully-featured laptop. AMD Turion 64 X2 processor offers a lot of processing power without sucking too much power. A 15.4″ screen gives ample viewing area. 2.0 GB of memory allows Windows Vista to operate well, and 160 GB hard drive and DVD burner give plenty of options for storing lots of data.

Personally, I love litte, ultraportable computers. That’s probably because I do the vast majority of my work at a desktop and have little need for a regular laptop. However, modern laptops have improved so much that they provide more than enough power for what most users require. My five year old desktop computer still does everything I want it to do, and laptops now do better, for even less than what I originally paid.

This Acer Aspire does give what’s necessary to be a desktop replacement notebook. Here are some of the main features:

• 1.9GHz AMD Turion 64 X3 Dual-Core processor
• 15.4″ wide screen (1280 x 800)
• 2.0 GB of DDR2 memory (supports up to 4.0 GB)
• 160 GB hard drive
• DVD writer
• Media reader
• Gigabit Ethernet
• Wi-Fi (b/g)

This is a refurbished notebook though, so you get a computer that has been used before, but fixed up. With all the features I would still say that this is a good bet and offers everything necessary to be a desktop replacement computer.

Little computers are becoming very popular, or so it would seem with the amount of hype around mini-sized laptops recently.

The Eee PC from Asus is heading up this movement to smaller, more portable computers, that tend to fit somewhere between a laptop, which is meant to cover as a full-time computer, and a PDA with a traditional operating system.

The Surf model has a few more features than the standard Eee PC.

Here are some of the features:

• 7″ screen
• 2 pounds
• 3 USB ports
• 1 VGA port
• Audio out / Mic in
• Intel Mobile CPU
• 512 MB RAM
• 4 GB solid state drive
• 10/100 Mb/s LAN
• Wireless connectivity (up to 54 Mb/s)

Personally I have quite an affinity for these little PCs. They offer everything that most people would want from a computer nowadays. Network connections are taken care of thanks to wireless and wired networking support.

The advantages of this computer lie mostly in it’s size and portability. It’s extremely light, and extremely small, not small enough for a pocket, but small enough to fit in a briefcase. The built-in operating system offers a web browser, document editors, messaging, media player and other standard software.

The downsides also have to do with reduced sizes. You’ll need an extra monitor and keyboard for prolonged use. The screen is too small for extended work, and the keyboard is not full-sized like a regular keyboard, it’s around 83% the size, which will make big hands feel cramped. The hard drive is only 4 GB, so no storage of DVDs. Linux OS is harder to upgrade. Although a new OS can be installed if you like, either Windows or another flavor of Linux.

Basically, I really like it. The best part is the price, it is cheap. It is functional and performs specific tasks very well. It lacks in power and storage space, but you can pay more for an 8 GB model or wait till more powerful ones are released in the future.

A desktop replacement laptop computer with a 17 inch screen and graphics that leave little to be desired.

AMD have had a tough time with Intel’s release of their dual- and quad-core processors. But despite this I still have a little soft spot for the underdog of the processor industry.

The HP Pavilion is based on an AMD chipset, offering fast performance from their tried and tested Turion X2 processor. With a direct connection to the memory from the processor, AMD processors get a boost in performance because the memory can operate at the same frequency as the processor.

Here are some of the main features:

• 1.8 GHz AMD Turion X2 processor
• 17 inch monitor
• 7.8 lbs
• Built-in webcam
• 1 GB of memory
• 160 GB hard drive
• USB
• Firewire
• LAN port
• VGA
• ExpressCard slot

Lets have an overview of the different specifications. As mentioned all ready, the processor gives good performance and does well for power savings, meaning longer battery life.

A 17 inch monitor is fine for anyone that intends to use their laptop computer exclusively. For modern computing this is about the least necessary for continuous use of the computer. Widescreen monitors give that little bit extra width, which is more useful that pure size, but this size is still fine.

Built-in features are very necessary for keeping the size of a laptop down. It is easy to have a small laptop, but which requires a handful of USB devices to accomplish very simple tasks like reading from a CD or DVD. The DVD writer is a bonus which allows DVD to burnt without an external device.

System expansion is handled by three external USB ports, a firewire port and an ExpressCard slot.

Video performance is good, thanks to the onboard video chipset. A built-in webcam allows video conferencing on the increasingly popular Skype of other VoIP networks, or just for taking still pictures.

The mouse pad is placed well, being by the center of the spacebar. Often it is placed at the center of the computer, which means it gets knocked by the ball of the right hand when typing.

Overall, a full set of features, with enough power to do any office work and play some games. There is no need for extra bits, which means the laptop bag, although a little heavy, doesn’t need to be weighed down by other goodies.

The HP Compaq 6710b is a business laptop with a moderately powerful dual core processor, wireless capabilites and a solid set of features that’s suited to the needs of high-demand computing at a price that makes it attractive to even the most budget-conscious.

Dual core computing is well entrenched in the market now and often the only reason to not get one is the super-low prices on single core models. To keep up with the curve however, dual core certainly makes a lot of sense. The added power of a second processor core makes multi-tasking applications a much smoother process. The 1.8GHz Intel processor featured on this model is at the low end of the range, which certainly helps with its low pricing. The slowest models in a range often give much better per-dollar performance that the faster models.

Other features include:

• PC card slot
• 4 USB ports
• Firewire port
• LAN port
• Modem port
• Microphone input and audio output
• VGA port
• DVD writer with LightScribe
• S-video connector

The standard 1GB of memory is more than enough for most applications. Windows Vista Business is slightly less demanding on the system than Vista Professional so should be enough to handle your applications. Getting more would probably be a little overkill, but for a future performance boost both either one of the current memory modules would need to be replaced. Having a single 1GB card would make an upgrade a little less costly, as only a single 1GB would need to be added. Not a big gripe.

The screen is a 15.4 inch WXGA affair. This can handle up to 1280×800 screen resolution. Although fine for most laptops it might be a too little for the eyes, especially seeing how sizes are generally increasing. The resolution might need to be run a little bit lower than that to achieve good size of screen items, but will sacrifice a lot of on-screen real estate.

The standard hard drive that comes with this model is 120GB which is still enough for most applications. No large video storage though.

The other features include a DVD writer that includes LightScribe technology, which allows images to be burnt onto the top of the disc using the DVD writer. Maybe not that useful, but it does do all the usual DVD burning stuff as well. Wireless connectivity is included, but make sure to secure your connection when connecting.

Overall, a great buy for the money. The little complaints don’t take away from the overall functionality of the HP Compaq 6710b notebook computer.

Sony will soon be offereing the first ultra-portable notebook which has integrated broadband included as standard. Wide area network connectivity for ultra-fast internet access. Sony notebook pc are already great to use and this is just another special extra for those who need it.
Connecting to the Sprint Power Vision Network will allow users to take advantage of broadband speeds for internet access. It is quite possible that other notebook computer manufacturers will follow suite as well.
This kind of wide area network gives huge potential to mobile computing by offering super high speeds without the cables needed for traditional boradband setups.

Press report from Sony website

The Toshiba Tecra S3 has been designed to improve the security, connectivity and durability of previous Toshiba laptops. It is not that much better looking, but does manage to make it in those areas. Let’s have a look at what earns it the “rugged computer” label.

It claims to meet the ROHS (Restiction of Hazardous Substances). In reality this means that it will most likely be able to take a spill of breakfast and not be any worse off because of it. This is aided by making the case almost waterproof and this is obvious with the protective stuff under the keyboard that keeps moisture out.

Security was improved with the use of a biometric finger scanner which allows you to sign on and have files encrypted with 2048 bit security. This is vital for a rugged computer which could quite easily be stolen.

This Toshiba laptop has been given a whole host of features to allow it to withstand the bumps and shocks that computers on the move go through. The space around the screen is larger so that it takes the brunt of the force during a drop, rather than the screen. There are also sensors that lock the heads of the hard drive to protect it.

The software suite that comes with this Toshiba laptop handles all of the connectivity and keeps you in control of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections on the computer.

There is no microphone and no camera on this particular Toshiba laptop, most likely because it is designed to be a rugged computer. The microphone poses a problem as a point where fluid could get into the computer.

Overall this rugged computer does well, and leaves very little wanting. With a weight of just over 6 pounds, it is not light, but it makes up for that with its durability.

These first glimpses of a Sony ultra-portable were revealed on jkontherun. Reported to have an approximately 5″ screen, and with a keyboard that slides out, it looks quite portable as well as quite stylish.

It will have a slot for a memory stick, a qwerty keyboard, as well as support for USB and firewire, which are extended by the docking bay.

Reportedly it will come with Windows XP Pro as opposed to the tablet edition, which seems like a little bit of a stange choice, but there you have it.

This list was posted as well:

Price: $1799.99
Release date: June
4.5 inch 1024×600 touchscreen with XBRITE
slide-out QWERTY keyboard
Windows XP Professional
1.2GHz Core Solo processor
512MB RAM
30GB hard drive with shock protection
802.11a/b/g
WAN (Cingular EDGE)
Bluetooth
dual cameras (VGA on the front, 1.3 MP on the back) with a microphone
biometric fingerprint sensor
1 USB port
Memory Stick slot
headphone and microphone inputs
1.1 pounds
Dimensions: 6? x 4? x 2?
Battery Life:3 to 7 hours
Stylus and a case will be included
Docking station which adds 3 USB ports, 1 Firewire port, and VGA/AV outputs
GPS will also be supported through Bluetooth

Have to wait and see.

LINK

Tomshardware takes a Twinhead Durabook N15RI and throws it around and does unspeakable things to see how much it can handle and how well it performs after the throwaround.

It is designed to be able to survive a series of tests that would destroy the average plastic cased laptop, but it doesn’t just perform well in this area but does well in general use too, which is not something to be overlooked.

The case is made of Magnesium alloy, making it extremely strong. The parts inside are surrounded by rubber padding to keep them from being damaged if dropped or moved around. The case itself does not clip closed so as to allow more flex for when you drop it or it gets bashed around.

Everything on the keyboard side of the notebook is fully sealed, protecting against spills and damage from water.

The tests included multiple drops, a large drop, water being poured over it and a whole lot of shaking for an hour.

This laptop passes all the tests with ease and as well as being rugged it has good looks and decent performance going for it. Not much else to ask for in a computer really, is there?

LINK