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Asus Eee PC 4G Surf with Wireless, 512 MB RAM and 4 GB SSD

Saturday, May 31st, 2008 | Laptop and Notebook Computer Reviews, Reviews | View Comments

Little computers are becoming very popular, or so it would seem with the amount of hype around mini-sized laptops recently. There are plenty of notebook computer reviews and laptop computer reviews on these little guys, so I’ll add my opinion to the mix.

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.

Tags: 7 inch, Asus, Eee PC, laptop computer reviews, notebook computer reviews, SSD, ultra-portable

HP Pavilion AMD Turion 64 X2 Notebook PC

Monday, December 10th, 2007 | Laptop and Notebook Computer Reviews, News | View Comments

A desktop replacement laptop computer with a 17 inch screen and graphics that leave little to be desired. This notebook computer review looks at a high-powered laptop computer with some hard hitting performance. Let’s start the laptop computer review.

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.

Tags: laptop computer reviews, notebook computer reviews

HP Compaq 6710b Notebook PC

Thursday, November 8th, 2007 | Laptop and Notebook Computer Reviews | View Comments

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. Our notebook computer review sees just how apt it is for the task.

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.

Tags: laptop computer reviews, notebook computer reviews