Laptop notebook

Acer Aspire 6920

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 08:11:00 +0000

The all new Gemstone Blue series notebooks from Acer offer a cinematic experience with a 16-inch 16:9 ratio display, built-in subwoofer, and touch-sensitive multimedia control panel. Going beyond the multimedia experience, Acer also give this Gemstone notebook one of the most innovative designs we have seen in years. From a semi-transparent LCD cover with an LED outlined company logo to blue LED illuminated chrome screen hinges Acer really went all out to make this notebook stand out from the competition. Now does Acer really deliver a "true cinematic experience?" Read on to find out.

Buying Choices for the Acer Aspire 6920

Amazon.com | $849.99

Specifications:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 (2.0GHz, 667MHz FSB, 2MB Level 2 cache)
Operating system: Windows Vista Home Premium
Memory: 4GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300)
Hard drive: 250GB (5400rpm)
Screen: 16" HD Acer CineCrystal (glossy) display (1366 x 768)
Graphics: Intel X3100 integrated graphics
Optical drive: DVD SuperMulti DL
Ports: Ethernet, modem, VGA, microphone in, two audio out jacks, four USB ports, 5-in-1 card reader, ExpressCard slot
Wireless: 802.11a/g/n, Bluetooth 2.0
Dimensions: 10.8" x 15.1" 1.7" (HxWxD)
Weight: 7.3 lbs.
MSRP as configured: $899

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Build and Design

Build quality of the Acer Aspire 6920 is very solid and held up quite well during our testing. Whether it was being tossed inside of a backpack haphazardly or carried around by the edge of the palmrest, it didn't make one creak of noise. The plastics used throughout the notebook are high quality, and give it a tough feel (might even be subliminal with the brick textured palmrest) which doesn't bend under a strong grip. The glossy plastic bits located throughout, including the media control panel, held up well without showing much wear or scuffing. Those thinking about stuffing the notebook into a backpack full of heavy textbook needn't worry, as the screen cover resists a strong push without distorting the LCD, although I wouldn't go as far as standing on it.

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The design of the Gemstone Blue series is a bit unlike anything I have played with or experienced before. Acer paid attention to all of the minor details when designing this notebook, leaving no surface untouched of some sort of special feature. The screen cover which can generally be a pretty basic element of a notebook has a very advanced look to it. It consisted of multiple layers and soft gradient changes from dark blue around the edges to a semi-transparent blue in the center. It is a subtle touch that you don't notice at first, but once you do it is pretty awesome. LED lighting is another design element used throughout the design of this notebook, and they can be found in many areas:

Hinge endcaps
Power button outline illumination
Media control area
Acer logo on the cover

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The only areas Acer didn't really add to the design of this notebook are found on the lower end configuration models. Acer shares the same plastic trim and palmrest between models, and if your notebook didn't come equipted with HDMI, TV-Tuner, or Fingerprint scanner you are left with tacky looking blanks. The worst one is the fingerprint scanner blank, which makes it look like you have one, but it is actually black plastic bar. This even confused a few retail sites which list lower configurations as having a fingerprint scanner, even though they don't.

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Screen

The 16:9 Acer CineCrystal LCD rates average compared to other notebooks, having good color and contrast, but lacking a wide viewing range. The display has a very narrow viewing sweet spot and even a small 5-10 degree change up or down will start to invert colors on the top or bottom half of the screen. Side to side viewing angles were better, but still lacking compared to other displays.

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The aspect ratio of the screen does help reduce the some of the aspect ratio correcting bars found while watching some movies, but doesn't entirely get rid of them which some might think. Depending on the movie you watch you will still have some bars, either super small, or upwards of an inch tall.

Keyboard and Touchpad

From the first day seeing this Acer notebook opened, I wasn't sure how much I would like the keyboard with the angled spacebar and right ALT key. Well I am happy to say that although the design is a bit odd, it didn't impede my typing abilities, which I was nervous about at first. The keys are great, with a shallow cupped surface, and good quiet feedback when typing. Support underneath the keyboard could be better, with some mild sag under moderate finger pressure. The layout and spacing were great and I didn't miss a full number pad, although it could have fit one if it didn't have the media controls.

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The touchpad surface was great to use, with a unique brick-like surface texture that let you finger effortlessly slip across it even if your hand was a bit sweaty. Sensitivity was excellent out of the box, and if you wanted to, you could adjust it further through the control panel. The scrolling region of the touchpad was defined with a small ridge that separated it from the main area, which had a tendency to confuse you during use. Your finger would slide over and try to scroll inside the main area, since you would think you were hitting the far edge of the touchpad.

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Input and Output Ports

Port selection on the Acer Gemston Blue was decent, but was missing a few common ports that we would have liked to see. Firewire was nowhere to be found, and for those who selected lower configurations, all you get is a blank HDMI and TV tuner port. Acer included 4 USB ports, instead of just 3 which you sometimes find on 15" or even 17" notebooks. Below is the full port selection list:

4 USB 2.0 ports
ExpressCard slot
Gigabit Ethernet and modem
5-in-1 multi-card reader
Headphone
Microphone, Line-In
VGA monitor out
Kensington lock slot

eSata and a true docking connection were also missing. I would have personally enjoyed not seeing a modem jack and the extra space used for eSata or a proprietary docking connection.

Front: 5-in-1 multi-card reader

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Rear: Subwoofer

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Left: AC Power, Modem, VGA, LAN, 1 USB, Headphone/Mic/Line-in

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Right: Optical Drive, 3 USB, Kensington Lock Slot

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Performance and Benchmarks

The Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 processor found in our review configuration isn't exactly the fastest processor on the market, but it was more than fast enough for your average workload. Office productivity applications and internet browsers were no problems for this computer. Even more difficult tasks such as compressing audio or video files in iTunes completed without much delay. Overall most users will have a hard time telling the difference between a top of the line processor and base budget model during day to day work. Gaming and more stressful applications where something with that amount of grunt is needed.

The lack gaming abilities of the X3100 integrated graphics chipset on the other hand really put a damper on any fun with this notebook. Without a more powerful dedicated graphics chipset, you won't be able to play current or even last generation games without horrible frame rates, or even getting the game to load at all. Another downside to the X3100 graphics on this notebook is the removal of the HDMI port (come standard in higher configurations), leaving you with only VGA out for connection to a larger display.

WPrime 32M comparison results

WPrime is a benchmark similar to Super Pi in that it forces the processor to do intense mathematical calculations, but the difference is this application is multi-threaded and represents dual core processors better. Lower numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Acer Aspire 6920 (Core 2 Duo T5750 @ 2.0GHz)	44.457s
Sony VAIO FW (Core 2 Duo T9400 @ 2.53GHz)	30.373s
Dell Studio 15 (Core 2 Duo T5750 @ 2.0GHz)	41.246s
HP Pavilion dv5z (Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80 @ 2.1GHz)	39.745s
Dell Vostro 1510 (Core 2 Duo T5670 @ 1.8GHz)	51.875s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
HP Pavilion dv6500z (Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	40.759s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
HP Pavilion dv6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance based on processor, hard drive, operating system, RAM, and graphics (higher scores are better):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Acer Aspire 6920 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	4,179 PCMarks
Sony VAIO FW (2.53GHz Intel T9400, ATI Radeon HD 3470)	6,002 PCMarks
Dell Studio 15 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	3,998 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	3,994 PCMarks
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	3,568 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Acer Aspire 6920 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	605 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FW (2.53GHz Intel T9400, ATI Radeon HD 3470)	2,598 3DMarks
Dell Studio 15 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	493 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	1,599 3DMarks
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	519 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6500z (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, NVIDIA 8400m GS)	1,551 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

HDTune results:

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Speakers and Audio

Audio performance of the speakers found on this Acer notebook fall between above average and "sounds like earbuds cranked up." Acer included a subwoofer tube built into the hinge section of the display, which helps to add life into the music or movies that you might be watching. However, if you disable the subwoofer, the regular speakers sound horrific. They lack all midrange and bass, and sound just like small earbud headphones cranked up to a higher volume. The overall speaker performance could have been greatly improved with slightly better main speakers, but as it stands, they still rate fairly good if you keep the subwoofer turned on.

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The headphone jack worked very well without any static or hiss if you were watching a movie or listening to music in a more private setting. For a notebook, I still think a users best friend is a good set of "cans."

Battery Life

On the balanced profile with screen brightness set to 60% and wireless enabled, the Acer Gemstone pulled off 4 hours and 6 minutes of battery life with the 4400mAh battery. This is well above average, even compared against notebooks equipped with much higher capacity batteries.

Heat and Noise

Thermal performance is better than average, where even under heavy stress, like in the middle of benchmarking, the notebook is barely above room temperature in all of the important areas. The palmrests were slightly above room temperature and the bottom of the was fairly cool as well. The only warm spot that you notice with it sitting on your lap is right at the back corner of the notebook near the CPU exhaust vent.

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Even while maintaining a very cool outside temperature, the system doesn't really emit much fan noise. During normal operation the system has the fan completely off or at a very slow speed, which you can only hear if your head is right above the exhaust vent. During stressful activities such as benchmarking or encoding video, the fan increases speed, but still within the whisper range.

Buying Choices for the Acer Aspire 6920

Amazon.com | $849.99

Conclusion

The Acer Gemstone Blue series has one of the coolest designs we have seen in our office in quite a long time. The attention to detail is astounding, especially with the screen cover where you realize the color isn't a solid blue, but instead a smooth transition to a lighter color towards centered Acer logo. Even the screen hinges weren't overlooked, with the chrome accents and inner blue LED lighting when plugged in. While our review model lacked HDMI out and a Blu-ray drive, it still handled downloaded HD content (720P) and DVD movies just fine. The built-in subwoofer performed well, but covered up the anemic audio that the main drivers put out.

For the going price of $899 this notebook configuration is a lukewarm deal, but if you find it on sale for $699 (which we have seen) it turns into a great deal for all that you get.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Dell Latitude D430 with U7700 User

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 08:02:00 +0000

The Dell Latitude D430 is Dell's current ultraportable offering that features Ultra Low Voltage (ULV) Intel processors and a host of other technologies in order to create one of the smallest 12.1" machines that still maintains a respectable amount of battery life and computing power. In the past few months, Dell has further updated the Latitude D430 to include a newer, more powerful processor from Intel. Read on to see how the new configuration for the D430 stacks up against the old one and its competitors!

(Note: As this is an updated article, I'll only be changing the sections in which my opinions have changed or the specs have changed. I reserve the right to plagiarize myself!)

Buying Choices for the Dell Latitude D430 Notebook Computer (Core Solo U7700 1.20GHz/80GB/2GB)

Dell, Inc. | $1,179.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 5 opinions | rate product

Reasons for Buying

After several months with my original Latitude D430, it started developing an intermittent problem that Dell was unable to solve. In hindsight, it was probably the same problem that landed that laptop in the Dell Outlet where I found it, but after Dell could not fix it they offered to trade my old D430 for a brand new D430 with updated specs. At least I was smart enough to realize that it was a good deal for me. New laptop, no problems, and another review article!

Price & Model Specifications

The D430 starts out at a not-so-cheap $1,149. Since the original article was written, the base configuration by default comes with a dual core processor, which makes this an even better deal.

My specific unit was configured as follows:

Intel Core 2 Duo U7700 Processor (1.33GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, Ultra Low Voltage)
Microsoft Genuine Windows XP Professional
12.1" WXGA Display (1280x800)
1GB DDR2 533MHz RAM (upgraded to 2GB)
80GB 4200RPM Toshiba 1.8" HDD
External D-Port CD-RW/DVD-ROM Optical Drive
Intel 3945 802.11a/b/g WiFi, Ethernet, and Modem
6-Cell 42Whr Battery
3-Year Next Business Day At-Home & Gold Technical Support Warranty
Dimensions: 11.6" W x 8.25" D x 1" H
Weight: 3.2lbs (with battery, without optical drive)

As configured, this notebook would cost $1,495 before taxes direct from Dell. However, Dell Latitude D430's can be found at the Dell Outlet for as little as $700 now and similar configurations can be found for $900-$1,100 no problem.

Build & Design

Business notebooks are supposed to be the top-of-the-line laptops, with the highest build quality and top notch support. My last three notebooks (including the original D430) were all high quality notebooks, and I expect the best.

In the last few months, I've come to realize that the D430 is the most solid notebook I have ever owned, and it is the lightest as well. The entire body of the laptop is built of tightly packed guts and a solid magnesium alloy frame with sold plastic "plating." The best way to describe it is that the bones and muscles of the D430 are solid metal, while the skin is made of a strong plastic.

The screen construction is also impressive, but not as much as the chassis' construction. As with most laptop screens, the display can be twisted a little bit ... but not nearly as much as other laptops I have encountered. The bezel has one small weak spot at the inside vertical edges, and when pushing in on the LCD screen from up top I can produce some ripples on the screen. Would it possibly be enough to damage the screen? No, but as with any notebook do not act out any of your dreams of dropping bricks directly onto the notebook. When in my backpack or another tight spot, I have no need to worry about the screen protection. I have included a video illustrating the squeeze effect, but I am pressing VERY hard to produce the ripples.

Most users will never notice this.

Since getting my new notebook, there have been ZERO problems with it. That is a welcome improvement from the first D430 which had a lot of problems near the beginning of the summer.

Other parts of the notebook are sturdy as well. The hard drive on the D430 features hardware-based shock protection (I never saw evidence of a hardware and software based solution like the Fujitsu E8410, HP 8710p, or HP nc8430), and the keyboard/mousepad area has absolutely no flex so all those computer parts directly underneath your working area are perfectly safe.

Coming in at a meager 12" in size, the D430 is definitely a small notebook. When placed in my backpack, I really do not notice the extra weight and it is easy to take with me every day. The only bad thing about such a light laptop is that if you leave it behind somewhere, you are not going to notice a huge weight lifted off your shoulders. From experience, I've had to learn to check a little more carefully to make sure the laptop is not left behind. In fact, I've become addicted to how small the notebook is ... I love its size and portability.

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Another feature that needs mentioning is the DVD drive, or lack thereof. The D430 managed to achieve its incredible thinness by ditching an internal DVD drive and going with an external Dell-specific-version-of-USB external USB DVD drive that can run off of the notebook's power mains to minimize the cable requirements. For users that do not need an optical drive very often, this will be perfectly fine. Users who need it more frequently may find themselves wondering if they'd want to carry around a second piece of equipment. I myself do not find it annoying to be missing a drive whatsoever, as I rarely need to use an optical drive. I love having the option to shed some backpack weight and leave the DVD drive at home, but some may not.

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As far as appearances go, this is a business notebook. Appropriately so, the D430 features a mostly black and gun-metal gray visual design. When compared to the design of the HP Compaq business notebooks, I would say that (1) the exterior of the Latitudes does not look as sharp but (2) the interior sections of the D430 look more professional and sharper.

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The exterior of the D430 (the back of the LCD screen and the bottom of the notebook) appears to be almost 100 percent gun-metal gray, which is a design feature that we've seen in Latitudes for a long time. It's getting kind of old, but it still looks nice. The updated model coming out in a few months will be a welcome redesign and refresh of the Latitude look, but this notebook still looks great. The interior of the D430 is really what looks nice and professional. The lines are sharper and the overall appearance is more visually appealing than my previous notebooks.

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When closed, the D430 reminds you of a thin workbook or textbook. In fact, the dimensions of the D430 are fairly close to standard 8.5"x11" paper and I regularly carry my D430 inside of a stack of notes and books. For a college student, this is really nice as you can move around with all of that in your hands and not have a problem with any of it. Try moving a 17" notebook with a few paper notebooks on top and see how awkward it is, and then you'll understand why one can appreciate the size of the 12" D430.

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Screen

The D430 features a standard 12" WXGA screen with a total resolution of 1280x800 pixels. Widescreen has pretty much become the standard for all notebooks, and I do have to say that it is nice to have this much horizontal real-estate.

The screen resolution itself is just right for a 12" notebook display, as for me all text and graphics easily readable. If you want to see a 12" screen for yourself, head to a local store that carries notebooks and try to find any 12" notebook there.

Many readers will wonder how a 12.1" screen could possibly be productive. Having a small, portable machine allows you to work virtually anywhere, which is better than having a larger screen in my eyes.

However, I do acknowledge that a smaller screen does require some multitasking sacrifices. Most programs do need to be maximized in order to really have an effective layout of the GUI, and exceptions are few and far between. Word, Outlook, Firefox, etc. ... all of them need to be maximized for best performance while you are doing your individual tasks. Multitasking is going to require tabbing through all the windows or using your mouse to navigate. Personally, I find this mode of working acceptable given the tasks that are typically going to run on the D430.

Head on, the screen itself is very high quality. Text and graphics are very sharp, and the backlighting seems to be very even for all levels of brightness.

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The brightest of settings is perfect for any indoor environment and more outdoor conditions. The dimmest screen setting possible can easily be used indoors with good lighting, but outdoors it is nearly impossible to use.

Finally, the screen does have a built-in ambient light sensor that can automatically adjust the brightness of the screen. When using that feature, I have found that the sensor does accurately determine how bright the screen should be for me to work effectively. This is a welcome improvement on the HP ambient light sensor, which has consistently set the screen to too dim of a setting for me to work effectively for the past year and a half. However, after six months of usage I've become annoyed with the feature and have permanently turned that off. I prefer to adjust it myself.

Viewing angles are a bit of a mixed story. Vertical viewing angles are below average, but with such a small screen I have a hard time imagining that users would be looking in from those directions. Horizontal viewing angles are average, though the graphics on the screen tend to white out just a little bit when viewing from the side. If and when you are sharing a screen view with a co-worker or buddy, both of you should enjoy a relatively decent view. Pictures are worth much more than words, so see the graphic below for an illustration.

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Speaker and Audio

Notice the title of this section is "Speaker and Audio." That is because the D430 only has one speaker, and not a very good one at that. While it does function well enough to emit the occasional "You have mail" sound clip or make the "Windows prompt" beep, that is all it is good for. Listening to any type of movie or music on the D430's internal speaker is a painful experience, and my fiancée actually asked me to stop playing music on the D430 at least once.

The speaker volume levels are fine for the laptop, but the speaker has an extraordinarily tinny aura to it. And there is no bass whatsoever. I would expect even an average speaker to be able to sound out a little bit of the baser notes in music, but this one fails utterly. Every time I listen to a music track or movie the sound has no depth and it feels and sounds like something is missing.

To try and get around this, I tried using the headphone jack on the D430 with a pair of Creative earphones that are known to work well enough to my satisfaction on other machines. Even then, the D430's sound system disappointed so I know it is not just the lack of decent speakers. It is the lack of a better-than-low-quality integrated sound card. Granted, a business person probably will not have much use for the integrated speaker when making presentations, but I'm sure anyone would appreciate being able to listen to music. Furthermore, if a user hooked this laptop up to an external speaker set for a presentation, that user better not plan on using complex sounds and music clips. I just do not think this audio system would cut it, and six and more months later down the road there has been no improvement here.

One nice update to the review is that on the new laptop, and during the last month or two of the old laptop's life, the sound card driver issues seemed to have been solved. I no longer have self-destructing sound card drivers, which is nice.

Processor and Performance

The U7700 is the whole reason for this review. My old D430 and new D430 had the same exact specifications, except that the U7700 is now available in the D430. The U7700 is Intel's latest dual core Ultra Low Voltage (ULV) processor, running at a chipper 1.33GHz speed.

As of this writing, only one single-core version of this processor is available on the D430 - the U2100 which is a single core 1.06GHz processor. It is unfortunate that Dell continues to offer a 1.06GHz single core, because at one point a 1.2GHz single core was available (see my old review) that performed a little better at the same price.

While single core processors are largely an obsolete technology, ultraportable notebooks can still enjoy the benefits of less heat in the laptop. I used to think that the single core version of the D430 laptop had better battery, but after testing the battery life on the D430 I am astounded to report the battery life of the dual-core is actually BETTER than that of the single core version.

At this point, it is safe to say that the single core version of the D430 is no longer a good investment as the dual core ULV processors are not THAT hot.

Before any benchmarks were done, I installed a fresh copy of Windows XP, upgraded to SP3, and installed some AV protection.

So how did the U7700 perform?

PCMark05 is a synthetic benchmark that gives users a general idea of how powerful any processor is, and the D430 came in with a final score of 2184. The accepted margin of error is about 100 points, but regardless this score is massive improvement from what my old single-core U1400 scored (1454).

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SuperPI and wPrime are programs that are useful in testing the computational abilities of processors. wPrime is a better benchmark program for multi-core processors, so this time around the results given by wPrime on my D430 will actually have some meaning.

SuperPI, which forces the processor to calculate the first 2M digits of PI, clocks in with a final time of 1m 41s. wPrime, which finds a ton of prime numbers, comes in with a total time of 123.541s. Neither score is particularly impressive, but notice that the D430 dual-core's wPrime score is vastly improved from the 148.344s the single-core version clocked in at.

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In my original review, I concluded that a single-core U1400 processor was equivalent to about a 1.8GHz Pentium M or a 2.5-3.0GHz Pentium 4. The dual-core U7700 is noticeably faster than my old laptop, perhaps as powerful as the slowest original Core Duo processors. That is MORE than enough processing power for anything you would want to run on the dual-core D430.

To give you an idea of what this processor can do...I always use my D430 with Windows XP and Norton Internet Security 2008. On top of that, I regularly write articles and check emails without a problem. I frequently fire up my internal web server, MySQL databases, and PHP modules to do website development. Finally, I do some programming on the laptop and regularly work on projects for Purdue without slowdowns.

Conclusion? The D430's processors are plenty powerful for everyday tasks.

Additionally, hard drive speed is another factor that affects how fast a notebook is perceived to be. Ultraportable notebooks have been using 1.8" 4200RPM or 5400RPM hard drives, which require less power and generate less heat. But they are the slowest type of hard drive out there.

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As shown above, the 4200RPM drive in my D430 is no star. However, Windows loads fast enough (a little less than a minute for me) and I do not notice slowdowns during any of my usual activities. Video's and music are smooth with no glitches, and it does not take that long to perform a full backup of my system.

Another thing to mention is that the HDD is a PATA/IDE drive, which means you'll need to pay attention to make sure you get a compatible drive if you ever upgrade anything.

There are SSD drives available for the D430, but a quick read over at Dell Community Forums or DailyTech shows that the SanDisk SSD that the D430 uses (SanDisk makes just about the only 1.8" IDE SSD) has quite a few problems under XP or Vista. Avoid.

Last and least is the Intel GMA 950 IGP graphics card. Obviously, Dell is using that IGP because it draws very little power and outputs very little heat. But at the same time it is not very powerful, and a newer IGP is available (X3100). I am not sure why that is not an option on this notebook, but either way this is not a gaming notebook and the GMA950 does work fine for office tasks.

Previously, the single-core D430 scored 348 on its 3DMark test. Happily, the dual-core D430 scores 392. Unfortunately, that still means that only older games will work on the D430...Halo still pushes the D430 a little too hard. Fortunately, there are plenty of older games that will work just fine on this laptop. Including Window's Solitaire.

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Heat and Noise

Dell obviously has quite a challenge keeping the D430 cool and quiet, and that challenge is even more difficult with a dual-core processor that has a TDP of 9W (up from about 5.5W with a single-core processor). That means there is even more heat that the D430 has to dissipate, so how is this notebook?

The frame of the D430 is small and cannot dissipate much heat, and there is only one small fan inside of the notebook directly next to or on top of the processor. The single air vent is not very wide either. But they do work, and work well, while the U7700 is stressing the system.

When at idle, the processor and laptop are actually quite cool. At a balmy 47C, this is actually a little bit cooler than my original D430 which came in at about a 53C idle temperature. I suspect the reason for this is because the U7700 does not have to work as long to perform the various tasks a notebook always does when at idle, which causes overall power usage to fall.

As usual, I do try to take processor and hard drive temperature readings throughout my reviews, so let's take a look at the full picture, shall we?

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Overall, the hard drive temperatures remained the same while the processor temperatures were a little more extreme. Under the lowest power conditions, the dual-core D430's temperatures were lower than the single-core version. But as soon as one goes to "Always ON" or starts doing intensive work, the laptop gets hotter than its single-core variant. 90C is pushing one's luck, but it is still within a laptop's safe operating range.

While I am not happy with the overall increased temperatures, it was not unexpected. However, the dual-core D430 most of the time will be performing office tasks and as such will be as cool or cooler than the single-core variant. When on battery and doing non-intensive work, the dual-core D430 is actually cool enough to place directly on one's skin and it not be too hot. I can finally wear shorts (and not pants) while working with the D430!

The fan itself is quite annoying once it revs up, but during normal usage the fan will either be off or at its lowest speed setting. You will not notice it. But as soon as you start to do intensive work, one will be annoyed with the loud higher pitched sounds that both the single-core and dual-core D430's put out.

Keyboard and Touchpad

There really is not much new to report, except that in the last few months of usage I have come to love the keyboard on the D430. It is, hands down, the best laptop keyboard I have ever used. For the record, I have never used a Thinkpad but I have a difficult time believing Lenovo's keyboards are as good as this D430 keyboard.

Overall, there is a little more feedback in the key-presses than all the other keyboards I have used, and Dell even managed to fit in a full-size keyboard in the 12" frame. The keyboard feels extremely firm, and there is no flex anywhere on the keyboard when using it.

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The biggest difference this keyboard has with others is that the PageUp and PageDown buttons are located above the arrow keys in the lower right corner of the keyboard. This is a good thing though, as it makes them much more accessible for document and web browsing. The F1-F12 keys up top are still a little too thin for my tastes though, as are the Esc, Home, End, Insert, and Delete keys that are found in the function button row. Dell could probably have made those 17 keys full size had their design department thought a little more creatively.

The pointer stick, which I previously praised, is no longer my preferred method of mousing around. The stick is still a very nice thing to have, and I am sure many users will appreciate it.

The dual mouse buttons on the D430 are as silent as ever, and unlike my last review I have found the mousepad to be quite nice. Unfortunately, that means that the touchpad will eventually degrade to the one I did not quite like in my previous review but palm rest replacements are quite cheap, so if you come to no longer like your touchpad you can get it replaced.

I never did get used to the lack of a middle mouse button. I miss it, and I hope that Dell's upcoming Latitudes have that feature!

Input and Output Ports, Wireless, and Battery

With such a small frame, one would not expect many ports to be found on the D430, but the laptop does manage to squeeze in the essentials.

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From left to right: Kensington lock slot, audio-in/microphone, audio-out/headphones, PCMCIA slot, SmartCard reader beneath the PCMCIA slot, and an SD card slot.

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From left to right: WiFi toggle switch, power button.

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From left to right: Ethernet, modem, 2x USB, VGA-out, 1x USB (also used for DVD drive connection), IEEE 1394 Firewire 400 port, and the AC power jack.

The Intel 3945 802.11a/b/g WiFi card works perfectly fine. I have no issues connecting to the networks I frequent, no disconnections, and few problems at all. Driver quality seems to have improved too, as I no longer have issues connecting to networks immediately after resuming from standby or hibernate.

Another interesting feature about the WiFi card is a hardware switch that can toggle the card on and off, and a quick flick of the switch can make a popup list appear with all local networks shown. When turned off, the switch's light supposedly tells you if there is an unprotected network nearby, but since I only use encrypted networks I cannot yet test that feature.

In my first review, I reported that the switch does require a little bit too much of a nudge to toggle the on/off position of the switch. In fact, a Dell technician accidentally slipped and broke the switch! It was an easy enough repair for another Dell technician (you only had to replace the entire motherboard!), so now I keep that in mind and only turn off the WiFi if absolutely necessary. The new D430 of mine seems to have a slightly better feel to the WiFi switch, but I still am not going to use it much.

Just as before, I still feel the WiFi switch is a worthless feature ... especially since it cost Dell a pretty penny to replace my old D430's motherboard.

As I previously alluded to, the battery life on the D430 has improved in the dual-core version. ULV processors are great for their lower power consumption, and for some reason a slightly more powerful ULV processor results in a much better battery life.

With the screen at the maximum brightness, wireless ON, in the presentation power mode (which keeps the processor down to 800MHz), and while performing moderately difficult tasks on the D430, the laptop managed to clock in at a battery life of about 2 hours and 45 minutes. This is an improvement of about 30 minutes over the single-core D430's life.

During an endurance run with minimal brightness, wireless ON, and presentation power mode the D430 lasted a total of 4 hours and 20 minutes. Granted, I was only browsing the web while doing this test, but I was unable to ever pass the 3 hour and 30 minute mark on my old D430. Either this new dual-core processor is that much better with respect to battery life, or my old D430 had a problem I was unaware of. During this endurance run, I found that the laptop used between 8-10W of power most of the time. That is not much of a battery drain!

Despite the fact it takes between 2.5 and 4.5 hours to drain the battery out, the D430's 6-Cell battery can recharge to 80% in about 1 hour and 5 minutes. It takes about 40-50 minutes to get the other 20% of the battery charge restored, and that is about average for quick-charge batteries.

One concern I am sure users will have is the power button on the side of the notebook. It could potentially be easy to hit when the laptop is in a backpack or luggage or briefcase. Everyone knows that an active laptop is such a small space could cause heat related failures, and Dell was aware of this as well. Fortunately, Dell programmed the BIOS of the laptop to NOT turn on if the laptop is closed. If you hit the power button and the D430 boots while shut, the POST sequence will recognize that the computer needs to shut down, which protects the laptop and the battery life.

Operating System and Software

Thankfully, the D430 comes with a minimum of extra software and bloatware to clog the system.

There is no recovery partition on the D430 though (since the HDDs configuration options can be as small as 30GB), but this is offset by the fact that all recovery CDs will come with the notebook. There are only three: XP CD, Drivers CD, and the PowerDVD software CD. Unless you purchase a notebook with the fingerprint reader or require the business security suites that should be all you get with the D430. Less really can be more!

At some point in the future, I will probably test out and see how Vista performs on this dual-core D430. While Vista's performance with a single-core 1.2GHz processor was abysmal, I do wonder how it would perform (and how the battery life would be affected) under a Vista installation.

Perhaps we'll host a XP v. Vista Ultraportable article in the future!

Customer Support

In the first few weeks of my owning the original D430, I had numerous contacts with Dell's Customer Support teams for various non-technical issues. Dell more than impressed me during that phase of purchase and ownership.

Unfortunately, my first single-core D430 did have numerous issues and as such I have had quite a lot of contact with Dell's Technical Support teams. Between the two motherboard replacements my old system needed, Dell was very quick to get parts out and their on-site technicians were very professional and knowledgeable.

When the old notebook starting failing again, Dell's tech service finally concluded that a non-motherboard-related problem was affecting the D430...and they could not fix it. Clearly, Dell and I agreed it was a lemon. So they decided to permanently resolve the issue by building me a new laptop.

Overall, my future experiences with Dell look to be very promising, which is a welcome turnaround considering how far in disrepair I felt Dell's services were a few years ago. Times have changed and Dell definitely has turned their act around for the better, and their treatment of my various D430 problems that resulted in a new notebook is a very good example of how far Dell's business support is willing to go to support their products.

Buying Choices for the Dell Latitude D430 Notebook Computer (Core Solo U7700 1.20GHz/80GB/2GB)

Dell, Inc. | $1,179.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 5 opinions | rate product

Conclusion

The Dell D430 has made some significant improvements with the dual-core refresh of the notebook. Driver quality, one of my biggest complaints that could ever be improved upon, has noticeably improved! While the dual-core version does sometimes get a little hotter, there is a noticeable improvement in battery life and speed that I am glad to see in this model.

The D430 does have a few drawbacks though, so the D430 is not for everyone. Power users that need faster processors will not want this notebook...nor will anyone who despises the add-on DVD drive.

In the end though, the D430 is suitable for any and all office tasks and many people would be perfectly happy with the computing power available in ultraportable notebooks today. Notebooks in this category are largely evaluated on portability, longevity, and build quality. The Dell Latitude D430 definitely managed to excel in all three categories. The laptop has the highest quality build I've ever owned, and the battery life has improved since my last review too. On top of that, I cannot stress enough how much easier a 12.1" system is on a student's backpack (or a business professional's briefcase), and how easy it is to just take the notebook around and be prepared for any situation.

Even though the next series of Latitude notebooks will be here in a few months, the Latitude series (and especially the D430) are still great notebooks with a fair price and value. College students, business professionals, and home users alike all need to give the D430 at least a fair consideration!

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Sony VAIO FW

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 07:58:00 +0000

The VAIO FW is a brand new Centrino 2 platform notebook from Sony, offering a much needed facelift, as well as a 16.4" widescreen. What sets this apart from other widescreen notebooks is the aspect ratio of the screen lets movie aficionados enjoy a video without ugly bars above and below the screen. Our full review gives you all the details you need to find out if this notebook is right for you.

Buying Choices for the Sony VAIO VGN-FW139E/H

Amazon.com | $1,119.99
Best Buy | $1,049.99
J&R Music and Computer World | $1,149.00

view detailed pricing from 5 stores starting at $1,049.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 1 opinion | rate product

Our Sony VAIO FW (vgn-fw198u) specifications:

Screen: Sony XBRITE-HiColor 16.4" 1600 x 900 display, glossy
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T9400 (2.53GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 6MB Cache)
Operating System:Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 (32-bit)
Memory: 4GB RAM (only 3GB usable)
Storage: 320GB HDD (5400rpm)
Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW / BD-R DL
Wireless: Intel 5100 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.0 w/ EDR
Graphics: ATI Mobility Radeon 3470 w/ 256MB
Built-in web camera
Battery: 4400mAh Li-Ion Battery
Dimensions: 15.12" x 1.14"-1.45" x 10.27" (38.4cm x 2.9-3.7cm x 26.1cm)
Weight: 6.83 lbs (3.1kg)
Retail Price: $2,149

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Build and Design

The fit and finish of the Sony VAIO FW is wonderful, and the overall design is beautiful. The notebook has a streamlined sculpted look, and when opened has a palmrest and keyboard surround that looks like the graceful sloping surface of a car hood. The surface starts out flat, has a small dip, and then gracefully slopes down to the screen hinges. From working day in and day out at a ThinkPad, it is much easier on the eyes to say the least.

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Build quality is excellent, with the overall chassis feeling rigid and sturdy. Although thin at the very edges of the palmrest, you can pick the notebook up from the corner with minimal flex from the chassis. Even the super thin screen shows that quite a bit of effort went into making a durable design, as you are able to man-handle and even punch the back of the LCD panel and no ripples or distortion shows on the display.

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Screen

I have to say that my first impression of the true HD screen format was one of hatred. Another odd format I would have to get used to, and more odd screen designations to remember. I figured it would be just another gimmick ... but then I started to enjoy it. Outside of watching movies, the extra-wide wide screen is great for organizing many tasks on the screen, where a normal widescreen display just starts to feel crowded. Two documents side by side, a webpage next to a document, or even a webpage with my IM buddy list far off to the side. Of course it is nice for movies as well.

Moving past the widescreen experience and onto the LCD quality itself, it was rather disappointing on our review model. On anything but full brightness you could see a tunnel effect where the sides and corners were much darker thand the center of the screen. At full brightness it was more even, and was passed by early on. Not counting the tunneling effect, brightness range was more than adequate. I found the most comfortable setting at home to be 50-60% and 70-80% in the office. Anything above that it strained my vision.

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Colors appeared to be rich, if not slightly over saturated. Contrasted felt washed out, with black levels seemed to be leaning more towards grey/white. Watching a dark movie at high brightness became very distracting, especially with the unevenbacklight.

Viewing angles were better than what I have seen on some notebooks, with a larger sweet spot before colors started to invert or distort. Vertical range had about 45 degrees down and 35 degrees up before colors started to get funky. Horizontal viewing range was flawless besides a mild orange tint at extreme angles.

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Keyboard and Touchpad

The "MacBook Style" keyboard on the Sony FW (yes, Sony did it first, but most people recognize this style of keyboard as a "Mac" keyboard) was delightful to type on once you got the hang of finger placement and distances between keys down. Spacing is just slightly off from a standard keyboard, and without the cupped keys, it can be difficult to type on the keyboard without some practice. That said, compared to other keyboard of similar design (MacBook, MacBook Air) the keyboard on the Sony FW was much nicer to type on.

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Key throw distances were about the same as most keyboards, and with each press came a soft click feeling. Support underneath the keyboard was great with little to no flex. It felt as if you could stand on the keyboard without making anything cave inward.

The touchpad surface was great, large enough for wide motions and sensitive for smooth sliding without having to adjust any settings. The touchpad buttons were the only drawback, being at the same height as the palmrest, and just barely off the surface of the touchpad. Finding the key without looking down usually ended with tapping the touchpad instead of the button.

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Movie Experience

True HD displays are basically what you have in your living room or TV room if you own an HDTV. 720P or 1080P screens are slightly shorter than what you usually find on a computer. For example on a WUXGA notebook has a resolution of 1920x1200, where as a Full HD 1080P screen is 1920x1080. This has to do with the way most movies are recorded, and in the end thinner or no bars at all showing up during a movie. Below I picked 3 Blu-ray titles from my collection, to give you a good idea of what you might expect to see on this screen format.

• Swordfish (2.40:1): Far from full widescreen, with almost 1 inch bars top and bottom.

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• The Prestige (2.35:1): Very similar to 2.40:1, huge bars.

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• Open Season (1.85:1): Almost fullscreen, just two thin bars top and bottom

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Ports and Features

Port selection on the Sony VAIO FW rates average, and one USB port less of perfection. Users have two video outputs (HDMI and VGA) for easy hookup to external monitors or your home theater HDTV. In some ways the design of the notebook hinders the port layout, as some curved locations which would be prime for an extra USB port end up being too small to work out. The ports and feature selection include the following:

10/100/1000 LAN
Modem
VGA
HDMI
FireWire
ExpressCard/34
Memory Stick Reader
SD-Card Reader
Headphone/Mic
3 USB Ports

Front: Activity Lights, Wireless On/Off, Memory Stick Reader, SD-Card Reader, Headphone/Mic

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Rear: Hinge

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Left: AC Power, Kensington Lock Slot, CPU Exhaust, LAN, Modem, VGA, HDMI, FireWire, ExpressCard/34

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Right: 3 USB, Optical Drive, Power On/Off

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Speakers and Audio

The speakers on the Sony FW were rather anemic. To enjoy a movie or game at normal volume levels meant putting everything to 100%, and still not being at the level you wanted it to be. Getting past volume levels, bass and midrange were entirely lacking, which is very disappointing for a multimedia oriented notebook.

For external audio, the headphone jack worked fine providing clear audio from what I could hear through my Sennheiser HD80 headphones. This option would be preferred over having to listen to the speakers. The third and probably best option for external audio is the HDMI port. The ATI 3470 graphics supported audio out through the HDMI port, and thus worked perfectly for enjoying your favorite movie on the big screen.

Performance

System performance was very good for most tasks not involving 3D graphics. Working with office productivity software, surfing the web, encoding video, or just looking through your iTunes library performed quite well without any lag. The disappointing part was trying to play semi-modern games such as Half-Life 2 or Portal, and getting very poor frame rates. The ATI 3470 graphics didn't really help with much besides offloading video decoding while enjoying a Blu-ray movie. I would have much rather seen a 3650 series graphics card, considering notebooks like the Toshiba A305 which fall into the same price category offer this. To give you a quick example of what the game play was like, here is my average FPS while playing HL2: Episode 2 and Portal.

Half Life 2: Episode 2 (1360x768, textures on low and most settings disabled): 18-23FPS depending on what scenery you were looking at. Extra characters on screen like enemies or gunfire brought it down even more.

Portal (1360x768, textures on medium and most settings disabled): 40FPS walking around, 28FPS looking through a portal. High action scenes where you are flying through the air slowed down even further into the low 20 range.

While you technically could lower the resolution even more to one of the lower 4:3 settings, you would be looking at a warped screen and really lose any fun while playing. Trying to play at the native 1600x900 was even worse than the scaled down resolution of 1360x768, with frame rate levels dropping by 5 or 10. For a notebook of this size and cost, it is a big letdown with no higher graphics option available.

WPrime 32M comparison results

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Sony VAIO FW (Core 2 Duo T9400 @ 2.53GHz)	30.373s
Dell Studio 15 (Core 2 Duo T5750 @ 2.0GHz)	41.246s
HP Pavilion dv5z (Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80 @ 2.1GHz)	39.745s
Dell Vostro 1510 (Core 2 Duo T5670 @ 1.8GHz)	51.875s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
HP Pavilion dv6500z (Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	40.759s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
HP Pavilion dv6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance based on processor, hard drive, operating system, RAM, and graphics (higher scores are better):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Sony VAIO FW (2.53GHz Intel T9400, ATI Radeon HD 3470)	6,002 PCMarks
Dell Studio 15 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	3,998 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	3,994 PCMarks
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	3,568 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Sony VAIO FW (2.53GHz Intel T9400, ATI Radeon HD 3470)	2,598 3DMarks
Dell Studio 15 (2.0GHz Intel T5750, Intel X3100)	493 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	1,599 3DMarks
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	519 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6500z (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, NVIDIA 8400m GS)	1,551 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

HDTune results:

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Battery Life

Working away from a power outlet was not a fun activity with this configuration that included a 4400mAh battery. In the balanced profile with the screen brightness set to 60%, I squeezed out 2 hours and 39 minutes before the notebook shut itself down. Watching a Blu-ray movie decreased the battery life further, putting me into the range of a movie, with enough time to safely shutdown once the film ended ... figure 2 hours and 10 minutes overall. The one thing I can say though, if you have the option to select the extended battery, get it.

Charging times were slower than what I am accustomed to, taking almost 30 minutes to go from dead up to 15%. Most notebooks would get into the 30-40% range in this amount of time.

Heat and Noise

Temperatures on your lap felt slightly above that of the average Core 2 Duo notebook with dedicated graphics. Some of this might relate to a fairly laid back cooling system that liked to keep the fan off or at very low speeds unless the system was under severe stress. Lap performance would score probably a C-, making my legs sweat after about an hour of surfing the web on the balanced profile. Fan noise at low and high speed was minimal and in a quiet room the notebook would not stand out.

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Conclusion

The VAIO FW is a great step forward for Sony, and a worthy competitor to the Dell Studio 15 or even the Toshiba A305. The design is great, but more importantly the build quality is excellent. It feels solid, with a reasonably firm screen cover and keyboard that feels as if a child could walk across it. Performance was more than adequate in every area except 3D performance, but hopefully Sony decides to offer a higher performing graphics card as an option at a later date. The only real flaw that stood out to me was the screen, with its uneven backlight. Hopefully this is a preproduction unit flaw, and not something that shows up on shipping models.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Dell Studio 15 First Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 03:38:00 +0000

The Dell Studio 15 is a fittingly named 15.4" screen multimedia notebook targeted at those who want a nicely designed system that can dual as a very capable computer for work needs and as an entertainment system during those times you want to unwind and enjoy something like a movie. The Studio 15 has a large enough screen to make watching movies on it comfortable, yet it's not so big that you couldn't take this around campus. Since the Studio 15 can be had for around $1,000 nicely configured or under $1,000 for a more budget model it can fit either a tight budget or one with a bit of room to spend.

Buying Choices for the Dell Studio 15 Laptop Computer (Intel Core 2 Duo T8100/)

Dell, Inc. | $1,124.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 2 opinions | rate product

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The Studio 15 has multiple lid color selections available. If you choose a painted lid such as red, blue, orange, black, green or purple the paint job is very durable and will not scratch. An optional glossy finish lid with varying designs is also available if you prefer the shiny look (although beware of the fingerprints the lid will attract with such a design).

The Studio 15 we obtained has a Ruby Red colored lid. It was purchased from Staples where they offer set configurations of the Studio 15, our budget configuration cost $799. If you want to completely customize a Studio 15 then the best route to go is via Dell.com. In our full review we'll also be featuring a Dell.com custom ordered Studio 15 machine with an orange colored lid - we'll give feedback on the order and shipping that occurs with that process. The specs of this particular Studio 15, the S1535-113P from Staples, are as follows:

Screen: glossy 15.4" WXGA 1280 x 800 display
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 (2.00GHz, 667MHz FSB, 2MB Cache)
Memory: 3.00 GB RAM
Storage: 250GB HD
Optical Drive: Slot loading DVD+/-RW
Wireless: 802.11b/g
Graphics: Integrated Intel X3100
Built-in 2.0MP web camera
Ruby Red color lid
Ports: 4 USB 2.0, HDMI connector, 15-pin VGA video connector, Ethernet 10/100/1000 LAN (RJ45), AC adapter connector, Audio jacks (1 line-in, 1-line out, 1 Mic-in), 4-pin IEEE 1394 port, 54 mm ExpressCard slot, Consumer IR
Dimensions: Width: 14.0" (355.6mm), Height: 1.0" (25.3mm) front / 1.3" (33mm) back, Depth: 10.3" (261.5mm)
Weight: Starting weight of 6.11 lbs

Staples only had a couple of different color options for the lid, either Ruby Red or Midnight Blue, and only two different set spec configurations were available in the store. However, if you prefer to purchase in a retail store for the ability to more easily return a product and not deal with any shipping waits, then Staples is available for that. So far our custom ordered Studio 15 from Dell.com has taken 20-days to move into "production" and shows no signs of shipping soon. We think that's a little bit long. It's definitely worth comparing the price of retail models to those on Dell.com as there can be quite a variation and you might find that going to a bricks and mortar store can be a better deal, even if you have to sacrifice on a couple of upgrades you might have liked.

The box you get when buying the Studio 15 in a retail store is different from the usual all brown iconic Dell box we're used to seeing. From box to out of the package, here's what it looks like:

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Design and Looks

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As we mentioned before, the Studio 15 comes with varying color options so you can make the notebook "Yours". But the design features don't end there. Dell has followed in the footsteps of HP by having an inlaid design pattern on the casing. Around the keyboard and palm rest area you'll find a sort of topographical map design, Dell calls this "Graphite Gray". This design feature is ok, it's not as subtle or well integrated as the type of designs HP is using, but given the choice between just a plain old grey color case like we've seen on recent Inspirons versus this design we do prefer what's in place. The brushed aluminum look you get with the XPS series is still better, but that's why you pay more for an XPS laptop.

The drop hinge design on the Studio 15 is borrowed from the XPS line (view large image)

Speaking of XPS design, the Studio 15 actually borrows quite a few design elements from the equivalent sized XPS M1530. The drop hinge design is almost exactly like that of the XPS M1530. The lid paint job finish is also the same as that you'll get on the XPS series. The touch sensitive media buttons are very similar to the XPS, though their backlit with white instead of the blue on the XPS. The slot loading optical drive is yet another feature that has been borrowed.

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Overall the Studio design is very nice, you can even get a backlit keyboard that makes it look better than the XPS, so in some ways the slightly cheaper Studio 15 looks nicer than the XPS M1530. Unfortunately, with the Staples configuration the keyboard backlight option is not there.

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Build Quality

The build quality of the Studio 15 is good. It does have more plastic to it than the XPS design does, but it is in no way flimsy. There aren't any glaring weak spots; the feel is quite firm all over. With that said, this doesn't feel quite as rock solid as the old Inspiron 1520 - but that notebook was way too chunky and we prefer the lighter weight of the Studio 15 even if it means it's not quite as durable.

Processor and Performance

The Dell Studio 15 line right now only offers the "old" Intel Core 2 Duo inside, not the new Montevina everybody is talking about. Dell launched this laptop a month before Intel updated their processor family, so for the moment the Studios are shipping with the Santa Rosa processor platform. This is of little concern though, the T5750 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo that this budget priced Studio 15 came with is more than adequate enough for any normal work related tasks and can handle most any multimedia work thrown at it as well. The newer Intel processors might get 5 - 10% better processor performance, but you won't notice this change for anything but the most demanding of applications, such as gaming. And since the Studio 15 was not intended as a gaming machine (that's where the XPS comes in), there's not much benefit the new Montevina platform can really provide, though it's always nice to have the latest technology of course.

To give an idea of processor performance we ran wPrime, a program that forces the processor to do recursive mathematical calculations, the advantage of this program is that it is multi-threaded and can use both processor cores at once. Below is an example of how this budget T5750 processor holds up relative to other processors (lower scores mean better performance.)

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Dell Studio 15 (Core 2 Duo T5750 @ 2.00GHz)	46.238s
HP Pavilion dv2700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	49.793s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s

The Screen

The Studio 15 widescreen display is not the LED variety available as an option on the XPS line, it's just your regular CCFL style of display that uses a couple of traditional backlights to illuminate the screen. The screen is nice though, it's very bright at around 200-nits. The glossy finish helps to make colors really pop and is especially nice for watching movies. The Studio 15 we have is just a regular 1280 x 800 XGA resolution, you can get higher resolution displays that will allow you to fit more content on the screen and enjoy movies in a higher-defintion format.

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If you wanted it to the Studio 15 could double as a PC/Entertainment center for a small area such as a dorm room. The screen is big enough that if you're within 10 - 15 feet viewing is comfortable.

Heat and Noise

The Studio 15 doesn't get too hot, nor is it overly noisy, so you're not going to really distract others in a quiet library like setting when using it. The fans only get audible if they rev up to full speed when you're doing things like light gaming or running benchmarks. By far the loudest characteristic of the Studio 15 is the slot loading drive, which generates a lot of mechanical noise whenever you load in a disc.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X200

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 03:32:00 +0000

The Lenovo ThinkPad X200 is an update and evolution of the ThinkPad X61 12.1" screen ultraportable and, as the name suggests, borrows a bit from the design cue of the much praised ThinkPad X300 ultra-slim laptop. To be sure, the X200 is not as expensive nor as cutting edge as the X300, the high-end features and supermodel thin X300 outdo what you'll get design-wise with the X200. With that said, the ultraportable X200 certainly has a lot to like about it, offers better performance than the X300 and has a more reasonable price. This review will delve into the features and updates the X200 has to the previous X61.

Overview

Lenovo ThinkPad X200 (view large image)

The Lenovo ThinkPad X200 is an ultraportable business laptop, but certainly some consumers that want a portable and durable laptop might also be interested in this notebook. Like its larger brothers from the ThinkPad line, the X200 shares all of the same rugged features, and now even has the comfort of a keyboard that matches the size of the larger ThinkPad T400 and T500 series. Thanks to the new widescreen design the X200 is now wide enough to support larger sized keys.

ThinkPad X61 on the left, X200 on the right (view large image)

Although the X200 is indeed smaller than its ThinkPad counterparts, it still packs the same power. Our review unit comes with a new Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.40GHz processor from the Intel Montevina family, and it's definitely no slouch. The option for speedy SSD storage, 4GB of RAM and Intel Turbo memory can all contribute to a powerhouse in a small package.

With all this newly found power under the hood you might be wondering if the X200 is a power monger that will drain the battery like it's its job and generate so much heat you can warm your nearby coffee. This is not the case, incredibly battery life capability has increased over the X61 and the laptop remains very cool, indeed cooler than the X61.

Specifications of the X200 being reviewed are as follows:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.40 GHz (3MB L2 cache, 1066MHz FSB) (Montevina)
Chipset: Intel GM45/ICH9-ME
Memory: 2GB DDR2 667MHz (1x 2048MB) (can support up to 4GB of DDR3 Memory @ 800/1067MHz)
Hard Drive: 7200RPM 160GB SeaGate Momentus (ST9160823AS) SATA
Screen: 12.1" widescreen 1280x800 LCD, 200 nits of brightness
No built-in Optical Drive (need X200 UltraBase for this capability)
GPU: Intel X4500 Integrated Graphics
Network/Wireless: Intel Wi-Fi Link 5300 (802.11 a/b/g/n) 1Gb Ethernet Card, built-in Verizon WWAN and Bluetooth (56 Kbps modem optional, not installed)
Inputs: 95 Key Keyboard with Three Button Touchpoint
Buttons: Power, ThinkVantage, Volume Up and Down, Mute, and WiFi/Bluetooth On/Off Switch.
Slots:ExpressCard/54mm, SD card reader (5-in-1 media card reader optional, not installed)
Battery: Nine Cell Cylindrical (4-cell, 6-cell and 9-cell options)
Dimensions (with large 9-cell battery in):
- Width: 11.61 inches
- Depth: 9.2 inches
- Thickness: 0.8-in - 1.4 inches
Dimensions (with small 4-cell battery in):
- Width: 11.6 inches
- Depth: 8.3 inches
- Thickness: 0.8 - 1.4"
Weight:
- 4-cell battery starting at 1.34 kg / 2.95 lbs
- 6-cell battery starting at 1.47 kg / 3.24 lbs
- 9-cell battery starting at 1.63 kg / 3.58 lbs
Operating System: Windows Vista Business
Extra Options: Web-cam, fingerprint reader, 56Kbps modem, 5-in-1 card reader

Design and Looks

It's so easy to write about the look of any ThinkPad notebook: it's black, everywhere, and if you have a problem with that then look elsewhere. Cheek aside, there are noticeable design changes from the X61.

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The most noticeable change we see between the X61 and X200 is that the display is widescreen instead of the "standard" 4:3 ratio aspect screen seen on the X61. The question is, when do we start calling widescreen standard for a notebook screen? There are few laptops left that aren't widescreen so this change comes as no surprise. We think the switch is for the better due to the lower overall system profile, more spacious keyboard and ability to more easily view two windows side-by-side. Some people will no doubt be miffed by this change though.

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More subtle design changes include red accented mouse buttons coming back from the ThinkPad days of old. The volume control buttons have gone from a silver color on the X61 to black on the X200. The power button look changes to that we saw on the X300, except it is not backlit.

12.1" ThinkPad X200 on the far left, 13.3" ThinkPad X300 Center, X61 on the right (view large image)

For a business notebook the look of the X200 works as it is clean and professional. We do wonder if the relentless push for new designs on consumer notebooks won't spill over more to the enterprise business space and force the ThinkPad team to shake things up just a little eventually. We're seeing with the new ThinkPad SL line some introduction of consumer design features such as a glossy screen and glossy lid. The leaked pictures of the new Dell Latitude E series indicates that company might be willing to put their neck out in a bet that business buyers might just like a notebook that's not bland looking.

Build Quality

The X200 is a durable ultraportable computer, it features a magnesium-alloy casing on both the top and bottom of the body. To go along with the external mag-alloy casing is an internal magnesium "roll-cage" skeleton that reinforces the overall feel of the notebook, there's little flex to be found anywhere.

The steel hinges that we're used to seeing on ThinkPad notebooks are of course still in place. The hinges keep the screen firmly in place with no wobble, even during bumpy plane rides. There are two latches to hold the lid tightly closed when you have it in a bag.

There are two spill drains on the keyboard area that will carry any liquid spills safely out of the bottom of the notebook. Spilling that morning cup of coffee on your X200 might not be disastrous thanks to this feature.

The ThinkPad Active Protection System (APS) for the hard drive is still part of the mix. The APS is software on board that works with a built-in accelerometer to detect drops and knocks and remove the read-write head of the hard drive so as to prevent any damage to the data.

For upgrades and repairs that might come up down the road, the X200 keeps the user in mind with easy to remove access panels and covers. The most frequent upgrade items being the HD and RAM are accessed through panels on the bottom and side of the X200. Other items such as the keyboard, wireless cards, and backup battery can be reached by removing a handful of labeled screws on the bottom, and easily popped out. Worth noting is that even if you don't get WWAN configured to start with (WWAN is available via Verizon, Vodafone, Telus or KDDI), the necessary antenna is installed by default so all you would have to do is open up the X200 and put in the WWAN card and voila, built-in WWAN.

Input and Output Ports

The port selection has changed a bit from the X61, placements are especially a bit different. Gone is the old style PC card slot, it's now an ExpressCard 54mm expansion slot. The FireWire port the X61 had is dropped with no appearance on the X200. One strange option you now have is to choose either an SD card reader and no built-in modem or an enhanced 5-in-1 card reader and a modem. Our review unit has just an SD card reader and the modem port is blocked off. Why having a 5-in-1 card reader dependency tied to having a built-in modem certainly isn't obvious to us, how annoying!

The port locations are best described by taking a picture tour:

Left side - power jack, heat vent, USB port, monitor-out port, Gigabit Ethernet, USB port, ExpressCard 54mm slot, wireless on-off switch:

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Front side - SD card slot or optional 5-in-1 card reader:

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Right side - USB port, headphone out, microphone, modem port (blocked in this config):

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X-series group shot: ThinkPad X61 on top of X200 on top of X300.

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Keyboard and Touchpoint

The keyboard on the X-series ThinkPad has always been a standout in the field of ultraportables. Now with the extra real estate width the keys that were slightly shrunken on the X61 appear in their full glory here. Indeed, the keyboard on the X200 is exactly the same as that you'll get on the T-series, so it's entirely comfortable for typing with no adjustments necessary for smaller keys you often find on ultraportables.

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The feel of the ThinkPad keyboard is well documented as being probably the best in the industry. Each key is individual, there's no sink to the keyboard no matter how hard you push, and the feedback you get from each key is so perfect it's just plain satisfying. It's also quiet and won't click or rattle to annoy others in a business meeting room, lecture hall or wherever you happen to be working away.

The lack of a touchpad will probably come as a shock to some users upon seeing only the red cap of the ThinkPad Touchpoint. To save space the X200 omits the touchpad system in favor of a touchpoint. The touchpoint is easy to use and allows you to move a cursor around the screen more efficiently as you can keep your fingers placed on the keys and use it without lifting a hand down to a touchpad. However, some users that are familiar with a touchpad will take some time to adjust, and potentially never get over the fact the X200 is touchpad-less.

The mouse buttons just below the space bar are easy to use with a nice travel distance, good smooth feedback, and no stiffness or annoying click noisiness.

Screen

Mercifully Lenovo saw fit to increase the brightness of the X200 screen to 200-nits from the 150-nits present on the ThinkPad X61. One of our major complaints with ThinkPad screens in the past has been the lack of brightness, so it's great to see this remedied. The 200-nits of brightness is more than adequate for any indoor situation, but it's still not bright enough for outdoor viewing. The brightness can be adjusted along fifteen levels, if the room is dark it's recommended to dim the screen to half brightness in order to protect your pupils - there's no ambient light sensor to do that for you like some business laptops have.

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The viewing angles of the screen are typical for a laptop, the horizontal viewing angles are pretty decent while vertically colors tend to invert as you tilt the screen away from you. With business users you'll often find a 3M privacy filter in place, especially when a business person is on the road, so we don't care as much about how good the viewing angles are on a portable business laptop - the goal might actually be for as few people around you to see the screen as possible.

For those that lean towards the geeky side, below is a screenshot from the Astra32 application that reads the screen info of the machine:

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Speaker

As you might expect the speakers, excuse me, speaker (as in mono sound) on the X200 is rather pathetic. The speaker is actually located on the bottom of the laptop, so in case it wasn't muffled enough to begin with that just about smothers things. Lenovo claims the speaker performance was improved over the X61, but that's certainly a relative thing.

System sounds are mostly fine and audible but headphones are necessary for any decent listening experience for those favorite tunes you might have stored on the disk.

Performance

The X200 is very impressive in terms of raw power in a small package. This is one of the first systems we've seen with the Intel Montevina platform on board and the news is good, we're finding better performance but no sacrifice with battery life or the heat increasing. Frankly, 2.40GHz of dual core power and a 3MB L2 cache, Intel Turbo Memory, SSD storage and 4GB of DDR3 RAM running at 1066 MHz might just be overkill for a laptop this size, but the option is there if you're like Tim the Tool Man Taylor and want more power for no other reason than the fact it's more powerful.

Onto the benchmarks, here are the scores we received running various benchmarks against the Intel P8600 2.40GHz, 2GB RAM, 7200RPM hard drive setup:

wPrime is a program that forces the processor to do recursive mathematical calculations, this processor benchmark program is a multi-threaded application that can use both processors at once, it measures the amount of time to run a set amount of calculations. The P8600 performed admirably well.

wPrime comparison results (lower scores means better performance):

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Lenovo ThinkPad X200 (Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 @ 2.40GHz)	32.119 seconds
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz)	52 seconds
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7100 @ 1.20GHz)	98 seconds
Apple MacBook Air (Intel Core 2 Duo P7500 @ 1.6GHz)	68 seconds
Asus Eee PC 701 4G (Intel Celeron M ULV @ 900MHz)	200 seconds
Sony VAIO TZ (Intel Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76 seconds
Dell XPS M1330 (Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.20GHz)	38 seconds

PCMark05 is a benchmark that measures the overall system performance, so it considers the processor, hard drive, memory and OS as part of the mix.

PCMark05 benchmark results (higher scores are better)

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Lenovo ThinkPad X200 (Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 @ 2.40GHz, Intel X4500)	4,298 PCMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz, Intel X3100)	3,445 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7100 @ 1.20GHz, Intel X3100)	3,467 PCMarks
Apple MacBook Air (1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7500, Intel X3100)	2,478 PCMarks
Sony VAIO TZ (1.20GHz Core 2 Duo U7600, Intel GMA 950)	2,446 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

3DMark06 is a benchmark that measures graphics performance, or more accurately measures the notebook's ability to play 3D computer games. The score is based in part on overall performance, but the single most important factor in this benchmark is the performance of the dedicated or integrated graphics. In the case of the X200, the integrated graphics performance wasn't bad ... but you certainly won't be playing Crysis on this machine:

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Lenovo ThinkPad X200 (Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 @ 2.40GHz, Intel X4500)	927 3DMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7100 @ 2.10 GHz, Intel X3100	502 3DMarks
Apple MacBook Air (Intel Core 2 Duo P7500, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz, Intel X3100)	620 3DMarks
HP 2133 Mini-Note (1.6GHz VIA C7-M ULV, VIA Chrome 9)	93 3DMarks
Averatec 2575 (2.2 GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-64, ATI RS690T)	377 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

Battery Life

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The ThinkPad X200 comes with three different battery options: 4-cell, 6-cell or 9-cell. The bigger the battery the longer the battery life and of course the heavier the weight. We have the 9-cell cylindrical battery which causes the system weight to jump to about 3.6 lbs instead of the 2.95 lb weight you get with the 4-cell. It turns out that the 9-cell may well be worth carrying the extra weight, especially if you're a mobility freak that hates having to hunt down the next power outlet. Lenovo gives a quoted battery life of 9.2 hours with the 9-cell battery, and for what may be the first time ever our system outperformed the manufacturers quoted time. With the screen set to the 4^th level of brightness, wireless on and the system idling for about 8 hours and being used to surf the web for about an hour the battery finally gave up at 9 hours and 53 minutes. This was no torture test on the battery, but during heavy usage with screen brightness all the way up you'll still pretty safely hit 5 hours of battery life. This reviewer took the X200 to a coffee shop to do some work for about four hours and only drained the battery down to 55% of the battery life while constantly surfing, typing, opening and installing programs. It's nice to not have to be glancing around wondering when you'll be able to pounce and claim that guys table who is camped out next to the coffee shops only power outlet.

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The power adapter for the X200 remains the same as that used for the X61 and X300, though the battery for the X200 is compatible with neither of those X-models. The power manager interface within the ThinkVantage software has also changed, the UI is a little more friendly, though some long time ThinkPad users may have to figure out how to find information they were used to seeing in a different way before, there's a bit of a re-learning curve if you will.

Heat and Noise

The ThinkPad engineers have once again raised the bar on reducing both heat and noise. The X200 has adopted the "owl-like" fan design that was seen in the X300. The fan is amazingly quiet when it runs and does its job well. Even if you don't care to appreciate the details of the engineering with the fan design, you'll appreciate the fact there's simply no areas of noticeable warmth on the X200. Even if you put your hand up to the heat vent area it's hard to feel anything more than a bit of warm air coming out. We often find with ultraportables that the heat buildup can be off the scale and noisy fans the norm as designers have to cram all the internals into a smaller space. The X200 proves this does not have to be the case if the right type of engineering is used. Reducing the heat buildup is important to both your comfort and also ensuring that the system doesn't cook itself and break down under the heat stress.

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Wireless

The X200 has a number of Wi-Fi options: the Intel WiFi Link 5100, WiFi Link 5300, Intel WiMAX/WiFi Link 5350 and ThinkPad 11b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Express. The Intel "WiFi Link" chipsets are new with Montevina and we can once again thank Intel for obfuscating our buying decisions. What exactly the difference is between the WiFi Link 5100 and 5300 is not obvious, though we do know the 5300 offers 802.11 a/b/g/n since our system does support this. The 5350 chipset with WiMax support will not be available on the X200 until later this year.

The new Intel WiFi Link 5300 worked well for the most part, though it did frequently seem slow in acquiring network associations and a couple of times the system froze for a period of 10 seconds while the card was trying to connect to a network. Once connected things were fine though and the range and speed what you'd expect. The antenna placement at the top of the X200 screen helps a lot when it comes to improving range.

Built-in WWAN is an option with theX200 of course; the great news is if you're not sure you want it at the time of purchase you can easily add it after market. This is because Lenovo already pre-wires every X200 they produce so it's ready for WWAN, so the antenna that's necessary is placed into the lid area. Once the urge or need arises to put in a WWAN card, you just order the Mini PCI part it requires, open up the X200 and pop it in, and you're ready to go - once you've agreed to pay Verizon, Vodafone or Telus a monthly fee of course.

BlueTooth is also an option with the X200. It's definitely a recommended feature for those that want to use a wireless BlueTooth mouse or pair the X200 with a PDA or Smart Phone device. Also part of the mix now is a built-in GPS option.

A new Access Connections interface makes finding wireless networks visually more appealing, a screenshot of the 3D satellite-type view of networks you now get is shown below:

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Expansion Capabilities

The X200 has an updated docking connector and so there is a new UltraBase dubbed the X200 UltraBase. The X200 UltraBase allows you to snap into a dock with the following ports: UltraBay Slim (SATA), 4 USB 2.0 ports, VGA, DisplayPort, Microphone in, Headphone out, Stereo Speakers, RJ-45 Ethernet, Cable lock slot, Key lock slot, 2nd battery charger. The list price for the X200 UltraBase will be $219.

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Environment

Lenovo has been working on making their products more friendly to the environment. The ThinkPad X200 is the first PC to be certified by GreenGuard, it meets a Silver EPEAT rating and is Energy Star 4.0 compliant -- Lenovo is claiming a 25% lower power consumption than the previous generation of ThinkPads. Less power in but more power out -- not bad.

Conclusion

The ThinkPad X200 is a very worthy successor to the ThinkPad X61. The amazing battery life capabilities and cool and quiet running performance are real highlights. Having so much power in a small package while still maintaining a cool and quiet computing experience further adds to the impressiveness there. The ThinkPad X200 is also durable enough to last a very long time even with the most abusive of owners, shoving the X200 in a tightly packed bag and then physically forcing it under seat 21A on the plane won't cause this laptop harm.

The downsides are that there's no optical drive like you get with the ThinkPad X300 and no touchpad for those that prefer that style of input. The removal of FireWire and then no built-in DisplayPort, HDMI or DVI port could be a deterrent for some. The all black and professional look has stood the test of time and looks both clean and professional, we like it, but those business people demanding their IT department to support the Apple iPhone might just care about how cool their laptop looks too. And let's face it, the X200 won't cause anyone to do a double take for its looks.

Overall though the X200 is yet another step forward for the ThinkPad X-series line and another check in the column for a job well done by ThinkPad designers and engineers.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

HP Pavilion dv5z

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 03:09:00 +0000

The newest 15-inch notebook from HP arrives just in time to make a big impact for back-to-school shoppers in 2008. The HP Pavilion dv5z features the latest AMD dual-core processors, cutting edge graphics that slaughter the competition, and a price that's so competitive you'll have a hard time coming up with reasons not to buy this notebook. Take a look at our full review and find out what makes this notebook so impressive.

Buying Choices for the HP Pavilion dv5z Customizable Notebook PC

HP Home & Home Office Store | $599.99

Our HP Pavilion dv5z has the following specifications:

Processor: 2.1GHz AMD Turion X2 Ultra dual-core processor ZM-80
Graphics: ATI Radeon HD 3200
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium with SP 1 (64-bit)
Screen: 15.4" WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050)
Memory: 2GB (up to 4GB configurable)
Storage: 160GB SATA HDD (5400rpm)
Optical Drive: SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
Wireless and Communications: 802.11b/g WLAN
Battery: 6-cell Li-Ion (10.8V, 47Wh)
Dimensions: 14.05" (W) x 10.2" (D) x 1.37" (min H)/1.65" (max H)
Weight: 5.84lbs
Warranty: 1-year

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The pricing on the dv5z starts at around $699.99 ($599.99 with $100 instant rebate), and our configuration has a few upgrades that brought the final price to $849.99 at the time of this writing. Needless to say, this is a fabulous price point for back-to-school shoppers.

Build and Design

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The dv5z has a new and improved design, replacing the long-lasting and much-loved dv6000 series chassis design. The display cover has the durable plastic Imprint finish, which holds up quite well to minor abrasion without scratching. The body of the notebook is smooth with rounded edges, making it extremely comfortable in your hand while carrying it around. The screen also sports a latchless design, making it easy to open the notebook with one hand. Although the lid lacks any latch to keep it held shut, the hinges feel fairly strong, keeping the lid secure. Pressing firmly onto the back of the screen cover will produce some ripples on the screen ... but you must apply significant pressure to cause this.

The plastic chassis is quite rigid and suffers from no flex or creaks even when twisted between my hands. Although I don't recommend tossing your notebook down a staircase, the dv5z should survive years of daily travel in a backpack or the occasional drop off a desk.

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Our dv5z features the "Mesh" Imprint Finish which looks the name implies: a fine gray mesh pattern over a black surface. The Imprint Finish on the dv5z is much more subtle than the previous designs we've seen on HP notebooks. I suspect most average consumers will find the mesh pattern more acceptable in workplace environments than the older generation patterns. While the dv5z still looks like an attractive consumer notebook, the Imprint Finish isn't quite as "splashy" or "busy" as it used to be.

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The bottom of the dv5z is quite simple with some nice heat vents located in strategic positions to help keep the laptop cool. The access panels on the bottom of the notebook make it easy to upgrade RAM, replace the hard disk drive, or replace the motherboard battery if needed. This arrangement makes it simple for the novice user to make upgrades, but more serious users will have to remove the entire base of the chassis in order to access the rest of the motherboard.

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Screen

The 15.4-inch diagonal WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050) is quite simply one of the best 15-inch screens I've seen on any notebook. Detail is amazing, colors are rich with deep contrast, backlighting is even across the entire surface, and viewing angles are good. There is some color inversion when you view the screen from below ... but how often do you tilt your screen back and view it that way?

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Input and Output Ports

The dv5z has an impressive number of ports with some nice additions you won't find on most consumer notebooks. Here's a run down of the ports:

3 USB 2.0 ports
1 eSATA port/USB port
ExpressCard/54 slot
HDMI 1.3 connector
5-in-1 multi-card reader
Microphone in, two headphone/audio out ports
1 Expansion Port 3 Docking Station Connector
1 RJ -45 (LAN)
1 VGA out
Kensington lock slot

While three USB ports might not sound like enough for a 15-inch notebook, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. First, this budget notebook comes with an eSATA/USB port which allows you to connect either a USB device or an eSATA device. Although USB is still a great connection method for accessories USB cannot provide fast data transfer rates for huge amounts of data. We need a faster way to transfer files as more and more consumers start storing their family videos, digital photos, and personal media collections on 2TB and larger external hard drives. This is where eSATA comes in. Without getting too technical, an eSATA port can transfer data to and from an eSATA-equipped external storage drive six times faster than USB.

The second important feature to consider on the dv5z is that HP still includes a dedicated docking station connector on their laptops for those of us who use our laptops as desktop replacements. This is far more important than most people realize. Most other notebook manufacturers have removed dedicated docking ports and now only offer USB docking stations. USB is great for connecting one or two devices at the same time, but if you are trying to transfer data, video, audio, and perhaps even your Ethernet connection over a single USB port you will suffer a major reduction in speed. The dedicated Expansion Port 3 on the dv5z can handle all of your docking station needs all at the same time with virtually no reduced performance.

HP deserves serious praise for adding the eSATA port and keeping the dedicated docking port when most of the competition doesn't offer these features on consumer notebooks.

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While we're on the subject of ports, it's worth mentioning that the HDMI port also supports audio as well as video via a standard HDMI cable. Many laptops with HDMI ports only support video, but the dv5z supports both video and audio. To test this I connected the dv5z to my 1080p HDTV. As soon as I connected the HDMI cable the computer recognized the connection and asked if I wanted to extend my desktop or duplicate my desktop (I chose duplicate) and then I inserted a DVD into the notebook's drive.

The dv5z upscaled the DVD movie to a full 1080p resolution and upscaled the movie to 1680 x 1050 resolution for the built-in display. The video playback was flawless with no skipped frames and the audio synched perfectly with the action on the screen (or screens). This is quite impressive and is something you just don't expect to see on a budget notebook.

Performance and Benchmarks

HP offers the new Pavilion dv5z with a range of AMD processors, including the older generation 1.9GHz Athlon X2 QL-60 dual-core processor. However, the big news this year is the availability of AMD's new "Puma" platform with improved processors and graphics. The new AMD Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80 2.1GHz dual-core processor is an obvious evolution of AMD processor technology, but the real news is the integrated graphics.

It isn't very often that we get excited about an integrated graphics processor (IGP). Every IGP on the market is painfully inferior to a dedicated graphics card and every IGP on the market struggles to handle high definition video and 3D video games. Not so with the ATI Radeon HD 3200. For the first time ever consumers have a low-cost IGP that offers flawless 1080p video playback and can even play many 3D video games at reasonable frame rates!

Let's take a look at a few basic benchmarks so you can get an idea of how the dv5z stacks up.

wPrime is a program that forces the processor to do recursive mathematical calculations, this processor benchmark program is multi-threaded and can use both processor cores at once, it measures the amount of time to run a set amount of calculations.

wPrime comparison results (lower scores means better performance):

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
HP Pavilion dv5z (Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80 @ 2.1GHz)	39.745s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
HP Pavilion dv6500z (Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	40.759s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
HP Pavilion dv6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s

You can see from the results in WPrime the new Turion X2 Ultra processor from AMD's new "Puma" platform provides a respectable amount of raw processing power but isn't significantly faster than the previous generation processors when it comes to basic calculations.

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	3,994 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

The PCMark05 score suggests the dv5z provides solid overall performance.

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	1,599 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6500z (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, NVIDIA 8400m GS)	1,551 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

All of the 3DMark06 scores for all of the systems listed above were run at 1280 x 768 resolution. Bottom line: AMD is speaking truthfully when they claim that the new ATI Radeon HD 3200 IGP provides roughly three times the performance of the Intel X3100 IGP and rivals the performance of low-cost dedicated graphics cards.

Just for laughs, we also ran the 3DMark06 benchmark at the full screen resolution on our dv5z (1680 x 1050) and the system returned a score of 1,131 3DMarks. Even when running a higher resolution display the integrated graphics on the dv5z provides more than double the performance of Intel's current integrated graphics!

In short, AMD and ATI just murdered the low-end dedicated graphics card market. There's absolutely no reason to buy a laptop with a low-end dedicated graphics card like the NVIDIA 8400m GS because the new ATI integrated graphics solution performs just as well (if not better) at a fraction of the cost.

For those of you who might be interested in the older 3DMark05 graphics benchmark, I've included those numbers below (all tested at 1024 x 768 resolution):

3DMark05 comparison results (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark05 Results
HP Pavilion dv5z (2.1GHz Turion X2 Ultra ZM-80, ATI Radeon HD 3200)	2,969 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	3,116 3DMarks
HP Compaq 6510b (2.20GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, Intel X3100)	916 3DMarks
HP Compaq 6515b (1.6GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-52, ATI x1270)	871 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	2,013 3D Marks
Dell Inspiron e1705 (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	1,791 3D Marks
Acer TravelMate 8204WLMi (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 256MB)	4,236 3DMarks
Alienware Aurora M-7700(AMD Dual Core FX-60, ATI X1600 256MB)	7,078 3D Marks
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400 128MB)	2,092 3D Marks
Asus V6Va (2.13 GHz Pentium M, ATI x700 128 MB)	2,530 3D Marks
Fujitsu n6410 (1.66 GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400 128MB)	2,273 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1210 (2.16 GHz Core Duo, nVidia Go 7400 256MB)	2,090 3D Marks

As if this weren't enough to get you excited about the new ATI graphics, AMD has also been promoting the new Hybrid Crossfire capabilities. In short, Hybrid Crossfire allows you to combine the performance of an integrated graphics processor with a dedicated graphics card (such as the ATI Raedon HD 3450) in order to provide improved graphics performance. Basically, the integrated graphics and dedicated graphics work together to produce a better visual experience. It's unclear whether the HP Pavilion dv5z with the dedicated ATI Radeon HD 3450 option will make use of Hybrid Crossfire, but it's an innovative idea.

HDTune storage drive performance results:

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Keyboard, Touchpad and Media Controls

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The keyboard on the Pavilion dv5z has zero flex and excellent key travel with quiet presses. I can't say with absolute certainty, but I suspect the keyboard is the same part used on the dv6700t (or at least the dv6780se we previously reviewed).

The keys have a durable coating which makes the keyboard look and feel better when typing. The slight glossy texture of the keys won't develop the typical "shine" that begins to show up on keys after extended use.

The dv5z also features attractive touch-sensitive media buttons that seemingly vanish behind the "liquid metal" surface when the computer is turned off, but light up when the notebook is turned on.

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The palm rest area features the same "Mesh" Imprint Finish used on the lid. The touchpad is nice and large and features a durable and responsive surface that is also covered in the HP Imprint Finish. The marked vertical scroll section is likewise accurate and responsive. The touchpad buttons have deep feedback and produce quiet, cushioned clicks.

One of the nice features found on HP touchpads is the touchpad on/off button. If you press the small button above the touchpad you can disable it ... perfect for people using an external mouse. Although the touchpad is quite nice I would have liked to see the same style of touchpad that HP started using on the tx1000z, tx2000z, tx2500z and HDX notebooks ... perhaps on next year's notebooks?

The reason I mention the touchpads on the other HP notebooks is because I have mixed opinions about the glossy touchpad on the dv5z. The touchpad surface feels nice and smooth, but if you have even slightly moist fingertips your finger with stick to the touchpad and you won't be able to drag the cursor in smooth, straight movements. As long as you have extremely dry skin (or use an external mouse) this won't be a problem.

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Another added bonus is the inclusion of a media remote. This little remote tucks away in the ExpressCard slot and is great for moving through slide presentations or for controlling the notebook when it's connected to your HDTV.

Speakers

The speaker quality was "above average" for a notebook without a built-in subwoofer. The speakers for the dv5z are located at the top of the keyboard area beneath the media buttons.

There's not much to write home about the Altec Lansing speakers. They get loud enough with minimal distortion and the sound isn't as "tinny" as is the case with nearly all laptop speakers. However, the speakers don't produce the kind of output that "fills a room" the way you might want if you're listening to your music collection on the built-in speakers. On the brighter side, both audio out ports delivered crystal clear audio to my earphones during the test period.

Heat and Noise

The Pavilion dv5z does a reasonable job keeping heat under control. The system fan and heatsinks in the notebook do a great job managing heat when the system is under load ... as we discovered when we ran multiple benchmarks back to back. Below are images with temperature readings listed in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Noise was likewise a non-issue with the fan on the dv5z. The fan moved a significant amount of hot air but the noise was reasonably quieter than what we hear on most budget notebooks. When the fan is on low it is perfectly silent. When the fan is on high (such as when the system is stressed while playing 3D video games) you can hear it running in a quiet room but it's still not as loud as many budget notebooks we've reviewed. Of course, the manufacturer of the cooling fan in your notebook might be different and the dv5z will produce more heat if you configure it with a dedicated graphics card, so your mileage (or decibels) may vary.

Battery Life

We knew it was too much to expect a budget notebook to be perfect, but we were a little disappointed by the battery life from the dv5z. The 6-cell 47WHr Li-Ion battery provides sub-par battery life for the dv5z. With Vista's power management running in "balanced" mode, screen brightness set to 50 percent and wireless on, the 6-cell battery delivered 2 hours and 22 minutes of battery life. By comparison, most budget notebooks can deliver more than two and a half hours of battery life on "high performance" mode with the screen set to maximum brightness.

There is also an available high-capacity 6-cell Li-Ion battery for those users needing extended battery life. It's odd that there is no 9-cell or 12-cell battery option at the time of this writing, but that may change in the future.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Toshiba Satellite Pro L300

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 02:53:00 +0000

The Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 offers a vivid 15.4" WXGA display and Intel Centrino processor technology. The L300 has all the essentials for business users in its simplistic yet functional design. Let's take a closer a look and see if the Satellite Pro really stands up to the competition.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite Pro L300-EZ1005X

view detailed pricing from 16 stores starting at $856.00

Our Toshiba review unit had the following specifications:

Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 2.1GHz processor
Intel X3100 Integrated Graphics
2GB RAM DDR2
160GB (5400 rpm) hard drive
Windows XP Professional OS
15.4" WXGA 1280x800 screen
Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)
10/100 Ethernet LAN
Modem port
VGA-15 pin
DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer) supporting up to 11 formats
ExpressCard Slot
SDCard Slot
3x USB 2.0
Headphone and microphone jack
webcam
Battery: 6-cell (4800mAh) Lithium Ion battery
Weight: 5.7lbs
Starting price: $949

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Build and Design

The Satellite Pro L300 has a very simple design. It has that sleek business appearance with its silver lid and black keyboard. You don't get any glossy imprint finishes with the L300. Don't let the plain looks fool you though, it still is very functional.

The chassis is solid and the overall design didn't feel cheap. It does feel heavy for my standards, but I am used to smaller Tablet PCs. Weighing in about 5.7lbs is usually average for a 15.4-inch notebook. The L300 hides dirt well, but you can start to see some scratches from normal wear and tear.

The plastic design seemed durable and didn't show any signs of flex. The hinge was even stiff and the screen stayed in place. The L300 comes with a good array of features for the price, but to me seems like an awkward sized notebook for business use, unless it stayed in your office.

Display

The 15.4" WXGA (1280x800) screen on the Satellite Pro L300 is above average. The colors are bright and vivid. The screen didn't have any problems or defects. The backlighting was fine in an office setting and easy to read. I didn't notice any signs of blacklight bleed through except for a tiny bit on the bottom by the taskbar.

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The colors looked good at all angles and that is why I rated the screen as good. I didn't have a problem at any viewing angle. The only problem I had was when the screen was tilted all the way back the colors were distorted, but who uses their screen like this anyway.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the L300 is solid and didn't show any signs of flex, no matter how hard you typed. The keys have a nice response and are easy to read. The spacebar is a little smaller than I would like, but it's not the end of the world. The keys even have a durable textured feel to them.

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I didn't feel cramped when typing at all. The keyboard is the perfect size and the palm rest is comfortable to rest your hands on. I am used to typing on tablets, so I enjoyed having the extra keyboard room.

The touchpad is average. I like that it is indented into the palm rests because your finger never slips off. I mean you could use this touchpad with your eyes closed ... well, you know what I mean. The only problem was it was kind of slow when navigating and I couldn't change the responsiveness like on a mouse. The right and left click buttons worked fine as well.

Performance

The Satellite Pro L300 didn't have any problems running multiple programs or multi-tasking jobs with its Core 2 Duo 2.1GHz processor and 160GB hard drive. I could check email, open documents and surf the Web without any lag. The benchmarks are average and overall the L300 did good on its PCMark05 score compared to other notebooks in the same category. I am sure the fact it is running Windows XP instead of Vista helps out this business savvy notebook as well.

wPrime is a program that forces the processor to do recursive mathematical calculations, the advantage of this program is that it is multi-threaded and can use both processor cores at once, thereby giving more accurate benchmarking measurements than Super Pi. (Lower numbers mean better performance.)

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	42.017s
Toshiba Satellite A305D (Turion X2 TL-64 @ 2.2GHz)	37.220s
Toshiba Satellite A305 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	36.442s
Asus M51S (Core 2 Duo T5550 @ 1.83GHz)	46.293s
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.184s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
Hewlett Packard DV6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Zepto Znote 6224W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	45.788s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 (2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T8100, Intel X3100)	385 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305D (2.2GHz AMD Turion X2 TL-64, ATI 1250)	271 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	3,810 3DMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	3,749 3DMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	543 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	1,556 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 (2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T8100, Intel X3100)	3,398 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305D (2.2GHz AMD Turion X2 TL-64, ATI 1250)	3,510 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	5,622 PCMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	4,649 PCMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	3,749 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	3,386 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune measures the performance of the notebook's hard drive in terms of both transfer rate (read/write speed) and access time (how long it takes to find data stored on the drive):

Audio

The speakers on the Satellite Pro L300 aren't the best, but remember this notebook is targeted toward business use and it's not an entertainment or gaming notebook. The speakers are located under the screen of the notebook by the hinge. Music sounds fine when played at normal levels, but the louder it gets the more distorted it becomes. My recommendation is to to use your trusty headphones when working and listening to music or watching videos. The volume dial on the front side is a convenient feature too, this way you don't annoy your office mates.

Ports and Features

Port selection was average for a notebook of this size, it would have been nice to see S-Video or HDMI. Overall you get the basics with your optical drive and three USB ports, just what the business professional needs. You get the choice to work or watch movies on that long flight.

Front: Wireless on/off, SDCard slot, microphone and headphone, volume dial

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Left: VGA-15pin, Ethernet, two USB ports, ExpressCard Slot

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Right: One USB port, optical drive, power jack

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Rear: Modem, screen hinge

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Underneath: Fan, battery

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Battery Life

With the screen brightness set to 50 percent, wireless enabled, and the power profile set to Toshiba's Power Saver the L300 managed 3 hours and 45 minutes before I had to plug it in. If you adjust the power settings and put the notebook in Max Power, you will only get a little more than two hours though. I would consider getting a extended battery for longer computing times, especially if you travel.

Heat and Noise

I didn't have any problems with heat on the L300. I never noticed it getting hot or even warm for that matter. All sections of the notebook were comfortable to hold and the keyboard was always cool enough to type on or rest you hands on. Even when running the benchmarks the notebook stayed under 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it detected a little warm up the fan would kick on.

The noise issue was the same way, barely there. The L300 ran quiet almost the entire time, except for the occasional whisper when the fan would kick on. The only other noise came from using the optical drive, which is normal. You could use the L300 in a library and it wouldn't even raise an eyebrow.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite Pro L300-EZ1005X

view detailed pricing from 16 stores starting at $856.00

Conclusion

The Satellite Pro L300 is a business savvy notebook. It doesn't have a glossy finish or any special features to make it stand out. What you see is what you get: a minimalistic, yet very functional notebook at a good price. The L300 comes with a good variety of ports, has a nice screen and a great keyboard. It is a little heavy and big to be a traveling companion in my opinion, but many business users like to watch movies or presentations while traveling and the 15.4" screen does it justice. Performance wise it gets the job done as well, I wouldn't expect to be gaming on the L300 much though.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Toshiba Satellite Pro U400

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:11:00 +0000

The Satellite Pro U400 is the business version of the more consumer oriented Satellite U405. This 13.3" notebook gives business users or standard consumers another notebook option if they really like the size and features of the Satellite U405, but don't want the "Look at Me!" glossy finish. Feature wise you can configure each notebook the same, with the exception of Windows XP being exclusive to the business notebook. Read on to see what we think of this business counterpart to the consumer U405.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite Pro U400-S1001X - Core 2 Duo T8100 2.1 GHz - 13.3

Buydig.com | $989.00
Beach Camera | $989.00
Newegg.com | $999.99

view detailed pricing from 15 stores starting at $947.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 1 opinion | rate product

Our Toshiba U400 review unit had the following specifications:

Windows XP Professional (SP2)
Intel T8100 Penryn (2.1GHz) Processor
13.3" WXGA 1280x800 TruBrite Display (Glossy)
Intel X3100 Integrated Graphics
Intel Pro 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g) and Bluetooth V2.1 +EDR
1GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
160GB 5400rpm Toshiba Hard Drive
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive
1.3 megapixel webcam
Stereo speakers
Fingerprint reader
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 12.4" x 9.02" x 1.08" /1.38" with feet
Weight: 4.61lbs with six-cell battery
75W (19V x 3.95A) 100-240V AC Adapter
6-cell (4800mAh) Lithium Ion battery
1-Year Standard Limited Warranty
Price as configured: $1,049.99

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Build and Design

The U400's stylish design features a 2-tone color scheme of matte silver on black. Many of the traditionally-square notebook features have been softened with round edges. The overall style is carried onto the keyboard and touchpad areas with both reflecting the shape of the notebook itself. Once the factory stickers are removed from the palmrest areas, the notebook's design blends into a cohesive whole.

The plastic case of the notebook is fairly durable, with no squeaks or creaks when carrying it around. Some flex is present on vast open areas like the screen cover or palmrest, but it is pretty minor unless you always find yourself giving your notebook a death grip. The left edge of the palmrest above the ExpressCard slot is probably the worst point of flex on the entire notebook, since it has no bracing unless a card is inserted.

I feel that the matte paint on the Satellite Pro doesn't hold up quite as well as the Fusion finish on the consumer Satellite series. After a week or so of testing, the notebook is already showing some scuffs around the corners from my backpack and sliding around my desk. With the Fusion finish notebook, it is hard to find a small scratch, let alone an entire scuffed edge. I figure I have just been spoiled with the newer glossy textures which hold up to abrasion much better than anything found on prior notebooks.

Display

The 13.3" WXGA screen found on the Toshiba Satellite Pro U400 rates average, and came with no problems or defects. The screen was dead/stuck pixel free during our review period, and was sealed well enough to prevent any major backlight leakage. The screen backlight was powerful enough to allow comfortable viewing in an office setting with as low as 40-50% backlight brightness level. The backlight levels were even throughout the screen, without any backlight bleed showing through, even on the lower edge of the taskbar.

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Color reproduction was good when screen was tilted in its optimum viewing range, but if you moved outside of that area colors would quickly invert or distort. The poor viewing range was the main cause of me giving this screen an average rating instead of above average.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard found on the Satellite Pro U400 was very good for a notebook of this size. The keyboard stayed in place while typing, even under heavy pressure. Very little sagging was present during our testing, although the left side did have a smidgen more movement than the right side.

Typing on the keyboard is very comfortable, with plenty of space to make the keyboard feel anything but cramped. Key size was perfect, with good throw lengths and smooth action. Typing noise was low, and you could get away with secret ninja typing if you were careful.

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The touchpad rated average with accurate finger tracking use, but lacked many customization features I have come to expect from touchpad utilities. Although the touchpad was a Synaptics model, the menus did not allow for any adjustment for sensitivity, scrolling, or additional functions. The lack of scrolling was my biggest complaint, since no notebook on the market right now lacks that ability. The touchpad buttons were smooth and easy to trigger, with a shallow and soft click when pressed.

Performance

The Toshiba Satellite U400 comes in only two versions at the time of this writing; one with XP, one with Vista. Both of these configurations offer the same spec sheet, including 1GB of RAM, 2.1GHz T8100 Intel processor, and Intel X3100 graphics. In our testing, the consumer U405 running Vista always outperformed the business U400 in every category, and it only had the edge of more RAM.
Graphics performance was limited with the Intel X3100 integrated graphics, nixing all my hopes of running Crysis on the 13.3" notebook. One surprising bit that came up under testing was how poorly the XP version of this notebook performed compared to the U405 running Vista, and only difference being more RAM. Our wPrime score was 8% slower, PCMark05 score was 36% slower, and even the 3DMark06 score was 37% slower.

wPrime is a program that forces the processor to do recursive mathematical calculations, the advantage of this program is that it is multi-threaded and can use both processor cores at once, thereby giving more accurate benchmarking measurements than Super Pi. Lower scores indicate better performance.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite U400 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	40.499s
Toshiba Satellite U405 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.500s
Dell Vostro 1310 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.736s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores indicate better gaming performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite U400 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	394 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite U405 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	539 3DMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	1,679 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite U400 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	3,052 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite U405 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	4,145 PCMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	4,813 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune measures the performance of the notebook's hard drive in terms of both transfer rate (read/write speed) and access time (how long it takes to find data stored on the drive):

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Audio

Speaker performance on the little Satellite Pro U400 is rather weak, with really dinky speakers located in front of the screen hinges. They work well for mild music listening or system notifications, but lack all low and midrange audio. The better alternative choice is using a nice pair of headphones and the headphone jack. That way you can listen to music or movies as loud as you want, while not annoying those around you too much (singing excluded).

Ports and Features

Port selection was about average for a notebook of this size, although it would have been nice to see S-Video or HDMI. Toshiba teased us with a blank HDMI port location, possibly hinting at a future model that offers it, perhaps with dedicated graphics as well.

ExpressCard slot (ExpressCard/34 and Express Card/54)
10/100 Ethernet
56k Modem
5-in-1 media card reader
VGA out
Microphone input port
Headphone output port
IEEE-1394 (FireWire)
Three USB 2.0 ports

Left: VGA, CPU Exhaust, 2 USB, Firewire, ExpressCard/54, Headphone/Mic

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Right: Optical Drive, 1 USB, Modem, LAN, Kensington Lock Slot

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Front: 5-1 Media Reader, Volume Control Knob, Wireless On/Off

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Rear: Screen Hinge

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Battery Life

With the screen brightness set to 50%, wireless enabled, and the power profile set to normal the U400 managed 3 hours and 32 minutes before it shut down. This was a good 15 minutes below the Vista equipped U405 we reviewed, but still respectable for a standard battery. Toshiba does offer a larger 9 cell 7200mAh extended battery, which should easily get the notebook to or above the 5 hour mark.

Heat and Noise

Thermal performance was above average, with the notebook running cool and quiet the majority of the time. During normal activity the only part of the system you could hear was the hard drive. When the notebook got hot enough to turn on the fan, noise was minimal, and around whisper levels.

The notebook was fairly cool externally, with the only mild hotspot being the touchpad. While the sides of the palmrest were mid 80's after a couple of hours being on, the touchpad warmed up to 99F. With room temperature at 74F, the notebook was very comfortable to hold and operate. Below is the thermal overlay showing temperatures of the front and bottom of the notebook.

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Conclusion

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite Pro U400-S1001X - Core 2 Duo T8100 2.1 GHz - 13.3

Buydig.com | $989.00
Beach Camera | $989.00
Newegg.com | $999.99

view detailed pricing from 15 stores starting at $947.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 1 opinion | rate product

The Toshiba Satellite U400 gives business users a solid feature list and moderate performance, but did not do as well as the nearly identical configured Satellite U405 we previously reviewed using Vista instead of XP. Performance across the board was less in every test we performed, with the only configuration difference between increased RAM on the Vista model. The other downside to this configuration is the paint finish which doesn't hold up as well as the Fusion finish on the consumer line, evident by the scuff marks already found on our review sample. If you were looking to purchase this notebook, I might direct you to a Vista configuration of the business U400, or the consumer U405 entirely for the better Fusion finish.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Dell Vostro 1510

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:58:00 +0000

After last year's successful launch of the new Vostro line of copmputers targeted ar small businesses, Dell made a serious effort to listen to customer feedback criticizing Dell's thick and heavy laptops. The result was a bold revision of the Vostro line with thinner and lighter chassis designs for 2008. The new Dell Vostro 1510 is a 15.4" screen notebook designed for businesses that need a budget desktop replacement. Is this the best choice for businesses or consumers looking for a value-priced notebook? Let's see.

Buying Choices for the Dell Vostro 1510 Laptop Computer (Intel Core 2 Duo T5670 1.8GHz, DDR2 SDRAM 2000MB, 160GB)

Dell, Inc. | $584.00

The Dell Vostro 1510 is available with a range of Intel processors (from the 1.86GHz Celeron M M540 up to the T9500 2.6GHz Core 2 Duo). There are four 15.4" screen offerings, a WXGA or WXGA+ display with matte anti-glare coating and WXGA or WXGA+ "TrueLife" glossy display. The notebook can take up to 4GB of RAM and Dell offers 32-bit versions of Microsoft Windows Vista Business or Windows XP Professional. The system is priced starting at $599 with integrated Intel X3100 graphics at the time of this writing, but is also available with nVidia 8400M GS dedicated graphics.

Our Vostro 1510 is equipped with the following specs:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T5670 (1.8GHz)
Memory: 2GB - 2 DIMM (DDR2-667) (4GB max)
HDD: 160GB 5400RPM HDD
Graphics: Intel X3100 integrated graphics
Display: 15.4" WXGA Antiglare
Optical drive: Slot-loading 8x DVD +/- RW
OS: XP Professional
Software: 30-day security subscription anti-virus, No trail-ware
Wireless: Dell 1505 Wireless-N Mini Card (802.11a/g/n)
Battery: 6-cell battery
Other: Webcam and fingerprint reader
Services: Network assistant; 10GB of Datasafe online; Dell Support Center; PC Tune-up
Dimensions (HxWxD): 1" (front)/1.5" (back) x 14.6" x 10.16"
Weight: 5.75 lbs (with 6-cell battery) as configured
Base configuration price: $599
Price as tested: $684

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Build and Design

Dell received some much needed attention in 2007 with the introduction of the sleek, high performance XPS M1330 and XPS M1530 notebooks. While these more expensive notebooks in the Dell lineup were praised for their looks and low weight, the Dell Insipron and Vostro notebooks were criticized for being bulky and unattractive laptops. Dell listened closely to this criticism when they designed the refresh for the Vostro line. The Vostro 1510 is thinner and lighter than last year's Vostro 1500.

Unfortunately, the lighter weight and thinner profile come at some cost. Namely, the plastics used in the chassis feel thin and in some areas, such as above the keyboard and on the palmrests, there is a significant degree of flex. The edges of the chassis are also sharper than what we've seen on earlier Dell notebooks and these sharp edges and thin plastics make the design of the Dell Vostro 1510 feel slightly unfinished or unrefined.

Like all Vostro releases, the 1510 doesn't come in multiple colors or display lid patterns. Black is your only option. However, this year Dell decided to get rid of the matte black finish in favor of a glossy black finish with just a hint of metal flake. The black paint with the fine metal flakes is inlaid with the molds so there's no risk of the glossy finish coming off.

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Although I wasn't a huge fan of the glossy black plastic lid with metal flake paint on our Vostro 1510, it does look and feel nice. Still, the new glossy lid design is a magnet for fingerprints and might not resist light scratches as well as the matte black finish on the previous generation Vostro notebooks.

Another of the new innovations for the Vostro line is the "Hyperband Multi-Antenna" housed inside the LCD lid which Dell claims "can provide excellent reception and help reduce dropped signals" for both Wi-Fi and bluetooth. I've never had serious problems with dropped signals while using older Dell notebooks so I can't speak to whether the new internal multi-antenna actually improved wireless reception ... but I can say that I never experienced dropped Wi-Fi connections during the testing period.

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Screen

Display options for the Vostro 1510 include a matte finish 15.4" Widescreen XGA (1280 x 800) and a 15.4" Widescreen XGA (1280 x 800) with TrueLife (glossy finish). Dell also offers higher resolution WXGA+ (1440 x 900) displays in both matte and glossy configurations.

The screen on our review unit looks flawless from straight on and the horizontal viewing angles are great. Upper vertical viewing angles are good with just a slightly washed out look, but colors did begin to invert at lower viewing angles when the screen is tilted back.

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Keyboard, Touchpad and Media Controls

The keyboard on the Vostro 1510 suffers from severe flex near the center of the keyboard. The keys almost "bounce" as you press them. The keys have a nice matte texture with proper spacing and each of the keys have excellent travel and cushion. There are dedicated page up and page down keys but the home and end keys require the use of the function key, so this might be a little frustrating for users who do a lot of coding.

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A series of touch-sensitive media buttons with blue LED backlights are located above the keyboard similar to the buttons on the XPS notebooks. One nice feature about the media buttons is that the blue LEDs only stay lit for a fraction of a second after being pressed, so they won't distract you by staying lit all the time. The power button also features a blue LED backlight, but this light says on whenever the notebook is on.

Ports and Features

The port selection of the 1510 is reasonably good for a notebook of this size. Here's a quick rundown of what you get:

Front profile view: LED status lights, microphone jack, headphone out, media card reader.

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Left side: Two USB ports, ExpressCard slot, and WiFi on/off switch.

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Right side: Firewire, two USB ports, Slot-loading optical drive, and security lock slot.

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Back profile view: Battery, VGA out, Ethernet and power jack.

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Perhaps the most interesting omission from the ports selection is the lack of either S-video out or HDMI. Some older video projectors still use the S-video port and most newer external monitors and high-resolution projectors use the HDMI port. The absence of both the S-video port and the HDMI port means that this notebook won't be 100 percent friendly with all external displays used for presentations. This might indeed be a serious problem for traveling business professionals who never know exactly what type of video-out port they'll need for their next business presentation.

Another curious omission is the lack of a docking station port on the bottom of the notebook. Most businesses prefer the Dell Latitude and Lenovo ThinkPad line because of the ability to easily dock those laptops with desktop hardware in an office environment. Since the Vostro is targeted at businesses, it would have been nice to have a dedicated docking station port.

That said, with the addition of FireWire, four USB ports, a media card reader, a headphone jack, microphone jack, ExpressCard slot and Ethernet port you're well equipped in terms of ports.

Although most users will find four USB ports to be more than enough to meet everyday needs, I perfer to have more USB ports on 15-inch and larger notebooks. The fact that the smaller Vostro 1310 packs four USB ports into a reasonably thin and light 13.3" notebook is a perfect indication that the Vostro 1510 needs more USB ports.

Audio

The speaker quality was on par with notebooks of this size and price range. The stereo speakers on the 1510 are located on either side ofthe keyboard and produces relatively shallow sound with limited range and no bass. You can get the volume loud without much distortion, but the audio coming out of these tiny speakers is less than impressive.

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This is unfortunate because many 12" and smaller notebooks (such as the HP tx2000z or HP 2133 Mini-Note) have stereo speakers that produce high quality sound with excellent range of highs, middles, and lows. The Vostro 1510 is a budget business notebook, but I'm certain that Dell can do better than this.

On the bright side, both speakers are positioned perfectly for directing sound up and towards the user. Also, the headphone out port delivered crystal clear audio to my headphones during the test period.

Performance and Benchmarks

This budget 15.4" notebook is available with either integrated graphics or a dedicated graphics card option. While most business professionals only need integrated graphics, the optional Nvidia 8400M GS is great for mobile video editing and Photoshop as well as budget gaming.

Our configuration of the Vostro 1510 with the 1.8GHz T5670 Intel Core 2 Duo processor and Intel X3100 integrated graphics performed adequately during testing. This configuration will meet or exceed the performance needs of small business users.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Dell Vostro 1510 (Core 2 Duo T5670 @ 1.8GHz)	51.875s
Dell Vostro 1310 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.736s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	519 3DMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	1,679 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Dell Vostro 1510 (1.8GHz Intel T5670, Intel X3100)	3,568 PCMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	4,813 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune measures the performance of the notebook's hard drive in terms of both transfer rate (read/write speed) and access time (how long it takes to find data stored on the drive):

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Heat and Noise

The Vostro 1510 does an impressive job keeping heat under control. The system fan and heatsinks in the 1510 do a great job managing heat when the system is under load ... as we discovered when we ran multiple benchmarks back to back. What we found most impressive was the fact that the bottom of the notebook (usually the hottest side) ended up being slightly cooler than the surface of the keyboard and palm rests. This is quite nice and makes for a more enjoyable "laptop" experience. Below are images with temperature readings listed in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Fortunately, noise was likewise a non-issue with the fan on the 1510. The fan moved a significant amount of hot air and the noise was exceptionally quiet. The fan was so quiet, even when running at full speed, that the air rushing past the heatsink actually made more noise than the fan itself.

Battery Life

The 6-cell 58WHr Li-Ion battery provides reasonable battery life for the 1510. With screen brightness set to maximum and wireless on, the 6-cell battery delivered 3 hours and 26 minutes of battery life

There is also an available 9-cell 87WHr Li-Ion battery for those users needing extended battery life. Unfortunately, our configuration did not ship with the 9-cell battery, so we cannot provide any information on battery life with these batteries.

Buying Choices for the Dell Vostro 1510 Laptop Computer (Intel Core 2 Duo T5670 1.8GHz, DDR2 SDRAM 2000MB, 160GB)

Dell, Inc. | $584.00

Conclusion

Overall, the Dell Vostro 1510 is a solid budget notebook with clean looks and acceptable performance. Whether you need a simple business notebook or a budget portable laptop with modest gaming capabilities, the Vostro 1510 makes a fine choice.

That said, the chassis isn't as nice as we hoped ... the edges are sharp and could be smoother or more rounded, the case feels hollow and flimsy compared to the earlier Vostros, the touchpad button placement is bad, keyboard suffers from significant flex.

So why buy a Vostro 1510? One huge advantage to the Vostro line is the support, lack of bloatware, and excellent return policy. Dell will let you purchase a Vostro, use it for 30 days, and if you don't like it you can send it back for a full refund without any restocking or shipping fees. That's just amazing.

In short, the Vostro 1510 is a good addition to the Vostro family and gives business professionals and consumers on a budget another alternative to the Dell Inspiron 1525. Unfortunately, the price as configured ($684) places it neck-and-neck with the Inspiron 1525. Although the Vostro has a lot to offer, the Inspiron 1525 has a better chassis design, and for roughly the same amount of money businesses can purchase a 15.4" Dell Latitude notebook or Lenovo ThinkPad R61.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Toshiba Satellite P305D

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:31:00 +0000

The new Satellite P305D is the latest 17-inch notebook out of Toshiba, offering the new Fusion finish. This notebook is a complete redesign of the older P205D, and gave the much needed updates that made the older notebook feel very outdated. The P305D also shares much with the slightly smaller 15-inch A305D, looking almost identical besides a few larger parts. Read on to see how well this notebook compares to its smaller siblings as well as other 17-inch notebooks.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite P305D-S8818

Beach Camera | $799.00
Amazon.com | $799.99
Buydig.com | $799.00
Newegg.com | $949.99

view detailed pricing from 4 stores starting at $799.00

Our Toshiba P305D review unit had the following specifications:

Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, 32-bit)
AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core TL-62 (2.1GHz)
17.1" diagonal widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD display at 1440x900 (WXGA+)
ATI Radeon X1250 Integrated Graphics
Atheros Wireless 802.11a/g/n
2GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
250GB 5400rpm Toshiba Hard Drive
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive with Labelflash
1.3 megapixel webcam
Harmon/Kardon stereo speakers
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 15.7" x 11.3" x 1.6/1.75"
Weight: 7 lbs 8.1oz with six-cell battery
75W (19V x 3.95A) 100-240V AC Adapter
6-cell (4000mAh) Lithium Ion battery
1-Year Standard Limited Warranty
Price as configured: $899.99

Build and Design

The first thing you will notice about the Satellite P305D is every part of this notebook is glossy, from the screen cover, to the palm rest, and even the keyboard keys. Toshiba is really showing off their new durable Fusion finish on every part of the notebook that they can, and in some ways it is a very good thing. Durability is a big thing with notebook finishes, as many glossy finishes will dull and scratch over time. The new Toshiba Fusion finish on this laptop is incredibly durable, and has yet to actually scratch throughout my testing. With multiple trips in my backpack, I can't find any visible scuffs on the cover, where other notebooks would show fine scratches almost out of the wrapper.

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So what does this Fusion finish mean to you? Your keys will not go from matte to glossy over time as they wear down (they are already glossy). Every part of the notebook will get full of smudges and fingerprints, but you can always wipe it down in a couple of minutes to make it look brand new. On other notebooks you get all the smudges, but it would take some hard work with some plastic polish before you ever got it looking new again.

Build quality is excellent in most areas, giving the notebook a very solid feel. Squeaks and creaks are not present, and panel flex is at a minimum. The notebook did have one minor flaw though; just like the A305 and A305D, the P305D has rough edges around the screen frame where the two plastic pieces meet. If you can get past that (I don't see why not) you will love this notebook.

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Body Changes

The new Satellite P305D changes quite a bit of its design, while still retaining some resemblance of its older P205D brother. The biggest change is the use of the new durable Fusion finish, which can be found on practically every surface of the notebook, from the top cover to the individual keyboard keys. Unlike the older glossy surface that would scuff with minimal effort, the Fusion finish holds up very well, and I have yet to find any fine scratches or other wear on it.

The keyboard and surrounding area has changed quite a bit form the older P205D, including touch sensitive multimedia keys, which are very common on most new notebooks. Another change is the flush touchpad area, which is surprisingly slick with its textured surface. It is almost too easy to slide your finger around on it, and slip off onto the palm rest. The touchpad buttons have also changed quite a bit, going from rectangular slabs to chromed ovals which are easier to trigger, as well as being more comfortable to use.

Display

The display on the P305D uses a WXGA+ glossy LCD panel, which rates about average. Vertical viewing angles are limited, with a very narrow range that gives you an optimal image. This means that if the screen is tilted slightly forward or back, the image shown goes dark and inverted or light and washed out. Even in the "sweet spot" you still have the top edge that is darker and the bottom edge that is started to get washed out. Horizontal viewing angles were much better, giving a wide enough angle that would give people sitting next to you a clear and mostly crisp view of the screen.

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Screen backlight brightness was more than adequate, with my preferred brightness setting in an office environment being 75%-80%. At home or darker settings I had it around 40%-50% brightness. Backlight bleed was minimal if at all noticeable. Backlight brightness across the screen was great, with no noticeable uneven portions.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard found on the P305D is very similar to the A305, just wider. With the real estate of a 17-inch notebook, they were able to fit a full-size number pad to the right of the keyboard. The keyboard surface is glossy, which goes perfectly with the Fusion finish of the rest of the notebook. I found typing to be very comfortable on this keyboard, but there was a bit of a learning curve getting used to sliding your fingertips around on the glossy texture. Key spacing was excellent, and individual key presses were soft and had just the right amount of throw.

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The touchpad surface on the P305D could be best described as soft and slippery sandpaper. It has a semi-rough texture that feels different from any other touchpad I have used, and it lets you finger glide over it with ease under many conditions. Whether your finger is dry from the start, or starting to sweat after hours of use the touchpad still lets your finger glide along without resistance. The large touchpad buttons are located right under the touchpad and impossible to miss. While they are rigid plastic, they feel very soft with the graceful rounded shape. Even after hours of using the notebook, they are still comfortable to click.

Performance

The Toshiba P305D comes loaded with the AMD Turion TL-62 2.1GHz processor, and the ATI X1250 integrated graphics. For most activities this combination handles itself quite well, including office productivity applications or watching movies. Gameplay is out of the question without dedicated graphics, which is reflected on its 3D benchmarking score. For standard use and abuse, this computer handles itself quite well, and if you can get past the lack of gaming would work for 99 percent of the users out there.

WPrime 32M comparison results

Notebook	Time
Toshiba Satellite P305D (2.1GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-62, Windows Vista)	38.049s
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, Windows Vista)	39.732s
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, Windows Vista)	30.359s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, Windows Vista)	31.108s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Windows Vista)	42.085s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T7400@ 2.16GHz, Windows XP)	41.40s
HP dv6000z (AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.00GHz, Windows Vista)	38.913s
Sager 9260 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E6700@ 2.66GHz, Windows XP )	33.718s
Dell Precision M70 (Intel Pentium-M 780 @ 2.26GHz, Windows XP)	78.992s

PCMark05 comparison results:

PCMark05 represents the overall system performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite P305D (2.1GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-62, ATI Radeon X1250)	3,366 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	3,305 PCMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	7,749 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,865 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,261 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	5,377 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,925 PCMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,377 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks

3DMark06 comparison results:

3DMark06 represents the overall graphics performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite P305D (2.1GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-62, ATI Radeon X1250)	308 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	301 3DMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	8,801 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	3,775 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	2,934 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	2,930 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,329 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks

HDTune results:

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Audio

The speakers on the Toshiba P305D were nothing short of amazing. Even while lacking a subwoofer, the speakers were more than capable of reproducing more bass than many systems I have heard that had a dedicated subwoofer. The speakers look very similar to the ones found on the A305, but as you can see, they are quite a bit larger in size.

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For private listening, the headphone jack works great for static free audio.

Ports and Features

The AMD-based Toshiba P305D has the same port lineup as the smaller 15.4" A305D. I would have enjoyed seeing more than four USB ports with the added space around the edges, but overall it was still more than adequate. One feature that is worth mentioning even though most won't take advantage of it is the additional hard drive bay. Even though this notebook does not include the second drive, it leaves the SATA connector in place for those wanting to expand their storage capacity at a later point in time. All that is needed to use this bay is a cheap drive caddy to secure the drive in place.

ExpressCard slot (ExpressCard/34 and Express Card/54)
10/100 Ethernet
Modem jack
5-in-1 media card reader
VGA out, S-Video
Microphone input port
Headphone output port
IEEE-1394 (FireWire)
Four USB 2.0 ports (with "Sleep and Charge")

Left: VGA, CPU Exhaust, S-Video, LAN, two USB ports, Firewire, ExpressCard/54

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Right: Two USB ports, Modem, Optical Bay, AC Power, Kensington Lock slot

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Front: Wireless On/Off, 5-in-1 Card Reader, Headphone/Mic, Volume Knob

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Rear: Nothing, all hinge

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Heat and Noise

Fan noise was minimal under normal use with the P305D, but it did become more vocal under stress. Peak fan noise was far from being unbearable, but it would still be noticeable to those around you.

Notebook temperatures were kept under control very well. The top surface overall was warmer than the bottom, and since that side goes on your lap, that is fine by me. The hottest point as you can see by the heat overlays below was the touchpad.

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Battery

The P305D with 6 cell battery managed 2 hours and 15 minutes using the Windows Vista "Balanced" power profile, with the backlight set to 70% and the wireless connection enabled. Toshiba does offer a larger 9 cell battery which should get users well over the 3 hour mark.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite P305D-S8818

Beach Camera | $799.00
Amazon.com | $799.99
Buydig.com | $799.00
Newegg.com | $949.99

view detailed pricing from 4 stores starting at $799.00

Conclusion

The Toshiba Satellite P305D is a great update from the older P205D notebook, giving buyers a much nicer notebook for the price, as well as a few new perks like the awesome Fusion finish. The fit and finish are excellent, and with features such as the excellent Harmon/Kardon speakers or flush mounted touchpad, users get a lot for their money.

While the budget price of $899 for the Toshiba P305D can be tempting, I would highly suggest users try to pinch together another $50-$100 to step up to the Intel-based P305, which offers users a dedicated graphics card, larger hard drive, and a few other goodies that help make the P305 notebook a much better machine. I have nothing against AMD processors, but when they are artificially crippled with low-end hardware (integrated graphics), a user would have no choice but upgrade to the Intel version to get the performance they want.

I really love the layout, solid build quality, and features of this notebook, but when only a minor price bump gets you a notebook that can play modern games, it would be wrong not to point you in that direction.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Dell Precision M6300

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 12:27:00 +0000

The Dell Precision M6300 is a 17" desktop replacement targeted towards businesses that need a full-featured workstation with exceptional build quality. This notebook competes against such notebooks as the HP Compaq 8710p, HP Compaq 8710w and Fujitsu LifeBook N6470. The M6300 offers a wide range of hardware configurations, as well as a 64GB Samsung SSD for the businesses that require extreme ruggedness and extreme performance. Processors range from the T7250 all the way up to the X9000, RAM from 1GB to 4GB, display resolutions starting at WXGA+ up to WUXGA, and either NVIDIA Quadro FX 1600M or NVIDIA Quadro FX 3600M discrete graphics.

Buying Choices for the Dell Precision M6300 Mobile Workstation Computer Workstation (Intel Core 2 Duo T7700 2.40GHz, DDR2 SDRAM 2000MB, 80GB)

Dell, Inc. | $2,169.00

Our review model came with the following options, bringing the price up to $2,738 as configured from a base of $1,849.

Windows XP SP2
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7250 (2.00GHz)
Mobile Intel P965 Express Chipset
Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)
2GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
64GB Samsung SSD
8x DVD (+/-R double layer) drive
17.0" diagonal widescreen matte TFT LCD display at 1440x 900 (WXGA+, matte)
256MB nVidia Quadro FX 1600M (512MB dedicated and shared memory)
Dimensions: 1.6"(H) x 15.5(W) x 11.3"(D)
Weight: 8.5 lbs
130W 100-240V AC adapter
9-cell (85Wh) Lithium Ion battery (1lb 1oz)
3-Year Basic Limited Warranty and 3-Year NBD On-Site Service

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Build and Design

Like most of the Latitude and Precision notebooks, the Dell Precision M6300 is a simply refined "down to business" look. The chassis lacks any user configuration such as a custom top cover paint, but companies interested in outfitting their workforce with these workstations aren't concerned about attractive paint jobs. In fact "system envy" (when one employee becomes jealous of another employee's workstation) is something most companies want to avoid ... and the simple exterior of the M6300 conceals an impressive level of performance.

The simple look and feel is matched with an even stronger and more durable chassis. During testing no plastic creaks or squeaks could be heard. In fact, even with significant (excessive) force applied to the LCD lid the lid refused to flex. The entire bottom shell is a metal alloy which gives the laptop a strong footprint on your desk, and is gives enough strength to resist bending if you hold the laptop by the edge of the palm rest walking around the room. The only downside to the chassis was the lack of a second hard drive bay ... unusual for a 17-inch workstation. Overlooking that fact, the chassis is strong enough to hurt your knuckles if you try to punch it without giving up less than a millimeter of flex in the process.

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One additional benefit of not having a customized paint option is long term durability. The review models of several Dell Inspiron consumer notebooks had paint defects out of the box on the customized the LCD covers. The M6300 has no such problem and the chassis will likely withstand years of significant use and abuse before showing its age.

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Screen

The matte WXGA+ (1440x900) screen on the Dell Precision M6300 is absolutely beautiful. No dead pixels were found during testing, and backlight bleed while noticed on some dark screens was minimal. Colors were vibrant despite the matte screen and the additional benefit of matte screens is the lack of reflection in an office environment. Wide viewing angles made the screen look sharp even at oddly contorted angles. Backlight adjustment was very broad, allowing me to adjust low enough for darker room settings, and bright enough to still be readable in sunlight or a bright office.

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Protection for the screen through the rear cover prevented any rippling when you press in the cover. The release latch was smooth and unlike most latches on budget notebooks required little effort to release.

Speakers

The speakers on the M6300 were better than average for most laptops, comparable to speakers found on most midrange televisions. While lower bass was lacking, volume levels were quite loud, and distortion at peak levels was not present. Combined with the 17" display, it would not be hard at all to entertain a small group of businessmen with a multimedia presentation during a meeting.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard and palm rest structure matches the strength of the bottom panel of this laptop. Pressing down very firmly, the keyboard suffers from virtually zero flex. The palm rest is just as firm, supporting my wrists or elbows pressing down with barely a hint of flex.

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The keyboard is very comfortable to type on, and gave just the right amount of response for each key press. Key travel is similar to most business notebooks with just a bit less clicking sound than what we hear on ThinkPads in our office. The keyboard layout was not cramped at all, and the control key was in the correct (outmost) position on the left-hand side.

One odd omission is the lack of a dedicated number pad. Most 17-inch notebooks make sure of the additional footprint of the larger form-factor and include a dedicated number pad. While this isn't a major problem, some corporate jobs that involve significant amounts of data entry will find the lack of a dedicated number pad quite depressing.

The touchpad is reasonably responsive, but could be improved. Lag time was minimal when starting each time, but accuracy was less than perfect. The size of the touchpad surface was large enough for comfortable control, and the surface texture had a smooth matte feel. The threes touchpad buttons spanned the full length of the touchpad, and each had a responsive click when pressed. One thing I appreciated was a third touchpad button to allow easier control of tabs during web browsing.

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Performance and Benchmarks

The Dell Precision M6300 as configured has more than enough speed and storage space to handle most users needs. The base-level Intel T7250 and nVidia Quadro FX 1600M combined with a blazingly fast SSD make this laptop an excellent performer, for both multimedia uses and number crunching. Below are benchmarks to give you an idea of how this laptop might compare up against other notebooks on the market.

WPrime 32M comparison results

Notebook	Time
Dell Precision M6300 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, Windows XP)	46.797s
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, Windows Vista)	39.732s
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, Windows Vista)	30.359s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, Windows Vista)	31.108s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Windows Vista)	42.085s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T7400@ 2.16GHz, Windows XP)	41.40s
HP dv6000z (AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.00GHz, Windows Vista)	38.913s
Sager 9260 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E6700@ 2.66GHz, Windows XP )	33.718s
Dell Precision M70 (Intel Pentium-M 780 @ 2.26GHz, Windows XP)	78.992s

PCMark05 overall system performance comparison results (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Dell Precision M6300 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, NVIDIA Quadro FX 1600M)	7,070 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	5,377 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,925 PCMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,377 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

3DMark06 graphics comparison results (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Dell Precision M6300 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, NVIDIA Quadro FX 1600M)	5,335 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	2,930 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,329 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks
Samsung R20 (1.73GHz T2250 and ATI 1250M chipset / GPU)	476 3DMarks

SSD Performance

Unlike traditional Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) with moving parts that are prone to failure and data loss when they receive an impact, Solid State Drives (SSDs) are flash-based storage drives with no moving parts. Notebooks tend to get "torture tested" in most corporate environments when the sales force tosses their laptops inside their cars or staff drop their notebooks off the edge of a table during a crowded meeting. The Samsung 64GB SSD in our test configuration (an $849 upgrade) helps eliminate the risk of data loss due to rugged treatment.

The other benefit of these SSDs is the extreme level of performance and reduced heat output compared to traditional HDDs.

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Below are the results from our standard storage drive benchmarks (HDTune and Atto) which indicate impressive read and write times and well and minimal data access times (the amount of time wasted while the drive searches for specific data on the drive).

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Input and Output ports

Port selection was not a problem, although I would have enjoyed seeing a HDMI port, but the inclusion of a DVI port is a reasonable compromise and probably more useful in a corporate environment. Going around the notebook, we find the following ports

Left: Kensington lock slot, two USB ports, optical drive.

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Front: Media buttons and volume controls.

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Right: Smartcard reader, ExpressCard slot, HDD/SSD bay, Firewire, Headphone/Mic, Firewire, memory card reader.

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Rear: S-video, LAN, Modem, four USB ports, DVI, VGA, Power connector.

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Heat and Noise

The M6300 handles heat as if the notebook is barely working ... even with the processors are crunching numbers and the SSD is actively reading and writing data. Even after running PCMark05, 3DMark06 and wPrime multiple times during a one-hour period the exterior of the M6300 barely reached the triple-digit range in degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature of the heat exhaust was surprisingly cool and the most impressive thing we observed is that the WiFi card reached temperatures that exceeded either the RAM or the SSD.

Simply put, the M6300 with Samsung SSD stays remarkably cool even when the system is being heavily stressed. The images below show the external temperature readings in degrees Fahrenheit:

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The fan noise was rarely loud enough to be heard in a quiet room unless the notebook was under extreme stress such as benchmarking or serious gaming.

Battery

Under normal web browsing use the 9-cell battery performed quite well, pushing out 3 hours and 42 minutes of life before going into hibernation mode at two percent. Screen brightness was two notches below max, or about 80 percent, and other items were set to XP's "Portable/Laptop" power management settings. This gives more than enough time for taking notes (surfing the web) during a couple of classes throughout the day away from an outlet.

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Conclusion

This Dell 17" laptop is a great performer and extremely well built laptop. It seems to be built well enough to be thrown around in day to day use, and hold up throughout a reasonable life cycle in a corporate environment. The SSD option, while expensive, significantly improves both durability and performance of this workstation.

Buying Choices for the Dell Precision M6300 Mobile Workstation Computer Workstation (Intel Core 2 Duo T7700 2.40GHz, DDR2 SDRAM 2000MB, 80GB)

Dell, Inc. | $2,169.00

The only problems I found which don't relate directly to the function of the laptop are the lack of a second hard drive bay, which would be helpful given the relatively low capacity of the SSD. Additionally, the lack of a dedicated number pad will be a issue for some users and the weight and bulk of the M6300 make it a desktop replacement workstation and not the best solution for corporate road warriors.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 with WWAN

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:33:00 +0000

The Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 is a solid tablet notebook. This updated model has AT&T BroadbandConnect HSPA integrated though. Besides that the design and chassis are the same. I actually have the lower end model with the ULV 1.06GHz Core 2 Duo processor and smaller hard drive. The big question though, does the built-in WWAN make a difference, especially for those road warriors or business professionals who are always on the go? Let's take a look and find out.

Buying Choices for the Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (Core 2 Duo 1.06GHz, 1GB RAM, 60GB HDD, XP Tablet)

CDW Corporation | $1,498.99
MacMall | $1,556.00
LapTop Authority | $1,349.00

view detailed pricing from 4 stores starting at $1,349.00

77.8% of people recommend this product - view 9 opinions | rate product

Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 Tablet PC specs as reviewed:(price with WWAN is $1,499)

CPU	Intel Core 2 Duo ULV 1.06GHz U7500
OS	Windows XP Tablet Edition
RAM	2GB DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM memory (1GB x 2)
Display	12.1" WXGA indoor/outdoor active digitizer display with wide viewing angles
Graphics	Intel GMA X3100
Audio	Integrated speakers
Hard Drive	40GB hard drive
Optical Drive	None
I/O ports	2 x USB 1 x VGA - 15 pin 1 x IEEE 1394 (Firewire) 1 x Type I/II PCMCIA slot 1 x Smart Card slot 1 x Media card reader 1 x Microphone-in 1x Headphone
Communications	AT&T Broadband HSPA WWAN 10/100/1000 Ethernet Bluetooth 2.0
Dimensions/Weight	11.9" (Width) x 8.8" (Depth) x 1.36" (Thick) 3.5 pounds
Battery/power	6-cell Lithium-Ion battery (5-hour life)

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Design and Build

The T2010 has a simple design that is sleek and appealing. Right off the bat, you get that business feel. It would be perfect for college students as well, considering it is so small and only weighs in around 3.5 pounds. The graphite color hides dirt very well and keeps the tablet looking professional, but be careful the lid can be scratched easily.

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The chassis is solid and there is minimal flex, except for the keyboard area, which I will get to later. There are a few dedicated tablet buttons on the bottom of the screen that change the screen orientation and function. They are very convenient, especially when using the T2010 in tablet mode. This model T2010 has the integrated AT&T Broadband Connect WWAN, so that is what the extra bulge is on the right side, the antenna.

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The hinge is solid and feels sturdy. The screen doesn't wobble much, even when tapped. The fact the screen turns in both directions is a nice feature as well. The entire design is solid and the battery being located in the front isn't an inconvenience at all. I thought it may be awkward, but it makes for a nice palm rest. Although, there is no optical drive, the T2010 is packed with a good variety of features and you can always get the docking solution for more.

Display

The active digitizer is great and like I mentioned before the 12.1" WXGA screen is flawless. You can adjust the brightness level to your liking and I didn't notice any graininess. The colors are bright and vivid, so much that I almost forgot I was working with a tablet instead of a notebook.

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I didn't have any problems taking notes and since the T2010 has a bi-directional hinge it is great for presentations. I love being able to turn the tablet screen in both directions. It automatically changes orientation in tablet mode as well. The screen does have a glossy finish, but it's not that reflective. In fact it has great viewing angles and is readable outdoors.

Processor and System Performance

The T2010 performed about as I expected. It was a little slower on the benchmarks then the first model I reviewed, but this model only has a Core 2 Duo ULV 1.06GHz processor and a 40GB hard drive. The original review unit had the ULV 1.2GHz Core 2 Duo processor and a 100GB hard drive. It still performed tasks with no problems like checking email and surfing the Web. Remember this tablet is for the business minded, not gamers. It's lightweight and portable for a reason.

Comparison Results for PCMark05

PCMark05 measures the systems performance as a whole.

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (Intel Core 2 Duo ULV 1.06GHz, GMA X3100 graphics)	2,325 PCMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook P1620 (Intel Core 2 Duo 1.2GHz ULV, Intel 945GMS chipset)	2,113 PCMarks
Asus R1E (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz, GMA 965 chipset)	4,679 PCMarks
Gateway C-140x (Intel Core 2 Duo 2GHz, ATI X2300 HD graphics)	4,342 PCMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook T4220 (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2GHz, GMA X3100 graphics)	4,171 PCMarks
HP tx2000 (AMD Turion 64 X2 2.3GHz, Nvidia Go 6150 graphics)	3,738 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (Intel Core 2 Duo 1.6GHz, GMA X3100 graphics)	3,473 PCMarks
Toshiba Portege M700 (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2GHz, GMA 965 chipset)	3,399 PCMarks
HP tx1000 (AMD Turion X2 2.0GHz, Nvidia Go 6150)	3,052 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X60t (1.66GHz LV Core Duo)	2,860 PCMarks
Asus R1F (1.66GHz Core Duo, Intel GMA 950 graphics)	2,724 PCMarks
LG C1 (Intel Core Duo 1.2GHz, Nvidia Go 7300)	2,568 PCMarks
HP Compaq 2710p (Intel Core 2 Duo ULV 1.2GHz, GMA X3100 graphics)	2,453 PCMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (Intel Core 2 Duo ULV 1.2GHz, GMA X3100 graphics)	2,334 PCMarks
Gateway E-155C (Intel Core 2 Duo ULV 1.06GHz, Intel GMA 950 graphics)	2,205 PCMarks
Toshiba R400 (Intel Core Duo ULV 1.2GHz, Intel GMA 950 graphics)	2,187 PCMarks

Comparison Results for 3Dmark05

3DMark05 tests the overall graphic capabilities of a notebook.

Notebook	3D Mark 05 Results
Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (1.06GHz ULV Core 2 Duo, GMA X3100 graphics)	495 3DMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook P1620 (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo, Intel 945GMS chipset)	358 3DMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400 128MB)	2,092 3DMarks
Gateway C-140x (2GHz Core 2 Duo, ATI X2300 HD graphics)	1,956 3DMarks
LG C1 (1.2GHz Intel Core Duo, Nvidia Go 7300)	1,392 3DMarks
Toshiba Portege M700 (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, GMA 965 chipset)	940 3DMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook T4220 (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, Intel GMA X3100 graphics)	925 3DMarks
Asus R1E (2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, GMA 965 chipset)	923 3DMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo, Intel GMA X3100 graphics)	812 3DMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook S2210 (1.6GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-52, ATI x1150)	810 3DMarks
HP tx2000 (2.3GHz AMD Turion 64 X2, Nvidia Go 6150 graphics)	636 3DMarks
HP Compaq 2710p (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo, GMA X3100 graphics)	634 3DMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo, GMA X3100 graphics)	566 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite A135 (1.73GHz Core Duo, Intel GMA 950)	519 3DMarks
Gateway E-155C (1.06GHz ULV Core 2 Duo, Intel GMA 950)	500 3DMarks

Super Pi

In the below results of Super Pi, where the processor is timed in calculating Pi to 2 million digits:

Notebook	Time to Calculate Pi to 2 Million Digits
Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 (1.06GHz ULV Core 2 Duo)	1m 54s
Fujitsu LifeBook P1620 (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo)	1m 49s
Fujitsu LifeBook T4220 (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	54s
Gateway C-140x (2GHz Core 2 Duo)	58s
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo)	1m 10s
HP TC4400 Tablet PC (2.0GHz Core Duo)	1m 13s
Asus R1F (1.66GHz Core Duo)	1m 20s
HP tx2000 (2.3GHz AMD Turion 64 X2)	1m 33s
HP Compaq 2710p (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo)	1m 39s
Fujitsu T2010 (1.2GHz ULV Core 2 Duo)	1m 40s
LG C1 (1.2GHz Intel Core Duo)	1m 49s
Gateway E-155C (1.06GHz ULV Core 2 Duo)	1m 58s
IBM ThinkPad X41t (1.5GHz LV Pentium M)	2m 02s
Toshiba R400 (1.2GHz ULV Core Duo)	2m 10s
Dell Latitude D420 (1.06GHz Core Solo ULV)	2m 11s
Fujitsu LifeBook U810 (800MHz Intel A110)	6m 22s

HDTune Results

Keyboard/Touchpad/Pen

Don't get me wrong the keyboard has a nice design, it's just a little soft and springy for my liking. When you are typing you can actually see the keys flex. If you type fast these soft keys allow for mistakes to happen on accident since they don't give much feedback. However, it is very easy to read since the characters are bolded and plenty big enough and there isn't any shortened keys. Everything looks small though including the space bar because Fujitsu didn't compromise any room on this design. Some users may feel a bit cramped.

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There isn't a touchpad just the pointing stick, which is very responsive and easy to get adjusted too. I mean there is barely a palm rest, so where would Fujitsu put a touchpad. Actually the palm rest is the battery, which connects in the front. The location of the battery didn't bother me though and it never got hot. This is definitely the perfect travel companion.

The pen feels solid in your hand and is responsive. It has an eraser too, which is a convenient feature. It is easy to take notes with because the pen flows nicely on the screen and doesn't feel awkward in your hand. Fujitsu even included a tether incase you want to attach the pen to the tablet, this way it never gets lost.

Heat/Noise

I didn't experience any heat issues with the T2010. In fact it ran quite cool almost all the time. The keyboard area never got hot or the bottom. I think Fujitsu's famous suede patches along the bottom help reduce the heat as well. They make it more comfortable to hold the tablet on your lap or on your arm in tablet mode. The only heat issue was by the left side fan and that is because when this machine is working hard it blows out a lot of hot air. I mean there is enough heat coming out to keep your hand warm on a cold rainy day.

As for noise, well that is a different issue. The T2010 is actually kind of loud. Even when idling the fan kicks on and it sounds like a hairdryer. You run some benchmarks and you can barely hear yourself talk over it. When the T2010 is overloaded the fan is loud and you can hear it. I don't think it would bother anyone in a classroom, but in a quiet library, other people would notice.

Ports

Overall I am impressed with the T2010. It has a nice array of features including two USB 2.0, IEEE 1394 (FireWire), External monitor/VGA, modem (RJ-11), Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45), docking connector, headphone jack, and microphone jack. It also has a Type I/II PCMCIA slot, Smart Card slot, and media card reader. All of this is packed into such a small tablet.

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Battery

The T2010 gets good battery life. With the standard 6-cell battery in Balanced mode I was pulling almost five hours of usage. This battery sits flush with the tablet design, but you can always get the optional 9-cell battery, which sticks out the front a little and gives you all day computing life. It only takes a little over an hour to fully recharge the T2010 as well, so it is a road warrior.

One problem I did notice on this review unit was the power jack where you plug in the AC adapter to charge the tablet made some static noises everytime I plugged it in, which was annoying.

Speakers

I wouldn't recommend listening to your iTunes on this tablet. I mean the T2010 is lacking when it comes to speakers. It has one little speaker that puts out decent sound, but nothing I would brag about. Another problem is in tablet mode the speaker gets covered, so your sound becomes muffled. I listened to a few rock and jazz songs, which sounded fine at mid-volume level, but once you go above that it gets a little distorted. The headphone and microphone jacks come in handy though. The microphone works great for speech recognition and the headphones make the music quality a little better.

Wireless/WWAN

The T2010, is one of the first notebooks in North America to offer a built-in wireless modem certified to access AT&T's third-generation (3G) High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) BroadbandConnect wireless network. The ability to have this high speed access allows for faster download speeds and faster upload speeds, which enhances users' ability to send large files, such as emails with attachments, videos, photos or business documents.

I tested out the WWAN in many areas around my office and home in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. It worked great at the office and was hit or miss at my house. Downtown in the city I had good luck with connecting and reached way over the expected download speeds of between 600 Kbps and 1,400 Kbps and typical upload speeds between 500 Kbps and 800 Kbps. Besides that, I think that AT&T doesn't have the network coverage that Verizon and Sprint do in my area.

Sometimes I couldn't even connect and when I did it was slow. It isn't supposed to be slow. I really just think it was the network coverage area, so it will probably be fine in most other areas where AT&T is more dominant. Th review unit I tested was a little beat up too, but I think that is because it has been to other reviewers, so I think it was just a network coverage problem. I know we have tested Sprint and Verizon cards before and it depends where you are how it works, same thing with the AT&T WWAN. When it did work though it was great and I had fast upload and download speeds.

Using the Speakeasy.net Speed Test, I ran 4,055 Kbps download speeds and 650 upload speeds on the Atlanta Server. This was also tested in my office where we have wireless Internet services. When I was on the road and testing out the tablet around my house, I got download speeds of 1,150 Kbps and upload speeds of 550 Kbps. I also got kicked off the network sometimes too, so it was kind of tricky to test. I recommend finding out how well AT&T is in your area first before making any decisions.

OS and Software

The T2010 runs Windows XP Tablet Edition as the OS. There wasn't much bloatware either. It did have Norton and a few subscription programs but they were trail offers. Besides that not much, just the typical Windows programs and OneNote.

Buying Choices for the Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 Tablet PC (Core 2 Duo U7600 1.2GHz, 2GB RAM, 120GB HDD, XP Tablet 2005)

LapTop Authority | $1,847.00

77.8% of people recommend this product - view 9 opinions | rate product

Conclusion

The T2010 is a solid Tablet PC, with a great bi-directional hinge and beautiful display. I really like Fujitsu's screens, the colors are always bright and vivid. The lid can be scratched easily, so be careful with that, but it does hide dirt very well. It is easy to take notes on, give presentations with and portable enough to take anywhere. Great for business professionals or college students. The battery life is good and if you get the 9-cell, you will have all day computing power, as I said before making it a perfect travel companion. The AT&T WWAN worked fine when I had it working and I had plenty of signal strength. I don't think AT&T has the best network coverage in my area, so I think that is why I had some problems.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

HP Compaq 8710w User

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:17:00 +0000

The HP Compaq 8710w is HP's top of the line premium mobile workstation featuring some of the highest specifications currently available in the market, including options for a full-HD screen, Penryn processors and the most powerful professional graphics card solution for notebooks.

Buying Choices for the HP Compaq 8710w (Core 2 Duo T9300 2.5GHz, 2GB RAM, 160GB HDD, VIsta Business)

view detailed pricing from 11 stores starting at $2,608.00

Reasons for Buying

After owning an 8510w, I realized that a 15.4" notebook, while striking a good balance, isn't exactly a true desktop replacement. I wanted a true desktop replacement machine that has excellent graphics capability, a large and beautiful screen, fast processor and comfortable keyboard.

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I seriously considered Dell's XPS M1730, which is a popular option, but I decided that I value an understated, professional look as well as docking station support more than the SLI graphics capabilities and dual drive configuration that the XPS offers. It is also a much lighter and portable notebook than the XPS and I like being able to take the notebook with me on the occasional trip. The Precision M6300 was not an option for me as for approximately the same price, it offered less features and has an arguably less desirable design carried over from the previous generation Inspiron notebooks.

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Specifications

The 8710w is configurable with a host of processors, hard disk, RAM, optical drives (DVD/BluRay) and graphics card (Quadro FX 1600M/3600M). A BluRay drive is an additional $500 option and the Quadro FX 3600M graphics card adds approximately $600 to the configuration depending on the region. In Asia-Pacific markets, the T9500 option costs an additional $400.

I try to strike a balance by selecting a configuration that best optimizes the price-performance ratio, resulting in the following specifications:

Intel Core 2 Duo T9300 Processor (Penryn)
Genuine Microsoft Windows Vista Business (Office 07 Ready)
17" WUXGA Wide-Viewing Angle Display (1920x1200)
512MB Dedicated Nvidia Quadro FX 3600M GPU
2GB DDR2 667MHz RAM (+2GB self upgrade)
200GB Hitachi 7K200 Hard Disk
DVD+/-RW LightScribe Optical Drive
Intel 802.11a/b/g/n Wifi Module
Intel Gigabit PRO 1000 NIC
Bluetooth 2.0+ Module
Dual pointing Devices Keyboard
Fingerprint Reader Module
8-cell Battery
135W Hardware Kit
3-Year Global Next Business Day Parts and Labor OnSite Warranty (3/3/3)

The exact model number for a configurable 8710w is KM173PA (HP IDS PEN 8710w).

A configuration with the 3600M graphics card requires the 135W power adapter. Due to the higher power requirements, HP also includes a 180W docking station power supply with the notebook as standard. This is very thoughtful of HP (otherwise customers will have the nasty surprise of realizing the laptop won't have sufficient power from the standard 120W adapter used to power the docking station).

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The 180W power supply for the docking station. The 135W power supply included is the same size as the 120W power supply provided with non-3600M 8710w's.

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If an inadequate power supply is used, you will get this warning upon powering up the notebook.

Build and Design

As a business class notebook and commanding a hefty premium for it, the 8710w should meet buyers' expectations for perfect build quality and construction. In this regard, it certainly has not failed to disappoint. The laptop has a magnesium alloy internal chassis encased in durable hard plastic. HP uses a special form of finishing dubbed "DuraFinish" that is similar to its Imprint technology, albeit without the gloss. This ensures that the finishing is durable to minor scratches and scuff marks. I can attest to this durability in my older nc6400 notebook which has maintained its new look after more than a year of regular use and abuse. As a result, the finishing on this laptop is certainly one of the best in the industry. No more peeling paint!

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The 8710w has the typical understated and professional look for a business laptop and this is one of the reasons I chose this over other competing consumer desktop replacement notebooks. However, in Australia, this notebook is virtually unknown, as HP is not a popular brand among enthusiasts who cannot comprehend paying a premium for HP's business notebooks over a Dell or Asus equivalent.

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The notebook's assembly is also really good, with no flex exhibited in any part of the chassis. The unit I received actually has such excellent build precision that every part of the notebook, including the stickers on the bottom, are aligned properly.

There is no distortion to the screen when pressure is applied to the back of the LCD panel, no less due to the thick screen housing. The hinge is also very strong and sturdy, but from my experience with the nc6400, this may loosen after some time, but can be tightened easily.

This notebook features HP's 3D DriveGuard hard disk protection system, which is common to all HP's business notebooks and upcoming consumer models. This is essentially an accelerometer that detects when the laptop is falling so it can stop hard disk activity to prevent data loss or corruption. However, HP still does not include any useful utility to tune the settings of the accelerometer unlike Lenovo and Toshiba. The feature is also unsupported in Linux, which is another disappointment.

Asus eeePC 701 vs 2510p vs 8710w (view large image)

With a dimension of 27x53x20cm, the 8710w is one of the smaller and slimmer 17" notebook in the market. However, the 3.5kg weight is still a little prohibitive if you intend to carry this on long journeys. The weight difference between this and a regular 14"/15" notebook is definitely noticeable, but I do not intend to use it on the plane or on anemic lecture foldaway desks, hence I find the dimensions to be fine for a notebook of this size.

Screen and Speakers

My 8710w has a WUXGA display that is manufactured by AU Optronics. HP sources WUXGA displays from a variety of manufacturers, including LG Philips and Samsung.

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The display is absolutely stunning, with almost no backlight bleeding or dead pixels. While being much brighter than the previous generation's screens, HP could still improve on the brightness by increasing it a notch or two. Having said that, the display is very clear and crisp and at full brightness, is very usable for graphics work. The matte coating is very even and it does not exhibit any graininess. The color reproduction is excellent for a notebook, but nowhere near that of a high quality external LCD.

The screen backlight is very uniform for a CCFL display. The horizontal and vertical viewing angles are very good too.

HP's ambient light sensor technology is virtually useless as it is too sensitive to shadows and causes constant flicker when your hands are close to the top of the keyboard.

Another annoyance is that the HP software does not save your brightness settings nor change the corresponding brightness option under Vista's power profile settings when you adjust your brightness, so it always takes on the value in Vista's power profile upon a reboot.

The speakers are very good for a non-multimedia oriented notebook. It does not sound tinny like many conventional notebooks and while still lacking good bass, it is loud enough for general usage.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the 8710w follows the design and finishing of HP's business notebooks. It now has a DuraKeys finishing which is a coating applied to the keys to make them more durable to wear. I cannot ascertain at this point if the keys will be susceptible to the "glossy" problem after extended use. The number pad is a very nice addition, especially for working on spreadsheets.

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The keyboard feels really solid, with no flex when normal pressure is applied. There is a little flex when pressure is applied at the number pad portion as it sits directly above the optical drive.

I personally like HP's business notebook keyboards. They are very quiet to type on and have good travel. HP has made the keys flatter than before but it doesn't feel much different from the older keyboards (pre-2007 models).

The pointstick is very well executed. The rubber tips are now softer and more flexible than previous incarnations and actually works pretty well, although it still does not match those found on the Thinkpads.

HP maintains the excellent 3-button touchpad from the previous generation. It is still as smooth and responsive as ever, with quiet and comfortable rubber buttons.

HP now implements touch-sensitive buttons on its switch cover for volume, info, presentation, calculator and wireless keys. HP claims they are less susceptible to wear than physical buttons, but I don't buy that argument at all. If anything, I've seen a couple of the newer notebooks with broken touch-sensitive controls but have yet to see any of the older ones breaking down, but that is only from my personal experience. I find usability to be poor as a slight brush would activate the controls, especially the volume slider. Fortunately, the power button remains a physical button!

Ports, Wireless and Battery

The 8710w has 6 USB ports, an HDMI port, a VGA port, 1 Firewire port, single audio and microphone jack, a SmartCard reader, a PC Card slot and a microphone on the top of the LCD bezel.

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Left:

Power jack
HDMI Port
VGA
2 USB ports
Firewire
SmartCard reader
PC Card Slot

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Right:

4 USB ports
Audio and microphone jack
Optical drive
Ethernet and 56K Modem

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Front:

Speakers
5-in-1 Card Reader (SD/MMC/Memory Stick (Pro)/xD)

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Rear:

Battery and Vent

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Bottom:

Hard Disk
Docking station connector
Travel battery connector
RAM slot (1 accessible from bottom, another under the keyboard)
Fan

The Bluetooth module syncs very well with my mobile phone. I was able to transfer files and use Nokia's PC Suite and Windows Mobile Device Center for synchronization with Windows Mobile devices.

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The integrated microphone is well-placed and do not suffer from hard disk noise as it is located on the LCD bezel.

The Intel wireless card works as expected, without any connection issues. I do not have a draft-n router to test, so it was only tested on a 802.11g WPA2-secured network.

Battery life is above average for a mobile workstation notebook. On Balanced profile, the notebook lasts up to 2 hours 30 minutes performing light to moderate tasks running Office, Eclipse, Photoshop and Internet Explorer. It lasts 3 hours on the Power Saving profile doing similar tasks. The notebook comes with a standard 8-cell battery. An additional travel battery may be attached to the bottom of the notebook to provide additional battery runtime without having to turn off the device to swap out batteries.

Performance and Bechmarks

The benchmarks were performed on a fresh install of Vista Business x64 SP1 with Nvidia 175.12 video drivers.

The 8710w tested has the latest Intel Penryn T9300 2.5GHz processor, 4GB of RAM and at the time of writing, one of the fastest 7200rpm hard disk available.

wPrime v1.62 32M

31.995 seconds

PCMark05

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HDTune

The Hitachi 7K200 drive shipped with this computer has performance that is on par with other 7K200 benchmarks. It is also very quiet and stays relatively cool.

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Windows Vista Experience Index

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Gaming Performance

3Dmark06

The Quadro FX 3600M is equivalent to a Geforce 8800 GTS graphics card. The 3DMark06 scores at standard clock rates are consistent with that of a regular 8800GTS card.

The graphics performance is truly impressive, only lacking SLI capabilities.

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GPU-Z confirms that the card specifications are close to that of the 8800M GTS.

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Bioshock

Bioshock is rendered beautifully and remains very playable on the 3600M card at 1680x1050 resolution with full details.

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Min FPS: 26
Max FPS: 40
Average FPS: 30

Unreal Tournament 3

The laptop is more than capable of handling UT3, one of the newer games that could benefit from a powerful multi-core processor and graphics card. At a resolution of 1680x1050 and all details maxed out, the game is rendered beautifully and is very playable.

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Team Deathmatch (Shangri-La)

Min FPS: 41
Average FPS: 60
Max FPS: 65

Team Deathmatch (Sentinel)

Min FPS: 41
Average FPS: 55
Max FPS: 60

Performance in various settings, from gaming to heavy multitasking and running multiple VMs, prove to be above average and clearly this laptop performs at a level comparable to that of a desktop workstation.

Operating System and Software

The 8710w, like all HP's business notebooks, offer 3 operating system options, i.e. Windows Vista Business, Windows XP Professional and FreeDOS (no operating system option). The system is certified for Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop 10, so the major components are expected to be supported under Linux. The following devices either lack support under Linux or are in development:

Hard Drive accelerometer
Authentec Fingerprint reader
Brightness keys not working in desktop environment (Nvidia driver bug)

My system went into production on the 20^th of April, but I'm surprised that SP1 was not preloaded! Nevertheless, upon boot-up, you get to select to go either 32-bit or 64-bit with Vista. The initial boot up takes more than an hour, with all the horrible HP recovery partitioning and software installation taking place.

Once booted, the system has minimal bloatware. The only software pre-installed is meant to allow the computer to be ready-to-use upon first boot for time-critical business users (I suspect most corporate deployments would end up using their own images rather than HP's build anyway). Among the included software suite are:

Norton Internet Security 2008
HP ProtectTools Suite (BIOS Configuration and Embedded Security/Encryption tools)
PDFComplete
WinDVD
Sonic MyDVD
HP Backup and Recovery Manager
Microsoft Office 2007 Small Business Trial

The system either comes with a set of recovery DVDs to perform a clean install of Windows Vista/XP or the option to create a recovery DVD using the HP utility. The HP utility allows the creation of either a DVD image or direct burning to media. It also allows you to choose between a Dual Layer DVD, Single Layer DVD or set of CD-Rs. The difference between the recovery DVDs created with the utility and those provided by HP are that the HP discs are actually plain Vista/XP downgrade discs with no bloatware (but OEM pre-activated) while the ones you create are a direct factory image of your hard disk upon first boot, which means recovery from these set of DVDs will result in restoring your laptop to the state when it was first booted up, including your user account and regional settings, with all bloatware intact.

Heat and Noise

The laptop stays cool throughout normal use, with temperatures going up only during heavy usage, but the cooling system is very effective in bringing down the temperatures immediately.

It is very quiet, with almost no noticeable fan noise during light to moderate use and this is an improvement over the loud fan noise problems encountered in the nc8430/nx8420 models.

The fans do ramp up to a noticeable level when I'm working on virtual machines as it increases the CPU load significantly.

Usage	GPU (°C)	CPU (°C)	HDD (°C)
Normal - Idle/Light	45-48	35-40	32
Moderate	55-61	40-42	40
Heavy Use / Benchmarking	73-78	70-75	42

Customer Support

HP offers a standard 3 year Global Next Business Day Onsite warranty with this notebook, with dedicated HP Business Support facilities, including an industry-leading 24/7 online resource tool to lodge and manage warranty claims. From my experience, HP Business support has been very professional in their conduct and does not waste my time by going through scripts during a support call.

Buying Choices for the HP Compaq 8710w (Core 2 Duo T9300 2.5GHz, 2GB RAM, 160GB HDD, VIsta Business)

view detailed pricing from 11 stores starting at $2,608.00

Conclusion

The 8710w has all the qualities that make it one of the best desktop replacement workstation notebooks in the market. It is the perfect professional mobile workstation for those who demand top performance and reliability, coupled with business class support.

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Asus M70S

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:10:00 +0000

Notebooks have always lagged behind desktops in speed, screen size, and until recently storage space. Asus released two new laptops, being the M70S and M50S, both of which hold the claim as being the world's first laptops with 1TB of storage space. To get this large capacity, the notebooks are equipped with two 500GB drives that can run in RAID 0 or 1, or as separate drives. Obviously this is a nice trend for notebooks, as people start storing more movies and games and want more scratch space for whatever comes their way.

For this review we are covering the M70Sa configuration notebook, which has the following specifications:

Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.5GHz, 6MB L2, 800MHz FSB)
17" diagonal widescreen TFT LCD display at 1920x1200 (WUXGA, Glossy)
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 with 1GB DDR2 video memory
Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)
4GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
1TB Storage, 2 x 500GB Serial ATA hard disk drive (Hitachi 5400RPM)
DVD-Burner with 2x Blu-Ray reading capabilities
TV Tuner
1.3 megapixel webcam
Fingerprint reader
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 16.2" x 11.8" x 1.7"
Weight: 8 lbs 13.1oz with nine-cell battery
90W (19V x 4.74A) 100-240V AC Adapter
9-cell (14.8V, 5200mAh) Lithium Ion battery
2-Year Limited Global Warranty
MSRP: $2,399.99

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Build and Design

The design of the notebook is very basic, with a high gloss plastic surface, meshed with chrome and gloss black accents. This gives the notebook a very clean look without standing out too much. The notebook surface is similar to the Toshiba Fusion finish or the HP Imprint finish in that it holds up well to minor scratches to keep the glossy finish looking clean long past the first day out of the box.

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Build quality on the Asus M70S is average; with most of the plastic feeling very solid overall. One area that does stand as needing some improvement is the screen lift point, which is weakened by the webcam pivoting area.

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When you open the lid, this area tends to flex upward quite a bit working against the stiff screen hinges. Beyond that the notebook feels pretty sturdy, with little flex when you lift the notebook up by the corner and carrying it around. The extra LED lighting on the interior surface of the notebook is more subtle than what we see on most consumer notebooks. The power button and indicator lights are the only other light sources that might distract you when watching movies in a dark room.

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Display

The WUXGA display on the Asus M70s is very nice and would be considered above average. It is very bright and vibrant and great for movies or game play. Black levels are quite deep, and there is only minor backlight bleed along the bottom edge. Some of this can be seen as a brighter "bump" on the taskbar during normal use, but it is still very minor. One flaw that the screen had that you don't tend to see that often on glossy screens is a minor grainy look, but it was only visible on solid bright colors like white.

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Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard is above average, and very easy to type on for extended periods of time. Having the real estate of a 17" notebook allows for a full size keyboard and number pad, with almost all the keys being the same size as what you would find on a desktop keyboard. The texture of the individual keys is a mild matte finish, which given them a very soft feel during use.

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The touchpad on the Asus M70S is designed for multiple uses, one obviously being mouse movement, with the other being multimedia controls. As a touchpad the surface texture and sensitivity is great. The surface is very large and spacious. Adding the multimedia controls though did make things awkward at times, since they are activated when you tap a certain corner of the touchpad. Sometimes you accidentally graze that part and effectively disable the touchpad until you turn off those functions again. I would have liked to see an activation key separate from the touchpad to toggle the separate functions on and off.

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The multimedia keys when activated are backlit, for easy use at night if you are watching a movie in a dark room. The touchpad buttons are adequately sized, with shallow feedback when clicked.

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Performance

System performance not problem with the Intel Core 2 Duo T9300 processor, and ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 dedicated graphics with 1GB of video memory. While the system did have 4GB of RAM preconfigured, only 3GB was recognized in Windows Vista with the 32bit version of Home Premium. I was actually kind of surprised to see that amount of RAM and not find 64bit Vista installed.

The twin 500GB Hitachi 5400rpm drives performed quite well, and with options to configure them in a RAID 0 configuration would be even faster. Overall this system would work great with most modern games (not including Crysis) and play movies or music without skipping a beat. In fact with the vast amount of video output connectors you could use this computer as the hub of your entertainment system.

WPrime 32M comparison results

Notebook	Time
Asus M70S (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, Windows Vista)	31.132s
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, Windows Vista)	39.732s
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, Windows Vista)	30.359s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, Windows Vista)	31.108s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Windows Vista)	42.085s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T7400@ 2.16GHz, Windows XP)	41.40s
HP dv6000z (AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.00GHz, Windows Vista)	38.913s
Sager 9260 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E6700@ 2.66GHz, Windows XP )	33.718s
Dell Precision M70 (Intel Pentium-M 780 @ 2.26GHz, Windows XP)	78.992s

PCMark05 comparison results:

PCMark05 represents the overall system performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Asus M70S (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650)	6,135 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	3,305 PCMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	7,749 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,865 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,261 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	5,377 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,925 PCMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,377 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks

3DMark06 comparison results:

3DMark06 represents the overall graphics performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Asus M70S (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650)	3,799 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	301 3DMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	8,801 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	3,775 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	2,934 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	2,930 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,329 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks

There are no HDTune images since I forgot to get them before our review unit was sent back.

Heat and Noise

Heat from the M70S was minimal, even under stress. One nice aspect of large notebooks is there is a huge amount of space to dissipate heat, and they have few problems controlling hotspots. Noise was minimal, but did get apparent during benchmarks when the system had to cool itself down. With one fan controlling heat for both the GPU and CPU, it did have to move quite a bit of air to keep things pleasant.

Below are images showing the temperature readings in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Ports and Features

The Asus M70s included a wide array of ports around the notebook, including an external breakout box with Composite Video and S-Video connections. It has enough video outputs to handle all the needs for a portable home entertainment system, and even provide the TV tuner for watching HD digital channels. Another added plus with its built-in Blu-Ray play is the ability to watch HD movies directly on the notebook, or using the HDMI output to your nearest HDTV.

Four USB Ports
Expresscard/54
Firewire
Digital TV tuner
External video breakout box
HDMI
e-SATA
VGA
LAN
Modem
5-in-1 Card Reader
Two Headphone jacks and one microphone
Infrared Port

Front: IR Port

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Rear: AC Power, AV-Breakout connector, HDMI, e-SATA, VGA, Modem, LAN, Kensington Lock Slot

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Left: Digital tuner antenna connector, two USB, Firewire, 5-in-1 SD-Card Reader, Optical Drive

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Right: Expresscard/54, Wireless On/Off, two Headphone, Microphone, two USB

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A Digital TV tuner is also included with the M70s, which even comes with a magnetic antenna for use almost anywhere. In the office our quick test brought up most of the stronger digital channels in the area. A larger antenna would have probably bought in all of them.

Speakers and Audio

The Asus M70S is equipped with Altec Lansing speakers, and an onboard subwoofer for true home theatre in a box experience. Audio performance while watching TV was excellent, with clear and crisp sound from the speakers. Midrange and highs were very good, and the subwoofer was able to reproduce some of the low frequency range usually glossed over on most notebooks without a subwoofer. Peak volume levels were well above the "annoy coworkers" range, and well into the "somebody call the cops this guy is crazy" range.

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Battery Life

The battery like was actually better than I first expected, and improved drastically once I cleaned up the bloatware on the system. Out of the box the machine was giving an expected 45-50 minutes of battery life, and after uninstalling much of the bloatware got to 2 hours and 23 minutes on balanced with the backlight at 50 percent.

Conclusion

The Asus M70S is a great multimedia notebook to compliment any home theatre system or dorm room setting. Not only is this notebook capable of holding 1TB of movies, games, or music, but it can also tune digital HD channels and easily cope with most modern games. Pairing the beautiful screen with the Blu-Ray player and digital TV tuner will also make you the star attraction in any boring lecture room when you want to try and pass the time. While the price is fairly steep, users of this notebook will know that they are getting almost every feature for their money, and a solid notebook to boot.

(source:http://www.notebookreview.com)

Toshiba Satellite M305

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:47:00 +0000

We've put several of Toshiba's latest mid-level, high-gloss Satellite notebooks through their paces around here in the past few months, and the 14.1-inch Toshiba Satellite M305 is the latest model in this familiar lineup of devices to come up for review. Dishing out sizeable helpings of memory and processing prowess in the configuration we received, the M305 is a consumer-focused laptop that potentially has the power to keep power users happy.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite M305-S4826

view detailed pricing from 7 stores starting at $949.00

Wrapped in a love-it-or-hate-it glossy exterior, the M305 targets general users as well as those looking for a mobile multimedia device, with an upgraded audio system and a chic multimedia surface control arrangement. At once style-conscious and budget-conscious, the latest Satellite appears to do a lot of things right - if you can get past all that shiny plastic.

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For this review, we tested an M305-S4826 with the following specs:

Screen: 14.1-inch TruBrite TFT LCD, WXGA (1280x800) native resolution
Processor: 2.1 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 (800 MHz FSB, 3MB L2 cache)
Hard Drive: 250GB SATA, 5400 RPM
Memory: 3GB RAM (DDR2 SDRAM)
Optical Drive: DVD SuperMulti with Labelflash
Ports and Slots: Three USB 2.0, one IEEE 1394, one ExpressCard 34, VGA, multi-format (SD/SDHC/MS/xD) card reader, 10/100 Ethernet, modem, microphone in, headphone out
Wireless: Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g)
Graphics: Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100, 128-358MB shared memory
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
Dimensions: 13.2 x 9.53 x 1.29 inches (WxDxH)
Weight: 5.2 pounds
MSRP: $999.99

Styling and Design

Although the rest of the NotebookReview crew was pretty high on previous Toshiba laptops with the high-gloss Fusion Finish, I was admittedly skeptical about the M305's shiny keys and super-reflective lid. If the finish is allegedly durable, in some ways it really doesn't look it.

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After a few weeks with the Satellite, however, I'm feeling the need to retract this hasty pronouncement. While it's almost impossible to keep flat surfaces on the notebook free from smudges, the general consensus seems to be correct: durability definitely isn't a problem with these computers. Even an accidental run-in with a bag zipper - the kind of scraping contact that would put a deep scratch on the surface of most notebooks - didn't faze the M305's finish.

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If you like the high-tech, high-profile look that it imparts, the Fusion look is svelte, modern, and very appealing. The standard array of function indicators, the M305's multimedia touch panel, and even the Satellite wordmark and touchpad surround are all illuminated with a soft glow that looks great under normal ambient light (though it can be a little bright and harsh on the eyes when working in a dark room). A shallow-inset keyboard and touchpad buttons have an equally classy, well thought-out look. A well matched grey and black striped lid just like we've seen on other recent Toshiba Satellite models rounds out the package.

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Build Quality and Physical Specs

If you're one of those notebook users who judges the build quality of a notebook by how much metal is visible in its construction, the M305 won't be earning many high marks in your book: this laptop is all about the plastic, with glossy (and thus, highly obvious) polymers covering nearly every inch of its surface. Again, while the slick plastic can feel a little cheap, the M305 belies this idea with a tight, solid build and lots of nice details.

Panel flex was largely nonexistent, save some give in the typical trouble spot just over the optical drive on the top deck. Similarly, I could induce just the slightest hint of screen ripple by flexing the fairly rigid lid. As with the last few Satellites we've looked at, the M305's battery doesn't seem particularly well anchored, with about an eighth of an inch of front-to-back free play.

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Hinges are a touch sticky, and with their plastic coverings and dodgy alignment look like they might be a weak point down the road; without a long term test, though, it's hard to say for sure one way or another on this score. There's no latch keeping the lid anchored shut, which makes at least one reason for the Toshiba's hard-to-move hinges both obvious and appreciated. And assuming they're more durable than they look, I'll take stiff hinges to weak ones any day.

With these complaints clearly registered, the M305's generally solid construction impresses nonetheless. If it doesn't exactly show off the tank-like hull of a high-end business notebook, for a mid-level consumer laptop there's very little of consequence to complain about with the M305.

At 5.25 pounds, the 14.1-inch Satellite feels just a bit portly for its size, though this density contributes to an overall feeling of quality more than it detracts too much from the M305's portability. Measuring in just over 1.25 inches thick at its widest point, the Satellite isn't stellar in terms of overall compactness either, but it certainly lives up to expectations given its price.

Screen

At 14.1 inches, the M305's display is obviously smaller than the recently reviewed A305's 15.4-inch version, but performance could be described in almost exactly the same terms. Backlighting is even, with practically no discernible bleed, making colors pop vividly across the gamut.

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As with the A305, however, while horizontal viewing angles are nice and wide before color begins to invert, there's a decided "sweet spot" on the vertical axis: swallow out your vertical angle too much and the screen quickly begins to lose all semblance of contrast. Moving in the other direction, color invert relatively quickly. This combined with the fact that the M305's display doesn't tilt as far back as those on some competitive models means that if you often work with your notebook on your lap at odd screen-to-keyboard ratios, you may have trouble finding a position that provides the best possible viewing experience.

Brightness is adjustable in eight steps, with the moderate power settings working fine for indoor use under normal conditions. Overall, while the M305's glossy display isn't perfect, its vibrant colors, good brightness, and minimal reflectivity all add up to a pretty impressive performance for the Satellite in this regard.

Keyboard and Touchpad

I'll say up front what may be on the minds of many: the M305's glossy keys look weird, and seem like they wouldn't be pleasant to type on.

As with the finish in general, and as we've discovered before in testing other similarly speced laptops, however, Toshiba's high-gloss keyboard proves again to be much better than expected. Key action is fairly short - a fact which some typists will undoubtedly dislike - but the keys have a quick, positive feeling when pressed. Once you adapt to the slightly slippery feel of glossy keys, the finish has a nice tactile feeling that actually works surprisingly well for rapid typing.

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I did have an issue with a squeaky backspace key, and some of the larger keys (the carriage return and shift keys being the most frequently used, and thus the most obvious, offenders) didn't feel as solidly mounted as I might have liked. Still, the gloss keyboard looks great, feels both pleasant and well-constructed, and, as we've commented before, there's no concern about a matte finish rubbing off of the keys over time with heavy use.

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I was a little less satisfied with the M305's touchpad experience. The pad itself is small, somewhat oddly finished (it's the only textured portion of the entire notebook), and isn't great from a sensitivity standpoint. The fact that the pad isn't recessed into the top deck or bounded by a raised border also means that I found myself frequently running "out of bounds" in trying to mouse across the screen, for instance. None of these issues even approach major concerns in my mind - more like minor annoyances at most.

Ports and Drives

With three USB ports, the M305 is playing about par for the course in terms of 14.1-inch notebooks, but the M305's USB slots do something unique to Toshiba's latest crop of laptops: with their innovative "Sleep and Charge" feature, the ports can be used to charge USB-connected devices (your iPod for instance) regardless of whether the computer is on or not - the only requirement being that the computer has to be connected to AC power. While it doesn't necessarily solve mobile charging issues (as it won't draw power when the computer's on battery), being able to use your computer as a charging station regardless of its power state is a clever idea.

The inclusion of Firewire as well as an Express Card slot will make many looking to do slightly more serious computing happy. HDMI also appears to be an option for some configurations, though the port space was blanked on our test unit. On the optical drive front, the M305 features a slim tray-loading DVD-R/CD-R combo drive featuring Labelflash on-disc image burning technology.

As on the cheaper Satellites, the M305's video out doesn't include any screw lugs. I guess Toshiba assumes that no one takes the time to actually lock down a video connection on a laptop anyone, given that these are often temporary arrangements; still, it feels a bit like scrimping to me, and as someone who regularly uses a second display with my notebook and doesn't like to worry about the video cable disconnecting itself when the computer is moved, I'm inclined to see this as a potentially noteworthy oversight for some users.

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Audio Performance

Wearing a downsized version of the Harman/Kardon branded system seen on other mid-level Toshibas, audio performance isn't bad at all with the M305. Bass response could be a little richer, and (to be picky) highs can be a little tinny through the M305's audio system, but the sound was natural at all volumes with distortion pretty impressively hard to come by. For mobile movie viewing or on-the-road audio, the Satellite is a perfectly competent performer and then some.

I had no problems with buzzing, whining, or other signal pollution either through the speakers or the headphone out.

Heat and Noise

The only particularly irritating hotspot was one that regularly developed after about 30 minutes of use under my left wrist, making me perceive the entire notebook as being hotter than it actually was. Though it runs a little warmer than some might prefer, for a smaller machine heat dissipation really isn't too bad, making the M305 relatively comfortable to use directly on your lap for light computing tasks like word processing and web surfing.

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If the heat dissipation doesn't exactly impress, however, the M305's near-silent fan operation does. The Satellite's side-exhaust fan isn't audible over typical office white noise levels when running at normal speeds.

Battery Life

Using Vista's "Balanced" power management setting, the M305 touts right at three hours of battery life on a full charge of its 3700 mAh pack. A light run-down test involving some web browsing and general office app work at conservative screen brightness settings yielded right at 2:45 before the system warned me to plug in. Likewise, if you're willing to use reduced brightness settings and disable your Wi-Fi while watching, unless you're planning to watch all four hours of Lawrence of Arabia on battery power, you should be able to get through most DVDs in a single charge (if only just).

In short, if it's not exactly class leading, being able to reasonable expect three solid hours of computing on a charge is none too shabby for a compact notebook that comes pretty close to what could be called "budget" pricing territory.

Performance and Benchmarks

This category's definitely a mixed bag for the Satellite, with its success as a performance notebook largely depending on your intended use. With three gigabytes of RAM and its Intel Core 2 Duo "Penryn" chipset, the M305 sports a fairly high-power processor and memory combo. The use of integrated graphics, however, serve to hamstring much of this power where gaming and other 3D graphics uses are concerned.

For the standard complement of computing tasks, up to and including working with images and light video editing, the M305 is more than fast enough. Working in Photoshop, it took a pretty involved multi-file project to overtax the M305's available RAM and several complex processes run simultaneously to noticeably outrun its processor. Assuming you're not looking for a portable gaming machine, then, the M305 proves to be fairly robust in the power department.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite M305 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	38.532s
Toshiba Satellite A305 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	36.442s
Asus M51S (Core 2 Duo T5550 @ 1.83GHz)	46.293s
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.184s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
Hewlett Packard DV6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite M305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	539 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	3,810 3DMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	3,749 3DMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	543 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	1,556 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite M305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	4,224 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	5,622 PCMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	4,649 PCMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	3,749 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	3,386 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks

HDTune results:

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Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite M305-S4826

view detailed pricing from 7 stores starting at $949.00

Conclusion

Approaching this review, I wasn't particularly excited about what the M305 had to offer: it seemed like a fairly run-of-the-mill notebook in a visual package that I found fairly unappealing. If my expectations were mixed, the Satellite has consistently impressed in almost every area, proving itself to be a powerful computing companion (assuming you don't need the resources that dedicated graphics provide) and a pleasant machine to use.

The Fusion Finish remains controversial, but while I'm still not keen on the looks (and can't stand its tendency to come away covered in smudges seemingly from a single touch), there's no question in my mind about the finish's durability or functionality. Likewise for the odd looking but great feeling glossy keyboard. If I was an open skeptic going in, the M305 has largely won me over with good performance, solid construction, a great screen, and a respectably strong battery. If it doesn't - beyond the visual, at least - exactly jump off the page, given its street price right at $1,000 as tested, the M305 isn't a bad deal to boot, making it a reliable, affordable choice for general users looking for style and portability.

(source:http://www.notebookreview.com)

Lenovo IdeaPad U110

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:24:00 +0000

The Lenovo IdeaPad U110 is the latest addition to the IdeaPad family and has recently been garnering a lot of attention. Lenovo might be famous for the ThinkPad line of notebooks, but most average consumers don't find the traditional styling of the ThinkPad line to be very attractive. Our First Look Review IdeaPad U110 showed you how gorgeous this compact notebook is. How did the U110 ultimately perform in our final review? Take a look and see whether this diva is a super model or destined for the D-list.

Buying Choices for the Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (red)

Lenovo | $1,849.00

100.0% of people recommend this product - view 2 opinions | rate product

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Our IdeaPad U110 has the following specifications:

Processor: 1.60GHz Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 (800Mhz FSB, 4MB Cache)
Graphics: Intel X3100
Screen: 11.1-inch WXGA (1366 x 768, 370 nit) display
Memory: 2GB (up to 3GB configurable)
Storage: 120GB Parallel ATA HDD (4200rpm)
Optical Drive: None internal (external Dual layer CD/DVD recordable drive)
Wireless and Communications: Intel 4965AGN (802.11 a/b/g/n wi-fi), BlueTooth 2.0 EDR
Battery: 4-cell Li-Ion and 7-cell extended life Li-Ion batteries included
Ports: 3 USB 2.0 ports, IEEE 1394 Firewire, 5-in-1 card reader, ExpressCard/34, VGA monitor out port, AC adapter, headphone/line-out, microphone/line-in, Gigabit Ethernet
Dimensions: 10.8" x 7.7" x 0.72" - 0.88"
Weight: from 2.42lbs with 4-cell battery and 2.92lbs with 7-cell battery
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
Other Features: Integrated web camera with VeriFace application
Warranty: 1-year

The pricing on the U110 starts at around $1,899, and that is the configuration we are reviewing. Needless to say, this isn't something the average consumer will be dropping their money on in place of an $800 Dell. Still, if having a stylish, compact notebook is important for you then the U110 makes an attractive choice.

Build and Design

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The IdeaPad U110 is surprisingly solid in terms of build quality. The aluminum etch display cover and magnesium aluminum chassis provide both strength and light weight. You can press as hard as you want anywhere on the body of the notebook and it simply will not flex. Like the ThinkPad line, the IdeaPad U110 is designed for (accidental) abuse and drops, and we're guessing the U110 might be the most rugged laptop in the IdeaPad lineup. Unlike with the ThinkPads, you don't get a double latch mechanism with button release to make sure the screen is held down when it is closed and being carried. Instead, the U110 uses hinge tension to hold the screen in place.

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The etched aluminum display cover (available in both black and red) is probably the most interesting design element on the U110. Lenovo calls this their "Tendril texture" and it looks like an intricate floral and vine pattern. The IdeaPad designers even went the extra mile with the design by extending the "Tendril" pattern onto the bottom of the notebook and the touch-sensitive media buttons. Even the heat exhaust vents feature an extra touch of class. This certainly isn't a boring ThinkPad.

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Although the U110 doesn't have an internal optical drive, Lenovo does supply an external USB Dual layer CD/DVD recordable drive with the purcahse of the U110. The drive itself is equally stylish with a rubberized ThinkPad-like black texture and polished silver vents on the sides. The drive is USB powered so there's no need for a separate power adapter. That said, the drive requires two USB connections (one for power and one for data) so you will lose two USB ports if the drive is connected.

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Input and Output Ports

The number of ports the U110 has is fairly good, certainly much better than the Apple MacBook Air provides, but you're still left a bit wanting. Here's a run down of the ports:

3 USB 2.0 ports
Firewire
ExpressCard/34 slot
Gigabit Ethernet
5-in-1 multi-card reader
Audio out, microphone in
VGA monitor out
Kensington lock slot

Key things missing are HDMI and a full-size ExpressCard slot. There's also no option for a docking station, you have to go with a USB-based port replicator (or ExpressCard/34) to get the additional ports you would want at a desk. Obviously engineers had to make design trade offs and you can't have it all on a notebook this small. Personally, I feel like the U110 provides an excellent balance of ports for its size. (The images below show the U110 with the larger 7-cell battery.)

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Performance and Benchmarks

Let's be fair, the IdeaPad U110 was not built to compete with your desktop loaded with a quad core processor. Thin travel notebooks like the U110 use low voltage processors to conserve power and reduce heat build-up. The IdeaPad U110 uses an Intel 1.60GHz Core 2 Duo L7500 processor that's quite capable of running office applications and performing any general web related tasks, but will not serve well for 3D graphics applications or any heavy duty rendering tasks.

Likewise, the Intel X3100 integrated graphics will allow you to play a few light games, maybe even Half Life 2 on low settings (see our Intel X3100 review for more details), but in general you'll want to stick to e-mail, web browsing, Office and photo editing tasks. That's enough for most average consumers ... particularly if you already have a powerful desktop.

The hard disk storage could have supplemented performance if it was a 5400rpm or 7200rpm drive. Better still, a super fast SSD would have given the U110 some additional "snappiness." Unfortunately, the slow 4200rpm hard drive on the U110 only made the system that much slower during everyday use.

Let's take a look at a few basic benchmarks so you can get an idea of how the U110 stacks up.

wPrime comparison results (lower scores means better performance):

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz)	52 seconds
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7100 @ 1.20GHz)	98 seconds
Apple MacBook Air (Intel Core 2 Duo P7500 @ 1.6GHz)	68 seconds
Asus Eee PC 701 4G (Intel Celeron M ULV @ 900MHz)	200 seconds
Sony VAIO TZ (Intel Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76 seconds
Dell XPS M1330 (Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.20GHz)	38 seconds

You can see from the results in WPrime the L7500 processor in the IdeaPad U110 is slower than the typical Core 2 Duo processor found in larger notebooks like the Dell XPS M1330.

PCMark05 is a benchmark that measures the overall system performance, so it considers the processor, hard drive, memory and OS as part of the mix. Although the IdeaPad U110 has a slower hard drive it actually fairs pretty well with this benchmark:

PCMark05 benchmark results (higher scores are better)

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz, Intel X3100)	3,445 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7100 @ 1.20GHz, Intel X3100)	3,467 PCMarks
Apple MacBook Air (1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7500, Intel X3100)	2,478 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Sony VAIO TZ (1.20GHz Core 2 Duo U7600, Intel GMA 950)	2,446 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

3DMark06 is a benchmark that measures graphics performance, or more accurately measures the notebook's ability to play 3D computer games. The score is based in part on overall performance, but the single most important factor in this benchmark is the performance of the dedicated or integrated graphics. In the case of the U110, the integrated graphics performance wasn't bad ... but you certainly won't be playing Crysis on this notebook.

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Lenovo IdeaPad U110 (Intel Core 2 Duo L7500 @ 1.60GHz, Intel X3100)	620 3DMarks
HP 2133 Mini-Note (1.6GHz VIA C7-M ULV, VIA Chrome 9)	93 3DMarks
Averatec 2575 (2.2 GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-64, ATI RS690T)	377 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

HDTune measures the storage performance of a PC, the numbers from the HDD are pretty standard for a 4200rpm PATA drive, but performance is sub par compared to most 5400rpm and 7200rpm hard drives found in other notebooks. This benchmark goes to show why the IdeaPad U110 might not be as fast as some other notebooks when accessing data:

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Screen

The 11.1" WXGA (1366 x 768) screen on the U110 is nice and bright, but suffers from a significant degree of "graininess." There is a constant "shimmer" to the screen that makes reading text or watching movies a little frustrating. The U110 also suffers from the same "frameless" glossy display seen on the IdeaPad Y510. The screen isn't just glossy, it's a glossy screen covered with a second glossy plastic layer which sets slightly above the surface of the actual display. This causes major reflections and serious eye strain problems because your eyes are constantly shifting focus between the reflections on the glossy protective layer and the text/images displayed on the screen underneath. Below are images showing just how reflective the protective layer is:

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Other than the graininess and severe reflection from the protective layer, the screen performance was acceptable. The color was accurate, backlighting was even across the entire surface, and viewing angles were good.

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Still, the reflective protective layer over the screen genuinely makes this screen quite horrible to view on a regualr basis.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard. (view large image)

Media buttons. (view large image)

The keyboard on the IdeaPad U110 has zero flex and excellent key travel with quiet presses. Lenovo has added a glossy "piano paint" finish to the keys so that they don't wear and get all shiny over time ... they start out shiny. Beyond the glossy finish on the keys, there's little to complain about here other than the lack of separation for the keys. Touch typists may have problems with the keyboard on the U110 since the keys are so flat and close together that it's hard to feel which keys you're pressing.

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The palm rest area is pretty neat, it has a glossy paint finish so it both feels and looks nice. It's very smooth and the touchpad is nicely textured with the same high-quality paint finish. Lenovo decided to omit the standard fingerprint reader in favor of their new "VeriFace" facial recognition application.

Speakers and Audio

The stereo speakers on the U110 are actually quite nice for a notebook of this size. You won't be getting surround sound quality out of the dime-sized speakers located beneath the display hinges, but the quality is perfectly acceptable for video chat or short YouTube videos. The speakers are capable of getting nice and loud with minimal distortion, but like most small notebook speakers the sound is basically just highs and mid ranges ... no bass.

The audio out port was free from any static or distortion and I recommend a good set of headphones or earphones if you plan to use the U110 for
listening to music or feature-length videos.

Software and Security

While the IdeaPad U110 comes preloaded with a fair amount of trialware (bloatware) applications, most of these programs can be classified as helpful or only a minor annoyance. If you don't like any of the bloatware that comes with the notebook it's quite easy to uninstall the applications inside Windows Vista.

In terms of security, observant readers will notice that the U110 lacks a fingerprint reader common to most Lenovo notebooks. Instead of traditional biometric security, the IdeaPad series of notebooks uses the "VeriFace" security application. This is an innovative program that runs during startup and uses the laptop's built-in webcam to scan your face and determine if you are authorized to use the notebook. I was actually quite impressed with VeriFace's ability to identify me. However, the one unfortunate side effect of VeriFace is that it causes a significant delay of about 10 seconds during startup.

Heat and Noise

The thermal design of the U110 is surprisingly good. Keyboard and palmrest surfaces remained in the double-digit temperature range and the bottom of the notebook barely crossed into triple digits after stressing the system by running benchmarks. The temerature readings below are listed in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Battery

Lenovo supplies both the standard 4-cell battery and the 7-cell extended life battery with the U110. The 4-cell is lighter and has a quoted life of up approximately 2 hours while the 7-cell is heavier and has a quoted life of up to 6 hours. Our tests show these estimates are quite accurate. The 4-cell battery was drained after 2 hours and 9 minutes with the notebook set to "Balanced" power management in Windows Vista. With similar power management settings the 7-cell battery lost its charge after 5 hours and 48 minutes.

While most extended life batteries tend to be significantly larger than standard batteries, we were pleased to see that the 7-cell battery only adds a minor increase to the overall size of the U110. In fact, the increase in size is so minor that we will probably recommend that people just use the 7-cell battery all the time.

A view of the 7-cell battery on the
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Conclusion

Overall, the IdeaPad U110 is a nice notebook with an amazingly stylish design and reasonable performance in a small footprint. Consumers with some extra disposable income and a desire for an attractive laptop will be hard pressed to find a nicer overall choice than the IdeaPad U110. However, Lenovo made a few questionable choices with this notebook.

The display on the U110 is quite simply one of the worst we've seen in our office. Sure, color and brightness were fine, but the shimmering graininess and horrible levels of reflection made the screen physically painful to view for more than about 30 minutes. Likewise, while the keyboard feels fantastic and looks cool, the glossy surface picks up smudges from your fingerprints and the keys are too flat and too close together. Lastly, there's the issue of price. At the starting price of $1,899 most consumers won't be able to justify this purchase.

In the end, the IdeaPad U110 is an innovative notebook with some very attractive design elements and a solid feature set. Unfortunately, the display, keyboard and price make it an unlikely choice for most laptop shoppers.

( Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Toshiba Satellite A305D

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:20:00 +0000

The Toshiba Satellite A305D is the sometimes overlooked AMD younger brother to the Intel A305 notebook. This model shares practically the same design, just fewer features that help to bring the cost down. At first glance it would be impossible to tell these two notebooks apart, but if you take a close enough look you can probably spot the differences. Read on to see if this lower cost AMD-equipped Toshiba A305D deserves a spot on your desk.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite A305D-S6835

view detailed pricing from 9 stores starting at $849.00

Observant readers will notice that much of this review is similar to our review of the Intel-based A305, and with good reason. The A305D is essentially the same notebook with a few different parts inside. Keep reading and we'll focus on whether those differences make the A305D better or worse.

Our review unit of the A305D features the following specifications:

Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, 32-bit)
AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core TL-64 (2.2GHz)
15.4" diagonal widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD display at 1280x800 (WXGA)
ATI Radeon X1250 Integrated Graphics
Atheros Wireless 802.11a/g/n
3GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
320GB 5400rpm Toshiba Hard Drive
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive with Labelflash
1.3 megapixel webcam
Harmon/Kardon stereo speakers
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 14.25" x 10.5" x 1.4" /2.25"
Weight: 6 lbs 2.5oz with six-cell battery
75W (19V x 3.95A) 100-240V AC Adapter
6-cell (4000mAh) Lithium Ion battery
1-Year Standard Limited Warranty
Price as configured: $999.99

Build and Design

First thing you will notice is every part of this notebook is glossy, from the screen cover, to the palm rest, and even the keyboard keys. Toshiba is really showing off their new durable Fusion finish on every part of the notebook that they can, and in some ways it is a very good thing. Durability is a big thing with notebook finishes, as many glossy finishes will dull and scratch over time. The new Toshiba Fusion finish on this is incredibly durable, and has yet to actually scratch throughout my testing. With multiple trips in my backpack, I can't find any visible scuffs on the cover, where other notebooks would show fine scratches almost out of the wrapper.

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Build quality is excellent in most areas, giving the notebook a very solid feel. Squeaks and creaks are not present, and panel flex is at a minimum. The only areas that stand out as needing some improvement are the wobbly battery, and rough edges around the screen frame where the two plastic pieces meet.

Body Changes

The new Satellite A305D changes quite a bit of its design, while still retaining some resemblance of its older A205 brother. The biggest change is the use of the new durable Fusion finish, which can be found on practically every surface of the notebook, from the top cover to the individual keyboard keys. Unlike the older glossy surface that would scuff with minimal effort, the Fusion finish holds up very well, and I have yet to find any fine scratches or other wear on it.

The keyboard and surrounding area has changed quite a bit form the older A205, including touch sensitive multimedia keys, which are all the rage these days on most notebooks. Another change is the flush touchpad area, which is surprisingly slick with its textured surface. It is almost too easy to slide your finger around on it, and slip off onto the palm rest. The touchpad buttons have also changed quite a bit, going from rectangular slabs to chromed ovals which are easier to trigger, as well as being more comfortable to use.

Display

The screen quality is above average for glossy screens, with an evenly bright backlight and vibrant colors. Backlight bleed is minimal, meaning better game play in dark scenes without areas getting washed out. Viewing angles are adequate, with a wide horizontal range, but shallow vertical range. When tilting the screen back, you will have to find a sweet spot, and going out of that means washed out or inverted colors.

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Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the Satellite A305D is made up of high gloss painted keys, which is fairly unique as far as mainstream notebooks go. The look is excellent, and goes very well with the silver striped glossy notebook, and the feel is even better. There is just something about typing on a soft glossy surface that makes long typing very comfortable. Even things like gaming seem to work better, letting you easily slide from one key to the next with minimal drag.

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The touchpad is mounted flush with the palm rest, with the only indication of it being a touchpad at all is a semi-smooth textured overlay. I don't know what the surface is made out of, but it is oddly slippery. No matter if your fingertip is mildly sweaty or perfectly dry, it doesn't stick to the surface. For anyone who has used a notebook for hours on end, you know that eventually your fingers start to stick on some touchpad surfaces, this surface somehow prevents that. In use the sensitivity is excellent, with a wide range of adjustment offered through the Synaptics driver control panel.

The touchpad buttons are very nice, reminding me of the chrome bumpers on older cars. They feel soft to the touch without any hard defined edges, and even though they have very shallow feedback, they are probably some of the best touchpad buttons I have used.

Performance

The Toshiba A305D comes loaded with the AMD Turion TL-64 2.2GHz processor, and the ATI 1250 integrated graphics. For most activities this combination handles itself quite well, including office productivity applications or watching movies. Gaming is one area that this close brother to the Intel A305 can't follow, bringing in 3D benchmarking scores almost 93% lower.

The Intel-based A305 delivered an impressive benchmark score in terms of overall performance thanks to a second hard drive and dedicated graphics. Unfortunately, our configuration of the AMD-based A305D produced "average" benchmark numbers from a single hard drive and integrated graphics.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite A305D (Turion X2 TL-64 @ 2.2GHz)	37.220s
Toshiba Satellite A305 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	36.442s
Asus M51S (Core 2 Duo T5550 @ 1.83GHz)	46.293s
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.184s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
Hewlett Packard DV6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Zepto Znote 6224W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	45.788s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite A305D (2.2GHz AMD Turion X2 TL-64, ATI 1250)	271 3DMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	3,810 3DMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	3,749 3DMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	543 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	1,556 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite A305D (2.2GHz AMD Turion X2 TL-64, ATI 1250)	3,510 PCMarks
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	5,622 PCMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	4,649 PCMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	3,749 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	3,386 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune results:

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Audio

The Harmon/Kardon speakers included on the A305D were excellent for gaming and watching movies. Unlike many normal notebook speakers, you would actually hear a hint of bass, which was welcome for speakers of this size. Volume levels that would easily annoy those around you could be reached without distortion.

Headphone performance was also very nice, providing clear, static free audio.

Ports and Features

The AMD-based Toshiba A305D has an almost identical port lineup as the Intel A305, minus the HDMI port that came with the dedicated graphics. Even with that port gone, the lineup is still more than adequate for many users.

ExpressCard slot (ExpressCard/34 and Express Card/54)
10/100 Ethernet
Modem jack
5-in-1 media card reader
VGA out, S-Video
Microphone input port
Headphone output port
IEEE-1394 (FireWire)
Four USB 2.0 ports (with "Sleep and Charge")

Left: VGA, S-Video, LAN, two USB, Firewire, Expresscard/54

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Front: Wireless On/Off, SD-Card Reader, Mic/Headphone, Volume

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Right: Two USB, Optical Drive, AC Power, Kensington Lock Slot

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Rear: No ports, just the battery and display hinge

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Heat and Noise

Thermal performance of the AMD-based Toshiba A305D was better than the Intel A305, almost entirely because of the missing second hard drive and use of integrated graphics. The palmrest temperatures are slightly down after prolonged use, and the bottom of the notebook is also somewhat cooler. Fan noise was minimal and it rarely sped up even under the stress of benchmarks.

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Battery Life

Our A305D review model came with the standard 6-cell, 4000mAh battery. With the notebook set to the balanced profile, screen brightness set to 50 percent, and wireless connected, we managed 3 hours even.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite A305D-S6835

view detailed pricing from 9 stores starting at $849.00

Conclusion

The AMD-based Toshiba Satellite A305D is built off a good platform that it also shares with the Intel A305, but the small price cut doesn't make up for the huge loss in performance. For saving roughly $200 you go from a capable gaming machine with dual hard drives and an extended battery, to a budget configuration notebook. If the price was about $300 or $400 dollars less than it is now I would be all over it considering how much I love this design, but the retail price of $1,000 is asking way too much.

Pros

Above average LCD
Slick keyboard (literally)
Touch sensitive media keys
Flush mount touchpad with great surface texture
Great Harmon/Kardon Speakers

Cons

Warm touchpad
Reflective surface can blind others with its awesomeness
Low performance for the price

( Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Toshiba Satellite A305

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 06 May 2008 06:54:00 +0000

The Toshiba Satellite A305 is a redesign of the older A205, vastly improving the look and feel of the notebook, as well as adding the incredibly durable Fusion finish. While some of the lower body looks similar to the older notebook, everything from the waistline up has changed to a sleeker, softer, and glossier feel. Read on to see how well this notebook stacks up against its older brother, and find out if this notebook is worthy of a spot on your lap.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite A305-S6839

TigerDirect.com | $1,149.99
CompUSA | $1,149.99
Amazon.com | $1,128.97

view detailed pricing from 3 stores starting at $1,128.00

Our review unit of the Toshiba Satellite A305 features the following specs:

Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, 32-bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T8100 (2.10GHz, 3MB L2, 800MHz FSB)
15.4" diagonal widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD display at 1280x800 (WXGA)
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 with 512MB video memory
Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)
3GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
200GB Serial ATA hard disk drive (5400RPM) Primary
200GB Serial ATA hard disk drive (4200RPM) Secondary
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive with Labelflash
1.3 megapixel webcam
Harmon/Kardon stereo speakers
Fingerprint reader
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 14.25" x 10.5" x 1.4" /2.25"
Weight: 6 lbs 13.5oz with nine-cell battery
120W (19V x 6.32A) 100-240V AC Adapter (6.0" x 2.55" x 1.45" and weighs 1.56 lb)
9-cell (6000mAh) Lithium Ion battery
1-Year Standard Limited Warranty
Price as configured: $1,249.99

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Build and Design

The first thing you will notice is every part of this notebook is glossy, from the screen cover to the palm rest, and even the keyboard keys. Toshiba is really showing off their new durable Fusion finish on every part of the notebook that they can, and in some ways it is a very good thing. Durability is a big thing with notebook finishes, as many glossy finishes will dull and scratch over time. The new Toshiba Fusion finish on this notebook is incredibly durable, and has yet to actually scratch throughout my testing. With multiple trips in my backpack, I can't find any visible scuffs on the cover, where other notebooks would show fine scratches almost out of the wrapper.

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Body Changes

The new Satellite A305 changes quite a bit of its design, while still retaining some resemblance of its older A205 brother. The biggest change is the use of the new durable Fusion finish, which can be found on practically every surface of the notebook, from the top cover to the individual keyboard keys. Unlike the older glossy surface that would scuff with minimal effort, the Fusion finish holds up very well, and I have yet to find a fine scratches or other wear on it.

Display

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Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the Satellite A305 is made up of high gloss painted keys, which is fairly unique as far as mainstream notebooks go. The look is excellent, and goes very well with the silver striped glossy notebook. The feel is even better. There is just something about typing on a soft glossy surface that makes long typing very comfortable. Even things like gaming seem to work better, letting you easily slide from one key to the next with minimal drag.

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One disappointing aspect of the keyboard is that it is not backlit, as that could be the only possible way to make it even more awesome. Hopefully this keyboard stays the same in the Qosmio, and gets some special backlit treatment. Below are some images showing how the backlights look in a dark room (the Satellite logo, media button and touchpad backlights can be disabled).

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Performance

For a notebook that costs $1,250 retail, you get a nicely equipped gaming rig that is hard to beat in performance or build quality. Mating the Penryn based Intel T8100 with the ATI Radeon 3650 gives outstanding overall performance, and easily copes with most modern games. The dual hard drive setup lets users gain additional space, as well as opens up the door for future expansion for even greater storage space without replacing the main system drive.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite A305 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	36.442s
Asus M51S (Core 2 Duo T5550 @ 1.83GHz)	46.293s
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.184s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
Hewlett Packard DV6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Zepto Znote 6224W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	45.788s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	3,810 3DMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	3,749 3DMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	543 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	1,556 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite A305 (2.10GHz Intel T8100, ATI Radeon 3650 512MB)	5,622 PCMarks
Asus M51S (1.83GHz Intel T5550, Nvidia 9500M GS 512MB)	4,649 PCMarks
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Intel X3100)	3,749 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS 256MB)	3,386 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune results:

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Audio

The Harmon/Kardon speakers included on the A305 were excellent for gaming and watching movies. Unlike many normal notebook speakers, you can actually hear a hint of bass, which is welcome for speakers of this size. Volume levels that would easily annoy those around you could be reached without distortion.

Headphone performance was also very nice, providing clear, static-free audio.

Ports and Features

When it comes to ports Toshiba didn't hold anything back from the A305; packing every square inch of this notebook with a wide array of ports all around the sides.

ExpressCard slot (ExpressCard/34 and Express Card/54)
10/100 Ethernet
Modem jack
5-in-1 media card reader
VGA out, S-Video, HDMI
Microphone input port
Headphone output port
IEEE-1394 (FireWire)
Four USB 2.0 ports (with "Sleep and Charge")
5 in 1 SD-Card Reader

Left: VGA, S-Video, HDMI, LAN, 2 USB, Firewire, Expresscard/54.

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Front: Wireless On/Off, SD-Card Reader, Mic/Headphone, Volume.

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Right: 2 USB, Optical Drive, AC Power, Kensington Lock Slot.

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Rear view: No ports on this side.

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Heat and Noise

Thermal performance of the Toshiba A305 was above average, with mild fan noise at low and high speeds, and the notebook staying relativity cool during game play. One area that did get kind of warm that is worth mentioning is the touchpad, which would reach almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit after the notebook had been on for a while.

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Battery Life

Our review unit came with the larger 9-cell extended battery, which ended up not performing as well as we would have hoped because of constant background processes. With the notebook on the balanced power profile, and brightness to 50 percent, the notebook managed 2 hours and 50 minutes before it had to be shut down.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite A305-S6839

TigerDirect.com | $1,149.99
CompUSA | $1,149.99
Amazon.com | $1,128.97

view detailed pricing from 3 stores starting at $1,128.00

Conclusion

The Toshiba Satellite A305 is an excellent upgrade and overhaul to the older lackluster A205 notebook. The design looks great, the finish is awesome, the performance is outstanding, and the price is much lower than expected. I would have no problem recommending this notebook to friends and family, and right now it is almost too tempting to go out and buy one for myself.

Pros

Above average LCD
Slick keyboard (literally)
Touch sensitive media keys
Flush mount touchpad with great surface texture
Excellent performance
Outstanding price
Great Harmon/Kardon Speakers

Cons

Warm touchpad
Reflective surface can blind others with its awesomeness
Wobbly 9-cell battery

(Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

HP Pavilion dv9700t

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 06 May 2008 06:50:00 +0000

purchased an HP Pavilion dv9700t directly from the Hewlett-Packard website in March of 2008. It is a 17" desktop replacement, weighing in at 8.2 pounds (it is one half pound heavier than usual because I chose dual backlights in my screen).

Buying Choices for the HP Pavilion dv9700t Entertainment Notebook PC (2.10 GHz, 250GB HD, 4GB RAM)

HP Home & Home Office Store | $1,855.97

The exact specs are as follows:

Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (32-bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T8100 (2.10 GHz, 3 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
17.0" WXGA+ High-Definition Ultra HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1440 x 900)
2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS
HP Imprint (Radiance) + Fingerprint Reader + Webcam + Microphone
Intel PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth
250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
High Capacity 8-Cell Lithium Ion Battery

HP offers an array of customizable options when you order a laptop from their website. I started with the base dv9700t model, which cost a shade less than $1,000, and customized my way up to just over $1,400. There was a special coupon (which might still be available...check around on NotebookReview) that deducted $500 from any Pavilion notebook that cost $1,400...so you can see the appeal. After taxes the total was almost exactly $1,000. I think it was a terrific buy, and so far I am thrilled with the purchase.

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Things I chose to upgrade/not upgrade, and why:

Processor: This was a no-brainer, upgrading from a Intel T5550 (1.83GHz) to the Intel T8100 (2.10GHz, 3 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB) cost about $125 extra, but was well worth it for the boost in performance (see bench scores below).

Screen: The standard screen is a 17" WXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1440 x 900), which is probably fine for most customers. For an additional $125, I received the 17" WXGA+ Ultra BrightView. It is the same screen, but outfitted with two backlights (instead of one), providing superior brightness and color. The extra cost is, for me, justified by it's amazing clarity even in direct-light situations (important since the screen is glossy). The second backlight adds a half pound to the computer's weight. I am not sure what effect it has on the battery life, but I offset the extra power usage by upgrading to a high-capacity battery. (HP also offers a higher resolution 1680 x 1050 screen, but I had more use for the Ultra Bright )

Video Card: For $50 (HP was offering 50% off), I upgraded from an Nvidea GeForce 8400M GS to an Nvidea GeForce 8600M GS. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure that I'll ever need the extra juice. Mostly I was swayed by other user reviews and recommendations, which encouraged upgrading the video card to extend the useful life of the computer. The 8600 offers 512MB of dedicated memory (as opposed to 256 for the 8400), and would rock if I had opted for the BluRay drive (I knew I would spend too much on BluRay discs, so I avoided that option).

Wireless: For another $50, I upgraded to an Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 4965A/G/N Network Connection with Bluetooth. I recommend this option to anyone interested in ease of connectivity. My job is predicated upon a fast internet connection, so it was an easy decision to upgrade and have the newer N networks available to me. Bluetooth is another life-saver. I immediately ordered a Bluetooth mouse (the terrific Logitech V470) and a Bluetooth earpiece, both of which make my life easier on a daily basis.

Hard drive: The 250GB hard drive is more than adequate for my needs. It features 5400RPM, which is fast but not lightning quick. There is an available 240GB, 7200RPM drive, and other drives can store as much as 640GB. Again, for my less-intensive purposes the stock 250/5400 is perfectly adequate.

Outer shell: The "Imprint Radiance" finish is lovely, and comes standard. The glossy finish (black on the outside, gray on the inside) is subtle but beautiful. It's more fun to look at than a typical matte-finish, though it also recklessly collects fingerprints. A soft cloth (or even a tee shirt) clears the smudges off without risking the gorgeous finish.

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Speaking of fingerprints...the built-in Fingerprint reader is wonderful as well. At the time of my purchase, HP was also including a free webcam, microphone (actually two microphones) and fingerprint reader. (It said that the FP reader cost an extra $25, but that never reflected on the bill...just for the record). I was skeptical, but now I use it for a host of applications. With the prevalence of stored passwords these days, it's not a must-have for all consumers, but it offers ease and security if you either share your computer with others or simply prefer not to have passwords automatically saved. One caveat: as far as I can tell, the fingerprint reader's software is only compatible with Internet Explorer, so all Firefox users must type in passwords the old-fashioned way.

The webcam is good. It handles low-light situations admirably, but of course we're not talking about camcorder quality. The software that is packaged for use with the webcam is similarly impressive, though it pales in comparison to Apple's smooth and easy Photobooth application.

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The SuperMulti 8x DVD+/- RW drive (with dual layer support) is as quick and quiet as you could ever ask for. HP includes their LightScribe technology, though personally I find it useless. I own an external HP DVD drive that also has LightScribe, and this is my experience: the "LightScribe capable" discs are more expensive and less reliable, the process takes twice as long as strictly burning a DVD, and the images that it creates are woefully dim. I have read of users copying the same image multiple times, just to get a reasonably defined image. Again, they include the LS for free, so it's just a matter of whether to use it or not (I vote no!).

There is an optional BluRay drive. I can only imagine how gorgeous BluRay would look on my Ultra BrightView screen, but couldn't justify the investment (I bought my laptop primarily for work).

HP generously starts the computer with 2GB of RAM (Note: they are currently offering a free upgrade to 3GB). I felt no need to immediately increase the memory, since my computer use is mostly limited to internet/music/movies/word processing.

Beyond it's aesthetic appeal, the computer feels well built. It is a solid 7.7 pounds (8.2 w/ Ultra BrightView), which seems just right considering the 17" screen and status as a "desktop replacement." If portability and battery life are your main concerns, this might not be the laptop for you.

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Screen

The 17" WXGA+ Ultra BrightView Widescreen display is a wonder to behold. Zero dead pixels. Crisp contrasts, bright, full colors ... really vibrant and just a pleasure. Again, I got the Ultra BrightView which has two backlights--this not only makes it brighter, it improves colors and (this is just my assumption, based on using the machine) seems to distribute light more evenly, thus decreasing light leakage and uneven lighting. Viewing angles are adequate but not spectacular.

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The screen also appears to be built exceptionally well. There are no ripples on the screen no matter how hard you push on the outer shell, and the hinges are rock-solid. There is a tiny bit of wobble during routine typing, but you cannot tell unless there are reflections visible on the screen.

Speakers and Audio

The speakers are Altec Lansing, and they are quite nice. It's a laptop, so owners should forgive the paltry bass. There is admirable sound quality and the speakers are loud enough to comfortably watch a movie across the room. Sound does not degrade when turned up very loud. One complaint I have is the headphone inputs. There are two inputs, each of which gives slight feedback as soon as you plug in your headphones. It isn't overwhelming, and you have to strain to hear it during quiet parts in a song, but it's still annoying. Turning off wireless does nothing to change the slight noise. Routine acts like scrolling down a webpage can actually change the frequency of the sound, as I have accidentally discovered. (I have nice headphones which do not have similar problems in any other device). Overall, not a big deal and I am satisfied with the sound quality.

Performance and Benchmarks

Super Pi: The dv9700t calculated pi to 2 million digits in 58 seconds. With numerous applications running, the time rose to 1 minute and 11 seconds.

Notebook	Time
HP Pavilion dv9700t (2.1GHz Core 2 Duo T8100)	0m 58s
HP Pavilion HDX (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T7500)	0m 54s
Dell Latitude D830 (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T7500, 800MHz FSB, 667MHz RAM)	0m 53s
Zepto 6024W (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 with 800MHz FSB and 667MHz RAM)	0m 59s
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200 with 667MHz FSB & memory speed)	1m 02s
Dell Vostro 1500 (Intel Core 2 Duo T5470 1.60GHz)	1m 16s
Samsung Q35 (1.83MHz Core 2 Duo T5600 with 667MHz FSB and 533MHz RAM)	1m 16s
Samsung R20 (1.73GHz T2250 with 533MHz FSB and memory speed)	1m 23s
Toshiba Satellite P205-S6287 (1.73 GHz Core 2 Duo Intel T5300)	1m 24s
Samsung X60 (1.66GHz Core Duo (T2300) with 533MHz memory speed)	1m 29s
Sony Vaio TZ90HS (1.2GHz Core 2 Duo ULV U7600)	1m 50s
HP Compaq 6515b (1.6GHz Turion 64x2 TL-52)	2m 05s
Fujitsu S6120 (Pentium M 1.6GHz)	2m 29s
Dell Inspiron 2650 (Pentium 4 Mobile 1.6GHz)	4m 05s

3DMark06 returned a scored of 2,889 3DMarks. I have no idea if that is good or bad, but the videos seemed (except during the "CPU test") to play pretty smoothly.

3DMark06 comparison results:

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
HP Pavilion dv9700t (2.1GHz Core 2 Duo T8100, Nvidia 8600M GS 512MB)	2,889 3DMarks
HP Pavilion HDX (2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7700, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB)	4,205 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks
Samsung R20 (1.73GHz T2250 and ATI 1250M chipset / GPU)	476 3DMarks

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard is excellent. There is a small but consistent amount of sag throughout the keyboard, but you really have to be hammering away at the buttons to notice at all. They strike quickly and feel firm, and my only complaint is that sometimes my right index finger catches under the bottom left corner of the "H" key. This is probably a result of my typing style, but I'm worried that over time it will lift up the key and become a real problem. There is a full numerical pad, which is either nice or useless, depending upon the individual. One complaint, which I knew about before buying the computer, is that for some reason HP has shortened the right Shift key to half its usual length. Apparently they were trying to squeeze in the up arrow, but it was the wrong decision. I have already adjusted (meaning I now use the left Shift key for almost every letter other than "A"), but still find myself with some dashes where I wanted a capital letter.

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Above the keyboard is a strip of touch-activated buttons, controlling volume, mute, and controls for the Quickplay media program (launch, DVD, play, stop, forward and back). The volume buttons are awesome, but it would be nice to have another button which disabled the whole strip. Sometimes I inadvertently hit the Quickplay button, which then launches a window on top of anything you happen to be doing.

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Another complaint is the rather chintzy mouse tracking pad and buttons. The pad itself is the same smooth, hard plastic material as the outer shell (at least it feels and looks the same), which makes it less responsive to movements than a regular textured pad. The left/right buttons have no divider between them and they do not respond very well to pressure, frequently resulting in non-responsive clicks. The buttons are large, but do not respond evenly across their surface, adding to the frustration.

On the plus side, they have included a separate scrolling bar which is convenient. Though again, the scrolling bar could be more sensitive. There is also a button which toggles the tracking pad, eliminating accidental clicks and movements. I recommend buying a top-notch wireless mouse along with this laptop. It is a good, cheap way to negate one of the computer's only design flaws -- a lousy mouse apparatus.

Ports and Features

This laptop has a ton of ports. Three USB 2.0, IEEE 1394 Firewire, expansion port 3, TV out (S-video), Integrated Consumer IR (remote control receiver), 5-in-1 digital media card reader, microphone in, RJ-11 (modem), RJ-45 (LAN), VGA, HDMI external port. There is also an ExpressCard slot, which supports optional TV service, broadband wireless and more.

Front view. (view large image)

Rear view. (view large image)

Left side view. (view large image)

Right side view. (view large image)

The HDMI port on the left side is a sweet touch, vital if you opt for the BluRay drive. Another thing you'll notice is the Infrared remote control, which tucks away in the ExpressCard slot when you're not using it. This is convenient, though I haven't once used the Quickplay feature which the remote controls.

Battery

The battery that comes stock is an 8-cell, but I upgraded to the high-capacity 8-cell, which is the only other option. With the brightness turned up all the way, the battery lasted just about three hours before kicking off. Owners can reasonably expect 3 ½ hours, if they take steps to reduce power consumption. HP also offers a convenient and effective power management tool, which automatically switches the power settings depending upon the power source (or user preference).

Heat and Noise

This computer excels in regards to noise and heat. I have had it running for 20 hours straight, and can still comfortably rest it on my lap (at least while clothed). The fan has at least three speeds, none of which are annoyingly loud, and it kicks on infrequently. (I don't play games, so I can't say whether this would hold true during a marathon session of Unreal Tournament). Most of the time I keep a large book between my lap and the computer, but that is to make it easier to type, not because of excessive or uncomfortable heat.

Software

The pre-packaged software is decent. There is a large suite of family-friendly video games, mostly middle-of-the-road type stuff. The HP Photosmart application is a nice addition. Microsoft Works comes standard, Microsoft Office/Word costs extra (I did not pay extra for Office). There is also an HP Advisor built in, which helps new owners quickly and simply customize their computers.

Customer Service

I have not contacted HP customer service, though Consumer Reports seems to list HP as below average in that department. Hopefully I'll never need to find out.

Buying Choices for the HP Pavilion dv9700t Entertainment Notebook PC (2.10 GHz, 250GB HD, 4GB RAM)

HP Home & Home Office Store | $1,855.97

Conclusion

Overall, the HP Pavilion dv9700t is terrific. Any junkies fixated on high-end gaming or intense graphics/editing might find this computer lacking some muscle. For everybody else, it combines power, beauty, speed and solid design at a cost that can't be beat (I comparison shopped for a very long time before reaching this conclusion). Just don't forget to look for coupons!

Pros:

Great keyboard
Good performance with T8100 processor
Excellent screen with dual backlights

Cons:

Minor feedback on the headphone jacks
Not the best touchpad and buttons

(source http://www.notebookreview.com)

Toshiba Satellite U405 Laptop

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:59:00 +0000

The Toshiba Satellite U400/U405 series is a new 13.3" widescreen notebook that weighs in at just 4.85 pounds and packs solid Intel Core 2 Duo Penryn performance and a big hard drive with plenty of storage space. Add to that a stylish chassis covered in Toshiba's new "Fusion" finish, 3GB of RAM, a webcam, and fingerprint reader and this notebook starts looking even better. Toshiba calls this notebook a "compact hero [that] balances working room with carrying comfort." Let's take a look and see if this laptop is as good as it sounds.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite U405-S2830

view detailed pricing from 5 stores starting at $1,099.00

The Toshiba Satellite U400/U405 series is available with a range of Intel processors (from the 1.73GHz Pentium Dual-Core T2370 up to the T8300 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo Penryn). There is only one 13.3" screen offering, a 1280x800 WXGA "TruBrite" glossy display. The notebook can take up to 4GB of RAM and Toshiba offers 32-bit versions of Microsoft Windows Vista SP1. The system is priced starting at $767.20 at the time of this writing.

Our review unit of the Toshiba Satellite U405-S2830 is equipped with the following specs:

Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, 32-bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T8100 (2.10GHz, 3MB L2, 800MHz FSB)
Mobile Intel GM965 Express Chipset
Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)
3GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM (maximum capacity 4GB)
250GB Serial ATA hard disk drive (5400RPM)
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive with Labelflash
13.3" diagonal widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD display at 1280x800 (WXGA)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 with 128MB-358MB dynamically allocated shared graphics memory
1.3 megapixel webcam
Bluetooth version 2.1 plus Enhanced Data Rate (EDR)
Fingerprint reader
Dimensions (WxDxH Front/H Rear): 12.4" x 9.02" x 1.08" /1.38"
Weight: 4.85 lbs with six-cell battery
75W (19V x 3.95A) 100-240V AC Adapter (5.0" x 1.20" x 2.01" and weighs 0.77 lb)
6-cell (4800mAh) Lithium Ion battery
1-Year Standard Limited Warranty
Price as configured: $1,149.99

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Build and Design

Like most notebooks with a 13.3" widescreen display the U405 is on the border of the thin-and-light and ultra-portable categories. With a weight of more than four and a half pounds it isn't the lightest notebook in its class. Likewise, since the notebook is 1 inch thick at its thinnest point the U405 falls in the "middle of the pack" among recent 13.3" systems. While the U405 might be a little thicker and heavier than Apple's MacBook Air or Lenovo's ThinkPad X300, the U405 is a far more consumer friendly notebook with the perfect balance of form and function.

The exterior of the U405 is constructed of plastic yet it felt exceptionally solid. There was no flex to the chassis even when significant pressure was applied to the corners of the notebook. The U405 also uses the high-gloss "Fusion" finish which is an imprinted design that is both durable and attractive. The Fusion finish is one of the most durable glossy finishes I've seen on a notebook and easily rivals the quality of the "Imprint" finish found on HP notebooks.

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While I generally like the horizontal line design imprint on the U405, the finish isn't just glossy ... it's reflective. This will be quite appealing to some consumers and ghastly for others. When you open the LCD lid on this laptop the back of the display basically looks like a mirror as seen in the photo below.

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Of course, the mirror-like reflections on the Fusion finish have some advantages as well. You can use the laptop to reflect the sun and signal rescue planes if you are ever lost in the woods with your laptop. The LCD lid also comes in handy if you need a mirror for your morning shave.

In all seriousness, the design is extremely attractive but certainly isn't subdued or conservative.

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Screen

The display panel itself is a 13.3" glossy screen with WXGA resolution (1280x800). There were absolutely no problems with the screen on our review unit: the refresh rate seems excellent when videos or games with fast motion are displayed and there are no stuck pixels. As is common with glossy screens, colors and contrast are quite good and both images and video "pop" off the screen. What makes this glossy screen particularly nice is that Toshiba seems to have struck the perfect balance between gloss and matte. The screen is glossy enough to produce that added richness to color and superior contrast inherent to glossy screens, yet the surface isn't so glossy that reflections become problematic.

Brightness is quite impressive, and as you can see in the photo above, the screen is bright enough to be readable under our very bright studio lights even with the display set to 60 percent brightness. When set to maximum brightness the screen is bright enough to cause some people to squint in a dark room.

The screen is simply beautiful when viewing from straight ahead. Horizontal viewing angles are good or average. Colors are excellent and the backlight brightness remains even across the screen surface. There is some minor color inversion when you view the screen from sharp vertical angles (such as standing above the notebook or looking up at the screen from the floor) but most people rarely view a screen from these extreme vertical angles.

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Keyboard, Touchpad, Media Controls an Indicators

When I reviewed the Toshiba Satellite U305 last year I wasn't very impressed by the keyboard and touchpad. Well, Toshiba must have listened to consumer complaints because the keyboard and touchpad on the U405 are among the best I've ever used on a 13-inch notebook.

Toshiba made the decision to use the new "Fusion" finish on the keyboard keys and this gives the keyboard on the U405 a distinctly smooth feel. The key texture is almost like a thick automotive paint with multiple layers of clear coat and wax. That's not to say the keys feel waxy but rather the keys feel obscenely sexy. Key presses are smooth, perfectly deep, well cushioned and quiet. The entire keyboard has almost no flex and remains firm even when significant pressure is applied.

The glossy surface of the keyboard is a magnet of fingerprints and shows smudges from the oils in your skin, but this is a minor annoyance when the keyboard feels this good.

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The touchpad surface on the U405 is quite simply one of the nicest I have ever used. The surface is flush with the palmrests but there is a light application of what feels almost like soft sandpaper over the surface. "Soft sandpaper" might not sound enjoyable, but I assure you that your fingertips will glide across the surface and the cursor movement is both fluid and accurate. Toshiba even included a white LED backlight above the touchpad that not only looks cool but helps you locate the touchpad quickly in a darkly lit room.

While we're on the subject of the awesome touchpad, let's not forget the touchpad buttons. These buttons are among the most comfortable I've found on any notebook. The rounded edges make pressing the buttons with the edges of your thumbs quite easy and the individual button presses are quiet and well cushioned without being too deep or too shallow. I often end up using an external mouse when reviewing notebooks but I never bothered using an external mouse with the U405 other than to test the notebook's Bluetooth connectivity.

This is a very nice touchpad.

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A series of touch-sensitive media buttons with white LED backlights are located above the keyboard similar to the buttons on most consumer notebooks. One nice feature about the media buttons is that the white LEDs aren't as offensive or distracting as the bright blue LEDs used on most other notebooks. The power button also features a white LED backlight and the Satellite logo and status indicators likewise have white or red LED backlights.

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Ports and Features

The port selection of the U405 is reasonably good for a notebook of this size. Here's a quick rundown of what you get:

ExpressCard slot (ExpressCard/34 and Express Card/54)

10/100 Ethernet

Modem jack

5-in-1 media card reader

VGA out

Microphone input port

Headphone output port

IEEE-1394 (FireWire)

Three USB 2.0 ports (with "Sleep and Charge")

Front profile view: LED status lights, 5-in-1 card reader, volume dial and Wi-Fi on/off switch.

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Left side: VGA out, blank HDMI port, two USB ports, FireWire, microphone in, headphone out, and ExpressCard slot.

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Right side: Optical drive, USB port, modem, Ethernet and security lock slot.

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Back profile view: Battery and power jack.

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One unfortunate omission from the ports selection is the lack of either S-video out or HDMI. In fact, there's even a blank section on the left side of the U405 that is labeled HDMI. Our guess in that Toshiba will eventually offer a configuration of this notebook with HDMI ... but not at present. The absence of both the S-video port and the HDMI port means that this notebook won't be 100 percent friendly with all external displays used for presentations. This might indeed be a serious problem for traveling business professionals who never know exactly what type of video-out port they'll need for their next business presentation.

Overall, the U405 is still well equipped in terms of ports with FireWire, three USB ports, a media card reader, a headphone jack, microphone jack, ExpressCard slot and Ethernet port. Although the U405 only has three USB ports, all three USB ports on this notebook utilize Toshiba's new "Sleep and Charge" functionality. This is a great feature because it means you can leave your rechargeable USB devices plugged into the notebook and your USB gizmos will recharge even if the notebook is turned off. The "catch" is that if your notebook isn't plugged into a power outlet the notebook battery will drain even faster. As a manufacturing default, the Sleep and Charge function is disabled right out of the box so users have to manually turn it on through the "Start Menu." To activate the Sleep and Charge USB option go to "Start Menu - TOSHIBA - Utilities - HW Setup; check mode 1."

Audio

The audio performance on the U405 was a little better than average for a 13.3" notebook, but it was far from impressive. Both of the small speakers located above the keyboard produce a slightly "tin can" sound quality with plenty of highs but only acceptable levels of mid range and absolutely no bass. On the bright side, the speaker volume gets very loud with minimal distortion and both speakers are located in a good position to direct sound up and toward the user. Unfortunately, you will still want to use headphones or external speakers if you are an audiophile.

On that note it's worthwhile to mention that the audio out port on the U405 is located on the left side (a good location for an external speaker connection) and audio output was clean (there was no static or cracking in the sound coming from the headphone jack).

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Performance and Benchmarks

Toshiba chose to offer the U400/U405 series in a range of configurations starting with the Intel Pentium Dual-core T2370 (1.73GHz) and up to the Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 (2.4GHz) processor. While the entry-level Pentium dual core system with its 1MB of L2 cache and 533MHz frontside bus still provides reasonable performance under Vista, it's good to know that the Core 2 Duo Penryn processor (T8100 or T8300 both with 3MB L2, 800MHz FSB) is an option for people who need faster multimedia encoding or image editing. The 2.1GHz Intel T8100 processor in our configuration provided a fast and flawless computing experience and surprisingly good battery life (more on that later).

The use of integrated graphics processor and shared RAM is something of a mixed blessing for the U405. While many 13.3" notebooks are now available with dedicated graphics, Toshiba selected integrated Intel X3100 graphics for this notebook. Without a powerful GPU and dedicated video RAM the U405 simply cannot run most recent 3D games at higher resolutions (if at all). On the other hand, the use of integrated graphics puts less strain on the battery and allows for superior battery life. Although the U405 might not be suitable for playing Crysis, I was able to edit high resolution images in Photoshop CS3 as well as edit and encode videos in Windows Movie Maker.

One thing the U405 offers plenty of is storage space. The 250GB hard drive should provide more than enough storage space for your music library, encoded videos, and your family photos. Thankfully, Toshiba decided to use 5400RPM hard drives in all the configurations of the U400/U405 series. Toshiba's older 4200RPM drives required users to wait for files to read from or write to the disk, but that's just not much of an issue with these faster hard drives.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Toshiba Satellite U405 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.500s
Dell Vostro 1310 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.736s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores indicate better gaming performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite U405 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	539 3DMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	1,679 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite U405 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Intel X3100)	4,145 PCMarks
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	4,813 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune measures the performance of the notebook's hard drive in terms of both transfer rate (read/write speed) and access time (how long it takes to find data stored on the drive):

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Heat and Noise

The U405 does an excellent job of controlling heat thanks in no small part to the massive heatsink visible through the air vent on the left side of the notebook. The only two areas of the U405 that peaked above 100 degrees Fahrenheit were the areas next to the RAM and wireless card ... both of which are normal. Although the touchpad and bottom of the notebook did become warm during benchmarks it was never too hot to keep on the lap. Below are images with temperature readings listed in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Fortunately, noise was a complete non-issue with the fan on the U405. The fan moved a significant amount of hot air and the noise was so quiet I sometimes forgot the notebook was still powered on.

Battery Life

The 6-cell 4800mAh Li-Ion battery provides excellent battery life for the U405. The 6-cell delivered 3 hours and 48 minutes of life while browsing the web using Wi-Fi with the notebook set to "balanced" mode and the screen brightness turned down to about 60 percent.

While that battery life might not seem overly impressive at first glance, the important item to note is that this is a rather average 4800mAh battery. The new 13-inch Dell Vostro 1310 produced similar battery life numbers, but the battery on that notebook is a higher capacity battery. Clearly Toshiba is doing something right in terms of battery power management.

There is also an available 9-cell 7200mAh Li-Ion battery for those users needing extended battery life. Unfortunately, Toshiba was unable to provide us with the 9-cell battery during our testing period, so we cannot provide any information on battery life with that battery.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite U405-S2830

view detailed pricing from 5 stores starting at $1,099.00

Conclusion

A notebook is more than the sum of its parts. For several years now Toshiba has managed to make solid notebooks but they didn't excite our editorial staff ... until now. In years past Toshiba usually did a fine job "on paper" by delivering laptops with good components, but the "complete package" left something to be desired. Well, Toshiba was paying attention to that criticism and the result is the new Satellite lineup for 2008.

The Satellite U405 is quite possibly the best 13-inch consumer budget notebook we've seen to date. Sure, the current configuration doesn't offer dedicated graphics for playing the latest 3D games, but the U405 is the most balanced overall package we've seen in quite a while. The U405 combines attractive styling, a gorgeous screen, a wonderful keyboard and touchpad, good port selection, and solid performance all at a price that rivals anything we've seen from the competition.

The entry-level configuration of the U405 is priced at $767.20 compared to the entry-level configuration of the Dell Vostro 1310 priced at $747 ... but the U405 is a far superior laptop. As configured, our review unit of the U405 is priced at $1,149.99 (even less at some online stores) but a similar configuration of the less-impressive Dell Vostro 1310 is priced at close to $1,300 and a similar configuration of the Dell XPS M1330 costs $1,400.

Still, the heart of the matter is that the Toshiba Satellite U405 is simply a great laptop. I don't often get attached to review notebooks but I can honestly say I don't want to send this laptop back to Toshiba. This warrants repeating. As an editor and writer for a website that reviews laptops I get a new laptop to use at least once a week ... but I don't want to send this one back.

If you are an average consumer looking for a well-rounded 13-inch notebook that can handle all of your needs without breaking the bank then the Toshiba Satellite U405 belongs at the top of your list.

Pros

Reasonably thin and light weight
Great screen
Wonderful keyboard
Fantastic touchpad and touchpad buttons
Great media buttons and white LED indicators
Good selection of ports
Convenient USB "Sleep and Charge" ports
Excellent performance
Great value

Cons

No S-video or HDMI port (in this configuration)
No dedicated graphics option (at the time of this writing)
Mirror finish won't appeal to everyone
I don't get to keep it

(Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Toshiba Satellite L355D Laptop

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:55:00 +0000

The Toshiba Satellite L350 series notebook is a new addition to the 17" desktop replacement lineup from Toshiba. For a starting price of $749, Toshiba gives customers a TruBrite screen, webcam, integrated ATI Radeon graphics, a dual core AMD processor, and a DVD SuperMulti drive. This notebook is aimed at consumers who want a bit more notebook out of a budget price range, and seems to hit the mark perfectly. Read on to see how well the Toshiba L350 holds up in our testing, and if it is a notebook worth checking out.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite L355D-S7809 - Turion 64 X2 TL-60 2 GHz - 17.1" TFT

Buydig.com | $739.00
Beach Camera | $739.00
Amazon.com | $799.99

view detailed pricing from 3 stores starting at $739.00

This review will cover the AMD version of this notebook, which is the base configuration at the price of $749.

Satellite L355D-S7810 specifications:

Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, 32-bit version)
AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology TL-60 (2.0 GHz, 1MB L2 Cache, HyperTransport Technology @ up to 800MHz)
2GB PC5300 DDR2 SDRAM memory (Maximum capacity 4GB)
200GB (4200 RPM) Serial ATA hard disk drive
DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) with Labelflash drive supporting 11 formats
17.1" diagonal widescreen TruBrite TFT LCD display with 1440x900 native resolution (WXGA+)
ATI Radeon X1250 128MB-831MB dynamically allocated shared graphics memory
Built-in stereo speakers
Atheros 802.11 b/g wireless-LAN
3 USB Sleep-and-Charge ports, 5 in 1 SD-Card Reader, 10/100 LAN, 56k Modem
Built-in Webcam and microphone
4000mAh 10.8v battery and 75w AC Adapter
Weight: 7lbs 0.6oz
Dimensions: 15.6 x 11.4 x 1.8"
One-year standard Limited Warranty

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Build and Design

The Toshiba L355D has a design that we are very familiar with, that has changed very little from the older P200 series notebook. The notebook body slimmed down across the board, but without comparing pictures between each model it would be hard to tell the difference. The peak height at the feet remained very similar, but the notebook profile is thinner in the front and back. The biggest change is the hinge design, which went from a "hidden" design to a double hinge setup. The rest of the notebook looks fairly untouched, with the same multimedia controls, stepped sloping palmrest, and near identical look when closed. The final visual change that many will notice is the lack of glossy finish on the display cover, which was replaced with a silver metallic matte finish. Users who complained of easy scratching and smudged fingerprints can now rejoice.

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Build quality has remained the same, with a solid feel and only a slight amount of flex in the palm rest and screen cover. The body as a whole feels quite durable, with few squeaks or rattles when picked up and carried around. The keyboard has very good support, with little flex apparent when you press firmly on the keys. The display cover keeps away most ripples from the LCD, but with a firm jab to the back of the cover some circular distortions do show up. The newer matte paint finish seems to hold up much better, with the biggest difference being no fine scratches after a trip in my backpack.

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Display Laptop

The display on the Toshiba L350 series notebooks is of average quality, with even backlight and minimal light bleed. Colors are vibrant when viewing head on, but wash out or invert at steep angles. Horizontal viewing angles go about 45 degrees before the colors start dim or wash out. Vertical viewing angles are not so lucky, inverting quickly after about 20 degrees of movement.

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My comfortable viewing range on this screen was at 60% brightness in a bright room, and a few notches lower in a dark room.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard is excellent, with tight keys that require little pressure to trigger. Key wobble is minimal, making it easy to type very fast with few errors as you are not hitting the sides of other keys. Key throw is perfect, not too long and not too short.

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Being a 17" notebook, key spacing and size is not a problem in the slightest. The keyboard found on the L350 is fullsize, including the number pad on the side. A few users will also enjoy the correct placement of the Ctrl key on the far left of the keyboard, instead of the Function key which sometimes gets placed there.

Toshiba was also nice enough to include several dedicated media buttons located just above the keyboard. None of the media buttons have an annoying LED backlight and all of them are easy to use.

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The touchpad is surface is excellent, with just the right amount of space for easy movement, as well as near perfect finger sensitivity. The texture is a soft matte finish, that is very easy to glide your finger across. The touchpad buttons are of decent size, but I would have preferred better feedback when clicking the buttons. As it is, the buttons have a shallow click when pressed.

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Performance and Benchmarks laptop

For day to day use, the notebook performs quite well with great startup and shutdown speed. Opening software such as Internet Explorer, Adobe Reader, or iTunes loads in no time. Much of this can be attributed to the Dual Core AMD Turion X2 TL-60 processor and 2GB of RAM, which this notebook offers as standard equipment. Compared to older generations where you might have been stuck with 512MB or even 1GB of RAM, this gives you a pretty substantial bump in performance. If you're willing to spend an extra $50 you can also configure a version of this notebook with an entry-level Intel Core 2 Duo processor.

Notebook performance is great for a budget machine, but don't expect to play any modern games on this machine. Games that are two-three generations old should still be playable, as long as you tone down the eye-candy settings. Since most users looking at this notebook arent expecting gaming performance from this notebook, this should not be a problem.

WPrime 32M comparison results

Notebook	Time
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, Windows Vista)	39.732s
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, Windows Vista)	30.359s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, Windows Vista)	31.108s
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Windows Vista)	42.085s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU T7400@ 2.16GHz, Windows XP)	41.40s
HP dv6000z (AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60 @ 2.00GHz, Windows Vista)	38.913s
Sager 9260 (Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E6700@ 2.66GHz, Windows XP )	33.718s
Dell Precision M70 (Intel Pentium-M 780 @ 2.26GHz, Windows XP)	78.992s

PCMark05 comparison results:

PCMark05 represents the overall system performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	3,305 PCMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	7,749 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,865 PCMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	5,261 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	5,377 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,925 PCMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,377 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks

3DMark06 comparison results:

3DMark06 represents the overall graphics performance of a notebook. Higher numbers indicate better performance.

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Toshiba Satellite L355D (2.0GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60, ATI Radeon X1250)	301 3DMarks
Gateway P-171XL FX (2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X7900, NVIDIA Go 8800M GTS)	8,801 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.50GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	3,775 3DMarks
Toshiba Qosmio G45 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA Go 8600M GT)	2,934 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	2,930 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,329 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks

Hard drive performance was more than adequate, even though it was a 4200rpm drive. The access times and transfer speeds were more in line with a higher performance 5400rpm drive.

HDTune results:

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I am also really disappointed that this 17" notebook did not offer an additional drive bay, to further expand on storage space or increase performance with a RAID setup.

Ports and Features Laptop

Port selection on the L350 felt lacking, with fewer options compared to the older P200. It now has half the USB ports, no S-video out, no Firewire, and lots of blank open plastic that could have been used for additional ports. As previously mentioned, another missing feature of this notebook is the 2nd HD bay, which is fairly uncommon for a 17" notebook.

With some 13.3" notebooks having a much more expansive port selection than this 17" notebook, it makes you think what items might have been cut in order to lower the overall cost of the computer. Three USB ports on a 17" notebook is my biggest complaint though, when many similarly sized notebooks have four or six.

Front: Wireless On/Off switch, SD-Card Reader, Headphone/Mic, Volume switch

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Rear: Modem

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Left: VGA, LAN, two USB, Expresscard/54

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Right: One USB, Optical bay, AC plug, Kensington lock slot

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Speakers

The speakers on the L350 are average, able to reach high volume levels without much distortion, but you have no bass content. High and midrange audio was good, and users will have no worries about using the internal speakers to listen to music or watch a movie. As always, I still prefer using headphones in most situations for privacy and not to annoy others in crowded areas. The headphone jack was great, giving clear audio without any hissing background noise.

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Heat and Noise

Noise performance on the L350 is great, with the fan barely noticeable at low speed, and still whisper quiet under load. Temperature levels are also low overall, but it did have a few odd hot spots. After the notebook has been on for a couple of hours, the touchpad managed to reach 98F, with the rest of the top surface being much cooler.

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Battery Laptop

Battery performance was very good for a 17" notebook with only a 4000mAh battery. With wireless enabled, screen at 70% backlight, and notebook set to the "Balanced" power profile, it managed 2 hours and 47 minutes before it shut off. Here's hoping that an extended battery option comes out for the mobile warriors.

Buying Choices for the Toshiba Satellite L355D-S7809 - Turion 64 X2 TL-60 2 GHz - 17.1" TFT

Buydig.com | $739.00
Beach Camera | $739.00
Amazon.com | $799.99

view detailed pricing from 3 stores starting at $739.00

Conclusion

The Toshiba L350 series notebook offers consumers an excellent budget desktop replacement notebook with a great deal of features for a low starting price of $749. As a mild refresh from the previous P200 series notebook the L350 gives you a slimmer and lighter body, as well as a smudge and scuff resistant matte paint finish.

Pros

Very quiet with great thermal management
Nice keyboard with excellent support
New matte paint finish doesn't scratch as easily as older gloss finish
No fingerprints visible anywhere on the finish when my review was completed

Cons

Only three USB ports and no firewire

(Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Dell Vostro 1310 Laptop

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:52:00 +0000

When Dell launched their new Vostro line of computers last year the Vostros where immediately praised for meeting the needs of small businesses and budget-minded consumers alike. The Vostro 1310 is the newest and smallest addition to the Vostro family of notebooks. This compact business notebook comes with a 13.3" display, dedicated graphics option and a slot-loading optical drive, but does it still offer the right combination of features, options, and price that made the Vostro line so popular? Keep reading and you can find out.

The Dell Vostro 1310 is available with a range of Intel processors (from the 1.86GHz Celeron M M540 up to the T9500 2.6GHz Core 2 Duo). There are two 13.3" screen offerings, a 1280x800 WXGA with matte anti-glare coating and 1280x800 WXGA "TrueLife" glossy display. The notebook can take up to 4GB of RAM and Dell offers 32-bit versions of Microsoft Windows Vista Business or Windows XP Professional. The system is priced starting at $749 with integrated Intel X3100 graphics at the time of this writing, but is also available with nVidia 8400M GS dedicated graphics.

Our pre-production Vostro 1310 is equipped with the following specs:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 (2.1GHz)
Memory: 2GB - 2 DIMM (DDR2-667) (4GB max)
HDD: 160GB 5400RPM HDD
Graphics: 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
Display: 13.3" WXGA Antiglare
Optical drive: Slot-loading 8x DVD +/- RW
OS: Vista Business SP1 (available with XP Professional)
Software: 30-day security subscription anti-virus, No trail-ware
Wireless: Dell 1505 Wireless-N Mini Card (802.11a/g/n)
Battery: 6-cell battery
Other: Webcam and fingerprint reader
Services: Network assistant; 10GB of Datasafe online; Dell Support Center; PC Tune-up
Dimensions (HxWxD): 0.94" (front)/1.59" (back) x 12.48" x 9.57"
Weight: 4.45 lbs (with 4-cell battery), 4.63 lbs (with 6-cell battery)
Base configuration price: $749
Price as tested: $1,357

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Build and Design laptop

Dell received some much needed attention in 2007 with the introduction of the sleek, high performance XPS M1330 and XPS M1530 notebooks. While these more expensive notebooks in the Dell lineup were praised for their looks and low weight, the Dell Insipron and Vostro notebooks were criticized for being bulky and unattractive laptops. Dell listened closely to this criticism when they designed the new Vostro 1310. The Vostro 1310 is in fact roughly 20% smaller and lighter than the Vostro 1400.

Much like last year's Vostro releases, the 1310 doesn't come in multiple colors or display lid patterns. Black is your only option. However, this year Dell decided to get rid of the matte black finish in favor of a glossy black finish with just a hint of metal flake. The black paint with the fine metal flakes is inlaid with the molds so there's no risk of the glossy finish coming off.

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Although I wasn't a huge fan of the glossy black plastic lid with metal flake paint on our pre-production Vostro 1310, it does look and feel nice. Still, the new glossy lid design is a magnet for fingerprints and might not resist light scratches as well as the matte black finish on the previous generation Vostro notebooks.

The following is a short video overview of the all-new Dell Vostro 1310:

Screen laptop

Display options for the Vostro 1310 include a matte finish 13.3" Widescreen XGA (1280 x 800), and a 13.3" Widescreen XGA (1280 x 800) with TrueLife (glossy finish). I'm a little disappointed that Dell isn't offering a higher resolution option at the time of this writing. However, the overwhelming majority of "average" business users and budget notebook shoppers will think the WXGA resolution looks stunning.

The screen on our pre-production unit looks flawless from straight on and the horizontal viewing angles are great. Upper vertical viewing angles are good with just a slightly washed out look, but colors did begin to invert at lower viewing angles when the screen is tilted back.

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Keyboard, Touchpad and Media Controls

The keyboard on the Vostro 1310 is quite nice with minimal flex near the center of the keyboard. The keys have a nice matte texture with proper spacing and each of the keys have excellent travel and cushion. There are dedicated page up and page down keys but the home and end keys require the use of the function key, so this might be a little frustrating for users who do a lot of coding.

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The touchpad surface utilizes the same matte texture with just a hint of metal flake that is used on the palm rest surface. The touchpad is nice and responsive but feels a little smaller than it should be. The touchpad buttons have excellent travel and cushion. Unfortunately, because of the way in which the touchpad buttons are slightly recessed and close to the edge of the chassis, the touchpad buttons are uncomfortable to use. The edge of my thumb kept hitting the edge of the chassis when I pressed the touchpad buttons and I ended up with sore thumbs after just a few minutes.

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Ports and Features

The port selection of the 1310 is reasonably good for a notebook of this size. Here's a quick rundown of what you get:

Front profile view: LED status lights and mono speaker.

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Left side: USB port, FireWire, microphone in, headphone out, multi-card reader, and ExpressCard slot.

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Right side: Slot-loading optical drive, WiFi on/off, three USB ports, and power jack.

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Back profile view: Battery, VGA out, Ethernet and security lock slot.

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With the addition of FireWire, four USB ports, a media card reader, a headphone jack, microphone jack, ExpressCard slot and Ethernet port you're well equipped ports wise.

I was pleasantly surprised to find four USB ports on the 1310. I was a bit let down by the fact the much larger XPS M1530 only includes three USB ports. The fact that the 1310 packs four USB ports into a reasonably thin and light 13.3" notebook is worth praise.

Audio

The speaker quality was sub par for a notebook of this size and price range. The mono speaker on the 1310 produces dreadfully shallow sound with limited range and no bass. You can get the volume reasonably loud without much distortion, but the audio coming out of this single tiny speaker sounds like a cell phone speaker inside a tin can.

This is unfortunate because many 12" and smaller notebooks (such as the HP tx2000z or HP 2133 Mini-Note) have stereo speakers that produce high quality sound with excellent range of highs, middles, and lows. The Vostro 1310 is a budget business notebook, but I'm certain that Dell can do better than this.

The other negative issue is that the location of the mono speaker is on the front edge of the notebook. If you're using the 1310 as a "laptop" this means the speaker is pointed toward your crotch. The last time I checked, humans don't have ears in that area of the body ... which is why audio will tend to sound somewhat muffled when using the 1310 in your lap.

On the brighter side, the headphone out port delivered crystal clear audio to my earbuds during the test period.

Performance and Benchmarks

One thing to notice is that this relatively small 13.3" notebook is available with either integrated graphics or a dedicated graphics card option. While most business professionals only need integrated graphics, the optional Nvidia 8400M GS is great for mobile video editing and Photoshop as well as budget gaming. In fact, the Vostro 1310 actually produced a better 3DMark 06 score than the XPS M1330 that we tested last year. Still, the Vostro 1310 is meant for a more mainstream business buyer looking for good productivity features and a low price, not cutting edge 3D performance.

Our configuration of the Vostro 1310 with the 2.1GHz T8100 Intel Core 2 Duo processor performed quite well during testing and this machine will meet or exceed the performance needs of most users.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
Dell Vostro 1310 (Core 2 Duo T8100 @ 2.1GHz)	37.736s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Samsung Q70 (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2.0GHz)	42.218s
Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi (Core Duo T2500 @ 2.0GHz)	42.947s
Samsung X60plus (Core 2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz)	44.922s
Samsung Q35 (Core 2 Duo T5600 @ 1.83GHz)	46.274s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	1,679 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance (higher scores indicate better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Dell Vostro 1310 (2.1GHz Intel T8100, Nvidia 8400M GS 128MB)	4,813 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune measures the performance of the notebook's hard drive in terms of both transfer rate (read/write speed) and access time (how long it takes to find data stored on the drive):

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Heat and Noise laptop

The Vostro 1310 does an impressive job keeping heat under control. The system fan and heatsinks in the 1310 do a great job managing heat when the system is under load ... as we discovered when we ran multiple benchmarks back to back. What we found most impressive was the fact that the bottom of the notebook (usually the hottest side) ended up being slightly cooler than the surface of the keyboard and palm rests. This is quite nice and makes for a more enjoyable "laptop" experience. Below are images with temperature readings listed in degrees Fahrenheit:

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Fortunately, noise was likewise a non-issue with the fan on the 1310. The fan moved a significant amount of hot air and the noise was exceptionally quiet. The fan was so quiet, even when running at full speed, that the air rushing past the heatsink actually made more noise than the fan itself.

Battery Life

The 6-cell 58WHr Li-Ion battery provides excellent battery life for the 1310. With Vista's power management running in "high performance" mode, screen brightness set to maximum and wireless on, the 6-cell battery delivered 3 hours and 18 minutes of battery life. The 6-cell delivered 3 hours and 52 minutes of life while browsing the web using Wi-Fi with the notebook set to "balanced" mode and the screen brightness turned down to 50 percent.

There is also an available 9-cell 87WHr Li-Ion battery for those users needing extended battery life and a 4-cell 38WHr battery for those who need a laptop to be as light as possible. Unfortunately, Dell was unable to provide us with the 4-cell and 9-cell batteries during our testing period, so we cannot provide any information on battery life with these batteries.

Conclusion

Overall, the Dell Vostro 1310 is an impressive budget notebook with clean looks and solid performance. Whether you need a simple business notebook or a budget portable laptop with modest gaming capabilities, the Vostro 1310 makes an excellent choice.

That said, the chassis isn't as nice as we hoped ... the edges are sharp and could be smoother or more rounded, the case feels more flimsy than the earlier Vostros, the touchpad button placement is bad, and the mono speaker does not provide a good audio experience. Still, none of these issues are "deal breakers."

The other huge advantage to the Vostro line is the support, lack of bloatware, and excellent return policy. Dell will let you purchase a Vostro, use it for 30 days, and if you don't like it you can send it back for a full refund without any restocking or shipping fees. That's just amazing.

In short, the Vostro 1310 is an excellent addition to the Vostro family and gives business professionals and consumers on a budget a low-cost alternative to the Dell XPS M1330. Unfortunately, the price as configured ($1,357) places it neck-and-neck with the XPS M1330. Although the Vostro is a great system at the entry level price of just $749, once the price exceeds $1,000 most consumers (and even many business professionals) would be better off with the XPS M1330.

Pros

Thinner and lighter than the Vostro 1400
Reasonable battery life
Nice screen and easy-to-use media buttons
Good selection of ports
Solid performance
No bloatware
Available with Windows XP
Excellent return policy (NO restocking or shipping fees within 30 days!)

Cons

Glossy LCD lid is a magnet for fingerprints
Chassis plastics feel too thin and hollow
Mono speaker is painfully weak
Uncomfortable touchpad buttons
No S-video or HDMI port
Price as configured is a little expensive compared to the XPS M1330

( Source http://www.notebookreview.com )

HP 2133 Mini laptop

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 09:39:00 +0000

Just when you thought you'd never find the perfect small form factor notebook for less than $1,000, HP comes to the table with the all new 2133 Mini-Note. This ultra mobile subnotebook features an impressive 8.9-inch screen, a remarkably large keyboard, a full-sized notebook hard drive, and plenty of impressive specs. Is this the perfect road warrior machine? Let's take a closer look and find out.

Buying Choices for the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC

HP | $749.00

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Our pre-production HP 2133 Mini-Note features the following specifications:

Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista Business, Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic 32, FreeDOS, or SuSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10
Processor: VIA C7-M ULV Processor (up to 1.6 GHz, 128 KB L2 cache)
Chipset: VIA CN896NB and 8237S SB
Memory: DDR2 SDRAM, 667MHz, one SODIMM memory slot, supports up to 2048MB
Internal Storage: 120GB/160GB 5400 rpm SATA, 120GB/160GB 7200 rpm SATA with HP 3D DriveGuard; or 64GB Solid State Drive; optional 4GB PATA Flash Module with SuSE Linux
Display: 8.9-inch diagonal WXGA (1280 x 768)
Graphics: VIA Chrome 9
Audio: High Definition Audio, stereos speakers, integrated stereo microphones, stereo headphone/line out, stereo microphone in
Wireless support: Broadcom 802.11a/b/g, b/g, optional Bluetooth 2.0, HP Wireless Assistant
Communications Broadcom Ethernet Integrated Controller (10/100/1000)
Expansion slots: (1) ExpressCard/54 slot, Secure Digital (SD) slot
Ports and connectors: (2) USB 2.0 ports, VGA, power connector, RJ-45/Ethernet, stereo headphone/line out, stereo microphone in, optional VGA webcam
Input device: 92% full-sized keyboard, touchpad with scroll zone
Software: HP Backup and Recovery Manager, Roxio Creator 9, Microsoft Office Ready 20078
Security Kensington lock, Symantec Norton Internet Security
Dimensions (H x W x D): 1.05 (at front) x 10.04 x 6.5 inches
Weight: 2.63 lb (with 3-cell battery and 4 GB Solid State Drive, 3.23 lb with 6-cell battery and 160GB hard drive, 2.86 lb with 3-cell battery and 160GB hard drive.
Power: 6-cell (55 WHr) or 3-cell (28 WHr) Lithium-Ion battery, 65W HP Smart AC Adapter with HP Fast Charge
Warranty: Limited 1-year and 90-day warranty options available, depending on country, 1-year limited warranty on primary battery

Pricing for the HP 2133 Mini-Note range from as little as $499 for the 1.0GHz VIA processor, 512MB of RAM and a 4GB PATA Flash module with Linux, to $749 for the 1.6GHz VIA processor, 2GB of RAM and a 120GB 5400 rpm hard drive running Windows Vista Business.

HP will also be offering a version of the Mini-Note with a 160GB 7200 rpm hard drive (which is the configuration we received for review) but that pricing was unavailable at the time of this writing. Still, it's safe to assume the price for this configuration will be more than $750.

Build and Design

The HP 2133 Mini-Note has a great design. Everyone in our office agreed that it has a solid chassis and attractive look. The brushed aluminum and plastic casing is durable and hides fingerprints well. It also keeps the Mini-Note lightweight, only weighing in around 2.86 lbs as configured. It has that sleek business appeal, but is targeted toward students as well. One look at the Mini-Note and I can see why. I mean who wouldn't want an inexpensive subnotebook to tote back and forth to class, especially one that pretty much has a full-size keyboard.

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HP didn't go wrong with the design. The 8.9" WXGA display is beautiful and easy to read. It puts off a glare though because of the protective coating. Nothing about the Mini-Note feels cheap. I didn't notice any signs of flex and enjoyed its good variety of ports and features. The Mini-Note also comes with different hard drive options, so hopefully this might help in the performance section considering the Mini-Note sports a VIA C7-M ULV processor.

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As I mentioned above, the keyboard is almost full size. It is 92% of a full sized keyboard, which is quite impressive for such a small form factor. It is much more comfortable to type on compared to the Asus Eee PC. The touchpad can be awkward though, especially the placement of the right and left click buttons. As you can see from the pictures below it does have a neat power and Wi-Fi switch that lights up and changes from blue when on to orange when off.

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While some consumers might be upset at the absence of a DVD drive in the Mini-Note, that's just one trade-off you have to make for such a compact design. In truth, there simply isn't any room left inside the Mini-Note after everything is said and done. The photo below shows that the only empty spaces inside the chassis are where the hard drive and ExpressCard slot are located.

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If you're interested in a quick overview of the HP 2133 Mini-Note we've provided this short video below:

Screen

Compared to the screens on other subnotebooks priced below $1,000, the screen on the HP 2133 Mini-Note is beyond beautiful. Most notebooks that we review (regardless of size or price) would be lucky to have a screen like this. Contrast is excellent, backlighting is even across the surface without any bleeding around the edges, colors are saturated and crisp, and viewing angles are relatively nice.

The 1280 x 768 resolution is likewise exceptional given the small size of this notebook. Text is a little smaller than what most consumers would prefer, but this is a minor inconvenience considering the fact that you can display a complete webpage on the LCD exactly as it was meant to be displayed.

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The only issue that caused concern with the screen on the Mini-Note was the use of an additional protective layer of glossy plastic over the screen. While this extra layer of plastic helps protect the display, the unfortunate side effect is significant reflection. We're not talking about a typical glossy screen. We're talking about a screen with a completely separate glossy layer applied over it.

When viewing the display your eyes naturally shift focus between what is being displayed on the screen and what is being reflected in the glossy surface of the second layer over the screen. Since these images are on a slightly different focal plane you can easily develop eye strain and headaches from looking at this screen. I actually developed a mild headache after less than two hours of using this notebook.

Below are a few sample images to illustrate the screen reflections on the Mini-Note:

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The reflections on the screen aren't noticeable at all in a dark room, but most people don't use their notebooks in the dark unless they're just watching movies. If you aren't sensitive to reflections then the screen is beautiful when viewed from straight ahead.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the 2133 Mini-Note is great. To put it plainly, this is the best keyboard we've seen on a notebook this small. The keys have a silver finish and are smooth to the touch. There isn't a textured feel to the keyboard. The best thing though is how big it is. I mean, it almost is a full-sized keyboard, so writing papers on this thing is a breeze. No spelling errors due to hitting the wrong keys. I didn't notice any signs of flex and really liked that most of the keys were full sized except a few. The tilde key and the number one key are smaller than the rest of the numbers, which was quite odd. The space bar was relatively small too.

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The touchpad was awkward. Response time was a little slow sometimes, but it is easy to navigate with. The right and left click buttons are what get you. The buttons are located on the sides of the touchpad, which take some time to get used too. I forgot what I am clicking on sometimes. I would have liked the palm rest area to be a little bigger, so the buttons could have been relocated below the touchpad like on standard notebooks or the Eee PC. The button above the touchpad is a convenient feature that turns the touchpad off and makes it inactive when you are typing.

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Input and Output Ports

Of course, one minor compromise you have to make with the ultra-mobile form factor of the Mini-Note is that the laptop cannot accommodate the standard array of ports you'll find on other notebooks. HP did manage to include a reasonable number of ports. The complete list of ports includes:

1x ExpressCard/54 slot
Secure Digital (SD) card reader
2x USB 2.0 ports
VGA out
Power connector
RJ-45/Ethernet
Stereo headphone/line out
Stereo microphone/line in

Here is a quick tour around the HP 2133 Mini-Note:

Front view: Power switch, drive status light, Wi-Fi on/off switch. (view large image)

Rear view: No ports here, just the hinges and battery. (view large image)

Left side view: VGA out, heat vent, USB 2.0 port, microphone in, headphone out. (view large image)

Right side view: ExpressCard/54 slot, SD card reader, USB 2.0 port, Ethernet, power connector, and security lock slot. (view large image)

Performance and Benchmarks

After the impressive build and design of the HP 2133 Mini-Note we expected to see a likewise impressive level of performance coming out of this tiny titan. Unfortunately, performance is one area where the Mini-Note falls short.

On paper the 1.6GHz VIA C7-M processor should provide excellent speed for general computing tasks. In reality, web pages rendered slower than expected, multi-tasking was painfully slow, and most processor-hungry applications like Photoshop or video encoding software just didn't like the VIA processor.

Our standard range of synthetic benchmark tests likewise didn't play very nice with the VIA processor and VIA Chrome 9 integrated graphics. While synthetic benchmarks don't always give you an accurate measure of a system's real-world performance, these benchmarks do give you a good idea of how the HP Mini-Note performs compared to other laptops currently on the market.

While the benchmark numbers certainly aren't "bad" it's hard to get excited about these numbers when you factor in that this configuration of the HP Mini-Note costs more than $750. With that said, let's jump into the benchmarks.

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
HP 2133 Mini-Note (1.6GHz VIA C7-M ULV)	801 PCMarks
HTC Shift (800MHz Intel A110)	891 PCMarks
Asus Eee PC 4G (630MHz Intel Celeron M ULV)	908 PCMarks
Asus Eee PC 4G (900MHz Intel Celeron M ULV)	1,132 PCMarks
Everex CloudBook (1.2GHz VIA C7-M ULV)	612 PCMarks
Sony VAIO TZ (1.20GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U7600)	2,446 PCMarks
Fujitsu LifeBook P7230 (1.2GHz Intel Core Solo U1400)	1,152 PCMarks
Sony VAIO VGN-G11XN/B (1.33GHz Core Solo U1500)	1,554 PCMarks
Toshiba Portege R500 (1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U7600)	1,839 PCMarks

wPrime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
HP 2133 Mini-Note (Via CV7-M ULV @ 1.6GHz)	168.697 seconds
Asus Eee PC 4G (Intel Celeron M ULV @ 630MHz)	289.156 seconds
Asus Eee PC 4G (Intel Celeron M ULV @ 900MHz)	200.968 seconds
Everex CloudBook (VIA C7-M ULV @ 1.2GHz)	248.705 seconds
Fujitsu U810 Tablet PC (Intel A110 @ 800MHz)	209.980 seconds
Sony VAIO VGN-G11XN/B (Core Solo U1500 @ 1.33GHz)	124.581 seconds
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.2GHz)	76.240 seconds
Dell Inspiron 2650 (Pentium 4 Mobile @ 1.6GHz)	231.714 seconds

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance (higher scores are better):

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
HP 2133 Mini-Note (1.6GHz VIA C7-M ULV, VIA Chrome 9)	93 3DMarks
Averatec 2575 (2.2 GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-64, ATI RS690T)	377 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

HDTune hard drive performance results:

(view large image)

Another factor to keep in mind when judging the overall system performance is the operating system being used. Our pre-production review unit was using Windows Vista Business and, like most notebooks using Windows Vista, performance likely suffers as a result. Here is a short video comparing the startup time of the HP Mini-Note with Vista against the Asus Eee PC with XP:

While you may argue our justification for comparing a notebook with Vista against a notebook with XP, this is a valid comparison because it demonstrates what consumers will experience "out of the box" with two notebooks targeted at similar customers.

Audio

The built-in speaker performance on the Mini-Note was quite superior compared to other notebooks in this class. The audio is excellent for watching short video clips or web conferencing, but it's also loud enough to enjoy music or full-length movies with distortion-free sound using the built-in speakers.

(view large image)

Of course, for the best possible audio performance you'll want to use external speakers or headphones. The audio output via the headphone jack is quite good and provides excellent, distortion-free sound for headphones or external speakers.

Heat and Noise

The ultra low voltage VIA processor in the HP 2133 Mini-Note generated far more heat than we typically expect from ultra low voltage processors. Temperature readings taken from the outside of the aluminum and plastic chassis spiked above 110 degrees Fahrenheit in multiple locations and the Mini-Note actually became uncomfortable to hold after 30-45 minutes of serious use.

The cooling fan ran at full speed most of the time and clearly struggled to keep temperatures under control. Most of the time the fan is only loud enough to hear in a perfectly quiet environment, but if you work in a relatively quiet office or classroom setting you should be prepared for coworkers and students to complain about the noise coming from the cooling fan.

Below are images indicating the temperature readings from the HP 2133 Mini-Note (listed in degrees Fahrenheit) taken inside our office where the ambient temperature was 75 degrees Fahrenheit:

(view large image)

Battery

Overall, the HP 2133 Mini-Note did a reasonable job in terms of power management. With the Mini-Note connected to a Wi-Fi network and browsing the web on the "balanced" power setting with the display at about 50 percent brightness, we obtained 2 hours and 15 minutes of battery life with the standard 3-cell battery. Using the same settings we obtained 4 hours and 11 minutes of battery life with the 6-cell extended life battery.

Bottom line, the Mini-Note makes an excellent mobile companion with the extended life battery. The only possible negative to using the extended life battery is that the larger 6-cell battery sticks out from the bottom of the notebook adding both size and weight. However, this also provides an advantage since it provides a more ergonomic angle to the keyboard for typing.

(view large image)

Buying Choices for the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC

HP | $749.00

Conclusion

The HP 2133 Mini-Note is one of the most impressive subnotebooks we've ever seen. Unfortunately, the amazing design and solid range of features are diminished by a sub-par processor and a price tag that places this notebook dangerously close to far superior 12-inch notebooks such as the HP tx2000.

HP managed to create the single most impressive ultraportable notebook on the market ... and then decided to put a lackluster processor inside.

Despite the poor processor performance, the HP 2133 Mini-Note is a remarkably solid machine that could be a perfect fit for students, teachers, or mobile business professionals. If HP decides to replace the VIA processors with the new Intel Atom processors or alternative processors from Intel, the Mini-Note would become the undisputed champion of the subnotebook market.

Pros

The most attractive 8.9-inch notebook we've ever seen
Excellent build quality
Great keyboard
ExpressCard slot offers fantastic expansion possibilities
Multiple configuration options

Cons

VIA processor just doesn't perform well
Windows Vista might be too much for the VIA processor and graphics
Strange location for touchpad buttons
Screen is too reflective due to second glossy protective layer
Aluminum and plastic casing gets a little too hot
Price is a little too much for what you get

(source http://www.notebookreview.com )

Sony VAIO FZ

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:12:00 +0000

Screen Size: 15.4 inches
Weight: 6 lbs
Processor Options: Core 2 Duo
Graphics Options: Integrated
The Sony VAIO FZ is a 15.4" screen notebook with Core 2 Duo processor and the latest Intel Santa Rosa chipset.

The Sony VAIO FZ is the latest family of sleek, solid performance notebooks from Sony. With available Blu-ray disc drive, available HDMI video output, a reasonably tough build, clean looks, and enough processing muscle to handle a variety of needs, the VAIO FZ promises to be your mobile entertainment solution.

Buy a Sony VAIO FZ
Available from:
Amazon.com	for only $1,958.92
Sony Electronics, Inc.	for only $1,299.99
SoftByWeb	for only $1,431.00
compare all available prices >>

The VAIO FZ is available with a full range of Core 2 Duo processors (from the Intel T7100 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo up to the T7700 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo). The only screen offering is the 15.4" WXGA but the notebook can take up to 4GB of RAM. Built-in wireless 802.11 a/b/g/n is standard.

Our review version of the FZ, priced starting at $1,199.99 with Intel graphics, has the following specifications:

Screen: 15.4-inch screen WXGA (1280 x 800) with XBRITE-ECO (glossy finish)
Processor: 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300
Hard Drive: 200 GB hard drive (SATA, 4200RPM)
Memory: 2GB RAM (PC5300, 667 MHz, DDR2 SDRAM) -- 4GB max memory
Optical Drive: DVD+-R Double layer / DVD+-RW Drive (Blu-ray drive optional)
Ports and Slots: Three USB 2.0, one FireWire 400 port, one ExpressCard 34, one S-Video, one VGA, one MemoryStick Pro reader, one SD card reader, headphone / line-out, microphone-in, modem, 10/100 Ethernet
Wireless: Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n)
Graphics: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 (NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GT available)
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
Dimensions: 14.0" x 10.2" x 1.4" (Width x Depth x Height)
Weight: 5.75 pounds

(view large image)

Build and Design

The overall first impression that one has when looking at the FZ series is that this notebook was designed to look clean and simple. From the matte black and silver plastics to the flat keyboard keys the FZ is a design that lacks the flashiness of the glossy, multi-colored notebooks that have become so popular in recent years. While some consumers will find the design a little boring, I consider the Spartan design elements to be quite attractive ... and less obnoxious than some of the "look at me, I'm so cool" glossy designs.

The lid of the VAIO FZ also has a nice matte finish with the VAIO lettering in a polished silver material. After opening the lid and seeing the black plastic interior and rounded brushed aluminum surface of the FZ you'll notice how this thin notebook has a remarkably solid build. The entire case is sturdy with relatively thick plastic and magnesium alloy reinforcement in just the right places. There are no creaks or signs of case flex anywhere to be found.

(view large image)

The VAIO FZ lid does not have a latch to hold it closed, but the hinge mechanism works well and firmly holds the lid in place. There is almost no flex to the screen lid unless you apply significant (as in way more pressure than you should) force.

Sony officially classifies the VAIO FZ as a “thin-and-light” notebook. While the 1.4" thickness is certainly thin, the weight of 5.75 pounds isn't particularly “light” by today’s standards. Still, given the fact we're talking about a notebook with a 15.4" screen, the weight is hardly an issue.

Performance and Benchmarks

The Core 2 Duo processors that come with the VAIO FZ-series provide more than enough performance, even at the 1.8GHz low-end of the T7100. The 2.0GHz T7300 processor in our review unit packs an impressive punch … despite the fact that our FZ isn't equipped with a dedicated graphics option. The 3DMark05 benchmarks are low at first glance, but this is due to the fact that our FZ uses the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 (Intel 965 chipset) which shares the notebook’s system memory. The available NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GT dedicated graphics would have performed significantly better.

Super Pi comparison results:

Notebook	Time
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300)	0m 59s
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300)	0m 58s
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300)	1m 01s
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300)	0m 59s
HP dv2500t (1.80GHz Intel 7100)	1m 09s
Lenovo ThinkPad T61 (2.00GHz Core 2 Duo Intel T7300)	0m 59s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (2.00GHz Core 2 Duo T7200)	1m 03s
Toshiba Satellite P205-S6287 (1.73 GHz Core 2 Duo Intel T5300)	1m 24s
Toshiba Satellite A205 (1.66GHz Core 2 Duo)	1m 34s
HP Compaq 6515b (1.6GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-52)	2m 05s
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T2400)	0m 59s
Dell Inspiron e1705 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo)	1m 02s

PCMark05 comparison results:

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,377 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

3DMark05 comparison results:

Notebook	3D Mark 05 Results
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	910 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	3,116 3DMarks
HP Compaq 6510b (2.20GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, Intel X3100)	916 3DMarks
HP Compaq 6515b (1.6GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-52, ATI x1270)	871 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	2,013 3D Marks
Dell Inspiron e1705 (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	1,791 3D Marks
Acer TravelMate 8204WLMi (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 256MB)	4,236 3DMarks
Alienware Aurora M-7700(AMD Dual Core FX-60, ATI X1600 256MB)	7,078 3D Marks
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400 128MB)	2,092 3D Marks
Asus V6Va (2.13 GHz Pentium M, ATI x700 128 MB)	2,530 3D Marks
Fujitsu n6410 (1.66 GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400 128MB)	2,273 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1210 (2.16 GHz Core Duo, nVidia Go 7400 256MB)	2,090 3D Marks

3DMark06 comparison results:

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66 Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks
Samsung R20 (1.73GHz T2250 and ATI 1250M chipset / GPU)	476 3DMarks

Screen

The 15.4" glossy screen is a WXGA 1280 x 800 beauty with rich color and excellent contrast. The display features fairly bright and even backlighting with eight levels of brightness. Horizontal viewing angles are excellent, but the vertical viewing angles weren't as good. If the screen is tilted just slightly forward or back parts of the screen “wash out” or colors begin to invert ... making it all but impossible to see low contrast details.

Keyboard, Touchpad and Other Input Buttons

The keyboard on the VAIO FZ is quite nice if you don't mind flat keys. The keyboard itself has almost no flex, keys have minimal travel with excellent cushion and response, and there are dedicated keys for home, end, page up, and page down.

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The touchpad is nice and large with a very usable and responsive surface. The mouse buttons are likewise nicely sized. The touchpad buttons have slightly shallow feedback and produce very noisy clicks.

The VAIO FZ also features dedicated media buttons above the keyboard and beneath the speakers. The media buttons make watching DVDs or listening to music files as easy as using a DVD or CD player. Next to the media buttons is a dedicated “AV Mode” quicklaunch button that lets you activate the media player functions without booting Windows. At least, that's what the AV Mode button does in theory. We received two FZ units from Sony and neither one had a functioning AV Mode button. The first review unit simply booted up Windows Vista when we pressed the AV Mode button. When we press the AV Mode button on our second review unit we get a black screen with an ugly DOS-style message (pictured below). At first we thought it might be an issue with our review units, but several new FZ owners reported in our forum that their AV Mode buttons don't work either.

The power and media buttons ... including the AV Mode button that does nothing. (view large image)

The DOS-like error message that pops up when you press the AV Mode button. (view large image)

Input and Output Ports

Let's take a quick tour around the port offerings of the VAIO FZ:

Front side: Nothing here except the wireless on/off switch and the two media card readers. (view large image)

Back side: Nothing except the battery, the Ethernet port, and the modem port. (view large image)

Bottom view: Here you'll find access to the memory slots, some well-placed vents, the battery release switch, and the battery lock switch. (view large image)

Left side: Kensington lock slot, heat vent, a blank slot (obviously designed for HDMI), S-Video, VGA out, a USB port, FireWire 400, and an ExpressCard34 slot. (view large image)

Right side: Headphone and microphone ports, two USB ports, optical drive, and DC jack. (view large image)

Although the port selection is pretty good, a 15.4" notebook really should have at least four USB ports rather than just three. In addition, I still don't understand why Sony includes a separate reader for the MemoryStick Pro card and another reader for the SD card. Every other manufacturer uses a single 5-in-1 memory card slot that reads SD/xD/MMC/MemoryStick type cards. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that Sony wants to draw attention to their proprietary memory card format.

Audio

The VAIO FZ has stereo sound via speakers located above the keyboard. With the speakers located on the top of the interior in this way they tend to direct the sound at you and make for a reasonably enjoyable listening experience. While the built-in speakers aren’t the best that I’ve heard in a notebook of this size, the sound they produce has good clarity and loudness despite the almost complete lack of bass. The headphone jack is located on the right side (a less than ideal location for people who like to plug in external speakers while using the optical drive and/or an external mouse).

Heat and Noise

The VAIO FZ runs extremely quiet with the 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo processor. Still, even though the fan is silent it kept heat under control. The bottom center area gets a bit warm, but temperatures remained comfortable enough to keep the FZ on the lap. Temperatures are likely kept within acceptable limits thanks to a rather large copper heatsink visible through the vent on the left side of the FZ.

As mentioned, the system fan is quiet when running. You have to put your ear down at desk level to hear it over any other ambient noise in the room. Despite the lack of noise the fan pushes out a significant amount of heat … enough to make your hand uncomfortable if you put your left hand next to the vent during benchmarking.

Battery

Battery life on the FZ was far from impressive. Even with the screen brightness set to less than half, wireless on, and Vista power settings set to maximize battery life, the FZ powered down in less than 3 hours (2 hours and 52 minutes). While I'm sure it's possible to get more battery life by turning the screen brightness all the way down and turning off the wireless, this isn't particularly useful for a modern notebook. Of course, Sony offers a high-capacity, long-life battery for the FZ if you're interested in longer battery life.

Software

Sony includes some useful and not so useful bloatware with the VAIO FZ. Here's a short list of some of the highlights:

AOL
AOL Pictures
AOL Video
AIM 6.0
Click to DVD - Sony DVD creation software
Sony SonicStage Media Player
30-Day Trial Version of Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo XI
Microsoft Works 8.5
60-Day Trial Version of Microsoft Office 2003
Norton Internet Security 60-Day Trial
Napster
VAIO Security Center
VAIO Productivity Center
VAIO Entertainment Center

While none of these applications are horrible and some are even helpful, many of these applications are hogging system resources when you startup the FZ for the first time and experienced users will likely want to uninstall most of this bloatware.

Buy a Sony VAIO FZ
Available from:
Amazon.com	for only $1,958.92
Sony Electronics, Inc.	for only $1,299.99
SoftByWeb	for only $1,431.00
compare all available prices >>

Conclusion

The Sony VAIO FZ is a nice looking notebook with a solid set of features that are sure to appeal to people looking for a full-featured notebook with clean lines. While the entry-level version of the FZ with integrated Intel graphics lacks the power for serious gaming, even the Intel chipset provides enough performance for a mobile multimedia center. The optional NVIDIA graphics, blu-ray and HDMI make the FZ a perfect HD powerhouse. If Sony could only find a way to fix the annoying AV Mode button error, remove some of the bloatware, and improve battery life the FZ would be nearly perfect.

Pros

Simple design with clean looks
Fast Core 2 Duo processors and up to 4GB of RAM provide plenty of system performance
Screen has excellent horizontal viewing angles
Solid build quality and sturdiness
Stays cool and makes little noise
Good keyboard if you don't mind flat keys

Cons

Useless AV button
Too much bloatware installed
Poor battery life
Only three USB ports.

(Source http://www.notebookreview.com)

HP Pavilion dv2800t laptop

noreply@blogger.com (anhduc) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 02:11:00 +0000

he HP Pavilion dv2800t Artist Edition series notebook is a notebook "designed by young people and chosen by young people" for its unique style. This notebook has all the creature comforts as the standard dv2700t, with the only addition being a custom paint job. For notebook enthusiasts who want to stick out from the crowd, this is a sure bet to get noticed at school or your local StarBucks.

Buying Choices for the HP Pavilion dv2800t Artist Edition customizable Notebook PC

HP Home & Home Office Store | $999.99

Our pre-production review model had the following configuration, which has a different processor than what is available for purchase:

Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit)
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7500 (2.2GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 667MHz FSB)
14.1" WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
NVIDIA 128MB 8400M GS Video Card
HP Imprint (Artist Edition) Finish + Webcam + Microphone
Integrated Altec Lansing stereo speakers
Intel PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth
250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Dimensions (with 6-cell battery): 13.15" (L) x 9.33" (W) x 1.02" (min H)/1.54" (max H)
Weight: 5lb 7.4oz
65W AC adapter

(view large image)

Build and Design

The design of the Artist Edition dv2800t is very unique, and unlike anything I have seen before. It starts with custom graphics embedded into the imprint finish, then has matching plastic trim around the notebook that blends in with the design, and even goes as far as a custom painted keyboard and touchpad that also match the design. The paint and colored plastic has the same feel as the durable imprint finish found on other HP notebooks, so you know it will stand up against day to day abuse. All of this gives you a notebook that has the feel of a mass produced notebook with a very custom design that few notebooks could stack up against.

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Build quality is excellent, having a durable feeling chassis that has no creaks or squeaks found in its plastic. Flex is kept at a minimum, with the only noticeable amount found in the palmrest if you press very firmly with your fingertips. The screen cover and hinges feel rugged enough to handle day to day abuse, and with the durable imprint finish the surface barely shows any scratches or scuff marks found on other glossy notebooks.

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Display

The 14.1" WXGA glossy screen isn't the best screen I have seen, but it does perform well enough for a notebook of this size and price. Colors and brightness were very good for mild gaming or movie watching. Viewing angles were limited, meaning you will probably want to angle the screen in a certain way for best color, or you will be staring at a screen that looks washed out or having inverted color. Horizontal viewing angles were very good for side to side viewing, but vertical viewing angles were average at best, with only a 10-15 degree sweet spot before color degradation.

(view large image)	(view large image)
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Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the dv2800t is very comfortable to type on, with minimal flex and very responsive keys. Key spacing and key size is excellent for a 14" notebook, leaving little to be desired when typing for extended periods of time. Going along with the custom design, the keys on the Artist Edition dv2800t are painted dark brown to match the custom design of the rest of the notebook. This leaves a semi-gloss finish on the keys, which feels somewhat different from the run of the mill plastic keyboard. The best way to describe it would be like typing on a keyboard with a slightly worn surface.

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The touchpad is gold on this custom painted model, having the same imprint finish found on the rest of the notebook. The surface is a very smooth and glossy, letting your finger glide across it with ease. One thing that always amazes me with the glossy HP touchpad surface is my fingers never bind or stick to the surface, almost like it was waxed.

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The touchpad buttons provide good feedback, as well as give you a nice throw that you don't find in many touchpad buttons. Instead of giving you a shallow "click" they move down 3-4mm with a nice solid "thunk."

The dv2800t also includes the touch-sensitive media buttons common to HP Pavilion notebooks located above the keyboard.

(view large image)

Gaming and Performance

You probably won't be playing Crysis on the HP Artist Edition dv2800t, but you could play some less tasking games like Halflife 2 or Portal with tweaked settings. One of the games I try to play on notebooks these days is Portal, since it takes about an hour to beat, heats up a notebook quite well, and has enough fast action that you get to stress the keyboard and mouse trying to keep up with various sequences. This notebook with the NVIDIA 8400M GS handled the game very well set at the screens native WXGA resolution, and most detail settings at low. This gave me acceptable framerates in the 25-35 range, which any way you cut it is better than being stuck with solitaire.

System benchmarks performed quite well.

Notebook / CPU	wPrime 32M time
HP Pavilion dv2800t (Core 2 Duo T7500 @2.2GHz)	37.980s
HP Pavilion dv6700t (Core 2 Duo T5450 @ 1.66GHz)	50.480s
Dell Inspiron 1525 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	43.569s
Dell XPS M1530 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.485s
Portable One SXS37 (Core 2 Duo T7250 @ 2.0GHz)	41.908s
Sony VAIO NR (Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.5GHz)	58.233s
Toshiba Tecra A9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	38.343s
Toshiba Tecra M9 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.299s
HP Compaq 6910p (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	40.965s
Sony VAIO TZ (Core 2 Duo U7600 @ 1.20GHz)	76.240s
Zepto 6024W (Core 2 Duo T7300 @ 2GHz)	42.385s
Lenovo T61 (Core 2 Duo T7500 @ 2.2GHz)	37.705s
Alienware M5750 (Core 2 Duo T7600 @ 2.33GHz)	38.327s
Hewlett Packard DV6000z (Turion X2 TL-60 @ 2.0GHz)	38.720s

3DMark06 comparison results for graphics performance:

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
HP Pavilion dv2800t (2.2GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8400M GS)	1,663 3DMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS)	1,556 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	545 3DMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	504 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	4,332 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	2,905 3DMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,408 3DMarks
Samsung Q70 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 and nVidia 8400M G GPU)	1,069 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1526 (1.66GHz Core Duo, nVidia 7600Go 256 MB)	2,144 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
Asus A6J (1.83GHz Core Duo, ATI X1600 128MB)	1,819 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks

PCMark05 measures overall notebook performance:

Notebook	PCMark05 Score
HP Pavilion dv2800t (2.2GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8400M GS)	3,916 PCMarks
HP Pavilion dv6700t (1.66GHz Intel T5450, Nvidia 8400M GS)	3,386 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1525 (2.0GHz Intel T7250, Intel X3100)	4,149 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1530 (2.20GHz Intel T7500, Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB)	5,412 PCMarks
Dell Inspiron 1520 (2.0GHz Intel T7300, NVIDIA 8600M GT)	4,616 PCMarks
Dell XPS M1330 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS)	4,591 PCMarks
Sony VAIO NR (1.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250, Intel X3100)	3,283 PCMarks
Lenovo ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	4,153 PCMarks
Lenovo 3000 V200 (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	3,987 PCMarks
Lenovo T60 Widescreen (2.0GHz Intel T7200, ATI X1400 128MB)	4,189 PCMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	4,234 PCMarks
Fujitsu N6410 (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI X1400)	3,487 PCMarks
Alienware M7700 (AMD Athlon FX-60, Nvidia Go 7800GTX)	5,597 PCMarks
Sony VAIO SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	3,637 PCMarks
Asus V6J (1.86GHz Core Duo T2400, Nvidia Go 7400)	3,646 PCMarks

HDTune results:

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Audio and Speakers

The Altec Lansing speakers found at the top of the dv2800t are above average for notebook speakers, and a perfect match for watching movies or listening to music when on the road. High and midrange audio is very good, but lowend bass is lacking.

Headphone audio quality is great, and to top it off this notebook offers 2 headphone jacks for users who might find themselves in a situation where they might want to share a movie experience with someone next to them without the hassle of a jack splitter.

Heat and Noise

Thermal performance of the dv2800t is very good, but a bit on the warm side. When gaming or doing other stressful activities, I like to see notebooks that keep most of the heat towards the rear and bottom of the notebook. Under heavy activity this notebook gets pretty warm on the left side of the palmrest, above the location of the hard drive. Overall the system managed its heat output very well, with fan noise that was easy on the ears even at high speed. When the notebook was doing less stressful activities, fan noise was barely noticeable as it was either off or working extremely slow.

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Ports and Features

Port selection on the dv2800t, and almost all HP notebooks is excellent. Multimedia users will love the HDMI or VGA port, for easy hookup to your HDTV, and the S-Video port for older TVs. Users with tons of devices at their home or office will enjoy the external docking connector for easy cable management.

Front: IR Remote Receiver, Microphone, and two Headphone jacks.

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Rear: No ports here, just the hinges and heat vent.

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Left: S-Video, VGA, Docking connector, LAN, HDMI, Firewire, 5-in-1 Memory Card Reader, and Expresscard/54.

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Right: Optical Drive, two USB ports, Modem, and AC Power.

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Buying Choices for the HP Pavilion dv2800t Artist Edition customizable Notebook PC

HP Home & Home Office Store | $999.99

Conclusion

The HP Pavilion dv2800t Artist Edition notebook offers a very unique design paired with excellent system performance. While the design might not be for everyone, you have to admit that the finished product is probably one of the best custom products on the market right now. The fit and finish is identical to the mass produced dv2700t, so you know the paint will not rub off or wear down like other custom products over time. I hope that HP takes this product concept up a notch, offering more designs, or letting users pick their own design for the ultimate personalized notebook.

Pros

Great custom artwork that will last forever without wearing off
Great build quality
Quiet fan, even when gaming

Cons

Left side of palmrest gets warm from hard drive below it
Painted keyboard has a really slippery texture

(Source http://www.notebookreview.com)