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Laptops: Finding the Right Notebook PC (and Keeping It Running) If you're in the market for a new laptop computer, or simply curious to see how you can extend the life of your current notebook PC, look no further.
Hardware Central has laptop reviews, coverage of new and upcoming notebook technology trends and comparisons of the major laptop players' offerings. If you're looking to buy a new laptop, be sure to check out Hardware Central's buyers guide for notebook PCs, which is jam-packed full of the information you need to remember when examining laptop comparisons and making an informed buying decision for your next notebook. The technology changes near-constantly -- witness the rise of form factors like netbooks and tablet PCs, ever more powerful CPUs and advanced new graphics options, along with spacious new hard drives or speedy solid-state storage. Clearly, buyers have more options than ever before. That means there's always a new array of enticements and enhancements that will catch the eyes of most laptop shoppers, but all the flashy new goodies can also mean headaches when it comes to sorting out hype from reality. |
Buyer's Guide: Notebook PCsTheir days of compromised screens, keyboards, and performance -- and of trailing desktop sales -- are long gone, but it can still be daunting to face all the choices that go into buying a new laptop. Here's an overview of options and technologies to help you pick your next portable PC.Laptop Review: Toshiba Portege R700's Top 10Almost as skinny as Apple's MacBook Air and just 3.2 pounds including an optical drive, Toshiba's 13.3-inch trimline packs a lot of value for $999. Here are 10 bullet points about one of the best ultraportables we've ever tested.Buyer's Guide: NetbooksThe biggest thing in notebook computers lately has been the smallest thing: the netbook. Here's how to pick an ultra-affordable ultraportable with the features you need for productivity on the go.Netbook Review: Toshiba Mini NB305People say the iPad has stolen their thunder (and a big chunk of their sales), but netbooks are still a key category. Daniel Dern tests Toshiba's $380 example and finds both good points and an Achilles' heel.Top 10 PC Deals for $500You never know what you'll find when you hit the Web to find the best PC bargains -- everything from a hot pink Dell to a Robotjoy GOH. We check out a dozen vendors' back-to-school savings to pick five desktop and five laptop buys.Laptop Review: Panasonic Toughbook F9Yes, it's expensive, but Panasonic's 14.1-inch Core i5 laptop is hard to resist once you've picked it up -- just 3.6 pounds -- and smacked it around -- surviving drops and spills that would kayo most notebooks. We test, and sit on, the Toughbook.Mini Mobile PCs: Now Comes the Hard PartIt's a myth that lightning never strikes the same place twice, but what are the odds against catching lightning in a bottle twice? The ultralight, ultra-affordable subnotebook PC category that the Asus Eee ignited last winter will soon see a second generation of what are now called netbooks -- but this time around, it might be Eee II: The Laptop Strikes Back.Laptop Review: Samsung R440-11Perhaps best known for netbooks, Samsung aims to make a splash in the mainstream notebook market with a versatile, value-priced 14-inch portable. Housen Maratouk puts the Core i3 slimline system to the test.Laptop Review: Acer Aspire 5742GAcer packs multimedia muscle -- including Nvidia's Optimus smart graphics and Intel's Core i5 processor -- into an affordable 15.6-inch widescreen desktop alternative.Laptop Review: HP EliteBook 2740pA notebook whose screen swivels and folds to become a tablet is nothing new, but HP refines the recipe with both pen and touch input for everything from convenient zoom and pan gestures to first-rate handwriting recognition.Notebook Review: Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TIs it a take-it-anywhere portable or a full-featured desktop replacement? Reviewer Daniel Dern says Acer's 14-inch Core i3 laptop makes a strong claim to be both, while being nicely affordable at $750.Laptop Review: Dell Vostro V130At first glance, this 3.5-pound business notebook has it all -- power, great display and sound, and good looks to boot. But will scanty battery life keep it off your short list?Laptop Review: MSI X350Whittling a 10-inch netbook to 3.1 pounds is no feat. But trimming a 13.3-inch laptop to 3.1 pounds, with a profile almost as razor-thin as Apple's celebrated MacBook Air, gets our attention -- as does a price $600 below Apple's.Notebook Review: Dell Vostro 3700Dell puts its especially-for-small-business Vostro brand on a 6-pound presentation and productivity machine with a panoramic HD display and desktop-topping horsepower.Laptop Review: Sony Vaio PThe ultimate netbook? Sony's Atom-powered PC fits in a coat pocket and weighs just 1.3 pounds, yet offers a usable screen and keyboard as well as extras like mobile broadband. Brace yourself: You're going to want one. Brace yourself: We haven't mentioned the price.Netbook Review: Acer Aspire One AO721Acer shakes up its usual netbook design with a larger screen and keyboard and faster AMD instead of Intel CPU and graphics silicon. The result is a $430 ultraportable that blurs the line between netbook and notebook.Laptop Review: HP ProBook 4720sWe test the flagship of HP's small-business laptop PC line -- a good-looking, powerful desktop replacement with a Core i5 processor, discrete graphics, and a spacious 17.3-inch screen.Laptop Review: Lenovo ThinkPad L412Think the words "Lenovo ThinkPad" and "well under $1,000" don't go together? The laptop PC vendor's new entry to the enterprise is a 14-inch Core i3 notebook that starts at just $599.Netbooks: Better Than AnythingWhen introducing the iPad last week, Apple CEO Steve Jobs made some pointed remarks about netbooks failing to fill the space between smartphones and laptops. HardwareCentral editor Eric begs to differ.Chipmakers Push Laptop PC LimitsWill Apple's iPad pour cold water on conventional notebook sales? Not if notebook component suppliers can help it. From battery-thrifty new CPUs to USB 3.0, Vince Freeman checks out how laptop technology is changing for the battle ahead.Nvidia's Optimus Transforms the Laptop PCIt's not a new idea -- wouldn't it be great if a notebook computer could switch between battery-saving integrated graphics and a high-performance discrete GPU? -- but Nvidia has finally managed to do it right. Vince Freeman tells how.Las Vegas Overrun By LaptopsNever mind the 3D TVs -- what you really couldn't miss at last week's Consumer Electronics Show was the flood of new notebook PCs, most of them flaunting Intel's new Core i3, i5, and i7 processors. Here's the scoop on more than 30 models.Netbook Shoppers Need to Know Their Wi-FiAll netbooks come with Wi-Fi, but 802.11g or 802.11n? is not created equal. We give you the lay of the wireless land on the most popular brands of netbooks.Platform Trends: AMD's Phenom-enal New AthlonYou've got to draw the line somewhere, and AMD has drawn it between dual- and triple-core processors: While its newest dual-core has the same DNA as the chipmaker's Phenom X3 and X4, it carries the older Athlon name instead of the prestigious Phenom moniker. But while it's the new top of the Athlon line, it isn't the fastest. In other words, what gives?Platform Trends: Breeding Like ... NetbooksDo you have your netbook yet? The compact, low-priced laptops have jolted the mobile PC market to the tune of 14 million sales in their first full year; brought Linux to a new audience; and struck sparks for online applications and storage. But should you opt for an 9-inch, 10-inch, or 12-inch screen? How small is too small when it comes to keyboards? And will the sleek but no-frills minis help or hurt the traditional notebook segment?Eee, Atom, Aspire, Wind: It's a Small (Notebook) World at ComputexWhat comes after Eee? Everybody from HP and Acer to Dell and MSI, not to mention class leader Asus, wants to star in the second generation of low-cost, low-weight, just-right-for-traveling-light laptops. This week's Computex show is packed with the ultraportable notebooks known as netbooks, with Intel's new Atom CPU in a prominent supporting role -- and Nvidia and VIA waiting in the wings. |
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