Handy Computer Guide

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Reg Hardware have published a review of the Toshiba NB250 netbook. 'It's one of the few netbooks to make use of Intel's Atom N455. Although very similar to the N450 - 1.66GHz clock speed, single-core, 45nm etc. - the N455 supports DDR 3 memory. With this in mind, Toshiba has included 1GB of DDR 3 memory, but there's no noticeable improvement in performance. In fact, it fell slightly behind N450-driven netbooks in our benchmarks. The Atom N455 also has a higher TDP: 6.5W compared to the N450's 5.5W. This adversely effects battery life: the NB250's 48Wh battery only managed 3h 42m, which is less than N450-based netbooks with a similar capacity battery.'

CNET have published a review of the Asus Eee PC 1215N (black) ultraportable. 'For $499, the Eee PC 1215N includes most of what we'd want from a current ultraportable, including a high-res 12-inch display, Nvidia Ion graphics (with Nvidia's Optimus graphics switching), and, most importantly, a dual-core CPU. In practice, this is a big step up from typical $300-$400 Netbooks, but at the same time, similar systems with AMD's Neo CPU more closely approximate the feel of a full-power mainstream laptop. The Eee PC 1215N does do very well at basic gaming and HD video playback. Combined with the larger 12-inch screen, that makes for a potentially very useful travel system with serious multimedia chops.'

The Dell Studio XPS 16 (1640) 16-Inch Laptop (Obsidian Black) has been reduced from $2,899.99 to $2,699.99 over at Amazon Marketplace. 'The Studio XPS 16 shines a light on features that matter. Its backlit keyboard and touch pad buttons are easy to use, day or night. Keep an eye on your battery power by simply checking the color of the indicator on the hinge. Capacitive multimedia buttons also glow when activated. Help protect your files with a smile. Why worry about forgetting your password? Facial recognition security software lets you log onto your laptop with a simple scan of your face.'

A review of the Fujitsu LifeBook A530 notebook has been posted over at NoteBook Check. 'Visually, the Fujitsu Lifebook A530 is fitted with plastic. There are, apart from the hand rest area, no lacquered surfaces. However, we don't just want to talk about absolute austerity, as the silver working environment and the white keys clearly relax the visuals and give the 15.6-incher a pleasant look. The details are, on the whole, somewhat more imaginative than those of the Core i3 competitor, Lenovo's G560. The loudspeakers have a perforated grid, the power key illuminates blue and the Lifebook lettering above the keyboard is silver.'

Laptop Magazine have published a review of the MSI P600 notebook. 'At 15.4 x 10 x 1.1 inches and 5.4 pounds, the MSI P600 isn't the lightest notebook on the block, but it's on a par with other 15.6 systems in the same price range, such as the Dell Studio 15z (5.4 pounds, 15 x 9.9 x 1 inches) and the Toshiba L505-GS5035, which is heavier at 6 pounds. The P600's chassis has a conservative look that fits in the home or workplace. Its light-gray lid has a subtle grid pattern and hardly shows fingerprints, despite its glossy plastic finish. The black interior of the system sports a classier design as its textured deck and palm rest combine with an attractive island-style keyboard.'

The Dell Inspiron iM1012-687OBK Mini 1012 10.1-Inch Obsidian Black Netbook (Up to 8 hours 8 minutes of battery life) is on offer for $355.00 over at Amazon Marketplace. 'The highly portable Dell Inspiron Mini 10 (model iM1012-687OBK) is everything you want in a mobile companion with easy Wi-Fi connectivity for on-the-go productivity, access to your favorite entertainment, and smooth video playback via the brightly colorful 10.1-inch screen. Redesigned for 2010, the Mini 10 now features a newly streamlined case with forward hinge design and it includes a textured, smudge-resistant palm rest and sculpted keys on the near-full-size keyboard. It also combines the power of the latest Intel Atom N450 processor (NM10 Express chipset) with a 6-cell battery for up to 6 hours of battery power.'

PC Advisor have published a review of the Acer Aspire 5745G laptop. 'The Acer Aspire 5745G is a 15-inch mainstream home laptop - and it has the specs to show for it. An Intel Core i5-430M 2.26GHz processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive and nVidia GeForce GT 330M graphics are very good building blocks for the Acer Aspire 5745G laptop. It has a weaker processor compared to the Dell Studio 15 but better graphics. The Acer Aspire 5745G laptop also has an 8x tray-loading DVD writer. For connectivity options, the laptop has four USB ports, VGA, Gigabit Ethernet, card reader slot, HDMI, headphone and microphone jack. Wireless connectivity options like Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1 are also supported by the Acer Aspire 5745G. The laptop also comes with 64-bit Windows 7 Home Premium operating system.'

Laptop Magazine have published a review of the Lenovo IdeaPad Y560d 3D notebook. 'This is definitely not your typical Lenovo laptop. The Y560d has a funky purple and black "Art of Gaming" logo that covers the lid. The design looks like a cross between graffiti and a hipster's idea of a tribal tattoo, and you'll love it or hate it. At 15.2 x 10 x 1.3 - 0.8 inches and 6.2 pounds, the Y560d is definitely hefty for a 15-inch notebook. It's about the same size as the Gateway NV59C09u, but the Lenovo weighs nearly a pound more. A copper-colored accent surrounds the lid, and the deck and keyboard is an attractive dark gray. The top of the deck is lined with five white LED buttons as well as buttons to launch the power manager and OneKey Theater, a feature which improves the picture quality for video playback. On the right are volume controls.'

A review of the Cyberpower Infinity Triton SE gaming desktop has been posted over at Computeractive. 'What is included is a 500GB hard disk (enough for most, though again we would expect to see a bit more nowadays) and a DVD writer. There is no graphics card, so graphics processing is partly handled by the main processor, which slows things down. Accordingly, it's useless for modern games (older games should be fine) and video editing, but it's fine for office and internet tasks. An additional graphics card shouldn't cost much as an upgrade, however. The case, made by Thermaltake, is an all-metal, all-black affair that looks quite imposing. It's not enormously tall (around 18in) but will be quite big for many students' rooms.'

The eMachines eME527-2537 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black has been reduced from $399.99 to $279.00 over at Amazon.com.
eME527-2537 Specifications
• Intel Celeron Processor 900 (2.2GHz, 1MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
•Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
•15.6" HD Widescreen WXGA High-Brightness LCD Display
•Mobile Intel GL40 Express Chipset
•2GB DDR3 Memory (2 x 1024MB)
•Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M
•160GB SATA Hard Drive
•8X DVD-SuperMulti Double-Layer Drive
•5-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader
•802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi Certified
•2 - USB 2.0 Ports
•One Built-in Mono Speaker
•6.0 lbs. (system unit only)