Handy Computer Guide

A review of the Gateway One all-in-one desktop PC has ben posted over at CNET. ‘The sleek, glossy black Gateway One is not the first all-in-one from Gateway, but it's definitely the best looking. At 17.5 inches tall, 18.3 inches wide, and 3.5 inches from front to back, it takes up less space than the 7.25-inch-deep iMac. The trimmer footprint is due to an unexpectedly sturdy support on the back of the Gateway One, that actually recalls the design of Apple's old Cinema Displays. As with those bygone LCDs, you can stand the Gateway One up at an almost a 90-degree angle or tilt it back by roughly 45 degrees. The Gateway One also does a better job than the iMac of preserving its aura of wireless techno-calm. In addition to the obligatory RF wireless mouse and keyboard, the single cable coming from the rear of the system goes down to a power brick. But on that brick you'll also find a collection of USB, digital audio, networking, and other inputs.’

Read: Gateway One - CNET

Posted by HCG Admin at 9:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Trusted Reviews have published a review of the Dell Latitude D430 ultraportable Notebook. 'Despite the prevailing opinion that Dell's reliance on direct selling is a weakness, it remains one of the largest and most recognised brands in computing. It's a fact that cannot easily be ignored or underestimated and, though its colourful new Inspiron range drew a muted reaction, its Latitude range of corporate notebooks is in rather better shape. Clarity and consistency in design has helped it develop an enviable pedigree over the years, with the D630 proving a particular success. Today I'm looking at another member of the Latitude family, the D430, which is the ultra-portable of the range.'

Read: Dell Latitude D430 - Trusted Reviews

Posted by HCG Admin at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

PC Magazine have published a review of the affordable Acer Aspire T180 desktop PC. ‘The T180 is housed in a fairly stylish silver-and-black minitower case, with LEDs for power and hard drive activity set inconspicuously on top (unlike the exposed LEDs on the front of other tower PCs). Nothing too fancy; it's a budget PC, after all. The T180 holds a single-core AMD Athlon 64 3800+ processor, adequate for viewing most static Web pages. Still, with rich, multimedia-based Web sites becoming the norm today, I'm afraid that the T180 won't be able to keep up. The system had trouble playing back 1080p and 720p movie trailers, but relatively small YouTube-style videos did play back okay. The T180 has a lot of expansion possibilities inside, including space for up to four RAM DIMMs, two PCI cards, one PCIe x1 card, and a single PCIe x16 slot for a graphics card. The case is free of internal obstructions and loose cables, so it would be a good tinkerer's system if it had a processor worth adding to.

Read: Acer Aspire T180 – PC Mag

Posted by HCG Admin at 12:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Toshiba Tecra M9 business notebook has been posted over at Notebook Review. ‘The design of the Tecra M9 is not unlike many other business notebooks; very basic and professional looking. The display cover and keyboard are a simple matte silver color, with no sleek sloping curves, just mildly rounded edges all around. The rest of the notebook is black plastic, leading to a design that would blend in with most Thinkpads or Latitudes around the office. The build quality of the laptop does not feel up to par with most other business grade laptops in the same price range. The palmrest and keyboard exhibit a lot of flex, which is pretty uncommon for this class of notebook. The display lid feels fairly cheap with its thin plastic, but it did prevent ripples from showing on the screen from all but hard presses to the cover. The bottom of the notebook features a Swiss cheese style of cutouts, which has to be the most I have ever seen on a notebook to date. I would have to imagine that they are for heat dispersion, but as you will read on the notebook does get very warm under average stress.’

Read: Toshiba Tecra M9 Review – Notebook Review

Posted by HCG Admin at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Panasonic Toughbook W5 notebook PC has been posted over at XYZ Computing. 'Despite the small size the W5 has a full assortment of connections. There are two USB 2.0 ports, ethernet, headphone/mic jacks, PC card, VGA out, a port replicator, and an SD card reader. A RJ-11 modem jack was even thrown in just in case anyone uses those any more. The power and wireless switches are actually accessible while the system is shut because they are placed on the front instead of above the keyboard. The power switch actually slides forward to turn the system on and is illuminated with a green LED that shines when the system is in use and pulses when it is hibernating. One thing that is missing from the W5 is a finger print reader, something that seems like an obvious choice for business users.'

Read: Panasonic Toughbook W5 - XYZ Computing

Posted by HCG Admin at 3:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

PC World have published a review of the powerful HP Pavilion HDX 9000 laptop. 'The shiny black and silver case, embossed with HP's decorative dragon imprint, looks great. The machine is heavy, though, weighing in at a minimum of 15.5 pounds, and opening the huge, tiltable monitor took me both hands to do right. This is not a laptop that you'll actually want on your lap, and you'll need to keep it plugged in, since its battery life was only about 90 minutes in our lab tests. The system packs lots of thoughtful design touches, such as a tiltable built-in Webcam, a button that turns off the LEDs for a more cinematic movie-watching experience, another button that deactivates the touchpad, quick-launch buttons for DVD and TV viewing, and external touch controls to adjust sound and play CDs and DVDs. The embedded dock for the media-center remote is also a plus.'

Read: HP Pavilion HDX 9000 - PC World

Posted by HCG Admin at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

CNET have published a review of the Fujitsu LifeBook U810 (Vista Home Premium) ultraportable. ‘The new $999 LifeBook U810 takes a different approach, mimicking a traditional laptop's design, shrunk down to a 5.6-inch swiveling touch screen, along with a fairly full-featured keyboard, fingerprint reader, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi (but no mobile broadband yet). It also runs Intel's mobile A110 CPU, which may account for its sometimes sluggish performance, as even full-size, dual-core laptops can struggle with Windows Vista. Though certainly ambitious, the U810 suffers from the same flaws we've seen in every UMPC to date, most notably, the awkward input options make it nearly impossible to take advantage of the full-fledged OS. Another, we found the 5.6-inch screen to be too small for everyday use and a bit too large for a portable Internet tool (perhaps the iPhone is better suited for that task). Still, for under $1,000, this is the best UMPC deal we've seen to date.’

Read: Fujitsu LifeBook U810 (Vista Home Premium) - CNET

Posted by HCG Admin at 2:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Lenovo Thinkpad X61 Notebook has been posted over at Personal computer World. ‘Weighing just 1.63kg, this ultraportable is the perfect traveling companion. Interestingly, this model is the first we've seen without the old IBM badge. While it isn't built like a tank, the X61 is undeniably well made. The back of the 12.1in screen seems a little flimsy but, on the whole, the magnesium alloy chassis is certainly up to the rigours of day-to-day travel. The keyboard also has a good, solid feel to it, but when typing at speed we kept catching our fingers on Lenovo's pointer control. This is an acquired taste and anyone used to a touchpad will surely end up plugging a mouse into one of the system's three USB ports after more than 10 minutes.’

Read: Review: Lenovo Thinkpad X61 notebook computer – Personal computer World

Posted by HCG Admin at 3:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tablet PC Review have published a review of the Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 Tablet PC. '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 3.8 pounds. The graphite color hides dirt very well and keeps the tablet looking professional. The chassis is solid and there is minimal flex, except for the keyboard area. Don't get me wrong the keyboard has a nice design, it's just a little to soft and springy for my liking. When you are typing you can actually see the keys flex. Although, it is very easy to read since the characters are bolded and plenty big enough and there isn't any keys that are shortened. 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.'

Read: Fujitsu LifeBook T2010 Tablet PC First Look Review - Tablet PC Review

Posted by HCG Admin at 10:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Laptop Magazine have published a review of the powerful Toshiba Satellite X205-S9359 multimedia Notebook. ‘Because the 17-inch system features a widescreen display (1680 x 1050 pixels and 720p native resolution), the chassis feels much smaller than that of comparable gaming systems, like the Asus G2S-A1, though the X205's actual footprint is only slightly smaller at 16 x 11 x 1 inches. At 8.6 pounds, the X205 is no lightweight, and the AC power adds 2.2 pounds for a total weight of 10.8 pounds. Though the keyboard's shallow key depth and spongy feel are drawbacks, the spacious layout and full number pad are definite pluses, especially if you'd like to use the notebook for more than just gaming.’

Read: Toshiba Satellite X205-S9359 – Laptop Mag

Posted by HCG Admin at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Sony TZ (VGN-TZ191N) ultraportable Notebook has been posted over at Notebook Review. 'Sony's designers worked overtime to make the TZ not only an ultra portable notebook, but to make it an ultra portable notebook that looks good. Lines match up, panel thicknesses stay the same, hinges are molded into body with the battery, AC plug, and power button integrated, and it's topped off with a carbon fiber lid to seal the deal. Lifting the display cover you find the glossy keyboard surface reflecting the world around you with keys standing out like ripples on a pond. This notebook could be perfectly described in one word; glamorous. The build quality of this notebook is excellent. Having such thin panels merging together across various parts of the notebook you would almost expect to see uneven panel spacing or gaps, but this notebook has none. Panels merge together with razor thin clearances, and even flexing the notebook doesn't make the parts squeak or groan from plastic rubbing together. Support is excellent around the base of the laptop, leaving just the screen with some amount of flex. I can't really place too much blame on Sony for that, since it is only 4.75mm thick. Overall I found the Sony TZ to be of excellent quality, only lacking on allowing certain parts to be upgraded by the user.'

Read: Sony TZ (VGN-TZ191N) - Notebook Review

Posted by HCG Admin at 5:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Digital Trends have published their review of the feature-rich HP Pavilion HDX Notebook. 'The HP Pavilion HDX is a monstrous computer. It's freakishly big - the Robert Barone of notebooks - when compared to other portable computers. Thankfully, its huge size is equaled by its stunning looks and beautiful, logical and remarkably intuitive design. At the time of this writing, the HDX uses an Intel Core 2 Duo processor - the T7700 - running at 2.4GHz (like the 15" MacBook Pro). There's a healthy 4MB L2 cache backing up the processor. The HDX also has an 800MHz bus and supports up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM. Our test model had a 2GB complement of memory.'

Read: HP Pavilion HDX - Digital Trends

Posted by HCG Admin at 12:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

PC Authority have published a review of MegaPC's Magnum desktop configuration. 'It’s an imposing beast thanks to a monolithic SilverStone TJ06 case and 22in ViewSonic ViewDock monitor. The latter sports integrated speakers, subwoofer and iPod dock. If you don’t have an iPod there’s a redundant, ugly socket, but at least you can use other MP3 players too. It also sports a four-port USB hub, microphone, 3.5mm in/out audio jacks and headphone socket. Despite this, while sound was well-rounded, with punchy bass and clear top end, it didn’t get nearly loud enough. However, the 1680 x 1050 display was crisp, sharp and clear, and good colours made our games and videos look great.'

Read: MegaPC Magnum - PC Authority

Posted by HCG Admin at 10:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

PC Magazine have published a review of the Raon Digital Everun L30H ultraportable PC. 'The L30H has the feel of an oversized smartphone in your hands. The dimensions (6.7 by 3.3 by 0.9 inches, HWD) are more in line with those of the Sony PSP. There's a nice heft to it, making it feel less like a toy and more like an expensive piece of machinery. It's a tenth of a pound heavier than the OQO model 02, ideal for a coat pocket but definitely not for the tight-jeans crowd. And its length allowed Raon to put in a decent-looking 4.8-inch widescreen that's large enough for video-watching, Web-surfing, and reading documents. (Both the OQO and the Vulcan FlipStart have bigger screens (5 inches and 5.6 inches, respectively), in case the Everun's screen is a little too small for your taste.)'

Read: Raon Digital Everun L30H - PC Mag

Posted by HCG Admin at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Evesham Prestige VP Plus desktop PC has been posted over at IT Reviews. ‘The machine is based around an Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 processor, which has two cores running at 1.8GHz and 2MB of L2 cache. Couple this with 1GB of main memory and you have a PC that's more than capable of running most modern business applications. Graphics output is provided by an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3000 chip on the motherboard, which won't break any records for 3D performance but is enough for typical 2D applications up to the Photoshop level. The picture is delivered to the aforementioned Cibox monitor; not a particularly well known name. This example gives a good, sharp picture, though, and is easy to set up and adjust.’

Read: Evesham - Prestige VP Plus review – IT Reviews

Posted by HCG Admin at 3:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Trusted Reviews have published a review of the Toshiba Qosmio G40-10E multimedia Notebook. ‘Aesthetically the Qosmio is certainly striking, though in a kind love it or hate it way. Naturally, its 17in display means it's a big machine, measuring 440 x 229 x 45.3mm (WxDxH) and weighing a totally importable 4.4kg. This isn't the problem however, and neither is the outside, which is finished in an attractive navy blue with elegant silver 'Qomsio' lettering. No, the real contention begins when you open it up. An all white finish is nothing new and certainly helps with that initial impact, but the effect is rather spoiled by the huge garish dials and the extra-specially ugly speaker grilles. Indeed, Toshiba seems to have some difficulty with speaker grilles, with the Satellite P200-143 sharing a similar affliction caused by some nasty looking clear plastic.’

Read: Toshiba Qosmio G40-10E – Trusted Reviews

Posted by HCG Admin at 2:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the HP Pavilion Elite m9040n desktop configuration has been posted over at CNET. 'HP's Pavilion Elite m9040n frustrates us because, but for a seemingly greedy design decision, we actually like it quite a bit. This $1,190 desktop comes with a quad-core chip and a cleaner profile than older HP desktops, thanks to its integrated remote-control receiver and wireless networking antenna. Our issue is that by including bays for two different types of proprietary external hard drives (sold separately, of course), HP wastes space and simultaneously tries to up-sell you on superfluous storage. If you're looking for a midtower system to record TV or edit digital media, the Pavilion Elite m9040n fits the bill quite well. We just wish we could look at the thing without wanting to brush past it like we would a street hawker.'

Read: HP Pavilion Elite m9040n - CNET

Posted by HCG Admin at 12:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pocket Lint have published a review of the affordable Asus F5V Notebook. ‘The Asus F5v costs £629 (inc. VAT) and comes with a chassis that is well-built and looks good too. The silver and black design may give it a corporate look but we feel it’ll look equally as good in the home.Weighing 2.7kg, it proved fairly portable and can be carried around with ease but we were less than impressed with the battery life. We managed to get a little over 2 hours from an average charge, which is fine if you’re just sat on the sofa surfing the web but not so good if you need to work on the move.’

Read: Asus F5V Laptop Review – Pocket Lint

Posted by HCG Admin at 8:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Computeractive have published their review of the new Apple iMac desktop computer. 'Apple's habit of giving its new products the same names as its old ones makes it hard to identify the new ones, but this is the fourth new design the company has come up with for its flagship computer. This one has a very sleek aluminium body, and it's thinner than the old white plastic version, to boot. Like previous iMacs, this is an all-in-one computer, in that it includes processing unit, DVD writer, webcam, microphone and screen in the main unit. The keyboard is now also made of aluminium, and is very similar to that on the Macbook notebooks. That makes it ergonomically sound as, being flat, it puts the user's wrists close to the desk.'

Read: Review: Apple iMac desktop computer - Computeractive

Posted by HCG Admin at 9:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Dell Vostro 1700 Notebook has been posted over at Notebook Review. 'The Vostro 1700 is big and heavy, even for a 17" notebook. It is all black so it is difficult to argue whether it is pretty or not, but it is unlikely that one will find it ugly. On the other hand, stains and fingerprints get stuck on the black paint very easily and they are difficult to get rid of (see the backside image below where the fingerprints are clearly visible). Being so big, the screen actually takes more effort to open than an average laptop. In fact, I find that to release the latch and lift the screen I need to use both hands. USB connectors also take effort to pull out, so overall impression is that of a strong build. The part above the keyboard, around the On/Off button, bends somewhat when pushed harder but that is the only minor issue I could find with the case which otherwise is solid.'

Read: Dell Vostro 1700 User Review - Notebook Review

Posted by HCG Admin at 10:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CNET have published a review of the Toshiba Qosmio G45-AV680 multimedia laptop. ‘Even though the most interesting new laptops fall into the ultraportable category, a big, over-the-top 17-inch desktop replacement can still be fun. Toshiba's Qosmio line is known for high-end home theater features and high prices, and the latest version, the massive Qosmio G45, is no exception. For $3,199, you get an HD DVD-R drive (a first for a U.S. laptop), a screen that supports full 1080p resolution, twin media control wheels (one for volume, the other for playback functions), and a Harman Kardon speaker system, complete with a subwoofer on the bottom. Does anyone need a laptop this big and expensive? We'd venture a no, but in a world of generic gray boxes, the white, glossy Qosmio G45 stands out as an excellent portable home theater laptop that's just plain fun to use.’

Read: Toshiba Qosmio G45-AV680 (High Definition) - CNET

Posted by HCG Admin at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Laptop Magazine have published their review of the affordable Acer Aspire 4710-2013 Notebook. 'The rounded, matte-black exterior (with just a hint of glossy black trim) feels good in your hands, and the finish is smudge-proof. But some may find it a bit too understated; going forward, the company should take a page from Gateway's NX570x, which does the basic-black thing with more style. Inside, there's the opposite problem: The putty-gray, soft-touch keyboard deck seems as though it's meant to resemble leather but comes up short and feels dated. The black and blue characters on the key tops, a perforated speaker strip above the Function keys, and green shiny accents throughout create visual clutter instead of the streamlined elegance you find in a real-deal BMW.'

Read: Acer Aspire 4710-2013 - Laptop Magazine

Posted by HCG Admin at 10:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A review of the Dell Latitude D630 Notebook has been posted over at IT Reviews. 'Dell's popular Latitude D620 deservedly won many plaudits and awards with its excellent blend of features, price and performance. The question for Dell was, when the time came for a refresh would it be able to make its successor just as popular with the corporate buyer? The answer seems to a resounding yes, and the D630 seems destined to carry on what the D620 started. Intel's latest mobile technology, code-named Santa Rosa and now known as Centrino Duo, was the catalyst for the refresh and in the time-honoured fashion of "if it ain't broke don't fix it", Dell just jacked up the D620, removed the old chipset and CPU and replaced it with the Centrino Duo parts.'

Read: Dell - Latitude D630 review - IT Reviews

Posted by HCG Admin at 8:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)