Dell Vostro 1320 review

The Dell Vostro 1320 is a solidly built laptop with a built-in optical drive and a powerful CPU.

It's got a burgundy-coloured lid and a black base, but don't let its looks fool you - the Dell Vostro 1320 isn't a notebook for hipsters to parade at coffee shops (that's what Eee PCs are for). It's a 13.3in laptop that's designed for small business users who want something that avoids the tedious black-on-black that adorns most meeting rooms and cubicles.


The Dell Vostro 1320 is solidly built, it's relatively fast and it's a good size for taking with you when you're travelling.

The Dell Vostro 1320 weighs 2.15kg, but this includes a built-in optical drive and a 4-cell battery, as well as a modest assortment of ports and slots. You get four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, Gigabit Ethernet, D-Sub, an ExpressCard/54 slot and an SD memory card reader.

It doesn't have anything as modern as eSATA or HDMI; these are the types of ports that would make the Dell Vostro 1320, with its powerful 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 CPU, come into its own as an all-round entertainment and productivity machine. As it stands, it's a great notebook for business users.

Even with only 1GB of DDR2 SDRAM our test model scored 90 in the WorldBench 6 suite of application tests, which represents good speed for office programs, multitasking and even 3D rendering and photo manipulation. It would have performed even better if it had more RAM (perhaps reaching the same level as the Dell Vostro 1520, which scored 96 with a slightly slower CPU). In the Blender 3D and iTunes MP3 encoding tests, it recorded times of 1min 11sec and 1min 06sec, respectively, which is around what we expected of the P8700 CPU.

The Dell Vostro 1320's hard drive (a Seagate Momentus ST9250421ASG) was also very fast. It recorded an average file transfer speed of 28 megabytes per second in our tests. This is approximately 5MBps faster than the hard drive of the Vostro 1520. This means the Dell Vostro 1320 will serve you well when conducting disk-intensive tasks such as compressing data.

An NVIDIA GeForce 9300M GS graphics adapter is present, which has its own memory and gives the Dell Vostro 1320 relatively good graphics performance for a business laptop. It scored 2379 in 3DMark06, meaning it can play games with low-detail settings if you ever get sick of being so productive.

While its performance was impressive despite the very low amount of RAM, the Dell Vostro 1320's build quality is another reason to consider buying this unit. It feels very solidly built - from its base to its lid. You can pick it up from either corner without the chassis bending noticeably or making any disturbing noises.

And unlike the chassis around the optical drive in the Dell Vostro 1220, it didn't unnecessarily contact the optical drive's tray and make clicking noises. Furthermore, the lid protects the screen well. There isn't excessive puddling when you move it from the edges; its hinges are strong and hold the screen perfectly in place at the angle you desire. The screen is latch-less, but it can't be lifted open with one hand - that's how strong the hinges are.

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The Dell Vostro 1320's 4-cell battery lasted 2hr 20min in our video rundown test, which we conduct with maximum screen brightness and the wireless radio enabled. This result is poor when compared to the 2hr 45min that was returned by the bigger Vostro 1520. We expected the Vostro 1320 to last close to three hours.

Using the Dell Vostro 1320 for a prolonged period will give you a warm lap, but it's not uncomfortable (especially during winter). In summer, you may want to plonk the unit on a notebook cooler or desk instead. Typing on the Vostro 1320 is comfortable after you adjust to the keyboard, although it does tend to bounce a little and its keys need a little less resistance.

The primary keys are 18mm wide, which is not exactly full-sized, and the function and arrow keys are half this size. One thing we love about using the Dell Vostro 1320 is its touchpad, which is responsive and has soft buttons that don't make a noise when you press them.

The Dell Vostro 1320 is a solidly built laptop with a built-in optical drive and a powerful CPU

Specifications

Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 CPU; NVIDIA GeForce 9300M GS; 1GB DDR2 RAM; 5,400rpm 250GB hard drive; DVD±RW drive; 13.3in TFT, 1280x800; built-in camera, microphone; D-Sub, Firewire, Headphone Jack, Microphone Jack, RJ45, USB 2.0; Bluetooth 2.0, Wireless 802.11n, Wireless 802.11a , Wireless 802.11b, Wireless 802.11g; 4x USB 2.0; 318x242x43mm; 2.15kg

Verdict

The Dell Vostro 1320 is a good choice for any business user who wants a laptop that offers the best of both worlds: portability and fast performance. We just wish it had better battery life and more modern ports.

[via pcadvisor]

Toshiba Satellite L505-S5966 Review

The Toshiba Satellite L505-S5966 proves that consumers can get much, if not all of what they need in a system that costs less than $600. Priced at $549, this mainstream notebook features a 15.6-inch screen with a 16:9 aspect ratio—ideal for watching widescreen movies. While those looking to play the latest 3D games or do serious multitasking will be disappointed, consumers who need a notebook for simply surfing the Web, running Microsoft Office, and listening to music should be more than satisfied with the L505.


Full Specifications
CPU 2.0-GHz Intel Pentium T4200
RAM Included 3GB
RAM Upgradable 8GB
Hard Drive Size 320GB
Hard Drive Speed 5,400rpm
Hard Drive Type SATA Hard Drive
Optical Drive Type DVD RW
Optical Drive Speed 8X
Display Size 15.6
Native Resolution 1366x768
Graphics Card Intel GMA 4500M
Video Memory 128MB
Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth
Mobile Broadband
Operating System MS Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit)
Ports (excluding USB) Ethernet; Headphone; Kensington Lock; Microphone; Modem; USB/eSATA; VGA
USB Ports 2
Card Slots / Readers 5-1 card reader
Warranty/Support One-year limited/24/7 toll-free phone
Size 15.1 x 10.2 x 1.6 inches
Weight 6.0 pounds

Design

For a sub-$600 system, the Satellite L505 is attractive but not exactly striking. Its lid and keyboard deck sport Toshiba’s Fusion Finish with a grey Breeze pattern—essentially, lines running diagonally across the system. Both the lid and deck are glossy, but the neutral color hides any fingerprints. The design carries across the touchpad, making it all but invisible when viewed from certain angles. While a clever touch, the fact that it is also flush with the deck had us looking for it a little harder than we should have. The keyboard and bezel are a matte black that contrasts nicely with the rest of the chassis.

At 15.1 x 10.2 x 1.6 inches and an even 6 pounds, the Satellite L505 isn’t exactly travel friendly, but it’s a reasonable size and weight for a 15.6-inch system.

Above the keyboard is the power button, plus four media playback buttons: Play/pause, reverse, forward, and mute. Unfortunately, there are no volume buttons; Toshiba continues to use an old-school volume wheel, which in this case is on the front edge of the L505.

[via laptopmag]

ASUS Releases Laptop For True Transformers Fan

ASUS has developed a sick looking transformer version of one of its gaming notebooks. Unfortunately, you can't exactly go to the store and buy it.


The Transformers-edition laptop from ASUS is based on the G60 gaming laptop, which features a 15.6" HD display, a quad core processor, a hot Nvidia GeForce GTX 260M GPU, and other such specs befitting a computer that is imitating all powerful robots. It even has a turbo button for instant overclocking. Rumor has it that this model will have a voice activated command of "transform!" to activate this feature (author's note: that rumor is entirely based on the hopes and dreams of this author).

The downside is that it's a one-off production unit designed as a prize for people who pre-register with Odeon Cinemas in the UK.



[via laptoplogic]

Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 Review

The IdeaPad S10-2 is the latest generation 10" netbook from Lenovo, offering the 1.6GHz N270 Intel Atom processor and a 6-cell extended battery. Lenovo redesigned this netbook to make it look slimmer and more attractive than its predecessor, giving the edges a rounded look and a more modern appearance. In our review we see how well the IdeaPad S10-2 performs in our tests, to help you make an informed buying decision.


Our Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 Configuration:

* 1.6GHz N270 Intel Atom Processor
* 1GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz
* Windows XP Home Edition (SP3)
* 10.1" WSVGA Glossy LED-backlit display with integrated camera 1024x600
* 160GB 5400rpm Western Digital Scorpio Blue hard drive
* Intel GMA 950 Integrated Graphics
* Broadcom 11b/g Wi-Fi wireless
* 4-in-1 Media card
* 6-Cell Li-ion 10.8v 4.06Ah 44Wh battery
* 40W AC Adapter
* Size: 10.2" x 7.6" x 0.7-1.8" (including battery)
* Weight: 2lbs 11oz, 3lbs 5.4oz travel weight
* Starting price: $439 (Currently on sale for $349 at the time of this review)

full story
[via notebookreview.com]

CyberPower Extreme M1

At $2,300, CyberPower’s Extreme M1 17-inch gaming notebook is the antithesis of the budget Gateway P-7811 FX we’ve been raving about for months. The most obvious extravagance you get for the higher price is dual-GPU graphics in the form of two ATI Radeon HD 3870 cards in CrossFireX. The Extreme M1’s 2.53GHz T9400 Core 2 Duo CPU is also 270MHz faster and features twice the cache as the Gateway’s proc, its 320GB hard drive is more than 50 percent bigger, and its optical drive supports Blu-ray playback.


The question is, how do these extras translate in performance? Compared with our zero-point notebook, the Extreme M1 excelled in all the benchmarks to varying degrees—not surprising, given the zero-point’s age. Against the Gateway P-7811 FX, there was a little more give and take. For example, in the ProShow Producer and MainConcept benchmarks, CyberPower’s rig had gains hovering around 10 percent, which is proportionate to the M1’s clock-speed advantage over the Gateway’s 2.26GHz CPU. But in our Photoshop benchmark, the Extreme M1 was actually around 7 percent slower than Gateway’s P-7811 FX.

Gaming was an even more interesting story. We didn’t expect the dual-GPUs in the Extreme M1 to really flex their muscle in our standard notebook benchmarks, as FEAR and Quake 4 aren’t that graphically intensive, particularly at the mild settings we use in our mobile tests. But we certainly weren’t expecting the Extreme M1 to turn out just 28fps in FEAR—that’s 74 percent slower than Gateway’s budget machine. Without any clear explanation for the performance lag, we forged on. In Quake 4, the Extreme M1 was a more expected 7 percent faster than Gateway’s P-7811 FX.

We went a step further and tested the Extreme M1 with our desktop gaming benchmarks as well. After all, the CrossFireX graphics should be up to the task of more graphically challenging titles. And sure enough, we were able to run Crysis at the M1’s 1920x1200 native resolution and set to Very High Quality, albeit at just 15fps. With Unreal Tournament 3, the Extreme M1 surpassed even some gaming desktops with 114fps. Gateway’s P-7811 FX, with its single GeForce 9800N GTS, achieved half the frame rate in those two games: 8fps and 74fps for Crysis and UT3, respectively. Indeed, the overall gaming prowess of the Extreme M1 convinced us that the FEAR score is likely the result of a driver issue and not any hardware shortcoming.

Yet despite its competence as a gaming rig, we have some reservations about the Extreme M1. It’s heavier than most gaming notebooks, weighing close to 13 pounds with its power brick; its 12-cell battery can’t supply juice for a full two hours—we got one hour and 50 minutes through a standard-def DVD in power-saving mode; and its speakers are weak and tinny. Even more troubling, the Extreme M1 doesn’t feel all that sturdy to us: There was a slight buckling to the strip of touch-sensitive controls above the machine’s keyboard, and the lid of the notebook showed scratches after just a few days of indoor use—it’s little consolation that the scratches were camouflaged by all the smudges and fingerprints that quickly covered the machine’s shiny black veneer. For the price of this notebook, we’d expect better quality.

Specifications


CPU : Intel 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo Mobile T9400
RAM : 4GB DDR3/1.066MHz
Chipset : Intel PM45
Hard Drive : Western Digital 320GB WD3200BEKT-22F3T0 (7,200rpm)
Optical : HL-DT-ST BDDVDRW CT10N
GPU : Dual ATI Radeon HD 3870 (CrossFireX)
Boot/Down : 37 sec / 49 sec
Lap/Carry : 9 lbs, 11oz / 12 lbs, 12oz


BENCHMARKS

Zero Point CyberPower Extreme M1

Premiere Pro CS3 : 1, 860 sec 1,517 sec
Photoshop CS3 : 237 sec 207 sec
ProSho : 2,416 sec 1,834 sec
MainConcept : 3,498 sec 3,270 sec
FEAR1.07 : 14 fps 28 fps (100%)
Quake 4 : 29.1 fps 142 fps (+388%)

[via maximumpc]

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Review

Asus started the netbook craze with its tiny, 7-inch Eee PC. Shortly thereafter, every notebook manufacturer except Apple produced at least one tiny and inexpensive laptop just like it. Nowadays, netbooks are not that tiny anymore - little by little they have increased in size from 7" via 9" and now the standard screen size of a netbook is 10 inches. Even a couple of 12-inch models have been released.

Hardware

What they all have in common is the hardware - with a few deviations it consists of an Intel Atom CPU at 1.6GHz, 1GB or RAM, a 160GB hard drive and integrated GMA950 graphics. The Eee PC, however, has been upgraded with an ever so slightly faster 1.66GHz Atom processor and a higher 667MHz FSB speed instead of earlier models which had 533MHz.

The speed increase is not big enough to be noticeable, but you might feel better purchasing an upgraded model. Asus' main selling point with the 1000HE is the battery life. According to the manufacturer, you should be able to keep it alive for 9.5 hours without resorting to an outlet. To achieve this formidable battery life, you need to use aggressive power-saving schemes, no Wi-Fi and turn the brightness all the way down. In our general usage test it still delivered more than 7 hours, which is still more than acceptable.
Design

As far as the design goes, the Eee PC 1000 HE stays with the concept we've seen in previous Eee netbooks. The keyboard is almost full size (92%) and the trackpad buttons are slightly tilted in the front. The entire casing of the netbook is glossy, which enhances the overall look but also attracts fingerprints easily.

On the whole, the design of the 1000HE focuses on usability; it's not spectacularly thin like some of its siblings, such as Asus S101 netbook, but it certainly gets the job done with flying colors. Besides, keeping the design simple also helps keep the price to a minimum, which is often the deciding factor for a netbook buyer.
Connectivity and Features

The ports have been placed on the left- and right-hand sides of the laptop - none at the back. On the right is a memory card reader, 2 USB and VGA and on the left is another USB port, Ethernet, and audio line in/out.
Summary

While there are better looking netbooks on the market, the Eee PC 1000HE comes at a very attractive price point and offers excellent battery life. It's also very easy to use thanks to the large keyboard, and has all the features that the competition offer plus a little extra. Combine these aspects and you have one of the best netbooks currently available.
Asus Eee PC 1000HE Technical Specifications

* Processor Atom N280 1.66GHz
* Memory 1GB DDR2
* Harddrive 160GB
* OS Windows XP Home
* Weight 3lbs
* Screen 10 inches
* Screen resolution 1024x600
* Graphic Card Intel GMA 950
* Battery Life 7.5 hours

[via laptopical]

MSI CR400 notebook is first in Classic series

MSI revealed a brand new notebook today with their CR400. This 14-inch notebook is the first in a new series for the company called Classic and is apparently just the first in what will be an expanding line up.



This series is intended to be high-end. The notebook features a uni-body design, Color Film Print and 45-degree edges. It also has high quality specs with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a LED-backlit display with a 1,366 x 768 resolution and a NVIDIA GeForce 8200M G graphics card.

Other features include Windows Vista Home Premium, a 4-in-1 card reader, DVD drive, Wi-Fi, a 1.3-megapixel webcam and three USB ports. Options include your choice of a 250GB, 320GB or 500GB hard drive, Bluetooth, a nine-cell battery and more. We don’t know how much the CR400 will cost or when it’ll be released but we’ll keep you up to date.

[via slashgear]