Packard Bell NX69

We’re used to Packard Bell laptops having a little extra design flair over the competition – it is Acer’s style brand, after all – but it’s rare that we see something that stands out for more than just its good looks. The EasyNote NX69 has done just that with its slim chassis and attractive design, but still includes plenty of high performance hardware inside.

With a 14in screen and weighing 2.3kg, the NX69 is surprisingly portable, but an Intel Core i5-2410M processor running at 2.3GHz means there’s no shortage of power when you need it. Thanks to Hyper Threading Windows sees four processor cores, while Turbo Boost means the CPU can overclock itself to 2.9GHz when under load. A healthy 4GB of RAM will also help when running multiple applications. Our multimedia benchmark still proved taxing, but an overall score of 54 is about what we would expect from a mid-range laptop.

Unsurprisingly, there’s no room for a dedicated graphics card in the slim chassis, so Packard Bell has used Intel’s integrated HD 3000 chip to provide the 3D muscle. It’s more than capable of playing high definition video on the 1,366x768 laptop screen, or in 1080p on an external display, but it isn’t well-suited to playing today’s demanding games. Our Dirt 3 test brought it to its knees with an unplayable 12fps at 720p; you’ll have to sacrifice anti-aliasing and detail settings to get a playable frame rate. On the plus side, the lack of dedicated graphics means battery life doesn’t suffer; in our light-use test, the NX69 managed a stellar eight hours away from the mains. As long as you stick to light tasks, it should be able to last an entire working day between charges.

Once we sat down to use the NX69, we were instantly impressed with the superb screen. It might use a cheaper TN panel rather than IPS, but the incredibly vivid colours looked fantastic. The maximum resolution is big enough to keep two browser windows open side-by-side, and everything looked incredibly sharp. There were some downsides: limited viewing angles meant we had to sit in an exact position for colours to look their best, and the glossy screen finish reflects even the smallest amount of light.

Autostereoscopy: What it is and why you should be excited about it

No longer relegated to the realm of cardboard blue-and-red specs and old Doctor Who episodes, 3D is here in a big way. Many people enjoy 3D in the cinemas, but there’s still one barrier to enjoying it properly at home – the need for glasses.

However, that’s starting to change as more devices are beginning to trickle through with glasses-free (autostereoscopic) 3D displays that could spell the end of conventional spectacle-based 3D viewing.



So how does it work? Products such as the Toshiba Qosmio 5750, LG Optimus 3D and Nintendo 3DS employ lenticular displays that send two images of slightly differing perspectives individually to your left and right eye, which create the 3D effect.

In the case of the Toshiba Qosmio, an integrated webcam tracks the user’s eye movements, meaning you don’t have to keep your head in one place to create the effect and more than one person can watch at the same time.

The current ‘active shutter’ system uses glasses that darken one lens in turn in synch with the refresh rate of the 3D screen – producing what looks like a whole extra dimension from the box.

Gamers will take particular comfort in knowing that glasses-free 3D is coming as many game developers are already putting out top-quality 3D titles. Call of Duty: Black Ops and Batman: Arkham Asylum to name just a couple.

Unfortunately, prices are still pretty steep. But if the recent Nintendo 3DS price drop is anything to go by, we shouldn't have to wait too long to cast off our active shutters and embrace the glasses-free 3D revolution.

HP Pavilion Dv6-1133EA

Sophistication, elegance and incredible entertainment
With a striking gloss black Espresso HP Imprint finish, with a discreet circular pattern, the HP Pavilion dv6-1133 is certain to captivate. Powered by an Intel® Pentium® T4200 processor, and with Microsoft Windows Vista® Home Premium on board, the stylish and elegant Pavilion dv6-1133 Entertainment Notebook PC from HP is the perfect partner for fun, communication and mobility.

Stylish and sleek the dv6 is certain to captivate

HP MediaSmart software puts all forms of media in one place that is just a click away. Premium audio and dual headphone jacks deliver uncompromising entertainment, whilst integrated low-light webcam and dual digital microphones are ideal for social networking.

Design supremacy
While the Pavilion dv6 is a designer’s dream, make no mistake, this is a serious performer. It features a full size 101 key compatible keyboard and a 15.6 inch HD BrightView display, so you’ll be able to type accurately and comfortably, experience excellent image and video quality, yet carry it around easily.

The dv6 provides reliability and security for files and digital media, thanks to HP ProtectSmart™ hard drive protection. So if you accidentally drop it in transit, don’t worry as the notebook automatically locks to protect your data against damage.

The hardware features on this machine are very impressive too. It includes a 250GB SATA hard drive, 4GB standard memory, 8x LightScribe SuperMulti drive for burning movies to DVD (and music mixes to CD), integrated 802.11 b/g WLAN, 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN, an ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD4530 graphics card with 512MB dedicated graphics memory and integrated webcam and digital microphone. It also comes with a 6-cell Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery.



Exclusively to HP notebooks and PCs – MediaSmart turns your notebook into the ultimate mobile entertainment centre
Why leave your entertainment at home, when you can take it with you?
Experience your digital world like never before with HP MediaSmart software, an exclusive with the latest HP PCs and notebooks. With MediaSmart your notebook is turned into a mobile entertainment centre and your media is at your fingertips.

The one-click menus provide instant access to multimedia content including, movies, photos, music and TV* shows. View slide shows of your favourite holiday snaps or use built-in editing tools to help you instantly improve photos, effortlessly rotate, crop, enhance or remove red-eye in one simple click. It is just as simple to record and edit videos; you can even rate, tag and search videos with easy to use built-in management tools and if it’s DVDs you’re watching, you can be sure that the clarity and smoothness is optimised through HP SmoothMotion software.

Have fun with your personal music collection and explore new music. Create, edit, search and browse your music playlists using the interactive software, in a fun new way. You can even watch your favourite TV* programmes and enjoy primetime, classic shows and cartoons from around the world, over the Internet, at a time that suits you. What’s more all of this can be accessed through the built-in 34mm remote control.

With HP MediaSmart having fun has no limits!

Eco-friendly
The HP Pavilion dv6-1133 is an ENERGY STAR® qualified product. That means it will save you money by reducing energy costs and help to protect the environment without sacrificing features or performance. HP products that earn the ENERGY STAR® qualification minimise greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the risk of climate change by meeting strict energy guidelines set by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Efficient and yet powerful processing
The dv6 is powered by an ultra-low voltage Intel® Pentium® T4200 processor that provides a quality experience for all of your everyday computing needs. The processor comes with built-in Execute Disable Bit technology, which keeps your laptop safe from viruses, worms, and other malicious attacks.

Chipset advancements provide increased energy efficiency for lower power consumption and Intel SpeedStep® technology allows your system to dynamically adjust processor voltage and core frequency to decrease power consumption and heat production.

Communications and connectivity are leading edge. The processor technology, which is compatible with all currently available 802.11 b/g and enables you to keep in touch wherever you are – at the airport, at the poolside, at remote office locations, anywhere and everywhere. Providing you have access to a WiFi signal, you can access the Internet, check e-mail, and stay connected at all times.



The neatly integrated webcam is perfect for capturing video or still photos.


A full complement of ports are onboard, including 4 USB 2.0 and HDMI. Wireless technologies are also supported
Outstanding graphics, video and sound performance
The 15.6 inch high-definition HP BrightView display delivers a resolution of 1366 by 768 pixels and helps movies and pictures and games come alive with crisp and vibrant colours. This performance is achieved using an ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD4530 graphics processor which can produce incredible effects for a superb viewing experience.

An integrated webcam, digital microphone and the latest internal 3D Sound Blaster Pro card with SRS Premium Sound speakers will give you premium quality Internet-based video and audio communication. So for example, if you’re using MSN or Skype, your friends and family will be able to hear and see you perfectly. And if you just want to capture the moment, use your webcam to take still photos or video.

Great expansion and connectivity
The HP Pavilion dv6-1133 will accommodate up to four peripherals at any time with its four USB 2.0 ports (4th shared with eSATA port) and IEEE 1394 FireWire® interface, enabling you to quickly transfer photos from your digital video camera or music from your MP3 player.

In terms of connectivity, the notebook incorporates a 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN, so you can quickly and easily share your files with your family, friends and colleagues. It is WiFi certified to work with base stations and routers that use industry-standard 802.11 b/g making it easy for you to connect rapidly to the internet at home, work and on holiday.

Great style, outstanding performance, let’s take a look at the hardware

Hard drive and memory
The 250GB Serial-ATA (SATA) hard drive (5400 RPM) maintains high data transfer speeds, meaning you don’t need to wait long for your documents and pictures to open. To support this, the dv6 comes with 4GB memory as standard and supports up to 8GB DDR2 memory.

Memory card device
Rapidly upload all your holiday snaps with the integrated 5-in-1 digital media reader. So whether you are saving your information on Secure Digital, Multimedia, xD Picture cards or using Memory Stick or Memory Stick Pro, you can rest assured that the Pavilion dv6-1133 will be able to read your documents easily.



No more labels! Use LightScribe to burn precise, silkscreen-like text and images directly onto your LightScribe CD or DVDs.
LightScribe SuperMulti drive
The dv6 comes with an internal LightScribe SuperMulti drive. This versatile drive allows you to write to virtually ALL DVD formats including DVD-RAM, storing up to 8.5GB of data or recording up to 4 hours of DVD quality video. In addition, you can laser etch your own disc labels from right inside your DVD drive. No ink, no messy markers or clumpy adhesive labels, with LightScribe you simply burn your data, flip the disc over and burn a precise, silkscreen-like text, photo or graphic label directly onto your LightScribe CD or DVD.

This drive will write to:
DVD+R, DVD-R at up to 16x speed
DVD-RAM at up to 12x speed
DVD+R DL, DVD-R DL, and DVD+RW at up to 8x speed
DVD-RW at up to 6x speed
CD-R at up to 48x speed
CD-RW at up to 32x speed

And read industry standard DVD-ROM at up to 16x speed, CD-ROM at up to 48x speed

Powerful software for a powerful machine
The HP Pavilion dv6-1133 is pre-packed with state-of-the-art applications, tools and operating systems to ensure that you get the ultimate computing experience. It comes with Microsoft Windows Vista® Home Premium Service Pack 1 (32-bit) as standard, the perfect choice for going beyond mere email and web surfing to improve personal productivity and get the best in all kinds of digital entertainment. Using Vista Home Premium you can search for any file or download from virtually anywhere, so you’ll save lots of time. You’ll also get improved performance and better protection for your notebook, and personal information. Windows Vista® Home Premium gives you more ways to have fun with your music, TV*, games and digital media. Plus you’ll love the way that it connects to wireless networks and manages battery life, so you can go on surfing all through the day.

Well that’s just for starters, and there’s a lot more. Take a look at this line-up of pre-loaded software:

Microsoft® Works (word processor, spreadsheet, calendar and database), Microsoft® Internet Explorer, Windows Mail, Windows Media Player, Windows Photo Gallery, DVD Play, Windows Movie Maker, Windows DVD Maker, Cyberlink DVD Suite, Windows Media Center, HP Total Care Advisor, Adobe® Reader, HP Games Console with hours of free game play and Symantec™ Norton Internet Security™ 2009. Also included is a free 60-day trial version of Microsoft® Office Home and Student 2007 Edition.

Finally, for your peace of mind
You’ll want the best in technical support, so it comes with a one-year, pick-up and return, parts and labour warranty. And naturally, this can be extended to protect against accidental damage for up to 3 years, for a small extra premium.

*Tuner sold separately

Box Contains
Laptop
HP mobile remote control
Product manual
Power adapter
Warranty

Dell Studio 15

The Dell Studio 15 is shockingly good value for money for the quality and performance. Up to now our favourite medium range gaming laptop has been the HP Pavilion DV6 with its great balance of hardware components and power graphics card at its price range.

The Dell Studio 15 has a fast Intel 2.0Ghz dual core processor which will be able to handle any program with ease and will provide you with some good future proofing as new programs grow more demanding over time.



4GB of ram running at a very fast 800Mhz will not only be more than enough to run multiple programs smoothly but their 800Mhz clock speed will give you a nice boost when gaming.

Our favourite hardware component in the entire laptop is the ATI 4570 graphics card. This card is roughly 20% faster for gaming than the HP Pavilions ATI 4530 that we loved so much and will be able to handle even all of the new games on medium and possibly even high settings. The additional benefit of the ATI 4500 series graphics cards is they use very little power giving you a longer battery life when you dont have access to a plug.

With the massive 320GB hard drive you will struggle to use all the storage space giving you plenty of space for backing up all your files and having all the programs you own installed at once.

Yet another place where the Studio 15 shines is with its 15.6 inch high definition LCD monitor giving you a fantastic quality screen with the ability to watch movies in HD. This monitor is far superior to all other laptops in this price range.

As you would expect the laptop is fully compatible with wireless internet and a DVD re-writer to burn your own CDs and DVDs. Finally, Dell are providing a free upgrade to the new Microsoft operating system Windows 7 as soon as it is launched so dont worry about buying the studio with Vista and missing out on the new Windows.

At under £500 at the time of writing this is hands down our favourite gaming laptop at this price range.

Samsung 600B5B

The 15.6-inch Samsung 600B5B certainly isn't the most attractive laptop on the market, but, with decent specs and various security options, it could be a good choice for business types or those who are subject to a brutally strict IT department.

Our model, the 600B5B-S01UK, packs a dual-core Intel Core i5-2520M processor and 4GB of RAM. It's available for around £770.





Design and build quality
The 600B5B aims to be the perfect business companion. It doesn't, therefore, try to impress you with fancy swirling patterns and bright colours that will melt your eyeballs out of your face if you stare at them for too long.

When closed, the 600B5B has a very professional look, thanks partly to its all-black design. The only thing that breaks up the surface of the shell is the subtle Samsung logo. The chassis is made from plastic, with a rubberised coating that we're quite keen on. The laptop's exterior isn't what you'd call interesting, but it would match a sharp suit and black leather briefcase well.


The laptop's definitely not beautiful, but it is rather smart.
Although made of plastic, the shell doesn't feel flimsy in the slightest -- we prodded and poked it and found very little flex in the lid, wrist rest or keyboard. It feels very well put together and will easily put up with being carted off on a business trip or hauled between different meeting rooms.

At 2.5kg, this machine is just about light enough for you to carry between desks without having to warm up with some squat thrusts. Measuring 370 by 35 by 248mm, the 600B5B should also fit in most briefcases.

Keyboard and trackpad
The keyboard doesn't pack the isolated keys we like so much, instead opting for the raised, edge-to-edge variety. That makes the keyboard seem slightly outdated.

At least the keyboard is pretty comfortable to type on, even for long periods, so, if you're pulling an all-nighter in a Premier Inn in Stockport ready for the presentation to the board in the morning, your fingers won't be screaming in pain as you pass the 11,000 word mark.


No isolated keys here -- just the chunky, old-fashioned variety. Oh, and a track point.
The trackpad is a decent size and has the same rubberised coating as the keyboard surround. It's fairly comfortable to slide your finger over. There's also a track point plonked in between the G, H and B keys for you to navigate with, complete with an extra set of buttons above the trackpad.

Screen
The 15.6-inch screen has a matte coating, so it won't show a load of distracting reflections under bright light. It also has a resolution of 1,600x900 pixels, which is really pleasing on a screen this size. The resolution is slightly under a Full HD resolution of 1,920x1,080 pixels, so you won't be able to enjoy 1080p movies at their best, but documents will look crisp and clear, so you don't need to worry too much about eye strain.

Connectivity
If it's your turn to give the PowerPoint presentation, you can use the HDMI or VGA ports to hook the laptop up to a bigger display or projector. Around the side, you'll also find two USB 3.0 ports, a USB 2.0 port, a USB/eSATA port, and an Ethernet port.

There's a DVD drive too, as well as a 1.3-megapixel webcam for all kinds of video-conferencing fun. Just make sure you remember to put a shirt on if you're being connected to the Milan office -- we hear those Europeans are sticklers for wearing clothes.

Finally, there's a fingerprint reader on the wrist rest, which will probably make your IT department weep little tears of joy at the added security this affords.

Performance
Under the hood, you'll find a 2.5GHz, dual-core Intel Core i5-2520M processor teamed up with 4GB of RAM. That's not a bad set of specs, especially for a machine that's built more for handling spreadsheets and pie charts than chewing through the polygons of the latest first-person shooter.

We threw the Geekbench benchmark test at the machine and it delivered an admirable score of 7,509. Geekbench tests various aspects of a computer's power, from processing speed to its ability to handle 3D gaming.


The matte screen catches no reflections, which we like. It has a fairly small bezel too.
By comparison, the 15.6-inch Acer Aspire Timeline X 5830T, which we were rather keen on, achieved a score of 6,015, and was powerful enough to tackle all but the most demanding of chores. The 600B5B doesn't have the same amount of RAM as the Acer laptop, so we don't imagine it will handle multitasking with such aplomb, but it's certainly capable of running office tasks while simultaneously streaming high-quality video.

The 600B5B isn't really a machine designed for gaming, but, just in case you want to frag some noobs after a hard day in sales, we fired up 3DMark06 to see how the laptop handles polygons. Helped along by the Nvidia NVS 4200M graphics card, the 600B5B achieved a score of 5,706, which isn't too bad at all.

This machine certainly won't tackle the top games, so you'll be out of luck if you were hoping to blast through Deus Ex: Human Revolution in between making those pie charts. It's got enough grunt to handle some older titles, though, as long as you dial the settings down slightly and don't have a load of power-hungry programs open at the same time.

Battery life
To see how long the 600B5B lasts away from a power outlet, we punished the battery by running the processor at full tilt until the laptop conked out. The battery managed to last about 1 hour and 45 minutes, which isn't bad. Our test is extremely brutal, so you'll find you can get much better performance with more cautious usage.

If you're mainly going to be using the 600B5B for office tasks, and won't be making much use of video or wireless Internet, you should be able to get upwards of 4 hours of constant use out of it.

Conclusion
The Samsung 600B5B isn't the most beautiful laptop on the market, nor is it the most powerful, but it will happily plough through any office task and won't shy away from the odd knock and bump on the road. If you're after a business laptop with security features your IT department will appreciate, it could be a good option

Sony VAIO VPCCA2Z0E review

If the powerful Z-series is the big brother of the Sony VAIO family, then the updated Sony VAIO C-series is definitely the attractive cousin.

We originally reviewed the VAIO C Series at the start of this month, but that iteration was packing a Core i5 processor and dedicated graphics. Now we have our hands on the more affordable VAIO-VPC-CA2Z0E Core i3 version.




Available in a choice of five different colours, this mid-level lifestyle laptop has a number of features that make it worth a look if you're tired of the same old black or silver design of other machines.

Our review unit was a bright and attractive red, but the C-Series also comes in lime green, orange, pink, navy blue, white or black. Sony has given the laptop a material finish with a transparent effect – complimented by backlighting around the body of the laptop, such as the VAIO logo on the lid and around the touchpad.

Needless to say, whichever colour you choose, a range of similarly coloured peripherals is available, allowing you to accessorise your new rig.

Sony hasn't stopped at the chassis when it comes to the light show. The isolation-style keyboard is backlit with a sensor called Auto Luminance Control which measures the ambient light surrounding you and adjusts the backlight accordingly. On a practical level, this is excellent for times when you're working late into the night, but it also adds nicely to the overall design.

We ran several high-definition (HD) videos to test out the screen and were impressed with the bright, glossy screen that runs with a native pixel resolution of 1366 x 768. Understandably, it won't match a dedicated games machine like the Asus' Lamborghini VX7, but this is easily good enough for enjoying your pictures and videos.

Just beware the Super-TFT coating does give irritating reflections when you're watching in a brightly lit environment.

Integrated graphics
Should you wish to play games on the C-Series, you will be limited to some of the older titles as the laptop only has an integrated graphics card. But, being that the CPU is a second-generation Intel chip – the Core i3 2310M – performance isn't really a problem.We found web pages and HD videos on YouTube loaded very quickly.

The 4GB of RAM helps a lot and is the benchmark amount for a laptop at this level. A healthy 320GB hard drive means you can store plenty of HD video content here and still have space for office programs

Acer Aspire 5920G 15.4-inch Laptop

There's really only one word to sum up this laptop - wow!

I can't believe Acer are making any profit on these units because for £430 you aren't compromising on anything. The combination of the Core2Duo processor and 4GB of memory means that you aren't left waiting for anything to load. From sleep Windows boots in 3 seconds. From a full shutdown startup it takes around 10 seconds to boot up - simply stunning performance!








The display (aided by the 256MB dedicated ATI graphics card) is crystal clear and even in bright conditions glare is minimal. I'm not a gamer so I can't comment on how the graphics card would hold up under stress however for general use it is superb. An integrated webcam wasn't a deal breaker for me however I was really impressed with the clarity of the picture - and it has a built in microphone for can be used for skype/video conferencing.

The 5 in 1 card reader is a sinch to use and again the pictures look amazing on the display.

With the Dolby Home Theatre sound system with subwoofer the sound quality is impressive. A nice touch is that there is volume toggle on the front of the case which gives means you don't have to go into the Windows utility to change the volume. The combination of the sound and display really gives the laptop an extra dimension of being a portable DVD player - which is handy as it will be coming with us on a holiday to Florida to keep our 2 year old entertained!

I was concerned with various reviews I had read regarding the quality of the keyboard however I can't fault it. The keys feel sturdy without much travel which assists those who like to type fast.


There are three main battery profiles along with a custom option. I am using the balanced profile and have achieved over 2 hours use each time however the supporting documentation says the battery life improves after several full charge/drain cycles. 

Apart from the technology its also aesthetically pleasing. The top of the case is glossy black and whilst this will show up any scratches it picks up over its lifetime it looks brilliant. The inside of the laptop is a creamy white which gives it quite a warm appearance and also helps when typing in low light conditions. I was concerned about the inside colour when I ordered it however I would actually include this criteria in future purchases as a plus point.

Basically I can't fault this laptop at all and for the price its simply a steal and I would highly recommend it.

Zoostorm 3390-2012/A

The Zoostorm 3390-2012/A is a good looking laptop, with a subtly lined black and grey chassis. While it's certainly not the thinnest laptop we've seen – the new MacBook Air can sleep easy in that department – it's not bulky either, and it's perfectly easy to carry around.

The laptop's chassis does feel slightly cheap and brittle, lacking the sturdiness of the Sony VAIO S Series VPCSB1V9E's build quality.

As we've seen with other laptops, the inclusion of Intel's second-generation Core i3, i5 and i7 processors gives them a big power advantage. The Zoostorm is no exception, and the model we tested comes with an Intel Core i3-2310 2.10GHz processor.

Fast, but let down by a tiny hard drive

Backed up by 4GB of DDR3 RAM, this makes the Zoostorm 3390-2012/A a fast and responsive laptop that's excellent at multitasking. Boosting performance even further is the inclusion of a solid state drive that drastically cuts down the time it takes for the laptop to boot into Windows 7.

Microsoft has designed its OS to take advantage of SSD technology, and this is evident in its sheer speed. The technology comes at a premium though, and the model we reviewed – which costs £479 – comes with only 64GB of storage. With Windows 7 Home Premium and the default programs installed there's only 34GB of hard drive space left. If you need more then you'll need to either use an external hard drive or opt for the 128GB model, which costs £549.

The only area where the Zoostorm 3390-2012/A is let down by its hardware is in the graphics department. Whilst the onboard graphics that come with second Intel Core processors is perfectly capable, it can't compete with laptops that have dedicated GPUs. The Zoostorm's 3DMark score was 7,564, compared with the Sony VAIO S Series' 12,230

Toshiba Satellite L755D-12L

The dark red finish isn't quite to our taste, we'd have to admit, but the Toshiba Satellite L755D-12L is certainly distinctive. And no matter whether it's pink, orange, purple or turquoise there's no disguising the fact that the Satellite is a very respectable laptop indeed.

The Toshiba Satellite L755D-12L's WorldBench 6 performance score of 79 is slightly underwhelming, admittedly, though the quad-core AMD A6-3400 APU chips do seem to be somewhat behind the Intel Core i3s and i5s in the performance stakes so it is not an unsurprising score. There's a generous 6GB of RAM and a slightly less generous 320GB hard disk on offer, too, but the Toshiba really comes into its own as a gaming machine. Notching up frame rates of 17fps in FEAR at maximum settings is a pretty decent achievement and is thanks to the integrated AMD Radeon HD 6520G chip working in tandem with the quad-core processor, using up to 3GB of the system's RAM.

Battery life is perfectly respectable, with 334 minutes of juice at your disposal on a full charge, and at 2.5kg the Toshiba Satellite L755D-12L isn't too much of a problem to carry around with you, even for long periods. If you need to work while you're on the move the keyboard is decent without being outstanding – the keys touch each other and there isn't quite as much travel as we'd like. The touchpad is very discrete – you'll only really know where it is because of the change in texture as it is at the same level as the rest of the chassis, meaning there are no little crevices for crumbs to get stuck in.

The screen is impressive, with deep, rich colours and sharp definition. Like just about all of the other laptops in the group test it is glossy, but an anti-glare coating takes the edge off the reflections.

One slightly disconcerting thing we noticed about the Toshiba Satellite L755D-12L is that when you press the power button to turn it on, there is an eerie silence – no fans spring in to life, no light comes on under the power button, there's no beeping noise and the screen stays dark for several seconds. This means you can think that you've not pressed hard enough, and press again, switching the unit off. This is a minor quibble though.

Alienware M18x

The Alienware M18x is a desktop replacement notebook in the truest sense — it’s powerful enough to replace a desktop workstation, but it’s also as big and as heavy as a desktop PC. It’s exceedingly powerful and has the ability to handle almost any current-day computing task possible. It’s also very well kitted out in terms of integrated ports, and the screen andkeyboard are excellent.

Alienware M18x: Design and setup

When we unpacked the Alienware M18x, we were astonished with its sheersize. We’d seen it before on the Area 52 roadshow, but with other laptops like the Apple MacBook Proon hand as a point of reference the M18x does expose itself as a behemoth. It’s 55mm thick, more than double theMacBook and far, far thicker than the new Intel Ultrabook family.

The Alienware M18x has the most input and output ports we’ve ever seen on a notebook. Four USB ports — two of them USB 2.0 and two 3.0 — and a single combination USB-eSATA socket join an SD card port, ExpressCard/54 slot andDVD-RW (or optional Blu-ray) drive in making up the expandable storage options, while video and audio I/O are covered with HDMI out and in, VGA, miniDisplayPort, SPDIF digital audio output and headphone and microphone jacks. The HDMI input is especially valuable — you could plug in a gaming console or even a second laptop to use the M18x’s high quality screen for display.

The Alienware M18x is exceptionally well constructed. Aluminium and high-quality rubberised plastics make up the majority of the M18x’s body, and there is absolutely no flex when twisting either the screen or the chassis itself. The keyboard is large with spacious, well laid-out keys that are excellently weighted for either typing or gaming, and the multitouch trackpad is large with the best left- and right-click buttons that we’ve used on a laptop.
The 16:9 Full HD screen of the Alienware M18x is glossy, but it’s excellent. It is vibrant and very detailed and has wide vertical and viewing angles, and in anything but direct daylight it performs very well. It’s a slight pity that a matte screen isn’t an option, though.

The M18x comes with Windows 7 Home Premium, although you’ll need to shell out for Ultimate or Professional if you want to use 32GB of RAM. A range of extra Dell and third-party software is preinstalled as well.

Alienware M18x: Specs and performance

The Alienware M18x we tested was a mid-range specification, but you can build one to order on Alienware’s site that is even more of a performance beast. Our test unit had a second generation Intel Core i7 processor, the 2720QM. 16GB of RAM was installed but you can fit up to 32GB, and you can similarly swap the twin 750GB hard drives in our test mule for two 256GB solid state drives in a RAID configuration. We tested twin Radeon HD 6790M graphics processors in our M18x but the latest incarnation has dual power-hungry Radeon HD 6990M or Geforce GTX 580M chips.

In a laptop chassis, even a big one like the M18x’s, all this equipment makes an impressive statement. Our Alienware M18x was around the $3299 entry-level price tag (yep, that’s as cheap as they get), but a fully-specced up M18x with top-of-the-line processor, dual graphics, dual solid state hard drives and RAM will lighten your wallet by a full $8249 (and change, but what’s another 40 cents).

In any case, the Alienware M18x blitzed our performance tests. It managed a result of 20 seconds flat to create our test Blender file, and iTunes media encoding was equally fast at a blistering 37 seconds. The M18x’s 3DMark06 score of 22411 is amazing — it’s roughly twice as high as the next most powerful result in our 2011 notebook performance chart. This notebook is no slouch, and you can customise it to be even more powerful.

See how the Alienware M18x performs compared to other laptops.

Switching between the M18x’s discrete dual graphics cards and the integrated Intel graphics requires a full system restart — a minute-long wait for the purpose of power-saving — which makes it a bit of a cumbersome process. We don’t expect many users to take the M18x away from their desks, so this isn’t a huge problem.

The fans of the Alienware M18x do get a good workout when the notebook is being used for 3D gaming. When we booted up Steam and tried out Tropico 4, Space Marine, Dead Island and Deus Ex: Human Revolution, the slightly-whiny exhaust fan was an ever-present accompaniment. Although the speakers are good, Alienware should consider shipping noise-cancelling gaming headphones with the M18x.

We’re not sure what to think about the battery life of the Alienware M18x. It’s definitely not a good result at 2hr 1min in our battery torture test (where we disable all power-saving, maximise screen brightness, turn on Wi-Fi and loop a DVD movie), but given the size and power of the M18x we’re inclined to think it’s impressive nonetheless. We ran the test with the full-fat Radeon graphics enabled, because changing to the low-power integrated Intel HD chipset requires a restart. If you’re looking to wring as much life out of the M18x as possible we think you could crack the three hour mark with brightness down and power saving on. The M18x’s internal battery is a 12-cell that can be replaced.

Alienware M18x: Conclusion

The Alienware M18x is, for a laptop, incredibly powerful. It’s also incredibly bulky, incredibly heavy, and incredibly expensive. It’s just an incredible machine.

Cooling Pad N200

Anyone who's used a laptop for more than 10 minutes at a stretch will agree that it's a gross misnomer. You can't use one on your lap to play a game of solitaire without risking a Kapura Fry. However, it's not just your family jewels at stake. Place the laptop on your bed, and the pliant surface suffocates the vents, which in turn puts your expensive hardware under potentially catastrophic thermal stress. Unless you intend to use your laptop as an expensive desktop replacement, it's wise to invest in a decent laptop cooler. That's why we called in Logitech's latest Cooling Pad N200 for review.
A single fan design may not be powerful, but it's silent

Design And Build Quality
Unlike its confounding cousins - the Cooling Pad N120 (Rs 1195) and Cooling Pad N100 (Rs 1545) - which exhibit identical features and specifications yet different prices, the N200 sports significant revisions; the most important being the inclusion of a padded base sporting a breathable mesh. This gives the cooler an edge over its plasticky counterparts. The N200 is a pleasure to use, thanks to its light weight and soft padding that prevents sweat even in humid climates.

The cooler can house laptops up to a 16" screen size. A protrusion along the bottom edge, along with a pair of rubber bushes at the top, arrests your laptop from sliding down. That means you can use it at an angle without a sweat. The quality of plastics is disappointing, though. Logitech should have employed better materials than the hard, shiny, and evidently cheap plastics used with the N200. The slats on the bottom vent are thin, flimsy, and liable to break if inadvertently sandwiched between the weight of the laptop and a protrusion of some kind.

Cable management is a great addition.

The cooler features nifty cable management through multiple channels housing the USB cable, flush with the chassis during both storage and operation. The cable emerges from the centre and can be routed through the channels on either side. This is a godsend if the USB ports are occupied on one side.

The two-speed fan controller.

The aerodynamics are well thought out in the N200. A hollowed-out bottom ensures adequate airflow even if you place the cooling pad on the bed. Air is sucked in from the bottom and dissipated through vents that force cool air all round the base. However, a single fan design focuses only on the centre of the laptop, as opposed to twin fan coolers that employ a dedicated fan to cool the hot exhaust vent, which usually lies at the top-left hand side. The upside of the N200's design though is whisper-quiet operation. If things get hotter, you can switch between high and low cooling modes using the two-speed, in-line fan controller. The fan purrs along at this setting, but that's hardly noticeable over the laptop exhaust fan, which will anyway be roaring away at full blast.

A concave bottom helps maintain good airflow.

Testing And Performance
The test setup employed a 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5-520M bearing ASUS B53F-A1B laptop, stress-tested with three instances of SuperPI and one of FurMark thermally torturing the CPU and GPU respectively. I started off by letting the uncooled laptop idle for 10 minutes while noting the temperature readings on the bottom and top surfaces of the laptop at regular intervals. This was followed by another 10 minutes of stress-testing sans the cooler, after which I installed the N200 and set it to full blast, then noted the temperature variations over the next 15 minutes.

A quick gander at the line graph shows that the N200 does its job well, managing to cool the laptop's bottom surface down considerably. The rise in CPU temperature was brought down by 6 degrees, but the topside continued to rise steadily. However, that's more a laptop design flaw than one in the N200. It not only does a fine job of arresting thermal instability, but also brings the chassis and CPU temperatures down significantly.

The test setup.

Conclusion
Subjective testing validated the numbers observed above. The combination of soft cushioning and a breathable mesh pattern provides excellent thermal insulation, while delivering a comfortable and sweat-free mobile computing experience. The N200 could have employed better quality materials, while a second fan would have brought the temperatures down a wee-bit further. Nevertheless, it performs on par with any single fan cooler in this price range. A discreet fan ensures that it cools like a ninja, but is a lot more comfortable.

It's important to note that our stress test shows the worst case scenario. While CPU temps of 80 degrees C aren't desirable, the N200 will keep your laptop safely under the threshold, when it would otherwise have faced a thermal shutdown. During normal operating conditions, I found the cooling pad quite a pleasure to use. Considering Logitech's haphazard pricing logic (oh, the irony!) as evidenced earlier, the N200 is the laptop cooler to go for in this price range.


Performance: 3.5/5
Design And Build Quality: 3/5
Features: 3.5/5
Value: 3/5
Mojo: 4/5