Dell XPS 15 is a laptop featuring the new Intel Core i7 Sandy Bridge processor and the system runs fast because of this. For the keyboard, Dell has changed the design, it is not flat with raised key surfaces. Instead, Dell has give it a nicer look this time but it isn’t more ergonomic as compared to the predecessors. Above the keyboard, there is a settings button which launches pop-up of the useful controls which range from the battery mode to Bluetooth. This is really cool and I would like to see such shortcuts in other laptops too. There is one more button which you can customize for launching any program and the third one shows up fine-tuning controls for Waves MaxxAudio system which runs through JBL speakers. The onscreen dock of the Dell XPS 15 is a lot like that found on the Mac OS  [...]

Gateway has been largely benefitted by getting owned by Acer, just now we heard that the company has launched their all new laptop. The freshly launched Gateway NV75S02u is a 17.3 inch laptop and is powered by AMD Radeon. The all new Gateway NV75S02u gets our attention for more than one reason of just being a new offering from Gateway, some of the reason why we are interested in the NV75S02u includes the fact that it is not being powered by a Intel processor; secondly it boasts a huge 17.3 in display screen and has a price tag of under $600, and if you are buying the system from Amazon then you even could get it for free. There’s no denying the fact that Gateway had their fair share of problems in the past, and the customers don’t forget such things this soon. Happily, this isn’t the  [...]

It is hard to find a phone that is both compelling and baffling. There have been rumors about Acer Iconia for some time in the market and the manufacturer has finally spilled some details about it. It is also called ‘Touchbook’ and the tablet will have two touch screens. The gadget will arrive in US by next month. Under the hood, there is a Core i5 processor, Windows 7 and there are two inches of 14 inch size which is really strong. These screens are more gestures and typing and they support multitouch interface too. The dual screen system used here is totally new and I am excited to see what it is all about. There is something called ring interface through which you can use your claw for selecting the items on the system and for spinning the onscreen pictures. There is also an onscreen  [...]

Lenovo ThinkPad X220 is a business laptop and the manufacturer hasn’t made a lot of changes in the design as compared to the predecessor. The screen size has been bumped up from 12 inches to 12.5 inches and this size is not found too often in laptops. The keyboard has older style buttons which are placed closely to one another. They are wider at bottom and slightly taper on the top. The design is the same as that on traditional desktop keyboards but I would like to see some changes done here as this style is getting extinct. It took me some time to get used to chunky feel and deep strokes of Lenovo ThinkPad X220 but typing got really comfortable after the learning curve ended. Lenovo invests a lot on keyboard research but it really show, does it? I would like to see island type keyboard similar  [...]

Toshiba Satellite L350 is made for business professionals. Right now, the laptop industry has plenty of designer size laptop and trendy fashions which can easily fit your budget. However, the Toshiba Satellite L350 isn’t one of them, it is a desktop replacement laptop made for home use only. The weight of this system is nine and half pounds and this beast is not easy to carry around on your shoulders. Toshiba Satellite L350 has a typical professional look with the plastic casing along with black and dull gray finish. There are no real bells and whistles used for the design and this is something that fashion enthusiasts will scoff at. Underneath is the touch pad, there is indent which makes it simple to find in dark. But the two mouse buttons underneath this track pad are not located exactly  [...]

In the Apple’s line up of high end laptops, the 13 inch MacBook Pro is the most affordable one. The 15 inch version is supercharged and the price starts at astronomical $1,799 but the 13 inch model is relatively affordable at $1,199 and most of the consumers are likely to consider it first. The size is ideal and I have always considered the 13 inch model to the sweet spot when it comes to laptops since they are easy to carry around. The big question here is: does this smaller MacBook Pro has the processing power that wasn’t seen on the last year’s model? The answer to that question is yes. The new Apple MacBook now gets a state of the art processor and this is what I was waiting for since a long time. The upgrade comes with the next generation Intel Core i-series processors. Apple MacBook  [...]

HP EliteBook Mobile Workstation 8540w is a rugged laptop made for people who work in accident prone areas. The chassis is really tough and is made up of magnesium alloy along with anodized aluminum surfaces that can stand scratches. The hinges too are really strong, they are made up of metal allow and have hardened steel pin axles. The screen can handle a pressure of 300 pounds and the keyboard and touchpad are spill resistant. The 15.6 inch (diagonal) screen has 1,920×1,080 pixels native resolution and the manufacturer has used an IPS (in-plane-switching) panel instead of standard TN (twisted nematic) panel. IPS gives you better picture quality but these screen come at a premium. Average display has 262,000 colors with 18-bit color accuracy but this one has 10 bit per color channel and  [...]

Asus UL80JT is a 14 inch laptop with a ULV version of the chip and Nvidia Optimus graphics technology. If you are expecting great battery life from this laptop because of these two components then you will be bitterly disappointed. There are Altec Lansing speakers situated underneath the keyboard which gives mediocre sound quality and it is nowhere close to that of Alienware M11x. Altec Lansing speakers are usually quite good but these speakers were disappointing. There is also a 0.3 megapixel Webcam above the screen which is pretty basic. On the bright side, I was impressed by the fact that the manufacturer managed to squeeze in a good collection of ports on the thin chassis of Asus UL80JT. You get DVD burner, three USB 2.0 ports and an HDMI out. There is no ExpressCard slot and the notebook  [...]

Dell Inspiron M101z is a step up sibling to the Dell Mini Netbook family. At 11 inches sizes, it is a bit bigger than your typical Netbook. It also puts the product somewhere between a Netbook and an ultra portable laptop. In terms of looks, the M101z looks quite similar to other 11 inch Atom Netbooks that I have seen in the past. Dell has put a dual core AMD chip in here which makes the laptop faster than an average Netbook. Apart from that, this system comes with a Windows Premium operating system and four GB RAM. These two specs certainly take the laptop out of the typical Netbook category and the performance too is better than an average Netbook. Design of the Dell Inspiron M101z is pretty similar to other Netbooks that you have in the market. The manufacturer has put in a hinge forward  [...]

Dell Inspiron is a big name in mainstream laptop market and maybe it is because these notebooks are relatively inexpensive as compared to others. Dell also gives tons of configuration options for these laptops and you can buy according to your needs. These systems are also called as jack of all trades and master of none because they are versatile and yet don’t specialize at anything in particular. Dell Inspiron 14R is the latest Inspiron installement from Dell and these systems look quite similar to the Dell Studio siblings. The best part about this device is the configuration options, you can choose from 14 to 17 inch screen size. Thus you can either make this laptop low end or high end according to your budget. My review model had Intel Core i3 chip and ATI 5470 graphic card. This configuration  [...]