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Editors' Note: We updated this review on May 4 with the results of the new SYSmark 2007 Preview tests. The update is included below.
Your PC is old and takes up half your desktop. Time for an upgrade, right? But if you've spent the last six months thinking about a space-saving desktop replacement laptop, you've also been aware that buying before Vista rolled out might be a mistake. Now you don't have to wait. The Dell Inspiron E1705 (Vista), priced at $1,715 (direct), is one of many laptops launching this week with Windows Vista Home Premium, the long-awaited upgrade to Windows XP Professional. I think it's safe to say that it's one of the most affordable desktop replacement laptops of its size (17-inch widescreen) on the market. Still, though the Vista OS serves up a flashy new interface, the outside could use a facelift.
Spec Data
- Type: Media
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
- Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T7200
- Processor Speed: 2 GHz
- RAM: 2 GB
- Weight: 8 lb
- Screen Size: 17 inches
- Screen Size Type: widescreen
- Graphics Card: ATI Mobility Radeon X1400
- Storage Capacity: 120 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11a/g
- Primary Optical Drive: DVD+R DL
SideShow is one of the most intriguing features found in Microsoft Windows Vista because it lets any laptop manufacturer add a secondary display (ideally on the lid) for you to get quick access to your e-mail, photos, calendar information, and music files. And that's just scratching the surface. A year ago, the ASUS W5fe ($2,200 street)—an ultraportable—was deeply ingrained in everyone's head when it debuted at a Microsoft event. It was officially announced at CES 2007 in Las Vegas. Now it's time for some hands-on testing (with the same system Microsoft demonstrated at CES).
Spec Data
- Type: Media, Ultraportable
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate
- Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T7400
- Processor Speed: 2.16 GHz
- RAM: 1.5 GB
- Weight: 3.9 lb
- Screen Size: 12.1 inches
- Screen Size Type: widescreen
- Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950
- Storage Capacity: 160 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11a/g
- Primary Optical Drive: DVD+R DL
Apple has long neglected the tablet community by not offering a tablet PC of its own. But now, another company has stepped into the breach with its take on a Mac-based tablet PC. The Axiotron Modbook ($2,629 list) is certain to pique the interest of Mac-based graphics designers and illustrators who prefer to work with a pen rather than a keyboard. Axiotron literally took an Apple MacBook 13-inch (Core 2 Duo), ripped off the lid, and fused a Wacom digitizer screen to the chassis. The Modbook is a slate tablet (rather than a convertible tablet that would have had the benefit of an integrated keyboard), but it's a better alternative to plugging a Wacom device into an Apple computer. This slate tablet doesn't come cheap, though, and it's available only through Other World Computing, an online Mac retailer.
Spec Data- Type: Gaming, Media
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate
- Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T7200
- Processor Speed: 2 GHz
- RAM: 2 GB
- Weight: 7.7 lb
- Screen Size: 17 inches
- Screen Size Type: widescreen
- Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce Go 7900GTX
- Storage Capacity: 160 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11a/g
- Primary Optical Drive: DVD+R DL
