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Are you hip to DVD--or even want to be? Almost all notebook vendors now offer models equipped with next-generation DVD-ROM players whose 4.7GB discs hold seven times the capacity of a CD-ROM. Unfortunately, a dearth of business applications on DVD-ROM makes the option too extravagant for most companies that outfit their employees with portable PCs.

Right now movie watching and gaming are about the only uses for a DVD-ROM drive on a laptop. But as prices of built-in DVD-ROM drives drop to as low as $150, buying a notebook with one becomes a reasonable investment. Then when a killer DVD app comes along, you'll be ready.

DVD-ROM drives used for movie watching require an MPEG-2 decoder. Until recently, the picture quality offered by software decoders lagged noticeably behind the image quality produced by hardware decoders. But today's faster processors, such as the Celeron-333, significantly improve playback from software decoders, which are easier to upgrade than hardware alternatives.

Most Flexible Notebook

Of the eight new notebooks we tested this month, three made the grade. Fujitsu's $2599 LifeBook E360 debuts as the least expensive laptop on our power chart; the model's two multipurpose bays also make it the most configurable.

On the budget side, don't let the ChemBook 7200's cheesy appearance fool you: Weighing in at a light 6.9 pounds, this number-three portable packs some nice surprises for a $1469 notebook, such as an easy-to-use keyboard. Lastly, Micron's TransPort Trek2, powered by Intel's Celeron-333 processor, offers hot performance and desktop replacement possibilities for just over $2000.