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Top 15 Notebook PCs

New thin-and-light models from Lenovo, Fujitsu,WinBook, and Dell sweep the top four spots on our ultraportables list this month.

Lisa Cekan

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TravelMate 8100 PCW Rating: 86.0PCW Rating: 86.0PCW Rating: 86.0

Last Rated: June 24, 2005

1. Acer TravelMate 8100

2-GHz Pentium M 760 processor, 15.4-inch wide screen, 7.6 pounds, 100GB hard drive, Double-layer DVD±RW/-RAM drive, Price when ranked: $2299

Bottom Line: Chic and pricey wide-screen model includes a DVI port for connecting the latest digital monitors.

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Thinkpad T43 Notebook Model 2687D8U (1.8GHz Pentium M Centrino, 512MB, 60GB, DVD?RW, Windows XP, 14.1 PCW Rating: 80.2PCW Rating: 80.2PCW Rating: 80.2

Last Rated: May 24, 2005

2. Lenovo Thinkpad T43 Notebook Model 2687D8U (1.8GHz Pentium M Centrino, 512MB, 60GB, DVD?RW, Windows XP, 14.1

1.86-GHz Pentium M 750 processor, 14.1-inch screen, 6.4 pounds, 60GB harddrive, DVD±RW/-RAM drive, Price when ranked: $1999

Bottom Line: This slim unit includes a handy biometric fingerprint reader as well as an ExpressCard slot.

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Inspiron 6000 (2-GHz Pentium M processor, 1GB of DDR400 DRAM) PCW Rating: 86.0PCW Rating: 86.0PCW Rating: 86.0

Last Rated: March 28, 2005

3. Dell Inspiron 6000 (2-GHz Pentium M processor, 1GB of DDR400 DRAM)

2-GHz Pentium M 760 processor, 15.4-inch wide screen, 8.4 pounds, 80GB hard drive, DVD±RW drive, Price when ranked: $2271

Bottom Line: Big laptop combines strong performance, a high native resolution of 1920 by 1200, and great speakers.

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Pavilion Dv4000 PCW Rating: 82.1PCW Rating: 82.1PCW Rating: 82.1

Last Rated: May 24, 2005

4. HP Pavilion Dv4000

1.86-GHz Pentium M 750 processor, 15.4-inch wide screen, 7.6 pounds, 80GB hard drive, Double-layer DVD±RW drive, Price when ranked: $1189

Bottom Line: Elegant 15.4-inch wide screen features an ExpressCard slot and includes a six-in-one media reader.

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Area 51-M 7700 PCW Rating: 79.0PCW Rating: 79.0PCW Rating: 79.0

Last Rated: June 24, 2005

5. Alienware Area 51-M 7700

3.6-GHz Pentium 4 560J processor, 17.0-inch wide screen, 14.8 pounds, 120GB hard drive, DVD±RW drive, Price when ranked: $3214

Bottom Line: Heavy laptop has a built-in camera, optional dual RAID hard drives, and a built-in cable TV connection.

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HP Compaq NC8230 PCW Rating: 76.0PCW Rating: 76.0PCW Rating: 76.0

Last Rated: March 28, 2005

6. Compaq HP Compaq NC8230

2-GHz Pentium M 760 processor, 15.4-inch wide screen, 7.3 pounds, 60GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, Price when ranked: $2164

Bottom Line: Classy-looking model has a quick-launch presentation button and an extremely high-resolution screen.

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ThinkPad R52 PCW Rating: 75.0PCW Rating: 75.0PCW Rating: 75.0

Last Rated: May 24, 2005

7. Lenovo ThinkPad R52

1.73-GHz Pentium M 740 processor, 14.1-inch screen, 7.0 pounds, 40GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, Price when ranked: $1379

Bottom Line: This model's fine keyboard has dual pointing devices, and its modular bay accepts many optional drives.

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CL5620 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: January 25, 2005

8. Micro Express CL5620

2-GHz Pentium M 755 processor, 15.0-inch screen, 7.2 pounds, 60GB hard drive, DVD±RW drive, Price when ranked: $1599

Bottom Line: Elegant-looking laptop sports a beautiful high-resolution screen and an ultrafirm keyboard.

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ChemBook 2070 PCW Rating: 75.0PCW Rating: 75.0PCW Rating: 75.0

Last Rated: July 29, 2005

9. Chem USA ChemBook 2070

2-GHz Pentium M 760 processor, 15.4-inch wide screen, 7.6 pounds, 60GB hard drive, Double-layer DVD±RW drive, Price when ranked: $1769

Bottom Line: High-resolution wide screen with optional TV tuner makes an excellent stand-alone CD and DVD player.

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Satellite R15-S822 Tablet PC (1.6GHz Pentium M Centrino 725, 512MB, 60GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Tablet PC, 14.1 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: May 24, 2005

10. Toshiba Satellite R15-S822 Tablet PC (1.6GHz Pentium M Centrino 725, 512MB, 60GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Tablet PC, 14.1

1.6-GHz Pentium M 725 processor, 14.1-inch screen, 7.0 pounds, 60GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, Price when ranked: $1599

Bottom Line: Convertible tablet is a bit heavy to carry around easily, but its 14.1-inch screen offers lots of room to write.

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ThinkPad X41 Notebook Model 25285FU (1.5GHz Pentium M Centrino 758, 512MB DDR2, 40GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Pro, 12.1 PCW Rating: 79.0PCW Rating: 79.0PCW Rating: 79.0

Last Rated: July 29, 2005

11. Lenovo ThinkPad X41 Notebook Model 25285FU (1.5GHz Pentium M Centrino 758, 512MB DDR2, 40GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Pro, 12.1

1.5-GHz Pentium M LV 758 processor, 12.1-inch screen, 4.0 pounds, 40GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive (external), Price when ranked: $2049

Bottom Line: Updated 3-pound ultraportable now comes with a biometric fingerprint reader for extra security.

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LifeBook P7010D Notebook (1.2GHz Pentium M 753, 512MB, 60GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Pro, 10.6 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: July 29, 2005

12. Fujitsu LifeBook P7010D Notebook (1.2GHz Pentium M 753, 512MB, 60GB, DVD/CD-RW, Windows XP Pro, 10.6

1.2-GHz Pentium M Low Voltage 753 processor, 10.6-inch wide screen, 4.2 pounds, 80GB hard drive, Double-layer DVD±RW/-RAM drive, Price when ranked: $1899

Bottom Line: Full-featured laptop delivers long battery life but has a frustrating keyboard and an undersize screen.

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X512 PCW Rating: 73.0PCW Rating: 73.0PCW Rating: 73.0

Last Rated: July 29, 2005

13. WinBook X512

1.5-GHz Pentium M 715 processor, 12.1-inch wide screen, 5.6 pounds, 40GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, Price when ranked: $1163

Bottom Line: This unit has an elegant Media Center Edition knockoff app and makes a dandy stand-alone DVD player.

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Dell Latitude X1 Notebook Computer. Intel Pentium M Processor 733 (1.10GHz ULV) 12.1in WXGA Display. 512MB DDR2 400MHz SDRAM, (256MB Integrated) 2 DIMMs, 60GB Hard Drive, 8MM, 4200RPM. PCW Rating: 69.4PCW Rating: 69.4PCW Rating: 69.4

Last Rated: July 29, 2005

14. Dell Dell Latitude X1 Notebook Computer. Intel Pentium M Processor 733 (1.10GHz ULV) 12.1in WXGA Display. 512MB DDR2 400MHz SDRAM, (256MB Integrated) 2 DIMMs, 60GB Hard Drive, 8MM, 4200RPM.

1.1-GHz Pentium M ULV 733 processor, 12.0-inch wide screen, 4.4 pounds, 60GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive (external), Price when ranked: $2051

Bottom Line: Lightweight ultraportable offers a sharp 12.1-inch widescreen and has a dedicated CompactFlash slot.

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W5A PCW Rating: 73.3PCW Rating: 73.3PCW Rating: 73.3

Last Rated: June 24, 2005

15. ASUS W5A

1.73-GHz Pentium M 740 processor, 12.1-inch wide screen, 5.0 pounds, 40GB hard drive, DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, Price when ranked: $1649

Bottom Line: This cream-colored model has an easy-to-use, built-in camera for still shots and video but has poor sound.

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All systems are tested or retested under our WorldBench 5 test suite.

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