WinBook XL2-C400

WHAT'S HOT: With ample speed and well-chosen components, the XL2-C400 puts other budget notebooks to shame. It turned in a PC WorldBench score of 185, the fastest we've seen for a Celeron-400 notebook (though just a few points above average). This gray portable features a docking connection. The $99 optional port replicator includes parallel, serial, MIDI/joystick, PS/2 mouse, keyboard, USB, and monitor ports, and a headphone jack. The C400 also ships with a boatload of high-quality documentation (including a setup poster and electronic manual), thick port covers that won't break after a week, upgradeable memory and storage, and a quiet, comfortable keyboard. Better yet, the XL2-C400 has one of the best dual-scan displays we've ever seen. Although darker and less sharp than an active-matrix, the XL2's screen surpasses other dual-scans with its even appearance and absence of cursor trails.

WHAT'S NOT: The XL2 may not work as a laptop in the literal sense. After an hour perched on the lap, it grew uncomfortably warm and expelled a stream of hot air from the fan vent. Also, as much as we like WinBook's manuals, the indexes need an overhaul to make them useful. In our most recent survey, the company's reliability ranks only Fair, though that's an improvement over past ratings.

WHAT ELSE: The notebook comes with a fixed floppy drive and a fixed CD-ROM drive, both accessible from the front of the notebook's two-inch-thick case.

BEST USE: Consumers and small businesses who fear purchasing a sub-$1300 notebook can relax with the XL2. Just keep in mind that even a dual-scan screen as terrific as this notebook's can't match the brightness or crispness of active-matrix. WinBook offers another unit (the C-400 64/6, also reviewed this month)with the same specs and a 14.1-inch TFT active matrix screen for $1799.

SUMMARY

WinBook XL2-C400 PC WorldBench score of 185, Celeron-400, 64MB of RAM, 6.5GB hard drive, 8X-20X CD-ROM drive, 12.1-inch dual-scan screen, touchpad pointing device, 7.8-pound traveling weight. One-year warranty on parts and labor, free tech support for 13 hours on weekdays and 7 hours on Saturdays. $1299 800/965-9349 www.winbook.com