The Incredible Shrinking Laptop

Three Incredibly Shrunken Laptops

Fujitsu LifeBook U810 Convertible Laptop

• Type: Ultraportable laptop
• PCW Rating: 70 (Good)
• Recent low price online: $989

The big deal: Fujitsu offers some of the smallest, thinnest, and lightest portables available. The LifeBook U810, which Fujitsu calls a "mini-notebook," is one of its tiniest, a convertible tablet PC with a 5.6-inch screen. The device runs Windows Vista Business Edition. It weighs merely 1.5 pounds and measures only 6.5 by 5 by 1 inches--just a bit smaller in size than a trade-paperback copy of The Catcher in the Rye.

Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a biometric fingerprint reader, and slots for SD and CompactFlash cards are included. Battery life in our tests was good, lasting for 4 hours, 30 minutes.

The shortcomings: Our test unit included a 40GB hard drive, bigger than the drives of some other supersmall PCs but probably not enough capacity for most mobile professionals. You get only one USB port. And the performance of our test machine was slooooow: The LifeBook U810 received a WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 19--the lowest score we'd seen as of our November 2007 testing of this device.

The screen's native resolution of 1024 by 600 pixels makes reading text and seeing icons extremely difficult. For touch typists, the cramped keyboard just won't do (though you can use the included stylus or your finger for input on the touch screen).

With online prices starting around $989, this model is among the pricier supersmall portables, though much less expensive than Sony's VAIO Micro PC VGN-UX390N. Also, you'll need an external USB optical drive for CDs and DVDs; Fujitsu's model is $149.

The big picture: Tablet PC connoisseurs with Superman's vision and Job's patience may appreciate the LifeBook U810. Other buyers should keep looking.

FlipStart 1.0 PC (also known as the FlipStart E-1001S)

• Type: Ultramobile PC
• PCW Rating: 78 (Good)
• Current online price: $699

The big deal: The tiny FlipStart is a handheld PC with a shrinking price tag. Just last April, the FlipStart retailed for $2000; it now sells for $699.

The FlipStart features a 5.6-inch, 1024-by-600-resolution wide-screen LCD. Measuring just 5.9 by 4.5 by 1.35 inches, the device is even smaller than the LifeBook U810. You can use a track stick and a mini-touchpad for input, and a BlackBerry-like jog wheel handles navigation.

You also get a 1.3-megapixel still/video camera, plus built-in support for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and--something not many crazy-small PCs have--Sprint's Mobile Broadband data service. In addition, the unit has an InfoPane with a 2-inch LCD for quickly checking your Outlook inbox, calendar items, and other information without opening the device. You can choose between Windows XP Professional and Vista Business Edition for your operating system. And in our tests the FlipStart's battery lasted 3 hours, 40 minutes on one charge.

The shortcomings: The FlipStart has a 30GB hard drive, though a similar competitor, the OQO Model 02, has a roomy 60GB drive option. (The OQO earned a PCW Rating of 73, a mark that's five points lower than the FlipStart's score.)

The 1.1-GHz Pentium M ULV CPU and 512MB of RAM earned the FlipStart a low WorldBench 5 score of 57. Touch typing isn't really feasible on such a small device. You'll need reading glasses with Coke-bottle lenses to make out the small text and icons on screen, too, though the FlipStart offers a display zoom feature.

The big picture: Are you a business professional who doesn't want to carry a laptop but worries that a BlackBerry or Treo isn't enough to handle basic productivity tasks on the go? The FlipStart's low price might make it worth your while.

Asus Eee PC

• Type: Ultraportable laptop
• PCW Rating: No rating
• Recent low prices online: $300 (for 2GB version) and $350 (for 4GB model)

The big deal: Asus's ultrasmall laptop became an overnight success in fall 2007. Why the fuss? The Eee PC is among the first laptops ever to combine ultraportability (weighing just 2 pounds) with low cost ($300 to $400). Traditionally, most ultraportable laptops of 3 pounds or less have cost well over $1000.

The Eee has some fashion sense, too: It's available in white, black, blue, or green. Though current models run a version of Linux OS, Asus has announced that an Eee PC will be available this quarter with Windows XP preinstalled. Even so, you can install Windows XP on the current Linux models if you want. But with included applications such as Mozilla Firefox for Web browsing and OpenOffice for word processing and spreadsheets, the Eee PC doesn't need anything extra installed for you to be productive.

The shortcomings: Asus refers to the Eee as a "mobile Internet gadget." Though it's more than that, its low-end specs pretty much limit the device to e-mail and to basic word processing and Web surfing. The more expensive models have just 4GB of storage (solid-state memory); only 512MB RAM; a basic, generic Intel Mobile Processor; and a smallish, low-res display (7 inches).

The Eee's interface, with its tiny icons, can be confusing as well. Also, though Asus has pretty much had the low-cost ultraportable market to itself, competitors are nipping at its heels. And the keyboard may be too small for some touch typists.

Before you buy an Eee PC, check out the new Everex Cloudbook ($400), soon to be available in Wal-Mart stores and on WalMart.com, Newegg.com, and other sites.

The big picture: Students and other people who want an inexpensive, ultralight portable and don't need many bells and whistles may like the Eee PC. Business executives may not find the trade-offs worth it.

Two More for the Road

Sony VAIO Micro PC VGN-UX390N

• Type: Ultramobile PC
• PCW Rating: 80 (Very Good)
• Lowest online pricing: $1599

Just a bit larger than a BlackBerry, the Sony Micro PC weighs about 1.2 pounds and measures approximately 6 by 4 by 1.5 inches. This well-equipped computer has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and support for AT&T's EDGE cellular data network; a 0.3-megapixel camera in the front and a 1.3-megapixel camera in the back; and a fingerprint scanner. Connect this baby to an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse, and you have a decent desktop. But the 4.5-inch screen is too small for easy viewing, and the keyboard is too tiny for touch typists.

Samsung Q1 Ultra-V

• Type: Ultramobile PC
• PCW Rating: 73 (Good)
• Lowest online pricing: $775

Samsung has targeted business professionals in its ads for this UMPC. But we find the Q1 Ultra-V hard to use, due to its tiny and awkwardly placed keys, mediocre screen resolution, and slow processor. Measuring 9 by 5.5 by 1.25 inches and weighing 1.5 pounds, this PC can easily accompany you anywhere. The crisp, 7-inch-wide touch screen is bright enough for indoor or outdoor use, and the device offers long battery life--4.5 hours in our informal test.