1. The first important factor before you purchase PDA is to know about the operating system (OS). There are two types of operating system, which are: Palm OS and Pocket PC. Palm OS has long life battery and wider selection of software are offered. Meanwhile, Pocket PC has a good integrated multimedia support and bigger screen dimension than Palm OS. The ability to identification handwriting and data entry is well performed and has more alternatives.
2. Prepare your budget. As we know, technology is progressing in every period, for example maybe the technology of PDA in this year will not be up to date any longer in three years later.  There fore, you should prepare how much the budget you will spend to have this PDA in this certain period of time, because on the next period you might want to buy for a new PDA that has latest technology.
3. Prepare you cost. In order to store and operate certain application, you might want to add more memory, or you want to put more software in this PDA. It all need extra cost. There are other elements that you can add into this PDA according to your need, such as multimedia competences. Ask your self what other application or factors do you need to be available in this PDA, and calculate the cost.
4. Consider about the memory. The Palm OS has minimum 32 MB internal memory and can be added with 64 MB memory card. Pocket PC has 64 MB internal memory and 64 MB memory card.
5. Each operating system has different software programs. Look and understand which operating systems that have best software according to your need.
6. For different utility of PDA will spend different amount of battery. Different operating system has different battery life time. For an intensive utility, the battery would last just four hours. But for normal utility the battery can live for 4 days. Ask for more detail about the battery lifetime for each device.
7. Commonly to work with PDA, consumers must consider about the display. Today’s PDA has high resolution and more bright colors. You should check both OS, and define which one is better for you.
8. Consider about the size, form and weight of both OS. It will depend on your taste and style that you have. Test is before you buy.

Those are numbers of guidance for you to buy PDA. Before you see the products in market, you should read from several reviews about detail specs of both OS, therefore at the time you shop and see the product you will be better informed and able to choose the best PDA for you.

Design

The Sager NP5125 is a custom notebook built on the Clevo B1500M chassis. It has a pedestrian-looking exterior with no significant design features. Little evidence suggests the designers of this notebook intended it to look attractive. The chassis has a standard rectangular shape with mildly rounded edges. The NP5125 has a light weight for its class, coming in under six pounds and about one inch thin. The construction is all-plastic. The plastic has a matte non-glare surface with the exception of the screen border, which is preferable to the glossy plastic found on many mainstream notebooks. Matte plastic is easier to keep clean and does not show dust and fingerprints as easily.

The build quality overall is unfortunately below average. The plastic is thin and feels cheap, giving the notebook a hollow feel. Some rattling noises can be produced by tapping the plastic with a fingernail. The chassis itself seems to be of reasonable strength; despite the thin plastic it does not flex when pressure is applied in most places. The chassis bends slightly when grabbed by the corners and twisted, though nothing out of the ordinary.

Screen

The NP5125 has a 15.6-inch screen with a 1080p (1920×1080) resolution and LED backlighting. The screen is definitely the highlight of this machine; it is simply gorgeous. Side-to-side viewing angles are near-perfect and there is minimal color distortion from above; from below, colors are accurate until about 20 degrees below center. The backlighting is almost perfectly even.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The NP5125 has an island-style keyboard where the keys are raised above the base. The keys have an unsophisticated plasticky feel when pressed. Fast typing is possible however typing confidence is undermined by rattling sounds; the plastic used in the construction of this notebook really lets it down here; the keyboard does not feel well-settled at all. Like the chassis, the keyboard has little flex. The keyboard would be a lot more pleasant to type on if it felt more solid.

Performance

The overall idea behind the NP5125 is to provide good performance for the money. It is already well-equipped in its base configuration. As the numbers will show, the NP5125 is a viable gaming machine and multimedia notebook.

Battery Life

Three hours and 15 minutes of battery life  using the included 6-cell 48.84Wh battery. The test was run while surfing the Internet with the screen brightness at one notch above minimum.

Conclusion

The NP5125 has its ups and downs. It offers very good performance for the money and is a capable gaming machine. The full HD display is beautiful and makes multitasking easy thanks to its high resolution; not many 15.6″ notebooks, let alone ones under $1,000, offer such a screen. Its excellent cooling system and light weight are also big pluses. A major downside is the subpar build material; the plastics used on the exterior feel fragile and the keyboard is not well-seated, which results in unpleasant rattling sounds.

The Green Electronics Council makes simple to determine green notebooks along with EPEAT, (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool). The actual device rates high laptops on their own environment impact, within supplies, packaging, energy usage, and more, utilizing discrete as well as in depth criteria. Depending on what percentage of these needs are met, the actual council gives them a Gold, Silver, or even Bronze rating.

Everything from the way the laptop is built to how it may be recycled helps a notebook move one step nearer to becoming green. These types of five factors not only help EPEAT think about how green a notebook is, however will help you as well.

1. Lower power consumption.

Energy Star rates items for energy effectiveness as well as examines laptops and their power usage. Taken into account whenever rating the notebook is the power management within three operating settings: standby, sleep, as well as in use. LED-backlit displays help reduce power draw, utilizing thirty percent much less power than traditional Lcd displays. Energy Star–compliant computer systems must also convey more effective inner power materials. You can use the actual Energy Star research tool on www.energystar.gov to look up a specific model laptop by logo and identify.

2. Use of environmentally sensitive materials.

The materials used in the actual production of a laptop are essential in evaluating it’s greenness. EPEAT often describes Europe’s RoHS (Stops associated with Harmful Substances Instruction) regular for assessing the most harmful ingredients in consumer electronics when evaluating laptops. Particularly the use of environmentally harmful supplies such as cadmium, mercury, lead, hexavalent chromium, flame retardants, plasticizers, as well as PVC are discouraged. Additionally laptop electric batteries should be free of lead, cadmium, and mercury.

3. Product life span and cycle extension.

If you buy the laptop and its particular components are outdated red carpet several weeks, you would just be creating waste materials. EPEAT prices exactly how easy it is to upgrade the notebook with parts, including RAM and hard drive, without the need associated with expert support. Additionally taken into account may be the laptop’s guarantee. The corporation requires that all notebooks have the choice of the extra three-year guarantee or even service agreement open to buyers.

4. Eco-Friendly notebook packaging.

Not only do the laptop’s supplies give rise to its greenness, but its packaging can have an impact as well. The actual loan consolidation of packaging performs to the assessment, but so do the materials those containers and protective items tend to be made from. EPEAT requirements need which heavy metals not be included to any packaging or packing component. Numerous manufacturers, including Apple as well as HP, have started using recyclable supplies to produce laptop packaging.

5. Design for end of life.

It is estimated that Americans get rid of a lot more than 19 thousand a lot of laptops annually. How individuals laptops tend to be divided and obtain recycled is part of end-of-life management evaluation. The actual greenest notebooks are the ones that don’t contain paints and films upon bigger plastic components that aren’t recyclable or reusable. EPEAT requires that laptop producers include the choice to purchase the take-back or even recycling where possible service. In addition they need exactly the same support be available for the laptop’s battery.

Capacity

So how much space do your games, media files, and documents need? High-end games such as Crysis or World of Warcraft take between 10 and 15GB of disk space. However, simulation games such as The Sims 3 tend to use 5 to 7GB. So, with a 128GB drive (a common size for SSDs), for example, you can fit all of this with room to spare:

• Operating System (depends on your operating system, including virtual memory, hibernation files, etc.)–20 to 30GB
• Applications: Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop, etc.–10GB
• Music: 5,000 Songs (approximately four minutes each)–20GB
• Photos: 3,200 images–10GB
• HD Video: 5.5 hours (approximately)–20GB
• One Large Game–15GB
• Total Memory Used–105GB

That said, the smallest notebook hard drive these days is 160GB, and it’s not difficult to find a low-cost notebook selling inside a 250 or 320GB unit.

SSD

Before upgrading your notebook’s hard drive to SSD, read reviews of any drive you may be considering. Look for a model with a good quality controller chip. If you’re buying a new notebook with an SSD built-in, you may not know the exact make and model of the SSD your notebook comes with, unless you have the notebook in front of you, or read a review from an objective source. Fortunately, most current notebook vendors use quality SSDs that have high-speed controllers from Intel, Samsung, or Toshiba.

Hard Drive

If you’re getting a notebook with a regular hard drive, speed is key. If given a choice, pick a 7,200 rpm model over 5,400 rpm, because the higher rotation speed means data transfers that are approximately 25 percent faster. Modern 7,200 rpm drives also have solid power-saving features, which means they won’t significantly impact your notebook’s battery life. Even if you don’t need all the storage space, we recommend a hard drive with at least 320GB.

External Drives

If you’re going to go external, you have two options: build your own drive, which can be cheaper (and oftentimes smaller), or buy a ready made external drive.

External drives have two ways of connecting to your notebook: USB 2.0 or FireWire (IEEE1394). Some drives offer just USB 2.0, some offer FireWire, and some offer both, and what you want is dependent on how you’re going to use the drive.

So, what if you want to assemble your own? Well, you can purchase an enclosure for 3.5″ drives, but you can also get one for 2.5″ drives. So if you’ve replaced the drive in your notebook, you can always buy an enclosure for that old one and use it as an external for added storage space. 3.5″ externals always require an external power supply, but the 2.5″ ones can often be powered off of two USB ports, so that’s food for thought if you even want your external drive mobile. But again, that’s a 2.5″ drive, so you’re sacrificing speed and capacity. Assembling an external drive is usually fairly simple and most enclosures come with good instructions.

]]> http://www.primenotebook.com/notebook-hard-drives-component-guide.html/feed 0 http://www.primenotebook.com/toshiba-tecra-a11-s3540.html http://www.primenotebook.com/toshiba-tecra-a11-s3540.html#comments Thu, 17 Jun 2010 08:28:33 +0000 tito http://www.primenotebook.com/?p=72782 Toshiba’s Tecra Series of laptops have traditionally been marketed as high-performance business laptops, designed to be capable of handling demanding tasks. Earlier this year, Toshiba announced the Tecra A11. The new Tecra A11 is thinner and lighter than its predecessor and features a 10-key numeric keypad. Designed as a desktop replacement, the Tecra A11 offers the new 2010 Intel Core processor family and a high-resolution widescreen 15.6-inch display. Some models also offer NVIDIA NVS 2100M graphics.

Design
The A11’s matte black lid is dimpled with a handsome pattern that doesn’t show fingerprints, and it continues on the deck; the bezel is also a matte black plastic, but lacks the fancy design. Overall, this a very understated look that will no doubt appeal to business users, but it lacks the panache of the HP ProBook series, which has a more elegant brushed aluminum lid. Above the keyboard are buttons for launching Toshiba’s Eco utility, outputting the screen to a projector or larger display, and volume controls. These are handy to have, but we think they would be better put to use if they offered quick access to, say, PowerPoint or some other business-centric function. Measuring 14.7 x 9.9 x 1.5 inches and weighing 5.8 pounds, the A11 is a bit too bulky to carry around; those who travel often should look elsewhere. This notebook is certainly portable enough to take to meetings, but you’ll need to keep an eye on that battery meter (more on that below).

Display
We found the Tecra’s main appeal is the large 15.6in display with its 1,366×768 resolution that makes for comfortable viewing of spreadsheets and web pages, while its size also means there is plenty of space to rest your palms while using the keyboard. This resolution is a bit low for a screen of this size, but users can obtain resolutions up to 2,048×1,536 on an external display. In terms of performance, the 2.4GHz Core i5 processor, which looks like four CPUs to the system because of Intel’s Hyperthreading technology, seemed to make little difference in normal use. That was until we tried an action such as opening a graphics-heavy PDF, which the Tecra took in its stride, while another PC we viewed it on struggled to display it, especially when scrolling up and down. The Windows Experience Index in Windows 7 rated the Tecra at just 3.9, but this result is pegged back by the performance of the Intel graphics built into the processor itself, with the processor, memory and disk subsystems all showing high scores of 5.1 and above.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The A11’s deck is large enough to comfortably fit a full keyboard and number pad. The black matte keys are of the traditional variety, had a nice textured surface, and responded well when typing. We were up to our usual speed in no time. The 3 x 1.6-inch touchpad is comfortably large, and its surface let us move around with ease. Below, the two mouse buttons (separated by a fingerprint reader) are made of a shiny metallic plastic, which makes them really stand out on the all-black deck. Despite picking up fingerprints, the buttons were large and responsive.

Battery life
Another point worth noting is the relatively poor battery life of this model. Toshiba quotes a life of four hours and 40 minutes from the 55Wh lithium ion battery, but we found that it lasted no longer than one hour and 23 minutes in our tests using the Battery Eater Pro benchmark. This suggests that, while the Tecra A11 is a good overall workhorse machine, it should be regarded as a portable computer for lugging between sites where there is mains power, rather than to be used much on batteries while travelling.

Software
As with other Toshiba models we have seen, the Tecra A11 has numerous utilities that load when the system boots. We counted no fewer than 15 in the system notification area on the taskbar, including McAfee Security Centre, Intel’s Rapid Storage Technology tool, and Toshiba’s own Tempro performance tuning tool, PC Health Monitor, Eco Utility, HDD Protecton and Fingerprint Utility for log-on. Other software installed includes a 60-day trial copy of Microsoft Office, which now requires a live internet connection to work, Toshiba ReelTime for finding recently accessed files, Toshiba Assist for technical help, and a tool for the built-in webcam, which supports resolutions up to 1,280×800 pixels.

Performance
Powered by a 2.66-GHz Intel Core i7-620M processor and 4GB of RAM (expandable to 8GB), the A11 scored a blazing 7,029 on PCMark Vantage, almost 2,800 points above the mainstream laptop average, and better than the HP EliteBook 8440w (6,975) and Apple MacBook Pro in Boot Camp (6,699), both of which utilizing the same processor and amount of RAM. The A11’s 7,200-rpm, 320GB hard drive was fast, duplicating a 4.97GB folder of multimedia in 3 minutes and 3 seconds, a rate of 27.8 MBps. That’s about 5 MBps faster than the average and just above the HP ProBook 5310m (26.2 MBps), but below the Lenovo Thinkpad SL510 (29.2 MBps). Using Oxelon Media Converter, the A11 transcoded a 114MB MPEG-4 to AVI in a blazing 48 seconds, beating the mainstream average by 16 seconds.

Style
The HP EliteBook 2540p is actually billed as an ultraportable business notebook, consequently corporations — and many buyers — anticipate a superior quality associated with materials, superb functions as well as an innovative design. HP’s other EliteBook notebooks fulfill or even exceed those anticipation, however how about the littlest member of the EliteBook loved ones? The main physique of the EliteBook 2540p is covered within the brand new “HP DuraCase” and “HP DuraFinish,” which is essentially a tough plastic material and strong the mineral magnesium metal inner shell – similar its forerunner — and strengthened by a brushed metal external spend that actually resists scratching through steel wool. The base of internet connected computers seems very strong as well as would definitely endure protrusions and bruises that other laptop computers may not. There’s absolutely no bend in the solid keyboard set. The bottom of the notebook can also be likewise rigorous as well as strong along with just a tiny amount of flex in the region instantly underneath the notebook’s eye drive.

The external spend from the display casing is actually metal, but the inner screen bezel is actually plastic. Unlike the actual 15-inch EliteBook 8540p all of us previously examined, the display cover flexes somewhat whenever significant stress is applied to the biggest market of the cover. However it is nevertheless much stronger than we usually see upon other top quality 12-inch company notebooks. Whenever HP states how the EliteBook 2540p was designed “to fulfill the actual army requirements (MIL-STD 810F) with regard to high/low temperatures and dirt,” these people mean the actual notebook should withstand many years of make use of as well as abuse. With all this particular rugged durability included in the design, you have to anticipate a trade-off, which in this case is actually weight. Some 12-inch business class notebooks suggestion the actual scale from three lbs or even less. The EliteBook 2540p has a starting weight of 3.38 pounds with a 6-cell electric battery, but the added durability more than comprises for a small pounds improve. Lastly, just as that the gray as well as african american outside and sleek style fits an expert atmosphere, so do the actual internals. The EliteBook 2540p uses 3 simple plastic covers about the bottom of the notebook (every locked in place with Phillips head screws) so the hard drive, cellular cards as well as Ram tend to be readily available with regard to quick updates. There’s a 4th small expansion slot include on the bottom of the notebook, that is for the dedicated Bluetooth greeting card. The remainder of the actual notebook interior is actually protected through Torx screws that should deter employees through playing around within their work-issued notebooks.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The secrets about the 2540p tend to be coated within HP’s DuraKey coating, which makes them scratch-resistant as well as allows for a nice, gritty finish. We were able to kind quickly, matching the all-time greatest score of eighty-eight words per minute on the Ten Thumbs Typing Check. However, we found the layout to be a little flat, whereas the X201s’ keys possess a chunkier feel that appeals in order to contact typists.

Whilst company users will value using a directing stick, we are not really fans of its concave form. We choose the somewhat convex TrackPoint upon Lenovo’s Thinkpad line. Nonetheless, all of us could move the actual cursor over the desktop along with fairly subtle actions, and we never experienced as though all of us didn’t have total control. The corresponding buttons, that have the rubbery complete, tend to be easy—but not really as well easy—to press. Actually, we quickly came to prefer while using pointing stick to the touchpad, especially because the touchpad measures a little two.7 by 1.four inches.

Features
The actual EliteBook 2540p offers an excellent port selection, however depending on the design configuration, your choices can alter. For example the design with no built-in eye drive includes a two.5-inch hard drive and an extra Hardware port.

Durability and Protection
In addition to the the mineral magnesium metal casing, scratch-resistant areas, as well as spill-resistant keyboard set, the 2540p had been examined in accordance with army specifications (MIL-STD 810G), which includes a drop check through several feet, amongst others tests. HP states the actual notebook can also endure up to 300 pounds associated with stress. Protection features include the finger marks reader, and also a 3d accelerometer that parks the hard disk head any time a fall. The actual 2540p additionally comes with a host associated with HP-branded protection tools, including HP Extra Key, which will help you get back to the computer in the event that you have forgotten your password, and also the Disk as well as File Sanitizer utilities.

Overall performance and Benchmarks
Program overall performance was excellent as well as over what you may expect to observe when compared with thin and gentle notebooks available on the market right now. The actual HP EliteBook 2540p as well as Lenovo Thinkpad X201 tend to be the smallest ‘ninja-like’ notebooks available today. All of us used the Thinkpad X201s for comparison since it gets the same Core i7-640LM processor chip. The actual quicker X201 would be equivalent to the base design 2540p, that has the quicker Core i5-540m processor chip and a 7200RPM 2.5-inch hard disk. Each versions master offering desktop-level performance in every method except 3-D performance. The actual Apple company GMA Hd images is preferable to previous generations but nonetheless lags at the rear of a dedicated images card.

The Core i7-640LM can certainly decode 720P or even 1080P video, play Hd Expensive as well as encoded films in i-tunes. The only system overall performance complaint that we found was the actual rather sluggish 1.8-inch hard disk in designs that include a good optical drive. The model i was sent for evaluate utilized a New laptop drive that peaked just below 50MB/s. Users looking for higher amounts of overall performance should probably opt for the non-optical drive set up that lets you use a standard 2.5-inch drive or configure the actual program having a SSD.

Design
While other brands have reinvented themselves several times over, Fujitsu’s business-oriented LifeBook notebooks look more or less the same as they did a few years ago. Underneath the matte black lid, which has Fujitu’s logo printed in understated gray font, the laptop features a lighter interior, including a white, pillowy keyboard and silvery palm rest (the bezel and area above the keyboard are still black, lending the interior a colorblocked effect). The palm rest is slightly bumpy, which makes the notebook look rugged, although this feature is purely cosmetic. The touchpad has a smaller circular one next to it, which we’ll elaborate on later.

More than anything, what makes the S760 look dated are the half dozen buttons above the keyboard (not to mention five LED lights and two discreet speakers). These buttons are meant to unlock the computer before the OS boots (you can choose one of up to 800,000 combinations). The idea is that these buttons aren’t connected to the keyboard, something hackers can track with keyloggers. The idea is a neat one, although aesthetically we still wish that space above the keyboard were blank.

Keyboard
Its spill resistant keyboard is a pleasure to use, and the quirky ScrollWheel is a ‘take it or leave it’ feature which you can simply ignore if it does not feel right to you. It may, though prove a useful ice-breaker in some client meetings. And you might not want to use the Web camera software in view of clients, unless you have preconfigured it to remove some of the more consumer-focussed elements.

Ports
Connectivity is good comprising VGA and HDMI video out ports, three USB 2.0 ports, and an ExpressCard/54 slot for add-in cards. An optional docking port replicator (£91 ex. VAT) provides a second mains adapter, four USB ports, an eSata port, printer and serial ports, VGA and DVI video outputs, and an Ethernet port.

Graphics & Battery Life

We wouldn’t have expected gaming to be one of this 13-inch business notebook’s strengths, but its discrete Nvidia GeForce 310M graphics card and 512MB video memory make it an excellent work-and-play machine. It notched a score of 3,787 on 3DMark06, whereas the average score for an ultraportable notebook is 1,068. Meanwhile, it ran World of Warcraft at an impressive 129 fps at 1024 x 768 resolution and a slower, but still playable 49 fps at 1366 x 768 resolution. Even in Far Cry 2, a more graphically demanding game, the S760 managed an acceptable 33 fps at 1068 x 768 resolution (slowing to 11 fps at 1366 x 768).

Although its fast hard drive, strong gaming performance, and bright display make the S760 a versatile notebook, battery life is its Achilles heel. The six-cell battery lasted just 3:06 on the LAPTOP battery test, whereas the average ultraportable lasts 5:30. The HP EliteBook 2540p and the Lenovo ThinkPad X201s have even better endurance; they lasted 6:54 and 8:31, respectively. You would get more endurance out of this system if you opted for integrated graphics instead or the modular bay battery, but the latter adds another $138 to an already expensive notebook.

Performance
Performance

By most metrics, the S760 offers better than average performance, but we have to wonder if the slight performance boost is worth the price you have to pay. Squeezed into this small machine is a 2.4-GHz Intel Core i5-520M processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 320GB, 7,200-rpm hard drive (as a business machine, it runs 32-bit Windows 7 Professional). Thanks to all these components, it blew away the category average (3,243) in the Windows benchmark PCMark Vantage with a score of 5,890. Still, we saw even higher scores from lower priced systems, such as the Lenovo ThinkPad X201s ($1,659; 6,106) and the HP EliteBook 2540p ($1,624; 6,002).

The S760’s 7,200-rpm hard drive booted in a reasonable 1:10, and transferred a 4.97GB mixed media folder at a rate of 27.2 MBps, which is slightly faster than the category average (25.3 MBps), not to mention other business-friendly ultraportables, such as the X201s (18.8 MBps), the 2540p (18.2 MBps), and the $899 Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 13 (23.5 MBps).

We had no problem carrying out our usual routine on the S760. We didn’t even notice Norton Internet Security running a full system scan in the background while we streamed music from Slacker and then played clips from Hulu at full screen. At no point did we notice any hiccups in the music or video playback. The notebook was also able to transcode a 114MB MP4 file to AVI in 57 seconds, whereas the average ultraportable takes 2:07.

Design
Unlike the U30Jc or the UL50, the lid of the N61Jv is glossy with a subtle wavy pinstripe pattern, much like the K42F. This looks cool, but it doesn’t do a great job of hiding fingerprint smudges. Inside, however, ASUS has made several interesting design changes. The palm rest is rubberized, making it very comfortable to the touch.

Above the chiclet-style keyboard is the most striking feature: a silver speaker bar perforated by tiny holes. At the right side is a circular chrome power button encircled by a backlit ring; on the other side are buttons to control multimedia playback and to launch the ExpressGate Instant-On environment. At either end of the silver bar are two translucent strips that light up blue when the notebook is on. All in all, it has a very retro-chic look, like something Braun might have designed in the 80s.

Weighing 6 pounds even, the N61J is a bit heavier than most notebooks in its class, most of which have smaller 15.6-inch screens. The Samsung R580, for example, weighs 5.6 pounds. However, the N61Jv, at 15.4 x 10.6 x 1.1—1.5 inches, cuts a thinner profile to the R580’s 16.2 x 10.7 x 1.3—1.6 inches.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The palm rest has a sort of “rubbery” textured plastic found on some mice and keyboards, along with the Alienware M17x and ASUS G73J. The technical description is a “soft touch rubberized painted plastic” surface for the palm rest; whatever it’s called, we like it, and we wish the top cover used the same material. The keyboard is of the chiclet variety and has a good feel and key action. We only have one minor complaint with the keyboard, and that’s the use of a half-size “0″ key for the number keypad. Above are two different keyboards, on the left is the ASUS N61J and on the right is the Acer Aspire 5740G; Acer gets the number keypad right. If a company is going to go to the trouble of fitting a 10-key into a notebook, they need to use the standard layout. Yes it’s a minor quibble, but it’s our only real complaint with the keyboard. We do feel there are better keyboards out there, but that’s largely a matter of personal taste—I’m partial to the Lenovo ThinkPad T410 approach, with raised and contoured keys that feel more like a desktop keyboard. If on the other hand you prefer chiclet keyboards, the N61J won’t disappoint.

Display and Audio
The 16-inch LED-backlit display on the N61Jv was plenty bright, and we liked the crisp colors. While its resolution of 1366 x 768 was adequate for a notebook at this price, its glossy surface kicked back reflections and angles were somewhat limited. Image quality was fair. While watching a 720p episode of Fringe on Fox.com, we could easily make out the wrinkles in the characters’ faces, though a DVD of Heroes looked somewhat grainy.

Despite the fact that the N61Jv has Altec Lansing Speakers and SRS Premium Sound, we were somewhat disappointed overall. There was very nice definition when listening to Led Zeppelin’s “Over the Hills and Far Away,” but bass was sadly lacking on this entertainment system. During the chorus, the higher notes drowned out the lower tones, making it sound a little harsh. Tweaking the settings using the SRS control panel did little to help. On the plus side, the volume was fairly loud when streaming Weezer’s “Beverly Hills” on Slacker.

Ports
ASUS provides a single eSATA port and two USB 2.0 ports. The big extra is that ASUS has added an NEC USB 3.0 controller for one more USB port on the left side

Performance
The 2.26-GHz Intel Core i5-430M processor and 4GB of RAM (upgradable to 8GB) powered the N61Jv to an excellent score of 5,841 in PCMark Vantage, which measures overall performance. That’s about 900 points higher than the desktop replacement average, about 40 points higher than the Samsung 15.6-inch R580, which has the same processor, and practically equal to the similarly sized Acer Aspire 5740G. The 17-inch Samsung R780 ($799) has the same processor, but scored about 100 points higher.

Not only is the N61J’s hard drive a relatively spacious 500GB, but it also zips along at 7,200 rpm, enabling it to blow past a number of notebooks in its category. We were able to duplicate a 4.97GB folder of multimedia in 2 minutes and 31 seconds, a rate of 33.7 MBps. That’s 45 seconds faster than the R580 (26.2 MBps), and more than 10 MBps faster than the Sony VAIO E (21.7 MBps). Boot time, too, was a fast 57 seconds.

Design
With a footprint of 10.2 x 7.0 x 1.5 inches, the U135 takes up about as much desk space as other netbooks of its ilk. However, its battery sticks out the bottom of the system, increasing its thickness in the back to 1.5 inches. While not nearly as egregious as the Wind U110, this protrusion is more noticeable than those on many other netbooks with 6-cell batteries. Weighing 2.8 pounds, the U135 disappeared like every other netbook once inside our messenger bag. When we first opened the lid of the U135, we were struck by the similariries between this system and the ASUS Eee PC 1005PE-P (Seashell), and with good reason: The two island-style keyboards are almost identical, and both have a single mouse bar as opposed to discrete buttons. While our U135 came in blue, consumers will also be able to get the netbook in silver, red, or black. The wavy line pattern on the lid is also repeated on the touchpad, which adds a nice graphical element to the design. This pattern also does a decent job of masking fingerprint smudges.

Screen and Speakers
The Wind U135 offers a 10” glossy LED-backlit display that rates below average compared to other similarly sized netbooks. On our review model we noticed significant backlight bleed around all the edges when the brightness is near the top of the scale. During the boot sequence this is especially visible when the backgrounds are black. Turning the backlight down to 50-70% reduced the bleed, but it was still slightly visible if you were in a dark room watching a movie. Color and contrast are comparable to other competing netbooks thanks to the glossy screen surface. If the backlight bleed was lessened it would be a great machine to watch movies on while traveling. At peak brightness the screen is easy to read in bright office conditions and outdoors if you are in an area that the sun wasn’t reflecting off the screen. Viewing angles are average with the vertical viewing range spanning 15-20 degrees forward or back before colors started to invert. Horizontal viewing angles are better, keeping colors looking true even at steep angles.

Speaker performance is average compared to most netbooks on the market, meaning that they lacked volume and any hint of bass compared to a full-size notebook. For most users the speakers are great if you want to watch a quick streaming video clip or listen to some music in the background, but if you intend on watching a movie, headphones are the preferred option.

Keyboard and Touchpad
I really like the chiclet-style keyboard on the MSI Wind U135. It looks much the same as the keyboard on the Asus Eee PC 1005PE, but some of the Fn keys are in different spots. You can hit the Fn key plus a number of other buttons to adjust the volume, screen brightness, toggle the wireless connections, or turn off the touchpad. Hitting FN+ F10, for example will trigger the MSI ECo software, which adjusts your computer’s settings to improve performance or battery life for different situations (such as gaming, or presentation mode).

But back to the keyboard. There is a little flex in the middle of the keyboard if you push down too hard. But honestly, that’s the sort of thing I only notice when I take the time to press on the keyboard and look at it. When I’m typing, it’s not a problem. The keys are flat, with a little space between them making them easy to detect without looking down. I took a typing test and notched a score of about 100 words per minute, which is about average for me.

The touchpad is reasonably wide for a 10 inch netbook. There’s only a single wide button below the touchpad, instead of distinct left and right buttons. While the palm rest has a glossy finish and a smooth plastic texture, the touchpad is a bit rougher, which makes it easy to slide your finger across without generating much friction. But the touchpad doesn’t seem to support scrolling — at all. Most netbooks let you scroll through documents and web sites by either placing two fingers on the touchpad and dragging or by moving your finger up and down the right edge of the touchpad. The Wind U135 I tested doesn’t seem to support either scrolling method.

Performance
Stocked with Intel’s new Atom N450 processor and 1GB of RAM, the U135 performed about the same as the ASUS 1005PE-P. The U135 scored 1,418 on PCMark05, 8 points higher than the 1005PE, but 80 points below the netbook average—which to date has been mostly Intel N270 and N280 processors. In Geekbench, the U135 scored 906, about 70 points higher than the netbook average. We were able to go about our typical netbook activities—surfing the web and watching videos—without any issues. The U135 was a bit more lethargic in the LAPTOP Transfer Test. Its 250GB, 5400-rpm hard drive copied a 4.97GB folder of multimedia in 5 minutes and 6 seconds for a rate of 16.6 MBps, which is 9.8 MBps slower than the 1005PE, but 1.3 MBps above the netbook average, It also took 1 minute and 24 seconds to boot into Windows 7 Starter Edition, almost half a minute longer than average.

Similarly, the U135, which has the new Intel GMA 3150 integrated graphics chip, was fairly average when it came to graphics tests. In 3DMark06, the U135 scored 154, nearly identical to the ASUS 1005PE (155), and a shade below the average of 160. When we transcoded a 114MB, 5-minute and 5-second MPG4 video to AVI using HandBrake, the U135 took 30 minutes and 12 seconds, half a minute longer than average. When performing the same task using Oxelon Media Converter, which takes advantage of multithreading, the Ul35 took 6 minutes and 6 seconds.