Computers

Netbooks: Mini laptops, max portability

Netbooks are excellent secondary laptops, or if you're always on the road and need portability but not necessarily performance. We round-up the best we've seen so far.

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  LaCie Starck Mobile

  LaCie clearly spent a lot of time designing the look and feel of the Starck Mobile Hard Drive, but it trips up on the basic essentials like weight, ease of use, cost per gigabyte and transfer speed.

  Specs: USB 2.0 , Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7/Mac OS X 10.4, 10.5, 10.6 or higher , 60 Mbps

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  Logitech G500

  If you loved the G5, you'll continue loving the G500, the natural evolution of Logitech's classic gaming mouse. Though Microsoft brings stiff competition in the form of the SideWinder X8, which may be more appealing to some.

  Specs: Mouse

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  HP ProBook 4310s

  If you find that the price is right and you are only planning on doing menial tasks, you could do a lot worse than the HP ProBook.

  Specs: 250 GB, 2GB , Intel Core 2 Duo , 2.1 GHz

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  Dell Vostro 320

  While a few tweaks such as an in-built wireless receiver for keyboard/mouse and a video input so it could double as a monitor for your laptop would be nice, if you're looking for a cheap all-in-one PC, it's hard to ignore the Vostro 320 as an option.

  Specs: 2GB , Windows Vista Business , Intel Core 2 Duo

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  Asus K50AB

  The K50AB is a typical mid-range laptop that looks good, but the in-built GPU-switching feature doesn't save on battery at all. We'd suggest looking elsewhere for your mid-range needs.

  Specs: 320 GB, 2GB , AMD Athlon QL65 , ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570

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  HP 2159m

  HP's 21.5-inch monitor is fairly average for its class — however, in the face of its limitations, the price doesn't add up.

  Specs: 300 cd/m2, 1000 :1, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 21.5 inch

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  Logitech Wireless Desktop MK700

  Although it's not our favourite keyboard and mouse combination, the Logitech Wireless Desktop MK700 set earns our recommendation for its comfortable "Incurve" key design, quick scrolling mouse and impressive battery life.

  Specs: Mouse, Keyboard

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  Dell Vostro 1220

  At first glance, the Vostro 1220 looks like an ultraportable notebook that was born from Dell's consumer range. But instead Dell has created its own little niche, targeting the more fashion-conscious business user on a budget.

  Specs: 250 GB, 2GB , Intel Core 2 Duo , 2.1 GHz