Looking for a thin and light notebook?

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Mon, 12/13/2004 7:56 AM  |  Life

A shockwave reverberated across Asia Pacific last week. No, it was not another catastrophe. It was the news that Lenovo -- the biggest PC maker in China, which used to be known as Legend -- has bought IBM's PC business for US$ 1.25 billion.

The first question that came to my mind when I read the news was, ""Oh my God, what should I buy when it's time to replace my T40?"" Yes, I might be a ThinkPad T-Series fanatic, and I've had a long history with the ThinkPads, but the one-year-old T40 is the only ThinkPad I've actually owned so far. You see, for a couple of years in the mid 1990s I had the chance to participate in a ThinkPad focus group. During our discussions, IBM engineers showed us the upcoming features of the notebook and we, the participants, gave them our opinions. Most of the time, however, the engineers insisted that their ideas were far superior to ours. Engineers are all the same.

Now, the landmark acquisition I mentioned above may set us wondering whether Lenovo will continue the superb job Big Blue has been doing with their ThinkPads -- especially the T-series. We certainly hope so. Keep in mind that my T40, as well as the newer models, are all made in China. But, what to do if, while waiting for the editors and reviewers to give their nod to the new ThinkPads bearing the IBM-Lenovo logo, we need to buy a thin and light notebook?

With Christmas approaching, a thin and light notebook under the tree might be on the wish list of many people. If you hurry, you will still be able to grab the last few ThinkPads that bear only the IBM ThinkPad logo. Otherwise, don't worry. There are plenty of alternatives from the other old stalwarts, such as Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP-Compaq, NEC, Sharp, Sony and Toshiba.

Also keep in mind that we have the ultraportable in addition to the thin and light category of notebooks. The Sharp Actius MM20, Sony VAIO VGN-505ZP and ThinkPad X40, for example, fall into the latter category. If you buy an ultraportable notebook, you will have to accept a lot of compromises -- including screen size, typing comfort and, most likely, battery life. The ultraportables cost more, too. Just to give you some idea, the Sony superthin notebook carries a price tag of US$ 3,000!

So, which thin and light notebook models should you be looking at? The Acer TravelMate 3200 is a good start. Acer has redesigned its Aspire and TravelMate lines of notebooks and made them a lot more stylish. This particular model, which weighs a little over 2.5 kilograms, has just received an Editor's Choice award from PCMagazine.

Another notebook that might suit your needs and personal taste is the Toshiba Tecra M2V-S310. It weighs less than 2.5 kilograms, and it has a 14.1 inch screen. Or, you can check out the newly launched Fujitsu LifeBook S7010 or S7011. Both weigh less than 2 kilograms. Like the ThinkPad T42, the LifeBook S7011 even has an integrated fingerprint scanner for security protection.

What did you need to check out when making up your mind? First, thin and light does not mean small screen real estate. Stick to 14-inch. Larger screens may mean that you will need a larger laptop bag. Smaller screens mean a lot of squinting.

Second, for wireless connectivity, look for notebooks that already offer 802.11g in addition to 802.11b. We do not have many 802.11g hotspots yet, but always a good idea to get all the latest when we can.

Third, check out the battery life. With the Centrino specifications for the processor and chipset, the notebook makers should be able to promise us -- with a little honesty -- that we will be able to work with the battery for around four hours.

Fourth, check the overall build of the notebook. Do you like the keyboard? Are the hinges sturdy? Does the casing provide enough protection for the screen? Is the screen itself comfortable to your eyes? Is there enough space between the USB ports that you can actually use all of them without bending the USB plugs?

These are the questions you need to be asking when buying a new notebook.

--Zatni Arbi

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