Reviews

Private business. Intelligent battery and docking concept, on/off graphics, matt TFT and generous input devices – what sounds like a business all rounder is Sony's mainstream laptop for everyone. Can every one of us feel like a manager for starting at 975 euros?

Learned from mistakes? After the last XPS 15 already excelled the competition in many ways (e.g. display & sound), Dell now presents a refreshed version of its elegant multimedia notebook. Read in this review if anything, apart from the hardware, has changed in regards to temperature and noise development.

17" newcomer. The R730-JT06 offers a large display diagonal, a chic design and a good keyboard. Are the Intel Core i3 and the GeForce G 310M enough for a notebook of this size? Or should it have come with a bit more?

Vaio discount. With a price tag of under 500 Euros, Sony's 11.6 inch subnotebook is entering an aggressively priced market segment. Music, mobile surfing, and high definition movies: AMD Fusion is supposed to satisfy precisely these requirements, and at the same time achieve very good battery run times.

More Power! As the final version of the Apple MacBook Pro 15, we've chosen to test out the most powerful hardware configuration. The Intel i7-2720QM CPU coupled with the AMD Radeon HD 6750M should ensure outstanding performance. But, what are these powerful components housed within a sleek aluminum case truly capable of?

High-performance wrapped in plastic. Outside boring plastic, inside superlatives. Schenker's range doesn't sweep any high-end gamers of their feet, but the swift SSD application performance has an audition at the desktop replacements.

Commercial Update. HP reveal technical data and look and feel of some new Probook and EliteBook series: Brand new cases and Sandy Bridge inside. Here is our first impression from the 15.6 inch sized 4530s and the 14-inch sized 8460p.

A teen's dream. The Packard Bell dot SE netbook is a 10 inch netbook with an Intel Atom N550 dual core CPU that shows itself in sassy pink. The well-known Aspire One chassis from the Taiwanese mother company Acer builds the basis for this device. A toy netbook or reasonable hardware? We'll shed light on that.

Pin-striped notebook. In addition to the known gaming notebooks, the Leipzig Company Schenker now also offers a simple office device with a matt 15.6 inch display with the Xesia E510 Entry. The elegant notebook goes over the virtual counter at a start price of 449 euros.

High performance tablet. The Eee PC creator's answer to iPad & co. is a tablet with the performance of a subnotebook. In any case, an Intel Core i5 CPU, a 4 GB RAM, a 12" display and Windows 7 rouse interest. We've tested the other things that Asus has come up with.

Third dimension. Sony implements its Bravia 3D technology in a notebook. Because of the decent viewing angels the picture you see through active shutter glasses is even good along the horizontal plane. Is this sufficient to justify the high list price of 1.999 euro? Sony invited to Munich on 23rd of March and introduced its new F-model.

All round carefree package. Packard Bell has an interesting multimedia device available named EasyNote LS11. A Sandy Bridge processor and a Radeon HD 6650M graphics card are to appeal to users with a variety of interests. If this strategy is successful can be read in this review.

Stylish typing. Low prices may not allow for luxury hardware, but they do provide solid office notebooks with successful input devices and good ergonomics. The milky optical appearance of the palm resting area, and the white keys make a pleasant impression, although they can quickly accumulate dirt.

Apple's Figurehead. The MacBook Pro 17" is Apple's top-of-the line model as far as laptops go and stylishly combines powerful performance with excellent mobility. The most recent version now has a new hardware arrangement, offering a powerful duo consisting of the Core i7-2720QM and Radeon HD 6750M including GPU-switching technology. Sounds good, right? But how does the latest MBP measure up to the competition?

AMD refresh. The Acer Aspire One 522 is the latest netbook from Taiwan and, at the same time, the opponent of the available D255 netbook with an Atom N550. The refresh contains the AMD C-50 APU including AMD Radeon HD 6250 graphics. Is this, together with a HD display, the perfect match?

Data Organiser. The amount of data in circulation at home and in businesses is growing rapidly and becoming increasingly overwhelming in the age of digitalized media and communication. In order to establish an improved system for organization, Freecom came up with an interesting memory system with the CLS-series. We took a look at how well this works.

Endurance with style. As slim as a MacBook, as fast as a workstation and as portable as a netbook – series 9 reaches for the superlatives and is surprisingly successful in doing so. Why a "very good" is justified even without a VGA port can be read in this review.

Multitool. The convertible combines i5, Optimus graphics & four loudspeakers with tablet functionality and in mini format. What's great: The mite mutates to a multifunction desktop replacement via docking station. In face of this, who needs a tablet or a desktop PC?

Go with the Glossy Screen? After having thoroughly reviewed the new MBP 15, we provide you here with an update about the starter model with a 1440x900 pixel resolution on a glare-type screen. Is the extra cost of matte-screened model worth it or can you rest assured you won't regret the decision to just go with the glossy screen?

Cooler. Aside from the cooling impact, taken care of by a total of two installed fans, the Cooler Master SF-19 also offers two various light effects and a USB 3.0 hub. How effective is this gadget's "cool factor" really?

2nd Generation Intel Core i7. As predicted, Apple has just released its new MacBook Pro 15 Early 2011 with Intel Core i7-2635QM, AMD Radeon HD 6490M and matte hi-res display and we got a hold of one to review. Is this multimedia wolf in sheep's clothing worth the price?

Sound booster. Poor speakers are a weakness that many notebook users know especially well. Logitech offers a stable laptop tray with two high-end speakers called Speaker Lapdesk N550. Is it the perfect gadget even without a fan or USB interfaces?

Touchbook. The Iconia is the Ferrari in Acer's tablet campaign. We see it rather more as a tank. Weight and size are far from any kind of portable lightness. Nevertheless, the control concept of the foldable tablet works.

Netbook with powerful graphics? HP is trusting in the latest Fusion hardware from AMD for this dm1-3180eg netbook. An E-350 dual-core processor, 3 GB of RAM and an integrated HD 6310 graphics chip should boost the 11-inch midget’s performance.

3D Envy. HP brings in a top notch entertainer with the HP Envy 17. Great design and high end materials, as well as workmanship are only a few points on its long list of features. Another highlight is the utilization of a 3D display in the Envy range.

Decisions, decisions, decisions. More and more games are drawing on the power of three or four CPU cores. But does a high-end processor make much of a difference when combined with a mid-grade graphics card? We aimed to find out in testing the performance of seven Sandy Bridge CPUs on four recent games.

Energy Saver. AMD Fusion enters the aggressively priced 400 Euro laptop segment. With just about 5 hours of operating time, a low power consumption, and practically no heat dissipation or system noise, the good value for money 15.6 inch Acer has several advantages.

Temporary game. Many potential customers hoped that laptops with Sandy Bridge CPUs will be available soon. However, things turned out differently. The launch of such laptops was delayed until beginning/mid of march, because of a fault in the Intel chipset. But, thanks to AMD Fusion the last month was nevertheless not boring.

Big Business. Logitech's Performance Mouse MX is it's current top-model for the office and comes with a Darkfield Laser Sensor, unifying-receiver and an extensive package of accessories. The perfect business-mouse even without a charging station?

Goodbye Glare-Type Samsung is shying away from glare-type screens and has equipped this well-rounded office notebook with a matte (and still bright) display. Check out the "Display" section of the review to see how the matte screen differs from a glossy one.

The Allrounder 2.0. Schenker's successful XMG A500 multimedia notebook gets a potent successor. The XMG A501 is equipped with a GeForce GT 540M as well as a cutting-edge Sandy Bridge processor. Find out in this review whether or not changes have been made in terms of temperature and volume.

Small, smaller, smallest? The Mobile Drive Mg from Freecom is hardly bigger than the 2.5" drive inside. Its Simple design and fast USB-3.0 interface should draw the attention of potential customers.

A New Challenger. The Canadian manufacturer, Eurocom, is the first to combine a speedy Intel Sandy Bridge processor with a powerful AMD Radeon HD 6970M, housed within the 15.6" P150HM barebone. The big question in the air is, of course, whether this duo can measure up to Nvidia's flagship graphics card, the Geforce GTX 485M?

Slim and strong. Asus promises a 19 mm slim case for the U36JC, packed with a Core i5-480M CPU and two graphic chips and that should teach the one or other competitor the meaning of fear. USB 3.0, a large battery and HDMI are also in the bundle. This review will reveal if that's enough.

Sound miracle. As a counterpart to its AMD Fusion NB550D sister-model, the NB520 charges ahead with a dual-core Atom N550. First-class subwoofer-sound remains on board. Can it manage to muster eight hour runtimes and tackle Intel GMA HD videos? Find out in this review.

Low-Cost Titan. The cheapest model in the F-series with full HD, Blu-ray, and a fast Core i5, is already available from 930 Euros. Discover if the soundscape has improved, and whether the display has kept its strong colors.

FullHD Update. In November 2010, an elegant notebook with plastic looks and a strong sRGB color screen with FullHD resolution surprised us. Now, it's undergone a CPU upgrade and we wonder: Is the screen still as good as it was? All answers in this test update.

Netbook oldie. We take a look at the Samsung NC10 Ecko Plus, a tried and tested machine with older Intel hardware and a black case. Its performance is not the best by any means, but its current entry-level price is appealing.

Pointer. No matter if university, company or office – presentations rise and fall with their vivacity and their ability to captivate the audience. There is the possibility to control presentations from afar so that the speaker can move untied from the bonds of technology. We've checked how well this works with Logitech's R400.

Post PC Device. After months of rumors, leaks, and various other tidbits, the iPad 2 is finally a reality. At a press event in San Francisco, Steve Jobs himself was on stage to announce Apple’s latest device. While we weren’t in attendance in California, Apple had a simultaneous live event at the BBC headquarters in London and we were able to get hands on look at the new iPad 2.

Mini in chrome. Fortunately, only the lid is glossy and not the TFT. Two Atom core not only increase the netbook performance, but also make a six hour battery life possible. However, the workmanship has lost some of its previous Samsung glamour.

Tabula Rasa. Bargain hunters know that without an operating system the actual laptop leaves a much smaller hole in your pocket. The X52F is an all-included FreeDOS system starting at 329 Euro. Is this a sweet deal or are there some downsides to sour it? Find out below.

RAID pancake. A RAID system you can take with you. The Raidsonic ICY BOX RD2262 offers you a good selection of ports and a broad scope of uses for multiple HDDs. Is it convenient for everyday use and does it really perform better than just the sum of its parts? We've got the answers.

Bringin' the Noise. Netbooks, subnotebooks and even full-sized starter notebooks often disappoint when it comes to playing music or producing the audio in films the way it was meant to be heard. TrekStor's mobile solution should lend a hand to bringing the noise, not just in terms of volume, but balanced sound quality as well. Find out whether it goes the whole nine yards or stops short somewhere along the line...

Pro-Consumer. Loosened business characteristics and glossy surfaces don't exactly fit with the good old ProBook style. The 17 inch notebook straddles between an elegant appearance and less than favorably positioned interfaces. Who will this be suitable for?

Elegant office. If you're looking for a good-looking laptop with office qualities, you'll likely find one in the RC510. A matt TFT is brought together with feedback-strong input devices. Moreover: it's economic, quiet and cool – only to name a few additional features.

Drive exchanger. It saves a lot of time and probably also money if hard drives can be quickly exchanged without having to use an external hard drive case. Raidsonics solution uses an eSata interface and can house 2.5" and 3.5" drives. Continue reading to learn how well it works.

Vaio in the land of the dwarfs. A mini-Vaio for everyone. The Vaio-dwarf throws all business ambitions overboard and concentrates rather on the embroidered demands of the masses. Good keyboard, attractive price and a usable battery life.

Snow White and Rose Red. No end in sight for 10-inch netbooks. These diminutive machines with weak single-core processors still enjoy great popularity. This is reason enough for us to take a closer look at the Samsung N145, which can be yours for as little as €235.

7 inch entertainer. Creative launches entertainment tablets for little money with its ZiiO range. Despite the low price, the tablets are to be suitable for rendering HD media. In any case, a 1 GHz CPU does its job inside the small devices.

Discount multimedia. Medion increasingly sells many of its products over the discount chain Aldi/Hofer. For example, the Akoya P6630, with attractive Intel and Nvidia hardware is put up for sale today at a seemingly bargain price of 599 euros. We've checked what this notebook is really capable of – including problems with too high temperatures, respectively a too weak adapter.

Radeon Refresh. Acer's 13" subnotebook is popular among gamers, but does it really pack enough processing and graphics-rendering power in such a small case? With the help of the new HD 6550M within the 1.8 Kg case, it just might...

Elegant and thin. Inspired by the shape of an elegantly slim book, Lenovo presents the IdeaPad U260 subnotebook with an exceptional 12.5 inch display, Intel Core i5 Arrandale CPU, and integrated graphics unit. The 4 cell battery with a meager 39 Watt hours does appear to be a mobility bottleneck though.

Goodbye to Atom? The NB550D is Toshiba’s latest flagship netbook, featuring the new AMD C-50 APU along with an AMD Radeon HD 6250 graphics unit and high-quality Harman Kardon speakers. Is it the perfect entertainer for €349, even without a matt HD display?

Standard 2.0 After first taking a look at the larger E5510, we now review the 14-incher E5410 with identical internals. Find out in the following review how it differs from its bigger brother.

Internet splitter. If you often work with several devices on the go, or want to use the internet at home, but don't have a standard DSL connection available, Trekstor's WLAN Hotspot could be the right solution for you. We've checked how well it works.

Touch it. Speedlink is selling a fairly inexpensive multi-touch mouse for Windows. It follows the example of the Apple Magic Mouse and can be used with a few finger gestures in addition to conventional operations. Read how well this works in our review.

Shiny Starter. An Asus entry-level model with an Intel Pentium processor and a current AMD entry-level graphics card. Lots of performance for little money? What about the sturdiness of the case, the display and the battery life? We've got the answers.

Multimedia giant with weak display. Acer refreshes its elegant Ethos range with Intel's speedy Sandy Bridge processors. The Aspire 8950G is lavishly equipped with a 16 GB RAM, a hard disk with a capacity of 1.5 TB and BluRay burner. Is a price of 1800 euros justified?

Vaio-Z@Low-Budget. At 1400 Euros, speaking of low cost sounds like heresy. But for a Vaio in the Z series this is an affordable price. How big the difference is to the 3300 Euro deluxe version, is shown by our test.

Benchmark Destroyer. With its brisk SSD, Sandy Bridge quad-core CPU and speedy GDDR5 graphics card, the M17x R3 establishes itself as an elite gaming notebook. Find out what makes its battery life so good.

Hello Sandy. Basically, January 2011 was influenced by the newly introduced Intel Huron-River platform and the compatible Sandy-Bridge processors. Because of known problems, it might take same time until they are finally available. Anyway, even without the new CPUs some particularly interesting laptops are worth mentioning in January.

Gamers dream. Schenker presents a compact 15 incher, called XMG P501. It includes the currently strongest available mobile hardware owing to Nvidia's GTX 485M GPU and Intel's Sandy Bridge processors. Highlight: a high-end, matt FullHD display bids annoying reflections farewell.

Mac-Specialist. The FireWire 800 interface is particularly important in the "Mac-World". If external devices shall be connected in an efficient way, it is the first choice there. We checked Iomega's BlackBelt on a Mac and on a PC.

Fast, cheap, trouble-free. Medion, known by many as distributor of a well-known food store chain, is already in business since years and also offers periphery for notebooks and PCs. This time we review an external 640 GB hard drive, which has to show what it is capable of with its USB-3.0 interface.

Standard. That's how Dell describes its Latitude E5xxx series. Listed here are solide, fully-fledged business laptops which, among other things, are distinguished from the higher-end and costlier E6xxx series by their plastic case.

Gaming elite. Asus is now offering its high-end 17-inch G73 notebook with a brand-new Intel Sandy Bridge processor. The powerful quad-core i7-2630QM is accompanied by an Nvidia GeForce GTX 460M. Find out in our review whether the G73SW will have the competition quaking in their boots.

All's made new in February. Rumors have been around for a while, but now it's official. Dell is redesigning its business notebook range and will launch a completely new lineup. Inside: Sandy Bridge, outside: a great amount of aluminum and magnesium pressed into a round shape. We've taken a close look at the first pre-samples for you.

Hello, and good bye again. Intel's Sandy Bridge CPUs were slowly finding their way into new notebooks. Among others, Acer's Aspire 5750G, a multimedia all-rounder with a 2630QM quad core and Nvidia GT540M. Beyond that, Nvidia Optimus provides a quiet office use and good battery runtimes. However, we will likely have to wait for a while until the laptop is available in retail.

Mobile gaming. Mobile gaming. Performance like a DTR, yet battery life like a subnotebook. Sandy Bridge bans the waste of energy, calculates for eight machines and engages a 99 Wh battery for support. However, the HD 6850M has to strike sail in the game check.

Workhorse. Dell's mobile workstation, Precision M4500, should especially satisfy high performance requirements and faces a simply unbeatable opponent. We've checked how well Core i7-940XM, Nvidia Quadro FX 1800M and FullHD support our test candidate.

Wolf in Sheep's Clothing. At first sight Clevo's P170HM Barebone might seem quite plain, but within you'll find genuine high-end hardware. An Intel CPU from the new Sandy Bridge line and a Nvidia GeForce GTX 470M GPU should get gamers' saliva flowing.

Flash-giant meets color-collosus. The Z13 has four SSD-memories on board, together with 256 GB of capacity. In the Raid 0, these ensure for flow-rates which would have rotating harddrives flying the white flag of surrender. Furthermore, the impressive color space of the built-in display almost brings tears to our eyes.

Solid business. The Latitute E4310 in Dell's array is a compact 13.3 inch business subnotebook that is supposed to convince with fast hardware, balanced ergonomics and security features. A 3 cell battery seems to be out of place, though. Is it nevertheless an alternative to the larger Dell Latitude E6410?

The Apple TV Box, now in its second generation, has been transformed into a pure media streaming box. It is now based on the latest iPod and iPad hardware, giving it a very low energy consumption and small size. Thanks to AirPlay and the box’s reasonable price, Apple TV certainly seems like an attractive option.

Mega Powerhouse. Performance enthusiasts with money to spend will find an extremely powerful desktop replacement in the mySN XMG U700 ULTRA. Equipped with a desktop-CPU and two GeForce GTX 470M GPUs, this 17-inch powerhouse aims to capture the title of "fastest notebook out there".

Essential. Office bargain hunters prick up their ears when Nvidia's Optimus is offered along with a graphics card for 399 euros. This is also the reason for our review of Lenovo's Essential B series. Performance for money champion or snail-paced runner?

Since 23rd July last year, our editorial team has used the first generation Apple iPad practically every day. Find out what we made of the tablet, what you can use it for, and if (and by how much) it is improved by iOS 4.2 (including Apple TV).

The plastic gamer. Those who are looking for an entry level gaming machine on a tight budget, will bump into the GE603 by MSI. The i5-460M and Geforce GT 425M accelarate games an applications alike. Could this open the door to the gaming world for just 800 Euros?

ATI is dead! Long live AMD! After recently unveiling the new GeForce GTX 485M, Nvidia has shown who the boss is in the notebook GPU department. Now it's up AMD's new Radeon HD 6970M high-end graphics card to jump through some hoops and try to prove it measures up.

Geforce bargain. Acer puts interesting hardware in a low priced bundle that is available for starting at 699 euros. The newest GeForce GT 540M is still extremely uncommon and we also don't find eight gigabyte of RAM very often. Performance for money in excess?

Not only for Macs! Verbatim continuously upgrades the Store`n`go hard drive series and now offers a model with absolutely unusual connectivity. Firewire 800 and USB 3.0 should not only give the best possible performance on both systems but also help easy the data exchange between Windows and Mac OS. We checked how well this works.

Glare office. Samsung bestows its 13.3 incher with the perfect display brightness. Find out why the subnotebook has to stay at home despite its good battery life. It can't be because of the noise because it always works at a low level.

Office assistant A simple office assistant which focuses on what's important. Graphics, docking options and subwoofers are superflous here. Instead, this unit provides a matt 1.600x900 pixel display and perfect ergonomics. Big-Screen Office for everyone?

Gaming for the Masses. Not long ago, we reviewed the pre-production model of the MSI GX660R. Now that the GX660R is on the market, MSI sent us another model, this time it's the same one that's lining the shelves of stores and available for you to buy. Some improvements have fortunately been made to this model in areas we had criticized in our previous review.

Premium gamer. If you are looking for a gaming notebook with as much power under the hood as possible, you'll be just right with MSI's GT663R. Find out in this review, if a Core i7-740QM and a GeForce GTX 460M is too much for the 15 inch size.

An iPad alternative? With features like Nvidia Tegra 250, 10" display, Android 2.2, HDMI, USB 2.0, webcam and 16 GB of flash memory, the hardware equipment sounds quite tempting. Find out why Apple's iPad still isn't troubled in the following review.

Just when you thought it was safe... The NF210-HZ1 is Samsung’s second Shark netbook. The matt HD screen and powered USB of the first Shark are omitted; but it scores points for portability - a 3G UMTS module is included as standard. Is this a useful addition to Samsung’s range?

Storage kit. When buying an external hard drive, one often doesn’t know which brand of drive is actually mounted inside the housing. As external SSDs are quite expensive, one may chose to building one's own external drive to suite ones expectations and needs. During our test, the 3 units from iNeo Technologies had to prove to us that they provided a solid foundation with which to support such a project.

Refurbished. Samsung beefs up its low price entry-level R530 with an Intel Core CPU and Radeon graphics. The TFT isn't reflective anymore, but the lid and wrist-rest are even more so. Will the office-multimedia-all-rounder's concept be successful?

Best of the Holiday Season. During the festive month of December, we provided our readers with 23 notebook reviews and various other articles. After much careful brow-furrowing consideration, we compiled the Best of December 2010.

Innovative. The well thought-out screen-flip design of the Inspiron duo 10" convertible notebook/tablet is an interesting innovation. But does this mean that has Dell crafted the finest convertible yet or just another high-tech toy?

Mobile times. The Consumer Electronics Show, short CES, is a guarantee for innovative products from the fields of entertainment electronic and IT. This year 3D, Intel's new Sandy Bridge processors, the AMD Fusion APUs and tablets of the most various manufacturers dominate the event on the Las Vegas Strip.

Radeon Update. Acer equips the luxury version of its TimelineX with a 160 GB Intel SSD, a Core i7 and a brand new Radeon HD 6550. Will the 14 inch notebook add versatile performance with only just two kilograms of weight to your gear?

Chart Topper In developing the Fermi architecture last year Nvidia topped ATI/AMD, whose HD 5870 was the leading single-core GPU before. Right at the launch of the new HD6000 GPU series from AMD also Nvidia refreshes its GPU lineup. Fastest member: GTX 485M, which we review in detail here.

Gaming to the Max! Medion has put a well-equipped gaming notebook at a fair price on the market: the Erazer X6811. The Intel Core i7 740QM and Nvidia GeForce GTX 460M look very promising on paper, but can this 15" bad boy bring home the bacon?

Bargain tablet? In addition to a plethora of tablets in various sizes, Archos also offers a model in the popular 10" format with the 101. A light and slim case is just as attractive as the HDMI and USB 2.0 equipment features. We looked into what one can really expect at a current price of 280.- Euros.

The new midrange. Asus promises pure multimedia entertainment with the reconfigured N53. Backstage: brand new Intel i7-2720QM quad core CPU, Nvidia GT 540M DirectX 11 graphics card (Optimus) and Bang&Olufsen ICEpower sound. Find out what the attractive multimedia experts true capabilities are, and above all what the latest Sandy Bridge CPUs from Intel are all about in this detailed review.

Let’s Tock again. Intel once again refreshed its CPU architecture and renewed the whole processor lineup. They introduced a completely new CPU family codenamed "Sandy Bridge" today. Read on to learn about the new features and the performance of the new processors.

Gaming for all? The new Sandy-Bridge processors from Intel do not only bring about a performance gain in CPU-oriented calculations. Now the improved integrated graphics chip is also available in the Quad-Core CPUs. The HD Graphics 3000 should reach the performance level of hitherto existing entry-level graphics cards. Are games possible too? Our detailed gaming tests will reveal it.