Today's laptops rely mainly on Intel's Centrino Pentium M processor which has gained widespread acceptance in the mobile computing arena for its good mix of performance and battery life. With the new-generation Centrino (formerly codenamed Sonoma) platform just announced, the older Centrino notebooks are likely to drop further to sub-S$2,300 (US$1,375.60) levels. We've also noticed a strong trend towards desktop replacement notebooks with multimedia features such as the ability to play DVD/MP3s without bootup.

How they stack up
Check this out first to help narrow down your choices. Notebooks typically come in four sizes:

Ultraportables	< 2kg; 20mm thick or less; has slimmest profile at expense of built-in optical drive and features; high-priced.
Thin-and-lights	1.8 - 3kg; < 40mm thick; onboard optical drives and offers best compromise between ultraportables and mainstreams with a good balance of speed, features and size.
Mainstreams	3 - 4kg; around 40mm thick; bulky though they offer good value with a good combo of features and speed.
Desktop replacements	3.5kg and above; > 40mm thick; delivers the best performance and features but usually too bulky to be lugged around comfortably; top-end models come with TV tuner and PCMCIA remote.

Processor
If you want speed and battery life, Intel's Pentium M processor is the best choice available today. But if your computing needs are basic, laptops powered by Intel Celeron and AMD Sempron chips offer best value for money. Desktop replacements these days usually run on Pentium M chips though occasionally, there are some equipped with Pentium 4 / Pentium 4-M. Some Centrino notebooks uses the ultra-low voltage chips which run slower but has much longer battery life.
Memory
You will need at least 256MB of RAM to run Win XP smoothly. The standard RAM size for most notebooks sold now is 512MB. Opt for 1024MB if you plan to open multimedia apps or play games on your laptop.

Hard drive
A 40GB hard drive is more than sufficient for everyday needs. If you want to store lots of photos, MP3s and movies on your machine, then consider a 60GB, 80GB drive or even 100GB.

Screen
If you're looking for an ultraportable, expect screens that are 12.1 inches or smaller. For a decent-sized display, consider at least 13.3 or 14.1 inches. Notebooks with 15-inch and above screens usually come at the expense of portability. Also if you're on the lookout for sharp image quality, you might want to consider a reflective screen.

Graphics card
The best bet here is a dedicated 3D graphics card with at least 32MB or 64MB of memory. If you're a Doom 3 gamer, you may want to check out the top-end models running on 128/256MB memory which come fitted in higher-end and larger machines. Most ultracompacts and several thin-and-lights offer integrated graphics, which shares its memory from the system RAM.

Optical drive
The majority of notebooks today sport at least a DVD/CD-RW combo drive which should suffice though multiformat DVD burners are hot property. The top end burners come with DVD+R double-layer support which can store up to 8.5GB of data. Some notebooks offer hot-swappable drive bays that give you more flexibility to install a second hard drive or battery in place of the optical drive.

Connectivity
Standard options should include at least two USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, Ethernet (RJ-45) and modem (RJ-11), 802.11b/g wireless LAN, audio jacks, VGA-out and Type II PC Card slot. Bluetooth is usually optional. Most notebooks comes with memory card readers already integrated into the unit.

Warranty
Notebooks generally come with a one-year warranty, but if you use it outdoors frequently, look for longer support plans. We'd recommend at least three years of warranty should you be getting a notebook above S$3,000 (US$1,794.26). Read more about our hardware warranty guide here.

Related Stories

• CNET's notebook buying guide  22/03/2004
• Finding a notebook that fits you  17/09/2003

Related Stories

• Finding a notebook that fits you  17/09/2003
• CNET's notebook buying guide  25/09/2006

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