--------------------------------------------------------------
This story was printed from CNET Asia.
--------------------------------------------------------------
With Blu-ray winning the format wars and prices for its drives dropping, there is no better time to hop onto the next-gen optical standard. Where once you had to fork out almost S$7,000 for a Vaio AR laptop, which used to the be only line carrying a Blu-ray writer, cheaper alternatives have been popping out of the woodwork.
Besides Sony--creator of the Blu-ray format--Dell and HP have released Blu-ray models at affordable prices. With HDMI ports becoming standard on most machines, this allows the notebook to hook up to larger HD-capable monitor for Blu-ray playback rather than rely on its relatively low-resolution LCD panel. Moreover, with a remote control you can control playback from a distance instead of sitting right next to the laptop.
The good: Excellent feature set at an affordable price; Blu-ray capability; generous 1TB storage; LED-backlit display; backlit keyboard; 5.1-channel audio output.
The bad: Crumbs slip under keyboard keys too easily; middling graphics performance.
The bottom line: The Acer Aspire 8935G impressed us by being able to cram in almost every mobile entertainment feature known to man, and yet somehow managed to come in at an affordable price.
The good: Subtle improvements to Alienware's dorm room chic design; amazingly fast and powerful; highly configurable.
The bad: Good configs can get very expensive; no 16:9 display; garish lights don't scream "high end".
The bottom line: Alienware's new version of the M17x makes some welcome design tweaks and offers the best laptop gaming hardware you can get. Bump up the optical drive to Blu-ray, and you also get a powerful entertainment notebook.
First take
The first of the Core i7 laptops has crossed our path, and it bears the badge of Asus. Promising more performance, the mobile version of Intel's latest processor inherits the Turbo Boost feature from its desktop brethren, meaning that within a predefined thermal envelope, individual cores will overclock automatically when more power is required.
This machine also sports a Blu-ray drive for HD movie playback.
The good: Dell embraces the 16:9 aspect ratio display; upscale design with leather trim; backlit keyboard and edge-to-edge screen glass.
The bad: The 1080p display costs extra; unimpressive battery life; new Studio XPS brand may get lost between the Inspiron, Studio and XPS lines.
The bottom line: Dell's new 16:9 Studio XPS 16 adds upscale extras such as a leather trim and backlit keyboard to a fairly standard set of components, without jacking up the price (too much).
A Blu-ray option is also available for the latest HD movie titles.
First take
Sony's flagship entertainment desktop replacement has remained essentially unchanged since the introduction of the first unit (VGN-AW17GU/Q) in November 2008. Subsequent models have retained the same chassis and feature set, and only the processor and operating system have been upgraded. Though it remains one of the most powerful machines in the market, performance-wise, it has been overtaken by machines like the Dell XPS 16 with Core i7 and Nvidia GeForce 200 series chips. Still, thanks to its excellent display and bundled Adobe software, this Vaio remains relevant to creative professionals and photographers on-the-go.
