Shedding Light On Notebooks

CRN Test Center engineers went in search of truly portable, lightweight notebooks that don't sacrifice mobility for the sake of performance. Acer America, Sharp Electronics and Panasonic all offer notebooks that weigh less than 6 pounds and also provide excellent performance.

Acer TravelMate 3200
Acer's new TravelMate 3200 is a slim, full-featured Intel Centrino-based notebook with a 14.1-inch screen. The screen is protected by a rigid metal alloy lid and is finished in gunmetal. One major design flaw, however, is that the screen lid has no latch and simply lifts open, a potential security problem.

The TravelMate 3200 features a 1.7GHz Pentium M processor, 512 Mbytes of memory and a 40-Gbyte hard drive. Other features include an ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 graphics card with 64 Mbytes of VRAM, a DVD Super-Multi Drive, wired and wireless NICs, two USB 2.0 ports, one FireWire port, an SD Media slot, one PC Card slot, a 56-Kbps modem and VGA output.

The TravelMate 3200 measures 13 x 1.5 x 9.75 inches and weighs less than 5 pounds. The notebook is priced at $1,899.

id
unit-1659132512259
type
Sponsored post

Acer has been a channel-focused company for more than 25 years. All partners are given the same prices, and all partners gain access to Acer's product line without being tied to rebate programs. Acer provides presales support, partner access to local Acer personnel, competitive information, bidding assistance and MDF. Solution providers are responsible for integration support to end users. Training is offered on the phone, via the Web and on-site.

Panasonic ToughBook CF-Y2
Panasonic's ToughBook line of notebook computers is designed to be both lightweight and extra-rugged. Most notebooks in this line are used specifically by the military, and these can be quite heavy. However, the CF-Y2 incorporates many rugged features and is also lightweight. Features of the ToughBook line of notebooks include shock-mounted hard drives and display panels, reinforced screen case edges, stainless steel hinges and a scratch-resistant finish.

The ToughBook CF-Y2 features a 1.3GHz Pentium M processor and 256 Mbytes of memory, expandable to 512 Mbytes. A 40-Gbyte hard drive provides adequate storage space, especially in such a portable machine. The 14.1-inch anti-glare screen has a native SXGA resolution of 1,400 x 1,050. The display is driven by an Intel 855GM graphics accelerator. Other features include 10/100 Ethernet, 802.11b/g WLAN, an SD Media slot, one PC Card slot, two USB 2.0 ports and a 56-Kbps modem. The CF-Y2's combo DVD-CD-RW drive is hidden under a pop-up panel below the keyboard.

The CF-Y2 is housed in a rugged magnesium alloy case and measures 12.2 x 1.3 x 9.6 inches. The unit weighs only 3.4 pounds. This is a full pound and a half lighter than the Acer unit, which makes a big difference for users that must lug the notebook around all day. The Toughbook CF-Y2 costs $2,570, and even lighter ToughBooks with smaller screens are also available.

Panasonic's Premier Partner program offers benefits based on total Panasonic solution sales, including sales of rugged notebooks and wireless WAN models. The average reseller margin ranges from 10 percent to 15 percent. The program offers sales training, MDF, promotional sales rebates, lead generation, a dedicated partner Web site, priority technical support and localized sales support. Training is offered in person, over the Web and at Panasonic's annual reseller event.

Sharp Actius MP30
Sharp's new Actius MP30 is slightly smaller than the Panasonic ToughBook but weighs about the same. The Actius MP30 is designed for easy portability, low power consumption and maximized runtime.

Compared with other notebooks, the Actius' battery life of 4.6 hours is exceptional. One of the keys to the unit's extensive battery life is the processor, a 1.6GHz Transmeta Efficeon TM8800, specifically designed to conserve power usage.

The Transmeta processor is also equipped with No Execute (NX) virus protection that provides a first line of defense against certain viruses in conjunction with Windows XP Service Pack 2. Another energy-saving feature is the MP30's Mobile Mode Switch, which allows users to increase or decrease the display brightness and processor speed based on their circumstances and surroundings.

One complaint about the MP30 is the small 10.4-inch XGA screen. CRN Test Center engineers would have liked to have seen a larger screen, although the MP30's display does have a relatively sharp native resolution of 1,024 x 768. The display is driven by an ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 graphics card with 32 Mbytes of memory. Other features include a DVD/CD-RW combo drive, 512 Mbytes of memory, two USB 2.0 ports, one PC Card slot, a 10/100 NIC, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, a 56-Kbps modem and a 40-Gbyte hard drive. Sharp's DirectHD technology adapts the Actius MP30 for use as an external USB hard drive.

Despite the tiny screen, the Actius MP30 is surprisingly good for presentation use. A tiny plug-in remote control attaches to a pair of ear-bud headphones, allowing users to easily operate multimedia functions, including presentations and documents. In addition, DVDs and CDs can be played without fully booting the machine. The Actius MP30 measures 10.1 x 1.22 x 8.2 inches and weighs 2.8 pounds. It has an estimated street price of $1,899.

Sharp's single-level channel program provides partners with dedicated account representatives, sales leads, MDF, price-protection plans, rebates, marketing support and post-sales support. Training is typically done in person, and technical support is available 24x7, 365 days a year.

Overall, CRN Test Center engineers were impressed with the lightweight notebook offerings from Acer, Panasonic and Sharp. All three units strike a nice balance between mobility and functionality, although users will have to make some minor sacrifices such as small screen size, slower processor speeds and/or limited hard-drive capacity. However, notebooks continue to evolve, and users may find that the trade-offs are much easier to deal with than a sore shoulder.