Samsung Chromebook Series 5

Can a browser-based os unseat Microsoft windows in the funds laptop computer space? That's the wish with the New samsung Chromebook Sequence 5, the first over the counter available laptop computer to function Google Firefox OS. Offering a compact and eye-catching design, an amazing start time, and 3G connection, the Sequence 5 is made for learners and other customers who don't need a lot of power. But does the $499 New samsung Sequence 5 provide as much performance as in the same way priced netbooks?

Design

While not as minimalist as Google's pilot-program Cr-48 (which was done up in all black), the Samsung Chromebook Series 5 also takes a less-is-more approach. The plastic lid is done in solid Arctic White (it's also available in Titan Silver), with a chrome Samsung logo and the colorful Google Chrome insignia. The rest of the system is a matte black. It's elegant, but we wish it had the soft-touch rubber of the Cr-48. The corners of the Series 5 are also more rounded than the Cr-48, which is a design touch we also like.
Measuring 8.6 x 11.6 x 0.8 inches, the Series 5 easily slid into our shoulder bag. We really appreciated its light 3.2-pound weight after having to stand on a subway train for an hour and a half.

Heat

After streaming a Hulu video at full screen for 15 minutes, the Series 5's touchpad registered a cool 81 degrees Fahrenheit. The space between the G and H keys was slightly warmer at 89 degrees, while the bottom of the Chromebook measured 85 degrees. However, the bottom left of the notebook was a hot 110 degrees, 15 degrees warmer than what we consider comfortable.

Keyboard and Clickpad

Like the Cr-48, the Series 5 has a chiclet keyboard, not unlike one you'd find on a MacBook, but with a few key differences. Instead of function keys, the top row has a set of keys specifically designed for web browsing. To the right of the Esc key are Forward, Back, Refresh, Full screen, and Window swap buttons, as well as display brightness and volume controls. To further enhance the web surfing experience, Samsung has eliminated Caps Lock and replaced it with a web search key.
Typing on the Series 5 is comfortable, and its large flat keys felt good under our fingertips. During the Ten Thumbs Typing Test, we reached our normal speed of 50 words per minute. However, our error rate was higher than our usual 7 percent.

The 3.8 x 2.6-inch smudge-proof clickpad on the Series 5 offers a lot of real estate, perfect for multitouch gestures. Two-finger scrolling and drag and drop were fast and responsive, However, we had to swipe repeatedly to move the cursor where we wanted it.

Display and Audio

The Series 5's 12.1-inch, 1280 x 800 matte display has a brightness of 300 nits (typical notebooks are around 200), but this has little effect on the color. When we watched the Transformers: Dark of the Moon trailer at 720p, Optimus Prime's red and blue chassis seemed dull, as did Bumblebee's usually vivid yellow frame. However there was only a small amount of pixelation during space scenes. When we played a 1080p version of the video, we noticed approximately a second of lag with increased pixelation. Colors began washing out at approximately 80 degrees to either side, meaning two people could squeeze in and watch the show.
The Chromebook might be optimized for the web, but it isn't built for listening to music. Even with the system set to maximum volume, we found that the Series 5 couldn't fill a small room. When we listened to Beyonce's "Girls (Run the World)" and Jay-Z's "Show Me What You Got," both the instruments and vocals sounded like we were listening to them under water. Bass was almost non-existent, and the trumpets on "Show Me What You Got" were brassier than expected, and sounded somewhat distorted. Because the speakers are on the bottom of the Series 5, audio was even more muffled when we placed the Chromebook in our lap.

Ports and Webcam

Keeping with the less-is-more motif, the Chromebook is light on peripheral support. On the right side are one USB 2.0 port and a SIM card slot. The left side houses an additional USB 2.0 port, a mini VGA port, a combination microphone/headphone jack, and the power jack, while the front features a 4-in-1 card reader. Also, only the right USB port and the headphone jack are uncovered; all the other ports are hidden underneath plastic covers.

The 1-megapixel HD webcam gave us rather grainy picture quality in both an office setting and in our home. During our GTalk session, our call partner reported that the video appeared fuzzy but bright with loud, clear sound. We couldn't find any way to shoot stills or video with the webcam, apart from updating our profile photo and conferencing on GTalk.

Boot Up

Owing to its lightweight operating system and high-speed Solid State Drive, Samsung trumpets a boot time of less than 10 seconds and instant resume from sleep as one of the Chromebook's biggest selling points. On our tests, the Series 5 booted up in 14 seconds; it took 8 seconds to reach the login screen, and another 6 seconds to load the browser. For the record, that's on a par with the MacBook Air (15 seconds) and about 10 seconds faster than the Samsung Series 9.
Resuming from sleep took about 1 second, even with several tabs open. That's faster than both the Series 9 (4 seconds) and the MacBook Air (3 seconds).

Setup

Getting started with the Series 5 takes a quick and painless 2 to 3 minutes. When we first turned on the notebook, it prompted us to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot. Then, we entered our Google account info. Unlike the Cr-48, the Series 5 will recognize a Google account username that doesn't end in @gmail.com.
The Series 5 also gives users the option to log in under a guest account, but a note in the browser informed us that our browsing and search history would not be saved. Any downloads or bookmarks we created would also be erased after we logged out. The first Google account entered into the Chromebook automatically becomes the sole administrator and owner; unfortunately, you can't change this in the settings.

User Interface

The Chrome OS interface takes some getting used to. The first thing we noticed was the total lack of a desktop. The browser window takes up the entire screen, and we had to fight the urge to try and minimize it. When we first logged in, Chrome OS presented us with a blank white browser with a list of pre-installed web apps (Entanglement, Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Talk, Poppit, Scratchpad, Web Store, and YouTube) and two menus for the most visited and recently closed links. The system clock, battery indicator, and wireless bars live in the top right corner atop the gray wrench representing the Settings menu.
If you've used the Chrome browser in Windows or Mac, you've used Chrome OS. We created new tabs by clicking on the + icon. You can also create new windows (akin to Spaces in Mac OS X), by pressing CTRL+N, which saves you from having too many tabs in a given window.
You can switch between windows by pressing the window change button on the function row, or the shuffle icon in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Unfortunately, there's no way to know how many windows you have open at a given moment, or to know which one you're switching to.
We missed having the ability to place large browser windows next to each other, but Chrome OS gives users mini-windows, which it calls panels. Similar to widgets, the panels pop up from the bottom of the screen and sit on top the browser. Using the Scratchpad and GTalk panels, we could chat and take notes while surfing the web. These panels can be minimized, but they can't be moved from the bottom of the screen.

Settings

Clicking on the gray wrench in the top right corner let us access a limited number of settings, broken down into six categories (Basics, Internet, Personal Stuff, System, Under the Hood, and Users). We were able to configure date and time and set user permissions and privacy settings, but there's no way to disable sleep mode or check system information such as remaining memory and CPU properties.

Web Apps

Instead of standalone apps, Chromebook owners need to use web apps. Since the software can't be downloaded to the Series 5, the "web apps" are more like bookmarks that show up as icons when you "install" them. Google's Chrome Web Store has thousands of apps that cover a wide range of categories including Education, Games, Productivity, and Utilities. Many of are free, but a few apps (such as Real Solitaire) cost $1.99. In addition to apps, we were able to install extensions and themes.
While the Series 5 is designed to be used with an Internet connection, some of the apps on the Series 5 can work offline. When offline, we were able to use Scratchpad, which later synchronized all our notes to Google Docs once an Internet connection was reestablished. However, we were disappointed that we couldn't work in Google Docs, Reader, or any other Google apps without an Internet connection, though Google says offline functionality is coming soon. We also wish that the apps in the store would list whether or not they had offline capability.

Files and File Manager

As we noted in our initial review of the Chrome OS on the Cr-48, there's no easy way to access files on the Chromebook as you can in Windows or Mac OS. Pressing CTRL + O brings up a two-paned window listing photos on the system, as well as any attached storage drive. However, there's no way to look at system files. When you connect a storage device, such as a USB drive or SD card, a new tab pops up that lists the files on the drive on the left, and a preview window is on the right.

While we could view JPEGs and PDFs just by clicking on the file--they appeared in a new tab--the Series 5 only supports a limited number of file types. For example, we couldn't view Word docs until we'd uploaded them to Google Docs.

Performance

Shooting for start speed rather than processing power, the Chromebook is powered by a 1.66-GHz dual-core Intel Atom N570 CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 16GB SSD hard drive, and integrated graphics. As a result, the notebook boots up in a zippy 14 seconds, but can't handle more than a few tasks at a time. A streaming 720p video began skipping and buffering after we opened seven tabs, a Gchat window, and started playing an MP3. By comparison, the AMD-Fusion powered ASUS Eee PC 1215B was able to stream video in 1080p with Firefox open to seven tabs, Chrome opened with eight tabs, and an MP3 playing at the same time.
With nothing else running, the Series 5's Intel integrated GPU can stream 720p video at a decent rate, but don't expect to play any graphically demanding games. The Series 5 scored a dismal frame rate of 4 frames per second (fps) on WebGL Aquarium, and that was with the test at its lowest setting, (one fish, no background or sunlight). The 1215B made the Series 5 look like a fish out of water, scoring 35 fps with one fish at maximum setting. Even with 1,000 fish at maximum setting, the 1215B managed 15 fps.

3G Connectivity

Our configuration of the Series 5 came with built-in EV-DO Rev. A from Verizon Wireless. Using speedtest.net, the Series 5 had an average download speed of 1.1 Mbps and an average upload rate of 0.69 Mbps. Surfing the web was reasonably quick, too: Laptopmag.com loaded in 2.5 seconds, ESPN.com loaded in 6.3 seconds, and The New York Times loaded in 2.7 seconds. We could also stream video smoothly using 3G. However, 1080p trailers were choppy, regardless of the connection.


With the Series 5, Verizon Wireless offers 100MB of free monthly data for two years. For those who need a larger plan, a 1GB monthly data plan costs $20, 3GB costs $35, and 5GB costs $50, all without a contract. Verizon also offers a one-day $10 unlimited option. We were able to check our data consumption by clicking on the wireless icon in the top nav bar. After a day of heavy use (which entailed a lot of streaming video), we were down to 50MB.

Cloud Print

Similar to AirPrint for iOS devices, Cloud Print lets you send documents via the Internet to connected printers. You can print directly to cloud-ready printers such as HP's ePrint line as well as older printers, provided the latter are connected to a notebook running Google Chrome. Setting up a printer to work with the Series 5 took about 10 minutes--we had to install Chrome on a Windows host computer, then enable cloud printing in Chrome's control panel--but after that, it worked well, albeit slowly. It took a minute or two for the document (a one-page e-mail) to travel over the Internet to the printer.

Battery Life

According to Samsung, the Series 5 has a battery life of 8.5 hours. We weren't able to run the usual LAPTOP battery test because we were unable to disable sleep mode on the notebook. Instead, we streamed a movie at full screen for an hour on a fully charged Series 5. At the end of the hour, the Series 5's battery was at 82-percent capacity.

Configurations

Aside from our $499 configuration of the Series 5, consumers can get a Wi-Fi-only version for $429.
The Series 5 comes with a one-year warranty.

Verdict

Does the world need a computer with a web-only OS? Google seems to think so, and, in a connected world, the Samsung Series 5 Chromebook would seem to be the answer. It's an attractive and highly portable notebook that gives you near-instant access to the Internet.
We like that the stability issues (namely with Flash support) in the Cr-48 have been fixed, but the Chrome OS still feels like a work in progress. The Series 5 is great for watching video, playing casual games, and doing light tasks such as creating spreadsheets and documents, but it really can't handle much more heavy lifting. A fast boot time and bookmarks masquerading as apps can't make up for the fact that we can't use Google Docs offline, we have to hunt around for our local files, or that the Series 5 can only deal with one peripheral at a time. Consumers looking for an ultraportable system under $500 would do better with the AMD-powered ASUS Eee PC 1215B ($439), or its Nvidia Ion brother, the 1215N ($469), which offer much better performance and a full Windows operating system for around the same price.

More About → Samsung Chromebook Series 5

ASUS Eee PC X101

ASUS Eee PC X101 minilaptop. Providing mobility, strong public media incorporation, and MeeGo, an os enhanced for laptops and mobile phones, the X101 is an affordable choice for Facebookers and Tweeters with light efficiency needs. Eventually, this netbook's greatest competitors isn't higher-priced laptops but value-priced pills. Study on to see how well this exclusive clamshell functions.

Design

The ASUS Eee PC X101 is a vision in white. The matte white plastic lid has a textured pattern reminiscent of canvas, with a chrome ASUS logo resting in the center (see below). The netbook's interior completes the all-white aesthetic with a canvas pattern displayed on the palm rest and the top of the deck.
The 10.1-inch display is surrounded by a glossy white bezel, while the keyboard deck sits in a solid white matte panel. Aside from the thin strip of blue light surrounding the power button and the blue special function symbols on the keyboard keys, the X101 has few contrasting accents. The X101 is also available in black.

We barely noticed the 2 pound, 10.3 x 7.1 x 0.7-inch netbook in our messenger bag. Windows-powered netbooks, such as the HP Mini 1103 (2.8 pounds, 0.9 inches thick) and the Samsung NC110 (2.6 pounds, 0.9 inches), are thicker and heavier.

Keyboard and Clickpad

We found it difficult to type on the X101's island-style keyboard. Despite the generous spacing between the keys with rounded corners, their small size--including an extremely undersized right Shift and Backspace keys--made it too easy to miss the mark. Feedback on the keyboard was slightly mushy, and there was a noticeable amount of keyboard flex.


The 3 x 2.25-inch Clickpad offered enough space to maneuver around, and it provided strong feedback for left and right clicks. However, we had difficulty scrolling and selecting individual lines of text. We also noticed that our palms repeatedly came in contact with the clickpad, causing the cursor to skip while typing.

Display and Audio

The ASUS Eee PC X101's 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 resolution screen was moderately bright, achieving clear, vibrant images. Text on CNN.com and Laptopmag.com was sharp and clear, but watching video was a mixed bag. We saw deep rich reds and golds in the 480p YouTube videos of The Immortals and The Three Musketeers, but when we attempted to view the trailers in 720 and 1080p we noticed severe pixelation as well as long periods of buffering.

The X101 won't receive any awards for its audio performance. Located on the bottom of the unit, the netbook's speakers were unable to fill a small room. When we listened to Wilson Pickett's "Land of 1,000 Dances," we heard a clear and sufficiently loud vocals. The horns and guitar were equally clear, but we noticed that the X101 couldn't compete with background noise.

Ports and Webcam

A USB 2.0 port sits on the right side of the Eee PC X101, as does a microSD slot, a combination microphone/headphone jack, and a secure lock slot. Another USB 2.0 slot and the power jack are found on the left. We were able to connect and use mice, flash drives, and external hard drives to the X101 with ease. The X101's 0.3-megapixel webcam delivered bright images, but we noticed a fair amount of graininess despite attempting to make adjustments in the settings panel.

Setup

Getting started on the X101 is pretty fast and intuitive. After a 25-second boot, it took about 10 minutes to get everything up and running. Aside from installing DropBox and OpenOffice and reading and accepting software user agreements, most of our time was spent signing into our social networking outlets including Facebook, Flickr, Google Talk, and Twitter. We also added an e-mail account and calendar, as well as created a couple of To-Do lists.

MeeGo User Interface

At first glance, the MeeGo OS will look and feel quite foreign to those of us used to Windows or Mac OS. Instead of a traditional desktop, MeeGo takes us to MyZone, an interactive hub with a major focus on social networking. However, after a few minutes of use, we found MyZone intuitive and easy to use.


The MeeGo UI displayed our Twitter and Facebook feeds on the home screen via two large, dedicated widgets that updated every few seconds. A set of icons including ASUS App Store, DropBox, E-mail, Messenger, and sit in a 3 x 3 grid in the top-left corner. Panels for Appointments and Tasks and an Unread Messages prompt sit directly below the icon widgets. The right side of the hub displayed a few of our most recent activities (i.e. web surfing, videos, images) in three large squares comprised of an image and title.
To navigate MeeGo, you use a toolbar located on the top of the screen that can be accessed by mousing over it or hitting the Home icon key on the keyboard. The bar displays eight out of 10 icons that grant access to various parts of the interface. When we needed to access all our open pages, we used the Zones icon, which kept a running tab of all open web browsers documents, images, and media.

Media

Clicking the Media icon on the X101 took us to a stripped-down media manager where we could view and play our audio tracks, podcasts, video, and radio stations using Banshee Media Player. We used the Amazon MP3 Store to add more tracks and Internet Archive digital library for audiobooks, concerts, and lectures. To add new radio stations and podcasts, we simply went to each category and clicked on the "Add Station" or "Subscribe to Podcast" option in the top nav bar, added a description and the URL, and hit save.

People

The People hub is where you can instant message using an all-in-one client that supports Google Talk, Facebook messenger, and AIM . When we received a message and weren't on the People page, a medium-sized conversation bubble with the message flashed in the bottom-right corner, and a small flashing icon would pop up in the lower left-hand corner to indicate we had a new message. We used the Status page to toggle between status updates on all of our social networks.

Web

The Internet option launches the Chromium web browser, where we could install useful web apps such as Gmail Offline and Google Reader. When we came across one of our favorite poems, we highlighted the entire piece and copied it. From there, it automatically pasted to the Pasteboard, MeeGo's answer to the Clipboard, which saved us a few seconds. We downloaded a variety of productivity and diversionary widgets on the Gadgets page.
However, we encountered difficulty when we attempted to download the Solar System and Tree Frog widgets. Instead of loading the apps to the Gadget board, the green add button turned red with an error message or just remained inactive. We also found that programs that offer feed-based widgets, such as Daily Horoscope and Romantic Quote of Day, couldn't load even after we deleted and reloaded them.

Apps

Clicking Applications in the top nav bar took us to a page where all of our apps downloaded from the ASUS App Store were organized into a number of categories, including Games, Media, Office, and System Tools. We liked having the ability to switch out the apps displayed in the app box in MyZone by clicking on the little pin located next to the app icon.

Devices and Settings

The Devices page on the X101 lets you access USB connected peripherals, as well as files and system settings. It took less than a second for the netbook to recognize our external hard drive and list it under the Other Devices panel. From there we could open, edit, delete, or copy files. The file manager was very simple, with rudimentary icons representing our files. With no Microsoft Office installed, we relied on OpenOffice to open our Word and Excel documents. A separate image viewer handles photos.
Similar to a traditional OS, the Your Computer panel allowed us to access the data we stored on the X101's 8GB of storage. The panel was broken out into six folders: Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures, Videos, and Trash. The Status & Settings panel displayed battery life, storage used, volume, and display brightness. Clicking the All Settings button in the panel gave us access to a number of settings including System Info, Wallpaper and Fonts, Email Settings, Printing, Network Proxy, and Keyboard.

Performance

Powered by a 1.33-GHz Intel Atom N435 CPU with 1GB of RAM, the ASUS X101 has just enough performance and speed to handle all your social networking, web surfing, and light productivity needs. While we were able to run nine to 10 apps in MeeGo OS, one of which was a Chromium web browser with six open tabs, video took a major hit with jerky playback on YouTube at full screen. 720p video did not run well even as the only tab.
Overall, using MeeGo OS is an easy and intuitive experience. The stripped-down presentation made apps and files easily to locate and manage. Our biggest complaint is the time it took to switch between apps (a little clock appears to let you know when you're going to wait). There were quite a few instances where it took upwards of five seconds to switch between tabs. On a few occasions, the OS froze, forcing us the reboot the netbook.

Battery Life

ASUS claims that in optimal settings, the X101 should offer up to 4 hours battery life. In our tests, which involved continuous web surfing coupled with social networking and streaming music from Slacker Radio, we got 3 hours and 25 minutes of battery life from the netbook. The HP Mini 1103 and the Samsung NC110 easily outlasted the X101, clocking in 8:27 and 7:08, respectively.

Configurations and Support

The $199 ASUS Eee PC comes bundled with a 1.33-GHz Intel Atom N435 CPU with 1GB of RAM, an 8GB SSD, and an Intel GMA 3150 GPU. The X101 has a 1-year global warranty with 24/7 tech support. See ASUS fared in this year's Tech Support Showdown and Best & Worst Brands report.

Verdict

The ASUS Eee PC X101 is a sleek and ultra-light netbook with an engaging and intuitive interface. We also like how the MeeGo OS puts social networking front and center. However, we were turned off by the cramped keyboard, sluggish performance, and short battery life. Yes, $199 is cheap, but you can get a better-equipped Windows netbook with much more storage and endurance for just $30 more.

More About → ASUS Eee PC X101

ASUS EeePC 1025C Flare

In an age when every computer producer is in a competition to make the slimest, hottest Ultrabook in the marketplace, it's a shock to see a new minilaptop hit the landscape. The $299 Eee PC 1025C Width, the organization's newest 10-incher is out to confirm that maybe--just maybe--the age of the minilaptop hasn't finished. Can the Eee PC 1025C define a industry for itself, or will it be banished to obsolesence by gadgets like the iPad? Study on to discover out.

Design

ASUS hasn't changed the design of the Eee PC much since we reviewed the Eee PC 1015B in June 2011. The 1025C Flare netbook still features plain -- if not unattractive -- matte black plastic on the lid and palm rests, accentuated by a chrome finish on the sides and on the single long mouse button. The 1025C also comes in other colors, including white and pink.

Although pleasant to feel, the soft-touch plastic on the lid easily picked up fingerprint smudges, giving the laptop a slightly greasy look after a few hours of handling it. The screen's bezel sports a slightly texturized black plastic finish.

Aside from its price, the Eee PC 1025C's light weight and compact size are clearly its main selling points. At just 10.3 x 7.0 x 0.8-1.3 inches and 2.4 pounds (the same weight as the Toshiba Portege Z835 Ultrabook), the netbook is small and light enough to easily fit inside a messenger bag, backpack or even a large purse. It's lighter than its predecessor, the Eee PC 1015B (10.3 x 7.1 x 0.9-1.4 inches, 2.8 pounds), as well as the HP Mini 1103 (10.6 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches, 2.8 pounds), and on a par with the Samsung NC110 (10.4 x 7.4 x 0.97 inches, 2.6 pounds).

Keyboard and Touchpad

Like the Eee PC 1015B, the Eee PC 1025C Flare sports a compact chiclet-style keyboard. The keys offered a nice amount of tactile feedback and are slightly textured, making them easy for our fingers to grip. Nevertheless, the keys' small size make it difficult to touch-type with both speed and accuracy. On the Ten Thumbs typing test, we achieved only 59 words per minute with a 2 percent error rate, far below our normal typing speed.

The 3.1 x 1.5 inch touchpad on the Flare is the same size as the Eee PC 1015B, slightly larger than the HP Mini 1103 (3.1 x 1.25 inches), and just a hair smaller than the Samsung NC110 (3.2 x 1.5 inches). Tracking was smooth and accurate, and the cursor moved effortlessly from one side of the screen to the other with a single swipe of our finger. Still, the 1.5-inch height made the touchpad feel cramped at times, particularly when trying to select something at the bottom of the screen. Gestures have not been significantly improved since the release of the Eee PC 1015B -- two-finger scrolling still suffers from occasional stuttering.

The single long touch mouse button on the Eee PC 1025 is accurate, although it requires a bit more force to depress than we'd like. The chrome finish on the button, like the soft-touch lid, easily picks up fingerprints.

Display and Audio

The Eee PC 1025C's 10.1-inch, 1024 x 600 matte display offers acceptable -- if not particularly vivid -- visuals. Watching the official launch trailer for "Mass Effect 3" on YouTube, the purples and blues of space as the Normandy traveled at faster-than-light speeds did not appear as lustrous as on other machines. Still, the 1025C's matte display offers generous viewing angles. We could move almost 45 degrees in either direction before the screen started to wash out.

The low resolution is the biggest adjustment, especially for those who haven't used a netbook before. You have to do a lot more vertical scrolling when surfing the Web, for example, than on a higher-end netbook with a 1366 x 768-pixel screen.

The speakers, located on the bottom of the netbook, pump out sound at a decent volume but suffer from poor audio quality. When listening to "Kashmir" by Led Zeppelin, for instance, Robert Plant's lilting vocals filled a small room but the driving drum beat sounded tinny and slightly distorted. Placing the Eee PC 1025C on our lap caused the sound to become slightly muffled.

Heat

The Eee PC 1025C Flare runs fairly cool. After streaming video from Hulu for 15 minutes, the touchpad and center of the keyboard registered only 83 and 83 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively. Although the underside became slightly warmer at 92 degrees, you can still use the netbook on your lap comfortably. We consider anything above 95 degrees to be too hot.

Ports and Webcam

The Eee PC 1025C features a standard spread of ports. Located on the right side are an Ethernet port, a Kensington lock slot, two USB 2.0 ports, a headphone/mic jack and a 2-in-1 SD card slot. On the left are the AC port, VGA, a third USB 2.0 port, and HDMI.

The 0.3-megapixel webcam offers clear images. When talking to a friend via Google Video Chat, the camera delivered crisp colors and smooth motions for the duration of the call.

Performance

As one would expect from a laptop with a 1.6-GHz Intel Atom N2600 dual-core processor and only 1GB of RAM, the Eee PC 1025C Flare outperformed fellow netbooks. On Geekbench, the laptop scored 1,127, beating the 1,006 average score for netbooks as well as the score of 932 on the ASUS Eee PC 1015B (1.2-GHz AMD C30 processor, 1GB of RAM). The Eee PC 1025C also performed well when handling everyday tasks. We were able to stream TV shows on Hulu, listen to music on iTunes and type documents without seeing any slowdown.

The Eee PC 1025C loaded Windows 7 in just 55 seconds, beating the average boot time by 11 seconds. This time also beats the ASUS Eee PC 1015B (65 seconds) and ThinkPad X130e (59 seconds), but falls just short of the Samsung NC110 (54 seconds) and HP Mini 1103 (52 seconds).

Unfortunately, the 320GB, 5,400-rpm hard drive didn't fare as well when compared to other netbooks. It took the Eee PC 1025C 4 minutes and 28 seconds to copy 4.97GB of mixed multimedia, a rate of only 19 MBps. This is slower than the category average (23.5 MBps).

On the OpenOffice spreadsheet test, which matches 20,000 names and addresses, the Eee PC 1025C took a leisurely 33 minutes and 53 seconds to finish the test. This is slower than the already sluggish Lenovo ThinkPad X130e (24:09).

Although we can't recommend editing video on the Eee PC 1025C, it did manage to transcode 1080p video using Cyberlink MediaEspresso in 11 minutes and 33 seconds, half the time it took the average netbook to complete the same task.

Graphics Performance

Netbooks have never been regarded as graphical powerhouses and the ASUS Eee PC 1025C Flare is no exception. With its Intel GMA 3600 integrated GPU, the 1025C isn't capable of handling even the most basic games. On 3DMark06, a synthetic benchmark that measures overall graphics performance, the netbook scored a mere 382, almost 400 points below the category average of 765 and far below the Eee PC 1015B (AMD Radeon HD 6250 graphics), which achieved a lofty score of 1,719. The Samsung NC110 (Intel GMA 3150) and HP Mini 1103 (Intel HP Graphics) both performed more poorly than the Eee PC 1025C, turning in 154 and 149, respectively.

When we attempted to run "World of Warcraft" on the Eee PC 1025C, the netbook managed to squeak out only 2 frames per second on both Good and Ultra settings.

Battery Life

While it might not be the fastest netbook on the block, the ASUS Eee PC 1025C Flare lasts longer than any of its competitors by a wide margin. On the LAPTOP Battery Test (continuous surfing on the Web over Wi-Fi), the netbook's 6-cell Lithium Ion battery lasted a whopping 9 hours and 41 minutes. This beats the average netbook by 3:14, and outlasts the Eee PC 1015B (6:35), Samsung NC110 (7:08) and HP Mini 1103 (8:27).

Software

The Eee PC 1025C comes preloaded with the standard selection of ASUS utilities, including one free year of ASUS WebStorage, which allows you to store up to 3GB of data online; ASUS @Vibe, a portal for games, music and other multimedia entertainment; and Eee Docking, a service that allows you to share media and access apps in the cloud.

Also included are ASUS's much-touted Super Hybrid Engine II, which allows the netbook to resume from sleep in a little more than 2 seconds and gives it a 21-day standby time, and Express Gate Cloud, ASUS's version of the Linux-powered Splashtop instant-on environment. While Express Gate Cloud delivers on its promise to load quickly (our system took just 13 seconds to boot into the environment), the lack of a dedicated power button for the OS -- a feature found on other ASUS systems -- limits the service's utility.

For security, the Eee PC 1025C comes bundled with a free trial of Trend Micro Titanium antivirus software. Adobe Reader 9 and Microsoft Office 2010 Starter are also on board.

Warranty and Support

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ASUS backs the Eee PC 1025C Flare with a one-year limited warranty and 24/7 tech support. See how ASUS fared in our annual Tech Support Showdown and Best & Worst Notebook Brands report.

Verdict

The last of a dying breed, the ASUS Eee PC 1025C Flare demonstrates why tablets have superceded netbooks as the lightweight computing device of choice -- pound for pound, slates offer faster performance, sleeker designs and more intuitive touch interfaces. Still, if you're in the market for a compact laptop that costs a third of the price of an Ultrabook, the Eee PC 1025C is worth a look. It can handle basic tasks with ease, weighs only 2.4 pounds and lasts more than three hours longer on the charge than the average netbook. Not bad for a laptop that costs less than $300.

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Razer Blade (2012)

Razer has created a wonderful creature. Last year the company launched its first ever game playing laptop computer with a unique additional LCD screen that does dual purpose as an in-game dash panel and game playing track pad. The $2,499 second-gen Razer Knife maintains the thin, attractive information of its forerunner, while thumping up the speed. Enhanced specifications include a newly-released Apple Primary i7 processer and Nvidia GTX design. But does this Knife have what it takes to piece and cut the competition?

Design

With the Blade, Razer answers the question of what a cross between a 17-inch Macbook Pro and an Alienware M17x might look like. It combines the thinness of the former with the subtle menace of the latter. The Blade's matte black aluminum lid has two small ridges that reminded us of the hood of a late 60s muscle car. Our eyes were drawn to Razer's green three-headed snake insignia that glows seductively, urging us to caress the cool lid. Doing so, however, immediately left a plethora of fingerprints and smudges.

Upon opening the notebook, you'll see the biggest difference between the Razer laptops and every other notebook on the market. The touchpad -- which is now an LCD panel -- sits on the right side of the keyboard, and directly above it are two rows of LED-backlit macro buttons.
Above the keyboard is a large pulsating power button, and above that, just below the screen, is a thin speaker grille. Like the lid, the notebook's interior is also made of black aluminum, which makes the emerald green backlit keyboard and power button pop.
The underside of the notebook also has a hint of dramatic flair, thanks to the diamond-cut heating vents.
At 6.6 pounds and 0.88 inches thick, the Razer Blade is by far the lightest and thinnest gaming notebook on the market. It's slightly lighter than the 15-inch 15.4 x 10.4 x 1-inch Macbook Pro which weighs 6.8 pounds. The 16.1 x 11.9 x 1.75-inch Alienware M17x R4, by comparison, tips the scales at 9.8 pounds and is twice as thick. The 16.2 x 10.9 x 1.7-1.8-inch Origin Eon 17S and the 16.3 x 12.6 x 0.9-2-inch Samsung Series 7 Gamer weigh 8.2 and 8.4 pounds respectively.
We easily slid the Blade into a large messenger bag and went about our merry way. Despite being stuck in a standing-room only subway car for over an hour, we didn't experience any immediate shoulder or back pain. Compare that to the hefty M17x, that has to be stuffed into a large backpack and causes almost immediate aches and pains.

The Blade's power brick is also a marvel of design.The diminutive 5.75 x 2.25 x 0.6-inch brick weighs 10.6 ounces but still manages to deliver the necessary 120W of power. The 18.4-inch Alienware M18x R2's power brick weighs a whopping 2.4 pounds. Razer even managed to spice up the brick by adding its insignia on the front.

Display

Matte or glossy? It's the perennial question concerning displays. Razer outfitted the Blade with a matte 17.3-inch, full HD display (1920 x 1080p), which provides sharp images and wide viewing angles.
Borderlands 2's cel-shaded graphics were breathtaking on the Blade. The frozen wastelands of the opening stage was at once beautiful and terrifying. The gray overcast sky added to the abject loneliness of a world populated by stark white ice crags and shaggy gray beasts with fur mottled red from their last kill.
However, when compared side by side, the Alienware M17x R4's display delivered a more vivid vista. This was most evident when day turned to night and an undulating Aurora Borealis danced above our heads.
When we watched the 1080p trailer of "The Master," Joaquin Phoenix's skin tone looked more lifelike on the M17x, but the Razer Blade displayed the tiniest imperfections in the actor's skin.
The Blade's 256 lux display is slightly higher than the 250 lux desktop replacement average. However, it's a little dim compared to the Eon 17S, M17x and Series 7 Gamer which scored 262, 282 and 325 lux, respectively.

Audio

Despite its unassuming thin speaker strip, the Razer Blade delivers big, rich sound. As we played Borderlands 2, we could hear the muffled crunch of our footsteps on a snow-covered glacier. The deep booming roar of the Bullymong accented the jarring boom of our shotgun.
When we listened to Wale's "Lotus Flower Bomb," the organs sounded right at the edge of distortion at maximum volume. The rapper's raspy delivery was a perfect counterbalance to the sultry hook sung by Miguel.

Keyboard

The Blade's island-style keyboard is lovely to behold. The block-style lettering glows green against the black matte keys, and made us feel like we were deciphering some new language. The keys have generous spacing, but in order to make room for the touchpad, the backspace and enter keys are smaller than we would like. The space bar is also slightly undersized. Similar to the rest of the chassis, the keyboard is susceptible to fingerprints.
As we typed, the keys delivered nice springy feedback. We scored 47 words per minute on the Ten Thumbs Typing Test with a 1 percent error rate. That's slightly higher than our normal 45 wpm/1 percent error rate.
One of the keyboard's best features is that it's completely customizable. That means you can record macros and map them to any button on the keyboard, a big plus for gamers that like to create custom controls. A special button emblazoned with the company logo works in tandem with the special features of the touchpad.

Touchpad

Razer's 3.5 x 2.3-inch Synaptics touchpad/track panel is anything but traditional. Instead of its usual position under the keyboard, the touchpad sits to the right. This takes some getting used to. We constantly found ourselves sweeping our fingers below the keyboard, searching for a phantom touchpad.
The LCD multitouch track panel performed well with precise navigation on websites and documents. Highlighting text was also seamless. Multitouch gestures including pinch-to-zoom, two-finger scroll, three-finger press and flick were smooth as well.
The glossy black plastic discrete mouse buttons are a little on the thin side, but they delivered firm feedback during our use.

Switchblade Interface

In addition to serving as a touchpad, the LCD track panel acts as a second display. In conjunction with the 10 Dynamic Adaptive Tactile Keys, the panel can also be used to activate shortcuts and macros in games via Razer's Switchblade user interface.
When we first activated the Switchblade interface (we had to create a free Razer account), the keys were illuminated with bright colorful icons for a screenshot button, game timer, Gmail, Twitter, Facebook, and a Web browser, among others. Pressing the Facebook button, for instance, brought up the mobile version of Facebook on the touchpad, where we could log into our account.
Users can also create up to 10 pages of personal shortcuts with their own custom icons. You can switch between pages by performing a three-finger swipe on the touch pad. Returning to the home page is a simple as pressing the Razer button next to the touchpad.
Launching the web browser, YouTube and other social networking buttons instantly transforms the track panel into a 800 x 480-pixel display, complete with touchscreen capabilities such as pinch-to-zoom and scroll. However, text on the smaller display is difficult to read without zooming in, and once we did zoom in, text was riddled with jagged edges.
However, we appreciated the ability to launch applications on the screen without exiting our games on the main screen.During our time with the Blade, we used the YouTube app to find video of a particular challenge in Borderlands 2. We also used the Snapshot button to capture some of our more gloat-worthy moments.

Synapse 2.0 Software

The LCD touch panel and its accompanying buttons are nice, but they're nothing without Razer's Synapse 2.0 software. Acting as the brains of the touch panel, Synapse 2.0 enables users to customize settings such as mouse sensitivity and keyboard and display brightness. Users can also create profiles for the keyboard, including custom macros and icons for the 10 Dynamic Adaptive Tactile Keys.
Razer included groups of macros for Team Fortress 2, Battlefield 3, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Counter Strike: Global Offense. Used in tandem with the titles, these game profiles streamline certain functions, shaving seconds off your reaction time. For example, the Battlefield 3 macros let you quickly switch between weapons and fast access to equipment. The Team Fortress 2 macros support every character class, mapping their abilities to the 10 buttons.
We also created a Borderlands 2 custom profile. We started by tricking the touchpad out with some cool Borderlands 2 wallpaper. From there we created a custom icon using more promotion art. We then recorded our custom macros and mapped them to our preferred buttons, linking them to the profile. The process is fairly straightforward, but mapping macros can become a deeply involved project depending on the level of customization.
On the plus side, Razer stores your profiles in the cloud, eliminating the need to recreate them every time you use a new notebook or mouse. Razer also says that customers will be able to share profiles they create for the Switchblade UI with other Blade owners, much the same way that owners of its gaming mice can share profiles with others.

Heat

After watching an episode of Desert Punk, the touchpad measured 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The space between the G and H keys registered 88 degrees and the underside measured 90 degrees.
Things heated up as we played Batman: Arkham City. The touchpad measured 86 degrees, and the space between the G and H keys rose to 99 degrees. We consider anything above 95 uncomfortable, so were disappointed that the underside soared to 108 degrees when playing this title.

Webcam

Although the Blade comes with a 2-megapixel webcam, Razer neglected to include any accompanying software. Nevertheless, when we took a test shot using Skype, we saw a pleasing and rich warmth in our skin tone. In addition, details were fairly sharp; we could see a few flyaway hairs in the shot.

Ports

The Blade is relatively light on ports. A lone secure lock slot sits on the notebook's right. The left side houses a trio of USB 3.0 ports, HDMI, Gigabit Ethernet and jacks for headphones and the AC adapter. Frustratingly, Razer did not inlcude an SD Card slot.

Gaming and Graphics

Razer has literally stepped up its game, upgrading the Razer Blade to an Nvidia GeForce GTX 660M GPU with 2GB of VRAM over GT-level graphics on the original notebook. Thanks to Nvidia's Optimus technology, the notebook switches between its discrete and integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU depending on the task at hand. Still, this svelte rig had a hard time competing with some of the bigger gaming systems on the market.
On the 3DMark11 benchmark, the Blade scored 2,623. That's 602 points less than the 3,238 desktop replacement average. The Samsung Series 7 Gamer and the Origin Eon 17S, which both have Nvidia GeForce GTX 675M GPUs with 2GB of VRAM, scored 3,651 and 3,502, respectively. The Alienware M17x R4 and its dual GTX 680M GPU posted a scorching 6,158.
The Blade averaged 104 fps in World of Warcraft at native resolution (1920 x 1080), with graphics on autodetect. That's fast but 80 frames behind the 184 fps category average. The Series 7 Gamer scored 167 fps while the Eon 17S delivered 232 fps. The M17x R4 posted 279 fps, blowing the competition away. When we cranked it up to maximum, the Blade notched 51 fps, falling short of the 97 fps category average. The Eon 17S scored 129 fps followed by the Series 7 Gamer at 135 fps. The M17x R4 delivered a whopping 147 fps.
On the more graphically taxing Batman Arkham: Asylum, the Razer Blade notched 38 fps at 1920 x 1080. That's playable, but it's much less than the 71 fps desktop replacement category average. The Series 7 Gamer and the Eon 17S did better with 65 and 69 fps, respectively. The M17x R4 came out on top with an impressive 82 fps.
At maximum settings, the Blade dropped to an unplayable 24 fps, failing to match the 38 fps average. The M17x R4 continued to shine with 52 fps, while the Eon 17S and the Series 7 Gamer were tied at 30 fps.
We also spent a few hours blasting Bullymongs and Marauders in Borderlands 2. When we ran the game on its highest settings (1920 x 1080p, FXAA On, Antisotrophic Flitering 8x), we saw an average frame rate of 41 fps. When we turned Antisotrophic Flitering down to 4x, the frame rate average rose to 56 fps, and when we disabled filtering, the Blade notched 70 fps.

Performance

The Razer Blade is one of the first laptops to feature Intel's new 2.2-GHz quad-core Core i7-3632QM CPU. Combined with its 8GB of RAM, the notebook effortlessly streamed the movie Drive on Netflix with 8 open tabs in Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer while running a full system scan.
The notebook also held its own during our benchmark tests, notching 4,554 on PCMark 7. That's 902 points above the 3,652 desktop replacement category average. The Samsung Series 7 and its 2.3-GHz Intel Core i7-3610QM quad-core CPU only managed 3,611. The Alienware M17x R4 (2.6-GHz Core i7-3720QM CPU) was only slightly faster than the Razer at 4,610. However, the Origin Eon 17S took top billing with a score of 5,602, thanks to its 2.9-GHz Intel Core i7-3920XM processor.
Relying on a hybrid drive (500GB 7,200-rpm hard drive with 64GB SSD), the Blade booted the 64-bit version of Windows 7 Home Premium in 25 seconds. That was more than enough to smoke the 0:52 average as well as the Series 7 Gamer (dual 750GB 7,200-rpm hard drives) and the M17x R4's (500GB 7,200-rpm and 32GB SSD cache) times of 0:42 and 0:34. The Eon 17S (dual 120GB SSDs in RAID 0 configuration and 1TB 5,400-rpm hard drive) stopped the clock at a blistering 0:17.

During the File Transfer Test, the Blade duplicated 4.97GB of mixed-media files in 59 seconds, a transfer rate of 86.3 MBps, comfortably above the 64MBps category average. The Series 7 Gamer and the M17x R4 scored 33 and 24 MBps. Only the Eon 17S scored higher with its whopping 254 MBps.
On the OpenOffice Spreadsheet Macrotest, the Blade paired 20,000 names to their matching addresses in 4 minutes and 34 seconds, slightly longer than the 4:22 category average. The M17x R4 completed the task in 4:10 while the Eon 17S continued to dominate with a time of 3:17.

Battery Life

On the LAPTOP Battery Test (continuous web surfing over Wi-Fi), the Razer lasted 3 hours ad 50 minutes. That's four minutes shy of the 3:54 category average. The Origin Eon 17s and Samsung Series 7 Gamer lasted 2:35 and 3:21 respectively. However, the Alienware M17x offered very good endurance with a runtime of 5:27.

Configurations

Our $2,499 review model of the Razer Blade features a 2.2-GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-3632QM CPU, 8GB of RAM, a 500GB 7,200-rpm hard drive with a 64GB SSD cache and a Nvidia GTX 660M GPU with 2GB of VRAM.
The original Blade is priced at $2,299 and has a 2.8-GHz Intel Core i7-2640 processor with 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and Nvidia GT 555M processor with 2GB or VRAM. Razer is giving their early adopter customers a $500 discount on the new Blade, dropping the price to $1,999.

Verdict

We didn't think it could be done. But Razer has managed to create a highly portable 17.3-inch gaming notebook that delivers remarkable performance for its size. Getting the new quad-core Core i7 CPU and Nvidia GTX graphics in a sleek 0.88-inch shell is pretty sweet. And, there's no denying that its Switchblade UI is one of the most innovative things we've seen in a gaming notebook in a while. Just don't expect the same blistering frame rates you'd get from much beefier rigs.
That brings us to the real question gamers will need to answer: How much is mobility and a second screen worth? For the same $2,499 price of the Razer Blade, you can get an Alienware M17x with a Core i7-3610QM CPU, a 3D-enabled 1080p display, Nvidia GTX 680M graphics, and a 1TB hard drive in RAID 0. However, the M17x is more than 3 pounds heavier--not including its power brick. Bottom line: those looking for the most gaming muscle on the go will love this machine.

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HP Pavilion g6t-2000

One of our preferred funds laptops of 2011 is returning, and now HP has improved its Pavilion g6t with Dolby sound, a broader key pad with built-in variety pad and a quicker second-generation Primary i3 processer. Costing a very cost-effective $479, the Pavilion g6t-2000 should have everything you need for browsing the Web, viewing movie and maintaining up with Facebook or myspace and Tweets. Plus, if you're willing to pay a little more, you can take your choose from several shade alternatives. Does HP still have the best value-priced laptop?

Design

The HP Pavilion g6t-2000 has rounded corners and a Sparkling Black glossy plastic deck and lid. A silver HP logo rests in the lower left corner of the lid, and it's also printed in white below the display. Above the keyboard is the Dolby Advanced Audio speaker, which takes up the entire width of the notebook.
Unfortunately, the lid smudged up with fingerprints quickly, but some of the optional colors will likely do a better job of hiding them. For an additional $25, you can choose from Bright Purple, Line White, Ruby Red and Winter Blue.
On the top left, above the keyboard, is a long and flat silver power button that has a small light that glows when the computer is powered on. The Pavilion g6 also features numeric keys next to the full-size QWERTY keyboard.
The g6t-2000 measures 14.8 x 9.6 x 1.4 inches and weighs 5.2 pounds, which is smaller and lighter than the 5.6 pound Gateway NV57H54u that measures 15 x 9.7 x 1.3 inches. The Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 is lighter and thinner at 5.1 pounds and 0.9 inches.

Display

The HP Pavilion g6t has a 15.6-inch HP BrightView LED display with a standard resolution of 1366 x 768. Despite bright colors and crisp images, the glossy finish was distracting, making computing difficult in bright-light environments. Even in standard indoor lighting, we could still see ourselves in the screen as we used this notebook.
We watched the trailer for "The Master" and details rendered clear and sharp. You could clearly see the creases in Joaquin Phoenix's jeans and the waves crashing beneath as he laid across a ledge on the Navy ship.
Unfortunately, viewing angles aren't the best on the Pavilion g6t, as images quickly darkened when viewing the display from the left or right. The display is not very bright, either, measuring 160 lux, significantly less than the average of 244 lux. The Dell Inspiron 15R registered 198 lux and the Aspire V5 171 lux.

Audio

The Pavilion g6t-2000 is powered by Dolby Advanced Audio speakers, and the sound quality impressed in our testing. The speakers that form a long strip above the keyboard were loud enough to easily fill our testing room.
We played "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen, and vocals sounded loud and clear, complemented by the piano and cymbals, even at high volume. We then switched it up and played Kanye West's "No Church In The Wild" the lower notes and bass were solid--especially for under $500.
The Pavilion g6t includes the Dolby Advanced Audio application for quick audio adjustments. There are three different profiles: Movie, Music and Voice, which adjust the equalizer accordingly. Our favorite setting was the music setting, which provided the most well-rounded experience. This application can also improve audio recording with features such as Noise Cancellation and Acoustic Echo Cancellation.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The g6t features a full-size keyboard and adds a full numeric keypad to this year's model. The keys are a matte black plastic, which stands out against the glossy deck. Typing took some adjusting; the numeric keypad pushes the keyboard to the left of the deck, rather than directly in the middle, which meant the home keys weren't where we expected them.
The arrow keys also takes a cue from Apple's MacBook computers, mashing the up and down arrows so that these two keys match the height of the left and right keys. Unfortunately, on the Pavilion g6t, this arrow key layout isn't optimal and we often found ourselves accidentally clicking both the up and down buttons together when we only wanted one.
We were able to type at our average speed of 72 words per minute, but the keyboard felt slightly mushy.
The trackpad measures 2 x 4 inches and is slightly sunken into the deck, an improvement over last year's trackpad, which was flush. The touch area employs tiny bumps for texture, providing the friction needed for cursor control. There are two buttons for left and right clicking. Two-finger scrolling, rotating, pinch to zoom and three-finger swiping gestures were all accurate, and we especially like the three-finger press for application launching.

Heat

HP's budget notebook maintained a comfortable temperature during our heat test, which involves watching a full-screen Hulu video for 15 minutes. After the test, they touchpad measured 79 degrees Fahrenheit, the space between the G and H keys was 86 degrees, and the bottom was 89 degrees. We consider anything above 95 degrees to be too warm, so the g6t fell well below our threshold.

Ports

On the left side of the Pavilion g6t-2000 is a VGA and HDMI ports, as well as an Ethernet jack and two USB 3.0 ports, headphone and microphone jacks and an SD card reader. The right has a power port, a USB 2.0 port and the tray-loading DVD+/-RW drive. It's nice to see faster USB 3.0 ports on a sub-$500 notebook, something HP didn't offer last time around.

Webcam

The webcam on the HP Pavilion g6t is standard definition, reaching a maximum image capture of 640 x 460 pixels. Recorded images were grainy and there was noticeable noise in the picture. The notebook comes with the CyberLink YouCam software, which allows for quick image or video capture as well as the use of numerous webcam effects, such as masks and voice-responsive avatars.

Performance

The Pavilion g6t is powered by a 2.4-GHz Intel Core i3-2370M processor with 4GB of RAM. Unfortunately, this is the 2nd-generation Sandy Bridge rather than the newer Ivy Bridge Intel processor.
In everyday use, the HP g6t-2000 performed well. We opened the picture viewer, the HP Games application, Chrome with 10 tabs, and played a video on YouTube without any noticeable lag, nor did it take a long time to switch between applications.
This laptop didn't fare as well in benchmark testing. In the PCMark 7 benchmarking test, the Pavilion g6t scored 1,992 compared to the Gateway NV57H54u's 2,060 with a 2.3-GHz Intel Core i3-2350M processor. The Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 scored an higher 2417, which is not surprising given its 2.4-GHz Intel Core i5-3317U processor. Both of these scores are below the category average of 2,523.
This HP notebook narrowed the gap in the Geekbench test, but still fell short of competing machines. The g6t scored 5,323 compared with the Gateway NV57H54u's 5,493 and the Aspire V5-571-6869's 5,844 and fell shy of the 6422 average.
The g6t-2000 took 46 seconds to load the 64-bit version of Windows 7 Home Premium in the 500GB 5,400-rpm hard drive. This showing is faster than the 53-second category average, as well as the Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 (53 seconds).
The Pavilion g6t took 4 minutes and 18 seconds to complete the file transfer test, which involves copying 4.97GB of multimedia files, for a transfer rate of 19.7 MBps. This is slower than both the Gateway NV57H54u (3:47) and the Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 (4:12), but not by much.
Our OpenOffice Spreadsheet test, where we match 20,000 names to their corresponding addresses, took 6 minutes and 43 seconds to complete, 40 seconds slower than the category average. Comparatively, the Gateway NV57H54u completed this task in 7:10 and the Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 took 6:15.

Graphics

Because the Pavilion g6t-2000 uses Intel HD 3000 graphics and not the latest GPU from Intel, you'll have to stick to casual games. This notebook scored 3,628 on the 3DMark06 test, well below the average of 5,714 and behind the 4,454 turned in by the similarly priced Gateway NV57H54u.
When we ran "World of Warcraft" on good quality, this notebook mustered only 24 fps, which isn't quite playable. At the maximum settings, this frame rate dropped to 10 fps, rendering play completely futile. The slightly more expensive Acer V5-571 notched a much higher 50 fps.

Battery Life

The 6-cell battery in the g6t lasted 4 hours and 50 minutes during our battery test. That's decent endurance for a budget notebook, given that other sub-$500 machines we've reviewed have lasted about 4.5 hours. The HP's endurance is close to the Inspiron 15R (4:52), but behind the mainstream category average of 5:27. The last-generation g6t lasted 4:39, and the Acer V5-571 had a lower 4:12 runtime.

Software and Warranty

This notebook features the HP Premier Experience, which includes numerous features and a quick-launch application to help provide a cleaner and faster experience. The HP Launch Box provides three quick access icons to the task bar, one for Windows Live applications, another for HP recommended apps and the third that's fully customizable. The Windows Live Launch Box offers quick access to Mail, Messenger, Movie Maker and Photo Gallery. The HP Launch Box is configurable for HP recommended applications, such as Evernote and Skype. Our favorite Launch Box was the third, since it was fully customizable and we could add handy shortcuts to My Computer, Control Panel and even streamline connecting to a projector.
Additionally, as part of the HP Premier Experience, all programs in the start menu are preorganized into folders by category, such as Communication and Chat, Productivity and Tools and Shopping and Services. An Action Center control panel item is also part of the Experience, and this captures and organizes the computer's alerts and pop-ups, prioritizing each one and providing a single place to view and manage all computer messages.
HP also includes the HP Games application, which bring Apple's App Store-like functionality to this notebook. Users can browse, play and download games from a variety of categories, such as Enthusiast, Casual and Family. With an HP Games account, users can try games before they buy, and there is also a section for free Web games.
The g6t-2000 includes the standard Microsoft Office Starter 2010 bundle, which includes ad-supported versions of Microsoft Word and Excel. Also included is Skype, a 60-day trial of Norton Internet Security 2012 and note-taking app Evernote.
HP backs this system with a standard one-year warranty. See how the company fared in our Best & Worst brands report and Tech Support Showdown.

Configurations

In addition to multiple color choices, HP provides a number of processor options for the Pavilion g6t-2000, including a 2.3-GHz i3-2350M processor for $10 less than our review unit. And if you want to upgrade the processor, a Sandy Bridge i5-2450M is available for $65 more, a Ivy Bridge i5-3210M is an $85 upgrade and an Ivy Bridge 2.1-GHz i7-3612QM processor will cost an additional $235. Graphics upgrades are also available: a 1GB AMD Radeon HD 7670M discrete graphics processor is an additional $50 and a 2GB AMD Radeon HD 7670M GPU is an extra $75. Bumping up to 6GB of RAM is $50 more and 8GB of RAM is $100 more.

Verdict

Priced at $489, the HP Pavilion g6t-2000 is a low-cost notebook with plenty of features and plenty of punch for everyday tasks. While the second-generation Core i3 CPU is older, this notebook provides solid performance and has booming Dolby Advanced Audio speakers. The g6t also runs cool and lets you choose from multiple color options. The Acer Aspire V5-571-6869 offers faster Core i5 performance for just $30 more, but it also has a bland design, worse keyboard and shorter battery life. Overall, if you're looking to stretch your budget, this laptop is an excellent choice.

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