Lenovo x200:

Overview

Today were putting the Lenovo x200 through its course. The x200 is the smaller brother to the now infamous x300, and an upgrade to the x61 series of earlier years (best in class for ultraportable as far as were concerned). Although being smaller, and lacking an optical drive, the x200 doesnt seem too tiny nor as thin as the x300, and developing most of its hardships with the battery bay and standard tracking devices. Of course, this is a very near end pre-consumer level model were reviewing, so Im sure things have gotten ironed out as soon as this review hits the shelf as far as fit and finish is concerned (more at the end of the review on that)

Design:

Case look and feel

The case is standard Lenovo x series styling there is little to no color variations, sticking with its stark black rubber like finish, branding stamped across the base of the LCD lid, which is held to the strong chassis by the now loved/hated steel hinges. There is also suitably efficient LED readouts at the top telling some simple status changes of your unit.

The x200 features the tapered front end, housing the media card reader and LCD release latch. If you seen one x series Lenovo, youve pretty much seen them all as far as styling is concerned. Although Im not flattered by it, it does hold its own for material and minimalists. It is made of the strong magnesium allowing very little flex, and this time around, features two run off points underneath the laptop for spilled liquid.

Although I didnt feel like testing this feature, its nice to note and Im sure will save some busy coffee / cola drinker one morning.

Size & Weight
The size is very nice, featuring a decently slim profile, very thin LCD housing, and weighs just under 2.95 lb with the 4 cell battery. However, our unit came packaged with the extended 9 cell battery, which extrudes out the rear pretty awfully.

Yes, you do gain that tremendous battery life, but it makes this ultraportable larger than it should, and weighs just about as heavy as a 14.1 counterpart nearing almost 3.7 pounds. Looks will deceive you if you arent prepared for this change.

Keyboard

The keyboard again is strict Lenovo X series styling and specifications, holding cues to previous models before it, featuring alphanumeric typing keys that are spaced 18.5 mm vertically and 18.2 mm horizontally, which is defined as full-sized by ISO/IEC 15412. The stroke travel is a full 2.5 mm, which is always a pleasure to type on.
But, unlike the SL series that was also released, this still features the track-point nub in the center. Although keen for space saving design, and a following crowd of aficionados, I would have much rather seen an implemented track pad, and even make it multi-touch based like the Asus series that we just reviewed, to help aid in all those cramped Fn buttons. Am I nitpicking? Of course, but lets lay that out there.

Display quality

The display is a 1280x800 widescreen 16:10 aspect ratio display. There are 15 levels of brightness offered with a max output nearing 200 nits, a 50 nit increase of the former x61, and a welcomed addition. I noticed it didnt have very great side to side viewing angles on some PDF documents, but mostly, color representation was very decent, with adequate indoor backlighting. Outdoors seemed a bit washy or mixed results, which might harbor others to look into a more transflexive notebook option if they are constantly outdoors.

Connectivity

Connectivity is pretty standard, albeit changed from its predecessor, and a bit different from its thinner, lighter, much more expensive brother the x300. First and foremost, there is no optical drive. It doesnt list as an option of ordering one, so picking up a slim USB 2.0 self powered drive (a la the one the U110 we reviewed earlier came with) would be a handy option if you plan on using this machine to view, read, burn, or transfer optical media with. This might be a deal breaker for a lot of people but foreseeing the available prices and capacities for flash drives, SD media, and wireless data banks it might not to others.

The left side houses the power jack, exhaust, 2 USB ports, monitor-out, Gigabit Ethernet, ExpressCard 54mm slot, and the wireless LAN on-off switch. This is to note that it turns off all wireless options, Bluetooth and WLAN. Im not sure about WWAN as my unit did not come configured to use this.

The front, as mentioned earlier, can contain either a 5-1 media reader, or an SD card slot. Ours totes the SD card reader slot.

The right, with our configured unit, came with another USB port, headphone out, microphone, modem port, and lock slot.

The rear houses nothing other than the obtrusive battery (in being fair, it was just a bit too big for my taste.)

ASUS G72Gx-A1 Republic of Gamers packs the muscle to propel users into a world of immersive gaming and emerge victorious at the end of every encounter. The ASUS G72Gx-A1 features a NVidia GTX 260M Graphics Engine with 1GB DDR3 video ram. With a mind-blowing 3DMark (2006) score of up to 10,000, further complimented by NVIDIA PhysX, as well as CUDA, the NVidia GTX 260M provides users with an unprecedented visual extravaganza. More than just a high definition entertainment laptop with a 17.3-Inch Full HD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080, and supported by ASUS Splendid Video Intelligence Technology, which provides users with 6 pre-set settings which enhances images, videos, and in-game graphics.

The ASUS G72Gx-A1 comes with the ASUS 360 service program with a 2 year global warranty, one month zero bright dot guaranty, free two-way shipping and twenty-four hour tech support seven days a week. In addition,a One Year Accidental Damage Warranty is included, protecting your notebook from drops, fire, spills and surges. The package contains 2 year warranty card, notebook, gaming backpack, and gaming mouse.

ASUS G72Gx-A1 Features:

* Intel Q9000 Core 2 Quad Processor 2.00GHz

* 6GB of DDR2 RAM, 3 slots, 6GB Max

* 1 TB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

* BlueRay Disk Combo Drive

* NVidia GTX 260M Graphics with 1GB DDR3 VRAM

* Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit) Operating System

* 17.3-Inch Full HD LCD Display; 2.0M Webcam

* Gaming Backpack and Gaming Mouse Included

Sony - VAIO Laptop with Intel® Pentium® Processor - Walnut Brown

What's Included

• Sony VAIO Laptop with Intel® Pentium® Processor
• 6-cell lithium-ion battery
• Power cord, AC adapter
• Software: Microsoft Works SE 9.0; VAIO Multimedia Suite, VAIO Movie Story, VAIO MusicBox and more

Unfortunately dropping a laptop can cause numerous problems, from scraping the case to smashing the screen. Many older laptops did have modular parts that can be replaced, but now newer and smaller laptops have almost everything integrated itself on the motherboard, so that they are very expensive to repair. In some cases, depending on the damage done and age of laptop, it can be cheaper to replace the whole laptop than have it repaired. But first of all you have to check all parts of your laptop.

My laptop won't boot up properly. What's going on?

There are many factors that can go wrong with the operating system and other software on laptops. These days many laptops have customised software installed according to a persons needs. Try to go into Safemode by pressing the F8 key on your keyboard when your laptop just run. After running with safemode try to do clean up your laptop using antivirus. And try to remove unnecessary software.
If the need arises to reformat the laptop, reinstall the operating system from the CDs or DVDs that were supplied with the laptop. Also make sure that the drivers CD's are available at the time of installation.

One of my drives has disappeared and I cannot see it in My Computer window. What should I do?

Suppose you turn on your computer and cannot see the CD-ROM or any other removable drives like DVD-ROM drive in the Computer window. This problem is common for laptop and notebook computers and this might be caused by a failed drive or by corrupted software.
Try the following :

You can check on Microsoft's website for the drivers available
Else try to install the drivers from the Drivers CD provided by the manufacturer.

Have to do:

Before heading to the store, there are two points of which you should be aware. You should know what you have, meaning your budget, and what you need, as far as "bells and whistles." This will help you when an ambitious sales clerk points you to a model that is more than you need or can afford.

Battery Life:

Consider where you will use the laptop the majority of the time. If the bulk of your computer usage will be spent near a power outlet, you do not need to be overly concerned with the laptop's battery life. If, however, you plan to make the most of its convenient portability, shop for a laptop with the longest battery life you can find. Another option is to upgrade a laptop you like with a long-life battery. You can also purchase a backup battery, keeping it charged and on hand just in case.

Size Matters:

Again, you will want to consider how the laptop will be used when determining the best size for you. A laptop with a wide screen is great for everything from surfing the Web to making spreadsheets to watching videos. However, if the larger computer is substantially heavier than its smaller-screened counterpart and you will need to travel with it frequently, the weight of the laptop might outweigh the advantages of having a bigger screen.

Extra Protection:

There are many new computers with added protective features. Some have attributes that protect the keyboard from spills. Others are made to resist bumps and falls. If you have small children, are infamously klutzy or plan to travel extensively with your laptop, these benefits might be worth the extra cost. Otherwise, save the money and take care to protect the computer yourself. Affordable laptop covers will keep the keyboard and other nooks and crannies safe from liquid spills and debris. A well-padded laptop case should sufficiently cushion the machine from bumps and bangs during your travels. Routine dusting around the machine using a small vacuum or canned air will rid it of dust and dirt that can clog the fan or gum up keys. The bottom line is don't pay for something you really don't need.You have to also maintain the following tips when you want to buy a laptops.

1. Buying a laptop computer can be a long and confusing process. Try to make it faster and easier for yourself by becoming knowledgeable about laptops themselves. Check out our Jargon Buster to familiarise yourself with the components of computer systems. The more you know about what you are buying, the more easy it will be to identify whether a certain laptop is right for you.

2.Price is essential when considering your laptop purchase. You may have plenty of cash to shell out, but are you getting a good deal? If you compare retailers from both online and offline shops, you'll instantly notice the difference. As a general rule, online laptop shops are cheaper - they can offer you extremely competitive prices due to their low overheads and ability to buy and sell in bulk..

3.Consider the software you may need for your laptop. Many specialised laptops will have extra packages that are included in the sale price, often giving you a great saving overall. For example if you need AutoCad or web design software included, you should contact retailers to find out what they can offer.

4. If you find a good deal from one retailer and want to perhaps get another to price match, consider contacting them to haggle your deal. This may not always be possible but its worth a try if you can save some money..

Here is list of important things that you should look into while buying new laptops (Comfort / Ergonomics):

1. Connectivity
2. WIFI Enabled
3. Power Management / Battery Backup
4. Size and Weight
5. Future Proof
6. Upgrades
7. Warranties & Support
8. Discounts and Freebies