Notebooks: top 5s
Mainstream application performance
The fastest portable PC we've tested to date is Dell's Inspiron 5100, a hefty (3.69kg) desktop replacement system based on the 2.8GHz desktop Pentium 4 processor. However, its mainstream application performance is only just ahead of the best-performing Centrino notebook we've seen so far – Acer's 1.6GHz TravelMate 800. The difference in clock speed between the Dell and Acer systems says a lot about the efficiency of the new Pentium M chip – and points up a problem Intel may encounter when marketing it to a public used to judging CPU performance on clock speed. Third and fifth places in the mainstream application performance chart are also occupied by Centrino notebooks -- the thin and light 1.5GHz Sony Vaio PCG-Z1SP and the business-orientated 1.4GHz Dell Latitude D600. Separating the latter two Centrino systems in fourth place is Dell's flagship consumer notebook, the 2.4GHz Mobile Pentium 4-M-based Inspiron 8500.
Dell Inspiron 5100 Acer TravelMate 800 Sony Vaio PCG-Z1SP Dell Inspiron 8500 Dell Latitude D600
High-end application performance
High-end content-creation-type applications are handled quickest by Dell's Inspiron 5100. This 2.8GHz Pentium 4-based desktop replacement system beats the second-placed 1.6GHz Pentium M-based Acer TravelMate 800 by a bigger margin than in the mainstream application-based test.
Another Centrino notebook, Sony's 1.5GHz Vaio PCG-Z1SP, takes third place, but the remainder of the chart is occupied by heavy-duty Mobile Pentium 4-M systems -- Compaq's 2.2GHz workstation-class Evo N800w and Dell's 2.4GHz desktop replacement Inspiron 8200.
Dell Inspiron 5100 Acer TravelMate 800 Sony Vaio PCG-Z1SP Compaq Evo N800w Dell Inspiron 8200
Battery life
Unless you're using your notebook purely as a desktop replacement system, you're likely to be as interested in battery life as you are in performance -- especially if all you want to do on the move is run mainstream productivity applications like word processor, spreadsheet, Web browser and PIM/email client. Intel's recently launched Pentium M/Centrino technology is set to make a big impact in this area.
Our tests using BatteryMark 4.01 show that you can expect over 4.5 hours' life from leading Pentium M/Centrino products like Acer's TravelMate 800. The only non-Centrino notebook to challenge this figure is Panasonic's Mobile Pentium III-M-based ToughBook CF-R1, but its performance is nowhere near the TravelMate 800's level.
Even with a Centrino system, if you want seriously lengthy mobile uptime (over five hours), you'll still have to consider fitting a second battery or an optional extended-life battery -- unless you're prepared to sacrifice performance by applying a stringent power management regime that involves running the CPU at a lower clock speed.
Acer TravelMate 800 Panasonic ToughBook CF-R1 Sony Vaio PCG-SR21K Dell Latitude D600 IBM ThinkPad X30
3D graphics performance
Notebook PCs can now deliver excellent 3D graphics acceleration, thanks to recent advances in mobile graphics chip technology from leading manufacturers ATI and Nvidia.
The latest graphics chip to hit the notebook scene is Nvidia's GeForce4 4200 Go, which repackages the features and performance of the desktop GeForce4 Ti part for the mobile platform. This has clearly been successful, as Dell's Inspiron 8500 -- the first notebook we've seen to use the GeForce4 4200 Go -- is now well ahead of the pack. A score of around 10,000 under 3DMark 2001 corresponds to leading-edge desktop performance of a year ago, and will rival or beat many of today's mainstream and budget desktops.
The next three notebooks in this chart have graphics subsystems based on ATI's Mobility Radeon 9000 chip, the previous top dog in the mobile 3D market. Compaq's Evo N800w uses the OpenGL-optimised Mobility Fire GL 9000, while the Acer TravelMate 800 and Dell Inspiron 8200 use the regular version of the chip. Toshiba's fifth-placed Satellite 5200-701 uses Nvidia's older GeForce4 460 Go.
Although notebooks are fast catching up with desktops in terms of 3D acceleration, today's best-performing desktop PCs score around 15,000 in this test. So there's still a performance trade-off if you want portability and 3D graphics -- but it's getting less and less significant.
Dell Inspiron 8500 Acer TravelMate 800 Compaq Evo N800w Dell Inspiron 8200 Toshiba Satellite 5200-701
Weight savers
Of all the notebooks that ZDNet UK receives for review, it's the ultraportables weighing less than 2kg that elicit the most interest. Everyone likes a gadget -- and if it can run full-blown Windows, so much the better. Of course, miniaturisation requires a lot of trade-offs, and you won't find fast processors, large screens, full-size keyboards or built-in removeable media drives among the lightweight notebooks listed here. But if you're a frequent traveller and you don't want to be weighed down by your technology, these are the notebooks to consider.
We haven't tested a sub-2kg Centrino system yet, but look forward to discovering how far Pentium M-based ultraportables can push the performance/battery life envelope.
JVC Mini Note MP-XP7210 Sony Vaio PCG-C1MGP Sony Vaio PCG-C1VFK Toshiba Portégé 2000 Sony Vaio PCG-SRX41P