Likable Little Laptops

By Russell Kay

October 16, 2000 12:00 PM ET

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Computerworld - I keep searching for the "perfect" small notebook computer to carry when I travel, and over the past six months, I've tried out a number of machines: Compaq's Armada M300, Fujitsu's LifeBook B Series, IBM's new ThinkPad X20, Toshiba's Portege 3480CT and finally, a couple of ringers, NEC Computers Inc.'s MobilePro 780 and 880.
All but the NECs are full-fledged Windows PCs that typically weigh between 3 and 4 lb. in their normal configuration. That's a basic requirement for this group. The catch: "Normal configuration" means no removable drives; CD-ROM (or DVD-ROM) and floppy disk drives are all external. For the LifeBook and Portege, these drives attach by proprietary cables with special connectors on each end. Also, these machines don't have all the standard attachment ports - serial, parallel, video out, Universal Serial Bus (USB), modem, network or mouse and keyboard - on board. Most rely on an external port replicator (usually cable-attached) or put the ports on one of the external disk drives. Both approaches happen to bug me, but you might like one or the other just fine.

			NEC's Small Wonders The NEC Electronics Inc. MobilePro 880 ($1,099) and 780 ($899) are ringers. They run Windows CE and have no hard drive. They do have very good color touch-screens and styluses and built-in 56K-bit modems, and they accept removable media in the form of Compact Flash or PC solid-state memory cards. The bundled applications are "pocket" versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Internet Explorer. Though far from full-featured, they are adequate working tools. What sets these machines apart from other handheld PCs is their keyboards, which are close to full-size, with good feel. Of the two machines, the 880 looks like a "normal" laptop, with its 9.4-in. SVGA screen (similar to the Compaq Aero 800; see Technology, Sept. 13, 1999). After using both, my choice is the 780. Its half-height screen makes it incredibly portable. It's great for taking along almost anywhere; it won't fit into a shirt pocket but rides handily in just about any kind of shoulder bag or portfolio, and its instant-on operation is superconvenient.

Ports and removable drives aside, these are well-equipped machines, with plenty of RAM, big hard drives and high-quality active-matrix displays no larger than 12.1 in., making for very tiny packages indeed.
None of these machines has everything I'd like in one package, though one comes as close as I've seen.
Compaq Armada M300
Compaq Computer Corp.
www.compaq.com
from $2,599
The Armada clips onto a separate base called a mobile expansion unit, which holds an external CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or floppy disk drive and uses the same power supply, making it a very handy, easily transported package. But the Armada's keyboard is one of the worst of this bunch, it's dead flat and relatively lifeless in action. The screen has since been upgraded to XGA (1,024- by 768-pixel resolution) over the SVGA-only model I used, and that's a welcome change. Overall, this is one of the most convenient packages in this group.
Fujitsu LifeBook B Series

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