While notebook computers come in many flavors these days, it's apparent that most manufacturers are working hard to make the portable machines nearly as powerful, and twice as physically attractive, as their desktop counterparts. From streamlined outer shells to gaudy exposed speakers, the computers we tested were almost as visually striking as they were useful.
With powerful microprocessors at their core and a range of tactics aimed at increasing battery life, it's also clear that the PC vendors aren't sacrificing power for style. Connectivity is an area where there's also a lot to appreciate, as all the notebooks we tested were prepared for wireless connectivity. Another major leap forward is the computer makers' drive to build-in desirable functionality around popular applications such as CD-RW and DVD.
In many organizations, hardware buyers are swapping the desktop model for a fleet of portable computers, and this crop of notebooks makes it easy to understand why this trend is growing. When the devices offer what was considered bleeding-edge performance only a year or so ago, delivered in a slick package that goes anywhere, it's hard not to wonder if the era of the desktop is rapidly drawing to a close.
