An entrepreneur or a chief executive has unique requirements that have to be filled to be able to run the business successfully and to ensure that nothing is left to chance.This individual has to have the best that technology has to offer that includes, among other things, wireless mobility, a trusty platform and the availability of a complete range of business solutions.

 
Many business laptops provide these basic necessities; however, commonly missed out is durability, a necessary trait that many laptops should have a high degree of but don’t. Tugging along your laptop or your notebook as you hop on last-minute flights, wrap up work inside a speeding taxi or lead conferences hundreds of miles away takes a toll. An average laptop can only take so much. The more you travel, the greater the abuse is on your portable workstation. Fortunately, HP saw this need and came up with the HP Elitebook 8530w — the laptop that willingly rises to the challenge and delivers with aplomb.

Toughness is HP Elitebook 8530w’s middle name. This laptop is encased in HP’s proprietary “DuraCase” cover – a magnesium alloy claimed to be 18 times stronger than plastic. The surface is covered with HP’s “DuraFinish,” a scratch resistant material. What is also amazing about the Elitebook 8530w is that it possesses the power of a workstation enabling it to deliver outstanding performance despite its compact size.

Pros:

The HP Elitebook 8530w is a powerful and durable workstation in the guise of a laptop. It is full-featured and its tough shell means all your important files and information are kept from harm’s way. It even has a suite of security tools available to provide business-level protection. Another plus is the host of powerful video card options allowing for a great gaming and high definition media experience.

Cons:

This laptop boasts to have stability, durability, and excellent features. A laptop of this stature could only come with a pricey tag. This model is also quite heavy (agbout 2.86 kg) for a mobile PC. Some users noted that the internal speaker leaves much to be desired and the touchpad area is small.

Conclusion:

If you can look beyond the price and weight issues, you will realize that this is one outstanding business laptop. Notebookreview.com in its review, calls it “One of the most full-featured and rugged 15.4″ workstation notebooks.” Ciao.co.uk says “This laptop doesn’t disappoint.” To us, the HP Elitebook 8530w is highly recommended.

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2. Lenovo Thinkpad SL – Review

Lenovo is the proverbial new kid in town, having been officially a brand only since 2005. Despite that, Lenovo has quickly ascended the ranks of PC vendors worldwide. Acquiring IBM’s global PC operations provided the company a platform to build its own brand name. However, it was a calculated mixture of quality products, smart marketing and strategic outsourcing that helped launched the brand to what it is today. The company’s brand recognition reached dizzying heights during the 2008 Beijing Olympics where it was a major sponsor.

At the beginning, consumers were reluctant to embrace the China-made Lenovo products due to concerns about quality and durability. In time, however, Lenovo products came to stand for quality products at reasonable prices. The June 2008 issue of Consumer Reports confirmed this, as it ranked Lenovo as No. 1 among budget priced laptops in terms of fewest repairs reported by users.

About a year ago, the Lenovo Thinkpad SL-Series was launched, a continuation of IBM’s Thinkpad series. These include the SL300, SL400 and SL500 models, which are targeted towards small and medium business executives.

Pros

The ThinkPad SL Series carries the same high level of quality that Lenova has become known for. And you can have it at a price that’s affordable. You can choose from a wide range of graphics suited for business applications and Web browsing. Some users like to emphasize the fact that the series is based on the Centrino 2 platform, which provides the latest integrated graphics and support for the latest CPUs and RAM+1. Another plus is that the series is certified as being environmentally friendly because of the units’ low emissions and energy efficiency. Its full-size, ergonomic keyboard is also an excellent feature.

Cons

Many users complain about the weight (2.1 – 2.9 kg); they say it is too heavy to be regularly used in mobile computing. A few complain about the use of DDR2 RAM, unlike the T-series that utilizes the newer DDR3. A few other users also complain about the quality of the touchpad.

Conclusions

Buyers who are familiar with IBM’s ThinkPad series will not be disappointed with Lenovo’s SL series. LaptopReviewsOnline’s review says “The SL series [units] are definitely a worthy product range.” WebTechPoint thinks “The Thinkpad SL Series has the reliability and durability small businesses require.” We think that the SL series deserves to carry the IBM ThinkPad name.

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2. Lenovo IdeaPad S10 – Netbook Review
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In terms of design, The Lenovo IdeaPad S10 comes in various colors to choose from without compromising build quality. The construction is mostly plastic, definitely strong enough to handle being tossed around inside a book bag or a large purse. The IdeaPad S10 is perfectly solid for a netbook of this size and weight at 2.64 lbs.

The Lenovo Idea Pad S10 is a netbook that is extremely easy when it comes to upgradeability. Unlike other similar netbooks in the market, the Lenovo Idea Pad S10 includes a convenient access panel on the back of the laptop, which allows easier access for RAM or hard drive upgrades. Getting that performance boost is always an arm’s reach.

Though compact, the keyboard in the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 is certainly large and tactile enough, most definitely less crammed than other similar netbooks in the market, supporting its matte 10.2-inch screen featuring 1024×600 display in nice and vibrant rich colors and good contrast, rendering it cozy enough for movie watching, internet browsing, or getting some work done in between. The touchpad on the IdeaPad S10 is larger than what’s found on other netbooks, and there are proper left and right click keys, very convenient. The touchpad also offers a drag-to-scroll feature.

The Lenovo Idea Pad S10 also comes with an ExpressCard slot for additional expansion alongside its 2 USB ports, which gives any user the option to add extra port or features anytime, such a standout.

The Lenovo Idea Pad S10 is available at 3-cell or 6-cell Lithium-Ion batteries. Under normal use, backlight at 50 percent and using wireless for web browsing and listening to streaming audio at normal volume levels, the new 6-cell battery can deliver up to six hours of battery life.

With its built-in Bluetooth capability, its bright screen design, ports advantage, and usability ease, the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 is a highly recommended netbook with superior features than netbooks of similar size and weight. Many users also stress on the fact of the portability option and the decent screen size along with its firm built structure and its power to run most daily tasks make it a special netbook worthy of purchase. A winning combination of mobile technology and exceptional engineering at a fantastic price. All at your fingertips.

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This highly portable design weighs around 5 and a half pounds and possesses a high definition and easy viewable/Bright View 15.4 inch screen.

Further going, although the battery lifetime reaches up to around 180 minutes only, the laptop is a fast charging one with a battery that is able to reach up to 90% within less than two hours.

In terms of connectivity, the HP 550 possesses main features including: wireless integration and Bluetooth (not integrated but can be added).

For less than R 6000, you can now purchase the HP 550 which is the one of the cheapest practical small business laptops available widely at many channel distributors and local point sellers too.

For both the heavy users and light users who rarely type for long periods of time, the HP 550 possesses a practical keyboard does not often pose a problem. The laptops’ touchpad is also highly accurate with a simple interface. Further going, the laptop’s scroll bar is also a positive practical feature it possesses.

All in all, the performance of the HP 550 is considered to be much better than many of its similarly priced competitors that are much slower dual-core netbooks. Moreover, the HP 550’s operating volume for most uses is around 34 DB which is considered a moderate noise level. When using the laptops for programs such as the word processor (like MS Word), spreadsheet (like MS Excel), simple internet browser, or a picture editor (like Adobe), the fan is likely to emit no noise at all.

In conclusion, the HP 550 is considered a very cheap laptop. It is useful for many tasks and can adequately meet the needs of its small business to light users. Although it is low priced, the upgrading option is available along with many expansionary options.

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The Dell Vostro A860, in its delicate and smooth black design, follows the contemporary trends of laptops. For a business user’s laptop, this netbook was designed to be a very stylish one. Not only is it an affordable solution that meets the needs of daily business computing activities, the Vostro A860 also possesses a 15.6 inch wide screen for easy viewing.

Balancing between technology, advanced features, and affordability, the Dell Vostro A860 is said to be the perfect choice for the business professionals looking for a laptop to meet their business needs while being mobile and highly flexible.

The Dell Vostro A860 is optimised for everyday productivity. The user can enjoy the pre- configured software and features needed for his/her everyday business tasks. Further going, the Vostro A860 is easy to arrange and manage when it comes to installing software.

The user may choose from a set of operating options; Windows Vista Business or Windows Vista Home Basic after purchasing the Vostro A860. Those options are designed to deliver to the user a high business efficiency level along with superior performance while maintaining a medium size budget.

In terms of connectivity, the Dell Vostro A860 allows the user to connect the way he/she wants! The user may choose the intergrated wifi, the optional Bluetooth connectivity (for small local networks), or the simple cable plug. Those diverse methods allow the user to choose whatever method he/she desires and give the user more flexibility in adapting to the available connectivity network.

Having a huge network of authorized sellers and a channel of distributors too, purchasing a Dell Vostro is now facilitated. The Dell Vostro A860 is thus available whether the user decides to stay at home and order online or whether the client decides to purchase it from a local store. This business class netbook possesses a system that is reliable and that has been tested repeatedly before being issued in the markets. As trusted as the name Dell is in the netbook market and industry, the Dell Vostro is also a netbook that can take on rigorous activities on it and last for a long time.

The Dell Vostro A860 also comes with a fine exterior black coating that is scratch resistant along with a dust free sealed keyboard that will protect the laptop and keep it clean too. What also makes this laptop stand out is the support services accompanying it; a one year after-purchase warranty.

As per many users’ comments, the Vostro A860 can be used to connect with friends, give presentations, research, perform business activities, and purchase online. Many current users also comment about how easy it was to set up the laptop; a process that took less than 20 minutes! We can finally note that the Dell Vostro is a high quality business laptop that is an excellent match for small and medium business users.

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