10th Annual Notebook Torture Test

You wouldn't abuse your body the way you abuse your notebook computer. (If you would, please don't tell us about it.)

The comparison is useful for illustrating the unreported, often unacknowledged, costs of notebook neglect. Companies devote plenty of resources to preventing theft of the machines and the data they contain. No surprises there. Safeware, a leading provider of computer insurance, found that nearly 30 percent of claims for lost notebooks last year blamed sticky fingers as the culprits.

BEST OVERALL  The IBM ThinkPad T23 has it all: first-rate usability, long battery life, speedy performance, and a huge display. And the whole show comes in a tough-as-nails package. But nearly 58 percent of all claims were due to accidents. A splash of coffee here, a bump there, a freezing night spent in the trunk of a rental car, and presto: Your notebook becomes a useless piece of digital trash.

For that reason, the leading notebook makers—including Acer, Compaq, Dell, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, NEC, and Toshiba—now offer extended warranties on their machines. For a typical premium of $99 to $189 per machine per year, these "insurance plans" replace broken or damaged screens, hard drives, power supplies, and the like. Many offer loaner machines while you wait for repairs.

This is all well and good, but none of these plans cover the value of lost data. And given the slumping prices of notebooks—all 11 contenders in this year's torture test cost less than $3,000, and five cost less than $2,000—your toil in billable hours is far more valuable. Often as not, the data lost when a machine breaks is downright irreplaceable.

The moral of this tale is that you're better off buying a durable notebook than you are paying for extended warranties and expensive theft-prevention plans.

So how do you know whether a machine is truly tough? That's where the 10th Annual Ziff Davis Smart Business Torture Test comes in.

Only One Notebook Failed

We've grown far more ruthless in our torture testing in the past 10 years, yet fewer and fewer notebooks succumb to our torments. Although this year we raised the height at which we dropped the poor machines in our durability testing labs from 29 inches (the height of the average desk) to 48 (closer to the height at which you carry a notebook), only one notebook—the NEC Versa TXi—earned a date with the undertaker. What gives?

BEST VALUE  Just try to find a portable as fast and affordable as the Acer TravelMate 361 Evi. It outclasses many portables costing hundreds of dollars more. And it's got a big screen and long battery life. Some credit goes to component makers. Notebook motherboards continue to shrink and consolidate, which makes them less vulnerable to jolts, condensation, and random electrical surges. The same goes for memory chips. As hard drives have gotten smaller, so too have the distances between their read/write heads and platters, which makes the occasional jostle less likely to destroy data—or to kill the drive outright. Improved manufacturing techniques have made LCDs more reliable, even as their ever-larger sizes make them more vulnerable.

These are the tender parts of any notebook, the things most likely to fail from everyday abuse. Meanwhile, notebook makers have done their part to extend the longevity of their machines. Improved shock-mounting techniques cushion components better. Tighter seals around keyboards and port covers keep out liquids. Tougher plastics and carbon fibers shrug off tumbles that would crack lesser cases.

But more important than internal changes has been the acceptance of the ultraportable design—the sub–5.5-pound PC. These machines often do away with fancy sound systems, unlimited expansion, 3D graphics, and the other extras that typify desktop computers and portables intended to replace the beige boxes. Ultraportables are easy on your shoulders, but their charge life rarely lasts through an entire transcontinental flight. You can connect a host of pricey peripherals to them, but don't. They're best as traveling machines for e-mail, Web browsing, note taking, and light number crunching.

We asked the top laptop vendors to submit their road-worthiest machines that weigh 5.5 pounds or less (without extra drives or AC adapters). Each of the 11 notebooks has at least a 10GB hard drive and a 12.1-inch screen. But that's where the similarities end. Performance, traveling weight, battery life, and usability diverged wildly. And so did each notebook's ability to chug along after we beat the dickens out of it.

The Crash Tests

If we can retrieve data from the machine after running our testing gauntlet—baking, freezing, dropping, and spilling soda on the keyboard—it's considered a survivor. As soon as it fails after one phase of testing, however, it's worm food. This may seem a tad unfair, especially to the NEC Versa TXi, which lost its hard drive on the first drop test, knocking it out of the running for further drop and spill tests. Despite its short battery life of 1 hour and 5 minutes, the Versa TXi's usability is first rate, and we love its removable DVD drive.

The Versa TXi was by no means alone in its suffering after the flat drop. The Acer TravelMate 361 Evi, Compaq Evo N400c, Fujitsu LifeBook S Series, Gateway Solo 5350 LS, and KDS ThinNote 3000 all lost their backlighting. The Toshiba Portégé 4000's display was badly wounded: 2 inches of black ran vertically across a white screen (but, like the others with failed displays, its data was still accessible by connecting an external monitor). Meanwhile, the Sharp PC-UM10 suffered a cracked screen latch, which promises to only get worse with wear.

You might hypothesize that bigger screens invite greater disaster. Not necessarily. The IBM ThinkPad T23's 14.1-inch display withstood our worst. And the 12.1-inch displays on the Dell Latitude C400, Hewlett-Packard OmniBook 500, and Sharp PC-UM10 also survived the flat drop without incident.

Amazingly, our edge drop tests—where the machines are dropped 48 inches at a 45-degree angle—did little damage. The OmniBook 500's hard drive made a worrisome clicking noise on startup. But it worked just fine.

Another surprise turned up in the bath. In years past, notebooks that withstood all manner of knocks and punches invariably succumbed to liquid. It was the quick road to an electrical short. But this year not a single machine died after a 1-ounce drink of cola was poured directly over its keypad. Admittedly, the ultraskinny Sharp PC-UM10 lost the use of about half its keys. And the Acer TravelMate's keys stuck like cold oatmeal. But a quick cleanup with a damp cloth brought back their snap.

Likewise, our bake and freeze tests (which kick off our evil testing series) hardly fazed this herd of machines. The front buttons on the KDS ThinNote 3000 curled upward into a churlish sneer inside the 180-degree heat chamber, however, so don't leave this device in a closed-up vehicle in July.

On the Road: Pros and Cons

A tough notebook does you little good if you curse it like a losing horse at the racetrack. Ultraportables are astounding for what they pack in features and usability today. But the tradeoffs can be extreme.

The IBM ThinkPad T23, for example, offers screaming performance and lasts nearly three hours on a battery charge. It's got a huge screen (14.1 inches) and a 30GB hard drive—all for a reasonable $2,299. But at 6.4 pounds (when fully dressed), it's more like a heifer than a racehorse.

Is the ThinkPad worth the extra weight? Its usability will win you over. The machine's keyboard is still the best in the business. Its pointing stick is more accurate than most touch pads. You get a built-in DVD drive—and its big screen and long battery life do justice to movies on a cross-country flight. As ultraportables go, this is the best you'll find.

BEST PORTABILITY  If the Sharp PC-UM10 weighed any less than its 2.9 pounds, it would levitate. Even better, it's got a big screen, decent battery life, and a price that won't scare the bean counters. Meanwhile, the $1,699 Acer TravelMate gives you almost as much for about $600 less than the ThinkPad. It was the dark horse performance winner by a large margin in Windows 2000 application benchmarks. And its battery life is nearly three hours. Its 13.3-inch screen is plenty big (although the flat drop killed its backlighting). So is its 20GB hard drive.

Too bad the TravelMate's total traveling weight is a portly 6.7 pounds. On the other hand, its programmable keys and the quartet of mouse buttons are commendable usability touches. So are the small AC adapter and easy-to-reach audio jacks.

Who cares about processor speed when you're rushing through Logan Airport with a notebook PC in tow? That's the Sharp PC-UM10's point. At less than 3 pounds in the buff—and a scant 4.1 pounds fully dressed—it's the most portable ultraportable going. It's thinner than an accountant's smile. But you still get a 12.1-inch screen, a 20GB hard drive, and 2 hours and 23 minutes of battery life.

On the down side, the machine's keyboard is cramped. Even so, this three-quarter-inch-thick machine squeezes a USB port and modem into its tight confines. For e-mail and light work, the $1,799 PC-UM10 is an ideal traveling companion.

Recommendations

Dell packs more performance per ounce than any notebook going. Its Latitude C400 led in Windows XP performance, yet it weighs 3.8 pounds stripped. Dressed for travel, it reaches 6.5 pounds. And while we commend its 3 hours and 12 minutes of battery life, you'll pay a whopping $2,785 for its speed and curvy design.

For $1,478, the Gateway Solo 5350 LS gives you more for your dollar with zippy performance and nearly 4 hours of battery life. If you don't mind lugging its 6.8 pounds of total weight, it's a bargain.

The Compaq Evo N400c, Fujitsu LifeBook S Series, and Toshiba Portégé 4000 are feathery midrange performers with fine usability. Of this trio, the $2,099 Evo delivers the best usability in the lightest package. The machine's 2 hours and 17 minutes of battery life doesn't give you much time to work untethered, but you get a lot for your money.

Don't let the HP OmniBook 500's 7.6 pounds of traveling weight scare you. Stripped down, the machine weighs only 3.9 pounds. Alas, its performance is poor and its 10GB hard drive is smaller than average. A better deal is the $1,284 ThinNote 3000 from KDS. It performed slightly better than the OmniBook, and you can't beat its price.

Durability and performance testing by senior project leader Ibrahim Gul. Additional usability testing by LuLabs.

Must-Have Notebook Accessories

A tough notebook is impressive. But a tough and civilized notebook is sublime. These accessories take many hard knocks out of life as a road warrior.

Pocket Printer A6 SiPix's Pocket Printer A6 uses thermal technology, weighs less than 1 pound, and runs on four AA batteries. Despite its small size, it renders 400dpi pages—not exactly photo quality, but it does justice to text, simple graphics, and spreadsheets. $149 / SiPix / (408) 719-8888 / www.sipix.com

 

Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer Pointing stick, touch pad, screwball isometric devices—none are quite as good as a mouse. Microsoft's wireless IntelliMouse Explorer is one of the best mice available. Instead of a roller ball—which easily picks up grit—a tiny camera takes 6,000 images per second for superaccurate pointing. Images are sent to a wireless receiver you plug into your notebook's USB port. $70 / Microsoft / (800) 426-9400 / www.microsoft.com

 

Caveo Anti-Theft Before thieves can get very far with your laptop, Caveo's Anti-Theft device wails an alarm, then shuts down to safeguard your data. The PC Card device uses a password-enabled motion detector. And yes, the technology works whether your notebook is on or off. $99 / Caveo Technology / (617) 576-7700 / www.caveo.com

 

DiskOnKey No bigger than your thumb, the DiskOnKey travels in your pocket—on a key chain, in fact—and can carry 8MB to 128MB of data. $30 to $150 / M-Systems Flash Disk Pioneers / (866) 347-5665 / www.diskonkey.com

 

Platinum FlyLight Hunt-and-peck typists know the frustration of working in poor lighting—on overnight flights, in dimly lit cafes, and the fluorescent glare of clients' stores or offices. The Platinum FlyLight requires no batteries. It hooks up to a USB port and provides a pleasing shower of highly targeted light. $20 / Kensington Technology Group / (800) 235-6708 / www.kensington.com

Wireless Options

There's a name for the growing number of workers always at—or en route to—another meeting: corridor cruisers. For them, wireless networks are a dream. Then again, you can't always be in range of your Wi-Fi (802.11b) hub, so we've included solutions for that too.

3Com 11Mbps Wireless LAN PC Card with XJack The fastest—and smartest—way to connect to a Wi-Fi network. (3Com's Wi-Fi hub, the $599 Access Point 6000, offers ironclad security.) $149 / 3Com / (800) 638-3266 / www.3com.com

Agere Orinoco AP-1000 Easy to install, easier to use. Add an instant wireless network in your department office. Choose the Gold version of the Orinoco World PC Card ($119) for the highest security. For very small businesses—or if you want to browse the Web untethered at home—choose D-Link's DWL-1000AP ($169). $895 / Agere Systems / (866) 674-6626 / www.orinocowireless.com

WiFi Metro and Boingo Wireless For wireless Internet access in public places, like Starbucks, check out WiFi Metro (for people who live on the West Coast) or Boingo (for those in various locations, including Seattle, Dallas, and Philadelphia). Starts at $19.95 per month / WiFi Metro / (650) 289-4338 / www.wifimetro.com Starts at $24.95 per month / Boingo Wireless / (800) 826-4646 / www.boingo.com

Sprint PCS Wireless Web Modem Use your wireless phone minutes to connect to the Web. Proprietary technology compresses Web-based data so that the modem's performance is the equivalent of a 56Kbps connection, rather than the typical 14.4Kbps you'd expect of a wireless modem. $125 / Sprint PCS / (888) 788-4727 / www.sprintpcs.com

Top Ultraportable Notebooks

Product Survivor? CPU/ Hard Drive Display Size1 Weight2 Pros Cons Verdict IBM ThinkPad T23 (888) 746-7426 $2,299 Survivor! Not a scratch on it. 1.13GHz Pentium III-M/ 30GB 14.1 inches 5.2 lbs./ 6.4 lbs. Superb usability; top perfor-mance and long battery life (2 hours, 56 minutes). A bit heavy when dressed for travel. Fast, smart, and tough—everything you could want in a road machine. Acer TravelMate 361 Evi (800) 733-2237 $1,699 Survivor! Flat drop killed its back-lighting. 1GHz Pentium III-M/ 20GB 13.3 inches 4.1 lbs./ 6.7 lbs. Wailing perfor-mance; long battery life (2 hours, 59 minutes); nice price. Hefty when dressed; handle it with care. You can afford one for every road warrior in the company. Compaq Evo N400c (800) 345-1518 $2,099 Survivor! Flat drop doused its back-lighting. 850MHz Pentium III/ 20GB 12.1 inches 3.5 lbs./ 4.4 lbs. Sublime travel weight; clipper-class usability. Not so speedy; weaker battery life (2 hours, 17 minutes); fragile display. You get a lot in a little package—with a low price to match. Dell Latitude C400 (800) 388-8542 $2,785 Survivor! Took our worst without complaint. 1.2GHz Pentium III-M/ 30GB 12.1 inches 3.8 lbs./ 6.5 lbs. Led the Windows XP pack for speed; excellent battery life (3 hours, 12 minutes). Weight bloats up like the federal deficit; steep price. A performance leader for those with deep pockets. Fujitsu LifeBook S Series (877) 372-3473 $2,299 Survivor! Flat drop extin-guished its back-lighting. 800MHz Pentium III-M/ 30GB 13.3 inches 4.3 lbs./ 5.7 lbs. Feathery weight; respect-able perfor-mance; big screen (but treat it with care). Could use some usability refine-ment; so-so charge life (2 hours, 26 minutes). Carry it wherever you go (in a cushioned bag). Sharp PC-UM10 (800) 237-4277 $1,799 Survivor! Flat drop damaged display latch. 600MHz Pentium III/ 20GB 12.1 inches 2.9 lbs./ 4.1 lbs. Weighs less than your lunch; costs less than your suit. Trades performance and battery life (2 hours, 23 minutes) for thinness. Ultrathin with a low price to match. Toshiba Portégé 4000 Series (800) 867- 4422 $2,469 Survivor! Screen went south on the flat drop test. 750MHz Pentium III/ 30GB 12.1 inches 4.5 lbs./ 5.2lbs. Nice and light; fine usability; solid battery life (2 hours, 38 minutes). So-so perfor-mance; fragile display. A shoulder-pleasing traveling companion. Gateway Solo 5350 LS (800) 846-2000 $1,478 Survivor! Lost back-lighting on the flat drop. 1.066GHz Pentium III/ 20GB 14.1 inches 5.8 lbs./ 6.8 lbs. Big screen; lots of features; low price; battery won't quit (3 hours, 57 minutes). Can you say heavy? Display can't handle rough treatment. Commend-able perfor-mance value that's best left on a desk. Hewlett-Packard OmniBook 500 (800) 752-0900 $1,699 Survivor! Noisy hard drive notwith-standing. 600MHz Celeron/ 10GB 12.1 inches 3.9 lbs./ 7.6 lbs. Fine usability and charge life (2 hours, 41 minutes). Accessories add too much heft; weak perfor-mance; stingy storage. A solid contender at a decent price. KDS ThinNote 3000 (800) 237-9988 $1,284 Survivor! Heat test melted buttons; flat drop killed back-lighting. 600MHz Pentium III/ 20GB 12.1 inches 3.3 lbs./ 6.1 lbs. Rock-bottom price; decent charge life (2 hours, 36 minutes). Clunky usability; sluggish perfor-mance. Your first choice when price matters most. NEC Versa TXi (888) 632-8701 $2,499 Failed! Hard drive bit the dust on the flat drop test. 750MHz Pentium III/ 20GB 12.1 inches 4.1 lbs./ 5.4 lbs. Marvelous-ly light-weight; first-rate usability. Abysmal battery life (1 hour, 5 minutes); high price; too fragile. An airy machine you can tote anywhere—just don't drop it! 1Display resolution: 1,024 by 768 pixels at 16 million colors. 2Without peripheral drives and power adapter/with peripheral drives and power adapter. RATINGS Excellent Good Fair Poor Unacceptable

Copyright © 2002 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in Ziff Davis Smart Business.