Laptop Club

The latest features, look no further than the Sony VAIO VGN-TT190 ($4,345 direct). Sony has always innovated in the ultraportable space, and as this model shows, it continues to do so. The TT190's 11-inch widescreen, built-in optical drive, and mobile broadband are rare finds on a sub-3-pound frame. As if that weren't enough, it's also the lightest ultraportable to house a Blu-ray drive and dual 128GB solid state drives (SSDs). That said, there are some drawbacks—including the ultrahigh price tag—that keep me from getting too excited about the TT190.

• Price as Tested: $4,345.00 Direct
• Type: Ultraportable, Business, Small Business
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate
• Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo U9400
• Processor Speed: 1.4 GHz
• RAM: 4 GB
• Weight: 2.8 lb
• Screen Size: 11.1 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
• Storage Capacity: 256 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11n
• Primary Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW DL with Blu-Ray

Reached into his inner suit pocket and pulled out the Sony VAIO VGN-UX180P. At the time, he called this handheld PC, which ran a full-blown version of Windows XP, "an achievement in ingenious design." Little did he know he'd be pulling the same stunt again at a quaint hotel in Manhattan, where I was one of a handful of journalists invited to preview Sony's take on the netbook revolution. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a clamshell the length of two UX180Ps, not even an inch thick. This, as he described it, is Sony's answer to the surging netbook market, only it's not being classified as a netbook, it's not an update to the UX180P, and the intended audience, interestingly enough, is women. It's the Sony VAIO VGN-588EQ ($1,199 direct), better known as the Sony Lifestyle PC.

• Price as Tested: $1,199.00 Direct
• Type: General Purpose, Ultraportable, Netbook
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic
• Processor Name: Intel Atom Z520
• Processor Speed: 1.33 GHz
• RAM: 2 GB
• Weight: 1.4 lb
• Screen Size: 8 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 500
• Storage Capacity: 64 GB
• Primary Optical Drive: External

The Toshiba Qosmio X305-Q725 ($2,699.99 direct) is probably not for you. Its outlandish design, which conjures up images of fiery balls of flames striking a bloody canvas, seems fit for those who crave bragging rights for their systems. Within this 9.2-pound beast sits a mobile quad-core processor and an Nvidia GeForce 9800M GTX graphics card—parts that will set you apart from casual gamers. Performance, overall, lived up to expectations, but there is a cheaper alternative that turned in better gaming scores.

• Price as Tested: $2,700.00
• Type: Gaming, Media
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
• Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000
• Processor Speed: 2 GHz
• RAM: 4 GB
• Weight: 9.2 lb
• Screen Size: 17 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce 9800M GTX
• Storage Capacity: 384 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11n
• Primary Optical Drive: DVD+R DL

The Toshiba Portégé R600-S4202 is the sum of four years' worth of improvements, polishing an already proven product. It's the thinnest and lightest ultraportable that squeezes in an optical drive and a full-size keyboard—and its 12-inch LED widescreen isn't too shabby, either. The only thing that can potentially stand between you and commuter heaven is the agonizing $3,000 hit to your bank account.

• Price as Tested: $3,000.00 Direct
• Type: Ultraportable, Business, Small Business
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Business
• Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo U9400
• Processor Speed: 1.4 GHz
• RAM: 3 GB
• Weight: 2.4 lb
• Screen Size: 12.1 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
• Storage Capacity: 128 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11n
• Primary Optical Drive: Dual-Layer DVD+/-RW

The Apple MacBook Pro 17-inch has been revered over the years by a nation of professional photographers and film editors, not to mention average media folks who can't get enough of this thin-bodied cinematic wonder. When the Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Dual Graphics) and the MacBook 13-inch (Aluminum) launched with their "unibody" enclosures—in each case, a heavily promoted slab of aluminum that rids the frame of all detachable parts—a "uni-seventeen-incher" was clearly on the way. The Apple MacBook Pro 17-inch (Unibody) ($2,799 direct) is still the lightest and the prettiest media center laptop to house a maximum-resolution screen, and the changes are significant.

• Price as Tested: $2,799.00 Direct
• Type: Gaming, Media
• Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5
• Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T9550
• Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
• RAM: 4 GB
• Weight: 6.6 lb
• Screen Size: 17 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce 9600M GT, nVidia GeForce 9400M GT
• Storage Capacity: 320 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11n
• Primary Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW (Plus Minus)

The ASUS N50Vn-B1B ($1,250 street) is an all-purpose desktop replacement laptop that could become your next family PC. Whether your spouse uses it to edit family photos and videos, for example, or you run various applications to manage the household's finances, its 15.4-inch widescreen and fast processing parts are blessings for multitaskers. Your kids can use it to play the latest 3D games and take in high-quality movies with its excellent Nvidia graphics card.

• Price as Tested: $1,255.00 Street
• Type: Gaming, General Purpose, Media
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
• Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo P8600
• Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
• RAM: 4 GB
• Weight: 6.7 lb
• Screen Size: 15.4 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce 9650M GS
• Storage Capacity: 320 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11n
• Primary Optical Drive: DVD+R DL

The open-source operating system may seem intimidating for the uninitiated, but a well-designed Linux build doesn't have to be. Linux offers plenty of advantages as a netbook platform: It requires less memory, taxes your processor less, and brings the cost down, to boot. (The base price for an XP system with the same specs is $20 more.) On a blind test, even the most code-phobic user might mistake HP's custom Ubuntu build for any old Media Center interface. Providing a seamless, user-friendly Linux experience is exactly where the new Mi (Mobile Internet) edition of the HP Mini 1000 ($424.99 direct) excels.

• Price as Tested: $425.00 Direct
• Type: Gaming, Ultraportable, Value, Netbook
• Operating System: HP Mobile Internet (Linux)
• Processor Name: Intel Atom N270
• Processor Speed: 1.6 GHz
• RAM: 1 GB
• Weight: 2.5 lb
• Screen Size: 10.1 inches
• Screen Size Type: widescreen
• Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950
• Storage Capacity: 60 GB
• Networking Options: 802.11g