As we wound up the show on it’s official last day, we attended a micro-awards ceremony. In its 8th annual performance, the Last Gadget Standing hands you off with the top 10 “user” voted gadgets of CES. We decided to attend it, and showcasing and mcing the event was NetShelter – if you haven’t heard of them, they are the blogging and technology company that combines over 150 independent review sites and gets them together seamlessly.

And every year, they have the crowd effect that offers the last gadget standing the award out of 25 semi-finalists…and then it’s listed and blissed down to the final winner for “Last Gadget Standing”. The big case in point for this show is that it’s not about the “wow” factor, it’s about the “how” factor – real life technology that doesn’t necessarily mean blinding, state of the art technology, but something that will prove entertaining, useful, and fill it’s role as “gadget”. With that in mind – in no particular order, here are the top 10 finalists this year:

1) Eye Fi
Back again from last year, this year Eye Fi is putting the wireless broadcasting to video. The showcase had a “Jackson Cash” (Johnny Cash) performer and wirelessly uploaded it live to youtube.

2) Bug Labs
This little gadget is like the “Lego” version of technology gadgets. It comprises of a mini-Linux running machine and you can add “modules” to the device. It has some pretty cool modules such as a motion detector, digital camera, GPS device, and a few others. The components are coming out all the time along with key software that you can either decided to code yourself, or purchase or download as drag and drop applications.

3) ClickFree
This handy little device features a backup solution that is pretty ‘revolutionary’ – when you purchase a backup device, you usually have a few options. One, manually make sure you backup your data yourself. Two, purchase software that you carry with you all the time on said storage device, or three, buy an automatic backup solution that stays in one place. Well – those days are gone. Now all you need is the ClickFree backup cable, any hard drive you want (portable or networked) and let the built-in software with the cable take care of the rest.

4) emWave PSR
This portable biofeedback tool from HeartMath helps users reduce stress, balance emotions and increase performance. It works by reading your current evaluated heart rate, and then informs you when to sync your breathing to match the correct method of reducing your stress level. They claim that just 10 minutes a day (5 in the morning, and 5 at night) you can dramatically increase your performance in dealing with stress. Does it completely remove it? No, all it does it help you manage it. I suppose people have paid thousands upon thousands of dollars worth of therapy, but this one is far less in comparison and might help you out.

5) FlipMino HD
The worlds smallest HD quality video camcorder – it has 4GB of internal memory and up to 60 minutes of recording time. This time, there’s no need to worry about installing software as it has it’s own built-in FlipShare software for easy saving and sharing. The video quality was pretty nice too – seeing things in 720p was a definite improvement over standard definition.

6) LiveScribe Smart Pulse Pen
Now this little gadget is pretty awesome. If you’re a student and you don’t want to type and would rather do the old school method of ‘writing notes’ – you should look into this device. You’ll never miss a word with this pen-sized computer matched with it’s specialty recording paper. See – it records your audio with the text you write, and it is Java platform based, so you can record sounds to each item you take, and then when you want to hear them, it has an audio out function that will play it back when you tap on what you just wrote. It’s also bundled with a search function and takes the handwriting recognition to a whole new level – being able to search your documents to your computer after you have ‘wrote them’ and seamlessly find what you are looking for on your computer screen, and playback and save audio with notes. Look into it, it’s pretty intense…

7) MSI Wind
Small laptops…they have been dubbed “Netbooks” and we’re going to go on the limb that some huff and puff lawyer is getting his sue-flex skills into place if that term isn’t already “TM’d”. But regardless, this netbook is one of the first of it’s kind to support hybrid storage technology, allowing you to switch between HD and SSD for maximum battery life, and with it’s supplied 9-cell battery, you can get up to 15 hours on this baby. Did we mention we liked it on laptoplogic.com as well? Check out our review here:

http://laptoplogic.com/reviews/msi-wind-u100

Motorola ZN5
Dubbed the first real camera phone, that started as a camera first, and then continued on with great phone capabilities. It’s the first to combine Kodak’s powerful imaging technology with Motorola device design. It was pretty impressive to see the pictures it developed – and the panorama mode built it was really really nice. I’m not a fan of Kodak, but combined with this Motorola Phone, I was pretty impressed. Needless to say – if you’re a photo nut and don’t have an already uber-sweet digital camera and are in the market for a new cell phone as well, you should DEFINATELY take a look into this little device.

9) T-Mobile Android
Populated by the seas of iphones, there was a presentation that struck pains into the hearts of the users who wished their mobile phone had slightly more support for independent, open sourced software when this device was announced on stage. It is the mobile phone that is the first to feature Google’s Android operating system, offering free email access to Gmail users, and also Streetview and a whole slew of widgets. It was an impressive entry and marks a truly innovative product…but perhaps a little too late?

10) WowWee
Robots, everyone loves them, nobody sees a real purpose to them until they either do everything for you, or completely entertain you. Which is exactly what the Joebot fills in that ultimate robot category. he’s a walking talking, interactive “buddy” and with more personality than robots before him, he provides a riot and a lot of noise to your otherwise lonely, boring, simply quiet life. Guard mode on!

As all events, we now know the outcome for this event, but we’d like to take our own personal survey to see how these fare in your eyes? If you had the chance to vote, which device would you choose? Why not drop us a comment on the form below and we’ll tally it up. Hey, who knows – you could be the first to really say “I told you so…”

Whats that? You want to see who the winner really was? Well, you should head on over to the Netshelter site to see just who won…we hate ruining surprises.

• Macbook Air (04-07-2009)
• Asus G50VT (04-07-2009)
• Asus Eee PC 1000HE (04-07-2009)
• SimpleTech Simpledrive 500GB (04-07-2009)
• Toshiba Portege R500 (04-07-2009)

The cost of high powered notebooks may have come down in recent years, but it’s still possible to spend thousands of dollars on a machine that, quite frankly, might not be any better than something priced half as much. What follows is a list of our top 10 $2500+ notebooks, all from vendors you can trust, all with tremendous performance.

It’s important to keep in mind that while we’ve chosen powerful configurations for each laptop reviewed, there are usually other options available, so it pays to do your own research as well.

Finally, we’d like to give a shoutout to the Dell Precision M6400 and the HP Elitebook 8730w, two powerful machines that just didn’t make the cut.

10. MacBook Air

Only on a list of truly premier laptops could the MacBook Air just squeak into the top 10. At .76″ thick and with a weight of 3lbs, this extremely stylish notebook is still looking good and a joy to carry around. The 13.3″ frame sports a rather lackluster (for this crowd) 1280×800 resolution, and the 1.86GHz Intel Core 2 Duo doesn’t overly impress and is probably part of the reason the battery life is under 3 hours. On the other hand, the 2GB of DDR3 RAM should be sufficient for most tasks, and the 128GB drive is generously sized for an SSD. It also comes with a dedicated nVidia GeForce 9400M 256MB. To fit all this into such a small laptop is pretty impressive, but this list is about very impressive laptops, and all that’s only good enough to land the MBA a #10 spot. As an aside, it doesn’t help that there’s a mere 1 USB port and 1 Mini DisplayPort on the whole thing. But to be fair, with a cost of $2500 (+$100 if you want the Mac SuperDrive, which you probably will since the MBA has no internal optical drive), it only just makes our price bottom line.

9. Sony VAIO VGN-TT190

One of the reasons the MBA barely makes the top 10 is because of ultraportables like this VAIO TT. With merely 11.1″ of screen it brings a 1366×768 resolution to the party, and it weighs in a shade under the MBA at 2.87lbs. It has 4GB DDR3 RAM and the Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 1.40GHz helps keep the power consumption down, resulting in up to 7.5 (expect more like 6) hours of battery life. There’s no dedicated GPU and the 160GB 5400RPM HDD is a little slower than we’d like, however there is a $600 upgrade for a 128GB SSD which we didn’t select. Still, with 2USB ports, HDMI and VGA for your video outputting needs, and a Blu-ray R/W drive for your video inputting needs, this VAIO is a pretty powerful ultraportable for only $2775. It’s also important to note that this machine is WWAN capable if you want it to be.

8. Lenovo ThinkPad W700

This monster of a desktop replacement will consume a large portion of your desk, although the weight of 8.3lbs actually seems light when distributed over all that computer. It packs a 17″ display and a large 1920×1200 resolution, along with an Intel Core 2 Extreme X9100 3.06GHz and 4GB DDR3 RAM. There is a dedicated nVidia Quadro FX3700M 1GB GPU and dual 320GB HDDs for you to store all the movies and games you could possibly need. This notebook is at least partially engineered for designers too, with an integrated Wacom digitizer and color calibrator. All in all it’s a very capable computer, if a fairly bulky one, and what keeps it high up on the list is just the price. The list price for a unit spec’d up like this on Lenovo’s website is $5163, although it’s currently marked down to a mere $4329.

7. Sony VAIO VGN-AW190

Unlike the ultraportable TT series, the VAIO AW series is designed for multimedia use, and the AW190 is an excellent example. The 18.4″, 8.8lb notebook provides an HD ready 1920×1080 (1080p) resolution. Our review model is powered by an Intel Core 2 Duo T9400 2.53GHz, although there was an option for a 2.8GHz T9600 for $300 that we eschewed. One reason why we passed on the upgrade was because we opted for a whopping 8GB of DDR2 RAM instead, which we expected to more than make up the difference. In conjunction with 1TB of HDD (sadly at 4200RPM, although it’s possible to downgrade to 640GB 7200RPM if you’d prefer it), this gave our VIAO some pretty big numbers to brag about. It makes use of an nVidia GeForce 9600M 512MB to power the graphics. If that’s not enough for you, we should tell you that it comes with Blu-ray R/W, the display supports 100% of the Adobe color gamut, it has an embedded TV tuner and (but of course) an HDMI port as well. One big, gaping downside of this laptop however is the battery life, rated by Sony themselves at an abysmal 1-2.5 hours, so you’ll want to keep this baby plugged in at all times. All this can be yours for $3318.

6. Toshiba Qosmio X305-Q708

This gaming laptop has a lot going for it. The 17″ (1680×1050) display packs a nice resolution, if not the nicest. More importantly, it comes packing an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9300 (2.53GHz), 4GB DDR3 RAM, and dual 512MB nVidia GeForce 9800M GPUs. It’s important to note that there is also an integrated graphics card, and that the X305 makes use of SLI, allowing you to switch between integrated and dedicated graphics to save battery. It also has both a 320GB 7200RPM HDD and a 128GB SSD, providing ample and speedy data storage. The two typical problem specs with gaming laptops are the weight and the battery life, and at 9.04lbs and around 1.5 hours respectively you can see this laptop was not spared. There’s also WiFi and Bluetooth and an eSATA/USB port to go along with 3 standard USB ports. This kind of gaming power isn’t cheap, but you are getting a very powerful machine for your $4200 investment.

5. MacBook Pro (15″)

It’s rare when you can call a MacBook good value for performance without even considering style (which it of course has in spades), but the MBP actually stands out pretty strongly here. The resolution on the 15″ screen is just average at 1440×900, but the Intel Core 2 Duo 2.5GHz is competitive and the 4GB DDR3 RAM is strong. We upgraded the respectable 320GB HDD to 7200RPM from 5400RPM for $50, but ignored the $500 SSD option. The MBP packs a capable nVidia 9600M 512MB GPU, and can last around five hours running on battery thanks in part to built in support for switching between dedicated and integrated graphics. It weighs 5.5 lbs and features 2USB ports, a FireWire800 port, a Mini DisplayPort, and an ExpressCard slot. All told, the 15″ MacBook pro strides the line between the clunking desktop replacements and the lightly powered ultraportables with grace and dignity. More to the point, the price is right in the middle too, offering a taste of both worlds for just $2550.

4. Lenovo X301

Returning to the true ultraportables for a moment, we have the 13.3″ Lenovo X301. It features an excellent resolution for its size (1440×900) and is fairly lightweight, tipping the scales at a meager 3.3lbs. The processor is an efficient Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 (1.4GHz), although it only bumps the battery life to around 3.5 hours. We were able to throw in 3GB RAM and a 64GB SSD, to go along with the standard Webcam, Bluetooth and WiFi, for a reasonable (for this price range anyway) price of $2985. If that’s not enough storage space, you can double the SSD size for $400, although unfortunately there is no option for a dedicated GPU. And as far as design, it’s a ThinkPad, so you know you’re getting something sturdy with lots of black. We should add that we were particularly fond of the X301’s superb keyboard, and it’s nice that it has 3 USB ports. This is definitely a business person’s type of laptop.

3. Lenovo IdeaPad Y730 – 40523EU

This 17″ (1920×1200) offering from Lenovo gives you plenty of power for gaming or multimedia. It runs Windows Vista Ultimate and wields an Intel Core 2 Extreme X9100 3.06GHz with 4GB DDR3 RAM, which means it can do almost anything you’d want it to. Given those spectacular specs it’s a slight letdown to have merely a single 320GB 5400RPM HDD, but the ATI Mobility Radeon 3650 512MB GPU is fine, and the whole package together is still very impressive. It also features a Blu-ray drive as well as Bluetooth and WiFi. The weight isn’t bad for such a powerful laptop at 8.05lbs, although it’s still quite heavy, and while Lenovo doesn’t rate the 6-cell battery we would guess it’ll net you between 2-3 hours. The list price for this item is $3499, although it’s currently marked down to a more affordable $3199. We’re not sure if this is a selling point or not, but we felt we should mention the cover is a glossy orange.

2. Toshiba Portege R600

We’ve already seen an 11″ and a 13″ ultraportable, and now here comes Toshiba with a 12.1″ entry. The resolution isn’t bad for the size at 1280×800, but that’s hardly the best part. With the Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 1.4GHz powering it, this laptop is rated at up to 7.53 hours of battery life (although you should expect a little less). It comes with 3GB DDR2 RAM and a 128GB SSD. There’s no dedicated GPU so the graphics will only be average at best, but with a weight of only 2.4lbs you’ll have so much fun just picking this laptop up with one hand that you’ll forgive it a few slight omissions. It has 1 USB/eSATA port to go along with 2USB ports too. This laptop will run you $3000, but if portability is your thing, you won’t find a better option.

1. Dell XPS M1730

Ah, the customizability of Dell. There seems to be no limit to what you can do with the 17″ (1920×1200 standard) M1730, and the price can range dramatically. We selected a review model which sported an Intel Core 2 Extreme X9000 2.8GHz (which Dell said was overclockable to 3.4GHz, joy) and 4GB DDR2 RAM. For storage we got dual 320GB 7200RPM HDDs, and for graphics we chose dual nVidia GeForce 8700M GT 512MB GPUs. The M1730 is graced with a generous sampling of ports, including 4USB, DVI, HDMI, FireWire, S-video and ExpressCard, and sports the standard Bluetooth/WiFi and webcam. You can also get Blu-ray and even WWAN! While many laptops of this size and strength give up on battery life, Dell has opted for a 9-cell battery, giving the notebook half a chance at a life away from home. Of course, such a huge battery has its side effects, and the 10.6lb weight makes it very unlikely you’ll choose to travel much with it, battery life or no battery life. If you’re not convinced, we’d like to next inform you that it’s about 2″ thick, or nearly as thick as 3 MacBook Airs. Nevertheless, if you can get over the weight issue and see the computer for what it really is on the inside, you will see a premium computer. The price on Dell’s website lists it at $2999 for this specification (reduced from $3648), and you’ll be hard pressed to find a more powerful notebook anywhere for that price.

• Dell Mini 9 (03-07-2009)
• Top 10 Netbooks 2008 (04-07-2009)
• Top 10 Netbooks 2009 (04-07-2009)
• Acer Aspire One (04-07-2009)
• Dell Vostro 1000 (04-07-2009)

Netbooks are also becoming more and more popular among people as they are perfect travel companions and meet the basic computing needs like e-mailing, net-surfing, docu maintenance etc. What’s more, they cost less than mainstream laptops which is an important point of concern in these days of hard economic times. But with a slew of manufacturers vying for market share with their netbooks, choosing a netbook can be a daunting task. Rely on us to do the job for you. Look at the list of top 10 netbooks and choose one according to your needs.

1. Acer Aspire ONE AOD150

• The 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor combines performance, power and efficiency to explore the Internet and stay connected while mobile.
• 6-cell battery provides up to 6 1/2 hours of battery life for extended use and productivity when away from an AC outlet.
• Windows XP Home with SP3 gives you the freedom to do what you want at home and at work – simply, reliably and more securely
• 160GB Hard Drive, 1GB RAM, Integrated 802.11b/g Wi-Fi Certified
• Acer Crystal Eye webcam delivers smooth video streaming and high quality images for your on-line chats and business video conferences

Price
$348

2. Asus Eee PC S101

• ASUS Super Hybrid Engine and polymer battery pack allow for longer battery lifespan of up to 5.5 hours. Super Hybrid Engine offers a choice of performance and power consumption modes for easy adjustments according to various needs
• High Speed Connectivity Anywhere with Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n. Eee Connect for an easy way to connect two or more users through a remote desktop feature for easy troubleshooting.
• ASUS Exclusive 30GB Eee Storage with easy accessibility anywhere online
• Solid State Drive that endures strong shock, extreme temperatures and consumes less power.
• Extremely artistic thin design with Icing Brown cover

Price
$507

3. HP Mini 1000

• 10.2″ diagonal WSVGA HP LED Brightview Infinity Display (1024 x 600)
• Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 950 with Intel(R) Atom(TM) Processor N270 (1.60GHz)
• 1GB DDR2 System Memory, 60GB 4200RPM PATA Hard Drive, 3 Cell Lithium Polymer Battery
• HP Mini Webcam with HP Imprint Finish (Swirl), Microphone enables clear and crisp VOIP and video conferencing conversations
• Wireless-G Card, Genuine Windows XP Home, HP Color Matching Keyboard, Microsoft Works 9, Windows Internet Explorer 7, Windows Media Player 11

Price
$479

4.  Lenovo IdeaPad S10

• CPU: 1.6-GHz Intel Atom N270
• Display Size (inches): 10.2″ Display, Wide Screen: Yes
• Total HD Size (GB): 160GB Hard Drive
• Min. Weight (lbs.): 2.7Lbs.,

Price
$349

5. MSI Wind U120

• Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor, 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz Bus speed
• 160 GB SATA Hard Drive
• 1GB DDR2 667MHz RAM
• 6 Cell Battery
• Built-in Gigabit Ethernet LAN and Modem Module, Built-in 802.11b/g WLAN Card
• Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition

Price
$329

6. Dell Inspiron Mini 9

• Black , Intel® Atom Processor® N270 1.6 Ghz
• 1 GB DDR2 at 533MHz, 8GB Solid State Drive, EXTERNAL Portable CD/DVD-RW
• Glossy 8.9 inch LED display (1024X600), Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 950
• Wireless 802.11g Mini Card, Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition

Price
$599

7. Samsung NC10

• 10.2″ Wide, 1024 x 600 WSVGA , 220 nits
• Intel Atom processor N270, 1.6 GHz, 533 MHz Front Side Bus, 512 KB Level 2 Cache
• 160 GB, 2.5″ SATA HD, 1 GB DDR2 800 MHz
• Intel 945GSE shared, 802.11 b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, 10/100 BaseTX LAN
• 6-Cell Lithium Ion, Genuine Microsoft XP® Home with Service Pack 3
• 1.3 Mega Pixel webcam, Kensington Key Lock, 2.8 lbs

Price
$424

8. HP Mini 2140

• CPU: 1.6-GHz Intel Atom N270
• Display Size (inches): 10.1″ Display, Wide Screen: Yes
• Total HD Size (GB): 160GB Hard Drive
• Min. Weight (lbs.): 2.6Lbs.

Price
$456

9. Asus EEE PC 1000HE

• XP-Preloaded with 160G large H.D.D. Intel Atom 280 Processor (1.66 GHz, FSB: 667MHz)
• ASUS Super Hybrid Engine and 6 cell high density battery pack allow for longer battery lifespan of up to 9.5 hours. Super Hybrid Engine offers a choice of performance and power consumption modes for easy adjustments according to various needs
• High Speed Connectivity Anywhere with Wi-Fi 802.11n (2.4GHz only). Eee Connect for an easy way to connect two or more users through a remote desktop feature for easy troubleshooting.
• Exclusive 10GB Eee Storage with easy accessibility anywhere online

Price
$389

10. Sony VAIO P VGN-P588E

• Intel Atom Z520 1.33 GHz Processor, 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz Bus speed
• 2048MB DDR2 (PC2-4200) RAM Max – 2GB
• 64 GB Serial ATA(TM) Solid State Drive (SSD)
• Software Bundle – Windows Vista Home Premium, Microsoft Works 9.0, Microsoft Office 2007 – 60-Day Trial, Microsoft Windows Live OneCare Trial Version

Price
$1999

• Dell Mini 9 (03-07-2009)
• Top 10 Netbooks 2008 (04-07-2009)
• Top 10 Notebooks for over $2.500 (04-07-2009)
• Acer Aspire One (04-07-2009)
• Dell Vostro 1000 (04-07-2009)

The netbook world has gotten increasingly crowded, and until the massive popularity of the form factor wanes this trend will only increase. Beyond Asus and Acer, major corporations like Dell, HP, Fujitsu, Toshiba, Samsung, Lenovo and others have recently jumped on the bandwagon. So how do you decide which one is best? In our opinion, any prospective netbook buyer should ask themselves these three questions:

• 1. Is it cheap? (Generally $350 or less.)
• 2. If it’s not cheap, is it easy to use? (this generally means 10″ for a decent keyboard and resolution.)
• 3. If it’s not cheap or easy to use, is it at least extremely portable? (lightweight, WWAN.)

The answers to these questions are relative to an individual’s needs and tastes, but we’ve used them as best we could to devise for you a list of the top ten netbooks currently (or about to be) on the market.

10: Dell Inspiron Mini 9

Dell has done a decent job with their 8.9″ (1024×600) entry into the netbook market. It comes with the standard Intel Atom 1.6GHz N270 and up to 1GB RAM. The storage is a little weak, with a max of 16GB SSD, and the battery life is just average. It also comes with the typical 8.9″ cramped keyboard. Still, with options for WWAN and an initial price point of $349, this remains a netbook worth considering.

9: Dell Inspiron Mini 12

A little more unique than the Inspiron Mini 9 is the Inspiron Mini 12, a 12″ monster of a netbook. This makes for some obvious good points, like a fantastic resolution of 1280×800. It also sports the newest Intel Atom processor, the 1.6GHz Z530, to go along with the standard 1GB RAM. It’s thin too, measuring under 1″. So it has some things going for it. Unfortunately, a lot of things go the other way too. The new processor is offset by the fact that the netbook is loaded with resource hungry Vista, and the keyboard, while excellent at 92% of normal, is little better than we’ve seen on smaller, 10″ units. The 4200RPM 80GB HDD also leaves something to be desired, and the weight of a little over or a little under 3lbs (depending on your battery) is a bit heavy for a netbook. It isn’t cheap either, starting at $549. If resolution is your king (and you’re determined to buy a netbook for some reason), this is the netbook for you. Otherwise, there are better options.

8: Lenovo IdeaPad S10

This 10.2″ (1024×600) netbook is nice but lacks a few important features. It comes with the standard Atom N270 and 1GB RAM and a 160GB HDD. We’ve heard good things about the keyboard too, which is always a plus. It has Bluetooth, but there is no option for WWAN, and come to mention it, no SSD option either. The weight isn’t bad at 2.64lbs and the price isn’t either, starting at $350. Be forewarned though, the battery life is something less than impressive. Also check out our full review of the S10.

7: HP Mini 1000

The HP Mini is available in either an 8.9″ or 10.2″ form factor, but we recommend sticking with the 10.2″ here. The reason for that is that it will come with a nice keyboard (92% of normal), which for us is worth the $50 upgrade (not to mention the increased screen real estate makes for less squinting). Aside from the standard Atom N270 and 1GB RAM, you have the option of either a 16GB SSD or a 60GB HDD. Bluetooth is available as is WWAN, although HP doesn’t get as many points as it could here because the WWAN is so darned expensive ($200).

6: Eee PC 1000

The largest and most recent entry in Asus’ well known Eee line is the 10.2″ (1024×600) Eee PC 1000. This netbook comes with a standard 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 but trumps the competition by offering up to 2GB of RAM. Also nice is the option for an SSD up to 40GB (or you can get an 80GB HDD). Other perks include a good keyboard, 802.11n WiFi, and a respectable four hours of battery life. On the downside, you’re getting a machine that weighs 2.9lbs and lacks 3G compatibility. But the price is right, starting at $400, making this a netbook to think about.

5: Samsung NC10

This 10.2″ packs just about everything you’d want into a netbook. To go along with the standard Atom N270 and 1GB RAM, you get a spacious 160GB HDD. The keyboard is 93% of standard and easy to type on, and although it doesn’t come with WWAN at the moment, we’ve heard rumors it will soon. For now you’ll have to stick to Bluetooth and 802.11b/g WiFi. It’s fairly light at 2.8lbs and most impressive of all, manages that weight while sporting a 6-cell battery easily capable of six hours of life. The trackpad isn’t nearly as impressive as the rest of the unit is, but if you’re looking for a high quality netbook with excellent battery life, take a look at the $479 NC10.

4: MSI Wind U120

This successor to the popular Wind U100 is newly released and has a number of attractive features. The 10.2″ (1024×600) display, Atom N270 processor and 1GB RAM are somewhat standard, but the 160GB HDD is ample and the connectivity is great. It has 802.11b/g/n WiFi and 3.5G WWAN capabilities. The 6 cell battery will get you a respectable 5 hours of life, although it raises the weight to around 3lbs. The keyboard should be as nice as its predecessor’s was too, so no complaints there. All in all it’s a great netbook and a pretty decent value for around $450.

3: Acer Aspire One

There are no other 8.9″ netbooks anywhere near this spot in our top 10, but the Acer Aspire One makes a strong case for the form factor. It matches the WSVGA (1024×600) resolution found on most 10.2″ units, although obviously you may have to squint a little harder because the display is smaller. It also offers a 120GB HDD to those for whom an 8GB SSD isn’t enough, and it weighs a mere 2.2 lbs. It sports a standard Atom N270 with up to 1GB of RAM, and while there is no Bluetooth and only 802.11b/g, it is currently the easiest netbook to use mobile broadband with. The battery life is fair at around 3 hours and the mouse is strange (right and left click are literally to the right and left of the touchpad), but the keyboard is decent for such a small netbook and more importantly, the price is right. You can pick one up for $99 today with a WWAN commitment to AT&T, or else you can buy one straight up for as little as $300. If you’re looking for a low cost portable netbook, this is as good as it gets. Read our full review here.

2: Eee PC S101

This is truly a gorgeous netbook. Thin and beautiful, this 10.2″ netbook is lightweight (2.2lbs) enough to bring anywhere and stylish enough to be proud of in any environment. It’s also available with up to a 64GB SSD along with 20GB of free online “Eee storage” with purchase. The battery life is also strong, managing 5 hours without having to go to a heavy 6-cell battery. The rest of the specs are more normal, with an Atom N270 and 1GB RAM, but while the connectivity is strong (Bluetooth, 802.11n) it could be stronger (no WWAN). Still, this is an attractive and capable laptop, and the only reason it’s not #1 on our list is that it costs as much as two average netbooks. It’s still not bad bang for your buck, but expect to shell out as much as $699 if you want to call one your own.

1: MSI Wind U115

Ok, we’re cheating a little bit here, because this netbook isn’t due to be officially sold for about another month. We’re just a little excited. It’s a 10.2″ (1024×600) netbook that will feature the new Intel Atom Z530 1.6GHz, and the new low power processor is supposed to give up to 10 hours of battery life. Sure, and we heard the NC10 was supposed to have 8 before it wound up providing only 6, but if we end up with 7-8 hours of life on a single charge we’ll be ecstatic. The U115 will also come with a hybrid SSD/HDD makeup, with options of 8/80, 16/120, 32/160, with the ability to turn off the HDD and run just off the SSD, which is also designed to save battery. Throw in 2GB RAM, 802.11b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth, and a weight of 2.4lbs, and you’ve got a netbook that might be the most capable on the market. It does seem to be lacking in WWAN capabilities right now, which is the only downside. It’s not cheap, but it promises to be “below $699″ (which apparently is the bar set by the S101), and if you’re in the market for a high end netbook this is something you should pay attention to.

• Dell Mini 9 (03-07-2009)
• Top 10 Netbooks 2009 (04-07-2009)
• Top 10 Notebooks for over $2.500 (04-07-2009)
• Acer Aspire One (04-07-2009)
• Dell Vostro 1000 (04-07-2009)

Full review of SimpleTech Simpledrive 500GB

One can never be too OCD when it comes to backing up their data and you only realize how precious it is once it’s gone. I recently learned this the hard way, when my HD failed and left me with an empty computer and an aching heart. Well, I have changed my ways thanks to the SimpleTech Signature Mini Espresso 500 GB USB 2.0 portable hard drive.

The SimpleTech SimpleDrive is exactly as the name implies, ’simple’ and the included backup software makes backing up any file a breeze. The Signature Mini is by far the thinnest external HD that we’ve tested and is perfectly durable enough to take that extra storage on the go.

Design

The device can only be described as “absolutely stunning”. The SimpleDrive was designed by Pininfarina, the iconic design company that also designed the Ferrari, so just think of buying the SimpleDrive as getting something roughly as aerodynamic as the Ferrari at a fraction of the cost. The drive measures in 8.25 inches long by 1.5 inches tall and is 5 inches wide. The top of the unit features the SimpleTech logo surrounded by a raised plastic shiny oval, which truly gives the device a stylish look.

The unit features clean edges that slope towards the front resembling a distant cousin of the Ferrari. The HD comes with a high speed USB 2.0 Y-connector to plug into two USB ports to power the unit, just in case one USB is unable to supply enough power, however this was not an issue in tests. The dimensions of the SimpleTech were pretty impressive, the unit is about the size of two Motorola Q’s stacked on top of each other and is therefore ultraportable.

The drive’s guts are comprised of a 7,200rpm 3.5-inch hard disk drive. With its minute size and limited weight of 5.8 ounces you may be hard pressed to find the unit noticeable when carried in a backpack or coat pocket.

The back of the unit sports a Mini USB port and the DC-IN power jack, which is used with the optional AC power adapter available for purchase for use with USB 1.1 ports that are unable to provide enough power to the unit.

The unit has a velvety texture which enhances grip and features a rich deep color scheme that is borderline black, but just not all the way there. On the top of the unit two-service LED lights indicate the power on (red) and function of the hard drive (blue). Two rubber feet on the bottom of the device keep the unit secure in place. The hardware itself is overall very sleek, extremely portable and sports a sturdy build.

Features

The unit comes preloaded with the ArcSoft Total Media Backup software, which can be used on Mac and PC. The preinstalled back up software is easy to use, with a clean interface for backing up data. Windows users can use the software to burn data and music disks, however the software is unable to create a bootable backup of the operating system for both. All in all, the bundled Fabrik Local Backup software for both Macs and PCs worked well enough.

The unit is also bundled with a free 2GB account for myfabrik.com, which is online backup service. If the 2GB are not enough an unlimited package is available for around $5 extra a month.

Performance

The unit is plug and play, so setup is extremely simple, just connect the drive to either a PC or Mac with the included USB and you’re ready to start backing up to your heart’s content. The SimpleDrive runs decently cool. Nothing really to report, other than the fact that it only gets minimally hot after running for several hours. As far as noise is concerned, the unit is almost perfectly quiet. However, when transferring files a faint whirring sound is barely audible.

The unit is delightfully fast and put up some great numbers in tests. In tests, it took 47.2 seconds to write a 1.27 GB folder of mixed file types and 36.3 seconds to read the very same folder. The SimpleDrive is undoubtedly fast enough for the average consumers needs.

Conclusion

The SimpleTech Signature Mini is an extremely portable external hard drive that boasts an elegant design. Furthermore, its impressive performance, wide array of colors and hard drive capacities make it perfect for any user looking for a smart storage solution. As a portable storage solution, the Signature Mini external hard drive about as good as it gets. The bundled software and online storage service are very handy backup utility tools, however the online backup is PC only.

• 2GHz Core Duo Samsung X60 PC (04-07-2009)
• Top 10 Notebooks for over $2.500 (04-07-2009)
• Acer Ferrari 1000 (04-07-2009)
• Windows 7 Available for Pre-Order (12-07-2009)
• Asus Eee PC 1000HE (04-07-2009)

Not everyone wants their laptops to be basic and drab. With laptops becoming more portable by the year, they’re taken into the public eye and flaunted for all to see. Below is a list of the top laptops for girls who like their laptops to be as stylish as they are functional.

10. Dell Studio 15

For the longest time, Dell was known for their low-price, bulky laptops, high on functionality but low on style. Dell has been working to change this, and at the forefront of the movement is the Studio laptop series. The Studio 15 is the smallest of the Studio line, measuring in at 15″ inches. The body is thinnest at the front and widest at the back, with a glossy display and stylish chassis. This laptop is the perfect combination of price, features, and style

9. Pink Prada Leather Laptop

Not many laptops have a leather-covered lid. The Prada pink laptop from Asus is one of their many brand-name laptops. Branded with the Prada logo and sporting a soft pink leather cover, this laptop is small, light, and stylish while offering the features every computer user needs.

8. Lamborghini VX1

Not into pink? How about the Lamborghini VX1? The VX1 is dark, with brown and yellow designs and a beautiful Lamborghini stamp on the top. While expensive, this laptop is the ultimate in

7. VAIO P Series

Sony’s VAIO line of laptops are sleek, light, and stylish. The newest VAIO is the Sony P series, a cheapish (for Sony) laptop that is small enough to fit in a purse. Unlike other small laptops appearing lately, the P series has a high-resolution display. There is a camera mounted in the displays right corner, and the keyboard is standard Sony–shallow, wide spaced, and easy to press. Available in red.

6. HP Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam Edition

There is no doubt the Vivienne Tam special edition of the HP Mini 1000 is intended for it’s female customers. With a deep, rich velvet red coloring and gorgeous floral print on the lid, this laptop is small, sleek, and sure to match even your most formal attire.

5. Asus Eee PC Sakura Special Edition

There are numerous versions of the Eee PC–the most popular netbook–and the most stylish version has to be the Special Edition Sakura. The Sakura netbook was only released in Korea, but thanks to the Internet, it is easy to find new versions on eBay at any given time.The lid of the Sakura version is candy apple red, with light flower design prints scattered over it. The flowers prints also adorned the white internal side of the laptop, with red prints circling the wrist area below the keyboard.

4. HP DV4T Bronze

The HP Dv4t laptop is an excellent combination of power and sleekness. The laptop is stylish to behold, with a glossy frameless display and a hatched bronze chassis. The keyboard is a solid dark bronze color, with silver trim around the edges of the laptop. The right side of the laptop holds the optical drive and data ports. The front is smooth save for the last two inches, which holds the microphone, line-in, and headphone ports. The back of the laptop has the usual hookups–VGA, etc

3. Toshiba Protégé A600 ST2231

This version of the Protégé A600 has a soft pink chassis, a very light pink trackpad, and a white keyboard. Available in 32-bit and 64-bit, you will find all the features you need–webcam, 3GB of RAM, Bluetooth, biometric scanner–in a stylish, feminine shell.

2. Macbook Air

If thin is in, than you can’t do better then the Macbook Air. With the thinnest design available, the Macbook Air weighs almost nothing while offering a bright, high-resolution display. If you don’t require a large selection of USB ports and other standards, and you enjoy Mac OS, give the Air a series look.

1. Asus Eee PC S101

If you want something as stylish as the Macbook Air but with a little more functionality and a greatly reduced price tag, you might like the S101 a better. The S101 is a small netbook in the Eee line, but features a completely different design. With a thin body and large keyboard, it’s stylish all the way down to the chassis, with a striking champagne coloring.

• Toshiba Mini NB205 Netbook Now Available (12-07-2009)
• HP HDX 16t (04-07-2009)
• IdeaPad U110 (04-07-2009)
• Fujitsu U810 Ultraportable Tablet (04-07-2009)
• Netshelter Last Gadget Standing CES 2009 (04-07-2009)