By Shane McGlaun

The only time I like wireless mice are when they are for notebooks. When it comes to my desktop computer for gaming, I want a wired mouse. Wireless mice need to be charged too frequently for my tastes when used with desktop computers.

One of the biggest things that bugs me about wireless notebook mice are the big USB adapters that you have to plug into the notebook for connectivity. Those long adapters stick out so far from the side of the machine that it can be easy to break them off when it comes time to pack up your notebook and go.

Verbatim has a new notebook mouse called the Nano Wireless Optical Mouse that is available in eight different colors. The big feature of the mouse isn’t the different color offerings, but a tiny USB dongle that hardly protrudes from the side of the notebook. In fact, the dongle is so small you really don’t even have to unplug it to put your notebook into a backpack. The mouse sells for $29.99 and uses 2.4GHz wireless technology.

[ Verbatim ]

By Shane McGlaun

MSI has been introducing notebooks at a fast pace over the last few months. It seems the firm is trying to take advantage of its newfound name recognition thanks to its popular line of Wind netbooks. Most of the new notebooks that MSI has been unveiling recently sport discreet NVIDIA GPUs, as does its latest notebook announcement.

The new MSI GX723 has an NVIDIA GeForce GT 130 graphics card with 512MB of RAM. The machine can be optioned with up to 4GB of RAM and 320GB or 500GB HDDs; Bluetooth is optional and Wi-Fi is integrated. The notebook has a 17-inch screen with a resolution of 1680 x 1050.

The brains of the machine is an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU coupled with an Intel PM45-ICH9 chipset. HDMI out is built-in and Blu-ray is optional to take advantage of the HDMI output. A plan vanilla DVD burner is standard. MSI offers a stock 6-cell battery and an optional 9-cell unit. Pricing and availability are unknown at this time.

[ MSI ]

By Shane McGlaun

For the most part notebooks and netbooks that come with SSDs tend to have smaller capacity SSDs inside. In the netbook realm, you usually get 4 or 8GB SSDs while notebooks commonly go up to 32GB and 64GB capacities. Toshiba has announced a new notebook that offers many times more storage than your average SSD equipped notebook.

The Toshiba Portege R600-ST4203 is now available with a massive and expensive 512GB SSD. The SSD is made by Toshiba and is crammed inside the notebooks 12.1-inch chassis. The machine weighs 2.4 pounds and is 0.7-inches thick.

The SSD uses MLC technology for faster access time and better performance. Toshiba clams that the 512GB SSD has a 3x faster data access speed than a 128GB SSD. Other specs for the notebook include a 12.1-inch screen, Windows Vista, Intel ULV Core 2 Duo processor, and a USB/eSATA sleep and charge port. The notebook retails for $3,499.99 — a lot of scratch.

[ Toshiba ]

By Shane McGlaun

MSI was relatively unknown as a computer maker here in America until the netbook revolution and the firm unveiled the wind U100. The little U100 was one of the better netbooks on the market. MSI is now getting ready to launch its own MacBook Air competitors with two new X-Slim models called the X400 and X600 coming soon (we think).

The exact price and launch date for the X400 and X600 are unknown. What we do know is that the X400 will have a 14-inch screen and boast a super thin Li-poly battery with the entire notebook weighing 1.5kg. The X600 will offer a 15-inch screen with a total weight of only 2.1 kg. The X600 will also sport a discrete GPU.

The two machines are similar to the X340 that was previously announced and features an Intel Core 2 solo ULV processor. It would be safe to expect the X400 and X600 to sport the Intel ULV processors as well, though possibly dual-core variants. An 8-cell battery is optional on the X400 and a 9-cell unit can be added to the X600. Both machines will use external optical drives.

[ MSI ]

By Shane McGlaun

I am a big fan of netbooks, I like the small size and portable nature plus the machines have plenty of power for everything I want to do while I am on the road. My wife doesn’t like netbooks, she prefers a larger screen when she uses a notebook.

Dell has announced new products that will meet the needs of both the netbook and notebook shopper on a tight budget. The new Dell Inspiron 15 comes in several colors and offers a starting price of only $399 for a notebook with a 15.6-inch screen. The low-end model runs Vista Basic and offers 160GB HDD, 2GB of RAM, and an Intel Celeron processor. Many options are available that can greatly increase the price of the notebook.

Dell has also added a bargain netbook called the Mini 10v with a retail price of only $299. The model selling for that price gets a 10.1-inch screen, 120GB HDD, 1GB of RAM, Intel Atom N270 CPU, and a 3-cell battery. Different storage options are available along with Ubuntu Linux.

[ Dell ]

By Shane McGlaun

A few years ago most computer users had probably never heard of MSI. After the netbook revolution began the MSI Wind surfaced as one of the better netbooks on the market and brought the brand to the masses.

MSI has unveiled a new and very slick looking new notebook computer with a 15.6-inch screen. If Darth Vader had a laptop the GX633 would be it with its brushed black aluminum and red trim. Also featured on the notebook are MSI’s turbo mode and ECO Engine.

Turbo mode overclocks the notebook when on AC power for more performance at the press of a button and the ECO Engine allows the user to tweak power settings by pressing a button for different uses. MSI uses a 15.6-inch LCD on the machine and it uses an AMD Turion X2 Ultra dual-core processor. Graphics are via the NVIDIA GeForce GT 130M and the machine has 4GB of RAM and up to 500GB of storage. Blu-ray is optional as well.

[ MSI ]

By Shane McGlaun

IT wasn’t so long ago that if you wanted a 12-inch notebook you had to pay a significant premium for the ultra-portable machines. Today you can get small 12-inch notebooks for basically the same price you can get standard notebooks for.

Averatec has announced a new 12-inch notebook that packs some nice features into a machine selling for $699. For the money you get an Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 processor at 2GHz, 4GB of RAM, and 64-bit Windows Vista.

Storage for the small notebook is to a 250GB HDD and the machine has an integrated DVD burner. Connectivity features include 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, Ethernet, VGA out, three USB ports and a single FireWire port. The machine is available now for purchase.

[ Averatec ]

By Shane McGlaun

I worked on a few business class notebooks over the years and one thing they all had in common was that they were plain looking black boxes with nothing redeeming about the way they looked. I always thought showing up to a meeting with an ugly notebook was about the same as showing up with an ugly tie.

HP is offering some new business class notebooks called the HP ProBook series that are designed to be functional, but good looking as well. HP says that the new notebooks are designed with an eye towards minimalist style and combines matte and glossy surfaces. The machines are available with glossy and merlot finishes.

Among the ProBook models are the 4410s and 4415s with 14-inch screens and optional Blu-ray and HD 4330 graphics. The ProBook 4510s and 4515s are 15.6-inch machines with HP Mobile Broadband technology that uses Gobi technology to work with multiple wireless carriers. The final machine in the series is the 4710s with a 17.3-inch screen and an ATI HD 4330 video card and more. Pricing for the machines starts at $529 and they will be available in June.

[ HP ]

By Shane McGlaun

With the sales of laptops down significantly you might think that computer makers like Dell would holding off on introducing new notebooks. Dell is still coming up with new gear for those with the money to buy and the latest new notebook is the Studio 15.

As the name implies the Studio 15 has a 15.6-inch LCD supporting 720p and full 1080p resolution. The machine can be optioned with an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570 discrete graphics card with 256MB of 512MB of RAM.

The machine comes in black chain link, red, blue, purple, green, and pink colors. Wi-Fi is built-in and Bluetooth and mobile Internet are optional. Connectivity features include eSATA and HDMI out. Blu-ray is optional as is a 5.1 surround sound speaker system with a 3-watt subwoofer. The keyboard also has a backlit option. Pricing for the Studio 15 starts at $649.

[ Dell ]

By Shane McGlaun

I once managed to fling my notebook computer across the room where it landed flat on its back with a thud. I just knew when I opened it up the LCD would be shattered and it would never work again. The only thing broken was the hard drive and after replacing it I was back surfing the net again.

Samsung has a new hard drive that is ruggedized to prevent just the sort of damage my notebook received. The hard drive is called the Spinpoint M7 and can withstand shock up to 400G/2ms while operating. The 2.5-inch drive is available in 250, 320, 400, and 500GB capacities.

Samsung says that the drives use a new controller that saves 25% on power in seek mode and is 18% faster than traditional 2.5-inch hard drives. The drives also feature Samsung SilentSeek and NoiseGuard technology to keep noise down. The drive spins at 5400 rpm and uses NCQ.

[ Samsung ]