If Darth Vader needed a notebook, he'd probably buy the IBM ThinkPad A21p. With its high-tech industrial design, the ThinkPad A21p looks like it would be perfectly at home in the hands of the Dark Lord. And with its powerful 850MHz Pentium III processor, 128MB RAM, and a blazing fast 3D graphics chipset, this notebook packs a Death Star-level punch as well.
Of course, the first thing you will notice about the ThinkPad A21p is its design. In fact, it's more than just the jet-black colour that makes this PC resemble a stealth fighter. Almost all the edges and corners of the notebook, except for the titanium composite screen cover, are extremely angled. And while the sharp lines of the notebook's profile won't do much to reduce the ThinkPad A21p's radar signature, it sure makes the notebook look high-tech.
Despite its relatively small size and light weight, the ThinkPad A21p is a real powerhouse. In fact, it had the top scores among desktop replacement systems nearly across the board. Along with its blazing fast processor, the ThinkPad A21p offers solid graphics performance thanks to its 128-bit ATI video chipset. The graphics are fast enough to run even the hottest new 3D games -- we had no trouble playing Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force, an extremely graphics-intensive shooter, at a resolution of 1,024-by-768.
The ThinkPad A21p is also well equipped for video editing, sporting both in and out S-Video connectors. (A converter dongle enables composite video connections.) Teamed with the unit's fast CPU and enormous hard drive, this all comes together to great portable video workstation -- if you're using analog video sources. There's no IEEE 1394/Firewire or S/PDIF audio connector, however, so digital video users will have to use analog connections or opt for an add-on PC Card.
The ThinkPad A21p's screen is wonderful, so long as you have the vision to enjoy it. At 1,600-by-1,200 resolution, the ThinkPad A21p fits more data onscreen than any other notebook. But that's a lot of pixels to cram onto a 15-inch display, and some users will have to either shift to large fonts or drop the screen resolution a bit to avoid eyestrain. Above the screen you'll find IBM's proprietary UltraPort connector. Currently, this can be used for an optional clip-on digital camera, although other UltraPort devices such as a BlueTooth transmitter and a CompactFlash reader are in the works.
The keyboard sports full-sized keys with a responsive, deep throw. The layout is nice, with the page movement keys in the top left corner and no extra keys to accidentally hit around the cursor arrows. A ThinkPad key brings up a very thorough and useful online help application. The slickest feature, though, is the ThinkLight, a tiny light just above the LCD screen that illuminates the keys in dark environments.
Above the keyboard are two small speakers sitting under metal grilles, a placement that keeps them from being muffled by your palms when you're typing. The audio is top-notch for a notebook, with plenty of volume and no distortion even when cranked to the limit.
Cursor control comes from a TrackPoint pointing stick, which is a love-it-or-hate-it item. The one big advantage is that they can't be accidentally tapped like a touchpad, so you never find the pointer moving to unexpected places. Below the right and left buttons is a third button that puts the pointer in scrolling mode. We ended up disabling this, however, as it was far too easy to hit this when reaching for one of the primary buttons.
Fast, full-featured, and relatively light, the ThinkPad A21p is one of the best-engineered notebooks we've seen to date. Just be prepared to pay a premium price for that quality.
IBM ThinkPad A21p
Price: AU$10,499
Company: IBM
Ph: 1800 289 426; Fax: 02 9951 9793
Rating: 4 Stars
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