Fujitsu Lifebook E7010
While everyone else in this roundup submitted notebooks that fit best into the category of desktop replacements, Fujitsu's entry, the Lifebook E7010, takes a slightly different road. It's a touch too heavy to be an ultra portable, but at 2.4kg, it's definitely on the right track to being a luggable notebook, and is the lightest of the notebooks we've looked at here.
The Lifebook certainly isn't a slouch when it comes to specifications. Only the Toshiba 5200 gave it a serious run for its money, stacked as it is with a 2.2GHz P4-M, 256MB of memory and a 60GB hard drive. With an eye to the security-conscious, the four application buttons on the top of the keyboard can also be used as a system-lock.
Mouse control is via a standard glidepad, with two very small mouse buttons and a rockable switch in between. Of the four notebooks on offer, we liked the Fujitsu's mouse replacement the least; the buttons were difficult to use and just too small. Still, as with most of these notebooks, an add-on mouse certainly wouldn't be a money worry.
The keyboard has good travel characteristics and is generally easy to use, although it does have unusually small and thin cursor controls. It does manage to avoid one of our pet peeves by including the Windows key in the normal position, so the amount of mis-keying when seeking keyboard shortcuts should be minimised.
Being light in weight also translates into being thin, especially in the screen. It's a relatively small 14" screen with excellent visual characteristics; it can be seen from almost every angle, and is bright enough for almost any situation.
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Power trip: Four high-end notebooks tested Introduction 1. Acer Travelmate 426LC 2. Fujitsu Lifebook E7010 3. IBM Thinkpad T30 4. Toshiba Satellite 5200 Benchmark results Specifications |
Ultimately the Fujitsu Lifebook E7010 is a nice notebook that doesn't quite stack up to its competition, especially given its rather high asking price of AU$6,999. It's not a bad specification, or bad results, or even terrible to use - it's just that you can do better for the money.
Fujitsu Lifebook E7010
Company: Fujitsu
Price: AU$6999
Distributor: Selected resellers
Phone: (02) 9776 4555
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