Laptops

The bottom line: The popular low-cost Asus Eee PC makes a play for mainstream acceptance, adding Windows XP to create an impressive package for portable Web surfing and basic productivity, making it a near-flawless choice for a highly portable second laptop.

The bottom line: Despite an underpowered CPU, the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC offers the best balance of small size, comfort, and functionality we've seen in a mininotebook, making it fast a favorite for on-the-go use.

Price: $499.99 - $994.80

The bottom line: Toshiba's SSD version of the Portege R500 may be the best ultraportable laptop available right now, and it packs in much of what the MacBook Air lacks while weighing nearly half as much.

The bottom line: The Asus Lamborghini VX3 is the laptop recast as status symbol. It looks and feels like a luxury item; we just wish it had a bit more power under the hood.

Price: $3,128.99 - $3,316.99

The bottom line: The ThinkPad X300 breaks new ground by packing a broad display, full-size keyboard, and nearly every feature a mobile user needs into a sleek, lightweight case.

Price: $1,889.00

The bottom line: The Toshiba Satellite M205 strips out most of the typical Satellite series extras, but comes at a reasonable price and boasts an attractive design as well as a useful, versatile 14-inch chassis.

Price: $859.99

The bottom line: Lenovo's entry into the consumer laptop market with the 15-inch IdeaPad Y510 provides ThinkPad-like quality but the design still comes off as a little buttoned-up.

The bottom line: Apple's 15-inch MacBook Pro gets a solid under-the-hood upgrade for better performance and longer battery life, allowing the MacBook Pro to put enough distance between itself and the lower-end MacBook to justify its higher price.

Price: $1,899.00

The bottom line: Dell's turn toward a "design-first" philosophy continues to pay off with the XPS M1530, easily the best-looking 15-inch laptop in recent memory.

Price: $1,224.00

The bottom line: We loved the pitch for the Gateway P-6831 FX: a 17-inch laptop with 3GB of RAM and Nividia's GeForce 8800 graphics card for only $1,350. But keep an eye on price changes to get the best deal.

The bottom line: Well-rounded in both features and performance, the large Fujitsu LifeBook N6470 combines computer and entertainment hub in one desktop-replacement laptop.

The bottom line: Solo's new Urban Vertical Messenger laptop case manages to get just about everything right, with excellent pockets and solid construction.

The bottom line: The Kensington Contour Cargo Messenger laptop case is one of the most comfortable, and useful, laptop messenger bags we've used, though it's not exactly sophisticated-looking.

Price: $22.23 - $49.99