16-inch laptop

Blu-ray on a budget: Asus F50SV-A2 reviewed

Sixteen-inch laptops comprise a growing category, perhaps because they sit between the semiportable, 15-inch, mainstream systems and the heavy, 17- and 18-inch models that are essentially desk-bound machines with hinged screens.

The $1,249 Asus F50SV-A2 ($1,149 for base configuration with less RAM) packs a Blu-ray drive and a new mainstream Nvidia graphics chip into a relatively on-the-go package that's lighter than gaming beasts, but heavier than a standard laptop.

Our review found it solidly performing, but a little lacking on the design and features front. Are 16-inch systems worth the compromise between mainstream and hardcore desktop-replacing performance? … Read more

Fujitsu LifeBook N7010: Are two screens better than one?

After unveiling the LifeBook A1110 and LifeBook A6220 in October, Fujitsu is keeping the ball rolling with another addition to the LifeBook family. The LifeBook N7010, announced Tuesday, may not have the swappable lid panels of those previous models, but it does have a fresh new feature: a 4-inch touch-screen panel above the keyboard that can be used to control media playback, display quick-launch icons, or scroll through a photo slide show.

The second display can also help you multitask; instead of minimizing an application, you can drag it into the display below (the example from Fujitsu: you can work … Read more

Dell's 16-inch XPS prototype is a glimpse of the future

There's a well-worn axiom in journalism that finding three examples of the same thing in short order officially constitutes a trend. With that in mind, take a look at this prototype Dell XPS laptop being shown under glass at the Dell booth. It's a 16-inch laptop, called the XPS 630i, and the unusual size displays images in a true 16:9 screen ratio (like your HDTV), rather than the 16:10 screen ratio found in most 14.1-, 15.4- and 17-inch laptop displays.

While Dell is the only PC maker showing off a 16-inch prototype to the … Read more