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Best Small Laptops (Dell Latitude E4200)
Screen Size: 12.1”
Battery Life: 4 Hours
Operating System: Windows XP / Windows Vista Home Basic / Windows Vista Business
Weight: 2.2lbs
Dell has recently released an incredibly lightweight and portable system named the Adamo, which boasts some fairly impressive design detail and interesting specifications. The reason it isn't in this list is because it's priced ridiculously high even for a small laptop. For those looking towards Dell, the latitude remains as ever the best choice between value and performance, and the E4200 is no different.
The E4200 is slightly more of a professional system than some of the others we've looked at, and this ethos is echoed in the systems design. It's bold, practical and refreshingly angular in a world that's obsessed with curves. It's also one of the most solid systems we've seen and at 12" this is quite an accomplishment. It may not hold up to companies like Lenovo, Sony or Apple when it comes to style, but it's not ugly either. The only stumbling point some people may have is that the systems 6-cell battery sticks out from the back of the system quite a long way. It sounds worse than it looks, though!
For a 12" laptop it's quite surprising to not see an optical drive installed, and the options provided by Dell are expensive and not including in the base price of the system, which will be a turn off to some. There's also no integrated webcam which is a standard for most small laptops released today, although perhaps not a necessity for most users. It's an interesting thing to exclude considering the business focus of the E4200, but a webcam wouldn't have fit amongst the bezel on the top of the system.
The E4200 features a high quality full sized laptop keyboard and a responsive touchpad, not surprising considering solid and tactile controls have become a trademark of the modern Latitude range. The system is very configurable so if you want to save money by removing features such as mobile broadband you've got the option.
One of the more unique features of the E4200 is its secondary OS. Yes, it’s not uncommon in small laptops, but it's usually reserved for the much smaller netbooks and it's refreshing to the see the OS in a larger system. Much like most instant-boot secondary systems, Dell's 'Latitude ON Reader' provides a much longer battery life than Vista could hope for while giving users quick access to the internet, instant messaging and document viewing.
Battery life on the system manages around 4 hours on heavy load, quite an impressive result considering the size and brightness of the screen. The SSD only drive makes the system speedy even using a comparatively slow 1.4 GHz CoreDuo CPU. Combined with its sturdy design and excellent software options the E4200 is a stunning choice, provided you can live without a DVD drive. Prices range from $1000 - $2000 depending on the wide variety of options available.
Battery Life: 4 Hours
Operating System: Windows XP / Windows Vista Home Basic / Windows Vista Business
Weight: 2.2lbs
Dell has recently released an incredibly lightweight and portable system named the Adamo, which boasts some fairly impressive design detail and interesting specifications. The reason it isn't in this list is because it's priced ridiculously high even for a small laptop. For those looking towards Dell, the latitude remains as ever the best choice between value and performance, and the E4200 is no different.
The E4200 is slightly more of a professional system than some of the others we've looked at, and this ethos is echoed in the systems design. It's bold, practical and refreshingly angular in a world that's obsessed with curves. It's also one of the most solid systems we've seen and at 12" this is quite an accomplishment. It may not hold up to companies like Lenovo, Sony or Apple when it comes to style, but it's not ugly either. The only stumbling point some people may have is that the systems 6-cell battery sticks out from the back of the system quite a long way. It sounds worse than it looks, though!
For a 12" laptop it's quite surprising to not see an optical drive installed, and the options provided by Dell are expensive and not including in the base price of the system, which will be a turn off to some. There's also no integrated webcam which is a standard for most small laptops released today, although perhaps not a necessity for most users. It's an interesting thing to exclude considering the business focus of the E4200, but a webcam wouldn't have fit amongst the bezel on the top of the system.
The E4200 features a high quality full sized laptop keyboard and a responsive touchpad, not surprising considering solid and tactile controls have become a trademark of the modern Latitude range. The system is very configurable so if you want to save money by removing features such as mobile broadband you've got the option.
One of the more unique features of the E4200 is its secondary OS. Yes, it’s not uncommon in small laptops, but it's usually reserved for the much smaller netbooks and it's refreshing to the see the OS in a larger system. Much like most instant-boot secondary systems, Dell's 'Latitude ON Reader' provides a much longer battery life than Vista could hope for while giving users quick access to the internet, instant messaging and document viewing.
Battery life on the system manages around 4 hours on heavy load, quite an impressive result considering the size and brightness of the screen. The SSD only drive makes the system speedy even using a comparatively slow 1.4 GHz CoreDuo CPU. Combined with its sturdy design and excellent software options the E4200 is a stunning choice, provided you can live without a DVD drive. Prices range from $1000 - $2000 depending on the wide variety of options available.
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