The wooden panels on the Bamboo actually look good, and its guts are also impressive. It's not a laptop for everyone; it's mostly for people who want to make an impression, and anyone who just really loves wood.

A capable and solidly built ultraportable that's worth considering. It could use some refinement, but its strong case, built-in DVD burner and long battery life are major positives.

Although the Panasonic Toughbook CF-W5 is not the most stylish or powerful machine, it does offer some good battery life and should take a few knocks without any trouble. However, for the premium price it is short on ports and other features, a disappointment despite the advantages of its rugged design.

We truly wanted to love the Asus U1F (1P010E), but its lack of a built-in optical drive and poor graphics chip dampened our ardour. Nevertheless, it remains a handsome choice for business use and web browsing.

An ultra-portable ideal for road warriors, the VAIO TX47 offers outstanding battery life, and a stylish design.

The VAIO TZ17GN is an ideal ultraportable thanks to a compact, lightweight frame, good battery life and solid, if not outstanding performance. A stylish design sweetens the deal.

The first leather encased notebook on the market, the S6 also performs quite well.