The Pioneer Dreambook Light 822 is a great all-purpose notebook that will satisfy a wide variety of users.

Pioneer has definitely aimed for the performance market with its DreamBook Light 822 notebook, which is the most powerful notebook we looked at this month. Running an Intel Core Duo T2500 (2GHz) processor and 1GB (2x 512MB) of DDR2 533MHz RAM, the 14in DreamBook pulled off an impressive score of 97 in PC WorldBench 5 and 17,469 in 3DMark 2001 SE. These results place the DreamBook above other notebooks in its price range.

It's not the toughest of the tough, but it at least looks like a normal notebook while including some tougher features. Unfortunately you're going to pay a premium for the tough part of this notebook, even if it isn't quite as sturdy as more specialised models from vendors like Panasonic.

This is an interesting and well-constructed notebook from Pioneer.

The VAIO VGN-CR13G is a reasonably solid, if unspectacular, notebook that features a lovely design and reasonable specifications. A decent choice if you are after an all-purpose machine.

With a simple, but thoughtful feature set, a solid build and a classy design there's little to complain about. While the CR13G/B isn't the top of the game, it is a very nice notebook.

Sony's VAIO FZ17G is a great multimedia notebook which offers a HDMI output and couples it with solid performance and a nice array of features.

On design alone the Sony VAIO CR25G/R is a winner. Beyond that it's a solid machine with some nice features but not a tonne of power. Those looking to do the basics and look good in the process will enjoy this notebook.

This unit's interesting design and user-friendly Sound FLOW package are let down by a lack of the latest ports.

It looks good, has good processing power, and it's well-suited as a notebook for everyday tasks. However, it's not really a great unit for high-definition video endeavours, as it lacks a Full HD screen and a Blu-ray drive.

The Sony VAIO VGN-FE45G/W doesn't offer great battery life, but is very comfortable to use and has enough power under the hood to deal with everyday use and more.

The VGN-N27GH is a solid, but not outstanding notebook for anyone looking for basic performance in a stylish package. Unfortunately, poor battery life and sluggish performance are turn offs, and may turn away users looking for performance on the road.