The Toshiba Satellite A100 is a solid notebook for the casual home user. It doesn't top the charts with its performance, but it offers just a little more than the core components.

This is a powerful mid-range all-purpose notebook that is well worth looking at, as long as you can stand carting around a 3kg laptop.

Acer's Aspire 4920G is a good all purpose notebook. It doesn't excel at any one thing, but for users wanting a little gaming, movie watching and general desktop PC activities, crammed into a stylish package, it is a strong contender.

It may not be a powerful performer but it does the basics.

The MSI MegaBook EX600 is a solid, but far from outstanding unit. It will handle most basic tasks with ease, but will struggle with more demanding applications.

The Toshiba Satellite A200 is a solid workhorse of a machine with plenty of processing power under its hood. Without question, it's the best A200 we have tested to date.

The NEC Versa E6510-2505DR is a very cost-effective and powerful machine that is difficult to fault. Although the faux leather looks and feels fake and the non-standard keyboard may occasionally cause typing errors, users who can look past these faults will find it to be an excellent device.

Although the Toshiba Satellite Pro P300 (PSPCDA-00L00D) is a fast system with Toshiba's noteworthy Sleep and Charge USB ports and plenty of hard drive space, the unattractive design and lack of features when compared to similarly priced units mean that you're better off looking elsewhere.

If you’re looking for a desktop replacement with processing power, plenty of storage, an excellent screen and great connectivity options then the Dell Studio 17 (1735) is a hard product to beat.

While this notebook hasn't excelled in anything particular, it shows enough aptitude in the key area's of business usage to do the job well.

For the modern user on the move the Fujitsu LifeBook S6520 offers surprisingly good processing power and a brilliant battery life in a lightweight package that is easy to use. The only downside is the high price, for which we’d normally expect a better variety of expansion options.