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Posted by T3 Online on Tue 10 Mar 2009

1. Dell XPS Studio 16
£1,349, www.dell.co.uk
PERFORMANCE It’s certainly not cheap, but the Studio 16 doesn’t miss a trick – all
the necessary features are included
LOVE 1080p screen and Blu-ray. Fully-stocked connectivity
HATE Gamers might want a smidgeon more graphical oomph
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2. Apple iMac
£950, www.apple.com/uk
PERFORMANCE The iMac range may have gone up in price, but there’s still a version
for most budgets. You’re still going to crave the full, gleaming 24-inch screen though. A true design classic with excellent connectivity and a simple, clean OS
LOVE Great performance, slick looks and tasty iLife software
HATE It’s recently had something of a price hike
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3. HP Touchsmart IQ810
£1,465, www.hp.com/uk
PERFORMANCE The widescreen BrightView display and integrated Blu-ray drive make this a multimedia master
LOVE Effective and beautiful touchscreen tech
HATE Vista doesn’t make the most of that touchscreen
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4. Apple MacBook Pro 17"
£1,949, www.apple.com/uk
PERFORMANCE The Pro looks like it means business and with the thin hi-res screen
and marathon battery life, it delivers
LOVE Plenty of speed and power. Innovative touchpad
HATE Lacks HDMI and has a city-boy price tag
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5. Sony Vaio VGC_LV1S
£1,380, www.vaio.sony.uk
PERFORMANCE The Vaio wasn’t blessed with good looks, but it does your Blu-ray
movies justice on its big, bright 24-inch screen and multimedia features
LOVE Amazing amount of features, 4GB RAM, Blu-ray
HATE Slow start-up. Horrible looks
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6. ASUS Eee Top
£320, www.asus.com
PERFORMANCE Although little more than a netbook with a desktop makeover, the Eee Top is surprisingly quick and touchscreen interface is more than a gimmick. It’s delightfully cheap, of course, and skinny enough to fit onto the tiniest desks and shelves.
LOVE Tiny footprint, low price and excellent touchscreen
HATE Dreadful handwriting recognition tool
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7. Lenovo Idea Center A600
£687, www.lenovo.com
PERFORMANCE This iMac killer makes Apple look like a mouldy fruit salad and packs a some major entertainment credentials; Blu-ray player, TV tuner, full HD screen resolution and a massive 1TB hard disc.
LOVE Killer design, massive screen
HATE Rubbish graphics card
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8. Elonex Artisan LX
£932, www.elonex.com
PERFORMANCE Whisper quiet entertainment computing in a case that resembles a premium piece of HiFi more than a desktop. Front mounted LED display and proper audio outputs make this a home cinema enthusiast’s choice.
LOVE Stack design, value for money
HATE Ugly keyboard receiver
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9. HP Pavilion Dragon
£1,350, www1.hp.com
PERFORMANCE  A laptop in name only, this ‘portable’ monster offers a giant, swivelling, dual back-lit 20.1” screen, four internal speakers and its own sub. The smartest feature? The pop-out remote control.
LOVE Unparalleled notebook processing
HATE That’s not really a laptop
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10. Alienware Area-51 M17
£1,500, www.alienware.co.uk
PERFORMANCE Alienware has somehow squeezed all the muscle of a respectable gaming PC into proper laptop. We don’t know how, but we do know it plays like a dream with stunning graphics and smooth framerates.
LOVE Big glossy high resolution screen
HATE At 4kg, it’s a little weighty for the average commute
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