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'Ultraportable' notebook computers hit their stride.
Not so long ago, any computer weighing less than 5 pounds was considered woefully inadequate for the demands of the global traveler. With a cramped keyboard, dim screen, underpowered processor and Lilliputian hard drive, the "ultraportable" was a sorry conglomeration of unsuitable compromises.
All that has changed in the past few months as a slew of vendors - including some that may surprise you-have pumped up the specs on the ultraportable and brought respectability to the class. In most cases, you won't find an integrated CD-ROM or a built-in floppy, but you will find a surprising number of features, including processing power and data storage galore, infrared ports for wireless communication, full-sized keyboards and big, bright screens. Docking stations and external add-ons give the portable everything you need when back at the office. And when you're on the road, you'll enjoy the svelte form factor and light weight. Truly, they offer the best of both worlds.
There's one more thing you'll like: lower prices. Take for example, the Fujitsu PC Corp.'s 635T, one of a number of corporate-level notebooks unveiled last Christmas from notebook newcomer Fujitsu. This 133-MHz Pentium machine comes with 16MB of RAM, a 1.3GB hard drive, an integrated 28.8-Kbps modem and an ample 12.1-inch active matrix screen. Total weight? A scant 4.2 pounds. And with a street price of less than $4,000, the Fujitsu is putting the pressure on the old guard -Toshiba, NEC and IBM - to match feature for feature and price for price.
Not to be outdone, Toshiba has completely revamped...