CHEAP CORE2DUO LAPTOP

BLUE W351UI Laptop for only 22K.
No scratches, no hidden defects.
1 month old and female owned laptop.
complete with basic accesories.

Specifications:
Core 2 Duo T5450 1.66Ghz
1Gb ram expandable up to 4Gb
150Gb Hard Disk
approximate 386MB total Graphic memory
Fully function additional keypads and touchpads.
14" LCD screen.

The Blue brand is only available locally, and is a "white notebook" manufacturer - someone who takes stock laptop casings and components and markets it under one brand. Other contemporaries include Apex, Neo, Red Fox and ECS. As with others of its kind, the laptops made are not exactly "big brand" memorable - but more importantly, they are workmanlike in function and definitely gets the job done same as more expensive brand models. Even using a "stock" laptop chassis, this Blue notebook contains some carefully chosen specs that fulfills the brand's price / performance ratio mix - since this laptop is primarily meant for the entry level buyer.

With this mission in mind, the W351's specs of Merom based Core 2 Duo 1.5GHz, 1GB of RAM, Home Vista Premium, a 14" widescreen display, and a 965 chipset-based GMA X3100 IGP to back it up certainly gives this laptop an edge over other entry level options. I would have expected severe slowdowns on Vista Home Premium with just 1GB of RAM, but this does not seem to be the case. This may be due to the "clean" install of Vista, with no extraneous programs clogging the hardisk, so on the safe side I'd still recommend getting another gigabyte of RAM to supplement the performance of the laptop.

So far, there have been no surprises with this laptop - whether good or bad - aside from the average component selection chosen based on economy. The Hard Disk is pretty big at 150GB though, plus it runs cool and quiet, as expected from the specifications. More surprising though is the large number of cool design cues on the chassis that defy its "white box" heritage - media controls are located along a line of buttons flush against the chassis, while indicators line a small, reflective window under the trackpad. The trackpad itself has three large buttons that are easy to manipulate. The lid is a super reflective material that looks very swanky – it even has some fine lines similar to HP’s verve series. Volume control is touch-based, and is indicated by lighted signs on the touch-sensitive keys themselves.

A glossy plastic insert surrounds the laptop midesection, giving the impression of a thinner profile. The inserts are also host to 3 USB slots, 2 on the left and one on the right side, a PCMCIA slot and a card reader, sound jacks in front, a LAN adapter, with power, a kensington lock and a 56k modem jack at the rear. The DVD writer is on the right side of the chassis below the single USB slot, which may be a problem if you're right handed and regularly plug in a USB mouse on the right side. Just a minor quibble.

What most surprises me is the sturdy build of this chassis - considering that this is a typical, locally built laptop for the budget shopper, I expected a few loose ends, creaks and gaps. What I found instead is an almost-sleek and thin-looking exterior and performance that is admirable for the price and the specs, even reminding one of a notebook from HP when it comes to looks. Battery life of nearly three hours with regular usage at middle LCD brightness and occasional use of the DVD drive is again above average.

Putting everything together, the Blue W351UI Laptop performs everything asked of it (that it's capable of - no heavy gaming here!) competently, and adds some extras and good attention to quality to the mix - putting this  laptop above the average for the entry level group and ensuring the user workmanlike performance - in a chassis that displays good workmanship.

Click image thumbnail to view actual image size [ Get Image / Link Embed Codes ]