Dell's new ultraportable might be just right for biz

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Dell's new ultraportable might be just right for biz

Bill Machrone
Contributing Editor PC Magazine
Wednesday, March 21, 2001

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I'm a sucker for ultraportables, and everybody knows it. Ever since the original NEC Ultralite knocked me off my chair, I've endeavored to carry the smallest computer I could, without getting sidetracked into goofy alternative machines like the Toshiba Libretto.

Dell's latest laptop is the svelte Latitude L400, 3.5 lb. of brushed magnesium and all the power and storage you need for business computing. It's a bit larger than my Toshiba Portege 3480, and if you have large hands (or fat fingers) you may appreciate the Dell's slightly larger keyboard.

You'll also appreciate the XGA resolution spread over a 12.1 diagonal screen.

I RATHER LIKE the touchpad on the Latitude L400; I've about given up on pointing sticks--at least those on ultraportables. I find that they work reasonably well on larger machines, but they make some mechanical compromises to get them down to the ultraportable form factor. Accuracy suffers; it's easy to overshoot. Touchpads are much more mouselike in their operation, and the current generation of drivers is much better than some of the early ones in not responding to false touches of your thumb or palm.

Of course, you make compromises with any ultraportable--the biggest is that it's a single-spindle machine. You have to plug into an external storage bay for floppy or optical storage, but then you have a choice of CD, CD-RW, or DVD.

Dell is smart, though, to put 10/100 Ethernet right on the machine. Some of the units in this class require you to use a PC Card slot or your port expander for network connectivity.

PC Magazine's review has lots more information, including an interesting battery option. Read the full review and learn much more.

Would you put the Latitude L400 to work? What other ultraportables work well for business users? TalkBack to me.

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