Computer Reviews

The Netgear GA311 boosts network speed tenfold compared Fast Ethernet. The Netgear Gigabit Ethernet adapter puts your local network on steroids, and only using a standard PCI connector. The Netgear GA311 Gigabit Ethernet adapter enables higher speeds and faster transfers over local networks, allowing videos to be played almost as though they were on the same computer.

Networking is the lifeblood of the everyday computer. 10 years ago an isolated computer was just the norm, but now modern computers rely heavily on networks, usually the Internet, for almost all aspects of computing.

For computers on a local network, where information is often stored on separate storage media like Network Attached Storage devices, the speed of the local network makes a big difference when it comes to watching videos over the network, or listening to music, or just about anything that moves a lot (or a little) data over the network.

Older computers typically utilized a Fast Ethernet adapter, meaning it could handle up to 100Mb/s of data transfer. This is still the standard, but faster is better, and the Netgear GA311 helps with that.

The Netgear Gigabit Ethernet adapter transfers data at up to 1000Mb/s, or around 1GB in 10 seconds. The Netgear GA311 is perfect for older computer that attach to faster networks. It does need to be combined with other components that also handle Gigabit speeds, so the routers and other components also need this.

For $25 this is an easy way to make a home network that much more seemless.

This laptop computer review item goes for just under $1000, the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 offers a well-rounded package with fairly high performance processor, decent sized screen and enough extras to keep most users happy. Ahead with the notebook computer review.

The screen is a around 14 inches and offers 1280 x 800 screen resolution. I always find this a little disappointing. The screen resolution doesn’t allow much more than a standard amount of desktop space, that is to say it will fit a document or a webpage, but struggle to fit both. I suppose that’s reasonable for the size, but even if the text is small, I like to be able to fit two windows comfortable beside each other. On the other hand, I do use a 1280 width monitor for work and it’s usually enough.

The dual-core processor gives a bit of punch, and allows multiple programs to be run simultaneously, whilst the load is spread over the two cores.

Here are some of the main specs for the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510:

• Intel Centrino Core2 Duo
• 3GB of memory
• 250GB hard drive
• DVD writer
• Windows Vista Home
• 3 USB ports
• Wireless 802.11b/g/n
• Fast Ethernet
• Up to 4 hours battery life

A major plus is the amount of memory and hard drive space. 250GB of hard drive space is enough to store plenty of photos, songs and videos. 3GB of memory gives a lot of memory for Windows Vista to play around with. Windows Vista needs at least 1GB and this gives it more than it needs.

Wireless connectivity supports up to 300Mb/s, faster than most internet connections. The Ethernet port only supports up to 100Mb/s, which is a little strange, because the wired networks usually support much faster speeds than the wireless. However, there are probably more fast wireless networks around than Gigabit wired networks.

At a tad under 3kg, this is not a light notebook, but makes up for the extra weight with a full house of features. Add to these Lenovo’s VeriFace security software, which verifies users by their facial features and you get a very capable machine quite worthy to be a desktop replacement laptop.

This notebook computer review is for an Acer computer for just under $600 and offers a lot of features for a fully-featured laptop. AMD Turion 64 X2 processor offers a lot of processing power without sucking too much power. A 15.4″ screen gives ample viewing area. 2.0 GB of memory allows Windows Vista to operate well, and 160 GB hard drive and DVD burner give plenty of options for storing lots of data.

Personally, I love litte, ultraportable computers. That’s probably because I do the vast majority of my work at a desktop and have little need for a regular laptop. However, modern laptops have improved so much that they provide more than enough power for what most users require. My five year old desktop computer still does everything I want it to do, and laptops now do better, for even less than what I originally paid.

This Acer Aspire does give what’s necessary to be a desktop replacement notebook. Here are some of the main features:

• 1.9GHz AMD Turion 64 X3 Dual-Core processor
• 15.4″ wide screen (1280 x 800)
• 2.0 GB of DDR2 memory (supports up to 4.0 GB)
• 160 GB hard drive
• DVD writer
• Media reader
• Gigabit Ethernet
• Wi-Fi (b/g)

This is a refurbished notebook though, so you get a computer that has been used before, but fixed up. With all the features I would still say that this is a good bet and offers everything necessary to be a desktop replacement computer.