By Peter Wolchak

HP Compaq nc4010
Notebooks are personal devices, in a way that desktop computers are not, and the nc4010 is among the most usable of these notebooks. While at 3.5lbs. it is slightly heavier than some, the compensation is a spacious and well-laid out keyboard and a choice of pointing options: the notebook sports both a touch pad and a pointing stick, important for those road warriors with a strong preference for one or the other.

The nc4010, which lists for $2,449, also delivers decent sound for those who like to stream music over a Wi-Fi network while crunching numbers on a spreadsheet.