Digital Trends

Dell Vostro 1000 $399.99

Dell’s bottom-of-the-line notebook won’t turn any heads, or win any head-to-head benchmark comparisons, but its $399 starting price makes it impossible to ignore. Since this isn’t from a sale, mark-down or coupon, you’re also free to add the options you really need. For instance, laying out $25 for the Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core processor instead of the Sempron would be wise. But travelers beware: a starting weight of 6.26 pounds makes it a heifer by modern standards, and the AMD’s heat output will also make it a battery killer, so you may wish to look elsewhere if you’ll be taking it anywhere besides around the home and office. (www.dell.com)