Fujitsu Lifebook C325 review

Budget notebooks have come a long way.

A couple of years ago low cost portables were riddled with compromises. They were low on power. They were awkward to use. And they often omitted crucial items such as a CD-ROM drive. It's not surprising that almost every budget notebook owner also kept a desktop PC back at base for everyday use.

Nowadays, though, even bottom-of-the-range notebooks can make a desktop PC redundant. Even if you're no road warrior, a notebook gives you the option to write that letter from the comfort of your sofa, or take a good reference CD-ROM to bed. Try doing that with a desktop!

It's true that notebooks still don't offer the peak performance of a desktop PC, but they're more than adequate for running everyday applications and less demanding games. Unless you have high-end graphics or cutting-edge 3D games in mind, you'll find an entry-level notebook a very attractive proposition.

The Fujitsu Lifebook C325 at £849 (£999), has the two big features previously associated only with plush portables: a TFT screen and fast built-in CD-ROM drive. When you consider that TFT screens cannot be bought for less than £500, this is quite an achievement in itself.

The C325 is fitted with a Pentium 233MMX, along with 32Mb of RAM and a 3.2Gb disk. All these components are sensibly specified for a machine at this price - not cutting edge, but enough to get the job done without any fuss.

All notebooks now come with a USB port which enables you to plug in external peripherals without hassle. The Fujitsu also comes with an infra-red port too. This handy device enables you to connect up to a printer without the bothering of lugging cables around, or transfer files to other notebooks or suitably equipped desktop machines. You also get two Type II (or one Type III) PC Card slots, into which modem, network or storage cards can be inserted, amongst other things.

Bundled software is often a bit thin on budget PCs and laptops. However, Fujitsu fare surprisingly well, including the sensible and substantial Works 4.5 and Word 97. 'A bit thin' is similarly untrue of the Fujitsu's physical dimensions. At 3.5kg, it's one of the heaviest notebooks on the market, but not atypical for a budget model.

Fujitsu went for a lithium ion (LiION) battery. This is preferable to NiMH units, particularly because it doesn't suffer from the 'memory effect'. This decribes the gradual loss of capacity the batteries suffer if you continually recharge them before they run totally flat. NiMH batteries are prone to this, and given that most people recharge when their battery is almost - but not quite - dead, they find their batteries become less and less efficient. This battery managed to last 115 minutes of intensive use before running out, which is quite acceptable.

Limited space when you're out and about means you can't use a mouse, so manufacturers provide an alternative pointing device with notebooks. Fujitsu opted for a miniature joystick to facilitate mouse movement. The 'ErgoTrack' button is a good finger-sized blob, situated below the spacebar. It's easy to use, and doesn't get in the way when you're using the keyboard.

Screen size was 12.1in and, accordingly, the screen resolution was 800x600. TFT displays are renowned for being bright and pin-sharp. This was certainly the case with the Fujitsu, which offered clear, bright images that easily matched (if not bettered) those of a good desktop monitor.

If a notebook is truly to challenge a desktop PC, it must have decent sound facilities as well as a good display. The Fujitsu came with a Sound Blaster 16-compatible sound chip and stereo speakers. Because of their small dimensions, the speakers didn't offer particularly good sound quality. All notebook speakers tend to sound slightly tinny, but those on the Fujitsu also distorted badly at higher volumes.