MSI Mega Book S260 review

The MSI Mega Book S260 isn't the most aesthetically pleasing laptop we've ever clapped eyes on.

The case is sturdy, but a little retro, thanks to the bland styling and black finish. Sadly, the Mega Book's specification is just as dull - the Pentium-M 730 processor is the slowest of the new Dothans, and 256MB of memory is meagre for the money. The 40GB hard disk is a bit stingy too, and while the DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive is useful, a DVD writer wouldn't have broken the bank.

Keeping cables out of the way, even on a laptop, can only be a good thing. Sadly, all the Mega Book's ports are on the sides of its case, where they get in the way. The three USB 2 ports proved temperamental, the result being a USB thumb drive that, when plugged in, was all too easily tapped and disconnected.

Alas, even more annoying was the ultra-sensitive trackpad that picked up even the lightest inadvertent touch of the hand while typing. The cramped keyboard exacerbates this problem. Worse still, there's no option to disable its tap-to-click function.

On the upside, the Mega Book's 12in widescreen screen is clear, with crisp contrast. The 1280x800 resolution looks good despite the relatively small display area, but the screen's high gloss finish is marred by reflections under bright lighting.

We've done nothing but moan about the Mega Book so far and unfortunately, when it comes to performance, things don't get any better. The 2D score of 56.99 is below what you'd expect for a 1.6GHz Pentium M processor, and more memory would certainly help here. The Doom 3 test result is better, but this isn't a gaming laptop by a long chalk. And to cap it all, a battery test result of an hour and four minutes is lamentable.

Author: IAN BETTERIDGE and JULIAN PROKAZA