We have deliberately not included the MacBook Pro, because it is clearly to be updated, imminently.<p /><p />Apple&#039;s plastic laptops have always felt more durable and are the only ones to sport the bevel-less keyboard that will surely become standard throughout the Mac range. The black version looks terrible and shows dirt and smudges, and the shiny screen is to be avoided like the plague, being a concession to people who like gloss rather than ergonomics.<p /><p /> Are Apple losing their touch? While the iPhone is excellent, the latest iMacs and MacBooks are moving away from sleek minimalist white and clear acrylic, to brushed metal, and a gloss and matt black combo, giving an early 80’s, smoked glass coffee table, feel. The previous generation iMac was a much nicer product, looking like it was trying less hard. We’ll have to wait for the new MacBook Pro’s to be sure.

The Eee is expected to start at under $200. Looks like it will be a remarkable piece of kit for the price.

The TZ series is the nicest Vaio in a while. Of all the portables, sub 12 inch, this is the one to beat.

The X series is another sensible machine. Small, but not too small to be merely a fashion accessory. Its one blemish is the WAN antenna. antennae disappeared from laptops when Ricochet vaporized and from mobile phones at the end of the last century. They should be embedded within a laptop.

Its pretty amazing that the attempt to build the world&#039;s cheapest laptop has produced on of the most innovative designs. Puts everyone else to shame.

Its not really that great to look at, but its thin and well spec&#039;ed

This a boring laptop,but it does the job and doesn&#039;t try and add horrid styling that Toshiba and HP are adding to their current machines.<p /><p />Its very boringness is what saves it. Utilitarian.

The NR is pretty much the best designed laptop on the market from a pure product design standpoint. Our recommendation if you want a small but full featured machine.<p /><p />Some aspects such as the keyboard seem newer in the CR range, but the CR seems too much like a toy.

The Sahara&#039;s screen can switch between pressure sensitive stylus mode and touch screen input, something that is a must for using a tablet.

Sony&#039;s high end multimedia laptop with 17 inch screen. Pretty much the only thing to compete with a MacBook Pro 17 inch.

Samsung, Sony and Fujitsu may have decent enough alternatives, but the OQO beats them in terms of design polish.<p /><p />We do however like the feature set and split keyboard, on the Samsung Q1, which allows typing while holding a device this size with two hands.

In terms of pure ergonomics, Lenovo beats both Sony and Apple. There is nothing flash about a Thinkpad, its a workhorse, but a solid dependable one.<p /><p />The difference between design and designer.

The forthcoming Aura is better than almost every laptop currently available. But it still looks second rate compared to a mediocre hifi design.

The definitive rugged mini-laptop. Many gaming machines try and look like ruggedized machines but the look is pure styling.

The MR 1, is the real thing, and has that kind of unintentional aesthetic beauty of a well made tool rather than a pro wrestler in a spandex leotard. It is the difference between the genuinely utilitarian Hummer and the, made for hairdressers, Hummer II.