Averatec 2100

The Averatec AV2150-EH1 is a 12.1-inch widescreen notebook, it is basically a rebadged MS-1013 from MSI. The thin-and-light AV2150-EH1 is targeted to those who have basic computing needs on the go, although true mobility is limited by the subpar battery life. The AV2150-EH1 is configured as followed,

* AMD Turion 64 MT-28 (1.6 GHz/512 KB L2 cache)
* 512 MB DDR333 (PC2700) system RAM (2 X 256)
* ATI Radeon Xpress 200M graphics: ATI RS482M chipset NorthBridge and ATI SB400 SouthBridge
* 80GB hard drive
* 12.1-inch widescreen WXGA LCD with AveraBrite (1280 X 800)
* Mini MSI wireless LAN (802.11b/g compliant)
* Built-in DVD +/- RW with dual layer capability
* 4 cell, 2200 mAH standard battery
* Windows XP Home Edition with SP2
* Dimensions: 11.9" (W) X 8.86" (D) X 1.2" (H)
* Weight: 4.4 lb with standard battery
* Limited 1-year warranty on parts and labor; limited 6-month warranty on battery
Reasons for Buying

As a college student, I found myself spending increasingly more time in the library. I have a decent desktop which my friend helped me build last year, but I needed a laptop so I could start doing my homework away from my apartment and all the distractions. I wanted a basic, portable notebook with which I could write essays, do spreadsheets, make presentations, check e-mails, and surf the web. My maximum budget was $1000 although I would like one as cheap as possible, considering that I didn't plan to play games or do video editing. Based on size and weight, my original choices were Dell Inspiron 710M, XPS M140, and the Compaq V2000Z series. I had briefly used the Dell 710M from a friend and it was perfect for my needs, but was a bit out of my price range. Between the Dell XPS M140 and the Compaq V2000Z, it was a really close call but I chose Compaq because it was slightly cheaper. I was seconds away from pulling the trigger until I came across the Averatec AV2150-EH1 in my email from buy.com. The Averatec looked like a fusion of the Dell 710M and the Compaq V2000Z series, and was cheaper than my three original choices, so I decided to give it a try.