Acer TravelMate 6463WLMi

Along with the Sony VAIO, Acer's TravelMate 6463WLMi is up there with the most bulky laptops in this month's Labs. With a travelling weight of 3.8kg, it's the heaviest on test, and the chassis, although slim, is both deep and wide. Fortunately, there's a whole lot more to this notebook than its sheer size.

If security is important, the TravelMate has to be on your shortlist. It features a TPM chip that's combined with a fingerprint reader and a smart card reader to help you keep your data secure. Acer's own Empowering Technology software takes full advantage of the extra security. Hit the E key above the keyboard for access to system-recovery tools, security apps, plus password-management tools.

Physical protection is well covered. The screen is a touch more flexible than the Lenovo's, but should provide ample defence in the event of light knocks. The plastic bodywork, meanwhile, is rigid and has a stylish matte finish. And the hard disk incorporates motion-sensor technology that parks the heads when it senses excess movement, protecting your data should you drop it.

Surprisingly for a business laptop, the TravelMate is well endowed on the display front. Not content with a beautiful, evenly lit and high-resolution 15.4in 1,680 x 1,050 screen - the best here - it also boasts S-Video and DVI-D outputs, plus a PCI Express graphics card.

Alas, this doesn't help when it comes to performance. With only a 1.66GHz Core 2 Duo T5500 onboard and 1GB of 533MHz RAM, the TravelMate proved the second slowest laptop here. But it's quick enough for business use. The 80GB hard disk is acceptable and battery life is average; the good news is the battery charges in under 90 minutes.

The only major disappointment is the keyboard, which isn't fantastic. Typing is easy enough, but the Enter key is unnecessarily narrow and the navigation keys are in non-standard positions.

The keyboard and performance aren't enough to make a massive dent on the TravelMate's overall score, however. Thanks to its screen and good security, the Acer claims the respectable runner-up spot this month.

Author: Jon Bray