It's a rare pleasure to come across an affordable Sony Vaio, but the NW series is just that.

It features the same X-black LCD screen tech used on the top-of-the-range Z Series and it still looks decidedly fetching.

There's a Web button for getting you online in seconds from standstill, and a Screen Off button that, turns the display off, saving battery when you're just playing music. You also get a Blu-ray player and HDMI output for your money.

Here's 10 more reasons why you are going to want one...

1. Instant internet
The Web button boots up the laptop in seconds, letting you browse the web without needing to fully open Windows.

2. Blu movies
A Blu-ray drive comes built in. You can hook it to your TV via an HDMI output.

3. Video link
The built-in Motion Eye webcam is perfect for making video calls.

4. Designer graphics
The ATI Mobility Radeon HD4570 graphics card copes with hi-def video and moderately detailed 3D gaming.

5. Energy saver
The Display Off button saves energy and extends battery life.

6. Media worker
Bundled software includes Picture Motion Browser, for organising photos, Vaio Movie Story, for editing video, and Vaio Music Box, which creates playlists.

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You don't get much more grunt for your buck than with MSI's GX723.

A meaty graphics card and processor help immeasurably in online confrontations, giving you extra milliseconds to type witty retorts to your foes.

Hit the turbo button for an instant boost to your processor speed, like using a nitro in a racing game. Speed? Gaming? Scalextric? You get it. £999, out now...

1. Power up
A brisk, 2.4GHz intel core 2 Duo processor, intel Pm45 Express chipset and 512mB nvidia GeForce Gt 130m graphics card power the msi along apace.

2. Turbo boost
Hit the button above the keyboard to increase the speed of the CPU by 16 per cent, effectively wringing 2.7GHz from the default 2.4GHz processor. You'll need to be plugged into the mains, though.

3. À la mode
The Eco quick launch sensor switches between five modes. the gaming one ramps up screen brightness to the max and cranks up the processor.

4. Portable Odeon
Movie mode maxes the processor, puts screen brightness at 75 per cent and disables the screensaver.

5. Max PowerPoint
So as not to distract presentees, Presentation mode dims the screen.

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Along with the opportunity to dribble over cars costing more than our houses, this morning's Asus Lamborghini launch also gave us the chance to play with the Taiwanese company's latest Eee PC netbook – the Eee PC Seashell 1101HA.

This 11.6-inch machine features copycat styling that mimics the ultra-suave and skinny Eee PC Seashell 1008HA, but offering a slightly larger screen, keyboard and user interface. The bigger screen also offers a higher resolution, at 1366 x 768 pixels, promising to make this an ideal tool for browsing the web.

Unlike the Eee PC Seashell 1008HA, the battery on the 1101HA is removable, making it easy to upgrade in future or swap should you need longer battery life. The downside of this is a slightly chunkier chassis – although it's still thinner than many of its rivals.

The components within the Seashell 1101HA are standard netbook fare – with an Intel Atom processor (albeit one running at 1.33GHz, rather than the more regular 1.6GHz), 1024MB of memory and a 160GB hard drive.

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Until Intel and Nokia re-invent the mobile computer, we're stuck with the humble netbook for browsing and working on the go. Saying that, if they come with as much style as the newly-launched HP Mini 5101 netbook, we're not complaining.

It's the netbook for a grown-up audience, referred to by HP as 'mobile professionals' and occupying the middle ground between the typical Atom-powered netbook and the designer end of the notebook market. Whether that's a space that actually needs filling will become clear when the Mini 5101 hits the shelves in July.

For your money, you still get an Atom-powered machine, but one that comes in a rather stylish aluminium and magnesium case plus a very touchy set of raised keys and a clutch of features and options that you would ordinarily expect on a standard notebook.

That includes a 7200 RPM hard drive, Bluetooth 2.0, a 2-megapixel webcam, the option of WSVGA or HD for your 10.1-inch LED screen and a battery that offers up to eight hours of life per charge. There's also the option of 80GB or 128GB SSD drives if you want something a little nippier.

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The Aspire 3810T is the second laptop we've seen from Acer's Timeline series. As with the Aspire 4810T, this machine features a compact and slim design, and aims to offer all day battery life.

The Aspire 3810T is smaller than it's sibling, featuring a 13.3-inch screen, and is a good compromise between size and usability. It offers sharp image quality, and is one of the brighter screens we've seen. It uses LED backlighting to good effect, with good colours and contrast, while also conserving power.

Power efficiency is a theme that runs throughout the 3810T. It uses an integrated Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics card, helping with battery life, although compromising on 3D capabilities. That said, it'll still run office applications without trouble, and play back movies or browse the internet smoothly. Just don't plan on gaming in your spare time.

It's the 1.4GHz ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) Intel Core 2 Duo processor that really makes a difference to power consumption, however. We managed to run office applications for a staggering 682 minutes when out and about. It comes at a cost, however, as office performance suffers, and there's noticeable lag when running a few applications at the same time.

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