Fujitsu M2010 Netbook

This model that we have today for review,  by the slightly premium brand Fujitsu, comes with a heavy price tag but some promising looking aesthetics and feel. Also it has garnered some interesting reviews and reports globally, so let’s check for ourselves whether this classic oriental product will fit into to our bustling market of netbooks.

Design
The aesthetic scheme has got subtle class written all over it, and it’s one of those things that get better on closer inspection. The finish is a glossy black, so fingerprint wise we have an issue, but the logo design etched on the lid is quite spectacular. The slight pixie dust in the paint job is another nice additive.

The internals are matte finished, in contrast, and look in fact considerably better. The edges are smooth and overall the shape is sleek. It weighs 1.13 Kgs, which is lighter than the average.

The keyboard is not edge to edge like the HP's, but the keys offer virtually no flex, thus making the tactile feel really nice. There are also no cramped buttons; all extra keys like Pg Up, Pg Dn etc. are relegated to the function key.

The touchpad is also well made, but not keyboard centric. It’s got a dotted texture printed on the pad, but it's flat to touch and the buttons are silver and firm.

Overall I like the build and look of this netbook. Connectors wise we have the regular 3 USBs, one VGA, one Ethernet port, stereo audio in, and memory card reader. The battery provided is a 6 cell Li ion strip.

System specs                                                         

Operating System	Win XP SP3
CPU & Chipset	Intel Atom N280 1.66 GHZ, 512 cache, Intel 945GSE
Display	10.1" LED Backlight WSVGA Screen (1024x575)
Graphics:	Integrated GMA 950
Memory	DDR2 1GB
Storage	160 GB 2.5” SATA2 HDD 5400rpm
Camera	1.3M Pixels
Battery	6 cell Li-polymer battery
Dimensions	10.2” x 7.4” x 1.3”
Weight	1.13 kg

Benchmarks

Analysis and Verdict
At Rs. 28,000, the product is just too expensive. Of course the main thing it has going for it is the classy mature look and feel, and also the well built and well finished surface and hinges. But that’s not the be all and end all. Its screen is very bright thanks to the LED backlight, but viewing angles suffer a bit. Concession for viewing angles can be given, as generally the user will be looking at the screen straight on, and this one has a bright enough one for offices and traveling.

The battery is a 6 cell one, so thank god for that; as the lower model sporting the N270 chip comes with a 3 cell battery, and that would suck here at this price. The current one lasts about 7 hours 33 min, which is respectable, but not the max out there. Also, the CPU performance is in no way bad, it’s just around average. So then why should we pay almost Rs. 10,000 more for looks. The brand does have premium, but still the price here is a deterrent. Check it out if value for money is not an issue at all.