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August 17, 2011
PC

PCs to help you stay connected while getting away from it all



It’s summer! Well maybe not so much up here in Seattle, where we’re still dealing with 60-degree temps and cloudy skies, but definitely in other parts of the country. That means it’s time to get out of the house and enjoy the sunshine with a few days away from the office.

If you’re like me, your PC comes with you everywhere, even when you head out on vacation. I bring mine along not to stay connected to work (although, it’s handy to have in case of an emergency), but to use as a tool for finding places to eat and things to do using Bing, organizing the day’s photos in Windows Live Photo Gallery, and pulling up a movie for the kids in Zune.

Below you’ll find a few recommendations for great travel PCs – they’re all light, fast, and look great, so you’re bound to find one that matches your summer travel style!

HP dm1z: I covered this PC last week in my “PCs for Bloggers” post, but it’s worth re-surfacing here. The dm1z is a lot of PC for under $500; 11.6” HD display, AMD E-series processor, and over 10 hours of battery life. It’s a great companion for a long road trip.

Sony VAIO Z: I just got my hands on a brand-new Sony VAIO Z and I can honestly say that it’s one of the finest PCs I’ve ever used. Under 3lbs. Made from carbon fiber and aluminum. A dazzling 13” 1080p display. Up to 512GB of solid-state storage. It’s impressive stuff that redefines portability, but it’ll cost you – the Z starts at $1969.

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Samsung 9 Series: I feel like I talk about this PC all the time, but that’s a testament to how impressive it is. The 9 Series – both the 11” and 13” verisons – are some of the thinnest, lightest PCs ever built. They’re packed with super-fast second-generation Intel Core Processors, solid-state drives, and a matte display that’s 2x brighter than a normal laptop display.

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Acer TravelMate 8172: Acer’s TravelMate series is designed to pack max power into minimum space. In the 8172 you definitely get both – 4GB of RAM, great battery life and a Core i5 processor, all in a body that’s the size of a netbook.

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Dell Vostro v131: A few months ago I wrote about the Dell Vostro V130, Dell’s ultraportable addition to its affordable Vostro lineup. Today you can get the updated version, the v131. You’ll still get a thin, light, beautiful package, and you can still get a nice config for under $600.