PORTABILITY | Laptop lightweights

What's a good laptop for on-the-go use? To find out, we requested the lightest possible consumer-use laptop available for $1,500 or so from Apple, Gateway, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Sony and Toshiba. IBM and Sony declined, saying they wouldn't have products available meeting those criteria; Toshiba was able to supply only the A75, which we evaluated to see how a desktop-replacement laptop might compare to lighter models.
Fine-print details: Processor speeds may be slower in power-conservation modes; hard-drive capacities are as reported by the installed operating system; CD and DVD speeds appear in the following order: write/rewrite/read. Warranty and tech-support policies are each vendor's standard offerings, but longer-term coverage can usually be purchased.
APPLE IBOOK G4
Price: $1,178.
Weight and screen: 4.9 pounds (5.4 pounds with power adapter), 12.1-inch LCD (1,024 by 768 pixels).
Processor and memory: 1 GHz G4 processor, 256 MB memory, 32 MB ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 graphics.
Storage: 27.9 GB hard drive, 24x/16x/24x CD-RW/8x DVD-ROM combo drive.
Communications: 100-Mbps Ethernet, 802.11g WiFi, v.92 modem.
Expansion: One six-pin FireWire port, two USB 2.0 ports, one VGA monitor/composite video/S-video port.
Support: One-year warranty. 90 days of 9 a.m.-9 p.m., toll-free phone support; $49 per issue afterward.
What to say about the Apple iBook G4? It's an Apple -- well put together, good fit and finish, with better software integration than you're likely to see on a Windows machine and great battery life. It also features Apple's characteristic little design refinements, such as a subtle, barely visible apple logo on the lid that glows when the laptop is in sleep mode and a charging light around the power connector plug.
DELL INSPIRON 600M
Price: $1,569 ($150 mail-in rebate available).
Weight and screen: 5.5 pounds (6.5 pounds with power adapter), 14.1-inch LCD (1,024 by 768 pixels).
Processor and memory: 1.5 GHz Intel Pentium M processor, 384 MB memory, 32 MB ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 graphics.
Storage: 37.2 GB hard drive, 24x/10x/24x CD-RW/8x DVD-ROM combo drive.
Communications: 1-Gbps Ethernet, 802.11b WiFi, v.92 modem.
Expansion: One PC Card slot, one smart-card reader, two USB 2.0 ports, one parallel port, one serial port, one infrared port, one VGA monitor port, one S-Video port.
Support: One-year warranty. 24-hour, toll-free phone support.
At 51/2 pounds, plus a pound for a power adapter, the Inspiron 600m isn't a miniature laptop, but it is a comfortable carry, with its compact frame and rounded corners. This seemingly small machine, like a fun house, offers more than you'd expect on the inside, in the form of a roomy 14.1-inch screen and large keys. (Their pale lettering was hard to read; Dell should use higher-contrast paint or add a keyboard light, as IBM does.)
GATEWAY 200X
Price: $1,400.
Weight and screen: 4.3 pounds (5.1 pounds with power adapter), 14.1-inch LCD (1,024 by 768 pixels).
Processor and memory: 1.5 GHz Intel Pentium M processor, 512 MB memory, Intel Extreme Graphics 2 (8 MB shared).
Storage: 37.2 GB hard drive, 24x/24x/24x CD-RW/8x DVD-ROM combo drive.
Communications: 100-Mbps Ethernet, 802.11g WiFi, v.92 modem.
Expansion: One PC Card slot, one four-pin FireWire port, two USB 2.0 ports, one VGA monitor port, one S-Video port.
Support: One-year warranty. One year of 24-hour, toll-free phone support; $2.95 per minute afterward.
Losing 3 pounds may not matter much to the average person, but on a laptop it makes a huge difference. If you've ever lugged an 8-pound laptop, this light, slim machine -- 4 pounds 5 ounces without the power adapter -- will feel like some kind of low-carb treat. But a more realistic weight for the Gateway 200X factors in that accessory -- its poor battery life means you'll usually need to tote the power brick, which adds most of a pound by itself.
HEWLETT-PACKARD PAVILION ZT3000
Price: $1,623 ($50 mail-in rebate available).
Weight and screen: 6.8 pounds (7.6 pounds with power adapter), 15.4-inch widescreen LCD (1,280 by 800 pixels).
Processor and memory: 1.6 GHz Intel Pentium M processor, 512 MB memory, 32 MB ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 graphics.
Storage: 55.8 GB hard drive, 16x/8x/24x CD-RW/2x/2x/8x DVD+RW combo drive, one SD Card slot.
Communications: 100-Mbps Ethernet, 802.11g WiFi, v.90 modem.
Expansion: One PC Card slot, one four-pin FireWire port, three USB 2.0 ports, one parallel port, one infrared port, one VGA monitor port, one S-Video port.
Support: One-year warranty. One year of 24-hour, toll-free phone support; $40 per issue afterward.
The zt3000's wide, 15.4-inch screen is its most appealing feature -- and perhaps its greatest liability. This display is great for watching movies, but its width makes the laptop a bit bulky to carry around. And at 7.6 pounds, counting the power brick, the zt3000 isn't exactly a featherweight either.
Washington Post