Systemax Travelbook 3002

A great-value desktop replacement.

Price: £821

Manufacturer: Systemax

Ratings

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Verdict

Pros:

Good performer; good value.

Cons:
Big and bulky; flimsy build.

Verdict:
Despite a slightly flimsy build the Travelbook 3002 is great value and a powerful performer.

Nigel Donnelly, Personal Computer World 06 Apr 2004

The new Systemax Travelbook 3002 is a portable computer in only the loosest sense of the word. It is a notebook PC but it is designed to stay on a desk rather than be carted about. At nearly 4kg and with rather portly dimensions, it is a very chunky piece of kit.

That's a shame really, because your average salesperson would love the Travelbook. Despite the super-budget pricing, it is well specified, powered by an AMD Athlon XP-M 2500+ processor, 256MB of DDR Ram and a 60GB hard disk. While none of this is likely to excite, it is a potent notebook for not much outlay. Perhaps the best feature is the graphics chip based on ATI's Mobility Radeon M9, whose performance is respectable enough to put plenty of popular gaming titles within reach.

Very few notebooks are without DVD-Rom drives these days but we were impressed to see that Systemax had included a DVD-/+RW drive. This isn't really what you'd expect from a budget notebook.

In terms of connections, there is no Wifi adaptor, but pretty much all you'll want is there. Two USB2 ports and one four-pin Firewire socket provide fast connectivity, while the size of the case means there is plenty of room for the modem, network, S-Video and parallel connections.

The Travelbook 3002 is a good-value, budget notebook. It's powerful and has plenty of features but the build feels flimsy. If that isn't an issue, this is good value and worth closer scrutiny.

Contact: Systemax 0870 727 2130
www.systemaxpc.co.uk

Specifications: