X-bit labs

Fujitsu Siemens LIFEBOOK P7010 Notebook Review (page 2)

Category: Mobile

by Alexander Britvin

[ 01/16/2006 | 01:44 PM ]

Closer Look

The box with a LIFEBOOK P7010 is surprisingly large. One might think there is a normal-size notebook inside.

But this LIFEBOOK is really so small as to fit into a lady’s handbag even. The tiny light-gray case (261 x 199 x 35mm) is made of a magnesium alloy coated with a layer of plastic which may give a deceptive air of fragility. The manufacturer’s brand is in the center of the lid.

The bottom part stands out on top of the notebook near the screen hinges. In the center of this protrusion the first group of system indicators and the Power On button are located. They are made of chromium-plated plastic and are visible irrespective of the position of the sub-notebook’s lid; the Power On button is highlighted in blue. There is no lock on the lid, so you just apply some force and open the lid up at any desired angle, which can be even more than 180 degrees. I hope this fastening of the lid is not going to wear off too soon. The same color scheme is continued inside the sub-notebook, save for the screen bezel, which is gray, and the touchpad, which is silvery. The colors are all rather too light, so washing your hands is recommended before taking this computer in them or else it will soon lose its tidy appearance.

The first group of indicators includes:

• Battery charge indicators (they are alight when the battery is being recharged)
• Hard drive & optical drive activity indicator
• Power On button

Running a little ahead I want to say that the Fujitsu Siemens LIFEBOOK P7010 uses an AC’97 Intel 82801DB(M) ICH4(-M) audio controller which is nothing special as such, but the two rather powerful stereo speakers on either side of the first group of status indicators are worth mentioning. These are not the traditional tweeters you usually have in a sub-notebook, but normal stereo speakers that make themselves heard distinctly even from a distance of several meters.