Getting the job done in a timely and professional manner is a combination of both knowing how to do the job, and having the right tools with which to get the job done. If you are carrying around a battered old consumer notebook and struggling with a shortage of processing power or connectivity, then it may be time to consider upgrading.A few years later, Fujitsu began its joint venture with Siemens, and a family of excellent value notebooks was released. I have used some of their previous notebooks throughout the years, and have been very impressed by them every time. One of my close friends uses one as his main computer for 3D architectural work and gaming, and has no complaints. Overall, they have proven themselves to be reliable, well made and powerful machines, and I was more than pleased to be trying out this, their latest compact business machine, for you fine people. So, with no further delay, let’s take a look at the S6420.
Although equipped with a compact 13.3″ screen no cuts have been made to processing power as this particular model sports an Intel Core 2 Duo running at 2.8Ghz. For those of you to whom that makes little or no sense, simply put; it’s fast. Core 2 Duos are some of the best processors on the market today, and to have one under the hood of such a small, lightweight laptop is a dream. You can choose a less swift processor to save a few pound if you so wish, but I cannot recommend paying as much as you can really justify on making sure that you have the power you need. With this, their fastest model, I would be absolutely confident taking on almost any general IT contract, stopping short at high-level 3D design or a large video or motion-graphics edit; the kind of tasks which will always require a high-power desktop system.
Overall, build quality is very solid, the design is very sleek, and it has the power to get the job done. To give you an idea, the model I am testing achieved pretty solid scores across the board on Vista’s WEI rating’s system, falling short solely on 3D graphics capabilities and the ability to power Vista’s ridiculously resource-hungry Aero interface. I found a significant performance boost could be obtained by simply dispensing with the transparency and other special effects, and choosing the classic Windows theme. The most basic model in the S6420 range is around £970, but for the size of the package and the power it holds, this is a pretty good deal. I have done some heavy tasks on far inferior laptops and struggled to get the job done. The power of this tiny machine would make most digital workspace tasks a walk in the park, whilst not occupying much in the way of space. This is ideal for the freelancer who likes or needs to pack light.
I spent many hours setting this machine up and using it as my main computer, and had no problems whatsoever – it kept an excellent pace, no matter what I threw at it, and passed the Adobe test with flying colours; image and video editing, as well as motion graphics were handled with an ease that’s not commonly found in a laptop. The built-in speakers do a passable job of reproducing spoken vocals, but as with any compact laptop you can’t expect them to do a brilliant job of bringing to life a piece by Mozart.
Essentially, this is a business laptop, so it is geared more towards a professional look and plenty of power, both of which it does with bells on. Just for kicks, I thought I’d give it a try on some 3D gaming, just to see whether that low WEI score was justified. 2K’s excellent, beautiful and frighteningly dark BioShock was my best candidate for a graphics-intensive game, and I was surprised to find that it did a more than reasonable job of playing it. I’m not saying that this is a crucial element of this laptop’s strengths but it’s nice to know that, if needs be, you could make some use of it outside of the office.
Overall, I am very happy with this machine – it runs swiftly, even performing well while running Vista, and I’d have every confidence to take this with me to a job. Remember that as well as having the right tools for the job you need to know how to use them, so if you do choose to invest in such a device then make sure that you spend the time getting to know it and what it’s capable of. As with any new computer, I am going to recommend that you take the time to set up the hard drive partitions and re-install Windows on either laptop, but then I am something of a power user. For those of you who aren’t so confident, the basic, out-of-the-box setup should work fine for most needs. Don’t be scared to customise the system, make changes to the way it works. Just make sure that you keep regular backups, and that you check out my guide to setting up Norton Ghost to ensure that your system is well guarded.
A check on Google shopping revealed a price as low as around £1200 for their mid-range 2.53 Mhz model, but expect to pay a couple of hundred less or more depending on whether you want less or more power. This may seem like a lot, and it’s certainly more than anyone would like to spend on maintaining their job, but considering that recent events have forced an increase in competition for work within the freelance world, can you afford to be underequipped? And remember – £1500 may seem like a lot, but compared to getting equipped for many other jobs out there, it’s really not a bad price for a comprehensive digital toolkit.
More on the S6420 at Fujitsu-Siemens.com
By Jim Hatley, Freelance Advisor’s gadget guru
