Laptop computers

Bigger, crisper displays and more usable key layouts have replaced small screens and cramped keyboards on laptop computers. Processors have caught up in speed with desktop models, and innovative dual-core processors are also available. Fast CD- and DVD-recording drives are common, as are ample hard drives.

As computers become a repository for digital photos, music, and video, manufacturers are making laptops and their peripherals increasingly competitive with home-entertainment systems.

And a growing interest in wireless computing plays to the laptop's main strength: its portability.

A laptop is the most convenient way to take full advantage of the growing availability of high-speed, wireless Internet access at airports, schools, hotels, restaurants, and coffee shops.

Most laptops now have wireless networking capability built in and deliver commendably long battery life. The thinnest laptops on the market are less than an inch thick and weigh just 3 to 5 pounds. But to get these light, sleek models, you'll have to pay a premium and make some sacrifices in performance, screen size, and features.

A desktop computer typically costs less for equivalent performance and is easier to upgrade, expand, and repair. It usually offers better ergonomics, such as a more comfortable keyboard, bigger eye-level display, and enhanced audio. But as costs plummet, a laptop computer is your best choice if portability and compactness are priorities.

Printers

More and more households are buying printers that do more than print. All-in-ones, as they are known, let you print, scan, copy, and, often, fax. And many cost no more and take up little more space than a regular printer.

What's more, all-in-ones are actually getting cheaper and more versatile. As a group, the inkjet all-in-ones we tested for our printers review cost less than those we evaluated two years ago. Some of the models in our Ratings of all-in-one printers (available to subscribers) cost $100 or less. And a $140 model that ranked among the best performers (available to subscribers) is a CR Best Buy.

Manufacturers have been giving all-in-ones more features. Examples include networking, which lets you use the unit from any computer in either a wired or wireless home network; an LCD photo viewer; and a memory-card reader.

We also tested and Rated regular inkjet printers, laser all-in-ones (both available to subscribers), and regular laser printers. Most of the regular inkjets lacked LCD viewers and card readers. That suggests a downward trend in such printers' features because most of the ones we tested last year offered both.

While budget inkjet printers have become Spartan, inkjets that prints on sheets as large as 13x19 inches have become less expensive. Canon offers the Pixma Pro9000, $500, Epson the Stylus Photo R1900, $550, and HP the Photosmart Pro B8850, $550. (We haven't evaluated those models.)

In our tests, inkjet all-in-ones and regular inkjets performed similarly, cost about the same to use, and printed at similar speeds. A few inkjet all-in-ones and regular inkjets printed a color 4x6 in less than 2 minutes, and a few relatively frugal ones printed one for less than 40 cents. Among the laser printers we tested in the printers review, there was only one clear-cut performance difference: The regular lasers were noticeably faster at printing text than the all-in-one lasers.

Is an all-in-one printer right for you? See our free Buying Advice on printers to help you decide which type of printer is best suited for your needs.