With innovative designs from Asus and Lenovo, as well as small machines from Sony and Dell, are the new laptops we saw at CES 2009 worth waiting for?
There were a few interesting and innovative laptop designs at CES 2009, and some definite trends that we spotted. Thin is in, but so is extra-large and super-powerful, as always. Wireless Wide-Area Networking (WWAN) is showing up in the largest and the smallest notebooks, a trend that is sure to cover the entire category before long. Most notable, however, is the way that laptop-makers are trying to integrate new and diverse features into the laptop shell. Beyond advanced multimedia playback controls and instant-on multimedia modes, we're seeing laptops with multiple screens that offer new capabilities to the end user.
Lenovo's slide-out dual-screen machine
 Lenovo's ThinkPads have a history of innovative design ideas since their IBM days. We remember a ThinkPad 755 with a transparent screen that could be used with an overhead projector. So we were enthusiastic when we saw the Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds, which has a smaller, 10.6-inch screen that slides out sideways from the primary 17-inch display. The portrait screen is a bit tall to be a true double, but it would certainly be useful in Photoshop and other applications with lots of toolbars, where screen real estate is a valuable commodity. We're not sure this idea will catch on, but it seems too useful to call a gimmick just yet, and Lenovo is backing this machine up with plenty of horsepower, as well as 3G wireless networking and even WiMAX support, if you happen to live under Sprint's WiMAX umbrella. The best part is that if you really dig the dual-screen design, there's no need to wait, as this laptop is available now with a starting price of just under $3,700.
Asus laptop with an Nvidia MID built-in
Like the Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds, a modded Asus multimedia laptop that was on display in Las Vegas also has a second screen built in, this one just below the keyboard on the palm rest. But this is not an extension to the laptop's Windows desktop. In fact, it's a miniature, 4.3-inch touchscreen computer running within the shell of the laptop. It sucks power from its host's battery, which should give the smaller device up to 12 hours of battery life if you want to use it for watching movies or other functions on the go. Honestly, this was more of a prototype, and we're not sure just how deep the rabbit hole goes with the Nvidia APX 2500-family chipset buried in the smaller unit, but we hope that the device has full access to the laptop's wireless hardware and storage, as well as the keyboard and other inputs. With that in mind, we couldn't recommend waiting for this modded configuration, as there may be nothing to wait for. Best to break out the lathe and do it yourself.
Dell and Sony go tiny, HP stays small, medium and large
 If netbooks aren't powerful enough for you, and you're willing to pay a bit more for a small and light laptop with a respectable feature set, the major laptop manufacturers are all lined up, ready to oblige. The Sony Vaio P is being billed as a pocketable PC, and the super-wide clamshell device could certainly fit in some of our larger slacks. The device won't come cheap, at $900 starting price, and it doesn't come with a trackpad, so navigating the tiny, ultra-wide screen may be a chore. But there's no denying the slick style and impressive pixel density, up to 1600 by 768 for a hi-def experience on such a small display. The Sony Vaio P is respectably spec'ed with GPS, Wi-Fi, 2GB of RAM and, of course, WWAN capabilities for wireless 3G networking.
Behind closed doors, Dell showed off its slim new Adamo concept, and Anandtech was allowed to take some pictures. It looks like a classy, stylish machine, even in the prototype stage, so clearly Dell is trying to play catchup with HP. HP has been offering machines with interesting pattern prints and a slim laptop from the company's recently-acquired VooDoo brand, the HP VooDoo Envy 133. No word yet on pricing or availability, but clearly the intention is there and the design looks near-final.
 Finally, HP beefed up their 12-inch offering with the HP Pavilion dv2, an AMD Athlon Neo-based notebook with an impressive set of notebook features. Our favorite is the WWAN option, Qualcomm's versatile Gobi wireless chipset, which makes this a nice portable option, as most 3G-enabled notebooks are either larger machines or netbooks. HP also allows for a large, 500GB hard disk drive, which is another rarity on laptops this size. There is even an external Blu-ray drive to match the Pavilion dv2, so clearly HP is aiming this machine at serious users looking for a smaller package.
Our verdict: Buy a big laptop now. Wait for a small laptop.
The best large laptops we saw at CES 2009 are either available now, or they're prototypes that may not come to market this year. If you want the best graphics chips, either in Nvidia's Geforce 9800M family or ATI's Radeon 4800 family, these are available now in the top gaming machines, and we don't see any dramatic improvements in these devices in the near term.
For small laptops, there is a different story. Clearly the netbook craze has started to concern the high-end laptop manufacturers, and designs from Sony, Dell and HP show that customers are attracted to the small shell, but looking for more power. Now that wireless 3G networking is becoming the norm for these machines, we think they make a more compelling option, especially with the impressive hardware we've seen crammed into these small packages. If you're in the market for a small laptop, we think the models we saw at CES are worth waiting for.
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