As a pure laptop with such a professional finish, the D7000SRL does not disappoint in term of screen dynamics, with the display being resolute, sharp and with superb vibrancy, contrast and brightness. To simply look at, the Hi-Grade D7000SRL really does bounce with life, whether the on-screen projection of images or the slender design structure.
One major flaw that we must mention straight away is that the D7000SRL doesn’t come with an integrated latch to lock down the screen. This is an obsession of mine, and is such a disappointment for a device that offers so much in every other aspect of its design. What is more, this really would be easy to fix, but until then, for today’s portable laptop user, it is essential you have complete security and lockdown of parts, certainly for a laptop of such a size and build quality.
That aside, the only other relative weakness of the D7000SRL (compared directly with the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Pi 2540) is that it comes with only an integrated Intel X3100 graphics card. Compared to any other in this range, such a card specification would be fine, and it does work perfectly well for an educational laptop platform. However, being in direct competition with the Amilo Pi 2540, the D7000SRL will not impress the die hard PC gamer or media playback enthusiast. Which is kind of a shame when you consider that the device comes with the ability to hook up (via HDMI) to a High-Def TV or DVI monitor.
But this laptop gets 4 stars for good reason. And that is because it comes packed with a Core 2 Duo T5750 Processor which packs plenty of punch and delivers a best in class performance rating. Couple this chipset with 2GB Ram and it performs wonderfully in any number of ways, from word processing to media editing to multiple online session manipulation. With a 4,400mAh battery the D7000SRL offers an excellent combination of quality playback and extended power, with minimal drain during ‘downtime’. As we have previously touched on, the Hi-Grade D7000SRL also comes with a vibrant TFT screen that displays vivid imagery, but the 120GB HDD fitted as standard is only going to be marginally adequate for anyone who enjoys their multimedia. This hard drive storage capacity is a lot less than others in the under $1000 price bracket.
The D7000SRL does have Bluetooth built-in as standard and is the only laptop in this range to offer such connectivity with mobile devices and peripherals. There are also an abundance of ports and communications features which you would expect from a mid range laptop device - including HDMI for high definition TV connectivity, fingerprint reader, multiple format card readers and a 1.3 megapixel web camera built in. It weighs in at 2.8kg.
