LifeBook T4410: Good Touch Features, But A Little Too Heavy

Though Wacom supplies the display, the device lacks the pressure sensitivity of a proper Wacom tablet: Casual photo touch-ups and doodling in GIMP work well, but don't expect to find a full digital canvas. Though the screen is bright and evenly lit, colors appeared muted, with greens and blues losing much of their luster. Screen glare can be a problem if your work take you outdoors, though the visibility is fine in low-light and under standard fluorescent office lighting. The display supports 160-degree vertical and horizontal viewing angles--an important consideration when you fold it down into its tablet mode.

Like the T5010, the T4410 comes tantalizingly close to being an exceptional digital note-taker, but a few concerns remain. The device still gets a little too warm--by no means hot, but potentially uncomfortable if you hold it aloft for extended periods of time--and it's still a bit too heavy. Our test model with the included optical drive weighed 4.6 pounds, which may not sound like a lot, but can become quite burdensome if you hold it in the crook of your arm for very long.

I'd like to see Fujitsu ditch the optical bay altogether. You'd lose some of the machine's functionality, but the concomitant improvements in portability and comfort would outweigh the loss of the DVD burner. Though the Fujitsu LifeBook U820 made a potentially excellent companion, the costs of miniaturization were too high: Windows Vista, an Atom processor, and a tiny 5.6-inch screen made the device at sluggish and difficult to use. Conversely, the T4410 is a bit too large, but delivers performance on a par with standard laptops while offering superior functionality through its stylus-friendly touchscreen. Until Fujitsu (or a competitor) offers a convertible laptop that straddles the line between netbook and all-purpose laptop, fans of touch who insist on having a proper keyboard should add the LifeBook T4410 to their short list of candidates.