This basic notebook used to be the best you could get around $700, but Sandy Bridge Intel Core i5 basic notebooks that now cost the same completely outclass it. The Compaq Presario CQ42-234TU for $699 competes and loses against similarly priced basic notebooks with Sandy Bridge Intel Core i5s. Its processor simply doesn’t compete with the Intel Core i3s, as they are much faster processors overall. It has an Intel Pentium T4500 (2.3GHz) processor, and while it’s fast enough to run Windows 7 Home Premium it’s soundly beaten by Intel Core i3s seen in similarly priced basic notebooks. Onboard graphics and 4GB of RAM are to be expected at this price, and don’t expect more than casual gaming with that combination. Otherwise word processing, surfing the internet, and managing spreadsheets are all well within reach. A 320GB hard drive is well sized, and should provide plenty of storage for the small file sizes you’ll be mostly dealing with. A 14in (1,366x768 resolution) screen is a bit smaller than average, but with the HD resolution you won’t notice what is at best a minor problem. It weighs a light 2.2kg, and measures 36.5mm thick, 228mm deep, and 342mm wide.