Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX Notebook

The Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX follows the tried-and-true budget laptop formula, supplying an Intel Celeron processor, 2GB of RAM, integrated Intel graphics, a 250GB hard drive, and a 15.6-inch display for a bargain basement price. This Presario is a good value, in large part for its solid construction, comfortable keyboard, and roomy display.

The Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX is powered by single core Intel Celeron 900 processor that runs at 2.2GHz frequency. It also has 1MB of Cache Memory. It provides faster 250GB of hard drive. Windows 7 Home Premium is preinstalled with this laptop; with this system appears pretty responsive and peppy. Overall, the performance is satisfactory. It handles photoshop, iTunes and web browsing with some sluggishness, but it is acceptable.

Gorgeous Look
The Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX doesn't look or feel like a low-end laptop. It has an overall polished look with a glossy lid with a simple Q logo in its middle, a matte black screen bezel, and a silver wrist rest. A long, sturdy hinge runs nearly the width of the laptop to hold the display in place without much wobble. The keyboard feels spacious, even with a dedicated number pad to its right. The keys have a matte finish and have just the right amount of travel.

The recessed touchpad has the same glossy finish as the rest of the wrist rest, but it's not the high-gloss finish common to HP's Pavilion laptops, so your mousing finger doesn't experience the same annoying drag on the glimmering Pavilion models. The Presario's mouse buttons, however, are a tad on the stiff side.

The laptop weighs 6.2 pounds, slightly heavy for a 15.6-inch laptop. Most laptops of this size weigh between 5.5 and 6 pounds. The 15.6-inch display has a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1,366x768-pixel native resolution. The screen is bright and crisp. With its resolution, the screen can display 720p video. Its Intel GMA 4500M graphics were able to deliver a smooth video experience.

Perfection Design
The Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX is based on the single-core Intel Celeron 900 processor clocked at 2.2GHz. That speed helped it outpace the Acer Aspire AS5532-5535, which uses a single-core AMD Athlon 64 QL-62 processor clocked at 1.6GHz. Also in the Celeron's favor is its 1MB of L2 cache; the Athlon 64 QL-62 has only 512KB. The Acer Aspire does feature 3GB of DDR2 memory to the Presario's 2GB, but the extra gigabyte of memory didn't help the Acer's cause in our tests.

The Presario completed CNET Labs' multitasking test in nearly half the time the Acer Aspire took, and it was 32 percent and 47 percent faster than the Acer on our Photoshop and iTunes benchmarks, respectively.

If the cramped keyboards and small screens have kept you from picking up an inexpensive Netbook , then you should give the Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX a look. Like Netbooks, the Presario CQ60-615DX uses a single-core processor, which limits application performance, particularly when multitasking. However, for basic tasks it offers smooth performance.

Complete Equipment
Compaq Presario CQ60-615DX laptop is ideal for general purpose like internet, music, video and MS Office work, and the best thing is the price, It is affordable laptop. CQ60-615DX has 15.6″ HD display with BrightView technology and 1366 x 768 resolution featuring Intel GMA 4500M graphics engine. For performance, this presario laptop loaded with 2.2GHz Intel Celeron processor 900 coupled with 2GB RAM and 250 GB of hard drive. It runs Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition 64-bit operating system. The Presario CQ60-615DX features Altec Lansing stereo speakers, and we were mildly impressed with their output. They are loud and clear enough at max volume to hear movie dialog, but like nearly every laptop speaker set, they lack the depth to deliver satisfying music playback.

Not surprisingly, the Presario CQ60-615DX lacks higher-end--though increasingly common--connections such as HDMI, eSATA ports, and an ExpressCard slot. We were surprised to find a media card reader absent, too. However, neither system have a Webcam. The Presario does supply an always-appreciated Wi-Fi on/off button, along with another that disables the touch pad. Lastly, some entry-level laptops cut a corner by using 802.11g Wi-Fi, but the CQ60-615DX has wireless N support.