With stories abounding of identity theft aided by information lifted from discarded storage devices, you want devices you no longer plan to use to have no usable information when they head out the door. Here’s how to wipe them clean. More

18 hours. EIGHTEEN HOURS. Imagine what sort of fun you could get up to, being on your laptop for that long. Those of us clever enough to stay plugged in each day know what I’m talking about. More

If you’re in the market for a netbook—the gimpy kittens of the laptop jungle—know this first: on the inside, they’re all basically the same. Making the little differences all the more important! And yes, they do add up. More

With stories abounding of identity theft aided by information lifted from discarded storage devices, you want devices you no longer plan to use to have no usable information when they head out the door. Here’s how to wipe them clean. More

If Dell’s Vostro V13 was Batman’s laptop , it looks like the new Vostro 3000 series might just be Bruce Wayne’s. They’re portable, powerful, and sleek rigs for professionals. But are they a value play, or a luxury item? That’s the big unanswered question right now, though we’ll know soon enough; they go on sale today in the US. If the pricing is in line with the V13, though, these could be worth a closer look. The Vostro 3300 , 3400, 3500, and 3700 range from 13-inches to 17-inches, and all offer Core i3 and Core i5 processor options

MSI has updated their netbook line once again. While the U130 and U135 already packed Intel’s latest Pine Trail processor, the U160 is throwing down the battery gauntlet. Fifteen hours on one charge? That’s nuts. Of course, it’s not really fifteen hours, since actual battery life is never anywhere close to listed. And the claim only applies to when the netbook is in “Eco” mode, which undoubtedly requires a significant performance trade-off.

If Matt had to change his pants over the Valve Apple teasers the other day, what will today’s wardrobe malfunction be? I only ask because the latest GameInformer confirms Portal 2 is coming to Mac. Scheduled for a fall release, Portal 2 will be a full-fledged Portal experience distributed to the Mac, presumably, by an all-but-confirmed Steam service for that platform. [ MacRumors ]

HP’s ProBook s-series wants to be your everything: punchy enough for work, stylish enough for home. And with a new brushed aluminum industrial design and Core i3/i5/i7 processing power, they may just bridge that gap. HP’s rolling out four new ProBook models, ranging from the 13.3-inch 4320s to the heavy-duty 17.3-inch 4720s. In addition to those speedy Arrandale processors and “caviar” and “bordeaux” aluminum finishes, the new line-up also features optional ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4350 discrete graphics (compared with the previous generation’s Radeon 4330 , HD LED-backlit displays, and an optional 2MP camera. The ProBooks also feature DayStarter, a feature that lets you view your calendar to distract you while your computer loads, and ArcSoft TotalMedia Suite audio and video editing software. WIth an optional 9-cell battery, the battery life is listed at an impressive 10 hours.

The HP EliteBook 2730p was a tough little convertible tablet, and its successor— HP’s EliteBook 2740p —is no exception. The 2740p meets the same rugged MIL-STD 810G military standards, and adds a capacitive touch screen and Core i5/i7 goodness. The 12.1-inch WXGA (1280 x 800) LED display includes anti-glare and optional outdoor view, and can be operated with a pen, your finger, the keyboard, or some combination thereof. Under the hood, you’ve got your choice of Core i7 or Core i5 processors, but there’s sadly no discrete graphics option. You’ll get up to five hours out of the standard six-cell battery, but can add on an HP 2700 ultra-slim battery for an additional six hours (listed).

So, the Sony Vaio P has a clone. Congrats, Sony! Too bad the mimicry ends with the aesthetics: The appearance is spot on, but the insides are decidedly sub-par. The Atom processor is a less powerful than the processor offered in the Vaio P, and the memory maxes out at 1GB. If you’re comparing, that’s a full GB short of the original. Since this is a clone however, the price is really the only area where one could say it “competes” with Sony’s premium-priced Vaio P. The clone offers a 160GB for about $300, as well as a $380 model with 350GB storage, 2Gb ram and 3G