Compaq Presario CQ40-536TX

Full Review

It's been close to a year since we last reviewed the Compaq Presario CQ40. But in that time Compaq has quietly bumped up the specs on the Compaq Presario CQ40-536TX which now comes with an Intel Core 2 Duo T6600 2.2-GHz processor, 4GB RAM, and a 320GB hard drive. It also has an Nvidia GeForce G103M graphics card--the only thing missing in Acer Aspire 4736's otherwise impeccable repertoire. So far so good, the CQ40's impression.

The Compaq CQ40-536TX has a glossy 14-inch screen and a two-toned black-on-silver color scheme. Not quite the best looking, but well-built all the same, and very functional--we'll explain how. Between the keyboard and the central hinge lies the Compaq CQ40's onboard Altec Lansing speakers; therein also lies a convenient Wi-Fi on-off toggle button. Another noteworthy feature of the Compaq CQ40 is its good keyboard, with nice and springy keys which offer no flex whatsoever. It's glossy screen is evenly lit--brightness is at par with Samsung's R420 but slightly lower compared to the screen on Aspire 4736. Onboard speakers are pretty good as well.

The Compaq CQ40-536TX laptop performed very well in terms of synthetic benchmarks, with a WorldBench 6 score of 94 and a 3D Mark 06 score of 2213. Casual gamers should take heart from its barely acceptable gaming potential, but don't expect too much. The CQ40-536TX laptop's dedicated GPU certainly shined through our HD video tests, with both 720p and 1080p files playing smoothly. Its six-cell battery lasted for 1 hour 10 minutes on BatteryEater's benchmark--5 minutes lesser than the Aspire 4736's battery. At 2.4-kg, the CQ40 weighs slightly heavier (100g) in comparison to the Aspire 4736.

Casual gamers should take heart from the Compaq CQ40-536TX's barely acceptable gaming potential, but don't expect too much.

The key distinction between the Compaq CQ40 and the Acer Aspire 4736 is its relatively high asking price of Rs. 38,500 compared to the latter's Rs. 35,380--a difference of Rs. 3,000 is significant for a budget user. The Compaq Presario CQ40 also misses out on an essential feature like Draft-N Wi-Fi, and comes with Vista Home Basic, while the Acer Aspire 4736 supports Draft-N Wi-Fi and comes with Vista Home Premium. But beyond all that nit-picking, if you can spare the extra bucks, the Compaq Presario CQ40-536TX is still a very good laptop to buy.

Bottom Line

The Compaq CQ40-536TX is a well-balanced 14-inch laptop, offering you very good performance. But it comes at a cost, compared to some of the other budget offerings.