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Hardware Recommended

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VendorPrice as tested In brief (issue reviewed)Box score
Hardware
INPUT DEVICES
Keyboard
Microsoft Natural Keyboard
Microsoft Corp. 800-426 9400$99.95Ergonomic, wrist-saving design at an affordable price point. (10/94) 4.5
Keyboard
NMB ConcertMaster RT-9100W
NMB Technologies 818-341-3355 $99.95 (street) Keyboard and audio controls with built-in speakers. (3/96) 4.5
MASS STORAGE
CD-ROM Changer
NEC MultiSpin 4X4
NEC Technologies 508-264-8000 $279 (street)Has front buttons that let you access specific discs directly. (4/96) 4.0
CD-ROM/EIDE
Philips PCA62CR 6X CD-ROM
Philips Electronics
408-453-7373
$149.95 Adds zip to multimedia and is a snap to install. (4/96) 4.0
CD-ROM/EIDE
TEAC CD-56E
TEAC America 213-726-0303 $199 (street)Fast, reliable and affordable. (5/96) 4.0
CD-ROM/Portable
Micro Solutions Backpack 4X
Micro Solutions 815-756-3411$449 A parallel-port external CD-ROM drive with sound. (2/96) 4.0
Fixed Hard Drive
Quantum Fireball 1080
Quantum Corp. 408-894-4000 $230A solid performer that offers easy configuration and detailed instructions. (1/96) 4.0
Removable Hard Drive
SyQuest EZ135 drive
SyQuest Technology
510-226-4000
External, $239 Uses removable, $20 3.5" cartridges that hold 135MB-and it's fast. (12/95) 4.5
Tape Backup
Tandberg PantherMini 4600
Tandberg
805-579-1000
External, $629Speed and performance leave you no excuse for not backing up. (6/96) 4.0
Digital Camera
RDC-1 Color Digital Camera
Ricoh Corp. 702-352-1600$1,699Takes still or motion videos with audio clips, and stores the resulting data on SRAM cards. (4/96) 4.5
Kit
Diamond Ultra Kit 8000
Diamond Multimedia Systems
408-325-7000
$349The first multimedia kit to offer an 8X CD-ROM drive. (3/96) 4.5
MISC.
SCSI Adapter
BusLogic FlashPoint LT
BusLogic
408-492-9090
Kit, $199The FlashPoint LT complies with the newest standards for SCSI hardware. (3/96) 4.5
UPS Plug and Play
Back-UPS Pro
American Power Conversion
401-789-0204
$199 (street) Protects both your computer and your phone line; can deliver 280 watts. (11/95) 4.0
UPS
TouchMaster UPS TM-420
Tripp Lite
312-755-5401
$249Attractively designed UPS plus power director provides space-saving peace of mind. (7/96) 4.0
Wireless Internet
HP NetBeamIR LAN Access
Hewlett-Packard Co.
800-533-1333
$289 Instant wireless network connectivity at up to 4MB per second. (6/96) 4.0
MODEMS
External, Telephony
Hayes Optima 288
Hayes Microcomputer Products
770-840-9200
$379 (street) Offers power and versatility. (2/96)5.0
Internal
Amquest Hypermodem
Amquest Corp. 717-569-8030 $199 (street)Makes moving to the information age a smooth voyage. (3/96) 4.5
Modem/E-net adapter, PCMCIA
Motorola Marquis
Motorola Mobile Computing
800-4A-PCMCIA
$499 Combines easy installation with flawless performance. (2/96) 5.0
Modem/E-net adapter, PCMCIA
Ositech Jack of Diamonds
Ositech Communications 519-836-8063$549 V.34 modem, cellular modem and 10BaseT Ethernet in one card with excellent performance. (4/96) 5.0
MONITORS
15-inch
Nokia Multigraph 449X
Nokia Display Products
415-331-6622
$625One of the best 15-inch images around. (6/96) 4.5
17-inch
EIZO Nanao FlexScan F2-17EX
EIZO Nanao Technologies 310-325-5202 $1,098 (street)If you use CAD or image-processing programs, this is the monitor to buy. (6/95) 5.0
17-inch
Samsung SyncMaster 17Glsi
Samsung Electronics America
201-691-6200
$919 (street)Produces a high-quality, accurate image and has a great keypad. (10/95) 5.0
17-inch
17GA Perfect-Sound
ViewSonic Corp. 909-869-7976 $749 (street)Serves up great images with sound and style. (12/95) 4.5
20-inch
ArtMedia TN2185
ArtMedia USA 408-980-8988 $1,888 A near-perfect image, and it supports 1280x1024 resolution at 77Hz. (5/96) 5.0
21-inch
ViewSonic PT810
ViewSonic Corp. 909-869-7976 $1,895 (street)A picture about as good as it gets, with a 19.5-inch viewable area. (3/96) 4.5
PRINTERS
Ink Jet
Canon BJC-610
Canon Computer Systems
800-848-4123
$499Great output, separate color cartridges and the Windows Printing System. (3/96) 4.5
Ink Jet
Canon BJC-4100
Canon Computer Systems
800-848-4123
$349Brilliant color at 720x360dpi; comes with the Canon Creative CD-ROM. (12/95) 4.5
Multifunction Office Machine
HP OfficeJet 350
Hewlett-Packard Co.
800-752-0900
$599 (street) All-in-one with new AutoPrompt wizard-like software to perform every task imaginable. High-quality output. (7/96) 4.0
Multifunction Office Machine
M5 Multifunction System
JetFax
415-324-0600
$2,995 (street) Combines a plain-paper fax machine, copier, scanner and printer in one device. (12/95) 4.5
Page
HP LaserJet 5SiMX
Hewlett-Packard Co.
800-752-0900
$4,899Handles the demands of a large workgroup with ease and style. (1/96) 4.5
Page
Okidata OL810e/PS
Okidata
800-OKIDATA
$1,439If you're looking for a smaller-sized printer, this one is close to the top of the list. (7/96) 4.0
Page
Panasonic KX-P6500
Panasonic
201-348-7000
$499 (street)Takes up very little desk space and gives you 1200dpi output. (2/96) 5.0
Workgroup Page
HP LaserJet 5M
Hewlett-Packard Co.
800-752-0900
$1,799 (street)1200dpi printing at 12ppm; includes drivers for most network OSes. (6/96) 4.5
Workgroup Page
Okidata OL1200/PS
Okidata
800-OKIDATA
$1,839Well-designed desktop printer, with a variety of options for excellent printed output. (7/96) 4.0
SCANNERS
Color
Logitech PageScan Color
Logitech
510-795-8500
$39924-bit scanning; a good value for small offices. (2/96) 4.5
Color
Primax DeskScan Color
Storm Primax 408-522-1200 $399 Inputs everything from single pages to business cards, in true color. (3/96) 4.5
Page/Document Management
Visioneer PaperPort Vx
Visioneer
415-493 9599
$299 (street) Specializes in organizing monochrome documents. (1/96) 4.0

*Not formally reviewed-consensus of WINDOWS Magazine editors.


Copyright (c) 1996 CMP Media Inc.