Back to Recommended List Table of Contents
| Vendor | Price as tested | In brief (issue reviewed) | Box score | |
| Hardware | ||||
| INPUT DEVICES | ||||
| Keyboard Microsoft Natural Keyboard |
Microsoft Corp. 800-426 9400 | $99.95 | Ergonomic, 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 | $230 | A 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, $629 | Speed 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 | $1,699 | Takes 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 | $349 | The 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, $199 | The 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 | $249 | Attractively 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 | $625 | One 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 | $499 | Great output, separate color cartridges and the Windows Printing System. (3/96) | 4.5 |
| Ink Jet Canon BJC-4100 | Canon Computer Systems 800-848-4123 | $349 | Brilliant 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 | $4,899 | Handles the demands of a large workgroup with ease and style. (1/96) | 4.5 |
| Page Okidata OL810e/PS | Okidata 800-OKIDATA | $1,439 | If 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 | $1,839 | Well-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 | $399 | 24-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.