Above the screen is a pair of speakers and a row of four small buttons. Their default settings can be changed, but, out of the box, one of these buttons accesses the login screen, where you can switch users. A second button opens Internet Explorer, while a third opens the Windows Mobility Center. A fourth button takes you into Fujitsu Siemens' Eco mode, which disables features such as the optical drive, reduces the display's brightness and generally lowers power consumption.
Features
The P8020 has a 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 processor with 3MB of Level 2 cache and an 800MHz front-side bus. Our review sample had 2GB of RAM, and the laptop has a maximum capacity of 4GB. Graphics are handled by the GMA 4500MHD GPU integrated in Intel's GS45 Express chipset.
The P8020 is a particularly well-connected ultra-portable. Intel's WiFi Link 5300 takes care of Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g, draft n). Bluetooth is also integrated and Gigabit Ethernet is available for wired connectivity. The icing on the cake is integrated mobile broadband (HSDPA, with download speeds of up to 7.2Mbps).
The SIM card slot is located under the battery and Fujitsu Siemens includes Sierra Wireless' 3G Watcher software for managing connections. This allows you to connect to data networks and includes an SMS module. We had no trouble getting connected with our Vodafone mobile-broadband SIM.
Our review sample had a 160GB hard drive spinning at 5,400rpm. Other options include a 320GB 5,400rpm or 160GB 7,200rpm hard drive, or a 64GB solid-state drive. A shock-protection system cushions the hard drive against knocks and bumps.
The optical drive is on the right side of the system, along with a Type II PC Card slot. At the back is a single USB 2.0 port.
On the left side are two further USB 2.0 ports, which are physically far enough apart that it should be possible to use both at the same time. Microphone and headphone jacks are also on this edge, plus a FireWire port, an Ethernet port, a VGA connector and the power input.
The front has a mechanical switch for the wireless radios, plus a slot for SD- compatible flash media. Sitting above the screen is a fixed-position 1.3-megapixel webcam.
Performance
The Windows Experience Index (WEI) score for the P8020 was a somewhat disappointing 3.2 out of 5.9. Only one sub-system score made it past the 5.0 mark, and generally the scores were almost identical to those achieved by Toshiba's Portege R600.
The lowest score, which corresponds to the overall WEI rating, went to graphics (desktop performance for Windows Aero). The other graphics score, gaming graphics (3D business and gaming graphics performance), was little better at 3.3. More impressive were processor (calculations per second) with 4.6, and RAM (memory operations per second) with 4.9. The top-scoring sub-system was primary hard disk (disk data-transfer rate) with 5.4.
Although you can't expect much in the way of graphics performance, the P8020 should handle mainstream workloads capably enough.
Fujitsu Siemens doesn't make a battery life claim for the P8020's 8,700mAh six-cell battery. We tested it by choosing the balanced power mode and asking the laptop to play a DVD movie for as long as it could manage. Under these conditions, it delivered 3 hours and 15 minutes of mobile playback, which is good going.
Android App 
RSS Feeds 
iPhone App 
Newsletters