Why no reviews on this model? Because most folks are not familiar with the name Sharp as far as computers go. This is a brand exclusive to Circuit City so I don't think most folks feel comfortable with it yet. They should give it a try.  
 
There is a lot to love about the Sharp Actius RD10. It has so many features that other laptops do not. Number one on my list is:  
 
NO Shared memory! That's right, most laptops have about a half a gig of SDRAM, but they share that with the video. Now, in the majority of cases this won't be an issue.. but if you plan to play any of todays graphic-intense games, you need it to not be shared. That was what swung us to buy this model. We can't be having our memory smashed in the middle of battle.. know what I'm sayin? heh. No problemo with this baby!  
 
Number two would be the display: Amazingly crisp, bright, and clear display. Brighter even than any of our CRTs! On our desk tops we're running a Sony Multiscan 400PS on mine, and a Samsung Syncmaster 1200NF. This laptop monitor blows them both away on clarity. I'm not talking hmm I think that is a little brighter. No. I'm talking Oh hell look at the difference in this puppy! It's also surprising to me that there is no difference in this between battery or if it's plugged in. Just a freakin sweet display!  
 
The sound is also, of course, built in. There are two speakers up near the display and while they won't rival your desk top speakers, they do the job. You won't want to be cranking your music CDs on this, but for watching a DVD or cruising the web they are more than adequate.  
 
Have a digital camera? Plug your memory card right in to the front side! That's right, no need for extra gadgets, this sucker I believe has a slot for about any size camera flash card. It fits my Cannon and has other slots for other sizes. Very convenient indeed...and it's fast. Actually, the pictures come up faster on this than on my big Micron Millennia.  
 
The wireless (802.11B) is built in. Again, no need to keep track of endless accessories for everything, it's all right here built in. The wireless works seemlessly on this baby too. I could tell no difference between cruising the web on this with the wirelss and my PC which is cabled to the hub. It worked when we took it upstairs too. That may speak to the effectiveness of our wireless thingy in general, but I tend to think it's a combo of that and the wireless set up in the Sharp itself.  
 
All the geeky stuff:  
 
2.8-GHz Pentium 4, 512MB of DDR SDRAM, Windows XP Home, 15-inch XGA screen, NVidia GeForce4 420 Go with 32MB of DDR SDRAM, 60GB hard drive, 8X DVD-ROM and 24X/10X/24X CD-RW combo drive, built-in V.90 modem, 10/100 ethernet port, touchpad pointing device, One-year parts and labor warranty; lifetime 24-hour daily toll-free technical support.  
 
Battery life is not something I am concerned about, but this one is only about an hour and a half.. probably due to the awesome display. In the car I can plug into the cigarette lighter though, and the hotel of course has jacks, airlines also have plug-ins if you have the adapter.. I can't think of very often that I would need more than that hour and a half of battery life anyway, and if you're smart you always keep a spare battery anyway. So, to me at least, that isn't even an issue. I figured some of you may like to know though.  
 
It has no serial or parallel printer ports, but it does have 4 USB 2.0 ports. (I have no idea what I just said, Nick told me to add this part)  
 
So. Why am I replacing this if I like it so much? Because it's very heavy at 10.3 pounds (12.2 with the adapter and all that stuff) and over 2 inches thick. Yep.. sad to say, but it's like lugging bricks around. In fact, I'm having a difficult time finding a bag that it will fit in even. This is one behemoth mo'fo, I'm tellin ya!  
 
So...the thing is I do recommend this machine, just not for folks who travel a lot. This would be very good as a desk top replacement for a college student in a dorm, or as an additional home unit in another room or something. For compact travel though? No way. I think we're going to go buy a little Sony today for our trip to New York next week. As much as I love the features on this Sharp, I just am not lugging the damn thing around!  
 
 
 
I don't usually write in electronics, so you folks need to tell me if I left anything out here. I do plan to review whatever we decide to buy tonight also, so please do give me a heads up if there is any vital info you want in addition to what I have put here. Thanks guys!  
