Products are often thought to have certain attributes pertaining to the country of their origin. What would you say about a product manufactured in Germany? High quality, exactness of manufacture, and maximum reliability. What about Japan? Cutting-edge electronics and technologies. When companies merge into one, following the latest trend to build up international corporations, they merge their respective attributes, too, even though the resulting corporation resides within one country. A good example of that is Fujitsu Siemens Computers, which is reliable as every German firm and technologically progressive as every Japanese one.

Our test lab is being visited today by the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Pro V3405 notebook that is meant to be a perfectly balanced solution for businessmen. The optimum mix of price and quality is achieved by using inexpensive components but without sacrificing the resulting performance much. The most noticeable measure the manufacturer took to cheapen the notebook is the processor. It is the Intel Pentium Dual-Core T2060 we have recently tested in our review of the ASUS A6Rp (see our article called Dual-Core Budget Platform: Asus A6Rp Notebook Review for details), but as opposed to the top model of ASUS¡¯ series, the Fujitsu Siemens notebook features the Intel Calistoga 945GM chipset. There is no "Centrino Duo" sticker beneath the keyboard due to the non-Napa processor. Instead, there is an "Intel Pentium Dual-Core" emblem that indicates the cut-down Yonah-core processor installed in this notebook.

Besides describing the exterior and ergonomics of the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Pro V3405, we will be able to see which chipset is better for the Intel Pentium Dual-Core, other parameters being equal.

Package and Accessories

The box is not decorated much, matching the low-end positioning of the product. The manufacturer¡¯s name, a large black photo and box handling instructions are printed on its sides.

The Amilo Pro V3405 comes with a minimum of accessories. Besides the notebook, the box contains: 4400mAh battery, power adapter, modem cable (RJ-11), documentation (a guide on working in Microsoft Windows XP Home and Professional, a safety guide, a catalogue of additional accessories, a "Getting Started" booklet, a 2-year warranty, a list of service centers worldwide), and a set of discs that includes:

• One system recovery disc with a guide to installing Windows XP Home Edition
• Drivers and Utilities Amilo Pro DVD 2006.08
• NeroExpress 6.6.0.19b