Despite undoubted portability, a laptop sometimes just isn't functional enough. For example, doctors dashing around a busy patient ward, inputting sensitive data about Mrs Coggin's ingrowing toenail, Mr Chuffton's bottom grapes, and other such critical medical emergencies, would perhaps find a typical keyboard restrictive. To make life easier, enter one of the leading proponents of the Tablet PC, namely the Gateway convertible notebook.

For those unfamiliar with the term Tablet PC let me try and offer a succinct explanation. A tablet PC is a laptop with a touchscreen enabling the user to operate the notebook with a stylus or digital pen instead of a traditional keyboard or mouse. In other words you can write directly onto the screen, which can be swivelled 180 degrees and folded flat over the keyboard. This type of notebook is usually loaded with handwriting recognition software (built into Windows XP Tablet PC OS), and Gateway's convertible pc is no exception.

You've probably already heard the excitement about Intel's 64 bit Merom technology. Dual core processing features 2 independent processing cores which can share around twice the workload of your average Joe Soap processor. This is an ideal setup for multitasking graphic artists who like to have a few design software apps open at once. I'm pleased to say that this M285-E SBb Gateway Convertible can be configured with a 2.16 GHz T7400 Core 2 Duo (667MHz FSB, 4MB L2 Cache), and will be Vista ready when Microsoft's much heralded operating system finally ships.

The M285-E SBb notebook's 6.1 pound frame also houses a 14 inch widescreen display with 1280 x 768 resolution, up to 100GB (5400rpm Serial ATA) 2.5 inch hard drive, and a massive 4096MB (667MHz) of DDR2 SDRAM (2-2048MB modules). Ports and slots include a 7-in-1 media card reader, Type II PC card slot, and 3 USB useful 2.0 ports. There's also integrated Bluetooth, and an Intel 802.11a/b/g wireless card.

Security is covered in the form of an embedded TPM chip (version 1.2) for user authentication and data protection (version 1.2 ready), and a subscription to Lojack. The features and flexibility of this machine make it a great buy, but bear in mind, a fully loaded Gateway convertible notebook will chew a 2 grand sized hole in your wallet. However, cheaper configurations of this are available at Gateway's official site - Gateway.com.