Some laptops with 13-inch screens achieve a weight of 3 pounds or thereabouts by ditching the optical drive. This Portege is a trim 3.2 pounds, but it sports a DVD burner–a plus for movie-watching, data backups and more. With an Intel Core i5 processor and battery life that Toshiba rates at up to nine hours, the system nicely balances power and portability, and does it at a reasonable price.
Price: $899 and up at Toshiba