LAPTOP Magazine is taking input on the kinds of real-world testing they do for their notebook reviews, in order to help making them more relevant to average users. Right now they are using standard benchmarks that don’t mean much to many people interested in buying a laptop.
They are looking for realism (i.e. things typical users would do with a laptop), and tests that scale well, from 7-inch netbooks all the way up to the the 17-inch gaming machines.
They also wants tests that are objective (not open to interpretation based on whoever is testing it) and that typical users can reproduce on their own with the same systems (that is get the same results).
They point out one test they’ve started using is a script that tests battery life while web-surfing (which was recently mentioned here during the SSD debate).
They also mention one thing that’s important to a lot of us (given that smaller laptops can generate more heat) – ambient heat (i.e. can you actually put it on your lap, or does the palm rest become uncomfortable after a while).
Read: LAPTOP Magazine