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RANKINGS | From desktops to notebooks, we pick the BEST BUYS in seven categories.

WE TOOK nearly 50 computers from the top nine vendors, booted them up, ran a slew of software, poked inside the cases, studied the warranties, and compared prices. Overall, we were impressed. Computer makers seem to be rushing technology breakthroughs, such as CD-RW (read-write) drives, into less-expensive machines more quickly than ever before. And the price for low-cost but perfectly adequate computers continues to edge lower. Competition is a wonderful thing. But you still need to shop carefully. As you can see from the results in the table on page 115, some machines should be avoided.

Economy desktops

YOU SAY YOU NEED a basic home computer and want to spend as little as possible? These models are for you. They generally cost less than $900, or represent the cheapest computers a given vendor offers.

The Gateway Essential PC 800c is the best value out there. For $799, you get an 800 MHz Celeron processor, 128 MB of RAM and a 10 GB hard drive--all of which are far above average for this price. But the package also comes with a great software selection that includes Microsoft Works (basic versions of Word, Excel and Money), a 15-inch monitor and an impressive set of speakers. You can set up and boot up in about 15 minutes.

Honorable mention goes to the NetVista A20i from IBM, known more for its high quality than its low prices. The model IBM sent us was a little more expensive than the others in the category, and it didn't come with a monitor, which is at least $150 extra. But for $1,087--cheap for IBM, expensive compared with the competition--you get a Pentium III processor, 128 MB of RAM and a big, 30 GB hard drive.

Standard desktops

IN TODAY'S MARKET you can get a lot of computer for anywhere from $1,000 to $1,600, so it's understandable that the race for best in class would be tight.

The best of the bunch, on a purely technological level, is the Apple iMac Special Edition, the newest addition to the iMac line. This $1,499 machine has a CD-RW drive in an all-in-one package that includes a 15-inch monitor.

The iMac comes with a 600 MHz G3 processor, 128 MB of RAM and a 40 GB hard drive--a strong engine inside the cute little box. Keep in mind that Apple's processors shouldn't be compared directly with Intel or AMD chips. Double the Apple chip's speed and you get a rough idea of how fast an Apple processor is compared with a PC's.

The Mac software package doesn't include Microsoft Office--that'll put you back another $499--but it does come with Apple's own productivity software, which, while not compatible with most PC software, will meet the majority of your needs and is far simpler to use. Plus you can manage MP3 music files, burn any kind of software on to disc, and edit home movies shot with a digital camcorder. You even have a choice of patterns for the computer's box: Flower Power, Blue Dalmatian and (thankfully) Graphite.

Dell's standard offering, the Dimension 4100, ties the iMac for best in category. This $1,208 machine features a speedy 1 GHz Pentium III processor, a 20 GB hard drive and 128 MB of RAM, along with a CD-RW drive. The software inside is impressive, including a full Microsoft Works suite and money-management software. The iMac is a little more powerful and is definitely cooler, but Dell's tech support and its three-year warranty on parts and labor--the best of the bunch--make the 4100 a good deal.

Bleeding-edge desktop

WE'RE TALKING SCREAMERS -- Pentium 4 processors, massive hard drives, in-your-face graphics and high-quality speakers. The category starts at $1,600, the lowest price for a machine with a Pentium 4 processor.

The clear winner: Dell's Dimension 8100, which received the highest score of any computer in our tests. The price tag on the machine we reviewed--$2,908--is steep, but basic 8100s start at $1,648. This 8100 includes a 1.4 GHz Pentium 4 processor, 128 MB of RAM, a 40 GB hard drive, a DVD drive, a CD-RW drive and a whopping 64 MB of video RAM (versus 8 to 16 MB on most video cards). There's also a beautiful 19-inch monitor and a surround-sound speaker system that makes the walls shake.

Thanks to audio- and video-enhancement software provided by Lucasfilm, games look like movies, and movies look as if the actors live in your monitor. The software bundle includes a number of game titles and a full suite of Microsoft products.

Gateway gets honorable mention with its Performance 1500xl. The 1.5 GHz Pentium 4 machine, which costs $3,299, performed extraordinarily well in our tests, plowing through intense graphics, huge software installations and massive downloads from the Internet very quickly, and slightly faster than the Dimension 8100. The Gateway bundle of features includes phone and fax tools and software to help you keep your kids out of questionable Web sites, in addition to either Microsoft Works or Microsoft Office--your choice. It also has a massive 19-inch monitor and surround-sound speakers. But Dell's warranty program is slightly better, as is its price.

Economy notebooks

NOTEBOOKS ON the cheap are hard to find, and good ones forless than $1,300 are even scarcer.

Dell's Inspiron 2500 wins the category in a tight but torpid race. The 700 MHz mobile Celeron processor, 64 MB of RAM and 5 GB hard drive were adequate and par for the course (upgrading to 128 MB of RAM is another $75). What boosted this $1,249 computer was a solid suite of software that includes Microsoft Works and Dell's cell-phone sync program.

Our other notable find was the Toshiba Satellite 1735, which goes for $1,099. It has a 700 MHz Celeron processor, 64 MB of RAM and a 10 GB hard drive. The one strike against it was Lotus's SmartSuite office software instead of the more widely used Microsoft Office or Microsoft Works.

Standard notebooks

THESE ARE THE notebooks that most people purchase. They cost between $1,300 and $2,000, and pack far more computing power than the economy-class computers.

Our favorite is Dell's Inspiron 4000, a $1,849 machine that comes with an 800 MHz Pentium III processor, 128 MB of RAM and a 10 GB hard drive. While it wasn't particularly feature-rich, it performed very well in our tests and boasts that three-year warranty.

Just below the Dell is IBM's ThinkPad i Series 1200, a solid machine for $1,749. It is less powerful than the Dell, with only a 700 MHz processor and 64 MB of RAM (upgrading to 128 MB of RAM costs $49). But it has twice as much memory on the hard drive, and it also comes with a DVD drive.

Bleeding-edge notebooks

YOU COULD REPLACE your desktop computer with one of these--and sometimes it feels as if you're lugging around a desktop. Still, they tear through most anything you throw at them.

Gateway's new Solo 9500 has the edge in this category. This $3,549 machine features the new 1 GHz mobile Pentium III processor, 128 MB of RAM and a 32 GB hard drive--the biggest hard drive we saw in a portable. The three-year parts-and-labor warranty and full telephone-support plan are excellent; the software on board is generous, packing Gateway's phone tools and child-protection software; and the battery life is pretty good for a machine of this size--about 2.5 hours. But what really caught our eye was the sharp, 15.7-inch screen.

We really, really liked Apple's new titanium PowerBook G4, even though three other machines received better scores. The G4 is light--just over five pounds--and has power to spare, along with a slot-loaded DVD player in the front. The keyboard is roomy, and the screen is just gorgeous--similar to a high-definition flat-panel TV screen. The only drawback is Apple's woeful tech support and warranty plans. For $3,499, it could do better than a one-year warranty and 90 days of free phone support.

Ultralight notebooks

THESE LIGHT WEIGHT powerhouses are the opposite of desktop replacements: slim and compact with no extraneous drives. We didn't put a price range on this category, but all entrants had to be four pounds or less.

Sony tops the category (which it helped invent a few years back) with its brand-new Vaio R505 SuperSlim Pro. The Vaio has a speedy 850 MHz Pentium III, along with 128 MB of RAM and a 20 GB hard drive, all in a 3.75-pound package. Software includes a number of photo- and video-editing tools, as well as a strong set of personal-finance and productivity titles, including Microsoft Works and Microsoft Money. You'll pay $2,999 for this newest Vaio, but the versatility, power and weight will take the edge off the price tag.

Dell gets an enthusiastic thumbs up for its Inspiron 2100, a 3.4-pound wonder. The 700 MHz processor and 128 MB of RAM are nothing special, but the 2100 comes through in the design, which includes a 12.1 -inch screen and touchpad pointer control, and its low, $2,122 price.

--Reporter: COURTNEY MCGRATH

2001 computer guide Models are alphabetical by category with the top pick in each category highlighted.