It has a 15.6-inch display, good image quality, and meets basic computing needs such as web surfing, text editing, digital photos, video and DVD.
The CQ60-419WM has a neat, simple and solid design that does not look cheap at all. The handset owns a large 15.6-inch screen, a standard size keypad with separate numeric keys, a DVD optical drive, but no webcam. The sandpaper keyboard with curved, wide, comfortable keys, however, is quite “noise” when used.
The speaker system of the CQ60-419WM gives too good quality in price. Image quality will also make the user happy with the 15.6-inch, 1,366 x 768 resolution. The DVD player is very quiet and the online TV at Hulu.com is also very smooth.
The peripherals and connectivity of the CQ60-419WM are basic enough, including 3 USB ports, VGA output, DVD burner, modem, ethernet port and 802.11b / g Wi-Fi WLAN. It’s easy to understand why the CQ60-419WM does not have an HDMI port and a memory card reader.
The CQ60-419WM uses the same low-cost AMD Sempron SI-42 2.1-GHz single-core processor, which is limited in performance and is affordable to the needs of the average user. The results of the test machine performance evaluation quite different. When running iTunes to convert 11 music files mp3 to aac, it took 6 minutes 36 seconds, which was about the same as that of midrange laptops, but four times faster than a netbook. The Benchmark results, in a system wide rating of PCMark Vantage, for the CQ60-419WM came out at 1,829 points or so, which felt pretty close to the lowest end for mid range notebooks while at the same time, the average for the dual core category was roughly 3,000 points.
Compaq Presario CQ60-420US 15.6-Inch Laptop (2 GHz Intel Pentium T4200 Processor, 3GB DDR2, 250GB HDD, Windows Vista Home Premium) Black: Buy it now
Graphics Benchmarks
3DMark06 with the Nvidia GeForce 8200M: 768 at native resolution, 816 once you drop below 1024×768. Right in line with what most laptops in this segment were putting up at the time — nothing to get excited about, nothing to worry about either.
Battery Life
This is the rough part. Just under 2 hours on the CQ60-419WM, about 25 minutes short of what other 15-inch laptops were averaging. That’s not a lot of runway — you’re basically tethered to an outlet if you’re doing anything beyond a quick session.
Software
32-bit Windows Vista Home Basic, out of the box too, and then the usual trial stuff that sort of, piles up fast: Microsoft Works, Norton Internet Security, and that 60-day Office 2007 trial thingy. Before it starts nagging you, take a minute to figure out what you’re actually keeping, and uninstall the rest, like for real.
User Experience
Everyday Use
Browsing, documents, casual multimedia — the CQ60 does all of that fine. Nothing here is going to top a spec sheet, but for general use it just works.
The build holds up better than the price suggests. Keyboard’s comfortable, touchpad tracks well, screen’s clear enough for normal stuff. If “dependable” is what you’re after, this checks that box.
Business and Productivity
Full keyboard, decent ports, solid enough build — this handles office work without issue. Windows plus the standard business features covers what most people actually need day to day, nothing more.
It’s not fast. It’s not new. But email, browsing, office apps — it gets through a workday fine.
Multimedia and Entertainment
SD video and casual games run fine on the integrated graphics. Push into HD or anything demanding, and it starts to strain. Movies and music are watchable, but the built-in speakers are thin — bring headphones if sound actually matters to you.
The screen’s fine for casual stuff, not much beyond that. Color and brightness are limited, so if you’re editing photos or doing detailed video work, look elsewhere. The glossy coating also throws reflections around near windows or overhead lights, which gets old fast.
Software and OS
Ships with either Windows 7 or Vista depending on when it was made. Windows 7 aged better and felt more stable overall. Either way, this OS generation is old now — plan on an upgrade if you need current security patches or newer software support.
Preloaded software is the usual mix — antivirus trials, some productivity stuff, media extras. Most of it you’ll want gone. Uninstalling the bloat frees up storage and speeds things up a bit.
Upgradability and Maintenance
RAM generally caps near 4GB depending on which model you get, and yeah you can switch the hard drive out for something larger or swap in an SSD. The SSD swap, especially, makes boot up and loading feel more quick, like noticeably better.
Once in a while blow out the vents with compressed air dust buildup over time slowly messes with cooling. The plastic shell comes apart pretty easy for repairs but try to be careful around the internals once you’re inside there , alright
Pros and Cons
Good: budget friendly and it covers the fundamentals pretty well, it has a comfy keyboard , and yes it even comes with a number pad. The port set is decent too (USB, HDMI, VGA, Ethernet), feels practical overall.
Bad: it is a bit bulky for traveling, the screen is kind of weak, the graphics fade fast, and the plastic body doesn’t really give that premium vibe.
Bottom Line
The CQ60 knows exactly what it is a budget laptop that gets the fundamentals right without pretending to be more. Comfortable keyboard, decent ports, functional build, cheap price. If you’re chasing a great screen or real graphics performance, skip it. If you just need something reliable for browsing and docs, it does the job.
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Tech Reviewer & Product Analyst
Định Bia has spent over 10 years testing consumer electronics with a focus on smart technology. He work as a product advisor at Biareview where he helped customers find the right devices for their needs. He personally tests every product featured on this site using a consistent evaluation framework covering quality, durability, and value. All reviews are based on experience, not influenced by the manufacturer.