If you've ever listened to National Public Radio's Prairie Home Companion, you may have heard the host mention in a folksy way that "all the children are above average." Alas, some products are just average--neither setting the bar for excellence nor dismally poor. Micro Express' NBL26 is just such an undistinguished product.

If you're looking for a solid media notebook that's small (though not terribly lightweight) and quick, the Asus N82Jv all purpose laptop is a good bet. The N82Jv features a snappy 2.4GHz Intel Core i5 450M processor (with turbo boost up to 2.66GHz), a 500GB hard drive, an nVidia GeForce GT 335M graphics card (plus integrated Intel HD Graphics), and the 64-bit version of Windows 7 Home Premium.

Sony targets the everyman with its VAIO EA series of all purpose laptops. They're affordable, medium-size, general-purpose workhorses with a variety of customization options. Available in a swath of colors and configurations, the EA series is neither slim and sexy nor bulky and heavy. It's as close to the middle of the road as you're likely to get from Sony.

If you're looking for a mainstream, all-purpose laptop with above-average gaming capabilities, the 6-pound Toshiba Satellite M645-S4055 is a worthy, albeit pricey, contender for your computing dollars. It has top-notch input ergonomics, snappy performance, excellent sound, some nice usability flourishes, and a reasonable size for travel. It retails for about $1049 (as of August 27, 2010), but you can sometimes find it online for just under $1000.