FOR
Easy to use. Gives you a nice warm glow that in the event of the machine going missing, you have a mechanism for getting it back.
AGAINST
Relies on the machine connecting to the Internet and doesn't defend against data thieves or thieves who simply want your notebook for its valuable parts.
VERDICT
While not a perfect solution, the zTrace Gold does provide you with the possibility of getting your valuables back. It also helps to trace a thief … and getting a bit of retribution flowing in that direction is much to be desired.

The unusually named zTrace organization sets out to repatriate you with your laptop should you be so unfortunate as to have some light-fingered individual relieve you of it. This happens to an alarmingly large number of individuals each year - something in the region of a third of a million go missing in the U.S. alone. The cost of losing a laptop is measured in hardware costs - against which you might be insured - and the loss of the data and the cost of purchasing a new machine and setting it up.
This latter cost is not to be sniffed at and various sources put the cost of a lost notebook at over $6,000. This cost could be significantly greater and the cost to the individual in lost productivity and nuisance is not to be taken lightly. Recovering the notebook is the best solution all round but you'll be lucky … in fact very lucky … if you ever see your notebook again.
The zTrace Gold is a solution to the problem and gives you the chance to recover your notebook if that notebook is reused. The product works like this. When you install the product on your laptop it creates a sort of unique fingerprint of that laptop and registers it on a central database. Through this unique fingerprint it is possible to identify the location of the laptop when the laptop connects to the Internet.
For budding thieves reading this, don't be fooled into thinking that you can simply delete the product and that will stop the laptop from being traced. No such luck … thieves can even reformat the hard drive … and up pops zTrace. The product is easy to install … and in fact can be installed entirely off the network; we used a disk-based version.
The developers maintain a database with all the unique fingerprints (in reality just a very long, unique number) and once you inform them that the machine is lost, they start the trace on the machine as soon as it connects to the Internet. Their own on-staff police officers work with the local police force to recover the stolen machine and this complete recovery service means that you are saved the hassle of trying to deal in unfamiliar territory with an unfamiliar process.
The developers tell us that versions for PDAs should be out later this year. Considering the number of these that go missing and their increased use, tracing these even smaller objects of desire will be most welcome.