probook

We've seen a number of redesigned business laptops lately. "Not your father's business laptop." "A business laptop for the cooler set." Whatever you want to call them, these notebooks are defined by thin profiles, sleek bodies, and features more often seen on "consumer" laptops. In other words, they're trying to be business laptops in disguise.

The ThinkPad X1 and ThinkPad Edge E220s. The Dell Vostro V130. The HP ProBook 5330m. All of them are, in their own way, worth considering for nonbusiness users.

Why, then, call them business laptops?

We quite like the look and feel of the HP ProBook line when we reviewed it in December. The newly-announced versions of the HP ProBook, available this month, don't reinvent the equation so much as refine some features and add a few new wrinkles to match the style of the Mini 5101 Pro Netbook, particularly in its brushed-metal look.

Of course, one might expect the new ProBooks to come with Intel's new Core i3, i5 and i7 processors, and they do. Starting at $719 and going up as far as you'd like many configurations and screen sizes … Read more

Hewlett-Packard is refreshing its business ultraportable laptop and hybrid laptop-tablet with Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, becoming one of the first major PC makers to squeeze these powerful processors into a small, lightweight design.

Intel announced the Core i series of processors last year, but to date the chips have been limited mostly to desktops and large-screen laptops. HP's compact EliteBook 2540p and 2740p have 12-inch screens and weigh in at about 3.4 and 3.8 pounds, respectively.

The 2540p can be configured with standard-power Core i5 or Core i7 processors or a Core i7 that draws less power--a so-called low-voltage processor. Graphics are provided by Intel's integrated graphics silicon.

Like the prior-generation 2530p model, the 2540p can be ordered with or without a built-in optical drive. Units without an optical drive, can take 2.5-inch 7200RPM SATA II hard disk drives ranging up to 500GB in capacity. Units ordered with an optical drive use smaller 1.8-inch 5400RPM SATA II drives, ranging up to 320GB in capacity.

The 2540p is also available with 2.5-inch and 1.8-inch solid-state drives that max out at 160GB.

Other features include USB 2.0, VGA, DisplayPort, 1394a, and gigabit Ethernet ports. And an option for an integrated EV-DO/HSPA 3G modem is available too.

Battery life for the 2540p is rated by HP at up to 10 hours… Read more

Editors' note: The HP ProBook 5310m is currently under review, but here are our initial impressions of this sub-$1,000 ultraportable.

At first glance, it would be easy to label the HP ProBook 5310m a late 2007 MacBook knock-off. The all-black casing made from aluminum and magnesium alloy and the chiclet-style keyboard certainly support that judgment. However, the ProBook is a laptop aimed at business users, not consumers. It's also something we've been longing to see: a powerful, sub-$1,000 ultraportable with a 13-inch screen and a long battery life.

The ProBook is very stately looking. … Read more

Call it the Netbook halo effect: small and cheap is infectious. A quick peek at the lineups of new laptops slated for the Windows 7 (October 22) roll-out make it clear that the prices of mainstream and higher-end laptops are diving, even as the technology gets better.

"There's a new reality in laptop pricing," said Bob O'Donnell, an analyst at market-researcher IDC. "It's getting harder and harder to sell anything over $800." O'Donnell cited a data point that showed the average selling price of notebooks falling below desktops briefly in retail. "That may have been an anomaly, but the fact that's it's even close is indicative of this phenomenon."

That said, let's start with HP, the world's largest PC supplier. Svelte, well-built business laptops have historically been priced at a premium--starting at more than $1,000. Not anymore. On October 22, HP will begin selling the 13-inch ProBook 5310m that is about 0.9 inches thin, less than four pounds, and clad in an aluminum display enclosure and a magnesium alloy bottom case for $699.

That's about $800 less than the HP EliteBook 2530p business notebook series introduced in August of last year (that started at about $1,500). The 5310m is priced at $699 with an Intel Celeron dual-core processor and $899 with Intel Core 2 Duo chip. Both come with the Windows 7 operating system.

That's what I call a sea change in pricing.

But it gets better. Then there's the 4-pound HP Pavilion dm3 notebook that starts at $549 (no, it's not a Netbook) and will likely range up to about $700 in price for a reasonable memory and hard drive configuration. The 13-inch laptop comes with power-efficient Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Neo dual-core processors and a standard 6-cell battery that delivers--so HP claims--up to 10 hours of battery life.

I was able to play with a dm3 at a function sponsored by Advanced Micro Devices recently in San Francisco. My immediate impression was that this was a light but solid design.

The Apple $999 MacBook is suddenly… Read more

HP announced its fall lineup today, which included new Windows 7 laptops, an Ion-powered Netbook, SmartMedia network storage products, an all-in-one desktop, and an assortment of business-centric monitors.

HP gets an Ion-powered HD Netbook With a Nvidia Ion processor and a 1,366x768 11.6-inch screen, the HP Mini 311 looks to be the type of souped-up HD Netbook we've been waiting for. (Posted in Crave by Scott Stein) September 14, 2009, 9:06 p.m. PDT

HP 13-inch laptops bring on aluminum and affordability Just in time for Windows 7 comes HP's new Windows 7-preinstalled 13-inch thin-and-lights. (… Read more

As we gear up for Windows 7, manufacturers are lining up their latest updated models to catch your consumer eye. HP's newest 13-inch laptops, the HP ProBook 5310m and HP Pavilion dm3, both toss in fancy aluminum frames, but with different internal stories. The ProBook 5310m has a 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo processor or 1.2 GHz Celeron ULV under its hood, while the Pavilion dm3 has a new dual-core AMD Neo X2 (or if you choose, an Intel Pentium SU4100 ULV) running the show.

The ProBook's looks feature an anodized aluminum chassis, a raised keyboard, … Read more

Looking to blur the line between business and consumer laptops, HP's new ProBook line of systems looks to, in the company's words, "merge business functionality with sophisticated design."

These 14, 15, and 17-inch 16:9 models come in red or black ("merlot" or "glossy noir") and include thin LED backlit displays, and a spacious raised keyboard design that's a departure from HP's norm.

Interestingly, Linux will be an option, in addition to Windows Vista. It's not the first time we've seen Linux from HP, but it's the … Read more