A new look for HP's ultraportable Pavilion x2 hybrid
HP moves to a simple magnetic hinge for its inexpensive tablet/laptop combo.
- Author of the award-winning, NY Times-reviewed nonfiction book The Tetris Effect; Longtime consumer technology expert for CBS Mornings
HP is redesigning its Pavilion x2 hybrid, pitching the system as a low-cost travel machine hitting just in time for both the back-to-school season and Windows 10.
The 10.1-inch touchscreen display connects to a keyboard base by way of a magnetic hinge, which replaces the clunkier hook-and-latch system on most earlier HP detachable hybrids. Similar to examples we've seen from Acer and others, the magnetic hinge pulls apart cleanly with two hands, one of which is needed to hold the keyboard base down. It easily reattaches with one hand, thanks to the strong magnetic connection that guides the two halves together as soon as they get close to each other.
Outside, the plastic body will come in a choice of colors, white, red or silver. Inside is a current-gen Intel Atom processor, which we've found works fine for basic Web surfing and even HD video streaming, plus 2GB of RAM and either 32GB or 64GB of solid-state storage. This is also one of the first systems outside of Apple's 12-inch MacBook to feature a USB C port, for power and data. Fortunately, it's not the only port, you also get a full-size USB 2.0, plus micro-HDMI and micro-SD card ports.
Even though this system is shipping July 21, it's going to arrive with Windows 8 installed. Upgrading to Windows 10 should be a fairly painless, and free, procedure. The Pavilion x2 starts at $299 in the US for the 32GB model, and includes a one-year Microsoft Office 365 subscription. HP doesn't have international price and date details yet, but we'll add those when available.