Announced: HP Pavilion tx2500z
June 10, 2008
Today, HP announced the HP Pavilion tx2500z, the sequel to the HP Pavilion tx2000z series.
It’s HP’s first 12.1-inch “convertible” laptop that’s based on AMD’s new Puma platform for mobile computing. In addition to dual-core AMD CPUs (up to 2.4GHz), it offers up to 4GB of memory, along with Windows Vista 32-bit or 64-bit versions with Service Pack 1 (depends on Vista Home Premium, Business, or Ultimate).
Features:
- “Convertible” - Display twists around and lays across keyboard, forming a Tablet PC with digitizer
- High-gloss black case with “Echo” pattern inlaid.
- “HP QuickPlay” - fast starts movies, music, with a mobile TV module for internet TV streaming. Mini-Remote stores in ExpressCard slot.
Updates over HP Pavilion tx2000z models:
- Updated CPU
- Updated Windows Vista options
- Upgraded graphics (ATI Radeon HD 3200)
- Upgraded harddrive options (up to 320GB 5400rpm)
It is available in the US started at $1049 through HP’s Notebook Offers section in their online store.
AMD and Netbooks
June 5, 2008
There’s been some buzz about some photos that popped up at a few websites concerning an AMD netbook. AVING had the best photos / video of the purported ultraportable notebook. It was reported to have a 7″ touchscreen display with a resolution of 1024×600 or 800×480 (1024×600 seems awfully small on a 7-inch display).
With the launch of AMD’s new laptop chip, the Puma, AMD’s Scott Shutter mentioned that AMD will not be jumping into the netbook / UMPC market anytime soon: “Our roadmap has us going there (the UMPC market) in the future–the first half of 2010. We will have products that play into that space when we believe that growth warrants it.”
After the buzz really got going, an AMD spokesperson (Phil Hughes) discussed the photos from AVING and other sites and said it’s a small notebook from Raon Digital and not an AMD reference or proof-of-concept design that AMD will be producing and selling: “It is a Raon Digital product and will start production at the end of July…..They have two models. One is TL-56 (Turion processor)-based and the other is Sempron 3700-based..”
He went on to mention examples of laptops / ultraportable devices that fall into the netbook category that already exist and are using AMD CPUs, such as the 7-inch Kohjinsha E8 running an AMD LX-800 Geode CPU.
Read:
- AMD not launching netbook chip (ZDNet)
- AMD Makes its notebook move, Puma goes live (ZDNet)
- AVING Korea (Korean)
Review: Acer Ferrari 1100 (PC Magazine)
March 4, 2008
Last week, PC Magazine reviewed the Acer Ferrari 1100. While they gave it 3/5, a “good” rating, the sequel to the Acer Ferrari 1000 series had some shortcomings. Yes, it added an internal drive (at 4.4 pounds it better!), it still had some issues.
As PC Magazine points out, the Ferrari series is considered a luxury/high-end ultraportable - it makes use of carbon-fiber in the design, it’s got some very distinct coloring and branding. It’s one of the few in its class running an AMD CPU (2.3GHz TL-66 Dual-Core), however it was only able to run slightly faster than the Fujitsu P8010 and the Apple MacBook Air (both running Low-Voltage CPUs as opposed to the regular AMD TL-66).
Their biggest complain was the price, saying the Acer Ferrari 1100 would be more attractive if its price ($1,860) wasn’t higher than that of the more aesthetically pleasing Apple MacBook Air ($1,799) or the ASUS U6S ($1,699).
HP Compaq 2133 Roundup
February 20, 2008
Continuing our trend of discussing the Asus Eee PC’s competition, Several articles have started popping up about the HP Compaq 2133, including a very interesting one about what might be under the hood of the 2133. We should almost treat these as rumors at this piont, but it seems like the news/information is coming from several different places with good reputations, so there is probably a lot of truth to it.
With that said:
DigiTimes: DigiTimes mentions that the Chinese-language Commercial Times is reporting that Inventec is building a business-oriented UMPC for Hewlett-Packard, with a launch around April and a price above $630 USD. They mention the use of an Intel Penryn 45nm CPU, and Windows XP.
UMPC Portal on the other hand mentions something else. Chippy over at UMPC Portal has a theory (as well as some interesting sources) - that in order for the 2133 to compete across several markets (from Asus Eee PC to MacBook Air), the 2133 would need a VIA’s C7 or Isaiah CPU platform, as well as their Chrome400 graphics system, and that such a system could scale up to 2GHz. As they mention, if this indeed came to pass, it would be a huge deal for VIA, both in terms of actual orders/income, as well as publicity.
Finally, James Kendrick has posted his thoughts on the HP 2133. He mentions that while it has the same display size as the Fujitsu P1620, the 2133 has a larger bezel around the screen, allowing for a larger keyboard. He also thinks they need to go with AMD rather than VIA or Intel, and that if the device is going to run Vista, it should have 2GB of memory to do it well (and I agree, 2GB of memory these days is cheap).
Reviews: HP Pavilion tx1000 vs tx2000 (TabletPCReview)
February 14, 2008
TabletPCReview has put together a review/comparison of two of HP’s Tablet PC/Convertible lineups, the HP Pavilion tx2000 series and the model it’s replacing, the HP Paviliion tx1000. Both have a 12.1″ widescreen touchscreen display (the tx2000 has an active digitizer, the tx1000 a passive digitizer - the major upgrade of the tx2000 series from the tx1000), and both are powered by AMD Turion 64 X2 dual-core processors. The specific models compared are the HP tx1001au (2GHz) and the HP tx 2011au (2.2GHz).
Full Review and Comparison: TabletPCReview.com
February 10th Odds and Ends
February 10, 2008
A roundup of interesting articles from the past week.
Wired Magazine: Like Apple, Intel Wants to Put the Internet in Your Pocket - Discussion of Intel’s Silverthorne and Intel’s efforts at pushing beyond that, to where we can have a near-desktop like internet experience in a mobile device we can practically carry in our pockets.
CNET Blogs: “Which is sturdier, a MacBook Air or an HP business laptop?” A quick first-look at the MacBook air at how it stacks up against an HP notebook and how sturdy it feels and how it’s handling heat.
Akihabara News: Evergreen’s Mini Trackball for Your Laptop - a very small trackball made for travelers and those desiring a very small device - weighs in at 77 grams/2.7 ounces.
Engadget: Dell XPS M1330 update BIOS hints at upcoming Blu-Ray/DVD combo drive - a new BIOS update for the M1330 mentions “Blu-Ray / DVD +/- RW Combo Drive”.
AppleInsider: Rumor: possible Apple event brewing for late February - Might or might not be somewhere around the 26th. Could it be time for Penryn-based MacBook Pros, etc.?
LifeHacker: Remove Stains from a MacBook with Toothpaste - apparently toothpaste can clean up white MacBooks
jkOnTheRun: HP wants to sell you a Tablet PC - HP has produced a cool little video detailing the advantages of convertible/Tablet PC laptops.
GottaBeMobile: How Cool Is The HP TC1100 Tablet PC? mentions that the TC1100 makes an appearance in the above video showing off the 2710p convertible.
Engadget: Dell further clarifies how and where it’s dropping AMD The Engadget crew spoke with Dell about whether or not Dell was dropping AMD CPUs from their lineup. There was an image that went up on a Dell site indicating that AMD CPUs were not going to be sold anymore (or rather Dell products with said CPUs). Dell’s response: Not sure how/why the image appeared, AMD-based consumer computers will be in stores only except for certain desktops and the Inspiron 1501 notebook. Business-oriented lines (including the Latitude) that have AMD CPUs will still be sold online, and so on. Read the full article for all the details. Kind of an interesting/murky situation if you ask me.
Finally,
CNET Blogs: Windows Vista SP1 - Benchmarks - Robert Vamosi has put Microsoft Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) through it’s paces, including Adobe Photoshop CS3, file copying, iTunes encoding, and DVD battery life tests.
As you know, Vista SP1 has been released to manufacturing and some users are already getting their hands on it.
That wraps it up for this week in review.
