HP
At the 2009 International CES, HP unveiled their dx9000 touch-enabled PC.
The HP dx9000 TouchSmart Business PC
Essentially a TouchSmart for the business market, this PC again vaults HP to the vanguard in innovation in the PC space, this time, in the business...(read more)
2008 was one of those years when there seemed to be innovative products everywhere.
Resultantly, we are compelled to laud those products that moved us.
Announcing the SmallBizWindows Annual Product Awards 2008.
The final countdown has begun…
Unless you have been in suspended animation for the past few weeks, you know about the HP Magic Giveaway.
What you may not know is that the contest here ends at 11.59 PM Pacific on December 14, 2008. We are still accepting...(read more)
The HP Magic Giveaway is the event of this Christmas Season*: a giving of a massive amount of computing hardware and software HP and Microsoft to single person for both personal use, and for giving it forward to other deserving people or organizations.
*I use Christmas to describe this season for several reasons. However, it is your season, whatever your faith or beliefs are.
We are giving away four systems, a Media Center Extender, and a bunch of software.
Grinler over at BleepingComputer.com has just announced the first – and may I say ‘lucky’ – winner in the global HP Magic Giveaway.
The winner is Bryan6376 on his website. His post announcing the winner is here . Next up for winner announcements: Josh...(read more)
It is happening very soon…
A few seconds ago, HP announced the HP Magic Giveaway , where 50 bloggers around the world are being asked to play a role in creating some magic for some lucky people this Christmas season.
I am privileged to have been invited...(read more)
I have been testing the HP Color LaserJet CM6040f at our Northern Colorado MedikLabs for over nine weeks.
Based on the review we have awarded it the SmallBizVista.com Superstar Award, denoting impressive performance.
At Logikworx, our recommended departmental multifunction printers have been the Gestetner DSc525 or the Xerox WorkCentre Pro C2636.
However, these units seemed to suffer from a (photo)copier bias, with the resultant effect that integrating them into the workflow of a company’s operations, especially a remotely-managed one, was unwieldy.
Based on that and a desire to improve clients’ workflow, I requested, and received, a review of the CM6040f.
The HP Color LaserJet CM6040f
The CM6040f is the ultimate in HP’s digital printer product line for non-commercial use. A descendant of the famed Mopier, this device is built for speed and durability. It is a high-speed color multifunction laser printer capable of speeds of 40 pages per minute in both color and black and white modes on paper up to 11” x 17” in size. It copies, prints, faxes, scans…all at a very high speed.
The CM6040f is a big printer! The shipping weight was 383 lbs as delivered. Not a typo, really 383 lbs. and that was without the 3-bin stapler/stacker or booklet maker/finisher units! A professional installer came along the next day to complete the install.
Very good service, very white-glove. Then again, exceptional service has always been a hallmark of HP in general, and the printer division in particular.
Review Scenario
Most of our clients are in the upper small- to midmarket sizes. As a result, a capable multifunction device eliminates the need for several desktop/deskside devices.
I decided to use our MedikLab, a fully functioning and operational multi-provider physician’s clinic for this review.
The Review
Using the embedded GigE print server, I attached the CM6040f to the Lab’s Windows Server 2008 network, and connected the printer to the PSTN fax line as well.
After the physical installation, I very easily connected to the printer and used a browser page to customize the printer for the clinic.
Fax Services: For fax services, I decided to use the printer for basic walk-up fax sending since individual fax services were being handled by Server SBS.
Copy & Print: Printing was a snap. Speed is something the CM6040f does, and does very well. At a proven 40 ppm in either black and white or color modes, this printer screamed through all assigned tasks.
The paper capacity of this printer is 2100 pages set out over five bins: four internal 500-sheet trays, and an external 100-sheet manual feeder. It can handle all US paper sizes up to 11” x 17”, and international sizes up to A4/SRA3 (12” x 18”).
An automatic duplexer is also standard. Printer drivers for this unit included PCL5, PCL6, and PostScript. An added benefit is that you can download all of the software required to run the CM6040f from HP.com.
Scanning: High performance scanning, output either to print, the embedded hard drive, to folders set up on a file server, or on client computers.
The CM6040f in use
Compared to the printers we normally recommend and implement, the computer background of HP shows in the operation of this MFC.
From the intuitive UI on the touchscreen control panel to the web-based configuration, to the included accessory software, the testers were able to be immediately productive on this MFC. All employees got an inbox for documents, and I also created local storage for them.
In the use of the CM6040f, I looked for ease of use, speed, and versatility. I found it all. This MFC is years ahead of all supposed competitors in ease of use, value, reliability, versatility, speed, and functionality. In print/copy mode, having a printer spew out pages at a 40 page per minute clip in black-and-white or color is just impressive. As a network fax, the physicians were able to skip two steps in prescription fulfillment: printing out and faxing a script to pharmacies.
It is a testament to the ability of this MFC device that a departmental printer would garner such ink.
With all of the work that was thrown at it, the CM6040f worked capably, and relatively silently
Cons
Unfortunately, not all was well.
The epiphany I had with regards to the need for a greater integration between the print assets of a company, its users, and the network paid off handsomely in this review of the CM6040f. We are placing it at the very top of our list for enterprise printers.
As a result of the abilities displayed by the Hewlett-Packard Color LaserJet CM6040f, we have awarded it the SmallBizVista Superstar Award.
This is one impressive MFC device!
For real!
My friend Stephanie has a Dell Inspiron 1520 laptop. (Purchased last year before I knew her, else, it would have been an HP – believe that!)
Anyhoo, unfortunately for Stephanie, she inadvertently clicked on a particularly nasty piece of malware...(read more)
The Hewlett-Packard xw8600 Personal Workstation is the first ever recipient of The SmallBizVista.com Absolute Best Award.
Why?
The HP xw8600 is the best workstation on the market today. Period.
This workstation embodies the very best of the massive amount of engineering IP and manufacturing prowess HP has amassed over the past nearly four decades.
I have been in possession of a copy of this fine system for the past couple of months.
The HP xw8600 Personal Workstation
The xw8600 sits at the top of HP’s line of personal workstations, and is powered by your customizable choice of several Intel Xeon processors. As the top system in the workstation line, the xw8600 is configurable in so many ways that even the most demanding of users/companies will be accommodated.
Immediately, you notice that this system is built for speed, reliability, expandability, and power.
Unboxing
I took no unboxing pictures, for I was too excited tearing the box and setting the system on its testing pedestal.
However, some pictures of the unboxed xw8600 are below.
Target
The xw8600 is targeted at the upper end of the personal workstation segment. Indeed, if you require more processing power, you would have to get a cluster of these workstations together, or obtain budget authorization for a supercomputer.
For upper-echelon digital content creation producers, architectural design, engineering, oilfield and geologic/geophysical telemetry and analysis, and Wall Street types, this system is perfect. And without peer.
It is that powerful!
However, that power left me in a conundrum: how do I test such a system correctly, sufficiently reaching its performance headroom, and tasking components and subsystems in real world scenarios?
Have no fear though; I was up to the task.
Review Scenarios
In order to adequately review the xw8600, I set up a test scenario using each of the professions listed above. I also configured the system to serve as my command center for my managed services operations.
Scenario 1: Digital Content Creation
For the digital content creation or DCC testing, I used two tools to create content: Adobe Creative Suite 3 Production Premium and Microsoft Expression Studio 2.
The xw8600 seemingly made a mockery of the tasks I threw its way in this scenario, though a double-secret script I was given utilized all eight cores, and pushed the CPU’s VU meters to 100%. Even then, memory utilization was quite low.
Scenario 2: Architectural Design
Taking a different tack, I decided to be use Microsoft’s Caligari TrueSpace v7.6 to create a dream home.
While free, TrueSpace is not for the faint of heart. However, it allows even design neophytes such as yours truly, John Obeto, to be really creative.
I started with basic design, and then moved to using it to create a basic animation of the building.
The fluidity with which the twin NVIDIA FX5600 GPUs handled 3D modeling is just impressive. I was able to manipulate and modify my design very fluidly, without hiccups.
After getting somewhat depressed by the difference between what I wanted in the home as evidenced by my creation, and what I can afford, I pulled the plug.
However, I will gladly let HP provide me with the dream home I designed, so that I might re-test the xw8600.
Scenario 3: Structural Engineering
I drew on my earlier-in-life training to use AutoCAD and the xw8600 in an attempt to perform flow analysis of a part I designed.
Conclusion: design using the xw8600 = easy. Me, I need more classes, these past couple of decades away from the field having caused my design skills to atrophy.
Scenario 4: Oilfield Services and Geological Analysis
Geological analysis is one of the sectors that must be on the radar of the designers of this system.
As a result, I decided to use the xw8600 as the workstation for an oilfield services engineer.
In order to do this, I employed the resources of a client, a global oilfield services company, in the setting up of a client station with their software suite, allowing a selected user to use the xw8600 for the following:
It was cool seeing this guy warm up to the xw8600 as it performed his tasks easily, and I was most pleased when he looked totally dejected as I took his new ‘toy’ away from him.
I have informed his superiors at a certain French oilfield services company that we will be glad to furnish their entire African operation with HP xw8600 Personal Workstations. For a small fee, of course.
Scenario 5: Financial Services
Another target for this system has to be the financial analysis market.
For my review scenario here, I downloaded several client software packages from online brokerages and proceeded to install them on the xw8600.
Running all of them simultaneously, and reviewing the result of the four-monitor setup, my untrained eyes went straight into information overload.
Calming down, I tried to track trends, stocks, and futures like the pros, only using imaginary money. The week spent doing that was a revelation since it came during a time of great uncertainty in the (US) stock markets, and it provided me with results that were surprising.
Scenario 6: Remote Operations Center Console
One of the reasons I use a powerful desktop, or a converted server is that I want to have a system powerful enough to allow me to monitor and control our MSP operations from my remote locations, if required.
Enter the xw8600. This computer didn’t blink. With all the stuff I threw at it, it just kept on working. At all times, I kept a watchful eye of CPU utilization, which never seemed to want to get over 20%.
Scenario 7: Mega-tasking
The hardest task I took the xw8600 through was during my virtualization tests.
Since the system had passed each of the tests with excellence, I needed something so out there that it would bring the dual X5492s to a halt.
Mega-tasking
Mega-tasking
Mike Diehl taught me that word.When I was up at the HP Personal Workstation Business Unit in Fort Collins, Colorado, a while back, I had the privilege of being briefed by Mike, who is a Product Manager for the high-end workstations for HP.
Describing the roles and computing activities required by purchasers of such a system, and the many tasks I would perform as a power user, Mike let me know that I had gone past the power user level to a whole new realm – that of a mega-tasker. The sort of user for whom the xw8600 was conceived.
A true light-bulb moment.
What better way to task this machine to the fullest than by employing virtualization.
I cleaned out the xw8600, installed Windows Vista x64 Ultimate edition and Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2* on it, and proceeded to create virtual machines, all Windows Vista Ultimate edition.
I then proceeded to replicate all of the test scenarios above, apart from the oilfield services scenario for which I did not possess the necessary software, and would not be making a return trip to their offices before I posted this review.
After setting up each scenario in a discrete VM, I brought each VM online until I had six VMs running concurrently. It was a remarkable sight!
It was at this time that the xw8600 started to show some signs of actually working, as opposed to the seemingly mocking 12% to 18% CPU utilization, I was seeing consistent readings above 50%.
Yet, my TrueSpace animation stayed fluid, indicating that even with such a heavy load, the graphics subsystem was not even doing anything more strenuous than reading the Sunday paper!
I was impressed!
*For this review, I have not used any unauthorized software. However, wink-wink, nod-nod, I know the xw8600 works well, and very well too, with both Windows Server 2008 with Hyper-V, and Windows Hyper-V Server 2008.
*Furthermore, following PDC 2008, I hope to bring you a review of the xw8600 running those hypervisors, and….tada…Windows 7 alpha bits.
Conclusions
One of the things we tend to forget as a result of the Lego-like nature of the PC and workstation industry standard architecture, or ISA, is that simply plopping best-of-breed components into a fancy box does not a true workstation create.
A workstation, by its very nature, is like a tractor for the task it is designed for, unsexy, yet powerful and reliable.
HP’s Personal Workstation line embodies the very best of HP’s heralded engineering heritage, and it shows. From the entry-level xw4600, to the silent xw6600, and now the xw8600, I have reviewed a line of well-engineered and constructed workstations. (The nightmare of the beating these babies take at the physical testing and dropping facility at HP’s Workstation BU still scares me…)
The HP xw8600 is the best workstation on the market today. Period.
In every aspect, this workstation excels: engineering, build, configurability, reliability, future proofing, support, and power. The indomitable way it resolutely completes assigned tasks is just impressive
I tasked this unit to the max, each time trying to get it to sputter in protest; however, I could not achieve that. It just worked. Very well. Reliably, too. Moreover, with extreme dispatch.
There is no doubt that it will take and incredibly monstrous task to bring this system down, or at least slow it somewhat. It will do the work assigned to it in virtually all task scenarios.
The results of our review of this system placed us in a quandary: what honor do you award a product that has excelled in all facets? A product that went beyond excellence? Indeed, a product for which excellence could be described as ‘mere’, and just a starting point?
With that in mind, the editors at SmallBizVista.com decided to create an entire new class of award, one to be given only to those products we deem as going way beyond excellence.
Since the Hewlett Packard xw8600 Personal Workstation is simply the best deskside system in the world, we have honored it with the SmallBizVista.com Absolute Best Award.
Review configuration
In my review configuration, this xw8600 came with
While this system looks loaded for bear, and for most humanoid inhabitants of this planet, it might be overkill, please understand that this configuration is just about at the midlevel of what the HP xw8600 can actually do.
Apart from the wicked fast Intel X5492 Xeons (top-of-the-line) and the insanely powerful dual FX5600 graphics (top, too), everything else was pretty average.
Look at the maximum configurations you can achieve in the xw8600:
All these with configuration options allowing for 80 PLUS efficiency ratings.
For this test, I used four monitors, an HP w2207h 22” monitor (variable view, portrait or landscape), a Viewsonic vx2235 22” monitor, and dual HP w2007 20” monitors.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank everyone that made this happen, with my most gracious thanks going to Amy Reardon and HP. Jeff Wood, Will Wade, and the entire Personal Workstation team at HP, Mike Diehl for expanding my vocabulary, and finally Marco Pena and Edelman.
Nice. And fast too.
“The quad-core Intel Xeon Processor 5400 Series consists of the new X5492, X5470, and L5430 processors, the fastest of which claims a clock speed of 3.4 GHz”
Now look at the graphic below: I have been zooming along with a dual-socket...(read more)
adacosta (Andre da Costa) has been selected as the winner of the HP xw4600 Personal Workstation Giveaway by AbsoluteVista.com.
Congratulations, adacosta!
In January of 2007, HP announced, and shipped the first generation of TouchSmart PCs. Positioned squarely at the entertainment and lifestyle spaces; it was far reaching in its potential, and probably just slightly ahead of its time.
The IQ506 represents the next generation of TouchSmart computers, and it shows in this stylish, yet functional system. The current TouchSmart software is more fluid in use, and provides seamless, yet dynamic tactile controls to the user.
Since August 5, 2008, I have been using the HP TouchSmart IQ506 personal computer.
This system is a single piece system with wireless mouse and keyboard combo. Touch functionality is enabled throughout.
Unboxing/OOBE
The TouchSmart IQ506 came in a very distinctive, and attractive yellow shipping box made of some plastic/composite material. This huge box, and with, a first for me on a system box, Velcro® bindings, contained the TouchSmart IQ506, the easily attached base, and an wireless keyboard and mouse combo in the well-padded case.
(NOTE: This yellow box is special packaging for the review units, as they have to withstand several packing and re-packing cycles during the course of the reviews.)
The OOBE setup manual, a TouchSmart user manual, and the usual support and licensing documentation were in the box as well. All required cables and cords were also in the box. A screen-wiping cloth completed the items therein.
I snapped the base onto the monitor/system unit, connected the power, and got the show started.
First impressions
I had shied away from all-in-one personal computers in the past since I assumed, correctly, that the tradeoffs were not worth the convenience of a multi-piece system.
No longer.
A look at the specs on this system reveals why:
All that in an all-in-one unit!
Testing Scenario: Entertainment
Since entertainment is one of the segments targeted by the TouchSmart, I decided to test it using lots of audio, video, and photographic content.
I went t the archives in The Floating O’odua, and transferred nearly 20,000 songs to a folder on the hard drive. I broke down my already sorted directory structure, and had WMP re-sort the files.
I copied movies to the hard drive, ripped some movies, and copied raw footage of movies, my animated movie I have been working on. I also copied several gigabytes of photographs to this system
Media Hub using HP TouchSmart Software
The HP TouchSmart system is a two-factor solution: apart from the touch functionality embedded in the TouchSmart PC hardware, HP TouchSmart software also drives this system.
The TouchSmart Software Suite is optimized for entertainment, and consists of the following components: music, video, pictures, RSS feeds, calendar, notes, and is controlled by the Touch Browser, an icon of which is embedded into the front of the system and a shortcut placed on the desktop.
Touch Browser. This allows two-finger scrolling, and single-finger selection of items. I was able to scroll easily through content listings, and select as easily.
TouchSmart Music. This is an easy-to-use music player. It presented my music in two album views that were customizable, and made the creation of playlists as simple as (finger) drag and drop. All music controls using the player were within a finger’s touch away.
TouchSmart Video. As simple to learn and use as the Music Player. It takes advantage of the embedded webcam and array microphones to enable the creation, which can be uploaded directly to YouTube.
TouchSmart Photo. TouchSmart Photo gives uses editing capabilities, with viewing, resizing, album creation, and slideshows at one’s fingertips. I found the use of touch to be much more intuitive in content creation than using the mouse.
Media hub, using Windows Media Center
After using the TouchSmart software, I connected the system to a cable feed and turned it into a media hub.
As a Windows Media Center device, the IQ506 performed as expected. DVR, HD content shone.
Media creation
In order to create content, I installed my consumer stalwarts on the system: Pinnacle Systems Studio 12, CyberLink DVDsuite, Reallusion iClone Studio 2.5 and CrazyTalk Pro 5.
Original video content was shot using a Canon HV20 HD digital camcorder, while a Canon Rebel XTi DSLR and a Nikon S52c point-and-click camera were used for still photography.
I created a movie containing animation from iClone Studio, HD content from the camcorder, and still pictures.
I then had Studio 12 transcode for Blu-Ray, regular DVD, and the Zune.
(Please look my forays into high-end content creation using the HP xw8600 and Adobe Premiere Pro shortly….)
In a word: sweet!
Unintended use: The Small Business Desktop
Why should consumers have all the fun?
One of the reasons I was intrigued by the TouchSmart series was touch functionality.
I have been a proponent of (Microsoft Windows-based) Tablet PCs since I realized the productivity gains afforded by the Tablet functionality while using them. As a result, I wanted to see if those sort of gains could be realized using the TouchSmart.
I am pleased to report that the TouchSmart does provide those productivity gains.
In my tests of the HP TouchSmart IQ506 in a small and medium business setting, from a business executive’s desktop, to an inside salesperson’s system, and culminating as a physician’s desktop adjunct to a laptop/mobile system, the IQ506 shone. Brightly, too!
It was fast, capable, ran Windows Vista™ smoothly, and didn’t create or run into incompatibility issues with software written for Windows XP.
For these business scenarios, the IQ506 met or exceeded expectations.
For the executive, being able t manipulate data and information directly using his/her own digits is without a doubt, a godsend. Perusing BI and CRM dashboards using Microsoft Office Excel and Microsoft CRM is a lot easier when you can point and select directly with your finger.
The salesperson is able to view several pieces of information, and move through several levels of that information effortlessly.
Finally, for an ongoing project, our test subjects the physicians actually preferred the TouchSmart to a standard PC since it presented the same interface as their Tablet PCs. In fact, I was informed that replacing all desktops used by the physicians and mid-level providers was under consideration, and might make it into their budget in 2008 EOY for fiscal 2009. Yeah, it was that good!
For this scenario, I installed Microsoft Research’s InkSeine.
Missing/wish list
Despite all this, the TouchSmart seemed to be missing the following:
I found myself wanting to augment the use of my fingers for close-in work, and using a stylus from one of my Tablet PCs for most of my business desktop trials.
Conclusion
The HP TouchSmart IQ500 series of systems should be your next media hub, and lifestyle system.
It is currently the best all-in-one system on the market, with the innovative TouchSmart technology serving to improve your entertainment experience.
It passes the OOBE test exceptionally, and then goes on to deliver more than expected based on that same combination of Windows Vista and HP TouchSmart functionality.
We award the HP TouchSmart IQ500-series the SmallBizVista.com Business Ready Award of Excellence.
I went into the test of this system looking to see if I could bring the benefits of TouchSmart technology to by core constituency, the small and medium business spaces.
I believe this system will deliver to the business desktop the same gains in productivity we now see in the use of Tablet PCs, of which my personal favorite is the HP tx2500 series.
I am looking forward to pitching the value represented in this device to my clients, also making them aware of the future proofing built into the IQ500 series: the Touch functionality that will be inherent in Windows 7.
System highlights
In addition to the system specs listed above,
Acknowledgements
My review of this system was speedy, and very much unexpected, for which I thank Marco Pena unconditionally. All it took for him to facilitate this review was a request.
Furthermore, he and Andy Lutzky were able to make Garrett Gargan, the Product Manager for the IQ500-series at HP, available to brief me personally on this worthy device.
DreamColor LP2480zx On June 10, 2008 in Berlin, Germany, HP publicly announced the DreamColor display – blogged about here . A technological tour de force, the DreamColor LP2480ZX set new standards of visual clarity and stunning visuals, all for a suggested...(read more)
The EliteBook 8730w, 8530w, & 8530p Mobile Workstations For the past several weeks, I have been enjoying the use – for my reviews –of HP’s latest and greatest in the personal workstation space. I started with The incredibly affordable HP xw4600 personal...(read more)
Yesterday, I received one of the new HP TouchSmart IQ506 systems to review.
A second generation of systems using HP’s TouchSmart Technology, this beautiful system is well-configured: fast Core 2 Duo processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, TV tuner, touch functionality, etc.
Right now, I’m filling it up with content.
More soon….
I have been reviewing the HP 2133 Mini-Note
This is a full-featured, small form-factor notebook PC is HP’s entry in the nascent sub-$500 ultra mobile PC category.
My review unit came with 2GB of RAM, a 160GB 7,200 RPM drive, Windows Vista Business, and Microsoft Office 2007.
The latest sub format in the ultra mobile PC category, the sub-$500 laptop is meant to be ultra portable and inexpensive, targeting the education and ultra-mobile professionals segments.
In fact, the lamented OLPC and the Eee PC so far have been at the vanguard here.
However, there is no way those toys could be mistaken for either business–ready systems, or taken seriously in the enterprise*.
*In actuality though, I am wrong. David Strom, in an issue of Baseline, actually advocated the use of the Eee PC as a replacement unit for road warriors, leading me to wonder when, just when, this formerly respected (by me) industry figure totally lost it!
With their usual focused approach to market segments, HP came up with the Model 2133 Mini-Note. It is a nice-sized, mini laptop encased entirely in an attractive aluminum case with a near-full sized QWERTY keyboard.
My review system came with Microsoft Windows Vista™ Business Edition, and Microsoft Office 2007 installed. With 2GB of RAM, shared with the VIA Chrome 9 GPU, this unit was configured for the ultra mobile worker.
I reviewed the Mini-Note using the following scenarios:
The general ultra mobile worker needs a system that is extremely portable, but able to make him or her very productive.
In this scenario, the user’s primary concern is (ultra)portability, connectivity, and battery life.
The Mini-Note fulfils this need easily.
Running on Windows Vista, it allowed our test subjects to create and edit Microsoft Office documents easily. Access to the Internet was brisk, and viewing of downloaded content was sharp.
With the plentiful number of connectivity options, our scenario also involved using my favorite Realtor as a guinea pig. I followed her around for a day as she went along her tasks.
She was able to pull down information from her office from Starbucks using her Wi-Fi option, and connect at homes she was showing using a USB cellular modem from Verizon Wireless.
At all times, she just closed the lid to send the unit to sleep. Resuming from sleep was also effortless.
Right now, most mobile executives carry around their primary desktop-replacement systems. While a good idea, it is almost always mostly overkill, as the horsepower required for their presentations does not require that much CPU power.
The Mini-Note allows such an executive to create the content required on the desktop or desktop-replacement unit, transfer it to the Mini-Note, and then use this extremely portable system to consume the content in the presence of the desired audience.
For this scenario, the Mini-Note’s output options allows sending information to projectors through the VGA output, or using the Bluetooth or Wi-Fi options.
In this scenario, the Mini-Note really shines.
I decided to up the ante in my test of the Mini-Note to include a task possibly outside the design parameters of this device to test for durability. What better way to test this than by giving it to a physician to use?
I went over to our friendly Physician Test Labs, installed Infor-Med’s Praxis EMR, their EMR/EHR program on the Mini-Note, and decided to watch the doctor do her thing.
He first comment was, “This is not a Tablet PC!” I proceeded to tell her that this was a new, low-cost offering by HP, and I wanted to get her feedback on it.
The size of the unit meant that it could fit into a lab coat, it was light enough to not weigh that side of the coat down, and the battery life was long enough that she only needed to charge it during her lunch. (Then again, hers is a 2-hr lunch!)
The Praxis EMR electronic medical records program worked flawlessly, connecting to the clinic’s network via Wi-Fi without any issues.
She used the .Mini-Note for a few days, liking it more each day, and at the end, asked me, wearing the day job hat, to spec the unit for the secondary medical staff in her office, the physicians having been supplied the HP tx2000 as their work laptops. I complied.
In my daily business life, I have tended to carry the HP tx2015 backed up by a Toshiba Tecra M7 Tablet PC.
No longer.
This system is a difference maker.
Why?
Display. The system comes with a scratch-resistant 8.9” display with 1280x768 pixel resolution.
Keyboard. The Mini-Note has a comfortable keyboard for a system of its size, no doubt a result of the keys being 92% the size of a normal keyboard. I am able to type as fast on this device as I do on a regular keyboard. The keyboard is also spill-resistant.
Touchpad. One of the innovative improvements I have seen in the notebook space recently has been in touchpads, first with the tx1000/2000 series of notebooks from HP, and continuing on to the system installed on this unit. It is functional and big thumb-proof. I like it.
Hard Drive. Mindful of the intended use, HP has the system shipping with (relatively fast) 7200 rpm, 2.5” hard disk drives. In tests, HP was able to see a marked improvement in performance from this ULV system when tested against mainstream laptops, where those laptops used the more common 5400-rpm hard disks.
Battery life. The Energizer Bunny has nothing on this system! With the included six-cell battery, the system is designed to give users about 4 hours of system life. I was able to consistently get nearly three hours and forty minutes of battery life on a full charge. Consistently!
Reliability. As an added benefit, again looking to the intended audiences, HP’s innovative 3D DriveGuard technology is included. This is a 3-axis hard disk protection system, helping, no doubt, to reduce the effects of bumps and jarring on the hard drive.
Windows Vista. While the Mini-Note can be configured with your choice of four operating systems, this is probably the only device in this category that can run Windows Vista. Not just the plain vanilla version of Windows Vista, but Windows Vista Business Edition.
This is one beautifully engineered and constructed machine.
From the looks and feel of the brushed aluminum case to the sleek, nicely-sloping keyboard, the bright screen, the numerous connectivity options, and the expansion ports, including a powered USB port, a very unusual but welcome addition to any notebook computer.
It has an extremely solid feel to it that most business users like, and appreciate.
It was engineered to be reliable, and durable, with magnesium alloy support around critical structures in the casing. Add the scratch-resistant display and the 25,000 open-and-close lifetime cycles on the hinges, and you have a ultraportable user’s dream unit right here.
I find myself using the Mini-Note in conjunction with the tx2015. I am able to mostly avoid using any of the desktops at the Orbiting O’Odua and at Logikworx, to create the necessary content required for visits to clients for presentations.
As a result, the HP 2133 Mini-Note has been given the AbsoluteVista.com Business Ready Award without any reservation whatsoever.
This award was a surprise, as I did not think this device could keep up, let alone make it in the business world – unlike its competitors.
This system is available now.
My immense thanks to Jeremy Prody and Jesus Garcia for this opportunity.
For the past couple of days, I have been speeding around the ‘Internet tubes’ using a honkin’, wicked-fast HP xw8600.
This is a dual quad-core system with gobs of RAM, dual high-end video cards, fast hard drives, etc, etc. The specs below speak for themselves.
I have just received from HP what I would call the Rolls-Royce of personal workstations, in a top-of-the-line configuration as well!
