HP ProBook 6570b Battery |
Posted: July 16, 2014 |
As you can see, the horizontal viewing angles are just plain impressive. The screen is readable all the way out to almost 90 degrees off center even if there is a little color distortion!Vertical viewing angles are not as extreme, but they are better than most laptops I have seen. Discoloration only starts to occur around 45 degrees off center (where most matte displays start having issues after 10-30 degrees), but even then it is readable. The screen only becomes unreadable at angles greater than about 60-70 degrees above center. When viewing from below, even with discoloration the screen is definitely legible. The two pictures to on the left are the screen at typical vertical viewing angles. Notice there is very little discoloration, and everything is readable. The two pictures on the right are the same views, but taken at extreme angles (80 degrees or more)…and the text/graphics are still viewable! At 7.7lbs the 8710p is amongst the lightest of all 17” machines. It is portable, it is powerful, and it is built to impress. There is a huge amount of power in this case, yet most of the time the laptop keeps itself fairly cool and quiet. Given that only SLI DX10 notebooks will be more powerful than the NVS 320M/8700GT, the notebook packs quite a gaming punch as well. Definitely a nice notebook and I would say it is a steal at the price point this is listed for. Despite the problems with my old notebook, I still stick by HP and their ability to deliver some excellent products and to stand behind their products if severe problems crop up. This notebook is no exception.The old HP Pavilion dv7 is dead. Long live the ENVY dv7! This update to HP’s popular 17-inch multimedia laptop might pack enough value to be a true heir to the PC throne. The HP ENVY dv7t-7200 is a new Windows 8 laptop release that sports a 17.3-inch screen and comes in a wide variety configurations to suit almost any budget or performance needs. If the ENVY dv7t looks strangely familiar, you’re right, it’s simply a rebranding of the 2012 Pavilion dv7t line but with the updated Windows 8 OS. HP is now placing the ENVY label on any laptop it deems as being a performance machine or having premium design. The company has also stopped producing the 15-inch ENVY 15 and 17-inch ENVY 17 models, citing the fact there was too much overlap between those machines and the equivalent dv6 and dv7.
Right: Indicator lights, USB 3.0, USB 2.0, optical drive (Blu-ray or DVD), AC adapter and Kensington lock slot Screen While using the Compaq 2510p I had the opportunity to take it on some travels, which is what an ultraportable is designed to do. The 2510p was used on a 4-hour train ride between Boston and New York and on a plane trip I took between Cincinnati and New York. Even though my regular 14-inch screen laptop weighs a fairly light 5lbs, it was so nice to have a laptop that had a weight of just over 3lbs, I could hardly tell it was in my backpack as it weighs less than some textbooks. The real miracle with the 2510p is that it has an integrated optical drive — something I really prefer to have that a majority of ultraportables leave out. I weighed the 2510p using a scale and below are the readings for various weight configurations: You can configure the 2510p with integrated Verizon or AT&T broadband access. I can attest that on the train you can actually stay connected 90% of the time if you’re travelling on the East coast of the U.S. at least. Pretty cool! It allowed me to crank out some work I couldn’t have done without being connected. The HP Compaq 2510p is definitely a strong option in the ultraportable category. It improves on the previous Compaq nc2400 by offering a built-in optical drive while still keeping the weight about the same. The 2510p has a solid build and professional look. While it may not be as flashy as the competing Toshiba R500 or Sony VAIO TZ in terms of design, I think business people might prefer what I consider better usability, more durable build and more mature security and software suite the HP 2510p provides. The notebook isn’t perfect, the pointing stick issue and average display brightness that doesn’t live up to the "illumi-lite" billing that would lead you to expect a blazing bright display is dissapointing. I’d love to see SSD offered to boost performance over the standard 1.8" hard drive as well. Outside of that the HP 2510p is close to being a home-run for all the features it offers in such a small package, I’d certainly be happy to have it as a permanent travel companion!Are you looking for an inexpensive sub-$500 notebook for basic home and office use? The 15.6-inch HP Pavilion g6 might just deliver the best bang for your bucks. We took an in-depth look at this budget laptop to see if you can save money and still buy an impressive new PC. Build and Design The g6 is rather sturdy for a budget notebook. The chassis is stiff and takes effort to twist. Additionally, the palm rest and surrounding areas don’t flex or bend when pushed down upon. The display panel (and more specifically the screen lid) is the only part that needs improvement; it is flimsy and twists easily; ripples also show up on the screen when pushed in on from behind. I was impressed however by the display hinges, which are metal and very securely anchored to the chassis. The display hardly wobbles at all. The most interesting thing we can talk about in regards to the build quality of the ENVY x2 is the docking connector mechanism for the tablet. When the screen is in place it truly looks like any other laptop, if you didn’t know otherwise you’d guess it’s just a pure laptop device. The hinge and docking mechanism are both firm and secure, the tablet is held so tightly in place that it’s hard to even forcibly generate screen wobble, you will not have any screen shake problems on a bumpy plane or train ride.Here’s the kicker though, the tablet is actually very easy to remove by simply sliding the latch at the top center of the keyboard and then lifting with one hand. Reseating the tablet to the keyboard dock is just as simple, just center up the Windows logo with the latch and gently slide it onto the magnetic guided docking connectors and it’ll go on smooth and easy. There’s some seriously good mechanical engineering at work here with the Envy x2, we take our hats of to the designers of this latch and connector mechanism. The display size is 11.6-inch diagonal and it sports a 1366 x 768 resolution. Other Windows 8 hybrid laptops such as the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 and Dell XPS 12 offer a 1600 x 900 HD+ and 1920 x 1080 Full HD resolution respectively so it’s a little disappointing to be stuck with the lower resolution HD screen on the Envy x2. That said, the detachable screen and Intel Atom processor make the x2 a somewhat different beast.One thing to be praised is the fact HP went with an IPS screen, meaning viewing angles are very wide and you see the same color no matter how you tilt the screen. The colors are very rich and accurate, which is again typical of an IPS display. The brightness level is so-so, you certainly won’t be able to use this outdoors in the full sun, the screen just isn’t bright enough for that. The screen is however bright enough for any type of indoor usage. Like every other tablet, the display also has a glossy finish, this helps to make colors pop more that are on the screen but it has the side affect of picking up fingerprints easily and reflecting any strong light coming from behind you.
The touchpad is nicely recessed and has a width of 3.5″ and is 2.5″ deep. It’s technically a clickpad, meaning you can push down anywhere to register a left click but you have to push down on the lower right side for a right click. It’s more intuitive to use the screen for things such as scrolling and zooming, but the Synaptics powered touchpad still offers these multi-touch gesture features of course. You can easily enable or disable the various touchpad gestures using the Synaptics driver software provided. The physical touchpad itself is rather slippery, which makes it easy to glide your finger across but doesn’t offer as much control accuracy as a more textured touchpad. We also found the touchpad to be intermittently unresponsive, with the cursor either jumping unexpectedly or not reacting at all when touched. A couple of times after docking the ENVY x2 the touchpad failed to work at all and a reboot was necessary.The HP Mini 100e is the latest education-oriented netbook to hit the market, aimed solely at schools and skipping the standard consumer channels. This model features a unique clam shell design with integrated handle and a very rugged body. In this review we see how well it stacks up against similar models, including the Dell Latitude 2100, so you can decide if it’s the right netbook for your school. The keyboard on the Mini 100e feels very rugged while still maintaining a level of comfort that you would want on a consumer netbook. The keys seem more solid than what you would find on a standard consumer netbook or notebook. The individual key labels were etched instead of printed, meaning they won’t wear off over time. The keyboard tray exhibited zero flex under strong pressure, indicating excellent support from below. I found the 92% full-size design to be comfortable to type on but if given the chance I would probably choose a standard notebook for extended typing sessions. Smaller hands might not have this problem though. The indication lights for caps lock, volume mute, and wireless on/off are integrated into the keyboard through the designated function keys. The main body of the laptop has an exterior hard plastic shell and a strong magnesium alloy inner shell much like its predecessor. The base of the laptop feels very firm, strong, and would definitely survive many bumps and bruises that other laptops might not. There is no flex in the keyboard, nor any other area on the keyboard deck. The underside of the notebook is also similarly rigid and strong with the exception of the area immediately underneath the notebook’s optical drive. At that point I can push against the shell and it will bend in just a little bit. The outer shell of the screen casing is made of metal, but the inner screen bezel is plastic. As some of you may remember, my review of the nc8430 revealed that the screen bezel of that notebook was slightly ‘loose’ and could be pulled away a little bit with your finger and also pushed in towards the LCD. The 8510w improved on the construction so that the bezel would not give when you pushed in towards the screen, but the bezel can still be pulled away somewhat. The laptop screen housing also could be twisted a little bit too much.
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