Exclusive: 2010 HP Pavilion dv3 Review

New 2010 HP Pavilion dv3

HP Fansite super exclusive review of the 2010 HP Pavilion dv3: If there’s one fantastic thing the world didn’t see coming this year, it would be the brand new 2010 HP Pavilion dv3. Redesigned from the ground up (along with its larger siblings dv5, dv6 and dv7) and looking nothing like pre-2010 Pavilion models, the 2010 Pavilion dm4 is designed for those who want a compact notebook with plenty of power. At the moment, the HP Pavilion dm4 will sell alongside existing dv4, but with the total makeovers HP has done to the dv5, dv6 and dv7 models this month, who knows what they’ll do to the old, glossy dv4?

Update: Whoops, epic fail on my behalf. This is not the Pavilion dm4 – I was too busy gushing over the greatness of the notebook for several days that I didn’t even notice that this is in fact… the 2010 Pavilion dv3. Apologies for the mistake, and thank you to the many readers who pointed out the confusion to me (-embarrassed look on face-). I would also like to extend further thanks to those who sent in links to HP’s product pages (Those are exactly what I’ve been looking for!)

Here’s a sneak peak of what the new Pavilion dv3 has to offer: it has a quad core Intel Core i7 processor (yes, quad core!) and new DirectX 11 kicking Mobility Radeon 5400 series graphics (Updated; new 2010 dv3 has lower end graphics than similar dm4) from ATI! Hit the link for HP Fansite’s complete, super in-depth, super exclusive review of the notebook!

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Spotted: New Intel Core i7 Quad Mobile and i5 Mobile processors

New Core i5 and Core i7 mobile processors leaked!

HP does it again! Reading through a recently posted Service Manual of the spanking new HP Envy 17, I’ve spotted three, new and upcoming Intel Core i5 and Core i7 Mobile processors that will be coming to HP Envy’s near you in the coming months (and presumably in other performance notebooks as well). The new processors include:

• Intel Core i7 840QM Quad-core processor – With a ‘native’ clock speed of 1.86 GHz and the ability to go up to 3.20 GHz using Turbo Boost, the i7-840QM is the new flagship processor of Intel’s non-Extreme line of processors. This processor is a wee bit faster than the 820QM, while maintaining 8 MB of L3 cache and 45W TDP rating. Another interesting fact is that the i7-840QM appears as an option alongside, instead of replacing, its 820QM sibling.
• Intel Core i7 740QM Quad-core processor – This looks like the love child of the existing Core i7 720QM and i7 820QM processors, sporting the 1.73 GHz clock speed of the latter and 6 MB of L3 cache of the former, and 45W TDP shared by all the existing Quad Core i7’s (except the i7-920XM). Maximum Turbo Boost speed is 2.93 GHz: that sits somewhere between the two (i7-720QM and i7-820QM).
• Intel Core i5 450M dual core processor – This is a very strange new processor indeed. Strange because it appears like a clone of the i5-520M processor with the same specifications and info on paper. 2.4 GHz dual core, with the ability to go up to 2.93 GHz via Turbo Boost, 3 MB of L3 cache and 35W TDP.

There are also a couple of implied new processors with the appearance of the three above. Here’s what I expect to also arrive (in other notebooks) at the same time:

• Intel Core i7 940XM Quad-core Extreme processor – With the i7 840QM able to hit the same 3.20 GHz ceiling as the i7 920XM via Turbo Boost, expect to see an upgraded i7 940XM mobile processor with 2.26 GHz clock speed and ability to Turbo Boost to 3.33 GHz or more.
• New Intel Core i5 500M series processors (i5 530M and i5 550M) – These new processors will maintain their 35W TDP, while giving an increase in clock speed/Turbo Boost max clock speed.

Well, go right ahead and check out that Service Manual to see those new processor options yourself, along with a wealth of information related to the Envy 17 (like how there’s no battery slice available, the fact it uses the GDDR5 version of the ATI Mobility Radeon 5850 and not DDR3 [rejoice!], how the hard drives and RAM slots are now “customer accessible” and more!). The new processors also make an appearance in the HP Envy 15 Service Manual, hinting that the Envy 15 (and it’s rather not-so-nice keyboard) is not so dead yet… well, there’s always wishful thinking that a redesigned 2nd gen Envy 15 or Envy 16 will come out this fall, right?

Tablet news: Touchsmart tm2 getting LV i3/i5 soon, rumored webOS HP Slate

Hey, here’s a two-in-one news story about HP tablet/slate devices. The first, fairly solid rumor/announcement is that the recently released HP Touchsmart tm2 will be packed with the latest, but currently unannounced, Intel low-voltage Core i3 and Core i5 processors in a few months’ time, most likely somewhere during summer, towards the July/August period where Intel has had some history in announcing new stuff. Well, that’s great news for ‘back to school’ goers and people who can wait for a while before buying their new notebook… but probably not so great for people like me – you know, the type who wants the ‘latest and greatest’ but at the same time needs to get a new notebook pretty soon (I’m looking for an ultra-portable to replace my current HP Mini this year).

In other news, there’s whispers of a HP Slate like slate in development that will run WebOS (courtesy of buying Palm not two weeks ago). Sources are saying that mobile processors will definitely be used in this latest “Slate” (compared to the original HP Slate that will run on Intel Atom ‘netbook’ processors), though the topic as to which mobile processor is up for speculation (I’m betting some upgraded/future Snapdragon processor/Nvidia Tegra 2). Rumors from the web (which usually are less reliable, like the time that the speculated ‘HP iPaq K3 Obsidian’ turned out to be called the ‘HP iPaq Glisten’ instead) label this upcoming HP slate, the HP Hurricane. Seeing we haven’t quite gotten any names from sources yet, I guess we’ll stick to that for now – look out for further news about the HP Hurricane in the future (which will be listed under our existing HP Slate news category)

HP announces completely redesigned Pavilion dm4, dv5, dv6 and dv7 notebooks

HP also launched a couple of new consumer-level Pavilion models today. Looks like they’re heading towards a new direction with a full rehash of their 14 to 17 inch Pavilion dv models. These new models no longer have those overly glossy lids and keyboard decks (you know, those that people were complaining about being fingerprint magnets) and, with the exception of the glossy display, have lost all things “shiny” (those touch sensitive, lit keys included). Instead these new Pavilion models now have a much more subtle, more aesthetically pleasing I must also comment, design – with aluminum cases with fairly low profile (Except the Pavilion dm4) imprints, full-size and color-contrasting chiclet style keyboards (the Pavilion dv6 even “borrows” the Envy 15’s whole keyboard design, trashy quick launch buttons included! But thankfully the rest have regular keyboards… for, you know, typists who don’t want to hit the wrong keys) and of course, big and buttonless multi-touch trackpads – it’s pretty evident that the Envy series had a pretty big influence on the guys who designed the new Pavilion dm4, Pavilion dv5, Pavilion dv6 and Pavilion dv7 notebooks we see today. Oh, these new notebooks also have more airvents and more LOGICALLY placed airvents (ie the vent for outward airflow isn’t placed facing the bottom anymore) than their predecessors. Note that the latter three models (dv5, dv6, dv7) share the model designations as their predecessors, but have completely different designs – so watch out before you buy!

HP Pavilion dm4

HP Pavilion dv5

HP Pavilion dv7

Specs to come…

HP Envy 14 and Envy 17 finally revealed

Well, they’re finally official now and I can quit receiving these kazillion emails about the upcoming Envy 14/17 models… wait, at least until the Envy 11 and Envy 18 emails start flooding in a couple months’ time . Right now, the information being provided by HP is scarce. But after some “digging around”, I’ve managed to compile a much more comprehensive list of specifications for the Envy 14 and Envy 17, more than you’ll find on other sites out there. All the info I’ve listed below are accurate/confirmed except where noted otherwise.

For both the Envy 14 and Envy 17, the following things will come as standard/available features:

• Choice of Intel Core i5 dual core, Intel Core i7 dual core and Intel Core i7 Quad core processors (yes, the Envy 14 can be configured as a quad-core machine!)
• Fully backlit, chiclet style keyboard; NO annoying ‘quick media/quick launch’ buttons to hinder typing
• Metal/aluminum chassis with metal etching design (same patterns on the lid/palmrest as Envy 15)
• HP True Vision “HD” webcam (I think they can record/webconference in 720p; haven’t confirmed, I’m not really a big webcam user)
• Built-in slot-loading optical drives (contrary to earlier documents and HP info; somehow someone managed to squeeze in those optical drives)
• 7200 rpm hard disks will come standard; solid state drives (SSD) will also come as an option
• Dual built-in microphones
• Extra large button-less trackpads with brand new trackpad firmware/software for improved operation (really)
• Much improved cooling/airflow and heat dissipation
• LAN port for you network cable users
• Dedicated audio in and audio out ports for microphone and headphones respectively (unlike the single combo port on the Envy 15)

And looking at them individually now, first we have the HP Envy 14:

• 2 dedicated USB ports + 1 combo eSATA/USB port
• Standard full-size keyboard without numeric pad (doh!)
• 14 inch 16:9 aspect ratio “HD” (at least 1366 x 768; higher resolution panel options unconfirmed) LED backlit display; this one’s an “extra-bright” HP Radiance display (similar to how the Envy 13 had a 13 inch Radiance display)
• Two speaker Beats-branded (or logo stamped) speakers
• Single hard disk bay
• 2 or 4 DDR3 RAM slots
• 1 GB (confirmed) of ATI Mobility Radeon 56xx or 57xx graphics(unconfirmed; dm4 has ATI 5400 series graphics so the Envy 14 should have something higher)
• Optional (or probably standard in some countries) slim battery slice (styled ala Envy 13/Envy 15 battery slices) brings battery life to “up to 13.75 hours”
• Mini Display Port and HDMI port (No VGA out)
• Thin design, around an inch thick

The HP Envy 17

Next up is the much-discussed Envy 17:

• 3 dedicated USB ports + 1 combo eSATA/USB port
• Standard full-size keyboard WITH numeric pad
• 17 inch 16:9 aspect ratio full HD (1920 x 1080) display; appears to be a non-Radiance display
• Two speaker Beats-branded speakers plus “Triple Bass Reflex” (fancy name!) miniature subwoofer
• Dual hard disk bays (HP says you can have up to 2 TB of storage, not sure if they made a typo there because 2 TB in a notebook sounds… wrong)
• 2 or 4 DDR3 RAM slots
• 1 GB ATI Mobility Radeon 5850 graphics with Eyefinity “enabled”
• Optional extended primary battery juts out the bottom of the notebook
• Whopping THREE display output ports: Mini Display Port, HDMI and VGA out
• ATI Eyefinity support allows you to hook up three displays to the said three display output ports without any adapter needed
• Thin design, around an inch thick

And finally, we have a bunch of question marks floating around which I’ll post answers to when I get more information:

• Do the HP Envy 14 and Envy 17 support USB 3.0? If yes, how many of the ports are USB 3.0 and how many are USB 2.0?
• Is dual monitor “Eyefinity” enabled/do-able using the Envy 14?
• Seeing the Envy 17 has a  “stick out style” optional primary battery, will there be any (if at all) sort of slim battery slice for it?

I’m sure one of these days, either the Envy 14 or Envy 17 or both is gonna show up at my door, so meanwhile let’s discuss. You can start shooting me your questions so I can find answers to them the minute I get the chance to test out the new HP Envy’s.

HP buys Palm for $1.2 billion

Well, I’m sure HP and Palm have known each other pretty well for a while now, since the days of Pocket PCs and PDA devices early last decade (the 2000’s) and today they finally got together via HP’s acquisition for Palm. Alright, forget the financial stuff and hoo’s and haa’s to this pretty sudden and shocking piece of news – we’ve already got enough of that around the internet, what we’re gonna look at is what could potentially happen out of this, and how/what changes could be done…

Phone OS Strategy

Well, once they get off their butts and release a couple of new (hopefully, droolworthy) phones for the world, HP is likely to support and use two different mobile operating systems for their phones – Web OS (or whatever they call it if they decide to change the name) and Windows Phone 7 (because they’ve already been confirmed as one of the companies on the list at Microsoft’s various Windows Phone 7 launches, parties, events and conferences). Three would be possible – adding Android into the mix – but unlikely, at least for now, in my opinion. First off, if HP were to further develop Web OS as their “in-house” OS and re-establish their presence in the mobile device arena, they would need quite a bit of horsepower and work done in order to maintain what Palm created while pushing it forward and/or HP-izing Web OS. Remember, they not only need to run their own OS show now, but also the things that come along with it – such as the Palm’s app store. Next, they already will have their hands full (or filled up) because of Windows Phone 7 as well. A gut feeling tells me that HP will be one of the first, if not the first, manufacturer to launch a Windows Phone 7 device – due to their new-found motivation today (you should see the various statements on how they’re gonna get back into the phone/mobile device game) and also because of their close ties with the big M (Microsoft). Adding a third OS would not only cause problems for support, but also require HP to either channel in more funds or move people from the other 2 teams towards doing up an Android-based phone – and remember, we don’t want quantity, we want quality (anyone seen what HP’s been doing with their iPAQ phones over the last 3 years?!)

What goes where?

We’re likely to see HP bring out one or two Windows Phone 7 devices, which will also likely be their ‘flagship’ products, and release a couple of consumer-level phones running Web OS. For the latter plan, it’s either they will just release/rush out a new Web OS phone “as is and as made/developed by Palm” (I’m sure they’re bound to have something designed somewhere before today’s acquisition) which would tell everyone “hey, we really wanna do this!” or take their time, make everyone wait and wonder, and boom, suddenly release something new or completely new that’s based off Palm’s legacy.

Why not the reverse? Why not Windows Phone 7 devices for the masses/consumer-level and a Web OS phone as their flagship? Well, in time I’m sure that will happen, but not now I think. HP would probably want to HP-fy Web OS before doing that, which will probably take a while.

Spillover to Touchsmart, Slate and beyond

Assuming HP makes good use of Palm’s resources and existing know-how, we could jolly well see UI elements, or even the whole Web OS itself, moved and used on HP’s other products such as their Touchsmart line or in their tablets (Slate) line. When this would happen is unknown – HP could upscale the OS and use it as an option to run on their to-be-launched-soon HP Slate… but it’s also equally likely that they would want to make tweaks, launch it for their phones, check out market reaction and then only put it on other products.

New HP iPAQs… soon?!

HP hasn’t released any new additions to their iPAQ line for over a year and a half now… while I’m sure they are/should be brewing up something good by now, I wonder if they’re gonna release any new phones between now and Windows Phone 7’s release later this year, to you know, remind everyone “we still make phones!”