HP 2133 Mini-Note (XP) as Cheap Laptop

When we first reviewed the Vista version of the HP 2133 Mini-Note as cheap laptop, we praised the system for its excellent keyboard, crisp display, sturdy build, and wealth of connectivity options. Now we’ve gotten our hands on the XP configuration, and although it provides roughly the same user experience, it’s a welcome addition for those who want the familiarity and snappier performance of XP. The Mini-Note ($729 as configured) is a bit more expensive and weighs more than competing mini-notebooks, but the system’s unique strengths make it a good investment for students, mobile professionals, and anyone else looking for an affordable, highly portable computer.
Design

As with other mini-notebooks, such as the CTL 2go PC, the Mini-Note is nominally aimed at the education market, but it looks far more grown-up than other notebooks in its class. Measuring 10.0 x 6.5 x 1.1 inches and weighing only 3.2 pounds, the Mini-Note is a tad bulkier than its competitors but makes up for it with an attractive brushed silver aluminum case over a magnesium-alloy chassis, giving the system a durable foundation.

Beneath the lid is a bright 8.9-inch display framed by a shiny black bezel. We didn’t experience any window-sizing problems as we have with other mini-notebooks, thanks to the screen’s 1280 x 768-pixel resolution; we enjoyed browsing our favorite Web sites as we would on a larger notebook. Colors were vibrant, and the viewing angles were quite good, but users with weak eyes may find text and icons too small.

Despite its compact dimensions, the Mini-Note features a 92 percent—size keyboard treated with a special coating that HP claims makes the keys 50 times more resistant to visible wear than a standard keyboard, and it’s spill-resistant. We loved the springy, responsive keys—easily the best of all mini-notebooks—and the wide-aspect touchpad. Unfortunately, the mouse buttons are flanked to the left and right of the touchpad and are oriented vertically, which was awkward. Double-tapping the touchpad was far simpler than acclimating ourselves to the mouse button positioning.
Loading Up on Features

Along the perimeter of the machine is a power switch, drive indicator, Wi-Fi toggle, Ethernet, VGA, headphone and microphone jacks, two USB 2.0 ports, and ExpressCard/54 and SD Card slots. Unlike competing systems, such as the ASUS Eee PC and Everex CloudBook, you can configure the Mini-Note with your choice of processors, RAM, and hard drives. Plus, you can plug in an ExpressCard mobile broadband modem, so you don’t have to rely on Wi-Fi hotspots, which makes the HP Mini-Note attractive to business customers. (Sure, you can plug a USB modem into other mini-notebooks, but they protrude from the side of the system more, making them easier to accidentally dislodge or break.)

Positioned above the display is a camera and microphone embedded in the upper bezel. The HP Mini-Note doesn’t come with a webcam utility, but Meebo immediately recognized the camera, which provided adequate image quality for video chatting. The built-in stereo speakers were surprisingly loud, but as with the majority of notebooks in this class, they lacked sufficient low-end punch.

Our Mini-Note came with Windows XP Professional installed on a 5,400-rpm 120GB hard drive (which is protected by an accelerometer); you can configure the system with Vista Business, Vista Home Basic, FreeDOS, or the SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 operating system. HP offers several drive choices as well, including a 4GB solid state drive for the Linux version (starting at $499), and 120GB and 160GB drives that spin at 5,400 rpm. These latter configurations start at $599.

Gateway T-6828

If the Gateway T-6828 is to be remembered for something, it would be for including a two-year warranty in a value price: $800 (street). Adding an extra year on top of the one-year standard warranty is a game changer for budget laptops. Otherwise, apart from a few features like the 3GB of RAM and a 250GB hard drive, the T-6828 offers little to distinguish it from low-priced systems by vendors such as Dell, HP, and Lenovo.

The T-6828 isn't embarrassing to take out in public, and it doesn't have a drab design like that of the Acer TravelMate 4720-6727 or the Fujitsu LifeBook A6120. Yet coating the exterior and palm rests with red paint is an old concept; the paint should have been applied with more imagination to have any real impact, given the interesting things that are happening in laptop design. Laptops like the HP Pavilion dv6500t and the Toshiba U405-S2830 are experimenting with decorative laminates, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 impresses consumers with a textured surface. Another problem is weight. This 14-inch laptop weighs 5.7 pounds, as much as the 15.4-inch HP dv6500t. Gateway would have been better off going with a 13-inch form factor, as many manufacturers are currently doing.

The 14-inch screen is very pleasant to look at, but it has the modest 1,280-by-800 resolution found in many inexpensive laptops. By contrast, the Dell Inspiron 1420 gives you the option of a 1,440-by-900 resolution. The mouse buttons, like those of the Gateway M-152XL, make a noise that's noticeable in a quiet setting, but I really enjoyed typing on the keyboard. Above the keyboard, the river of multimedia buttons is another example of how Gateway is falling behind in terms of design. Touch-sensitive buttons would have been a better choice, as they are much easier to press.

These days a company—especially one that's not at the top of market—needs to throw in more in the way of features than people would normally expect. Yet with the T-6828, Gateway gives you just enough to get by. For instance, it omitted an HDMI port to cut down on costs. The T-6828 also lacks a FireWire port and an S-Video-out. The three USB ports and dual-layer DVD burner are no better than average for a 14-inch laptop. The T-6828 gives you 250GB worth of storage, but I can't really applaud Gateway for this, because adding storage capacity is cheap these days. Lenovo, by contrast, went the extra mile with its Y510 by offering a five-speaker system with a subwoofer. (The T-6828's speakers are decent, but ordinary.) The only thing that makes the T-6828 stand out is its two-year warranty, since the extra year alone is typically worth over $100.

Where the T-6828 really stands out is in performance. Kudos to Gateway for giving customers 3GB of RAM. The 1.83-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5550 is an aging processor, but still, its SYSmark 2007 Overall Preview score beat those of both the HP dv6500t and the Dell Inspiron 1420, by 21 and 25 percent, respectively. Because it has more system memory, the T-6828's Photoshop scores also dominated the HP dv6500t and the Lenovo Y510. At this price point you won't get a good graphics card for gaming, but at least Dell and HP offer one as an option.

Battery scores produced by the T-6828's 49-Wh battery surpassed those of the Lenovo Y510 by 15 minutes, though the T-6828 lagged behind the Dell 1420 by 18 minutes. In other words, it meets expectations.

Performance is one area where Gateway, as usual, didn't disappoint. But as an overall package, the T-6828 doesn't do enough to stand out among laptops from bigger and more successful names like Dell, HP, and Lenovo. Oddly enough, this particular laptop can't be bought directly from Gateway; it's available only at your local Costco or some other third-party retailer. If you're paranoid about your computer breaking down, buy this laptop for the two-year warranty—but don't think you're getting a steal.

Sony VAIO VGN-NR310E

Thanks to its svelte, silver finish and overall good looks, the Sony VAIO VGN-NR310E looks more expensive than its $599 price tag. But while you get a large and bright glossy display and a DVD burner for a bargain-basement price, don’t expect more than basic productivity performance. This laptop is best for word processing, checking e-mail, and browsing the Web. Anything more causes it to wheeze.

Design

We don’t typically expect much in terms of pizzazz from a $599 notebook. But the VGN-NR310E stands out with its classy, modern look and sturdy feel. The VGN-NR310E measures 14.2 x 10.6 inches and is 1.2 to 1.5 inches thick. Its full-size keyboard sits below a 15.4-inch widescreen display and has good punch to it; typing felt natural. The trackpad continues the silver, brushed-metal design, and we appreciated its large size.

The VGN-NR310E has two USB 2.0 ports on the left, along with a 8X DVD±RW drive. On the front of the unit are two card-reader slots: one for SD Cards and one for Memory Sticks. On the right is a 34mm ExpressCard slot, two more USB 2.0 ports, an i.LINK Interface (FireWire port), headphone and microphone jacks, and a VGA output. The Ethernet, modem, and power inputs are on the back. There are few bells and whistles on this value-priced VAIO, which means no webcam or quick-launch media buttons.

Display and Audio Quality

While the whole of the VGN-NR310E feels sturdy, the DVD±RW drive felt flimsy, and we needed to push a bit aggressively to close it. Once we had Two for the Money playing, the picture looked quite good on the 15.4-inch display (1280 x 800 pixels), so long as we were sitting right in front of the system, though we noticed some graininess. The screen will serve its purpose for just one or two on a love seat, though: Vertical viewing angles were good, but if you’re sitting eye-level with the display and lean just 20 degrees left or right of center, the image begins to turn negative. The speakers were loud, but as is typical with laptops, the sound was tinny and thin on bass.