Comments on: HP Mini-Note battery available from HP

By: Tomak

Tomak — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:30:39 +0000

their ext battery designs sucks, really badly. i wish they had designed it like almost all other HiCap battery subnotes do by having a wider but flatter battery. then it only slightly buldges & molds to the casing very well, looks “natural”.

By: nomo

nomo — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:27:09 +0000

I see there are two $749 versions of the HP Mini-Note: 1GB/XP or 2GB/Vista for the same price. Funny how the "downgrade" to XP has the same market value as an extra GB of RAM.

By: nomo

nomo — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 11:57:35 +0000

Thanks for the correction, Luis. I was looking at the "Featured Models" and didn't see the "All Models" button.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/sm/WF25b/321957-321957-64295-321838-306995-3687084.html

I just noticed the "Review by blogger James Kendrick" link on the HP site.

By: Luis

Luis — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 10:41:32 +0000

Ahh, but HP does offer a fully equipped model, and guess what, it is over $800 like you say
Pre config(KR964UT)$819

Made to order at hp site KR964UA#ABA $979

By: nomo

nomo — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 09:54:29 +0000

James' point also applies to the cost of internal components versus the price of the entire unit. I like the way HP offers a range of configurations with progressively more performance, but the mass market might resist the $250-$290 price bump from entry-level to well-equipped; the difference is almost the equivalent of a $299 Dell E. (Note that HP doesn't even offer a fully-equipped model with 1.6GHz CPU, 2GB RAM, and 160GB HDD -- a configuration that would be over $800.)

HP offers a wider range of performance improvements while Dell will be offering more basic systems with a wide variety of colors (often a popular strategy among consumers). In the long term both strategies will likely be successful, but how will the other 5-6 manufacturers compete?

By: datahoss

datahoss — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 07:20:00 +0000

If you are interested in the slim solution the HP does offer a 3-cell battery (Part #482262-001) through their parts store. The bad news is that 3-cell version runs almost twice the price of the 6-cell one ($207.10 + shipping).

By: Luscious

Luscious — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 06:57:45 +0000

I've noticed the majority of the mininotes out there already come with the 6-cell as standard. I was hoping HP would offer the 3-cell battery for those who prefer a "slim" unit.

My personal choice would be to stick with a 3-cell, and if I need extra juice, just get a 200Wh external battery like the Portable Power Station. The beauty of these devices is that they work like an AC adaptor, charging the 3-cell while powering the laptop, and you don't need to hibernate/interrupt work.

Of course, a cheaper solution is to get an auto/air adaptor. I don't mind carrying along the extra cables when I can use somebody else's power for free...