New Ultra Portable Notebook: HP UMPC 2133

In a previous post, I wrote about the EEPC and mentioned about new big players who are eager to enter this new profitable market: cheap and very small notebook.

About 10 days ago, HP published a press release: “To help schools offer affordable computing to every student, HP today introduced a full-function, mini-notebook PC priced starting under $500…”

Its good looks, professional-grade finishes and respectable specs make it a notebook that you’ll want to show off.

Have a look:

Until the HP 2133 there have been two kinds of notebooks in this size range. At the low end is the sub $400 Asus Eee PC, which has a display and keyboard that are too small for adults and an anemic 4GB of flash storage.

On the other end of the spectrum is the uber-exclusive Sony VAIO TZ series that can cost upwards of $3,400.

Users who wanted something ultraportable, but were on a modest budget were effectively frozen out of the market.

The HP 2133 Mini-Note changes that. There is finally a subcompact notebook that nearly every computer shopper can afford.

The HP 2133 Mini-Note comes in four configurations, which range from $499 to $750. An external DVD burner is optional and extra batteries will be well under $100. A 2.5-inch notebook drive and user-accessible RAM means you can buy a mid-level 2133 and upgrade it yourself.

For $499 you get a Linux (Novell Suse) operating system, 512MB of memory, 4GB of flash storage and a 1.0GHz VIA processor. It comes with a 3-cell battery which is rated to last about two hours.

An extra $50 will get you a much more respectable 120GB (5400 RPM) hard drive, 1GB of memory and a 1.2GHz VIA processor. This $549 machine is much more substantial than its cheaper cousin.

Windows users will have to pay $599 to get the same hardware with a copy of Windows Vista Home Basic (1GB/120GB/1.2GHz).

The top of the line HP 2133 costs $749 and comes with a 1.6GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and 120GB hard drive that spins at 7200RPM. It also comes with a 6-cell battery that is rated to last for four hours. Paying the extra bucks gets you a Bluetooth adapter, webcam and Vista Business.

Any of the Vista HP 2133 Mini-Notes can be downgraded to Windows XP at no charge. A license for Windows Vista is included if you chose XP so you can upgrade when you’re ready.

The HP 2133 Mini-Note comes standard with an Ethernet port, two USB 2.0 ports, a headphone jack, microphone jack, VGA output, ExpressCard slot, SD card slot and a Kensington security lock. Of course the HP 2133 comes with a WiFi adapter.

The QWERTY keyboard is nearly full-sized (95% compared to a normal keyboard)!

Yummy