HP Mini Note PC Blog

Adding a Broadcom HD video accelerator to the HP mininote 2133

chris — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:59:12 +0000

My HP 2133 (1 Ghz) plays 480p video flawlessly, but any attempt to play a high definition format makes the video look like a slideshow.

When Broadcom announced the “Crystal HD Enhanced Media Accelerator” I decided to purchase one, dissect my mininote again and see how well the card works.

The following videos are examples of the “before” and “after” experience of using the accelerator on my HP 2133 mininote. Installation of both the hardware and the software had it’s challenges which I’ll document in a later post this week.

The sample Stormchasers_1080 and Robotica_720 video files were downloaded from the Microsoft HD Content Showcase.

I think you’ll agree that the results are very impressive. I also tried the accelerator with a blu-ray clip from the movie “Body of Lies” which also worked great, provided you paused the player for a couple of seconds after forwarding the video.

The Broadcom cards are available as PCI Express mini cards and for the ExpressCard 34 slot. I bought the mini card on ebay for $24.

Robotica_720 before HD Accelerator installation:

Robotica_720 after the Broadcom HD Accelerator has been installed:

Stormchasers_1080 before the Broadcom HD Accelerator has been installed (on an external monitor):

Stormchasers_1080 after the Broadcom HD Accelerator has been installed (on an external monitor):

HP prepares for US launch of the HP Mini 311

chris — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:28:09 +0000

HP are preparing for the launch of their next generation laptop products, including the new HP Mini 311, a netbook that will come with the new Nvidia ION LE graphics platform. On the HP website we now have links to two HP Mini 311 models, the 311-1011TU and the 311-1012TU. No price is published on the site yet but other mininote blogs are saying that models will start at $399.

Here’s my initial take on the specs published.

Pro’s:

11.6″ HP LED Widescreen Display (1366 x 768)
6-Cell Battery
HDMI
3 USBs
Price - starting at $399

Con’s:

No Gigabit NIC, only 10/100
No Wireless N, only b/g
Heavier than I expected at 1.46 kg (3.2 lbs)

What’s interesting is HP have decided to ship this laptop with Windows XP Home, in advance of the Windows 7 launch (probably with a free upgrade when 7 becomes available). Both Samsung & Lenovo are waiting until the Windows 7 launch to bring their ION based products to market.

I must admit I’m tempted.

A successor to my hpmininotepc blog

chris — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:24:27 +0000

I’ve not been writing much about my HP mini-note recently. I’m still actively following the netbook market and recently started a new blog, netbookstyle. This blog will give me the opportunity to write about the continuing evolution of the netbook. Check it out at www.netbookstyle.com.

The HP 2133 mini note (real) successor arrives

chris — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 05:30:28 +0000

Frankly, I was very disappointed when HP introduced the HP 1000 netbook series. I felt the HP 2133 mini note was a sturdier, more attractive netbook and that HP had decided to forsake many of the features that made the HP 2133 mini note such a great little machine. From today’s posting at Engadget, it looks like HP have built the real successor to the HP2133, the HP2140. Same great keyboard, design and shell, better processor (Intel Atom N270) but a lower resolution screen (1024 x 576). Both Computer Shopper and Laptop Magazine love it. I really hope my mini note accessories (especially the batteries) work with this new machine.

Accessories for the HP Mini note

chris — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:54:49 +0000

This holiday I spent most of my holiday disposable income on accessories for my HP mini note. Here’s what I bought (with links). I’ll write a more in-depth review of each accessory over the next few posts.

Kensington 120-Watt Notebook AC/DC Power Adapter - Purchased from Circuity City, on sale around Thanksgiving for $59.99 (regular price $149.99). This thin and light power supply comes with multiple tips and supports both my mini note and my work laptop (an IBM t60 thinkpad). It also works in cars and planes (adapters included).

Samsung External 8x DVD Drive - Purchased from Newegg before the Christmas holiday for $59.99. This external DVD does not require an external power supply and runs directly from the mini note’s powered USB port.

Buffalo 500gb Ministation Turbo external Hard Drive - Purchased from Fry’s Electronics for $124.99. Link to product on Amazon. This compact 2.5 inch hd drive comes in a shock resistant chassis with a convenient built in cable.

Tucano Neoprene 9″ Sleeve - Purchased from Fry’s Electronics for $19.99. Link to product on Amazon. Fits the HP mini note very well.

Tucano Neoprene Cable Pouch - A matching cable pouch for my mini note accessories. Link to product on Amazon. I bought the case in a steel grey color. This was a really good deal at Fry’s electronics, who had them on clearance for just $3.99.

Finally, I bought a great pack of casual games for entertainment whilst traveling. The mumbojumbo game pack includes 6 puzzle type games, each with great graphics that run perfectly on my 1.0ghz machine (with upgraded RAM). I’d recommend them to everyone.

Here come the SSD’s for your netbook - 32gb for just $79?

chris — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:26:20 +0000

Did you get a measly 3,4 or 8gb SSD with your netbook? I know I did. I immediately switched it out for 120gb SATA hard drive so I could easily run Windows XP, load as many applications as I needed to be productive, and carry my entertainment with me. However, I felt pangs of regret as my HP mini-note then ran hot and was no longer virtually silent. Now, OCZ have made high capacity Solid State Drive’s affordable. For a very cheap $79 ($139 before rebate) you could upgrade your notebook to 32gb running this new OCZ drive. Check out the reviews on NewEgg.com before deciding if these drives will work for you.

Two badges of Honor for the Eee PC

chris — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:00:14 +0000

Brad over at Liliputing reported that the Asus Eee PC has recently won two awards, PC Pro Hardware of the year, and Stuff Magazine PC Gadget of the year (both UK publications). It was good to see the Asus beating out the Apple MacBook Air (I love my MacBook Pro, but the Air was a disappointment) in the PC Pro Award, and Asus being given the credit by Stuff magazine for defining a whole new genre of computers, the Netbook.

Congratulations again Asus, may you continue to innovate for many years to come.

A compact printer for your mini-note adventures?

chris — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 03:00:24 +0000

It’s been awhile since I’ve been traveling and not had access to a printer, but for those of you who might travel to more exotic or less hospitable locations the PlanOn Printstik looks like a worthy portable printing companion. Weighing in at just 1.5lbs, including the paper cartridge and with dimensions of just 1″x10.75″x1.5″ it looks like the perfect match for your mini-note. At $25 for three print cartridges, each giving you 20 full pages (!) you better make sure your printing something mighty important. Julie at The Gadgeter has the full review.

Chrome on a stick? Carry your Google Browser everywhere you go

chris — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 01:44:13 +0000

Strapped for space on your Netbook? Want to carry your essential apps in your pocket, with your car keys? Well, Google’s new browser, Chrome has already been modified to run on a USB Stick. You can find the browser for downloading at Carsten’s site (English translation).

Remember that Chrome only works on Microsoft Windows Netbooks (no Linux version). I haven’t tried it yet, but from the comments on the blog it appears to work as expected for many of the users who have.

Thanks to Amit at Digital Inspiration for publishing the link.

Drum roll…introducing the new Dell Inspiron 9

chris — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:46:41 +0000

Rumored to be available on September 4th, the Dell Inspiron 9 specification is one of the web’s worst kept secrets. A number of blogs and sites have had “leaked” specifications and pictures of the new machine for some time, but the price has been an unknown. The folks over at UMPC portal have a very realistic looking price and spec sheet, showing the standard edition starting at $349 (no webcam, 512K of memory, 4 Gig SSD, running Ubuntu) to the $449 XP Edition (1Gig of memory, Web Cam, 8 Gig SSD). They also have a link to the full specification.

It will be interesting to see how Dell’s entry in to the Netbook world will compete against the established Netbooks already available from Asus, HP, MSI, Lenovo etc. If the price sheet is right, Dell won’t be the budget price champion.