HP unveils new 10-inch Mini 110 and Mini 1101 netbooks + video hands-on

HP has today announced a few new members to its HP Mini netbook family. The three different models are the Mini 110 XP, Mini 110 Mobile Internet (Mi) and business oriented Mini 1101. The series will come with a 10.1-inch (1024 x 576) matte display. An optional 1366 x 768 HD display will be available in July for around $30.

It will come in a number of configurations, powered either by a 1.6GHz N270 or 1.66GHz N280 Atom CPU. Other features include a 92 percent keyboard, webcam, microphone, VGA port and 5-in-1 card reader. The series will weigh around 1.1kg (2.33lbs) and measure just over 1-inch in thickness. Read more

Verizon Wireless confirms HP Mini 1000 launch for May 17th

Verizon Wireless has finally confirmed that it will launch a subsidised HP Mini 1000 on May 17, following recent speculation. All of the rumours were spot on, with Verizon planning to sell the HP Mini 1151NR for $199 with a two year contract.

The specs of the HP Mini 1151NR are as previously thought. It has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 576) display and is powered by a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB RAM and 80GB hard drive. It comes with a 3-cell battery and weighs 1.1kg (2.45lbs). An optional 6-cell battery will also be available from Verizon, but retails for an additional $130.

Service plans start at $39.99 for 250MB of data per month or $59.99 per month for 5GB a month of data usage. The HP Mini 1151NR will be available in both stores and online from this Sunday.

Via Daily Tech.

Verizon’s HP Mini 1000 to cost $199 with two-year contract

Verizon is set to launch its first foray into subsidised netbooks this week, with the launch of the HP Mini 1000 netbook on May 17. This much we already knew, but it now looks that Engadget has some firm indication on pricing, if some leaked screenshots are anything to go by.

For a two-year contract you are looking at an upfront cost of $199.99 (including a $50 rebate) whilst a one year contract will set you back $100 more at $299.99. The screenshots also confirms the launch date as Sunday May 17th. Many telecom operators seem to do very well out of subsidised netbooks, but personally I think it’s better value for money to use a USB or ExpressCard modem.

The specs of the HP Mini 1151NR are also confirmed but are no different to what we already listed. The model is a fairly standard in terms of specs. It has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 576) display and is powered by a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB RAM and 80GB hard drive. It comes with a 3-cell battery and weighs 1.1kg (2.45lbs). The 1151NR will be sold across all channels. You can find the screengrabs after the jump. Read more

Verizon to launch subsidised HP Mini 1000 on May 17th

Verizon Wireless is set to launch its first subsidised netbook, the HP Mini 1000 on May 17th according to BoyGeniusReport. We already knew that the specific model that Verizon will be selling is the HP Mini 1151NR.

The model is a fairly standard in terms of specs. It has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 576) display and is powered by a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB RAM and 80GB hard drive. It comes with a 3-cell battery and weighs 1.1kg (2.45lbs). The 1151NR will be sold across all channels.

Pricing hasn’t been confirmed right now, but according to the report a $199 with a 2-year contract is being hinted at. That doesn’t seem like a great deal to me as HP Mini netbooks start at around $350 without being locked into a pricey monthly fee.

Nvidia Tegra-powered HP Mini 1000 netbook

Nvidia has shown off a HP Mini 1000 at CTIA powered by its own Tegra platform. The unit was shown using a Windows CE build. As it uses an ARM CPU, it does not support Windows XP and Vista. The Nvidia Tegra line is a low-power platform aimed at mobile products and can handle 720p HD video.

Nvidia were showcasing the Tegra platform rather than telling the world that it is planning to commercialise a Tegra-powered HP Mini. The prototype demonstrated was about the size of a single DIMM RAM. It shows how scalable the platform is.

Could we see these in MIDs or netbooks soon? The advantage of HDMI, playable 3D graphics and more battery life may be enough to convince users to sacrifice Windows XP/Vista/Windows7. There are no firm Tegra product announcements yet, but as with Ion, it can’t be too long now.

Via Engadget.

Verizon to sell subsidised HP Mini 1000 netbook?

Verizon recently confirmed that it will start to sell subsidised netbooks, the main question that is now on everyone’s lips is which netbook(s) will it stock? We yesterday hypothesised that it could be the HP Mini 1000 and that rumour is now gaining ground.

BoyGeniusReport received an approved device list from one of its sources that seems to confirm that the netbook it has chosen does indeed seem to be the HP Mini 1000. More specifically, it will stock the 1151NR variant of the Mini 1000. This model has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 576) display and is powered by a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB RAM and 80GB hard drive. It comes with a 3-cell battery and weighs 1.1kg (2.45lbs). The 1151NR is found in HP’s business line, so the likelihood is that it may be offering the deal to business customers as well.

The netbook was approved by Verizon Wireless on March 24th. No release date or pricing has been confirmed thus far, although a $99 upfront cost with a two-year contract has been muted. A larger picture of the supposed evidence has been attached after the break. Read more

“Mr. Compromise” looks at netbooks

David Pogue’s “Mr. Compromise” of the New York Times has finally taken a look at netbooks with a ‘review ‘ of four different models. He asked Joanna Stern of Laptop Mag which ones to look at and came up with four 10-inch models. The Asus Eee PC 1000HE, HP Mini 1001, MSI Wind U120 and Samsung NC10.

Surprise, surprise he found that owning a netbook requires making compromises. Some of the issues with each netbook include mouse buttons on either side of the touchpad for the HP Mini 1001, the Samsung NC10 costs too much, the Asus is too heavy and the Wind doesn’t have upgradeable memory. The video doesn’t cover any new ground but is meant to be a bit of light relief, check it out after the break. Read more

Netbook Review Roundup 20/03/2009

Netbook Choice’s roundup of netbook reviews from around the web on Friday 20th March 2009.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE @ Good Gear Guide
Rating: 4 Stars

Asus Eee PC 1000HE @ The Register
Rating: 90 percent

Asus Eee 1002HA @ Global Post
Rating: N/A

HP Mini 1000 Mi Edition @ Cnet
Rating: 3.5 Stars

What is the perfect hinge strength for netbooks?

Personally, this is something that I haven’t thought about too much nor is it something that would worry me either. However, the guys over at UMPC Portal have made a short video post looking at the issue of hinge strength on netbooks (how easy is it to open/close the screen without using two hands).

They look at two netbooks, the HP Mini 1000 and Sony Vaio P. In their opinion, the HP Mini 1000 does not have optimal hinge strength as when you try lifting the screen the hinge is so strong that the whole netbook moves. This is not ideal as when the lid is lifted the body comes up with it and then slams back down onto the table. The Vaio P on the other hand has a lightweight chassis and the hinge is such that when moving the display, the base hardly budges at all. It looks like the chassis is glued to the table. The design is such that you can easily move the screen with one hand.

If I were to choose between the two, then it would definitely have to be strong hinge over a loose one. At least that is until we see a device with an adjustable strength hinge. From my experience with these things, hinges tend to get looser as time goes on. Once a hinge is loose there is little to do to make it strong again. Also when you are on the move in a car or train the last thing you need is a loose hinge in my view. Anyway check out the interesting video after the jump. Read more

HP’s next-gen netbooks to begin production in May/June

Hewlett Packard is to begin volume production of its next-generation of 10-inch netbooks in May or June according to Digitimes. The new netbooks will be manufactured by Inventec. Other information is scant at this time, including zero details on technical specifications.

What improvements would you like on the HP Mini 1000? A better battery in the box would be the first point for me, a 3-cell battery just doesn’t cut it anymore, especially when you consider the likes of the Samsung NC10 comes with a 6-cell battery as standard. More news as we have it.

HP Mini 1000 6-cell battery – Video hands on

Many HP users have been waiting for months for the HP Mini 1000 6-cell battery to come into stock. It was officially available to purchase from the HP site just last week. GottaBeMobile was there to order one and have now given it the video hands on treatment.

The video follows an unboxing of the 6-cell battery. Initial impressions were positive with the battery smaller than expected with a comparison shot against the iPhone. Whilst the battery does bulk out the bottom it is still quite useable providing a nice tilt which makes it easier to use according to GBM. Unfortunately the video doesn’t give an idea on how much the battery life increased in real world tests, hopefully we’ll have some further details shortly. Video after the jump. Read more