Author Archive: Matt

HP 2133 Mini-Note review

INTRODUCTION

The HP 2133 Mini-Note joins a crowded marketplace, which a year ago didn’t exist at all. HP have a lot of catching up to do, but of the “big 2”, HP is the first to market with its own ultra portable laptop. Clove Technology have given us a rather rare review device, so lets see how it compares with its older rivals.

The HP 2133 Mini-Note (click to enlarge)

What’s in the box?

I’m not 100% sure we’ve got a full retail set up here, but the box contents we received looks like this:

HP 2133 Mini-Note Hardware
Battery
AC Power brick
Boring warranty stuff
User guide on CD – hmm

That’s all folks!

Have a look at our HP 2133 Mini-Note unboxing video for more.

HP 2133 Mini-Note Specification:

• Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista Business, Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic 32, FreeDOS, or SuSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 (our review machine)
• Processor: VIA C7-M ULV Processor (up to 1.6 GHz, 128 KB L2 cache)
• Chipset: VIA CN896NB and 8237S SB
• Memory: DDR2 SDRAM, 667MHz, one SODIMM memory slot, supports up to 2048MB
• Internal Storage: 120GB/160GB 5400 rpm SATA, 120GB/160GB 7200 rpm SATA with HP 3D DriveGuard; or 64GB Solid State Drive; optional 4GB PATA Flash Module with SuSE Linux
• Display: 8.9-inch diagonal WXGA (1280 x 768)
• Graphics: VIA Chrome 9
• Audio: High Definition Audio, stereos speakers, integrated stereo microphones, stereo headphone/line out, stereo microphone in
• Wireless support: Broadcom 802.11a/b/g, b/g, optional Bluetooth 2.0, HP Wireless Assistant
  Communications Broadcom Ethernet Integrated Controller (10/100/1000)
• Expansion slots: (1) ExpressCard/54 slot, Secure Digital (SD) slot
• Ports and connectors: (2) USB 2.0 ports, VGA, power connector, RJ-45/Ethernet, stereo headphone/line out, stereo microphone in, optional VGA webcam
• Input device: 92% full-sized keyboard, touchpad with scroll zone
• Dimensions (H x W x D): 1.05 (at front) x 10.04 x 6.5 inches
• Weight: 2.63 lb (with 3-cell battery and 4 GB Solid State Drive, 3.23 lb with 6-cell battery and 160GB hard drive, 2.86 lb with 3-cell battery and 160GB hard drive.
• Power: 6-cell (55 WHr) or 3-cell (28 WHr) Lithium-Ion battery, 65W HP Smart AC Adapter with HP Fast Charge
• Warranty: Limited 1-year and 90-day warranty options available, depending on country, 1-year limited warranty on primary battery

GENERAL

Immediately upon opening the box I was impressed by the aesthetics and build quality. It looks and feels expensive. I understand people like the EEE’s basic look, but give me the polished brushed metal of the Mini-Note any day! There’s no argument here – this is a pretty machine.

Opening the lid is perhaps a little more difficult than it should be. There is no clasp, but it closes tightly, and without some nails, it takes far too much effort to prize the lid open. Having said that, I could just be lazy.

HP 2133 Mini-Note open

Rather like the Eee pc from Asus, the screen does not use the full area available to it. Stereo speakers are positioned either side of it, and there is a large space to the top of the LCD panel, where only the VGA webcam resides. This is a bit disappointing personally, because laptop speakers are never ever going to sound very good – so stick them in the lower portion of the laptop, below the keyboard, and give us a bigger screen!

Despite all that – the screen is possibly one of the most impressive I’ve ever seen on a laptop – more on that later.

On the left hand side, we have a VGA port, to add an extra monitor, or to replicate the laptop screen, a large grill (which pumps out a LOT of heat), a single USB port, and audio ports for speakers and a microphone. The USB plug has a weird hole next to it, and I still haven’t figured out what it is for!

HP 2133 Mini-Note left side

Swapping to the right hand side and we find another more normal looking USB port, the Ethernet port and the AC power socket. Talking of the AC power, unfortunately the Mini-Note does have a smallish power brick – a step back from the first Eee PC with its phone-charge style setup. We’ve also got an express card port sitting above a SD card slot. SD Card’s click in nicely, but are not flush with the laptop chassis. I guess there just wasn’t enough room.

HP 2133 Mini-Note right side

As with most laptops this size, the back panel is free of ports and connectors, and just features the battery pack.

The keyboard itself is a lot larger than the Eee PC and is infinitely more usable – both for quick net surfing, and lengthy documents. I can type fairly quickly 50-60 WPM on my desktop, and managed a similar speed on the Mini-Note – something I found impossible on the Eee’s tiny keyboard. My only slight niggle was a possibly one-off issue – the spacebar only seemed to press successfully on the left hand side of the key, and often missed when pressing the right hand side.

HP 2133 Mini-Note keyboard

The trackpad works nicely, and is accurate. I don’t like the left-right click buttons though – because of space limitations, these are placed either side of the trackpad, rather than above as found on most laptops.

A nice feature that deserves a mention is the trackpad switch. This is found on nearly every HP laptop, and has made it to the first sub-notebook from the company.

HP 2133 Mini-Note trackpad

Finally the front panel contains power and WLAN buttons, complete with indicator lamps, and a hard disk activity lamp too. I have to admit, it looks me a few minutes to work out how to turn the thing on as the switches look a bit like latch controls, but are just actually just momentary slide buttons.

HP 2133 Mini-Note front

Inside we have a slightly-lacklustre Via processor, and a massive 120GB laptop hard disk – no SD Cards required here!

Highlights

• Awesome looks, great build quality
• Software packed linux install
• Superb Screen
• 120GB Hard Disk

Lowlights

• A little too heavy at times
• Trackpad buttons hard to get used to
• CPU can be a bottleneck
• Gets extremely hot!

REVIEW

In preparing this review, I had a read through of Matt’s previous reviews of the Asus 701 and 900 laptops. One paragraph that stood out was this:

“It has to said that the keyboard, trackpad and mouse button does feel distinctly cheap, but that said the device IS cheap so you get what you pay for and given what you get on the inside it’s hard to grumble.”

Luckily the 2133 Mini-Note is completely the opposite in every way. The keyboard and trackpad looks well built and feels anything but cheap. It definitely looks more businessy, and if you turned up to a lunch meeting with the Mini-Note, the Eee PC users may feel a little put out!

Now to the screen. Its a classic vicious circle – people say the screen is too small, but then say the battery life isn’t good enough when the size is increased. HP have found a nice middle ground I reckon, with a smallish 8.9inch screen, with a huge WXGA resolution of 1280×768. It is a amazing sight to behold – possibly the sharpest, highest quality screen I’ve seen. The size IS still an issue, but websites are no much easier to navigation with a proper – desktop size – resolution. Every time I turn the thing on, I am amazed by the quality of the LCD panel. It is truly exceptional.

Its impossible to compare with other sub-notebooks – they don’t even get near the quality of this. Think expensive large LCD panel, for TV or your desktop computer – this is that level of quality. The contract, colours and bleed levels are excellent, and viewing photos or videos on it, nearly make anything look HD!

Our review device comes with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop – and it is aimed at business types. Novell clients are installed, and a lot of freeware linux software is included.

I wonder how many percentage points Firefox have been given in the browser wars purely due to everyone and their uncle sticking it on their Linux ultra portable laptops! It’s included here – albeit version 2, and it works swiftly, and renders pages extremely well on the beautiful screen. The vast majority of extensions will work on Linux, so you can make your browsing experience as close to your desktop machine as you like.

Open Office is also pre-installed, Evolution – a email client is included too. Other software includes a music player, photo browser, cross-network instant messenger client, RealPlayer, FTP software, and RSS reader and plenty more besides.

Linux works well, but the Mini-Note lacks the simplicity of the Eee PC’s custom Linux shell. Even for young kids, the Eee PC was easy to use. The Mini-Note is certainly aimed more towards businesses. Any concerns about the Linux install can be fixed fairly simply – By installing XP! An edition also comes with vista anyway, and for me, that would be the ideal ultra portable laptop for me.

The Linux wireless (And for that matter Ethernet) connection software is easy to use, and I had no problems connecting to the wireless networks at home, at work, or on the incredibly flaky National Express WiFi! Although I hate to admit it, the WiFi software implementation is better than Windows.

The Mini-Note doesn’t use latest “ever ever” processor – the Atom, but instead a Via processor. It does OK in Linux, but I have concerned about the Vista edition, even taking into account the faster processor. Unfortunately I can’t tell you how well it performs with Vista or XP – if you can, let us know in the comments!

Unlike the Eee PC, I could see myself using this device a lot more – mainly due to the larger keyboard, and impressive resolution on the LCD. While the device is heavy, its slightly thinner than its rivals, and isn’t much trouble to carry around. The battery life is acceptable, if not amazing, and I managed to get about 2 and a half hours of casual use before it had had enough.

Its a shame HP didn’t make a home/student/kids style Linux install as well as the Novell friendly business version we find here. Asus got away with running Linux, because the interface made it easy to use. The SUSE enterprise edition is powerful, but will lose a lot of the audience I mentioned above, unless they install XP – which shouldn’t be any more difficult than the older ultra portable’s. It’s easy to get lost in Linux, unless you have a nice UI to guide you.

Although I love the laptop itself, in struggling to see who this Linux version will be sold to. Business users will probably pay the extra for the windows version, and home uses are possibly going to end up disappointed by the OS.

Having said that, as a hardware device, its outstanding – and trumps both the Eee PC and the newer MSI Wind. The jewel is definitely the screen – truly breathtaking, but the large keyboard also adds value to the product.

Its more expensive than the lesser models, and perhaps should do more for the price. But that’s only a minor point – the HP 2133 Mini-Note does what it does, and it does it extremely well indeed. It’s just about worth the premium.

HP 2133 Mini-Note

CONCLUSION

The HP 2133 Mini-Note has taken ultra mobile laptops to the next level. No longer a toy computer – this is a serious laptop, fit for business and personal users alike. The screen and keyboard combination means this CAN be a laptop replacement.

The Mini-Note only falls short in the area of performance – and its not such a big deal. Its more disappointing because the rest of the device is so beyond anything else we’ve seen before.

For $499 in the states, and even taking into account Rip-Off-Britain prices, this is a cheap yet expensive looking laptop.

One final point for HP: Put a decent processor in this (anyone for Atom?) – and this will be the best sub-notebook on the planet. End of argument. Oh and if you fancy sending me an XP version feel free – preferably one I can “lose”!

Review by: Mark

Aiptek Z500 Plus HD Camcorder Review

Introduction

I have to admit that I was a little skeptical about a Budget camcorder from a relatively unknown company. Usually these sort of devices are purchased purely based on their price and not quality. However could the Aiptek Z500 Plus buck the trend and provide both low price and high quality?

NOTE: Images in the review can be clicked to see a larger version.

The Aiptek AHD Z500 plus

What’s in the box?

• Aiptek PocketDV AHD Z500 Plus
• Mains Charger (with a mini USB connector)
• User Manuals (Remote & Device)
• Software Disc
• USB to mini USB Cable
• Remote Control
• Wrist Strap
• Carry Pouch
• Component Cable
• Composite Cable

Aiptek PocketDV AHD Z500 Plus Specification:

• 1440 x 1080 H.264 Video @30fps
• 1280 x 720 H.264 Video @60fps
• Personal Media Player & Recorder
• Up to 8 Mega Pixel Digital Camera
• MOV Video Format
• 3x Optical Zoom w/ Auto Focus
• 2-inch Macro Zoom
• Flash w/ Red Eye Reduction
• Night Shot
• LED Lights
• HDTV Component Output
• 2.4" Swivel-Reversible LCD
• Easy Charging via AC or USB
• 32GB SDHC Card Slot Expansion
• Remote Control Included

 

GENERAL

Looking at the Aiptek, as you would expect from a pocket device it’s pretty small for what it is. The unit is not going to win any awards for great and innovative styling but it is pleasant enough to look at.

On the front of the device is obviously the lens. The great thing about this is the clear cover, meaning to clean all that has to be done is wipe the clear lens cover as oppose to cleaning the various parts of the lens. Below the lens are the LED lights for added light when recording and below that is the flash strobe for stills.

Aiptek Z500 front

The back of the device is home to all of the controls etc. Working from the top the is a four way directional stick which controls things such as the flash and macro mode as well as navigating menus. To the left of this is the mode button and to the right the menu button. Below these is the shutter button used for capturing still images. The Zoom slider located below this which is also used for manual focus. The record button sits below this, with the AV connector/Headphone input situated below this. There is then a cover which when removes reveals the mini USB and the HD out inputs.

Aiptek Z500 back

Open: The 2.4” LCD screen has 3 buttons attached on the left hand side these are playback controls used to fast-forward, rewind etc.

Aiptek Z500 open

On the bottom of the device is the tripod socket and under the battery cover is the SD Card slot.

Aiptek Z500 bottom view

 

Highlights and Lowlights

+Price

+Ease of use

-Lack of features & Functions

REVIEW

As I mentioned earlier Aiptek was a brand I was unfamiliar with and therefore was rather skeptical when it came to the Z500 plus a HD camcorder, capable of shooting in 1080p and offering a 5mp stills feature to boot all for £250.

The Z500 is very easy to use right out of the box turning on as soon as the 2.4” LCD swivel screen is opened, the ease of use continues throughout filming with simple point and shoot controls.

The Z500 plus is a relatively plain device which is certainly small enough to fit inside a trouser pocket or a camera bag, it feels rather well built for a camcorder of this price range which is surprising. The device has very few buttons for you to worry about the menus are navigated quickly and easily with the four way directional stick.

The camcorder is offers 1080p Recording at 30fps, 720p at 30 and 60fps as well as standard DVD quality for non HD filming, footage is stored with the use of an SDHC card with support for up-to 32gb allowing for hours of 1080p footage or 1000’s stills. The bundled component cable allows for easy playback via a High Definition TV, while the USB cable and software allow for easy transfer between the device and a PC or Laptop.

A big giveaway in budget camcorders is often the audio quality.  The audio quality of the Z500 is pretty good, certainly bearable, but does not really match the quality of the picture which is a disappointment but the sound is certainly not as bad as other budget camcorders on the market. There is a speaker on the top of the device for playback using the device of course you can plug your headphones in, and sound quality when displayed on a TV is acceptable but nothing special.

Using the Z500 plus is very much and point and shoot affair with features such as macro mode and both auto and manual focus. On top of that  there’s a very useful night mode allowing for enhanced quality in low light situations this teamed with the LED lights works really well for a camera of this size and price and certainly improves the quality greatly. The 3x optical zoom is not fantastic and the zoom is pretty slow taking a good few seconds to go from wide to telephoto. With macro mode the camcorder is great at shooting both distant and close subject in great quality. The swivel is screen is a fair size and is pretty clear during playback and the handy controls on the side of the LCD are a great addition and add to the Z500’s Ease of use. The swivel screen also allows for easy viewing when using the camcorder to film yourself for video diaries etc.

The camcorder works well as a still camera offering a 5 megapixel shot and with a built in flash allowing for shots to be taken under all circumstances, the camera also offer a standard mode as well as classic and black and white shots however nothing special is on offer in this department. It also come with a voice recorder for notes etc. which is always handy.

Battery life for the device is not bad but not fantastic it will last around 70minutes with continual 720p recording and close to 200 shots using it as a stills camera.

The camcorder comes bundled with a number of things including the handy pouch with belt loop for keeping you Z500plus safe protected and within reach at all times. It also comes with a remote control which is a very useful thing to have when it comes to easy playback control as well as navigation etc. and it saves you having to fiddle around with the device all the time.

The software included on the disk is QuickTime player, HD-DV Decoder, Total Media Extreme, Photo impression and a E-Manual. Many of you I am sure will already have Quicktime therefore will find little use for the software on the disk but it is always worth checking it out and of course more advanced software can be purchased online.

I captured a few still shots and sample video for you to have a look at.

Sample still shots from the Aiptek Z500 plus

CONCLUSION

During this review it was very difficult not to compare the Z500 Plus to other more expensive HD camcorders such as those from Sony however the price is the first thing that draws your attention to this camcorder and for £250 it does not disappoint, it is a great camcorder for someone wishing to upgrade to HD filming with ease of use and great point and shoot teamed with a 5 megapixel camera with flash. The lack of advanced features and functions means this is not a device for hardcore move makers looking for all the features and functions associated with higher end camcorders. Overall a great entry level HD camcorder but lacks the depth and functionality to compete with the higher end models. Perfect for amateur movie maker looking for an introduction to the world of High Definition Filming.

 

Review by: Nick

SanDisk Sansa Fuze review

INTRODUCTION

This is the third MP3/Media player from SanDisk that I’ve reviewed. The first was the Sansa e260 over a year ago and the second the Sansa View was about 6 months ago.

The most impressive thing about the entire range has to be the battery life. Using the e260 for about an hour each day for example it’s almost a month between charges. The only downside to that is the risk of loosing the power cable between charges!

As with other models the Fuze comes in a very small package – with just a carton inside holding the mp3 player itself, connection cable and earphones. Take a look at our unbox video for a more detailed look at the Sansa Fuze.

 

SanDisk Sansa Fuze specification:

• 2GB internal flash memory (4 & 8GB model available)
• 1.9" 220 x 176 Colour TFT screen
• FM Radio
• Built in microphone for recording
• Expandable MicroSD/SDHC card slot for additional storage
• MPEG4 and WMV video support
• Battery Life: MP3 playback 24 hours, Video playback 5 hours
• 1.9 x 0.3 x 3.1 in

DESIGN

The Fuze is a very compact MP3/Media Player that, to be honest, looks like an iPod clone. Taking a look at the front of the Fuze there’s a small, 1.9" display. The display is quite low res at just 220×176 pixels. There’s also a jog dial that rotates as well as working as a d-pad style navigator. There’s also a simple HOME button on the front.

Sansa Fuze Front View

 

On the left there’s a microSD card slot which is, fortunately microSDHC compatible. Below that is a simple MIC which means you can use the Fuze as a voice recorder.

Sansa Fuze Left Side

 

The right side is fairly bare, just a simple two-function switch which serves as a power switch and a hold switch.

Sansa Fuze Right Side

 

On the bottom there’s a 3.5mm headphone socket which will allow you to use any standard headphones. The bottom is where you’ll find the proprietary sync and charge socket. I know I frequently moan about proprietary connectors almost all player manufacturers have their own connector type.

 

Sansa Fuze Bottom

 

SOFTWARE

Once again SanDisk have used the same interface as on previous models. The scroll wheel suits the interface perfectly – and much better than the latest non-touch iPod. The main menu is icon based, but changes to text as we go deeper into mp3/video lists.

The main menu consists of Music, Photo, Voice, Video, Extras and Settings, all selected with the scroll wheel.

The music library filters are pretty standard to both Sandisk players, and players in general, with Play All tracks starting us off at the top, along with Artist, Album, Songs, Genres, My Top Rated, Recordings, and Playlists as options. On the playback screen, you get thumbnail album art, track info, and a time-elapsed meter. Pressing the select button takes you to a neat graphic-level meter, full-size album art, and the next song.

 

Sound Quality

The sound quality of the Fuze is once again on-par with it’s predecessors and still far better than the iPod Nano. Comparing the same MP3 track and using the same headphones the Fuze beats the Nano hands-down. While I don’t have the equipment to demonstrate this with fancy graphs the Fuze simply sounds better and more full-range and compression artifacts seem a lot less noticeable and the audio is a lot more pleasing.

There are various EQ modes and sound level adjustments available in the menu too which will help get the sound perfectly suited to various audio devices.

 

Pros:

• AMAZING battery life. Seriously, I hardly charged it. I’ll try and add the SanDisk quoted figures later today, but take it from me – they are good.
• Massive storage. 16gb. The Nano doesn’t even attempt more than 8GB, so another 1-up for SanDisk
• Price point. These aren’t expensive, and like everything in this industry, its price will only drop.

Cons:

• Not an iPod. this might sound a bit sad but everyone that’s seen my Fuze thinks it’s an iPod knock-off!
• Poor low-res display.
• Memory Capacity. The model on review is only 2GB and while there are models that have up to 8GB and each can be supplemented with microSD memory to give a maximum of 16GB this works out quite expensive compared to other 16GB native products.

 

 

CONCLUSION

Once again SanDisk have done a good job with this Media Player. If you want a small unit with excellent battery life and you wont be rejected by your friends for not having an iPod then the Fuze is well worth considering. This is the sort of MP3 player that you can set playing, stick in your pocket and then forget about.

Unfortunately the screen that SanDisk have put in the device is really only adequate for using the on screen menu. It’s far too small and low-res to be useful as a video player.

 

Review by: Matt

[Post tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Sandisk, Sansa Fuze, Media Player]