HP Compaq nx6325

Intel’s family of dual-core CPUs has been winning accolades—and buyers—in the business and performance laptop segments. Now AMD fires back with its AMD Turion 64 X2 mobile chip. We got our first look at the CPU in the HP Compaq nx6325. Our take: It delivers solid (though not class-leading) performance and very good battery life—at a price slightly below similar machines powered by an Intel dual-core processor.

The charcoal-on-black look of the nx6325 is simple and understated. At just over one-inch thick, the six-pound unit is comfortable to carry. In this day of ever-larger power bricks, we also appreciate the rather diminutive AC adapter.

Open the lid and you’ll find a 15-inch LCD. The screen is nice and large, though we prefer widescreen displays over the nx6325’s traditional 4:3 screen. On a plane or bus, this extra height can be cumbersome. The screen looks washed out if you view it from above with the lid open even slightly less than 90 degrees, making the nx6325 a poor choice for frequent flyers. The XGA (1024 x 768) native resolution of the panel is easy on aging eyes, though, and side-to-side viewing-angle performance is excellent.

The full-sized keyboard is comfortable to use, though the key clicks are a bit too noticeable when typing. The touchpad with dedicated scroll area is responsive, and its mouse buttons are wonderfully quiet. Fleet buyers should note that the nx6325 does not feature dual-pointing devices (touchpad and pointing stick) as on other business-class notebooks.

Above the keyboard you’ll find dedicated buttons for controlling the volume and Wi-Fi radio, as well as a convenient presentation button, which lets you set your preferred options for presentation mode (VGA-out, power-saving mode, off, and so on) and enable them with one press.

The front-firing stereo speakers deliver adequate sound for a group assembled around a conference table and surprisingly little distortion even at full volume. Nestled between the speakers on the front edge is a 7-in-1 card reader. The expected connectors are scattered on the sides and back, including three USB 2.0 ports, FireWire, VGA, and S-Video. On the bottom is the docking connector, which works with all of the current-generation HP Compaq docking solutions.

We’re pleased to see HP has included a fingerprint reader on its entry-level business model. Along with the TPM circuitry, the reader makes the nx6325 as secure as most laptops out there. The keyboard is spill-resistant, and the hard drive is shock-mounted (though there is no active protection system as on pricier models). The nx6325 also does not yet have embedded wireless broadband as an option. If you want EV-DO or HSDPA data service, you’ll need to get a PC Card solution.

The real news, of course, is the new Turion 64 X2 chip under the hood. Unfortunately, the nx6325 delivered a below-average MobileMark 2005 score of 174. That trails the Intel Core Duo-powered business notebooks we’ve tested this year, which generally score in the low- to mid-200 range. That said, where dual-core CPUs really show their stripes is in multitasking scenarios. We started a full-system scan with Norton AntiVirus, then played a DVD and even created a short movie in Windows Movie Maker. Both of those tasks ran without hesitation, even while the scan churned away in the background.

The ATI Radeon Xpress 1150 graphics engine managed a score of 1,380 on 3DMark03, which is on a par with other business notebooks.

The nx6325 delivered more than four hours of runtime on our tests, which puts it in the upper range among mainstream notebooks. HP sells both an extended-life battery ($129) and ultracapacity battery ($179), which extend runtime to 5 and 10 hours, respectively.

HP loads the nx6325 with a host of proprietary utilities. Most notable is the HP ProtectTools Security Manager suite, which gives users and IT managers ways to safeguard data and the company’s network from unauthorized users. As with most business notebooks, third-party software is sparse: DVD/CD creation and playback software, as well as a 60-day trial subscription to Norton Internet Security. HP backs the nx6325 with a solid three-year parts-and-labor warranty.

The nx6325 starts at only $1,049, which is good for a big-screen, dual-core laptop. Add the multiformat dual-layer DVD burner and 80GB hard drive and you’ll pay $1,249—still quite affordable for a business portable with most of the features you’re likely to need. The Turion 64 X2 processor inside this machine doesn’t offer single-core productivity performance as good as an Intel Core Duo CPU, but it offers enough multitasking might for the price.