The ProBook 4510s offers style and substance for business users on a budget. At $699, this 15.6-inch machine is a good performer for the price and comes with plenty of business-friendly durability and security features, not to mention good battery life. Plus, it looks stylish, complete with glossy touches and a raised keyboard. Although it lacks a fingerprint reader and the touchpad buttons take some getting used to, this laptop is a solid investment for those who can’t splurge for HP’s premium EliteBook line.
Design
Although the ProBook is HP’s entry-level brand for business users, its design is far from dull. Underneath the glossy (and fingerprint-prone) black lid, the chassis has a mix of textures: a glossy keyboard deck, a satin palm rest, and a speaker strip lining the top. Because the bezel is thin, it’s easy to focus instead on the bright 16:9 display. As an added touch, the power and QuickLook 2 buttons and LED lights all glow turquoise blue, which also keep the design interesting. The notebook is also available in red (HP calls it merlot)—a pleasant surprise for a business machine.
At 5.6 pounds, the ProBook is not unreasonably heavy for a 15-inch system. Because of its 16:9 display, it has a wider footprint, at 14.6 x 9.8 inches. And with a thickness ranging from 1.2 to 1.5 inches, it’s less svelte than some other 15-inch systems.
Keyboard and Touchpad
One of the freshest parts of the ProBook’s design is its keyboard: it’s the first HP laptop that features island-style keys. This layout makes any budget notebook look more refined.
On the one hand, we took quickly to the keys’ slightly textured, scratch-resistant finish and their comfortable spacing. The deck has a number pad on the right, which you don’t often see on 15-inch systems. The keyboard is spill-resistant, to boot. On the other hand, once we started pounding out documents a bit more furiously, the keyboard flexed a little. Then again, this might have something to do with the fact that we tested a preproduction unit. HP says that the final units offer structural changes designed to reduce the keyboard’s flex.
The 3.3 x 1.7-inch touchpad is plenty large, and the rubbery texture provides just the right amount of friction. The touch buttons, meanwhile, feel like trap doors. Instead of being straightforward push buttons, they’re hinged at the top, so only the part closest to the edge of the notebook depresses. To put it another way, it’s kind of like pressing a piano key. We would have preferred traditional buttons.
Display and Sound
The bright, LED-backlit 15.6-inch (1366 x 768) display has very good viewing angles, thanks to its matte finish (a glossy BrightView screen with increased contrast is available for the same price). We were able to watch an episode of Heroes on DVD from the sides and with the lid dipped down. Aside from making movies look more cinematic, that 16:9 aspect ratio is a practical choice for business customers because the lower profile helps out on airplane trays—not that we expect many users to travel with this system too often.
When playing music, including tracks by Coldplay, The White Stripes, and Pearl Jam, the speakers sounded pleasant overall but tinny at max volume. Dialogue from video clips on Hulu.com was clear, however.
Ports and Webcam
The ProBook 4510s has a thorough selection of ports: Four USB 2.0 ports, VGA and HDMI output, Ethernet and modem jacks, a Kensington lock slot, and headphone and mic ports. It also has a 5-in-1 memory card reader and an ExpressCard/34 slot for low-profile mobile broadband cards. None of the ports are on the back; most are on the sides of the notebook, with the headphone and mic ports and the memory card reader on the front side.
The 2.0-megapixel webcam showed pleasant lighting in both still shots and VGA video. Stills, in particular, included an impressive amount of detail, such as the shine in our hair. Video captures looked smooth, but because it’s fixed focus, the image drifted in and out of focus as we moved around in front of the camera.
