Today, HP took the wraps off several consumer notebooks that feature the company's trademark slick aesthetics: the HP Pavilion dv4, HP Pavillion dv5, HP Pavillion dv7, and HP Compaq Presario CQ50z. The "dv" series sports a liquid metal HP Imprint 2 design, a choice of the latest AMD and Intel processors, eSATA connections, "magic chrome" touch controls that appear when your finger moves over them, a choice of Windows Vista operating systems, and built-in ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection (which automatically prevents the hard drive from spinning after it detects sudden movement, helping to prevent data loss). Here's how the individual models break down, along with starting prices and availability: HP Pavillion dv4t (Intel, $999) and dv4z (AMD, $799); available September
- Intel Core 2 Duo processors/AMD Turion X2 or AMD Athlon X2
- Up to 4GB of RAM
- Intel GMA X4500 or Nvidia GeForce Go graphics/ATI Radeon HD graphics
- Webcam, 2 headphone mic, optional fingerprint reader
- 120GB to 320GB HDD
- 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL, 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL with Lightscribe, or Blu-ray
- 14.1-inch, 1280 x 800 display with HP BrightView, 14.1-inch, 1280 x 800 display with HP BrightView and Infinity, or 14.1-inch, 1280 x 800 LED
- 802.11b/g, 802.11b/g with Bluetooth, Intel WiFi Link a/g/n, or Intel WiFi Link a/g/n with Bluetooth
- Altec Lansing speakers
- 3 USB, eSata, VGA, HDMI, IR, Ethernet
- 6-cell battery or high-capacity 6-cell battery
- 5.4 pounds
HP Pavillion dv5t (Intel, $899) and dv5z (AMD, $699); available later this month
- Intel Core 2 Duo processors/AMD Turion X2 or AMD Athlon X2
- Up to 4GB of RAM
- Intel GMA X4500 or Nvidia GeForce Go/ATI Radeon HD
- webcam, 2 heaphone, mic, optional fingerprint reader
- 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL, 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL with Lightscribe, or Blu-ray
- 15.4-inch display w/ BrightView (1280 x 800 or 1680 x 1050), 15.4-inch BrightView w/ Infinity (1280 x 800 or 1680 x 1050)
- 802.11b/g, 802.11b/g with Bluetooth, Intel WiFi Link a/g/n, or Intel WiFi Link a/g/n with Bluetooth
- Altec Lansing speakers
- 4 USB, VGA, HDMI, IR, Ethernet
- 6-cell battery, or high capacity 6-cell
- 5.4 pounds
HP Pavillion dv7t (Intel, $1,229) and dv7z (AMD, $949); available in July
- Intel Core 2 Duo processors
- Nvidia GeForce GS & GT/ATI Radeon HD 3200
- webcam, 2 headphone, mic, optional fingerprint reader
- 17-inch display w/ BrightView (1440 x 900 or 1680 x 1050), 17-inch BrightView w/ Infinity (1440 x 900 or 1680 x 1050)
- Intel WiFi Link a/g/n or WiFi Link a/g/n with Bluetooth
- Altec Lansing speakers
- ExpressCard/54
- 4 USB ports, VGA, HDMI, IR, Ethernet
- 8 -cell battery, optional extra 8-cell battery
- 5.4 pounds
HP Compaq Presario CQ50 ($499); available June
- Windows Vista Home Basic w/ SP1, or Windows Vita Home Premium with SP1
- AMD Athlon or AMD Sempron processors
- up to 2GB of RAM
- Nvidia GeForce 8200M G graphics
- Webcam, headphone, mic
- up to 20GB HDD
- 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL, 8X SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW DL with Lightscribe
- 15.4-inch, BrightView 1280 x 800 display
- 802.11b/g
- Altec Lansing speakers
- ExpressCard/54
- 3 USB ports, VGA
- 6-cell battery
- 6.9 pounds
