The PC is today, not just an apparatus to type an email or create a spread sheet. It is for most, also a statement of style and personality.

That's been reason enough for hardware firms to look closely at their PC offerings, with the team at HP going a step further and adopting the mantra of making the computer personal again.

These days, one personal need is competitive pricing.

Those willing to part with their hard-earned cash would also be asking for a device that will work well and have a look good-feel good factor too.

Is that too much to ask?

Coming in with a price tag of S$1299, the very latest from HP - the Pavilion dv2 Entertainment Notebook may not seem too attractive to some given that there are other devices on the market below the S$1000 mark. Most though, are in the realm of between 8 and 10 inches, with mini notebook or netbook features.

"We are looking at people who need to choose lifestyle over a pure affordable machine" said Chin Hon Cheng, HP's Vice-President (Notebook Business Unit, APJ) of the Pavilion dv2.

If you are looking for a machine that can function both for work and play but is neither too big nor small so you can carry it about, the new HP is worth considering.

"This is as good as any full-featured notebook coming in a very fashionable, very well-designed form factor" said Chin of the 12.1 inch notebook which is extremely slim and light.

The casing is attractive and being hardened with a magnesium-alloy, you can be sure that the HP is as sturdy as it is good-looking.

Since the 1.64kg weight lends the Pavilion dv2 to being a carry-about notebook, it comes bundled with HP's ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection system.

That means even when the notebook is accidentally dropped - which was what happened when the Pavilion dv2 was being passed around at a media session - the device will continue to function. In fact, the notebook which fell from waist level and went skidding across a slippery floor seemed less shaken than the person who dropped it.

The screen serves sufficiently for anything from number-crunching to photo cropping and updating your Facebook, as is the on-board sound system.

With hard drive options up to 500 gigabytes, you have more than enough room to play around with, and hopefully you won't mind too much the missing DVD reader/writer.

This design move has kept the notebook to its less than 1inch slim frame and 1.64kg weight, since the argument among some is that users don't always need or use such a drive.

The missing DVD reader/writer is also in line with the growing trend of online information sharing rather than physical swaps.

But still, some will sorely miss a built-in drive being less inclined to purchase or carry along an extra device just in case.

The Pavilion dv2 runs on the latest AMD platform for ultra-thin notebooks, the Athlon Neo processor.

This is not the first HP device that packs an AMD processor and as HP's Vice-President (notebook, APJ) points out "we work with partners and all partners bring a value to the table".

"The value could be what is the right processor at the right price point for us to build a machine and bring to the market, that is relevant."

Some of you may be feeling a little let down by this, but having an AMD processor which keeps the pricing competitive, doesn't mean that compromises have been made for the consumer.

Comparing the Athlon Neo to the Intel Atom commonly found in netbooks and some notebooks too, you'll find that both offer a 1600 MHz processor with 512 cache.

The Pavilion dv2 however offers of up 4GB RAM which some others can't, so the notebook should be able to slice through some jobs pretty easily.

The added promise is that with the Athlon Neo's superscalar architecture, the Pavilion dv2 will be able to run multiple applications at the same time while the unit remains cool - a complaint often associated with AMD.

The new AMD also comes combined with ATI Radeon X1250 integrated graphics, that means you get not just great graphics which has been keeping AMD king among gamers, but also the ability to playback videos, including full 1080p Blu-ray, smoothly.

Since the debate of which processor works better is as long-running as the debate that divides Windows and Mac devotees, making the switch to an AMD PC will be for some, a leap of faith.

But who knows, you might just be pleasantly surprised.

The HP Pavilion dv2 is available from 24 April along with a new range of Pavilion notebooks in varying sizes and configurations.

“With this launch, we are taking the next big step to deliver a full range of performance-centric yet stylish computing options to complement every personality, lifestyle and budget” said HP's vice president for Notebook Business Unit (Personal Systems Group, Asia Pacific and Japan).

Chin Hon Cheng added, “we are pushing the boundaries of design and innovation to deliver on the wants of consumers today."

The latest HP Pavilion notebook range also includes the dv3 which is a 13.3-inch diagonal LED widescreen display, right up to the dv7 with a 17.3-inch diagonal WXGA and High-Definition BrightView display.

All feature a 16:9 panel and either an Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD processor, so pricing varies with starting tag of S$2099.


-CNA/sf