Hasta La Gadget!

In the market for an HP laptop? Then it looks like your buying decision just got a tad tougher, with another round of official and not quite official announcements affecting four more models among the company’s many offerings. Those include the dv6 (pictured above), which is now available with lower-cost Intel Pentium Dual-Core T4200 or Core 2 Duo T6400 processors and ATI Mobility Radeon HD4530 or HD4650 graphics, and the considerably higher-end HDX 16, which gets a boost in the graphics department courtesy of NVIDIA’s GeForce GT 130M GPU with 1GB of on-board RAM. What’s more, while HP isn’t saying anything about it just yet, Notebook Italia seems pretty sure that the 18.4-inch HDX 18 will also be getting a similar graphics upgrade in the coming days. Lastly, it seems that the 17-inch Pavilion dv7 laptop has also seen a mild update in the form of the dv7-2000, which now packs ATI’s latest Mobility Radeon HD4000 series graphics, and a Core 2 Quad Q9000 processor on the top-end configuration.

Read – Notebook Italia, HP Pavilion dv6, HDX 16, HDX 18
Read – Notebook Italia, HP Pavilion dv7

Filed under: Laptops

HP Pavilion dv6, HDX 16 and more see updates, rumors originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Apr 2009 13:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve already covered the plethora of Windows 7 versions, starting with the gimpy Starter edition and then running all the way up to Ultimate (which, we can now confirm, will not include a bag of chips). Microsoft’s grand scheme is for users to start with what they need and pay to unlock additional functionality, upgrading their way to the top rung of the the Windows 7 ladder. But, it’s now coming to light that the company will also allow downgrades — not to simpler versions of Win 7, but to earlier operating systems like Vista and even XP. Yes, OEM manufacturers can still keep shipping XP Pro by “downgrading” Windows 7 machines through the end of April, 2010, and while HP is the only one advertising this, you can be sure they won’t be alone. Interestingly these machines will still come with free Windows 7 upgrades, hopefully enticing users to give it a shot, but if they don’t like it they are allowed to go back to XP on their own. Details for user-driven downgrades are a bit light at the moment, though, so don’t be surprised if it requires a little fdisk action.

[Thanks, Simon B.]

Read — Windows 7 will allow downgrades too at CNET
Read — Microsoft allows HP to wipe Windows 7 at AppleInsider
Read — Windows 7 upgrades for downgraders at Computer World

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Microsoft hoping for Win 7 upgraders, reluctantly allowing downgraders originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Apr 2009 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s springtime, and flowers are starting to bloom just like deals in a Cheap Geek column. Please enjoy this garden of savings.

1. You may not believe this, but Staples, the place that gives you a great price on paper clips as long as you buy a crate of them, is delivering a super price on an HP Pavilion notebook. And you don’t have to buy more than one! With instant savings you’ll pay only $549.98. BOnus deal: If you also buy an HP Deskjet printer (certain models only), you’ll get a rebate that covers the cost of the printer.

2. You rarely see a deal on gift cards, so I’m presenting this special offer on iTunes cards because it’s such a curiosity. Shop at Best Buy, and you can get three $10 iTunes gift cards for $25.00. That’s $5 of music free, an especially good deal if you buy it for yourself.

3. What is it about iPod and iPhone earbuds that make them so, well, crappy? If yours kick the bucket, as mine recently did, replace them with a set of Shure SE110 Sound Isolating Stereo Earphones, which are going for a low $65.95 (with free shipping) from Buy.com.

And now, a little visit to the “Why not?” department: NVIDIA is showing off an HP Mini 1000 at CTIA that it has totally gutted, replacing the laptop’s stock Atom-based circuitry with its own Tegra wares atop a bone-stock Windows CE build. At first the move seems counterproductive since Tegra can’t run XP or Vista, but if you look at this as the first prototype of a large Tegra-powered $99 MID, you’re thinking along the right lines. The concept isn’t indicative of any sort of partnership between NVIDIA and HP, but the chipmaker is looking at this as an opportunity to demonstrate to manufacturers how easy it is to make a device like this — and like other Tegra devices we’ve seen, this thing could easily have HDMI, run fluid 3D graphics, and generally make the world a better place at a stupid cheap price. We were also shown a Tegra single-board computer measuring no larger than a single small-outline DIMM like you’d find in a modern laptop, proof that this action can be scaled way down depending on the kinds of devices manufacturers are looking to make. Check out a video of the Franken-Mini after the break.

Continue reading NVIDIA’s Franken-Mini is half HP, half Tegra, no Intel

Filed under: Laptops

NVIDIA’s Franken-Mini is half HP, half Tegra, no Intel originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As anyone up on their patent fights these days is no doubt aware, Australia’s CSIRO (or the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization) has been engaged in a long-standing dispute with seemingly every company that makes use of WiFi in their products, and even the organization responsible for the 802.11 standard itself. Now, following a short lived victory against Buffalo, the group has reportedly reached a settlement in its lawsuit with HP, although all of the parties involved are unsurprisingly staying mum on any specifics for the time being. As Australia’s Sydney Morning Herald notes, however, the settlement will no doubt give CSIRO a boost in confidence as it continues to challenge the remaining companies now entangled in lawsuits, which includes everyone from Microsoft to Dell to Nintendo, and free up a bit more time for the group to get back to creating even rounder objects and more stylish power-generating shirts.

[Thanks, Greg]

Filed under: Wireless

CSIRO settles patent lawsuit with HP, continues fight with everyone else originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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