ConnectReviews

Continuing our ConnectInterviews series on new and innovative products, we talked with Kyle Thornton, Category Manager, Ultra-Light at HP. We asked him about the future of "netbooks", the HP Mini-Note 2133 and what makes their product better over others on the market today such as offerings from Asus and Acer.

1. Can you introduce to the ConnectReviews readers your position at HP and a little bit about yourself?

Kyle Thornton – I’m the Category Manager, Ultra-Light within the Business Notebook group. My category includes business notebooks, tablet PCs, and Mini-Notes that are 12” or smaller.

2. This category of small notebook computers called "netbooks" has become increasingly popular, who do you think this form factor applies to?

The HP Mini is ideal for those that have craved an ultra-portable (less than 12”) full-functioning notebook at an affordable price point. Until now, this was not achievable. Our entry into this market was primarily focused in serving the requirements of the Education market segment…not the consumer market. We’ve collaborated with our Education Advisory Council for years in bringing a product like this to market for some time. The Education segment has wanted an ultra-portable for some time now, but the high costs were not allowed by their shrinking budgets. Because of this, they had been drawn towards cheaper, but bigger notebooks…that were also a generation or two behind in technology. It is ideal for students that need a fully functional notebook PC that won’t weigh down their backpacks or take up too much space on their desktops.

Having done all this work for the Education Segment, we were somewhat surprised from the interest that we received from our SMB and Enterprise customers. Traveling professionals find the HP Mini to be a convenient “grab-and-go” secondary PC. Now that the price has come down dramatically, it is no longer just “executive jewelry”.

3. Why didn't HP decide to go with the Intel-based Atom processor and go with the VIA processor instead?

Once we committed to this market, it was important that we meet this year’s Education Harvest Season. This is a period (usually Feb-Jun) when the Education public sector purchases their computer hardware…and they use the summer to prep and deploy the computers before their new school year starts. Intel’s Atom was not announced until July 2008, so, we would have missed this year’s Harvest Season. Based on some notable successes, it was the right decision. As for refreshing technologies, HP selects the appropriate choice based on multiple factors…such as time-to-market, technology trends, costs, and the right fit for the platform.

4. I noticed the 2133 Mini-Note does not have the option for a solid state disk drive (SSD). However, where do you see this technology going? Do you have any plans to include such a drive in a future netbook product from HP?

Actually, in the very near future, an 80GB SSD option will be available for those that require the additional durability and can afford the high price tag. We expect this option to be around $900. As for lower capacity SSD’s in the 8-16GB range, we are currently evaluating them. One thing to consider is that hard drives still provide the most capacity for the dollar…and many customers still value the higher capacity.

5. What makes the HP 2133 Mini-Note better than other netbooks available on the market today?

The HP Mini offers many HP Professional Innovations that are normally reserved for our higher-end business notebooks. Features such as anodized all-aluminum casing, scratch-resistant acrylic panel over the LCD, HP DuraKeys (UV coating that protects the keys and helps them look newer for longer), HP 3D DriveGuard (accelerometers on the hard drive to protect the data from sudden jolts and drops), spill-resistant keyboard, metal alloy hinges, HP Panel Protection System, HP Recovery Manager (quickly recover the system and data in the event of a hard drive crash), HP FastCharge (charges battery to 90% in 90 minutes), HP Smart A/C Adapter, and HP Total Test Process (multi-tiered product validation process which includes more than 95,000 hours of testing per platform. I challenge anyone to find such a comprehensive list on other Netbooks or Mini-notes.)

6. Looking ahead, can you tell us about the future for similar products from HP?

HP is playing to stay in this emerging category. As far as talking in specifics, we don’t discuss unannounced products.

Thanks for your time.

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