HP EliteBook 2730p gets shown off on video

We didn't exactly get the best look at HP's new EliteBook 2730p tablet when it was announced earlier today, but Notebooks.com has now thankfully come through with a video of the device, in which HP's Kyle Thorton helpfully shows off every nook and cranny of sleek yet supposedly rugged convertible. That includes a peek at the tablet's jog dial, which makes a welcome reappearance after being ditched on the 2710p, and its "double clutch" stylus-holding system, which promises to keep you from losing your trusty input device (it's actually pretty slick). Head on past the break for the full show.

[Elais @ Aug 18th 2008 5:50PM]

I played with a 2710p a while back and the stylus does have an annoying habit of popping out, I'm glad they fixed it. I really do love this incremental update, especially the new trackpad and jogdial.

[phanbouy @ Aug 18th 2008 6:04PM]

wow... retroactive "first" declaration? holy 4th-dimensional failsauce, batman!

[mudkiller @ Aug 18th 2008 6:53PM]

Nice fixes. I have the 2710p and i hate the lack of buttons and how the pen pops out all the time from inadvertent nudges.

[Joe H @ Aug 18th 2008 5:55PM]

Yeah, this update looks nice, but the deal on sellout.woot right now definitely has me tempted to get the old one.

[Daniel Cheung @ Aug 18th 2008 6:20PM]

looks like they used iMovie to cut that demo video :)

[jacubious @ Aug 18th 2008 6:25PM]

I like this a lot. The aesthetics are so much better than the tx series in my opinion. I am not sure about the duel mouse options though. I think it could be a really great idea, but I am going to hold judgement until handling the thing for myself.

[Alex @ Aug 18th 2008 7:14PM]

I actually have a TX and find it to be excellent, however despite its form factor, its still not that portable (its quite heavy, and the battery will only last max 2.5 hours.)

The sony I'm sure is more sturdy and is actually more user-friendly (small, yet usable keyboard and full trackpad). It also has a fingerprint scanner and excellent wifi reception, and also plays nicely with various linux builds.

I'd only consider something like this as a replacement with all of the above (I'm not seeing a fingerprint scanner) (and where's the HSDPA module), as well as a new processor (like the atom) that draws less power, and hence has a longer battery life.

[Benson @ Aug 18th 2008 7:23PM]

Liar! I have a tx2000 and I got 2.6 hours just yesterday!

Bluntly, I don't like the aesthetics of the tx; too much funny swirly pattern junk, and too much glossy black -- you know things have gone too far when your laptop comes with a microfiber rag to clean fingerprints off the outside. Which makes it a good thing that I purchase for capabilities, not aesthetics. My tx is covered in fingerprints and smudges, and I couildn't care less.

The main thing I like about this is the ruggedization; the slightly more industrial / less fanciful aesthetics are just a pleasing side benefit.

And keep the Atom out; if there's one thing Vista does not need on this machine, it's that kind of performance hit. Some other power-sipping processor would be good though; it just has to at least match current performance, since there won't be xp drivers available for a new one.

[Tejlgaard @ Aug 18th 2008 6:34PM]

The old model was really ahead of the competition in a vast number of ways; but it was sorely lacking in others.

The ULV processor made it less powerful than the hp value-tablet-model TX2000's, and that was less than half what this model is.

Furthermore, it was apparently somewhat noisy.

If this new model fits with the penryn LV processor, sure, it means that it'll do a max of 25 watts to the processor rather than the 10 I think the ULV did - but you get an FSB at _twice_ the speed for that money, and a processor that is at least twice as fast.

Only problem I would have remaining with this is heat and noise issues, as well as wireless reception - but for the advantages this thing now affords, particularly because it's screen is so incredibly beautiful, this would win if I were to upgrade today, hands down.

[Damon Stephenson @ Aug 18th 2008 6:55PM]

I wish they brought the TC series back but this one looks just as nice :)

[r-o-b @ Aug 18th 2008 6:59PM]

looks like a notebook with a broken-off screen

[r-o-b @ Aug 18th 2008 6:59PM]

hello

[Danger @ Aug 18th 2008 7:16PM]

Hi.

[King Mustard @ Aug 18th 2008 7:22PM]

Hey.

[Shiva N Singh @ Aug 19th 2008 3:10AM]

hi asl plz im 21/f/CA with pics

[Alex @ Aug 18th 2008 7:16PM]

I actually have a TX and find it to be excellent, however despite its
form factor, its still not that portable (its quite heavy, and the
battery will only last max 2.5 hours.)

The sony I'm sure is more sturdy and is actually more user-friendly
(small, yet usable keyboard and full trackpad). It also has a
fingerprint scanner and excellent wifi reception, and also plays
nicely with various linux builds.

I'd only consider something like this as a replacement with all of
the above (I'm not seeing a fingerprint scanner) (and where's the
HSDPA module), as well as a new processor (like the atom) that draws
less power, and hence has a longer battery life.

[Alex @ Aug 18th 2008 7:17PM]

apologies for the double post

[Ryan @ Aug 18th 2008 7:41PM]

What was the price range on these again? Is this affordable to a college student?

[JoeT @ Aug 18th 2008 8:39PM]

I have a 2710p, and love its weight, its form factor, its slim extended battery, its slim docking station with DVD drive, so that you can tack on both slim attachments and then it's just a heavy Tablet.

The things I hated have been fixed:
- scroll buttons, so necessary when reading in portrait mode, were missing from the 2710p (I bought a wireless micro trackball just for reading, but setup is inconvenient and the USB receiver sticks out precariously, and having a trackball attached to a finger isn't convenient when you're interrupted to do other things).
- scrolling in notebook mode is now possible using the edges of the touchpad. I haven't been able to scroll using the pointing stick (maybe there's a key I could press in combination with moving the pointing stick that would make the page scroll, but I haven't found it).
- pen no longer falls out.

Wish I knew about these annoyances with the 2710p. I would have waited and bought the 2730.

[roach @ Aug 18th 2008 8:45PM]

WTF...the guy said they been inplementing request from people, yet none of the request ask for GPU?

[Dennis @ Aug 18th 2008 9:19PM]

his name is Kyle?

[bluvasa @ Aug 18th 2008 9:25PM]

I applaud HP's continued support of Tablet PCs.

I've used my TC1100 everyday for almost 4 years now. IMHO, there is nothing better than the slate form factor for daily surfing and the occasional Photoshop. Surprisingly, it runs Vista pretty well. The improved handwriting recognition pulled me away from XP about a year ago.

This new 2730p seems pretty comparable to the TX2500 that I just bought my wife. Anyone interested in the 2730 should take a long look at the TX2500 first. We got ours for $900 at Bestbuy a couple weeks ago.

[bidur @ Aug 18th 2008 11:25PM]

i think thinkpad will be more fruitful .. .

or go for hp tx....

[loosely_coupled @ Aug 19th 2008 2:55AM]

LOL. When I saw 2730p, I though it was the resolution! How awesome would that be? (with a vector-based resolution independent GUI of course)

[XenoX101 @ Aug 19th 2008 6:37AM]

He seems so nervous.