HP specs a 24 hour EliteBook, Dell's 19 hour mark hangs its head in shame

Workaholics take note: HP just did the impossible, cramming 24 hours of battery into a laptop, and destroying Dell's fresh 19 hour record in the process. The HP EliteBook 6930p combines advances such as an LED backlit display and Intel's 80GB SSD, a new HP BIOS and Intel graphics driver, and of course an "Ultra Capacity Battery" -- a 12-cell, $189 option, which weighs in at a hefty 1.77 pounds -- for a net approximate 24 hours of work time. The standard 6930p only weighs 4.7 pounds, though, so you're not looking at a backbreaker, and configurations start at $1,199 without SSD.

[Shotgun @ Sep 8th 2008 2:00PM]

I'd buy anything with a picture of Abbath on it! Sons of Northern Darkness \m/

[OneLove @ Sep 8th 2008 2:03PM]

lol = men that wear makeup.

[xchrisx @ Sep 8th 2008 2:06PM]

x2 on this. You beat me to it. Black metal influenced laptops ftw!

[PHO @ Sep 8th 2008 2:10PM]

Are they trying to market my father?

[Muhammed @ Sep 8th 2008 2:18PM]

Just what I was thinking! \m/ that pic is awesome!


@Onelove: did u know that ALL the male actors u see in movies put makeup ? is that laughable ?
in other words, if u don't understand it, don't bitch about it, thanks.

[MC Double Def DP @ Sep 8th 2008 3:51PM]

I came here for updates on their new album :(

[Atanas Boev @ Sep 8th 2008 3:53PM]

When you are Immortal, booting takes forever... \m/

[mrpoo @ Sep 8th 2008 9:09PM]

That is a surprisingly gay pose. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[Ruben @ Sep 9th 2008 8:57AM]

@OneLove:

He could be wearing a wedding dress, and he would be 10 times more brutal than you!

Abbath is the best thing to happen to Black Metal.

[mojohat @ Sep 22nd 2008 3:23PM]

Some things to think about:

HP used MobileMark 2005 to reach the 24 hour claim – a benchmark version that is almost 4 years old!

Due to the age of the benchmark the system being tested is idle approximately 96% of the time which often results in the laptop’s components going into various sleep states.

In reaching Dell's 19-hour battery life claim, Dell decided not to use MobileMark 2005 because of its tendency to misrepresent real world battery life (like idle and sleeping systems!)

Dell’s 19 hour claim was measured using the MobileMark 2007 Productivity benchmark, which is the indystry standard for battery life testing. Additionally, MobileMark 2007 added a few new run rules that help to generate more realistic battery life estimations than its previous test suite, while increasing the consistency of results.

[PHO @ Sep 8th 2008 2:02PM]

Now if only my iphone could get that type of juice....

Still damn impressive! I'd be lucky if my laptop got 3 hours of run time before I need to plug that power hungry beast up again!

[UnixSystemsEngineer @ Sep 8th 2008 7:09PM]

It's all about the push. Mine went from 3 days to about 16 hours when I updated to the 2.0 software and started using Exchange syncing.

What a deal -- all I have to do is use a password (to use my PHONE) every hour, and suffer massively reduced battery life, in return for the great privilege of being able to read my work email when I'm not at work!

[OneLove @ Sep 8th 2008 2:01PM]

HP set free my bios

[Dani Reader @ Sep 8th 2008 2:02PM]

Now just wait for Apple to release this 'revolutionary' technology in their next mbp, touting how amazing and trendy, and possibly 'hip' they are

[konshuss @ Sep 8th 2008 2:11PM]

see how much it weights? it won't happen. anything over 2 pounds would crush steve jobs' emaciated legs.

[Hugh @ Sep 8th 2008 2:16PM]

Big batteries are far to trendy for apple, based on the fact that an iphone gets the same 2-3 hour battery life as my macbok air. It can barely get me through class, let alone a whole day at school, arent I the target demographic? Teenager with a light trendy craptop taking notes in class???

[Dani Reader @ Sep 8th 2008 2:22PM]

Low ranked? for making fun of apple? Surprise surprise. I own a mac, by the way.

@konshuss:
I wonder, was that obituary a prophecy?

[Chad @ Sep 8th 2008 5:03PM]

@konshuss - LOL
I rarely actually laugh out loud but that was fricken hilarious.
Well played.

[Scott @ Sep 8th 2008 5:22PM]

That's rich on the same day MS was reported to have begun working on a Time Machine-like product. That's great because so far, the world only has a working/functional/reliable version. What we really need with our backup solutions is a series of bugs and security holes.

Honestly, "consumer quality" is an oxymoron in computing but please, let's keep arguing over which architecture sucks least/most. It's a riveting conversation.

[wickedpheonix @ Sep 8th 2008 10:11PM]

@Hugh:

That's why I feel a little sorry inside for everyone who buys a 5 lb+ Apple laptop. Much better to get a light laptop with a long-lasting battery (aka, Lenovo X200)

[avester @ Sep 8th 2008 2:04PM]

Was it 19 hours with shitty ARM?

[Robert @ Sep 8th 2008 2:05PM]

Engadget should hang it's head in shame for the typo in the headline. ha ha

[Patriks7 @ Sep 8th 2008 2:09PM]

you're right, correctly it shout read "... mark hands its head, E.T. shame home"

[Patriks7 @ Sep 8th 2008 2:10PM]

*hangs >_<
where's my edit button?!

[Gus @ Sep 8th 2008 2:16PM]

It in the possessive sense is indeed spelled its.

[chefgon_ign @ Sep 8th 2008 2:41PM]

its = possessive (belongs to it)
it's = contraction (it is)


Or to put it another way...


Engadget = right
You = wrong

[Matt @ Sep 8th 2008 2:55PM]

The worst type of Grammar Nazi is one with bad grammar.

[Adam L @ Sep 8th 2008 4:32PM]

I think what you meant to say is "The worst grammar Nazis are the ones with bad grammar." =)

[kro @ Sep 8th 2008 7:18PM]

@chefgon_ign

Actually the headline initially read "HP specs a 24 hour EliteBook, Dell's 19 hour mark hangs its head it shame" which is what Robert was talking about. My RSS feed headline still displays that.

[konshuss @ Sep 8th 2008 2:08PM]

all it takes is an extra couple of pounds to add 20+ hours more to the battery life? holy crap, why isn't every laptop made this way? oh right, people want their 3-4 hour user experience to be really thin and stuff. yeah. thin... that's productivity.

[MadMike @ Sep 8th 2008 2:09PM]

This laptop gets 24 hours of battery run-time***

***"only in super-useless mode with the brightness so low you can see the screen and the processor running at 2.1MHz"

Under normal everyday usage: 3-hours.

[konshuss @ Sep 8th 2008 2:16PM]

i don't get it, are you quoting something from the site or giving us your best impression of fine print that as far as i can tell by reading - doesn't exist.

seeing as my inspiron 1710 gets maybe an extra 2 hours being on the lowest power setting (giving it a reasonable estimate of about 6 hours), how do you figure with what math a purported 24 hour battery would shrink in its capacity moreso than a regular battery?

buy a calculator.

[cmil1212 @ Sep 8th 2008 2:14PM]

Too bad it's HP which is crap..

[NXTwoThou @ Sep 8th 2008 2:17PM]

Maybe I'm missing something, but on hp's website, the 6930p only seems to hvae pre-configured models. I don't see any way of changing out for the 12 cell battery.

[fieldcar @ Sep 8th 2008 2:18PM]

Foul stench!
Dell is four one leggd war heros!
My mac book pro is always plugged in anyways, I wuld rather have a liter notebook, this probably ways a ton.

[konshuss @ Sep 8th 2008 2:26PM]

exactly what fabio would say.

[Matt @ Sep 8th 2008 2:38PM]

Legged, heroes, anyway, would, lighter, weighs.

(For all my cringing brothers and sisters.)

[fieldcar @ Sep 8th 2008 2:51PM]

@Matt: effective as nails on a chalk board huh? it was an intentional spoof aimed at the mac-gasm going on with some engadget visitors today.
You missed one, "four" should be "for".

Thanks for playing, you've been wonderful.

[Brian @ Sep 8th 2008 3:07PM]

Matt... thank you. Oh and I think it's MacBook Pro. :)

On topic: 24 hours... freakin' awesome, but I'll believe it when I see/use it. I get MAYBE two hours, tops, on my current laptop, so I don't know any other lifestyle of laptop.

[TareX @ Sep 8th 2008 2:20PM]

I wonder how much money and dignity would Intel save by stopping the production of all integrated gfx chipsets.

[Adam L @ Sep 10th 2008 4:39PM]

I have a Toshiba Satellite with Intel GMA 965 Express chipset, a mid-range integrated gfx solution that allows me to run Vista with Aero settings because it just barely supports DX10. It drove the cost of my laptop down by at LEAST $150 by excluding something my desktop already does extremely well, really I see no problem with Intel's GMA 960/965 platform, they both run DX10 (although I won't run vista on it.) and I can almost play Unreal 2004 with full settings, 1280x800x32. It's the right solution for me, and with 1.5 GB of total video ram available on my home PC, 384mb is all I need in a notebook I'm just going to plug into my PC at the end of the day.

[Muhammed @ Sep 8th 2008 2:24PM]

"Hangs its head it shame ?"

lol !!! you mean that it shame its head ?!!

D

[Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Sep 8th 2008 2:25PM]

I wonder how these larger laptops are getting much better battery life than the ultraportables, it should be the other way around, I suppose because they have room for larger batteries and for modular batteries as well?

I miss the modular batteries from the Fujitsu Lifebook P series. : (

I want this sort of battery life in 12 to 13" laptops....

[v3xx @ Sep 8th 2008 2:32PM]

this isnt realated to the post but battery life in general.

why cant the palm rests of laptops be made of the same material used on calculators to keep the battery powered. i dont know how much energy can be made that way but it should add a good chunk of battery life. and about the cost. i can get a calculator at the store right now for 3.99 with a little solar panel, and i know thats not the main cost of the calculator. and isnt toyota doing this with the prius very soon?

[chefgon_ign @ Sep 8th 2008 2:46PM]

A calculator can run on a button battery for a year. That wouldn't provide a laptop enough power to even turn on. The power gain you'd see from a solar panel would be insignificant, you'd never notice the difference.

[KilgoreTrout @ Sep 8th 2008 3:09PM]

Sure, and since you can power subs with nuclear reactors why not your (YOUR) Dell laptop?
If you're fast enough you may even be the first to patent the USB windmill everyone is wating for.
By the way how many calculators have you seen lately running XP, an optical drive and a GPU with the juice coming from that tiny solar cell you find so amazing?

[v3xx @ Sep 8th 2008 4:33PM]

im talking about the entire palm rests. if the prius can run all the electronics and air conditioning with a roof mounted solar cell why cant 2 3 inch by 3 inch pads at least extend a laptops battery life.

[Jon Acheson @ Sep 8th 2008 5:24PM]

I think the power gains you'd get from solar cells on the palm-rests (and, what the hey, the back of the screen bezel as well) would be minimal. The power requirements for a laptop are orders of magnitude greater than for a cheapie calculator, I would think. Though it would be cool as it would be functional, to some extent, instead of just chrome.

On the other hand, though, ebooks like the Sony Reader and Kindle might benefit from this approach, as they also operate at a very low power draw.

[tatarynowicz @ Oct 19th 2008 5:42AM]

Two 4''x8'' solar panels working in perfect conditions (i.e. not obstructed by your wrists) could generate as much as 2 watts of electricity. Considering that you don't usually work on a laptop in full sunlight and with hands off the keyboard, I would say the power generated by the solar panels on a laptop wrist rests would be below 1W. That doesn't even touch in the issues of extra weight and cost.

The amazing thing about the solar-powered calculators is _how little energy they need_.

[KilgoreTrout @ Sep 8th 2008 3:18PM]

Sorry , usually I tend not to be such a wise assed SOB.