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HP Pavilion dv3 with multitouch screen spotted in the wild, we go hands-on

Our curious British fingers managed to stumble upon a European HP Pavilion dv3 blessed with Windows 7 and multitouch on both the screen and the trackpad. The keyboard was great to type on with negligible flex, but the trackpad suffers from the same glossy issues on other recent HPs -- although it responded to our multitouch gestures better than the capacitive screen did. Our major annoyance came from the attempts to rotate pictures on the screen: we learned the hard way that the laptop (or Windows 7 itself) seemed to prefer more exaggerated rotation gestures than the MacBooks -- perhaps one would get used to it over time. The hinge is fairly solid, but we still preferred holding the screen while touching it. On a brighter note we totally dig the inclusion of an HDMI port and an eSATA port, plus you'll get up to seven hours of sweet battery juice from this 2.24kg (4.94 pounds) machine. Read on for our hands-on video and photo gallery.

HP Envy, dv8 Quad, Mini 311, and numerous other Windows 7 machines now available to order

Since today really needs a good heap of news to somewhat balance out yesterday's glut, HP has updated its online store to give it an abundance of new and revised Windows 7 machines, including the Envy series (Beats edition and all), Pavilion dm3 with AMD Neo or Intel CULV chips, Core i7-packing dv6t/ dv7t / dv8t Quad editions, and the not-so-netbook CQ61. We're still not seeing the previously-leaked dm1 ultraportable anywhere, but the Mini 311 and a slightly updated Mini 110 are, with the option to jump from Windows XP to 7 for a cool $50 / $30 respectively. Most everything in the store, desktops and laptops, has been updated to at least include Windows 7 as the standard shipping OS, and while all claim free 2-day shipping, estimated shipping dates begin sometime the week after 7's Oct 22nd launch -- no early chances here, folks. Browse the read links and keep an eye on the shiny red "new" icons (no flashing GIFs, we're afraid) for the entire revised lineup.

Update: As a number of you have pointed, the Envy product page is a bit, well, sloppy. Typos and missing commas notwithstanding, it seems to biggest laugh is the cost of customization, i.e. $800 more to downgrade from a 500GB HDD to 320GB or 250GB (same price), or $900 more to downgrade from 6GB or 4GB of DDR3 memory. Yeah, it might be best to hold off on that one until HP get the kinks worked out.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Read - Desktop lineup
Read - Laptop lineup
Read - Envy series lineup

Acer fulfills prophecy, overtakes Dell as number two PC maker worldwide (update)

As if on cue, here's some new data research firm Gartner lending credence to Lanci's boasting. Looks like Acer has leapfrogged over Dell for the number two spot in global market share for the third quarter of 2009, from 12.5 to 15.4 percent of the Big Pie Chart™. Meanwhile Dell is just below at 12.8 percent, and HP is sitting happily atop with a 19.9 percent ownership.

Update: Let us adjust our glasses a bit. According to the charts, Acer is number two in worldwide PC sales, not in US as this previously reported. Stateside, the company is sitting at number three at 13.9 percent, behind HP (25.7 percent) and Dell (26.2 percent). Apologies for the confusion, the person responsible for eyesight has been subsequently sacked, the person responsible for the sacking has been sacked, etc.

HP dv8 specs page goes live, confirms Core i7 processor

We've already seen plenty of leaked info about HP's upcoming Core i7-based dv8, but nothing beats an official specs page on a company's own server for proof, does it? Looks like this 18.4-inch monster will pack a 1.6GHz Core i7 processor (we're guessing that's the baseline speed, as Intel's Turbo tech will boost the max speed of a single core far higher), 4GB of RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT230 graphics, and a LightScribe Blu-ray burner. Oh, and it'll weigh nearly nine pounds -- but that's a small price to pay, right?

[Thanks, Alexi]

HP Envy 15 FCC filing reveals magnesium casing, Linux options

Okay, so here's a big way the HP's new Envy 15 isn't like the MacBook Pro: its case is made of magnesium, not aluminum. Take that, haters. Of course, there's still the note-perfect reproduction of the MBP's unibody looks, that buttonless glass multitouch trackpad, and the overall sense that HP's designers did their homework in an Apple store to deal with, but hey, at least you're getting a Core i7 processor when this thing launches on October 18th, right? Oh, and in case you're not into Windows 7, you're in luck -- there are quite a few references to Linux scattered about, so we'd expect a penguin-friendly configuration to be announced at some point. [Warning: PDF read link]

[Via Wireless Goodness]

Google names Chrome OS compatriots, Dell noticeably absent

Acer, Adobe, ASUS, Freescale, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Qualcomm, and Texas Instruments -- according to the latest Chrome OS update from Google, you're looking at the company's initial ragtag team of co-conspirators for its entry into the operating system business. With Adobe's involvement, we can assume Flash support is a given, and the others unsurprisingly run the gamut of netbook and smartbook players. We can't help but notice a couple of conspicuous absences on that list, including Intel and Dell. With Intel, you don't need to partner to work on its chips, but we gotta imagine it'd help by offering more support, and as for Dell, we don't know about that one, but there's still plenty of time for the Big G to enlist more companies in the lead up to its second half 2010 debut.

Update: Google updated the list to include Toshiba.

CE-Oh no he didn't! Part LXI: Acer chief says Japanese PC companies "the weakest today"

We're pretty sure we've heard Acer CEO Gianfranco Lanci say PC industry consolidation resulting in fewer players and lower component prices would be a good thing before, but he dressed it with a side of smackdown today: speaking to the New York Times, he said that Toshiba and Sony's PC businesses would be the first targets, since "the Japanese for sure are the weakest today." Ouch. It's especially harsh since Sony just broke down and released its first netbook this morning after claiming that the low-cost machines were a downward spiral, but that wasn't enough blood for Gianfranco: he also said that ASUS and Lenovo need to "think long and hard" about remaining independent companies. Yow -- sounds like someone's planning to do a little shopping, don't you think?

Acer poised to beat Dell, become number two PC maker


Interesting piece in the New York Times today about Acer -- the company is about to ride the tidal wave of netbooks and other el-cheapo computers straight to the number two spot on the PC sales chart. That's a big deal -- no non-US company has ever made it so high -- and it's interesting that the strategies Acer took to get there are the same things Dell's been trying to do lately: it's heavy on low-cost, stylish laptops and netbooks, it keeps inventory extremely lean, and it relies on an extensive set of retail partnerships in Europe. What's more, the Aspire One has been the best-selling netbook for a while now, and we'd say Acer's way out in front of the CULV thin-and-light race with the Timeline -- in fact, we'd say the only open question here is whether the company can take all this computing success and translate it to something worthwhile in the smartphone space. Based on what we've seen so far, we've got our doubts, but we'll see what those super-secret Android sets look like before we place our bets.

Engadget Podcast 152 - 06.26.2009: The Day the Music Died 2

Yes, that's the one and only MJ to open the podcast -- this one was recorded just shortly after the Engadget crew had learned the news. Join Josh, Paul, Nilay and special guest Chris Ziegler as they deny the Nokia N97, get angry at the HTC Hero, bargain with Windows 7, depress themselves over the fate of the netbook, and finally learn to accept the Zune HD's Tegra processor. We won't lie -- Engadget Podcast 152 was a struggle, but in the end we all learned a little something about life, love, and forgiveness.

Update: Any further tasteless MJ jokes will be met with a swift ban. Be nice!

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller
Guest: Chris Ziegler
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: Billie Jean

Hear the podcast


00:02:26 - Nokia N97 review: a tale of two bloggers
00:26:28 - HTC Hero running Android and Sense UI leaks from HTC's own website (updated, official, video)
00:30:28 - HTC Hero hands-on: Flash, keyboard and ruminations (updated!)
00:48:09 - Windows 7 official pricing announced, limited pre-orders start tomorrow
01:03:40 - HP Mini 5101 cleans up nice, shows the serious side of netbooks
01:05:15 - HP ProBook 4310s hands-on
01:10:25 - Entelligence: Netbooks, R.I.P.
01:22:50 - Zune HD has a Tegra processor, confirms official Zune podcast


Subscribe to the podcast

[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC).
[RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically.
[RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator.
[Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace

Download the podcast

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Contact the podcast


1-888-ENGADGET or podcast (at) engadget (dot) com.

Twitter: @joshuatopolsky @futurepaul @reckless @engadget

New AMD Neo Athlon / Turion chips emerge in HP Pavilion dv2z


Well, well -- what have we here? HP's newly unveiled Pavilion dv2z just so happens to have a bit of fresh silicon within, as AMD's latest Neo chips are front and center in the configuration options. The thin-and-light machine can be ordered with single- or dual-core AMD Athlon Neo and Turion Neo dual-core processors, and if you're looking for specifics, you'll find the new 1.6GHz Athlon Neo X2 L335 and 1.6GHz Turion Neo X2 L625. Other specs on the 12.1-incher include a LED-backlit WXGA panel, optional Blu-ray drive, discrete ATI Radeon graphics, up to 500GB of HDD space, a built-in webcam, WiFi, optional WWAN (Verizon, Sprint or AT&T) and a 6-cell battery. It's up for order right now starting at $599.99, but if you're looking to leave that aged Neo MV-40 behind, you'll have to pony up a bit more than that. Full release is after the break.

HP introduces cheaper dv2, dv3, and dv6 laptops, fantastically ugly dv6 Artist Edition


HP's just kicked out a slew of updates to its laptop lines, and thankfully the biggest news is that they've gotten cheaper. The HP dv2z brings the low end of the 12.1-inch AMD Neo ultraportable down to $599, while the larger Intel-based dv3t is now $649. The dv6 gets two new editions, including the pictured $949 dv6z Artist Edition 2 preloaded with a bunch of Corel art software and a $649 dv6t base model that thankfully loses the awful lid artwork. Seriously, we know HP had to use the design after it won the HP / MTV Notebook Design Contest, but we just don't think too many people want to rock the"surfing peacock" look. There are also a bunch of new eco-friendly printers if you're into that sort of thing -- hit the read link for the lowdown.

Verizon HP Mini 1000 to run $199 on a two-year contract at launch


Yep, it looks like Verizon's subsidized HP Mini 1000 will indeed launch on May 17th -- and if these leaked screenshots are any indication, launch pricing will be set at $199 after a $50 rebate two-year contract and $299 after rebate for a one-year commitment. (The prices are marked "at launch ONLY" so we're guessing they'll go up sometime after.) As for specs, it's nothing special, just a 80GB Atom machine with 1GB of RAM and a WWAN card, so really, we'd much rather take the subsidy on a USB 3G stick and spread the mobile broadband love to all our machines than be stuck with an underpowered netbook, but hey -- it's your call. One more pic after the break.

Verizon's HP Mini 1000 due to launch May 17th?


Sure, the hot buzz right now is centered on Verizon and Apple teaming up to release a unicorn-built iPhone tablet that runs on marshmallows and cuddles, but Boy Genius Report says that Big Red's actually-real partnership with HP is about to bear fruit -- the long-rumored subsidized Mini 1000 is apparently due to launch on May 17th. The specific model will be the Mini 1151NR, and if that leaked product-comparison sheet we saw earlier holds water, we're looking at a pretty standard Atom / XP configuration with a 3G modem built in. Pricing hasn't been locked down, but according to BGR, it'll be just as ridiculous as every other subsidized netbook: $299 after rebate with a mandatory two-year data contract. That's more or less $200 off standard MSRP, a discount we're sure you'll pay back twice over the course of the contract. Seriously, we'd much rather fiddle with a USB stick that we can use on multiple machines than spend around a grand on data fees just for a netbook -- what about you?

HP Pavilion dv6t gets reviewed: nice for the price, but full of crapware


It's not a bad time to be a budget-minded shopper on the hunt for a full-size laptop -- you've got a tons of nice options in the $600 - $1,000 range, and it sounds like HP's recently-revised dv6t is a strong competitor. PC Mag just took the 16-inch machine for a spin and came back favorably impressed, with cheers for great keyboard and included numeric keypad, light weight, and HDMI output. Sadly, a host of bundled crapware put a significant load on the 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo and the integrated graphics were expectedly lame, but for $750 after rebate, you might want to add this one to your list. Full review at the read link.

Verizon's subsidized HP Mini 1000 leaks out


Hey, look at that -- Verizon employee training materials that prominently feature the HP Mini 1000. That's exactly what we predicted after we heard the two companies were talking about offering subsidized 3G laptops last month, and while we won't congratulate ourselves too much, well, we told you so. Sadly, there's no pricing on these slides, but we'll go out on a limb and say it won't blow minds when it's finally released. Hit the read link to check out the rest.
Zune HD ExposedHTC Hero: Android Evolved
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