dm3t
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HP's Pavilion dm3t gets a well-deserved refresh, now available with Core i3-330UM
It sure looks as if HP's Pavilion dm3t is still rockin' that godforsaken aluminum-sheet-of-a-trackpad, but if you're a perennial mouse user, you may still appreciate the revised innards that have recently slid into one of HP's most stylish ultraportables. The 13.3-incher is now available with Intel's 1.2GHz Pentium U5400 or a 1.2GHz Core i3-330UM, both of which include integrated graphics alongside an HDMI and VGA output. You can also equip it with up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM, a 640GB hard drive (or 160GB SSD, if you're feeling froggy), a six-cell battery and a 1366 x 768 BrightView LCD. The baseline machine sits at $549.99, but you know you'll be pushing it north of that once you spot the backlit keyboard option.
HP dm3t review
We're really into the new influx of inexpensive CULV-based laptops that's arrived with Windows 7, and just like the ASUS UL80Vt, we knew we had to check out the starts-at-$599 HP dm3t the second we saw the first leak. In many ways, it's the perfect throw-it-in-a-bag-and-go portable on paper, with a sleek and rigid case design, a 1.3GHz Intel SU7300 Core 2 Duo processor, and a 13.3-inch screen, but there's a big difference between loving a machine's spec sheets and reviews and loving it in real life, so we spent a couple days playing with a spec'd-up $819 model -- read on for our impressions.
HP Pavillion dm3t and its terrible touchpad get reviewed
The dm3 series of laptops might be HP's biggest potential seller. Hitting that 13-inch sweet spot, they are neither too small, nor too big, neither underpowered, nor overly encumbered, and -- unlike the Envy 13 -- they're actually priced within reach. Laptop Magazine had a $839 configuration in for review, and were immediately impressed with the ultrathin aluminum-clad body, describing it as "one of the best looking notebooks of the year." Opening it up, they found a "thoughtfully designed" keyboard, above-average display and speakers, and a stonking 9 hours of battery life under a WiFi-enabled web browsing test. Their gripes related to a heat issue on the bottom left side and, more significantly, an overly glossy touchpad that refused to play nice and left the reviewers feeling like they were fighting, rather than using, it. Read link shall enlighten you on the full spec and relative performance of the ULV processor inside.
