HP Mini 5101 Review Roundup

HP Mini 5101 is the latest business class mini laptop from HP to replace the Mini 2140. It was made available just a few days ago and is already reviewed by Laptop Magazine and PC Mag. Here are the review roundup for HP Mini 5101.







First, there are several features that the HP Mini 5101 stands out from the crowd. In terms of external design, it has a stylish, durable design which the casing consist of all-black, sturdy brushed metal aluminum lid and a magnesium alloy base. In terms of hardware specs, it got an 160GB 7200rpm hard drive and 2.0-megapixel webcam which differs from most mini laptops out there which comes with 5400rpm hard drive and 0.3 or 1.3 megapixel webcam. Also, it comes with a few useful features like the DuraKey finish on the keyboard, and an accelerometer that shuts down the hard drive in the event of a fall. Another thing that's special about this mini laptop is that there will be a 1366 x 768 resolution screen option expected to be available by end of July. This will be the highest resolution screen for mini laptops.

In terms of performance, Laptop Magazine is very pleased with the graphics, video transcoding, and wireless range of this mini laptop which achieved above average scores in every aspects. PC Magazine however commented that although the 7200rpm hard drive does boost the performance of this mini laptop a bit, but it produce more heat and noise compare to other mini laptops that are equipped with a 5400rpm hard drive.

In terms of battery life, Laptop Magazine is able to get nearly 8 hours of battery life by simulating real life usage of the mini laptop (surfing net with wifi turned on and performing other tasks), while PC Mag gets 5 hours 15 minutes of baterry life running the MobileMark 2007 test. Both reviews are using the 6-cell battery in their test.

In final verdict, the HP Mini 5101 is said to be a mini laptop with most things right, except for the price which is higher than most of its peers. Laptop Magazine given it a rating of 4 out of 5 and selected it as one of their Editors Choice, while PC Magazine rated it 3.5 out of 5.

The HP Mini 5101 is currently available for $399 on HP online store. The specs that you are getting with this price are: 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N280 processor, 10.1-inch with 1024 x 600 resolution, 4-cell battery, 1GB RAM, and 160 GB 7200 rpm HDD.

Here's short video review on HP Mini 5101 by PC Mag:

HP Mini 5101 Now Available

The HP business netbook, Mini 5101, is now available on HP's official site at a starting price of $399.


The specs of HP Mini 5101 are: Atom N280 Procssor, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD (7200rpm), 10.1” 1024x600 Display, GMA950 Graphics, 2MP Webcam, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, 4-Cell (29Whr) Battery good upto 4.5 hours.

HP Discontinued Mini 2140, Introducing New Mini 5101

HP recently announced that they will be phasing out the Mini 2140 netbook soon, and introduce a new business class netbook, the Mini 5101, to replace its predecessor.

Here's how the internal specs for the Mini 5101 is going to look like:

• 10.1-inch diagonal LED display in WSVGA or HD resolution
• 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 CPU
• 160GB/250GB/320GB 7200rpm hard drive
• 80/128GB SSD
• 4-cell/6-cell battery (8 hours)
• 2MP webcam
• WiFi, Bluetooth
• anodized aluminun display enclosure in black, brushed finish
• magnesium alloy mini frame
• spill-resistant QWERTY keyboard with HP Dura Keys finish

As you can see in the specs, the HP Mini 5101 is quite different from other netbooks on the market. First, the external casing of Mini 5101 consist of sturdy brushed metal aluminum lid and a magnesium alloy base. Second, the storage option offered on this netbook is different from the 160GB 5400rpm hard drive that most netbook on the market today offer. It comes with a hard drive with 7200rpm, and provides an option of 160GB, 250GB, and 320GB of storage size. Also, a SSD option is available for either 80GB or 128GB. Third, it features a 2.0MP webcam instead of 1.3MP cameras found on most of other netbooks. And finally, HP has made it extremely easy for us to upgrade the RAM on the Mini 5101. Brad on Liliputing has got a chance to play around with it, and demonstrate this cool feature on a video:



According to HP's press release, the Mini 5101 netbook is going to be released on late July. For more photos and first look impression on the HP Mini 5101, go check out Brad's post on Liliputing.