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Review: HP Mini 210-3001ei

Tessa Reed
By Tessa Reed, Journalist
Johannesburg, 15 Dec 2011

Hewlett-Packard's (HP's) Mini 210-3001ei laptop is a sleek machine with an executive look.

The company has designed this machine for people on the move, and with its compact dimensions, it is perfect for packing into most bags. However, it's quite heavy.

Overall, the Mini 210-3001ei is a great machine. It doesn't require much set-up, unless users want to beef up the software and security features.

Look and feel

The notebook has a smooth, matt black chassis, and while the chassis is made out of plastic, it is hardened so that it does not have a plastic feel. The screen sits comfortably in the chassis. The display is pretty much flush with the chassis, with an internal frame. At roughly 2cm wide, however, the frame is a bit of a waste of space and results in a smaller actual display.

The Mini 210-3001ei is easy to transport; it can pop into any briefcase, and most handbags these days will accommodate the notebook, too. However, I must say, I found 3.2cm rather thick, and at 1.39kg, the notebook is fairly heavy. Needless to say, the Mini 210-3001ei is not the perfect travelling companion for users that plan to do lots of walking while carrying the device.

Usability

Step-by-step instructions make setting up the HP Mini 210-3001ei simple. The Windows operating system is also familiar to most users and the machine is optimised for Microsoft Office. This means that, should users find the applications on Windows 7 inadequate for their purposes, installing additional programs, like Microsoft Excel, is very easy.

As a bonus, HP's notebook also comes with 60 days' of Symantec Norton Internet Security 2011.

The Mini 210-3001ei has a well-spaced keyboard. The keys are fairly small, but space in-between makes for easy typing. Some users may be disappointed to find that the keyboard is not backlit.

HP breaks with conventional style when it comes to the notebook's mouse pad. At first, I was horrified that I had been sent a notebook to review that did not have a mouse pad. It is there - it's just small, and the only way you can distinguish it is by the raised dots at the bottom of the keypad. That said, the mouse pad is incredible responsive.

Display and sound

HP's notebook comes with a 25.6cm display. I've already moaned about the display, but now is a good time to again point out that, without the frame, the display would be a lot bigger.

In summary:

Pros: Compact, easy set-up
Cons: No backlit keyboard, heavy
Price: R3 299
Rating: 8/10
Processor: Intel N570
OS: Windows 7
Processor speed: DDR3 memory, working at 1.66GHz
RAM: 2GB DDR3
Weight: Starting at 1.39kg
Dimensions: 26.8 x 19.1 x 3.2cm
Screen: 25.6 cm, 1024 x 600 resolution
Battery: Six-cell lithium-Ion

This display is, however, more than adequate for reading and writing documents, although it is a bit small to watch video footage for recreational purposes. It definitely is not big enough for two people to watch footage together.

The display itself is incredibly crisp. HD video seems to be fairly standard these days, and HP has thrown in an HD display to jack up its offering. While I still would not go out of my way to watch videos on the machine, it is nice having such a good display on a notebook. For those who don't have tablets, viewing pictures on this notebook is great. Moreover, if you are going to be travelling with this machine, you're probably going to be browsing your pictures. In fact, you might even watch some video clips, if you have some time on your hands.

The Mini 210-3001ei provides sufficient sound. Users who have to rely on only the built-in speakers to listen to music, however, will be sorely disappointed. Then again, laptops and notebooks are not known for their top-notch sound quality. I would say that, given the Mini 210-3001ei's size, its speakers deliver more than adequate sound quality. While it is tinny, the sound is good enough for the odd video clip.

The notebook also has a Web cam and an integrated microphone. These are real bonuses for travellers who like to video call.

Under the hood

The Mini 210-3001ei has an Intel 1.66GHz processor and 2GB DDR3 of memory.

It takes just over a minute to boot up - I found that pretty impressive for a notebook. Applications are also fairly fast to load. However, it battles to run multiple high-end applications and still maintain speed.

The notebook comes with 1VGA and three USB 2.0 ports. While it is a bit of a let down to have a new model that does not have USB 3.0, this is fairly adequate for a notebook.

One of the drawbacks to small machines like this is that they often skimp on some of the features found in bigger (and pricier) machines. For example, the Mini 210-3001ei does not have a CD or DVD drive, nor does it have SD card slots. In all fairness, given its low price, this is to be expected.

In a nutshell

The HP Mini 210-3001ei is a great machine for students, as it is incredibly portable. It also delivers sufficient performance for most businesspeople, but executives may find the notebook insufficient in terms of processing power.

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