HP Debuts EliteBook, Adds 10 Notebooks to Business Lineup

Aimed at high-rolling road warriors, the HP EliteBook 6930p is the first in a new series within the Compaq business line. It offers the latest Intel and AMD processors, and a host of durability features, including spill-resistant keyboards, shock-mounted hard drives, and ruggedization in accordance with MIL-STD 810F military specifications. We think the minimalist steely finish looks appropriately rugged, but also worthy of a high-end road warrior’s machine. The display can purportedly withstand eighty times more force than previous Compaqs, and HP’s DuraFinish makes the display and palm rest six times more scratch resistant than its predecessors. It also offers Qualcomm’s Gobi technology, which allows users to seamlessly switch between Wi-Fi and mobile broadband. It even has a slot for reading business cards. The EliteBook starts at $1,179. The rest of HP’s business lineup includes the “b” (business) series, a mid-range line, and the “s” (standard) series, an even more basic line starting at $799. The “b” series notebooks have a silver finish and magensium alloy casing, whereas the “s” notebooks reflective black-on-black finish. We’re happy to see that certain durability and security features, such as 3D accelerometers and hard drive encryption, seem to be standard; they’re even offered in the lower-end “s” models. We hope other big players take note and start making these durability features standard as well. Here’s the breakdown of the remaining 9 business notebooks (sorry, we don’t have starting prices yet; we do know that the starting prices range from $799 to $1,179):

• Compaq 6530b and 6535b:14.1 inches; users have the option of latest Intel and AMD CPUs
• Compaq 6730b and 6735b: 15.4 inches; users have the option of latest Intel and AMD CPUs
• Compaq 6530s and 6535s: 14.1 inches
• Compaq 6730s and 6735s: 15.4 inches
• Compaq 6830s: 17 inches