HP Smartbook We Saw at CES Gets Compaq Branding, Polished Design

Remember that Android-running, Snapdragon-powered HP smartbook prototype we spied at CES? It’s resurfaced at Mobile World Congress, with a polished design and interface, and a name, the Compaq AirLife 100. HP announced that Telefonica will carry the device in Europe and Latin America, places where the Compaq brand is more popular. No word on when or if it will come to the States, even under the HP brand. You can check out our CES coverage for a recap, and also read on for my impressions of the final device, including a photo gallery. In short, in a show full of mobile devices meant primarily for European and Asian markets, this is the thing I want most and can’t have. We saw the AirLife 100 back at CES when it was just a prototype. Spec-wise, we now know that the device has 16GB internal flash memory, GPS, an SD card slot, and can automatically transition between Wi-Fi and 3G. In this video, you get a good view of the interface, Android with some custom tweaking by HP. At the bottom of the 10-inch screen is a tray of stationary apps, which you can customize by dragging and dropping shortcuts. This tray stays in place even as you swipe among the three home screens. Regardless of the home screen you’re on, Android’s stock app launcher will line the right side of the screen. We’re still fans of the apps HP has created for the device, including a photo viewer that gives users the option of scrolling through photos, Cover Flow-style. Even better: you can do this using just your fingernails. In general, this is the most responsive resistive touch screen I’ve ever touched. Resistive touch screens get a bad rap for not being very responsive, but this one is so easy to manipulate that it feels like a capcative touch screen. I was also drawn to the hardware itself, a light, 2.2-pound machine, about as thick as two iPhones phones stacked on top of each other, and slim, even with a long-lasting battery (it promises to last through 12 horus of active use and 10 days of idle time). Personally, I like HP’s notebooks best when they’re simpler, as opposed to playing with too many patterns. The keyboard is 92 percent the size of a full keyboard, much like HP’s netbooks. The keys felt comfortable to type on, with little flex, and extend from one end of the chassis with little room on either side. The one sticking point, for me, are the touch buttons, which flank the small touchpad. However, at least the two buttons on the right side– home and backspace keys– match the buttons found on many Android handsets. Select European and Latin American countries will get the AirLife 100 through Telefonica this Spring. Here’s hoping HP tests something similar in the U.S.