Chris’s Domain

HP’s EliteBook 8730w mobile workstation is the flagship in HP’s current professional business notebook range. As HP’s top-of-the-line business notebook, it offers a multitude of configuration options, from quad core CPUs to the highest end Nvidia and ATI mobile workstation graphics cards. It is a replacement for the previous generation 17” 8710w.

Specifications

This review unit is a CTO (Configure to Order) model. I have configured it to a specification that best suits my needs for development work, taking into account the price-performance ratio of each component upgrade.

• Intel Core 2 Quad Q9100 Processor (2.26GHz)
• Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
• 17” WUXGA RGB-LED Dreamcolor display (1920×1200)
• 512MB NVidia Quadro FX2700M GPU
• 160GB Solid State Hard Drive + 500GB Hard Drive (UpgradeBay)
• 8GB DDR2 RAM (2×4GB SODIMMs)
• Intel 5300 Wireless Module
• Bluetooth 2.0 Module
• Dual pointing Devices Keyboard
• Fingerprint Reader Module
• Integrated Webcam
• 4xUSB 2.0 Ports
• 1x eSATA Port
• 1xVGA, 1xHDMI
• ExpressCard
• 6-in-1 card reader
• 8-cell Battery
• 150W Hardware Kit
• 3-year Global Next Business Day Warranty

Other Quad Core CPU options available are the Q9000 and the QX9300, but since there is no overclocking support in HP’s proprietary BIOS, the 8730w is currently unable to unleash the extreme performance offered by the QX9300 CPU. In addition, one can opt for a more powerful Nvidia FX3700M graphics card or a lower end ATI FireGL 5725.

Units equipped with the Dreamcolor displays are equipped with a 150W power adapter as the Dreamcolor displays have higher power consumption. However, on normal loads, a 120W power adapter is sufficient.

Build and Design

The 8730w is one of the most refined mobile workstation in its class, offering class leading portability, build quality and ergonomics. Measuring an average of 35mm in thickness and weighing only 3.5kg as configured, it is the thinnest and lightest professional mobile workstation in its class.

Business notebooks are previously known to be dull and drab-looking work machines, but since 2008, HP has been trying to revitalise this segment with attractive industrial designs offered in its commercial notebook portfolio. The 8730w not only offers an attractive design with its anodised aluminium shell, it is also scratch-resistant and very durable against the typical abuses business laptops are subjected to. The EliteBook is the first of HP’s notebooks to implement the honeycomb shell construction where the aluminium shell is bonded to a magnesium alloy skeleton for maximum durability, yet allowing for a lightweight construction. This is similar to the rollcage construction found in current generation Thinkpads, but with aluminium.

The build quality of the 8730w is excellent, with no flex exhibited on the palm rest or the body of the notebook. Pressing on the back of the lid does not cause ripples on the screen. There is no creaking under pressure on any part of the notebook. Build precision is extremely high, with no misaligned parts or stickers. The metal hinges have been redesigned and they are now extremely tight. They are in fact the tightest I’ve ever felt on a business notebook, so this is certainly a vast improvement over its predecessor. The screen housing is equally rigid and does not flex nor distort the screen in any way. The screen bezel is assembled firmly to the screen with no gaps allowing dust to build up.

The EliteBook range features HP’s 3D DriveGuard hard disk protection system which is essentially an accelerometer embedded on the system board coupled with a hard disk enclosure that prevents damage to the hard disk in a fall. The DriveGuard is not required in systems with solid state drives, but it detects and supports both hard drives installed in the notebook.

HP implemented a new lid locking mechanism in the EliteBook range, which is supposed to improve the durability of the display lid when the notebook is dropped in a closed position, i.e. it prevents the display swinging open on impact. However, the lock is often too tight and requires some pressure to ensure that it is locked down properly. Earlier production builds in the 6930p exhibit serious issues with these locks where they would not click in place, but were later fixed. The 8730w does not exhibit the issues encountered in earlier builds of the 6930p, but the locking mechanism is still far from perfect as it still takes more pressure than necessary to make it click in. However, with the lid shut, the notebook is unlikely to swing open when dropped as the locks hold the lid tightly in place.

Display and Speakers

One of the main selling point for the 8730w is the Dreamcolor display option. This is a true 8-bit matte TN panel that displays up to 16.7 million colors, with a 500:1 contrast ratio. The RGB-LED panel is manufactured by LG Philips (LP171WU5-TBL1). The LED backlight is bright and even. There are no dead pixels nor light leakage on the display. It is absolutely stunning and when placed next to a good quality desktop LCD (HP LP2475w with an LG IPS panel), this is the closest in quality (to the LCD monitor) I’ve ever seen for a notebook display. Anyone using this notebook for graphics work or in conjunction with an external display should opt for this as it is worth the upgrade.

The Elitebook has front-mounted speakers, with only average quality sound. Granted this is a business notebook, this is sufficient for use in a simple presentation, not for multimedia purposes.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard on the 8730w is near identical to its predecessor in both look and feel, with the same amount of travel. The special DuraKeys finishing applied to the keyboard gives it a matte, rubbery feel compared to conventional smooth-textured keyboards. The DuraKeys finishing protects the keyboard from turning “shiny” or have their letters rubbed off after extended use. The keyboard is very comfortable to use, but it also feels different from a Thinkpad keyboard. It does not click as much, hence it is quieter in use.

There is no flex exhibited on any part of the keyboard and it feels more solid than that on the 8710w, which has some flex on the numpad above the optical drive.

While the keyboard is excellent, the pointstick is a disappointment. Rather than building upon the pointstick of its predecessor, HP replaced it with one that is more recessed and less precise than before. Using a black tip on a black keyboard is also very poor from a user interaction perspective as it does not make it easily-noticeable, hence one could easily miss it. The pointstick implementation on the EliteBooks is poor in comparison to those found on Thinkpads.

The touchpad has been revamped in the EliteBook, offering a new set of rubber buttons with a slightly-raised curve rather than the raised angular bump seen in the previous generation. As before, the rubber buttons are very comfortable to use and the clicks solid, precise and quiet. The smooth, matte texture of the touchpad is excellent. The touchpad is a Synaptics variant, which is much better than the Alps equivalent found on other notebooks. However, it does not support multitouch gestures, even with the latest gesture-enabled drivers.

HP implements touch-sensitive buttons on its switch cover for volume, presentation, calculator and wireless keys. HP claims they are less susceptible to wear than physical buttons, but I beg to differ. I’ve seen a couple of the newer notebooks with broken touch-sensitive controls but have yet to see any of the older ones breaking down, but that is only from my personal experience. I find usability to be poor as a slight brush would activate the controls, especially the volume slider. One minor usability gripe I have is HP’s insistence on using bright blue LED lighting throughout its control indicators. This has shown to be very distracting from a usability perspective, especially in dark environments. Softer, more subtle indicators should be used instead.

I/O Ports, Wireless

The 8730w has regressed from the 8710w in the number of USB ports, reducing it from 6 to only 4. In replacement, there is now an eSATA port (but that leaves us still short of 1 port). Rather than arranging them in a silly 4×4 configuration in the 8710w which prohibits using them all at once due to physical space constraints, the 8730w has an improved port layout which allows one to actually connect USB drives next to one another.

The inclusion of an eSATA port is a notable addition, but because it is not a combo USB port, devices connected to it will require power drawn from the neighbouring USB ports or an external power source. Considering HP’s implementation of a combo port in its consumer Pavillion line up, this is another poor engineering oversight.

The 8730w also includes a HDMI and VGA port for video out, 1 Firewire-400 port, an audio input/output port, a SmartCard reader, ExpressCard 54/34 slot and a built-in microphone located at the top of the LCD bezel. The position of the audio ports in the front of the chassis is also a poor design decision as it allows protruding jacks to be more vulnerable to damage as it pokes at you when used on your lap.

There are altogether 3 built-in SATA ports in the notebook (hard drive, UpgradeBay slot, eSATA port), with an additional one via the docking station, so you can connect and use up to 4 SATA ports all at once if desired.

Unlike its smaller siblings in the EliteBook range, the 8730w does not have a NightLight feature. This is because the weak NightLight will not provide adequate illumination on the larger chassis of the 8730w, hence a backlit keyboard may be a better idea here, which sadly, isn’t an option for this notebook.

HP offers an optional 2.0 mega pixel web cam with this notebook. It is a standard web cam which works well for video conferencing and is noisy in low light conditions. The bundled business card reader application is really cool and actually works as intended, yielding almost accurate results when tested on a standard US/Australian business card (missing a space in job title “SoftwareDeveloper”). The concept is simple and the genius is in the OCR of the software. The application does not work on non-HP devices as it requires a matching camera hardware ID.

The Intel wireless card works as expected, without any connection issues and with excellent range. Both the wireless card and Bluetooth are detected automatically by Windows 7. I was able to sync my Windows Mobile device via Bluetooth without any issues.

IT departments will be pleased with the ease of upgradeability of the RAM and hard disks. The hard disk and both RAM slots are easily accessible from the bottom of the notebook, with standard Philips head screws, making upgrades an ease on the EliteBook. Sadly, the 8730w only supports 2 RAM slots, thus limiting expandability to a maximum of 8GB, whereas an equivalent Dell M6400 supports an industry-leading 16GB configuration.

HP finally brought modular bay expansion back to its larger business notebooks with the new UpgradeBay interface. This new SATA interface supports hard disks in RAID 0 or 1 configurations or an optical disc drive. BluRay drives are available as a very expensive option. Hotswapping is not supported, although if the drives are not RAIDed, devices added on the fly will still be detected by Windows (Intel Matrix Storage Manager should be installed).

Docking Station

The 8730w is compatible with HP’s enterprise docking stations and we test the 180W advanced docking station with it. The dock expands the connectivity options offered on the 8730w, giving it another 6 USB ports, with 4 arranged in the horrid fashion of the 8710w (yet again rendering some useless); a host of legacy serial and parallel ports, a pair of PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports, DVI out and network connectivity ports. The advanced dock’s main attraction is the support for an additional ExpressCard slot and an UpgradeBay, both presenting a multitude of expansion possibilities for the notebook (imagine a large backup hard drive and another eSATA expansion via the ExpressCard slot).