Just in time for the holidays, the HP Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam Edition was just released today. Finally, a netbook marketed directly at women — not little girls. For all my love of pink, I dislike cheesy Barbie pink, which so many technology manufacturers seem to embrace. Worse, even when they do make decent pink laptops, most (Dell included) have only a pink cover — from the inside, you’d never know it’s pink.
This Vivienne Tam edition of the HP Mini 1000 is properly dressed, inside and out. It has a little bit of pink on the peony-bedecked cover, but it is primarily wrapped (even the keyboard) in a gorgeous, classy, juicy shade of red. The HP site claims this is “the world’s first designer digital clutch” with “vibrant peony blooms signifying good fortune and prosperity.” It even comes with a matching silk sleeve. It’s a class act all the way.
Of course, all this beauty is meaningless without specs, but the HP Mini 1000 has some pretty decent ones. HP’s 10.2″ BrightView Infinity display has now-standard 1024×600 resolution. At 10.3″ x 6.6″ x 1″ and 2.5 pounds, it’s definitely small and light enough to be portable. It’s almost exactly the same size and weight as the Eee S101. The only OS available is Win XP, but at least it’s not Vista. It has the current netbook-standard Intel Atom N270 processor and 950 Media Accelerator, 1 GB RAM. Thankfully, HP seems to have given up on the VIA C7-M processor that appeared in the Mini 900. There’s a 16GB SSD, or for an extra $25, a 60GB 4200 RPM (slow) hard drive. Bluetooth is also available for $25, and the wireless transfer rate was rated very well in LAPTOP’s review. You can get integrated mobile broadband through Verizon or AT&T for $199. The battery is an unremarkable 3 Cell Lithium Polymer, which will give you maybe 3 hours of life. I’ve heard rumors that a 6-cell battery will be available in the next month or so, but will of course add extra weight. All in all, a respectable little package.
Of course, there is a catch, and that is the price: configurations begin at $699. The same-size, same-config HP Mini 1000 with a not-unattractive black/grey spiral-patterned finish begins at $479, so you’re paying an extra $220 just to look fabulous. Worth it? If you decide the answer is yes, here’s the place to start.