Mobile Computing News

Photo: HP

The new netbook from HP is small, powerful and can be customised to suit your needs. The Mini 5102 is aimed for business and educational purposes because of its near full size and spill-resistant keyboard, which makes it easy to type quickly. But the 5102 is for everyone, and the netbook has some ordinary features which allow it to be simple to use. The 10.1- inch screen is LED backlit, producing clear and crisp displays. Using your netbook outdoors is no problem, thanks to the matte surface which keeps glare and reflection down to a minimum.

Enjoy easy to use features

The HP Mini 5102 isn’t a complicated device, and features all the regular applications. Corel Home Office is integrated in the system. This programme is easier to use on a smaller screen. Because the display size isn’t as big as normal netbooks, the resolution may be lacking compared to others, but it still manages to produce high quality images. It’s got 1GB of RAM and up to 160GB of storage, so you’ll be able to keep everything on the netbook and will probably have some space for more.

One of the most innovative and unique features of the 5102 is the ability to change the screen into a touch screen display. This update obviously makes it more expensive, but this new advancement is the something you don’t often see in netbooks. Changing to a touch screen can make scrolling easier and makes the netbook look more like a tablet.

Audio and touchpad

Photo: HP

The audio quality of the Mini 5102 isn’t as impressive as the rest of the netbook. The built-in speakers are situated at the bottom part of the case, which may muffle the sound if you place the device on your lap. The speakers may not give the loudest bass, but easy-listening music is carried over pretty well and with clarity. The touchpad on the other hand unfortunately isn’t multi-touch which most people have become familiar with. It’s also rather small and some may find it frustrating scrolling on a lesser touchpad. The nice thing about it though is that it has a glossy finish, which makes scrolling down and across very easy and fast.

Some nifty add-ons

The HP Mini 5102 has a handle bar to easily carry it around, almost like a briefcase. It’s small so will fit snuggly into bags, and it won’t get scratched thanks to the aluminium finish, plus it has an impressive battery life of over eight hours. The netbook also has a variety of ports including three 2.0 USB, a headphone/microphone jack, VGA outputs and a four in one card reader. The Mini 5102 has been available since February and will cost around £440.