HP TouchSmart Laptops, Desktops Sport Windows 7, Touch Screens

by Chris Preimesberger

HP describes the TouchSmart tx2 as the first multitouch consumer notebook. It features a 12.1-inch screen that rotates 180 degrees for use as a tablet (see next slide). Besides touch commands, users can write or draw on the screen with an electronic pen. Pricing starts at $799; availability: Oct. 22.

Here’s how the TouchSmart tx2’s 12.1-inch screen is able to rotate 180 degrees for use as a tablet.

Here’s how the TouchSmart tx2 looks after the monitor is rotated and moved into place for use as a tablet.

Believe it or not, these represent HP’s third generation of touch-type desktop computers. The TouchSmart 300 has a 20-inch screen and pricing starts at $899; deliveries will begin as early as Nov. 1—just in time for the holidays. HP expects these to serve multiple uses in homes, small businesses (such as doctors’ and dentists’ offices), and for video display advertising in retail stores and movie theaters.

The TouchSmart 600 (shown) has a slightly larger (23-inch) display and more memory. Features for both the 300 and 600 include preloaded Hulu, Pandora, Netflix, Twitter and HP Music Store. Pricing for the 600 starts at $1,049; it is expected to become generally available on Oct. 22. HP expects these to serve a number of consumer and business markets.

These don’t feature touch screens, but HP also wanted to let people know about its lower-end computer offerings: The Compaq brand is alive and doing well, an HP spokesman told eWEEK. This new CQ61 midsize notebook has a 15.6-inch, high-definition Brightview LED display, a choice of AMD dual-core processors, and Nvidia GeForce graphics, among other nifty features; pricing is also impressive, starting at $309.

The ProBook 6545b and 6445b notebooks are HP’s top-of-the-line business notebooks. They are housed inside magnesium alloy casings and feature 5 to 8 hours of battery life (optional six-cell or nine-cell batteries), multiple AMD processor options and support for HP’s newest docking stations (see next slide). Pricing starts at $799.

The latest HP docking stations for corporate notebooks include a key-accessible security feature.

HP’s midsize TouchSmart 9100 is an all-purpose desktop machine featuring a whopping 23-inch touch screen. It can be used as standard touch-screen PC for an office or home system, or it can be deployed as an informational or retail kiosk in a store, office, hotel or movie theater. Pricing starts at $1,299; HP says deliveries begin in December.

The industrial-strength HP TouchSmart LD42200 is similar to the 23-inch version, but it is aimed (and priced) at the commercial digital signage market. It features a 42-inch touch screen. Pricing starts at $2,800; it will begin shipping in December.