The good: A solid upgrade to one of our favorite laptops, the new HP Pavilion dm1z adds Beats Audio, a better touch pad, and an updated AMD processor.
The bad: Benchmark scores and battery life are about the same as those of the previous dm1z, and a promised Intel Core i3 version is still MIA.
The bottom line: There have been plenty of 11-inch AMD-powered ultraportables this year, but HP's Pavilion dm1z was the first, and this updated version puts it back in the lead in this crowded category.
The biggest story in laptops this year has got to be the rise of the inexpensive 11-inch ultraportable. Largely replacing 10-inch Netbooks, these systems are slightly larger, slightly more expensive, and significantly more powerful, thanks to the latest Intel Core i3 and AMD E-series processors.
The first one we saw in 2011 was the HP Pavilion dm1z, which used AMD's new E-350 CPU. At the time, we said: "The first laptop to offer AMD's power-efficient Fusion platform delivers on much of its promise, combining great battery life, decent performance, and basic graphics for less than $500." Since then, many other laptops have hit the same winning price-component combo, but the HP dm1z remained near the top of our list because of its excellent overall design.
An updated version has just landed, and it's also called the HP Pavilion dm1z. The main differences are a moderately updated design and a step up to AMD's brand-new E-450 processor, along with the same Beats Audio technology found in many larger Hewlett-Packard laptops.
The processor bump didn't amount to much, as the new Pavilion dm1z performed about the same as the AMD E-350 laptops we've tested, but the design tweaks, while subtle, make for a slicker, more upscale-looking system. Keeping the price fairly steady at $444 (including a $100 "discount" from HP), there's no reason not to recommend the new Pavilion dm1z as strongly as we did the original version. HP says an Intel Core i3 version will also be available later in the year, but that may cost more, around $600.
Read more: http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/hp-pavilion-dm1z-fall/4505-3121_7-35020139.html#ixzz1aomPfEkf
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