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Tough? Is that what HP thinks execs need in a netbook?

by James Sherwood | posted on 25 June 2009

On-the-go pros demand stylish, yet durable fully featured PCs, at least according to HP. So the firm has updated its Mini PC line to pander to the likes of SSD-lovers after a small laptop that’s as hard as nails.

And mauve...?

The Mini 5101 should be tougher than your average netbook, HP hinted, because the machine’s 10.1in display has been enclosed in “sturdy, lightweight anodised aluminium” and fitted with a magnesium hinge.

A magnesium alloy coating has been applied to the Mini 5101’s underbelly for added durability, HP added.

And the tough charac teristics don’t end there, because HP has also caked the 5101’s keys in a clear coating that the firm claimed makes the keyboard 50 times more resistant to visible wear than keyboards without it. The keyboard’s also spill resistant, apparently.

But a toughened PC won’t sell without decent features, so HP’s equipped the 5101 with an Intel Atom processor and - oddly for a netbook - a 7200rpm HDD of unspecified storage capacity. SSD lovers will, sadly, have to pay a little more for the optional 80GB or 128GB drives.

A three-axis digital accelerometerchip embedded into the machine also ensures that the HDD shuts down if sudden movements or shocks are detected, HP claimed.

The Mini 5101 comes fitted with a 2Mp webcam integrated into the PC’s toughened lid. Wi-Fi comes as standard, but Bluetooth is optional.

HP’s Mini 5101 will be available from late July, priced at $449 (£217/€318). A UK launch date or price hasn’t been announced.