HP's much-lauded $200 laptop is now available for purchase: The HP Stream 11 is a colorful, small laptop with an 11-inch screen and a free year of Office 365 Personal that provides over 8 hours of battery. And it presents a sharp contrast to the big and bulky $200 Acer laptop I recently purchased.
You can purchase the HP Stream 11 from Amazon.com right now for $199.99. I've ordered one, and will provide my first impressions later this week. But this device appears to be impressive on a number of levels, given the price tag.
First, it's pretty. I like the utility (and screen size) of the Acer E15 I recently bought but let's face facts, it's a tank. Being able to sell a device that is both cheap and attractive should garner some customers for HP. This is a pretty machine.
(HP says the color is Horizon Blue, which it describes as "an HP finish in gradient micro dot horizon blue with a horizon blue to light turquoise keyboard dock.")
Second, it's fanless. When you combine that with the small size and weight you have a device that is appropriate for kids, of course, but also anyone who values tablet- or Chromebook-like attributes but needs a real PC. Which is a lot of people. And seriously, a fanless PC. Who doesn't want that?
Finally, the specs don't seem horrible for what this is. Here are the basic bits.
Processor. 2.16 GHz dual-core Intel Celeron N2840 with Intel HD graphics
RAM. 2 GB 1333 MHz DDR3L SDRAM
Storage. 32 GB eMMC (and not the faster SSD)
Screen. 11.6 inches, 1366 x 768, WLED-backlit antiglare
Wireless. 802.11bgn and Bluetooth
USB. One USB 2.0 port, one USB 3.0 port
Keyboard. 97 percent size island-style keyboard
Audio. DTS Studio Sound
Camera. HP True Vision HD webcam
Battery life. 8.25 hours
Weight. 2.8 pounds
Dimensions. 11.81 w x 8.10 d x 0.78 h inches
Software. Windows 8.1 with Bing, Office 365 Personal (free for one year), HP Connected Drive, HP Connected Photo, HP Connected Music, HP Free Setup Service, Netflix, 30-day trial of McAfee Live Safe service
Extra perk. Includes a $25 Windows Store gift card so you can buy "apps, games, music, movies, and more from the online Windows Store."
A 13-inch version is on the way as well, and that might have even more mainstream appeal: That model offers a 13.3-inch screen, of course, plus a full-sized keyboard. It will cost about $250, though Amazon isn't offering it for sale/presale yet.
More soon. But again, you can purchase the HP Stream 11 from Amazon.com right now for $199.99.
