coderunknown
Retired Forum Mod
HP’s Probook line of laptops are aimed at business users and 4445S is no different. With a pricetag of 30-33k depending on the configuration (2 or 4GB ram, rest everything same) it is strictly aimed at the budget minded customer. Also this is the only laptop aimed at business users to ship with an APU here in India. I got mine from a local dealer for 32k including a HP backpack.
*i.imgur.com/SpBWcm7.jpg
Configuration:
Body:
*i.imgur.com/fxWRARa.jpg
The new gen of Probook ships in an agonized aluminum chassis making it look classy as well as increases the tolerance level for day to day wear without adding much weight. Actually they weight lesser than their G-series and DV-series counterpart which are completely plastic built. The HP logo inscribed in the metal only adds to the look but unlike DV-series doesn’t light up (which is a good thing). Even the arm rest is built from the same metal but the screen bezel has to do with plastic.
The bottom part is all plastic with a removable 47WHr battery at the back. One can get access to the ram and hard drive by removing the back panel which doesn’t require any tool. The processor and fan are further shielded behind a metal plate. Being a new laptop didn't want to go any further so this is the maximum depth I’ll go for now.
The body is prone to dust and fingerprint but at least they don’t show up as easily as the glossy plastic G/DV series ones.
Keyboard & touchpad:
*i.imgur.com/60p92bW.jpg
HP used the usual island type keyboard but as this is a portable 14” laptop, the number pad is not present. Keeping things simple and clean there are only 3 buttons above the keyboard: Power button to the extreme left, browser and network (Wi-Fi & Bluetooth) quick access buttons to the right side. In between is the speaker. Feedback for the keyboard is good and even across the keys. Unlike the G6 series, the left and right arrow keys are quite big but the up and down keys are cramped into the space of a single key. Though HP added a small gap between the up and down key, it didn't help as it was unusable anyway. And as for the demanding crowd, the keyboard is plain and not backlit.
The touchpad is placed slightly to the left directly below the space button. It has an integrated touchpad disable button which can be activated by double tapping on the white dot which glows. The 2 buttons of the touchpad didn’t disappoint either though I found the touchpad is slightly smaller which is to be expected in a 14” laptop.
There is a fingerprint reader on the right side which won’t be used anytime soon but never the less a nice addition. Other than the AMD logo, the rest of the laptop is completely sticker free.
Display:
*i.imgur.com/GjNudc9.jpg
HP created a record with this laptop. I am not quite sure but maybe this is the first Probook to ship with a glossy display. Thankfully instead of having a matte display that has extremely limited brightness (true for most budget laptops with matte display) the brightness level is really high. More than the HP G6 2005AX laptop i previously tested. But even with glossy display one can find clear sign of cost cutting as the colour shifted on little bit of titling. If I lean back while working on the laptop, I was forced to readjust the screen because of the reflection as well as the change in colour. Also the bottom corners seem to be a little brighter than the rest of the display.
Port placement:
*i.imgur.com/0JQ5rpo.jpg
left side
*i.imgur.com/gfKc4LF.jpg
right side
*i.imgur.com/9BURI6y.jpg
front
The laptop has 4 USB slots with 2 being USB 3.0 powered by the A70M FCH (Fusion Control Hub) available on the left side and 2 USB 2.0 slots available on the left side. The USB ports are packed really close to each other so while 2 pen drives can go in, if you are using a dongle (like I do), the next slot immediately becomes unusable. Also there is no colour code to differentiate between USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports but a quick check with my trusted WD Passport HDD did the job. There is a HDMI port on the left side after the USB slots followed by a RJ45 jack and VGA slot and finally the AC point. The side of the laptop carves inwards halfway and as the AC port lies at the end, it ends up under a bit under the laptop. So if you blindly try to plug the AC plug, chances are you’ll miss it more than once. But this does help in case of the optical drive which is sparingly used and not prone to accidental opening if you try to carry the laptop holding by its side.
At the front are the audio in/out jack as well as a HDD activity led. A SD card slot follows next. Backside is plain without any port or exhaust.
Gallery:
*i.imgur.com/SpBWcm7.jpg
Configuration:
Processor | AMD A6 4400M (2 X 2.7Ghz, turbo up to 3.2Ghz, 32nm, 1MB L2 cache, 35W TDP) |
Chipset | AMD A70M FCH (Hudson M3) |
Memory | 1 X 2GB Micron DDR3-1600Mhz (11-11-12-28, 1.5V) |
Graphics | AMD Radeon HD 7520G (192 Radeon Cores, 497Mhz-686Mhz) |
Display | 14” WLED Glossy (1366X768, LG Philips LGD0385) |
Hard Drive | Hitachi 500GB (HTS727500A9E364, 7200rpm, 16MB, SATA 3GB/s) |
Optical Drive | DVD-RW (DS8A8SH) |
Networking | Ethernet (Realtek RTL8168), Wi-Fi (Broadcom BCM4313), Bluetooth 4.0 (Broadcom BCM20702) |
Audio | AMD Hudson Audio, SRS Sound |
Battery | 6-cell 47WHr Li-ion (65W adapter), 240min according to HP |
Front Side | SD card slot, microphone, headphone jack |
Left Side | 2 X USB 3.0, AC power connector, VGA, HDMI, RJ45, exhaust vent, Kensington port |
Right Side | 2 X USB 2.0, optical drive |
Back side | N/A |
Operating system | DOS (upgraded to Windows 7 at shop) |
Dimension | 3.5 X 33.5 X 23.5cm (height, width, depth) |
Weight | 2.04kg (laptop + battery), 0.4kg (adapter) |
Extra | HD webcam, fingerprint reader |
Warranty | 3yr carry-in warranty |
Price | 32,000 (inc a free HP branded backpack) |
Body:
*i.imgur.com/fxWRARa.jpg
The new gen of Probook ships in an agonized aluminum chassis making it look classy as well as increases the tolerance level for day to day wear without adding much weight. Actually they weight lesser than their G-series and DV-series counterpart which are completely plastic built. The HP logo inscribed in the metal only adds to the look but unlike DV-series doesn’t light up (which is a good thing). Even the arm rest is built from the same metal but the screen bezel has to do with plastic.
The bottom part is all plastic with a removable 47WHr battery at the back. One can get access to the ram and hard drive by removing the back panel which doesn’t require any tool. The processor and fan are further shielded behind a metal plate. Being a new laptop didn't want to go any further so this is the maximum depth I’ll go for now.
The body is prone to dust and fingerprint but at least they don’t show up as easily as the glossy plastic G/DV series ones.
Keyboard & touchpad:
*i.imgur.com/60p92bW.jpg
HP used the usual island type keyboard but as this is a portable 14” laptop, the number pad is not present. Keeping things simple and clean there are only 3 buttons above the keyboard: Power button to the extreme left, browser and network (Wi-Fi & Bluetooth) quick access buttons to the right side. In between is the speaker. Feedback for the keyboard is good and even across the keys. Unlike the G6 series, the left and right arrow keys are quite big but the up and down keys are cramped into the space of a single key. Though HP added a small gap between the up and down key, it didn't help as it was unusable anyway. And as for the demanding crowd, the keyboard is plain and not backlit.
The touchpad is placed slightly to the left directly below the space button. It has an integrated touchpad disable button which can be activated by double tapping on the white dot which glows. The 2 buttons of the touchpad didn’t disappoint either though I found the touchpad is slightly smaller which is to be expected in a 14” laptop.
There is a fingerprint reader on the right side which won’t be used anytime soon but never the less a nice addition. Other than the AMD logo, the rest of the laptop is completely sticker free.
Display:
*i.imgur.com/GjNudc9.jpg
HP created a record with this laptop. I am not quite sure but maybe this is the first Probook to ship with a glossy display. Thankfully instead of having a matte display that has extremely limited brightness (true for most budget laptops with matte display) the brightness level is really high. More than the HP G6 2005AX laptop i previously tested. But even with glossy display one can find clear sign of cost cutting as the colour shifted on little bit of titling. If I lean back while working on the laptop, I was forced to readjust the screen because of the reflection as well as the change in colour. Also the bottom corners seem to be a little brighter than the rest of the display.
Port placement:
*i.imgur.com/0JQ5rpo.jpg
left side
*i.imgur.com/gfKc4LF.jpg
right side
*i.imgur.com/9BURI6y.jpg
front
The laptop has 4 USB slots with 2 being USB 3.0 powered by the A70M FCH (Fusion Control Hub) available on the left side and 2 USB 2.0 slots available on the left side. The USB ports are packed really close to each other so while 2 pen drives can go in, if you are using a dongle (like I do), the next slot immediately becomes unusable. Also there is no colour code to differentiate between USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports but a quick check with my trusted WD Passport HDD did the job. There is a HDMI port on the left side after the USB slots followed by a RJ45 jack and VGA slot and finally the AC point. The side of the laptop carves inwards halfway and as the AC port lies at the end, it ends up under a bit under the laptop. So if you blindly try to plug the AC plug, chances are you’ll miss it more than once. But this does help in case of the optical drive which is sparingly used and not prone to accidental opening if you try to carry the laptop holding by its side.
At the front are the audio in/out jack as well as a HDD activity led. A SD card slot follows next. Backside is plain without any port or exhaust.
Gallery:
*i.imgur.com/QRFCFMC.jpg
can be used outside but with max brightness
*i.imgur.com/t9LUJym.jpg
backside
*i.imgur.com/Lo4VSD0.jpg
cover removed
*i.imgur.com/QiJ2cn6.jpg
AMD logo not aligned
*i.imgur.com/Wujv25N.jpg
battery with some precautions listed
*i.imgur.com/7C1jftO.jpg
the back cover has dust filters
*i.imgur.com/fRhO4Ab.jpg
can't insert a dongle and pen drive at the same time
*i.imgur.com/05wOG7U.jpg
processor behind a shield
*i.imgur.com/2tLuIvB.jpg
a single ram stick and a free slot
*i.imgur.com/zUycpul.jpg
the touchpad is currently disabled
*i.imgur.com/YOlUHBd.jpg
a HD webcam
*i.imgur.com/zMieoMY.jpg
2 wifi antennas
*i.imgur.com/36Boxmj.jpg
the browser and connectivity button
*i.imgur.com/uuRiFUl.jpg*i.imgur.com/bga5XSk.jpg
charge indicator light. orange: laptop off and charging. white: laptop on and charging. off: laptop battery charge full.
can be used outside but with max brightness
*i.imgur.com/t9LUJym.jpg
backside
*i.imgur.com/Lo4VSD0.jpg
cover removed
*i.imgur.com/QiJ2cn6.jpg
AMD logo not aligned
*i.imgur.com/Wujv25N.jpg
battery with some precautions listed
*i.imgur.com/7C1jftO.jpg
the back cover has dust filters
*i.imgur.com/fRhO4Ab.jpg
can't insert a dongle and pen drive at the same time
*i.imgur.com/05wOG7U.jpg
processor behind a shield
*i.imgur.com/2tLuIvB.jpg
a single ram stick and a free slot
*i.imgur.com/zUycpul.jpg
the touchpad is currently disabled
*i.imgur.com/YOlUHBd.jpg
a HD webcam
*i.imgur.com/zMieoMY.jpg
2 wifi antennas
*i.imgur.com/36Boxmj.jpg
the browser and connectivity button
*i.imgur.com/uuRiFUl.jpg*i.imgur.com/bga5XSk.jpg
charge indicator light. orange: laptop off and charging. white: laptop on and charging. off: laptop battery charge full.