HP EliteBook 8460p Laptop Review

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Ease of Use and Security

HP includes QuickWeb, a basic Linux operating system, so users can switch on and get to a web browser, without having to fully boot up Windows. this has a well-designed home screen, giving access to email, Skype and other features.

In fact, if it were easier to run multiple browsers, and if the Skype client actually looked usable for handling multiple chats, I think I could do all my work in QuickWeb.

Next year, of course, HP laptops will all have a third operating system on them, as the company has promised to put WebOS there, as an alternative overlay to Windows.

I have to be a bit sceptical about this, since I can remember last time HP tried to make good the failings of a version of Windows using an overlay – in the early 1990s, with NewWave – it was an improvement over Windows 3.1, but made irrelevant by Windows 95.

That may seem a long time ago, but once again, Microsoft is promising to deliver improvements – such as the tablet-friendly tile interface – in Windows 8, which could render WebOS unwanted (if eWEEK Europe readers care at all, of course).

The security features are prominent in any EliteBook demo – it includes fingerprint scanning and face recognition using the webcam. For both of these, enrollment is simple. It is easy to set the security options so that, for instance, you need to enter password and fingerprint, or face and fingerprint before using the system.

The options can be a bit complex – for instance when choosing whether to require three factor authentication, which needs a Bluteooth pairing to your phone, as well as password and face or finger.

The laptop can also encrypt the hard disk, with no major loss of performance on normal office tasks. The laptop runs a Core processor and also has optional AMD Radio HD 6470M graphic.

Battery management has been continuously improving and HP’s James Morrish explained to us that the system is now designed to drain and recharge the batteries the right amount to keep them working properly, so the battery should last three years, and there are options for additional batteries which could take you up to a 32 hour battery life.

For companies using the laptop, the remote management is impressive, and again HP claims to have gone a bit further with a power monitor that feeds back to the system management console just how much power is being used (most power management systems rely on the published specification, says Morrish).

Worth thinking about

This level of detail and solidity is obviously not going to come at the entry level price. The HP EliteBook 8640p costs £997 on HP’s own site, and only a fraction less elsewhere. If I had a budget for a long-term laptop, though, I’d seriously consider paying for it.