Netbook Review: HP ProBook 5310m

The HP ProBook 5310m is a sleek and very thin netbook that is not only pleasing to the eye but also packs plenty of punch to satisfy even the most demanding business user.

IS IT me or are netbooks getting sleeker and thinner with the release of newer models? Case in point is the new Hewlett-Packard ProBook 5310m business netbook, which is a mere 23.5mm thick.

As a comparison, Apple’s slimmest model, the MacBook Air — which the ProBook will always be compared to — is only a mere 0.41mm thinner.

Of course, sacrifices had to be made to achieve such feat and in the 5310m’s case, it doesn’t come with a built-in optical drive and the legacy VGA port.

But fret not. To make up for those missing items, this ProBook comes in a trendy design with user-friendly keyboard and touchpad, the latest Intel i7 processor, new DisplayPort and hosts of other interesting features too boot.

A stunner

In terms of looks, this is one stunning business netbook. Period.

It is encased in a durable black anodised aluminum and magnesium frame and is wrapped in soft-touch paint that proves one can look glamourous and yet mean business.

SLIM: The 5310m is HP’s thinnest business netbook model to date.

The 5310m also features a maintenance-free, full-size island-keys keyboard which have a clear coating applied over them that HP says makes them 50 times more resistant to visible wear than standard keyboards.

Thanks to strong tactile feedback we found the keyboard quite comfortable to use too.

Its multi-touch capability touchpad works with the preloaded Synaptics Touch software that allows us to zoom, rotate and even scroll photos and webpages by simply pinching or gliding our fingers around.

The LED-backlight display looks bright and clear, that is, if you look straight at it.

Viewing from it the side is a different matter altogether as it loses a lot of the brightness and colours begin to fade.

For added security, the drive is protected by HP’s 3D DriveGuard technology against impacts, bumps and drops — it works by temporarily parking the disk’s head when it detects sudden movement.

Gamers will probably shy away from this model since it only offers an integrated Mobile Intel GS45 Express Chipset. But bear in mind, this is targeted at business users and these people seldom have time to play games.

However, we are happy to report that non-graphics intensive games like Spore can play well on this machine.

While you can watch movies on the ProBook, the viewing experience is marred by the the netbook’s built-in speaker, which sounds muffled even at the highest setting.

EASY ACCESS: The 5310m offers a comfortable full-size
keyboard as well as a multitouch touchpad.

Missing what?

Conservative users may moan on the lack of an optical drive and a VGA port but ask yourself when was the last time you needed to use one.

An external DVD burner does come in handy when the need arises though but this means spending a little extra on getting one.

In place of the legacy VGA port, the 5310m has the latest DisplayPort that is able to stream data at high resolutions.

It is supposed to be the future standard and currently not many devices carry that option. We did not have a compliant device in the office so we couldn’t try it out.

If a VGA port is important to get your job done then you need to buy the optional VGA-to-DisplayPort adaptor or else the 5310m is probably not the suitable netbook for you.

Moving on, the netbook comes standard with three USB ports, a card reader as well as WiFi and Bluetooth. All which we found to be working quite well during the course of this review.

Battery life is up to five hours but this can be slightly extended if you switch off the WiFi connection.

Direct Internet connection

Booting up the machine was really, really quick. It took us less than a minute to log on to Windows and another minute to connect to the Internet via either WiFi or LAN cable.

This is all thanks to Windows 7 Home Premium and the netbook’s fast Intel Core 2 Duo P9300 processsor.

If that wasn’t enough, this HP offering also includes a quick boot-up options called QuickWeb for accessing the Internet; and Quicklook, which is a compatible offline version of Microsoft’s Outlook e-mail application.

All you have to do is press the dedicated buttons on the right side of the keyboard to access these functions during the booting process.

QuickWeb is a lighter version of the Firefox browser and you browse the Internet in less than 30 seconds as long as there is an Internet connection available.

It supports Flash, meaning you will have no problem watching YouTube videos.

However, the app does not support third-party plugins so you will not be able to view videos on websites which require a special player.

Quicklook is actually an offline Microsoft Outlook-compatible e-mail application, which limits users to only the reading and composing functions.

It is not connected to the Internet so newly composed e-mail will not be sent out until the users boot up to the OS and synch the app withOutlook.

As a business netbook, users would likely store lots of highly sensitive data on it.

To protect these from falling into the wrong hands the included ProtectTools can be quickly set up.

Amongst others, it can password-protect the netbook during preboot as well as encrypt the hard disk when it boots up to Windows.

Once secured, HP claims that a netbook thief will not be able log into the system or access the hard disk, even if he removes and tries to use it on another PC.

Also available are the File Sanitizer feature to “shred” (securely erase) files thus making them unrecoverable; and the ability to add a layer of security in the Device Access Manager to prevent unauthorised USB device attachments or Bluetooth pairings.

For keeps

Have you ever borrowed something and felt like not giving it back? Well, this is one of those occasions for us.

Apart from the netbook’s slight weight issue and missing optical drive, the 5310m seems like the perfect step up from the mini netbook models.

Frankly speaking, its design and fast system boot-up alone are enough to make anybody fall head over heels with it.

If you have the dough (RM3,299 to be exact) and are seriously looking for the perfect travelling companion, you should really give the ProBook 5310m a serious look.

Pros: Fast boot-up interface; cool design; good keyboard; plenty of security features

Cons: Poor quality speakers.

Ultra-thin netbook 

Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo P9300 (2.26 GHz, 6MB L2 cache, 1,066 MHz FSB) 

Memory: 2GB DDR3 SODIMM

Graphics: Mobile Intel GS45 Express Chipset 

Display: 13.3in (1,366 × 768-pixels) glossy LED-backlight 

Storage: 280GB hard drive 

Connectivity: WiFi, Bluetooth, 10/100 Ethernet 

I/O ports: Three USB 2.0 ports, DisplayPort

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 

Other features: 2-in-1 Flash card reader (SD and MMC), built-in webcam, QuickWeb and Quicklook fast-boot options 

Dimensions (W x D x H): 328 x 221 x 23.5mm

Weight: 1.72kg