HP ProBook 5310m: A Slender Laptop for Business Users
by Jarred Walton on April 26, 2010 4:52 PM ESTHP ProBook 5310m LCD Analysis
I've often said that I prefer matte LCDs on laptops. Most of that comes from my experience using laptops outside—something I do on a fairly regular basis (i.e. in a car or at a park). Reflections can be a huge issue outdoors, so matte LCDs are the way to go for me. If you primarily use your laptop inside, or at least in a shady area, glossy LCDs improve contrast ratios by about 20-35%. That means that a high contrast LCD might go from 800:1 up to 1000:1 contrast. If you compare a cheap anti-glare LCD with a glossy equivalent on the other hand, you might drop from 250:1 down to 185:1… or perhaps even lower. The standard anti-glare 1366x768 display on the 5310m falls into that "lower" category, delivering the lowest contrast ratio we've seen in over four years. Ouch!
There's really nothing good about this LCD other than perhaps the anti-glare coating. It's fairly bright, but black levels are the highest (i.e. worst) we've measured, which results in a lousy 141:1 contrast ratio. Color gamut is also at the bottom of our charts, and Delta E is one of the highest (i.e. worst) scores as well. All that said, it's not like the display is so bad that it can't be used. If you compare it side by side with an equivalent glossy 1366x768 display, the only difference you're really likely to notice is that one display is matte while the other is glossy, and blacks on the 5310m look a little brighter than the dark grey rendering of glossy LCDs. ASUS has shown with the Eee PC 1001P and the G73Jh that you can find better displays in both matte and glossy trim, and we'd like to see more companies—especially on business laptops—ditch these bottom of the barrel LCD panels.
Viewing angles are similar to what we've seen on every TN laptop panel, though we'd rate the vertical angles as being better than average. Some LCDs will have a huge color shift where blacks and whites change places, even at just a ~45 degree angle; the 5310m LCD still experiences a drop in contrast from above and below, but it isn't as bad as some panels.
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cbutters - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
This is a sweet laptop, I have had mine for about 2 months. It is light and comparable to a macbook air.I have one of these up on ebay right now, complete with a vertex 60GB SSD if anyone is interested, item no 180499381266
whatthehey - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
If it's so nice... why are you selling it on eBay? LOLafkrotch - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
Hookers and blow. Isn't that always the reason?blyndy - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
If only they put this design and build quality in with optimus graphics I would call it my next notebook.secretanchitman - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
a better gpu, a few extra ports, and a much better display would make this a great notebook.feelingshorter - Monday, April 26, 2010 - link
Comparing it to the Asus U30J is not a good idea IMO since the U30J comes with a dvd drive and the HP ProBook doesn't. If your looking for thin and slender, its the UL30JT, which is the successor to the UL30VT. Either of which would of been a good comparison to this HP. The UL30JT hasn't come out yet but it is 3.75 pounds with 8 cell 5600mah batter, less than an inch think, but with asus Turbo Boost, intel's UM series CPU for the same ridiculously 10.5 + hour battery life seen on the other VT series, and 4500MHD/310M.Plus, this laptop is already outdated because you can only push the Intel GS45 + ICH9M so far, with all next gen laptops harnessing the HM55. The HM55 platform now has the 4500MHD on die, and with the UM series cpu, has an overall system TDP lower than that of the GS45 + 4500MHD. Not to mention the HM55's 4500MHD has a similar Turbo Boost as the CPU does, so its actually faster than the previous gen 4500MHD. The UL30JT is basically UL30VT but faster CPU and better battery life.
Given an Asus SU7300 + Turbo Boost, it really narrows the CPU lead that this HP ProBook has on the UL30VT, which is comparable since the UL30JT isn't available yet. Regardless, you hit hit the nail on the head when you said the HP ProBook is just aesthetics (although the silver Asus UL30VT-A1 thats available now looks better IMO.
YpoCaramel - Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - link
X201i would be another consideration - Core i3-330M, business oriented but only a 12" screen.KaarlisK - Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - link
As a result, 3dmark06 isn't the best way to compare the 4500MHD in this laptop with the 4500MHD in the other laptops that have dual-channel memory. A game might actually show the laptop with a slower cpu but double the memory bandwidth to have higher Intel IGP performance.And it can play Starcraft 2, you know ;)
davepermen - Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - link
Why should anyone care?And for those who would (artists, power users), for those the Elitebook line exists.
This is for the typical business user: office, windows, sap, web.
obiuquido144 - Wednesday, April 28, 2010 - link
When I was buying a laptop 2 months ago I loved this super-good-looking 5310m when I first saw it.But in the end I went with the heavier 14" Probook 6440b with a 1600x900 matte LCD, optical drive, both audio connectors, 8GB RAM possibility (4GB standard) and i5 for the same price. For $10 bucks I added an eSATA expresscard from dealextreme and for another $10 a Displayport->DVI cable.
I also called to HP support enquiring about how I can burn/get system installation disks when I want to format the whole HD, and they said they'd ship them to me for free through their service partner.
When I was providing the service company with photos of my license labels etc., I asked if it was possible to get 64bit disks while we're at it - and they said sure, no problem, you just won't be able switch back.
Of course I went with that! I live in Europe, not sure if this is possible in the US, or if I just had plain luck. But the license sticker doesn't specify the bit-version of the OS.
The 5310m looks awesome though, I have to admit. The sexiest laptop I've ever seen!