HP Launches Ion-based Mini 311

By Jane McEntegart
published

HP has finally launched its much-talked-about-but-never-confirmed Ion Mini 311 and, when it comes to netbook launches, this is about as refreshing as they get. A bit different from the usual blah specs that are associated of netbooks these days, the Mini 311 boasts a 11.6-inch HD (1,366x768) display, not a common occurrence in a netbook, as well as Nvidia's Ion LE for graphics and Intel's Atom N270.

Processor and graphics chip aside; you're looking at a 160 GB 5400rpm HDD, 1 GB of DDR3, HDMI, Altec Lansing speakers, 3 x USB 2.0 and VGA.

“This is another example [of] how good graphics can transform an entire category of products,” Jeff Fisher, senior vice president of the GPU business unit at Nvidia, said. “Where last month netbooks were considered inadequate, this month HP delivers an amazing product with support for HD movies, games, video editing, and more. Why couldn't netbooks do this before? They lacked good graphics.”

Pricing is set at $399 for the U.S. Who's in?

Jane McEntegart
34 Comments Comment from the forums
  • burnley14
    Everything about it sounds good . . . except it's made by HP.
    Reply
  • brendano257
    Specs look great, but $400 is almost low end laptop territory. If it was $300-$350 and I was actually looking for a netbook, I might consider it.
    Reply
  • tayb
    11.6" is dangerously close to laptop-size but for $400 I might pick one of these up. Pretty well equipped for that price.
    Reply
  • It's hard to tell what the overall size is going to be, but the keyboard has a large bezel on the side compared to the more well laid out netbooks competitors. Either the whole thing is bigger than the current crop (in which case it may still be pretty portable), or the keyboard is going to be very cramped feeling.
    Reply
  • jellico
    I have an HP laptop (a dv9800) that's been absolutely great! I can, of course, run Office apps, I can run Photoshop CS4, I can watch movies, I can play games (mostly I play Team Fortress 2 and World of Warcraft). Never had a problem with it. I think the Ion Mini 311 looks like a great netbook.
    Reply
  • twisted politiks
    battery life?
    Reply
  • smashley
    yeah, at what point do netbooks become laptops screen-size wise?
    Reply
  • This might be great for my sister. She's heading to college and needs a computer that can play her web-based flash games while being very portable. (also being low cost is a major plus cause she's bound to break it like the last one)
    Reply
  • dark_lord69
    WOW!! 1.6GHz single core!

    Seriously, My nc6220 is over 3 years old and has a 14" screen 1.8GHz single core cpu.
    2 GB of RAM
    And it sells on eBay for $300
    Don't waist your money people!

    ALL NETBOOKS = TOTAL CR4P

    The only thing that makes this one 1/2 decent is the HD resolution capable video card and LCD but don't expect to be gaming on this thing. It would almost be worth buying if it included a Blu-Ray player.

    Throw in:
    -3 GB of RAM (or more)
    -Blu-Ray drive
    -Dual-core higher clock CPU
    -Faster FSB
    -Windows 7

    Then I would probably buy one... at $399

    The thing you REALLY need to keep in mind when thinking about purchasing a netbook is that it is really just designed to get on the internet.. Hence the term NET..book. It may be able to do other basic tasks as well such as word processing and sending and receiving e-mails. Don't expect it to be awesome at playing HD movies (this one might be capable though). Don't expect to play any new 3D games. Don't expect to be able to record or watch HDTV. Don't expect it to convert video. Don't expect it to be any good at photo or video editing.

    Personally, I would rather have a 5 pound work horse laptop with a large screen that is capable of just about anything and will last years even as software increases in requirements increase.
    Reply
  • JMS3096
    OK...so it's HD capable...but XP isn't HDCP compliant. How useful...
    Reply