Lightweight, heavy power - HP's OmniBook 800CT Pentium-based subnotebook - Hardware Review - Evaluation

Home Office Computing, April, 1997 by Russell Letson

OmniBook 800CT RATING: * * *

WIN 95 / WIN If you're looking for a portable notebook with enough muscle to double as a desktop computer, the Hewlett-Packard OmniBook 800CT is worth a look. As a mobile unit, it's one of the lightest and most compact full-featured systems around--measuring 7.25 by 11.12 by 1.6 inches and weighing just 3.75 pounds without its power brick and skinny external floppy drive (still only 5.4 pounds total).

The OmniBook boasts big-box hardware resources: a 133MHz Pentium chip, 16MB of RAM, a 1.3GB hard disk, and a sharp, 10.5-inch active-matrix display capable of resolutions up to 800 by 600 pixels at 256 colors. There's also a full complement of I/O connections: serial, parallel, infrared, external video, floppy drive, SCSI-2, and audio in/out. In addition, Hewlett-Packard included a built-in microphone and speakers.

The 85-key keyboard is a fairly comfortable 10.6 inches wide, but its touch takes some getting used to--apply too little force and a keystroke won't register, too heavy a stroke and you get unwanted repeats. You'll either love or hate the pop-out mouse-on-a-stick that extends from the unit. It requires arranging the right side of your workspace to accommodate it (sorry, lefties), and it's awkward to operate when balancing the notebook on your lap.

A suspend/instant-on function shuts the computer down without resetting the system, so everything is right where you left it when you turn it on again. HP says that a fully charged battery will maintain data for several months in suspend mode (when you're working in an application and shut down without saving, upon restarting the PC automatically goes back to where you left off). For ordinary operation, HP rates the lithium ion battery at three hours, though in real life somewhere around two hours seems more likely. A battery-gauge program gives a low-power warning two minutes before conducting an orderly system shutdown that can preserve data for several days in suspend mode.

As powerful as the OmniBook is by itself, it's not likely to become your only computer without a little help. The optional quadspeed SCSI CD-ROM drive is actually necessary for installing many applications. For serious expansion, the docking station repeats all of the laptop's connectors except for the infrared port and the side-mounted audio-in, and it adds connections for an external keyboard and mouse. The SCSI-2 interface makes it possible to daisy-chain external SCSI devices such as tape and CD-ROM drives. Inside the docking station there's room for either an ISA or PCI expansion board, such as a network card.

If you need a powerful portable on the road and don't want to maintain two computers, an OmniBook and docking station could be the single-system solution. If you can accept the unique mouse and keyboard, the OmniBook 800CT may be right for you.

--Russell Letson

HP OmniBook 800CT Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard, 800-752-0900, www.hp.com

Est. Street Price: $3,420; docking station, $400; CD-ROM drive, $400

Configuration: 133MHz Pentium, 1.3GB hard disk, 16MB of RAM, 10.5-inch active-matrix screen, 3.5-inch external floppy, SoundBlaster Pro--compatible sound. preloaded Windows 95 or Windows 3.11, three-year warranty

Options: Docking station, and quad-speed external CD-ROM drive