DESIGN, BUILD QUALITY

Taking it out from the typical, attractively designed HP box, I was greeted with the normal charger, cleaning cloth and manuals plus an extra extended battery (to add to the normal 4-cell one), a optical drive weight saver, the stylus and remote control (a couple of not so common stuff). The TX1316au itself came securely wrapped in the same plastic packaging that most other HP Compaq notebooks are enclosed in.

Sliding it out of the wrapping, I was greeted with the TX1613au's smooth lines, glossy finish and understated simplicity. The newest addition to the TX series stable has little to distinguish itself from its earlier TX series siblings, but this isn't quite a bad thing, as the HP TX series has always been one of HP's most striking designs, at least to my eyes. The glossy finish is a fingerprint magnet, as usual, but the black lid contrasts well with the silver body of the tablet, giving it a pleasant two-tone look (déjà vu, hmm). 

In terms of built quality, the TX1613au feels solidly built, although the mono-hinge looks a bit fragile. The lid, even though built from plastic, feels sturdy and feels as if it is more the capable of protecting the screen. 

Opening up the laptop (and again feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, looking at the silver interior contrasting with the black lid – somewhat like my own M1210), number of buttons could be seen. These ring the bright 12-inch display, giving easy access to several important functions when the screen is locked in tablet mode. The screen itself is another winner from HP – bright and clear (more on that later).

In terms of size and weight, the 12 inch TX1316au feels just right in my hands in Tablet mode, even though – at 2 plus kilograms with the extended battery – it feels a bit heavy. The 12 inch screen provides sufficient real estate for practical use, and surfing the web feels like a dream with the TX1316au in Tablet PC mode. Another interesting point is the built in fingerprint reader, which is very accurate and easy to use. Gone are the days that entering Windows requires you to type your long and elaborate password: a fingerprint swipe does the job well enough these days.  

The passive touchscreen needs a bit of getting used to however, as quite a bit of pressure is needed to use it, which makes navigating Vista with your fingers a tiring affair. Handwriting recognition also becomes quite a chore due to this, as you have to firmly press down on the stylus all the time for it to work well. Thankfully, the provided plastic stylus works very well, and a lanyard is also provided to ensure that it stays where it needs to be.

The twin Altec Lansing speakers are located below the display, right and left of the mono-hinge – a bit of clever positioning from the HP designers, as it would be useful in both notebook and tablet modes – while a webcam and twin directional microphones are located on top.

Ports are distributed evenly around the TX1613au, with the left sight populated by the stylus silo, a USB port, an Ethernet port, the very mysterious Expansion Port 3 (I’ve seen these in a couple of HP Compaq products, and I think it’s for use with expansion bases, but I’m not really sure), a VGA-out port, a S-Video out port, and – when the lid is closed – a couple of AV control buttons (not really sure what these are for).  

The right side is a bit sparse in comparison, with only the card reader, AC-plug and the Expresscard/34 slot right beside the optical drive. The rear houses two more USB ports, the mandatory Kessington lock hole plus the modem port, and the front, the power button, IR port (for the remote) and the audio/SPDIF ports. 

The whole twisting and turning portion of the notebook seems to be handled well, as the mono-hinge – however fragile looking – turns the display solid 180° before snapping securely in place to turn the notebook into a fully fledged tablet PC.  

The keyboard feels solid to the touch and there is minimal flex, although it does feel a bit cramped, due to the fact that it had to be cut down to fit the smaller 12-inch frame of the TX1613au. Function keys are probably the most affected, being even smaller than the (already tiny) ones on my Dell XPS M1210. The touchpad, with its perforated design, looks very attractive, although its performance is a totally different matter – something discussed in detail below.

All in all, it looks like HP has got another winner on its hands. With sharp, clean lines, the transforming TX1613au seems to be ergonomically designed for use as both a notebook, and a tablet.

Next, we move on to the problems that I have observed in terms of build quality and design. The first major problem is the touchpad. Although it’s attractively designed, it’s not really a joy to use. While it does provide sufficient sensitivity, its plastic surface becomes sticky after a while due to perspiration; and the buttons are a bit too soft for my liking – with the right button sometimes requiring more than a few presses for a click to register. The blended design of the touchpad also causes pointer jumps while using the keyboard, as it was far too easy to activate the touchpad with the palm of my hand. Thankfully, HP Compaq’s typical “off” button was provided just on top of the touchpad.

The second major problem with the TX1316au is the battery compartment. It feels a bit loose, especially with the extended battery. Although it kept the TX1613au's battery firmly where it was supposed to be (no batteries falling out, at least), there were a number of times where the battery moved enough out of its place to cut off power to the notebook entirely while testing; resulting in an instantaneous shut down of the TX1613au. This, in my mind, is a very serious design flaw, and is a big problem in terms of the overall design quality of the TX1316au. Hopefully, it’s just an issue with the particular unit on review rather than a widespread issue.

 Next: Display