HP Pavilion dv2 Introduced, Features AMD Yukon Platform

HP’s introducing the first AMD Yukon-based ultraportable at CES this week. I got to spend some time with one and liked what I saw. Kevin Wentzel showed me a prototype of the dv2 in San Francisco a few weeks ago.

I’ve really enjoyed using the HP Mini 1000 and other netbooks, but there are some trade-offs that make current netbooks less than desirable for those that have to rely on a single system. The dv2 does a great job at addressing many of these issues while still being thin, light and relatively affordable compared to other ultra-portables.

According to HP, the Pavilion dv2 will run for up to four hours with its 6-cell battery.

The Pavilion dv2 has a 12.1-inch display and weighs less than four pounds. Unlike netbooks currently on the market, the dv2 is capable of playing back high-def content with ease thanks to its ATI Mobility Radeon HD3410 graphics. It doesn’t have a built in optical drive, but HP will sell a matching external DVD-RW and an external Blu-ray ROM.

The Pavilion dv2 comes with a standard 2.5-inch hard drive. The base model comes with a 160GB drive and it can be configured with up to a 500GB drive.

One refreshing thing about the dv2 is that it has a full compliment of ports, including three USB ports, an HDMI port, 5-in-1 memory card reader, headphone, microphone, VGA and Ethernet.

Kevin Wentzel explains more about the HP Pavilion dv2 here:

As you can see in these photos, the Pavilion dv2 is decked out with HP’s imprint finish. It will be available in espresso (black) and moonlight (white) finishes.

The shape of the Pavilion dv2 is a bit odd. The top edge of the bezel is too tall and I wish the chassis weren’t as deep.

I talked to Bahr Mahoney, AMD’s mobile director, and he said the dv2 and other forthcoming Yukon-based notebooks are addressing a segment of the market that wants portability, but don’t want to sacrifice screen size, keyboard size and video performance.

“The Athalon Neo platform is targeted for slim and stylish form factors. We are not trying to comepete against atom with the $299 and $399 market. We’re interested in targeting people that are looking for a better experience,” Mahoney said.