fbpx

HP Mini Note 1109TU Review

This 2nd generation HP Mini Note (1109TU) has been out as early as December last year (officially launched 2 weeks ago) but we only got to try and test one this week. I actually requested for the HP Mini 2140 but the messenger sent in the wrong model. So here’s a quick review of the HP Mini 1109TU while I await the replacement unit.

HP took notice of a lot of the issues concerning their first mini notebook (HP Mini 2133) and addressed them in the succeeding models. I think was a move in the right direction.

  • They jumped ship and joined the Intel bandwagon, for good reason. The new mini notebook has Atom N270 1.6Ghz.
  • They ditched Vista in favor of the older OS, Windows XP, which is most favored in the netbook market.
  • HP priced their units more competitively. Not calling your mini-notebook a netbook is not a license to charge more than average for them. The Mini Note 1109TU now retails for just Php18,990.

hp mininote

Among the 10″ models, the HP Mini 1100 is one of the lightest and smallest we’ve reviewed here in the 10-inch category. They were able to shave off some pounds by repositioning the trackpad buttons to the sides instead of the bottom and cutting off a couple centimeters on the girth of the mini note. This is what they initially did with the 2133 and was followed by the 9″ Acer Aspire One. This made using the trackpad a little awkward that you’d always end up using both hands instead of one to operate the trackpad and buttons. That, or weeks of getting used to the unusual orientation (I’d recommend an external USB/Bluetooth mouse though).

hp mini 1000

The biggest advantage of HP’s Mini Notes is the keyboard, the largest we’ve seen of any netbook in its class. It’s practically almost the same as a standard keyboard of regular-sized laptops so if you’re into touch-typing, this one’s the best you can get. That, plus the glossy marble-black finish on the top gives the mini note a classy statement (albeit attracts a lot of fingerprints and smudges).

hp mini 1000

The screen is bright and glossy but sometimes too glossy to its disadvantage especially when used outsides at daylight. Nevertheless, the screen is crisp and clear. What’s a bit disappointing it the screen resolution — HP dropped the pixels down to 1024×578 when the standard is 1024×600. That’s a mere 22-pixel height difference but still matters as there are softwares that don’t run under 1024×600 or 1024×768. There’s a larger resolution (1024×768 pixels) but I haven’t seen them in stores yet.

Battery life is typical of a 3-cell battery — between 2 – 2.5 hours in my tests. The storage is also smaller with only an 80GB HDD instead of the usual 160GB and higher others are offering. Maybe that’s why HP was able to bring down their suggested retail price to under Php19,000.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 985 other subscribers
Avatar for Abe Olandres

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

59 Responses

  1. Avatar for Gene88 Gene88 says:

    you are welcome abe. besides, even the best writers need proofreaders.

  2. Avatar for Joel Joel says:

    wow sleek and sexy! I hope the price is not that high when it reaches Davao City :)

  3. Avatar for calvin calvin says:

    ouch that resolution hurts. malaki na rin yung 22 pixels vertically.

  4. Avatar for Richard Richard says:

    HERE’S HOW TO INSTALL IT.

    IT HAS TO BE MANUALLY INSTALLED..

    Once you finish download you will see sp41365.exe on your desktop

    dont install it, unzip it, you can use winrar to do that

    once you unpack double click Swisetup and install the driver.

    Viola

    -the end

  5. Avatar for Richard Richard says:

    FOR HP MINI 3G DRIVER.

    GO TO THIS LINK AND DOWNLOAD..

    ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp41001-41500/sp41365.exe

  6. Avatar for dan dan says:

    I will never buy an hp notebook or netbook! My friend bought an HP notebook in 2007. The design of HP notebooks are eye catching. But the problem was, he had a harddrive problem, he went to an HP service center(or whatever HP has) to claim for his warranty since its still less than 6months. They kept the notebook for 3months and after that they said to him that they can repair it for the price of 20K! And (another shocker) they charged him during the 3months they kept the notebook! Outrageous. So there folks, Don’t buy HP even if they look classy, sleek or eye-catcher. These people will ruin your life. Better settle with ACER or ASUS.

    This is true people. I felt pity to my friend. He spent $1000+ for a notebook that lasted for 6months less. Don’t bother HP.

    P.S. I don’t hold a grudge to HP. I’m just siding what I saw with their “services”.

  7. Avatar for dan dan says:

    I will never buy an hp notebook or netbook! My friend bought an HP notebook in 2007. The design of HP notebooks are eye catching. But the problem was, he had a harddrive problem, he went to an HP service center(or whatever HP has) to claim for his warranty since its still less than 6months. They kept the notebook for 3months and after that they said to him that they can repair it for the price of 20K! And (another shocker) they charged him during the 3months they kept the notebook! Outrageous. So there folks, Don’t buy HP even if they look classy, sleek or eye-catcher. These people will ruin your life. Better settle with ACER or ASUS.

  8. Avatar for Free Classified Free Classified says:

    just wow,ok sana kya expensive..

  9. Avatar for Abe Olandres Abe Olandres says:

    @vidar & gene88 – thanks! corrected.

    @ani – looks like it. the mini 1000 has a special socket for display output. not sur ethough if it came with the box. the unit i got didn’t come in a box though.

    @john ray – you’re right, the battery form factor is going to be a problem for upgrades.

  10. Avatar for Ani Ani says:

    Abe, a lot of the things you’ve noted about the mini note 1000 (re: screen, keyboard, battery life) are the same as the 2140. Does this updated model still need a special VGA adaptor cable to be able to connect a projector to it?

    http://www.liliputing.com/2008/11/how-to-enable-the-hp-mini-1000s-3g-modem.html

    According to the above link some of the older mini note 1000’s have a hidden 3G sim slot. Just like the the Vaio’s its not automatically enabled.

  11. Avatar for Gene88 Gene88 says:

    @unknown soldier

    corny mo. and as for the drooling part… you actually (if not figuratively) drool over this device?! babaw mo ha

  12. Avatar for Gene88 Gene88 says:

    abe, typo – Maybe “that” why HP was able to bring down their suggested retail price to under Php19,000.

  13. Avatar for Richard Richard says:

    i think this comes with 3g slot in the battery compartment that can be enabled manually. just need to install something. one of hp mini’s secrets. you can check it for yourself.

  14. Avatar for John Ray Cabrera John Ray Cabrera says:

    the thing about this HP Mini 1000 series is that it is unlikely for you to upgrade you battery into 6cell due to its precarious placement of battery pack.

  15. Avatar for Abe Olandres Abe Olandres says:

    @Alvin, good suggestions; they actually apply to all laptops and netbooks.

  16. Avatar for Alvin Alvin says:

    I just got my mom an HP mini 1109tU, I should say that one should check everything within 7 days of replacement as majority of the market has those policy imposed on us “consumers.” Recently, a friend of mine brought a HP mini 2140 at a well-known netbooks distributor and found out that the vent fans of her HP mini 2140 is not working at all and the batteries on the package (3-cell) is not charging upto 100% (only 92%). i’m not sure how the batteries works but i’m pretty sure everyone buying any HP products should check these out:

    All keys on the keyboard (all buttons including touchpad)
    Maximum battery charging percentage, %
    Memorycard reader
    VGA output
    Especially VENT fans of the left side of the laptop. BIOS configuration has the option to enable the vent fans when plugged to AC power. check if the fans are working if not, you should think twice.

    I maybe wrong with these initial checking but please people, it might be a headache for you since HP required 4 days investigation (which you should surrender the unit to them) and 3 to 4 weeks replacement of the parts when you exceed the 7-day replacement period which is really really hassle given you are giving HP almost 1.5months of unused netbook and no guarantee that your netbook will be worth it.

  17. Avatar for Unknown Soldier Unknown Soldier says:

    @Unknown Soldier!

    STOP DROOLING! your saliva is dripping all over your keyboard! wipe it off immediately! wahaha!

  18. Avatar for Vidar Vidar says:

    “There’s a high-end resolution I here but I haven’t seen them in stores yet.”

    Typo? :D

  19. Avatar for yuga yuga says:

    @pedro – the 1109TU is just the SKU (stock keeping unit) which is under the 1000 series. Different SKUs would represent some minor differences in the same line — like storage size, ram, or OS.

  20. Avatar for Pedro Pedro says:

    Sir could I ask the difference of HP Mini Note (1109TU) from HP Mini note 1000?

    it seems from the physical aspect there are not noticable differences. I have a HP Mini Note 1000

    just asking…tnx…

Leave a Reply
JOIN OUR TELEGRAM DISCUSSION

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *