Our HP Pavilion dM3 Review

HP Pavilion dm3 Side Views

The HP Pavilion dM3 catches the eye immediately with its sleek metal chassis, it looks cool. There are a few weird little quirks we’ll get into later, but the overall package and performance live up to the promises made by the futuristic appearance of the rig.

We’ll start with the high points:

Battery Life

Something many other reviewers have already noted: The long battery life. Depending on your screen settings, you might get a full day’s work out of a single recharge.

The Size

HP Pavilion dm3

Ultra slim, with a thirteen point three inch screen. Small enough for portability but not small enough to have you squinting at the screen for multi-media applications. In short, it offers a kind of versatility. Where some laptops are really home computers in a foldable case, the dM3 offers power in a small, convenient package.

Options

The dM3 comes in a variety of styles. The cheaper configurations use an AMD Athlon Neo X2 1.6GHz processor, while the more high end models come with a Pentium Dual Core SU4100 1.3GHz, and the top of the line model offers a Core 2 Duo SP9300 2.26GHz.

The Design

As we stated in the introductory paragraph, the laptop has a great look to it, like a sports car for your desk. Simple, subtle and slick. Beyond appearance, the keyboard feels nice and sturdy, and since the body is made of aluminium, you don’t get any of that unpleasant, worrisome snapping-and-twisting sound you get when opening laptops made out of brittle plastic.

So we’ve been over all the high points, and it sounds like a nice little rig. Now... the downsides...

Design Quirks

Some choices made in the design of the body just seem inexplicable. The power slider is located in a weird spot, there’s no ExpressCard slot, no internal optical drive. In lieu of these, there’s an extra USB port. Maybe not a deal breaker, but on a laptop that’s otherwise so sensibly designed, these points just seem odd.

The Size

We mentioned that it’s nicely portable, but it’s also a bit thicker and a bit heavier than similar laptops in its class. You won’t strain your arm carrying it, but you might find yourself lusting after somewhat lighter rigs.

Ethernet

10/100 instead of Gigabit. In this day and age, that, again, just seems like an odd choice.

All in all..

The Pavilion dM3 really isn’t a bad laptop. It might not make many top ten lists, but its better than most bargain priced computers in its class, it’s capable, versatile and portable. Four gigs of memory, Windows 7 Pro, Intel GMA 4500MHD, 24 millimetres thick, and 1.91kg in weight (2.11kg with AC adapter).

Here’s where it succeeds

It's not the best laptop in the world, but it’s one of the most versatile and potent in its price range. It has its downsides, but it is not, by any means, a regrettable purchase.

Compare Laptop Features

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	HP Pavilion dM3
General
Dimensions	32.6 x 23 x 2.48 cm
Processor
Processor	AMD Athlon NEO X2 Dual Core
Processor Speed	1.66Ghz
Memory
RAM	4 GB
Storage
Hard Drive Size	320 GB
Hard Drive Type	SATA
Hard Drive Speed	7200 rpm
Optical Drive	LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD± RW with Double Layer Support
Graphics
Graphics Adaptor	Card: ATI Radeon HD 3200
Screen Type	HD LED Brightview Display
Screen Size	13.30 in
Screen Max. Resolution	1366 x 768 pixels pixels
Connectivity
Wi-Fi	802.11 b/g
Bluetooth	Yes
Ethernet	10/100BASE-T
HDMI Ports	1
Multi Card Slot	5-In-1 integrated Digital Media Reader
No. of USB Slots	4
Power
Battery Type	6-cell Lithium-Ion (Li-Ion)
AC Power Adaptor	65.0 watts
Web Cam	HP Webcam
Speakers	Altec Lansing speakers
Input
Pointing Device	Touch Pad with Vertical Scroll
Software
Operating System	Windows 7 Home Premium
Cost
Typical Cost (£)	570

HP Pavilion dM3 Full Specification

General

Processor

Memory

Storage

Graphics

Connectivity

Power

Input

Software

Cost

Images of the HP Pavilion dM3

HP Pavilion dm3 Side Views

HP Pavilion dm3