HP Compaq Tablet PC TC1000
Say hello to the chameleon of tablet computing, the HP Compaq Tablet PC TC1000, which squeezes three computers into one ingenious design. It starts as an extremely small, light, slate-style tablet PC, with a superior stylus compared to those of other tablets we've seen. Snap on the keyboard for a thin-and-light notebook with a superb three-hour battery runtime. Then dock it, and voilà--a desktop unit. Unfortunately, this tablet's 1GHz Transmeta processor can't keep up with those in the faster Pentium III tablets. If you're willing to trade performance for style, however, the TC1000 ranks as a rakish, multipurpose standout in the Tablet PC race.
As if the sleek look of the Compaq TC1000 Tablet PC weren't cool enough, the silver "lazy Susan" hinge will take your breath away. Located on the back of the tablet's snap-on keyboard, it rotates 180
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Although the hinge is handy, it also feels unbalanced; the screen tends to fall flat when you leave it up, and the latch that should lock the slate and the keyboard together occasionally springs open, making for awkward moments while docking and undocking. We attribute the loose parts to early-production jitters, and we're hoping for more hardware stability in future releases.
At 1.36kg and 27.5 by 21.08 by 2.3cm, the Compaq TC1000 is the lightest and smallest of the Tablet PC bunch, beating out the Acer by a whisker. With the keyboard in place, the TC1000 measures 3.05cm and 1.8kg. Unfortunately, Compaq makes some design concessions for this slim size. The keyboard is laden with skimpy 18.2mm keys (with just 2.33mm between them), and the central pointing stick lacks a scroll button.
Finished in sleek silver, the Compaq's optional AU$495 docking station lets you tilt the tablet for better viewing and provides a LAN, audio, an external monitor, and four USB ports--more than any other tablet we've seen. The monitor hookup is especially nice if you want to use the TC1000 as both a traveling and a desktop PC. Rotate the screen on its handy hinge, and the display orients itself automatically between portrait and landscape mode. In a rare design miscue, though, the dock's large handle (for unlocking the tablet) looks more like a piece of exercise equipment than part of a computer. Also, for some reason, you must have the keyboard attached to the tablet in order to dock it--an awkward requirement. Worse, Compaq charges extra for the dock; only one other tablet maker does this.
Along the top of the tablet lies the Compaq TC1000's secret weapon: a sophisticated and easy-to-operate jog-dial control, similar to one you'd find on a phone, a PDA, or some Sony notebooks. You can nudge it right or left, or you can push it to activate an onscreen selection. Other tablets feature comparable controls but usually via a button.
Speaking of input, the Compaq's black-and-silver, cylindrical pen-style stylus shows the others how to do it right. Stored in a spring-loaded holder, the TC1000's stylus is thicker, better weighted, and more comfortable to use than the standard styli used by its competitors. Unfortunately, it's not very sturdy; we broke the tip off one. It also requires a AAAA battery, whereas others require none at all.
The sleek Compaq TC1000 case would have you believe otherwise, but inside, this tablet is filled with run-of-the-mill components. Our test model ran off a 1GHz Transmeta Crusoe TM5800 processor, which struggled to keep up, even with slower Intel competition in our Labs' tests. During our month-long evaluation, it often stumbled and took a few seconds to perform tasks that other tablets performed instantaneously. Our system also shipped with 256MB of RAM; a 30GB hard drive; an average-sized 10.4-inch screen; and an Nvidia GeForce2 Go graphics card with 16MB of video memory. It's an adequate system, but look to the Fujitsu Stylistic ST4000 or the Toshiba Portégé 3505 for truly blazing tablet performance.
The TC1000 package includes the best and loudest speakers of the Tablet PC group, as well as a solid assortment of ports. Connections for an external monitor, modem, LAN, and a pair of USB plugs live behind a door on the top of the unit. In addition, the TC1000 can accommodate a Type II PC Card, as well as CompactFlash, which can be used with IBM's larger Microdrives. While there are plugs for audio, the Compaq has neither a FireWire connection nor an infrared window for wireless communications. The tablet came with a cheap, unpadded, vinyl zippered case that holds the tablet, but there's no room for papers. If you care about protecting this tablet, buy a new carrying case pronto.
Beyond its operating system, extra programs are few and far between on the TC1000, with little other than Windows XP Tablet PC Edition preinstalled. In fact, as with the Portégé 3505, we had to load Microsoft Word to do our speech-recognition tests. There are several apps available for the Tablet PC OS already; we'd like it if Compaq could at least include, say, the Franklin Covey planner program.
The Compaq TC1000 does include one proprietary application we like: its QMenu software. Accessible from either the task tray or a button on the right side of the tablet, the QMenu shows up on the right side and offers configuration choices for all the major settings, from volume to wireless networking to screen brightness (similar to the Motion M1200's Dashboard).
In application performance, the Compaq TC1000's Transmeta Crusoe TM5800 processor crippled the system. While this processor clocks in at 1GHz, it still can't compare to the Pentium III-M-800MHz processor of the Fujitsu Stylistic ST4000 and especially not the 1.3GHz Pentium III-M processor of the Toshiba Portégé 3505. Indeed, the Compaq's Crusoe processor turned in the worst times of all the tablets we tested.
While the Crusoe processor was the main culprit behind the Compaq's lackluster performance, it also preserves the Compaq's long battery life. Thanks to the Crusoe's design, it uses much less power than a traditionally designed CPU such as the Pentium III-M. Even with the Compaq's rather average 11V, 3,600mAh battery, it was still able to post a score well in excess of three hours.In the Compaq's favour -- at least at this stage -- is that it's the cheapest Tablet PC on the market. Unless Viewsonic alters its pricing when its Tablet is launched, it will retain that spot, at least until the next round of Tablet PCs is released.
HP Compaq Tablet PC TC1000
Company: HP Australia
Price: AU$3,795, Dock AU$495
Distributor: Selected resellers
Phone: 13 13 47
