New AMD Neo Athlon / Turion chips emerge in HP Pavilion dv2z

HP's newly unveiled Pavilion dv2z just so happens to have a bit of fresh silicon within, as AMD's latest Neo chips are front and center in the configuration options. The thin-and-light machine can be ordered with single- or dual-core AMD Athlon Neo and Turion Neo dual-core processors, and if you're looking for specifics, you'll find the new 1.6GHz Athlon Neo X2 L335 and 1.6GHz Turion Neo X2 L625. Other specs on the 12.1-incher include a LED-backlit WXGA panel, optional Blu-ray drive, discrete ATI Radeon graphics, up to 500GB of HDD space, a built-in webcam, WiFi, optional WWAN (Verizon, Sprint or AT&T) and a 6-cell battery. It's up for order right now starting at $599.99, but if you're looking to leave that aged Neo MV-40 behind, you'll have to pony up a bit more than that. Full release is after the break.

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HP Pavilion dv2 review

We figure the design just to the left of the touchpad is more than enough to convince you to impulse-buy the $750 HP Pavilion dv2, but just in case you hesitated, the reviews are in and it's not all sunshine for the AMD Neo-powered non-netbook. Laptop Magazine notes it handles HD video pretty well, but it suffers from a cramped keyboard, above average heat, and a less than stellar battery life. Instead, they suggest a Samsung NC20 as a ligher, cheaper alternative. CNET said it got beat performance-wise by Intel Core 2 Duo laptops of comparable price range, and although it bested Atom in most tests, the two processors tied when multitasking. As for PC World, like Laptop, they did give kudos for better graphics performance, but added the caveat that the NC20 and upcoming MSI X-Slim X320 would give it a run for its money. For all the nitty-gritty details, browse through the reviews below.

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