Hewlett Packard Compaq Presario 2100

After I wrote the review on my HP Pavilion, I spent a lot of time with my sisters laptop, a Compaq Presario 2100. I was setting up a wireless router at my parents house and I was configuring her laptop to connect to it. I was having some issues (not related to the laptop but the wireless card) so I got to kick the tires on her laptop, comparing it to mine. I tried to not let sibling rivalry come into my judgements. As you may know, HP and Compaq merged businesses and now HP has sort of taken over the production of most the companies PC products (or is it the other way around? I dunno, I get it confused). Even though the Compaq Presario 2100 bears the Compaq name it is extremely similar to the HP Pavilion laptops. Features and support are very similar. Both products are good choices but I favor my HP Pavilion for various reasons that I’ll include in this review.

The Compaq Presario line is a little different from the Pavilion line in that the system can either be purchased off the shelf, preconfigured, or use get a more customized machine according to your needs. The laptop that I’m reviewing has the following basic setup (it is very similar to my HP Pavilion ze4430):

AMD Athlon XP-M 1800+

512 MB of PC2700 RAM

40 GB HDD

15" XGA TFT screen powered by an ATI video chip.

It is possible to have a built-in wireless adapter installed but this laptop did not have that configuration. It also came with a DVD/CR-RW drive which is almost the standard now with laptops. Who needs one of those portable DVD players when they have a laptop? It also had a 3.5" floppy drive, for what that’s worth. It has 2 USB ports (ver 1.1) but no firewire port. The other legacy ports are there, including an S-video out connector.

The screen seems to be extremely similar to my HP, it is a 15" screen with a resolution of 1024x768. It is driven by the same ATI Radeon Mobile IGP 320M. It doesn’t have it’s own dedicated memory, it shares up to 64 MB with the main memory, effectively reducing the total main memory to 448 MB. I know that some people would rather have dedicated video memory in addition to system memory but unless you will be doing a lot of graphic intensive applications (video editing, FPS games) you really won’t notice a big difference. The colors are crisp and clean. The angle that you can look at the screen without any distortion is pretty deep, which can be a good thing if you’re sharing the screen with a friend to watch a DVD but is bad if the guy sitting next to you in the airport just snuck a peek at your company’s classified documents. DVD playback is great as well.

The sound leaves a little bit to be desired. Unlike the HP and its Altec Lansing speakers, the Compaq Presario 2100 has a sound that is adequate but definetly isn’t high fidelity. CD playback (and MP3's) sound average at best. It isn’t horrible but it could be a lot better.

The keyboard and mouse (touchpad) are similar to the HP. While I raved on how much I loved the Synaptics touchpad installed on my HP, the one installed on the Compaq Presario 2100 is different, in a bad way. The buttons are positioned in a different area with respect to the touch pad and they feel like they are positioned too far away. The actual touchpad (and scroll wheel area) feel comfortable, but I would still rather have the buttons closer to the touchpad. The keys feel a little stickier than the HP keys but they are quiet and comfortable.

The software package includes Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Works (with MS Money), Roxio Easy CD creator and a host of other applications that make the laptop self reliant. All the basic apps are included. More software jacks up the price so the software may seem sparse but it keeps the price down which is always a good thing.

Battery life is a little better for the Compaq Presario 2100 compared to the HP. The battery is a Lithium Ion battery from Sanyo. A full charge will last over three hours. Since there isn’t a built-in wireless adapter to drain the battery it lasts a lot longer. An empty battery charges quickly as well. Power management can be configured to your needs. The laptop does get warm after a while but that happens with the majority of the laptops.

With regards to size, it’s size is on par with the HP Pavilion. Its dimensions are 13" x 10.7" x 1.6" and weighs in at 7.2 pounds. This is a pretty much the same size as the HP, putting it in the “average” size category. Its construction doesn’t feel as sturdy as the HP. I didn’t like the molded accents on the top of the laptop and when it’s closed it feels a little flimsy. Hopefully that doesn’t mean it will fall apart. Its overall styling just isn’t what I personally like. I like sharp corners and symmetry but it has lots of curves and accents. Not my cup of tea, but maybe it’s yours.

Overall, I would recommend the Compaq Presario 2100 if the price is right. It is a decent laptop with decent features but it isn’t one that I would whole-heartedly recommend. It does everything you would expect from a Compaq (HP) built computer but there are better laptops out there. I give it a solid 4.5 stars.