*HP EliteBook 2560p Owners Lounge*

nando4 · 06-15-2011, 11:22 AM

Welcome to the 2560P Owner's Lounge! A place to liase with other owners and share useful tips/tricks/mods to get the most satisfying user experience from this exceptional ultraportable notebook.

Release date: 9 May 2011

Above: 2560P front, left, right, rear (src: laptopmag.com)

Reviews/Comparisons: laptopmag, NBR, pcworld.

HP 2560P vs Lenovo X220 (butwhyme)
HP 2560P vs Lenovo X220 vs other ultraportables/ultrabooks (spoiler below - nando4)

Spoiler :

There is no other ultraportable that could offer the feature set and price a s/h 2560P had which is why I went it over any other systems. Here's a comparison against the next closest contender, a Lenovo X220:

+ 1. price: I got it for US$700. Seems everyone knows they are a bit heavy so they are a s/h bargain when they rarely make an appearance on ebay. X220 prices have, on the other hand, been steadily increasing. I could not get a i5-25xx X220 unit for < US$800 nor have there been any recent vouchers to bring the price down.

+ 2. CPU upgradability: a 2560P doesn't have a soldered CPU whereas other 12-13" such as a X220 and Dell E6220/E6320, Toshiba R830/R840 use soldered CPUs. a i7-quad has been installed in a 2560P here. So a 2560P is one of the smallest Series-6 system that can be upgraded to a i7-quad. 22nm Ivy Bridge CPUs may also be an upgrade option for Series-6 systems upon release in Q2 2012. They will deliver more performance, lower power consumption and increased battery life yet again.

+ 3. X220 has TOLUD issue: This problem making it impossible to run a DIY eGPU with anymore than 3GB of RAM on recently built systems. REF: Request to fix TOLUD in newer BIOS files.. Unfortunately this large issue for my DIY eGPU purposes was fixed *after* I had already purchased my 2560P.

+ 4. looks good: Upon handling a X220 I also had some reservations about it's looks and build quality. It felt cheaper than the Elitebooks I'm used to. For this very same reason I previously acquired a 2530P over a Lenovo X200. Also, a X220 doesn't have two real mouse buttons on the trackpad. Looks are subjective with Lenovo affectionados advocating Thinkpad understated looks. A 2560P in included in laptopmag's Oct 2011 ten-best looking laptops list.

+ 5. more flexible storage: 9.5mm 2.5" HDD + 9.5mm 2.5" SSD can be installed where the optical drive is swapped out with a caddy. A X220 has a 7mm 2.5" primary bay and a mSATA/WWAN slot. Using it's mSATA slot makes it's internal WWAN inaccessible. The maximum capacity for internal storage on a X220 being 500MB (7mm 2.5 HDD) + 128GB mSATA. A 2560P can have a 1TB 9.5mm 2.5" HDD + 512MB 2.5" SSD or 2x1TB HDDs with the WWAN slot available. [Advanced]: the 2560P's e-sata port could technically be tapped internally to mod in a mSATA SSD in some available space so could have 3 internal drives.

+ 6. higher performance storage: ~~can do RAID-0 across a SATA-III primary 2.5" SSD/HDD and one in the upgrade bay as noted to effectively double throughput.~~ <-- Not yet, can only do RAID-1. Requesting HP do enable RAID-0 via a bios update as described.

+ 7. warranty: HP's standard 3yr next-day onsite global warranty is the best in the industry. It gives excellent business continuity across the planet.

- 8. portability: a X220 wins over the 2560P in weight: 3.2lbs versus 4.24lbs. Replacing the 2560P's ODD with a space saver pares that back to 4.02lbs.

- 9. no unwhitelisted bios: A whitelist-removed modded bios for the X220 exists so can use non-Lenovo wifi/WWAN cards. Pro modders have tried to do the same for the 2560P here but have been unsuccessful.

- 10. X220's IPS LCD option: nothing similar offered by the 2560P. A IPS LCD giving excellent viewing angles. Consider too, if you want higher level of privacy and lower power consumption then you don't want an IPS LCD.

Other contenders

A third contender - a Toshiba R830 provides features 3, 4, 5, 7 but loses on the critical 1 and 2. Upon physically examining it, the position of the expresscard slot under the optical drive raises some concerns for DIY eGPU connectivity and I questioned it's durability. A Dell E6220/E6320 was also evaluated but they too have soldered CPUs and their look wasn't to my taste. Their hinge-forward design looks awkward.

Ultrabooks, while thinner and lighter use slower and non-upgradeable ULV CPUs and of course have no expresscard slot.

Wishlist for next 25x0P: lighter, thinner and better expandability - can be accomplished by going mSATA/ 7.5mm HDDs/7mm optical drives. An IPS/900P LCD option, dedicated PGUP and PGDN keys, a backlit keyboard, native USB 3.0 (IV has it!), Thunderbolt port(s), Boston Power battery cells, use a socketted CPU bringing it up to date with latest tech. Using a 2530P and 2560P back to back highlights the 2530P still being HP's best ultraportable chassis to date due to the 16:10 LCD, great keyboard and noticably lower weight. Going back to a 2530P feels like when 16:10 LCDs replaced 4:3 ones, the 2530P looks squarer.
HP 2560P vs 2530P (butwhyme)

HP 2560P vs 2540P vs 2530P vs 2510P (spoiler below - nando4)

Spoiler :

Customized 2560P systems (ordered by approx additional expense spent)

Owner	Storage			Other Mods
Owner	2.5" sata bay	sata optical bay/2.5" caddy	External	Other Mods
nando4	ssd: 128GB MDS Bullet Proof	hdd: 500GB/newmodeus	-	DC_optimized, GTX560Ti DIY eGPU
SimoxTav	ssd: ???	hdd: 250GB/ebay	-	i7-2630QM, GTX560Ti DIY eGPU, 8GB RAM
vnwhite	ssd: 256MB Crucial C300	hdd: 750GB/ebay	-	DC_optimized, i7-2820QM, 6300AGN, 8GB 1866MHz RAM

RED - highest performance setup | GREEN - lowest power consumption drive setup (2.5" SSD see here).

OS, drivers and disassembly

Drivers, Manuals, Maintenance And Service Guide, Media Services Library with disassembly videos.
Popular HP Notebook Software Collection : one-stop location for the latest versions of popular HP notebook sw.
Win7 OEM sources : the additional HP installation contents added to a Win7 CD.
HP/Compaq Desktop Wallpapers : A compilation of stock wallpapers from the HP and Compaq notebook range
HP DMIFIT 1.4d: allows tattooing your system in case you replace the systemboard. Usually done by a HP technican.

Storage

Second hotswappable 9.5mm 2.5" HDD/SSD via optical drive bay. 2560P examples: ebay (SimoxTav) or newmodeus.
e-sata/usb cable or enclosure, useful for external e-sata storage. Eg: convert optical drive to be external unit

Expansion

USB 3.0: add a US$15-delivered USB 3.0 expresscard.
DIY eGPU: to attach a desktop videocard via expressport. Provides HDMI/DVI and accelerated graphics.
WWAN/WIFI card whitelist: the WWAN/WIFI cards the 2560P bios will bootup with.

Tweaks

DC_optimized: optimize the system to maximize battery life, idling at 4.7-5.2W!! Done with more sophistication by vnwhite &.
Enabling third-button mouse click scrolling with touchstyk
Dual-channel RAM: increases WEI RAM and video (1x4GB vs 2x4GB)
How to enable Upgrade Bay Hard Drive boot: so can hit F9 at bios screen then boot off an optical bay caddy HDD or SSD.

Misc

Backlit keyboard mod: HP Folio 13 backlit keyboard retrofit??
Obtaining an expresscard blank: if lost or damaged yours. Replacement comes with an optical drive weight saver.
FAQ about optical drive space saver: can it's faceplate be used on other ODDs or a caddy? Answer: no/maybe.

Schematic - Inventec_Styx_MV.pdf (aka HP Elitebook 2560P). The block diagram summary is below:

Acknowledgements: a cast of many 2560P and other NBR users contributing to this thread. Many thank yous.

XS850SG · 06-16-2011, 02:50 PM

Interesting. I got a spec sheet from HP at the time of order that lists the weight starting at 3.84lbs with the ODD and so 4.18 w/ the 6 cell.

See attached.

I had looked at the Lenovo X220 also, but it was more money, and less laptop (no odd for example).

nando4 · 06-16-2011, 10:47 PM

Your specs list a 3-cell battery. Each battery cell is around 50grams, so 1.75+3*50=1.90, which is close to the 1.94kgs I have listed. The X220 at 1.45kgs and Dell E6220 at 1.59kgs are substantially lighter, but neither has an internal ODD.

Quote:

Originally Posted by XS850SG

Ok, so I just ordered a 2560p this week, but I plan to ditch the factory hard drive and go with an SSD almost immediately.

I know you can get the chassis with the SSD, but it's far cheaper to order it yourself and put it in than go through HP for it. Plus, HP only offers a 160GB at the largest and I want 256GB minimum.

Anybody have any information regarding the SATA controller in this? Is it like some of the other Elitebooks where the spec sheets list Gen 2 Sata, but that is only a limitation of the drives HP offers? Is the controller really Gen 3? Can the bios be flashed or chipset be upgraded via intel flash to support the 6.0Gb/s speeds of Gen 3?

The 2560P has the QM67 sata port layout as follows:

Quote:

port0 = primary 2.5" drive
port1 = optical drive
port4 = external device
port5= external device

port0 and port1 are the only 6Gb/s capable ports on this chipset as discussed in Toshiba Portege R835 - SATA III Support? . No capping is applied by the bios so port0 and 1 run at full 6Gb/s speed.

butwhyme · 08-06-2011, 09:55 AM

Hi All,

I thought I'd post initial impressions of my new 2560p, as there is virtually no proper reviews I can find on the internet. I will update it as I have more time.

It replaced a beloved HP elitebook 2530p which unfortunately died.

Specs:
i7-2620M
1x4GB DDR3, 160GB Intel SSD
DVDRW, WWAN, Wifi ABGN, Bluetooth etc

Performance:
Blows away my old w500 with a T9600 and a Seagate Momentus XT, and of course the 2530p. It boots into windows 7 in about 16sec (from entering boot bios password until it becomes usable - not clean install). From power button to bios password is about 2 seconds.

Windows Experience Index(Win 7 Pro 64) : (sorry I have no proper benchmark programs)
Processor 7.1
RAM 5.9 (with a second 4GB DDR3 module it became 7.5)
Aero 4.6
Gaming 6.2
HD 7.6

Its a little annoying that it came with Win 7 Pro 32 bit, so I had to reload everything.

Overall, super snappy and leaves little to be desired.

Screen:
I don't mind the new aspect too much, the res is decent (1366x768) 12.5". The viewing angles are better than the 2530p. It is super bright, and is a matte non reflective surface. The brightness however is a little bit less than the 2530p.

Ports:
combo USB/Esata is nice to have, but USB 3 would be even better. Its a pity it doesn't seem to have an "always on USB" for charging. Otherwise 2 x USB2. I personally appreciate the venerable modem port as I do use it for something very old fashioned called faxing ;-) But most people won't care for it. It has VGA out and Displayport. The expresscard 34 is greatly appreciated. There's no longer a dedicated microphone port.

The SD card slot disappoints as a card inserted in it sticks out from the side by nearly 5mm (see photos in a post further down).

Keyboard:
I can't begin to describe how much HP has got this wrong, though I personally hate chiclet keyboards. The feel is terrible - you have to press the keys much harder than my 2530p or Lenovo W500, which means if you're a touch typer, you'll hit the key, but it may not register. I feel fatigued typing for medium periods of time.

Then there's the layout. I know HP is going after the macbooks in design, but not having a dedicated page up / down and home / end key is unforgivable on a "business" notebook. Why there's a dedicated "scroll" and "pause" key instead is beyond me. What was wrong the with 2530p/2540p design - the best keyboard I've used? The up and down keys are too small and too close together.

At least there's no flex in the keyboard. I also do like the proper keys (admittedly only 3 for wireless toggle, internet hot key, and mute) rather than touch sensitive buttons.

The carried over keyboard light is a welcome feature.

Trackpad:
Responsive. Gestures. Ability to turn it off. It has a glass surface so its very smooth. Decent size. No complaints.

Weight:
about 300g heavier than the equivalent 2530p. Using my bathroom scales, I get it at around 1.9-2kg with the DVD drive and 6cell battery. I'm not impressed given that there's many 13 - 14" laptops around this weight. My guess is they've deliberately made it weigh more to make room for their upcoming super light ultrabooks. Apparently you can get a plastics kit that has a weight saver instead of the optical drive to shave off 100g.

Build:
Rock solid. More solid than the 2530p, and (tough call) also the Lenovo w500. There is no flex at all on the base of the unit. A nice touch is the one latch mechanism that takes off the whole bottom to get to the HD / RAM / modules for easy upgrade. The screen latch is very positive, and there's not really much flex in the screen itself. I have no doubt it will survive a beating.

Size:
Slightly thicker than the 2530p, and about 2 cm wider. While its front edge is about 2mm thicker than the 2530p, its hinge edge is the same thickness. Its a bit disappointing that with the larger footprint, it didn't become slimmer. At least a 2.5" drive makes upgrading a little easier.

Fan:
A little louder than the 2530p (which was a low voltage), but overall not too bad. It seems to go full blast the moment it turns on, then quickly winds down to something a bit more acceptable. It doesn't seem to get hot enough to bother one's lap - even on charge.

WWAN performance:
Brilliant compared to the 2530p - 5 bars where I used to get 3 bars. Faster to lock onto the network. It still occasionally drops out, and needs to reboot the WWAN card to reconnect. This has happened with my 2510p and 2530p and w500 on multiple networks, but the connections seem to be more stable.

Battery:
Unfortunately not compatible with the batteries of the 2530p. I've only done about 3 cycles, and seem to get about 6 hrs at medium brightness, balanced mode, with WWAN or WIFI on. It has the LED gauge on it which is useful for checking its charge without turning on the laptop. The 6 cell still sticks out the back of the laptop. It comes with a long life battery, which is down slightly on capacity, but is supposed to need replacing less frequently, and hence is covered by a three year warranty. Quick charge is still there.

The power pack is compatible with the 2530p.

Warranty:
I've had 5 HP laptops, and every time I've had an issues, despite their overseas call centre, they have been fantastic. The fact that I've had so many issues is a slight worry (but my two Lenovo's and 1 Dell also have had issues - ie every single laptop I've bought). The next day onsite warranty was brilliant. The DOA procedure of my 2530p was a painless process.

Photo 4: Suspect keyboard layout
Photo 5: Left edge - DVDRW, Smart card, RJ11 and RJ45, power
Photo 6: Back - Battery, VGA and 2 x USB2
Photo 7: Right edge - Expresscard 34, SD, Displayport, Esata/USB2 combo, Kensington Lock, Docking station port
Photo 8: Underside - note left latch removes the service panel, battery with LED charge levels
Photo 9: Underside with service panel removed. Note two small crotch speakers assymetrically placed

Summary:
Pros: Performance, expandability
Cons:
The keyboard!!!!!
Super expensive in Australia ($3800 - seriously????)
Super heavy by ultra portable standards

I've had the 2510p, the 2530p and I have loved the HP's 12" series. If they could swap the keyboard of the 2560p I'd love it too, despite the weight blow out.

Hope you've found this helpful.

butwhyme · 08-06-2011, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nando4

Thank you for the great review. +rep. I too have been looking on the web and found nothing on the 2560P. Given you still have the 2530P, any chance of taking side-by-side photos and posting them, or at least just photos of the 2560P? Your review could easily be renamed to be the "2560P Owner's Lounge".

Oh.. and if you still have your 2530P with the unwhitelisted bios, and could be bothered, then swapping over the WWAN card might reveal that new WWAN card is responsible for the better reception.

I'm glad you've highlighted the 2560P battery is not compatible with the 2510P-2540P. Means the highest capacity for the older series is the 93Whr 9-cell from the 2540P.

I was wondering about the lack of reviews - I'm sure Australia is not the 1st to receive this laptop.

I've got the 2530p for probably one more night, so I'll try to take some photos for sure. The WWAN I've got in the 2530p was a un2400 el cheapo I bought off ebay, so its highly likely that this is the issue. It seemed to have poorer reception than my 2510p.

butwhyme · 08-06-2011, 08:06 PM

Photos compared to a Lenovo w500 (15" workstation") and 2530p

Photo 1: 2560p in middle
Photo 2: Front edge profile with 2560p on left, 2530p on right
Photo 3: 2560p below

butwhyme · 08-06-2011, 08:12 PM

Photos of 2560p with the SD card sticking out the side despite being inserted fully

nando4 · 08-06-2011, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by butwhyme

The WWAN I've got in the 2530p was a un2400 el cheapo I bought off ebay, so its highly likely that this is the issue. It seemed to have poorer reception than my 2510p.

There are different WWAN cards used in the different HP25xP series:

Code:

2510P: HP HS2300 (Sierra MC8775)
2530P: HP UN2400/UN2420 (GOBI 2000)
2540P: HP UN2420 (GOBI 2000)
2560P: HP UN2430 (GOBI 3000)

Definitely the WWAN card in your 2530P is the issue as your 2510P had better reception. The 2510P and 2530P have the same antenna layout. One good thing about the older 2510P and 2530P is they have unwhitelisted bios available. That then allowed me to fit a Sierra MC8780 to my 2530P here. The 2540P and 2560P have no unwhitelisted modified bios available. That's after a few pro bios modders on mydigitallife and bios-mods.com giving it a go.

justinkw1 · 08-07-2011, 04:13 AM

Just a quick note: I merged the 2560p hands-on review with the other thread.

From now on, this thread is officially the 2560p owners lounge.

XS850SG · 08-09-2011, 03:51 PM

Got the 2560p in place now. Installed 8GB of Ram, and a 256GB SSD running SATA III.

Boot time with initial load on the system was 9 seconds from the time I hit the power button to the time it was logged into windows.

With all applications loaded and it on the domain, it's now 21 seconds from power button pressed to authenticated and ready to work.

I'm very pleased.

The unit itself is very sleek and yet rugged, feels like it will last another 5 years and million miles with ease. It's nice to have a lighter machine with an optical drive.

I would also like to mention that the keyboard and touchpad are exceptional. I like the feel and response from these- an improvement over the older designs I think.