HP Pavilion dv4-1275mx

Editors' note: This review is part of our latest Retail Laptop Roundup, covering specific configurations of popular laptops that can be found in retail stores.

Smacked with a higher price for a "special edition" lid design and packing a slow AMD processor and a mammoth 12-cell battery, the $749 HP Pavilion dv4-1275mx Special Edition is not one of the better deals in our current roundup of fixed-configuration retail laptops. Trading up to a 15-inch display and a faster Intel Core 2 Duo CPU, we prefer the very similar Pavilion dv5-1235dx, which is a less expensive option--even if its chassis is bronze instead of blue.

Price and components aside, we really liked the look of the dv4-1275mx. The special edition midnight blue lid, with its crashing-wave-inspired imprint, is eye-catching and sophisticated. On the other hand, even though 14-inch laptops are relatively small, the included very large 12-cell extended life battery lifts the back up significantly, and makes the whole thing considerably harder to transport.

At the top of the keyboard is a row of backlit touch-sensitive media controls, including one for launching the HP MediaSmart applications for accessing music, video, Internet TV, photos, and the CD/DVD player. (A small IR remote control is bundled with the laptop for controlling things from afar.) There's also an icon for turning on and off the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios. Average-sounding stereo speakers flank the controls. The keyboard itself is reasonably comfortable for a laptop this size, though the keys are a bit softer than we like. Also, the touch pad is short and wide, which is only upsetting if you're used to a larger one.

The 14.1-inch wide-screen LCD offers a 1,280x800 native resolution, which is standard for both 14- and 15-inch screens. The display gets sufficiently bright, movies look good on it, and text and icons are highly readable. Above the screen is a serviceable Webcam and microphone.

The port and connection assortment on the dv4-1275mx is solid for a notebook of its size. In particular, the eSATA/USB combo port and HDMI out are welcome. There's also one of HP's proprietary expansion ports (for connecting to an HP-branded docking station), as well as 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Performance, however, was subpar for a laptop in the very popular price range of $600 to $899. It's one thing to score low on our CNET Labs' benchmarks, but the dv4-1275mx actually felt slow during regular use. Our current roundup of retail laptops has several better options for performance and features, from HP and others.

The dv4-1275mx ran for 4 hours and 25 minutes on our video playback battery drain test, using the included 12-cell battery. That's an impressive score, but the giant battery is easily twice the size of a standard one--making the dv4 a hassle to lug around with you.

HP backs the Pavilion dv4-1275mx with an industry-standard, one-year warranty. Toll-free telephone support is available 24-7, and the HP support Web site includes real-time chat with a technical support representative and a detailed FAQ database.