HP EliteBook 8570w Notebook Review: The Other Side of the Coin
by Dustin Sklavos on December 18, 2012 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
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- AMD
- HP
- Mobile Workstation
- Ivy Bridge
- GCN
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In and Around the HP EliteBook 8570w
The HP EliteBook 8570w carries over the design language HP introduced with their 8x60 refresh, and it's a very sound one. The old 8740w was, frankly, a pretty hideous tricolor mish-mash of different styles that didn't go together well. While I'd like to see HP refresh and refine this design a bit more, it definitely still has legs.
For this, one of HP's top-of-the-line enterprise notebooks, it starts with a gunmetal-colored aluminum lid with an illuminated HP logo when the system is powered on. There's a strip of plastic along the top for the antennas colored to match the rest of the lid, and then the hinges of the notebook are silver. It bears mentioning that HP reinforces the hinges of the notebook with a bar built into them, and the hinge itself is incredibly sturdy and not the least bit prone to wobbling.
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Pressing the latch and opening the 8570w reveals a black matte plastic bezel for the display along with the gunmetal-colored brushed aluminum interior surface. The white LED backlit chiclet keyboard is the same color. It's my understanding the keyboard was a point of contention in my review of the M6700 (among other things), but I'm still adamant that this more standardized layout is much more ideal. The keys themselves are responsive with no flex, but HP's double-high left and right arrow keys, while aesthetically appealing, still feel odd. HP makes good use of the available real estate in the palm rest for a sizable touchpad with a smooth, very pleasing finish. Above and below it are the trio of dedicated mouse buttons, and in the center of the keyboard is the orange trackpoint nub.
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The trim of the notebook is a single band of aluminum with the necessary ports cut out of it, while the bottom is matte plastic. HP continues to use the quick release panel here in the 8570w; slide the lever to the left and the large bottom panel pops off. It's secure but also convenient for servicing the notebook.
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I continue to be bullish on HP's current enterprise notebook aesthetic. Much as Dell's current desktop workstation line very clearly has a lot of thought put into it regarding both usability and overall looks, the HP enterprise notebooks balance an attractive, professional style with comfort and ease of use. It's very easy to upgrade the internals of the 8570w, although you'll notice the cooling system isn't particularly robust. As you'll see, this is going to turn out to be the notebook's biggest weakness.
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Kevin G - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
There is little difference between the drivers on consumer level GPU's under OS X and the workstation class video card drivers under Windows. That is the key difference between workstation and consumer level GPU's: drivers. Take a look at the cross platform software and the software vendors do certify the OS X drivers.Beyond that the other differences between consumer and workstation GPU's are often related to GPU compute. nVidia only offers full speed GPU compute on their Telsa cards and have even started to nerf the Quadro line up (though not as much as Geforce cards based upon the same GPU die).
I've been able to spot two other minor differences between consumer and workstation cards. The first is hardware based line anti-aliasing and 10 bit color support. Under OS X, both this AA technique and 10 bit color output are provided on consumer cards.
The last difference would be the cards themselves. Workstation cards due tend to have additional outputs (either DL-DVI or DP) and more on board memory for the GPU. For a laptop this isn't as critical but worth noting for desktop systems.
ananduser - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
You can add the fact that Win under bootcamp runs relatively poor compared to a native machine. You lose a good 25%(at least) on battery life and no optimus-type switching. The drivers are also generic and have an impact on the system's overall IOPS(due to drivers). All in all not a good machine at all. It's good for the Apple user that needs sporadic native windows access on his machine and that's just about it.damianrobertjones - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
Please mention that you can purchase an extended BB09, CC09 or SR09 battery for this device. BB09 and CC09 providing the most battery life.damianrobertjones - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
P.s. Anyone planning on buying should really consider re-applying the thermal compound as the basic application isn't the best in the world.Flunk - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
That is true of every notebook I've ever seen.ijozic - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
Just two points worthy of mention regarding the Dell..First, it was first offered with the IPS screen, as well, but most (if not all?) were plagued by blue tint issues so they are no longer offered (I'm surprised if the HP doesn't have the same problem as I'd presume the screens are pretty much the same?). So, if a better stock of displays is obtained, they might be offered again.
Second, it seems to have a much better cooling system as it also offers the XM CPUs.
Oskars Apša - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
Why not review workstations with 3D models and drawings that are made by some interior and graphics designers, even architects?I as a designer would see value if you had benchmarked programs like AutoCad, 3DS MAX and Corel draw with real life models, scenes and drawings.
I don't see value in primitive benchmarking that is made upon models that ar made by some benchmark "manufacturer". That might be good for game designers at most.
Also, screens of benchmarked 3D and other objects are a must.
lx686x - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
SPECviewperf is pretty much a standard for workstation class GPU's so I don't see a problem here.You need a benchamrk not some random scenes.
Oskars Apša - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
I disagree. By look the SPEC provided models and scenes look like random leftover highscool projects. Models are primitive texture vise and the same can be said about models themselves.The only good models are provided for Siemens, but that isn't the most used program by designers, or is it?
A standart made by some company for 6 year old console game development doesn't mean it is sufficient.
lx686x - Tuesday, December 18, 2012 - link
It doesn't matter, if it scores lower in SPEC in will also have lower FPS in real programs as well.If you know any other BENCHMARK then suggest it...