During the Computex 2019 expo in Taiwan, Taipei this morning, HP unveiled two rather stylish initiatives that are designed to appeal to the modern consumer and help set its hardware apart from its competitors.
The first is the new HP Elite x2 G4, the latest entry in HP’s EliteBook line of laptops. In addition to the expected spec upgrades (2TB storage, Intel Core i7-8665U vPro, 16GB RAM) and physical features (webcam shutters and privacy screen), the HP Elite x2 G4 also comes with what’s described as the “world’s first” detachable leather keyboard.
Much like the Type Covers on Microsoft’s Surface line of Windows 10 devices, the HP Elite x2 G4 leather cover can also be removed or folded out of the way.
The HP Elite x2 G4 will launch in August with the starting price of $1,499.
In a rather unexpected move, HP also unveiled optional wood designs for its Envy laptops. The wood covers the entire lower half of the keyboard (see above image) and even spreads across the touch pad. Surprisingly, the wood is 100% authentic and not plastic imitation.
“Expanding on the innovative use of unique materials like the use of leather in the HP Spectre Folio, HP is delivering the world’s first convertible PCs with authentic wood1,” the official announcement reads.
“Each PC is accented with one-of-a-kind authentic wood inlay 8 in three exquisite combinations: Nightfall Black with Natural Walnut, Ceramic White with White Birch, or Natural Silver with Pale Birch. The HP ENVY Wood Series includes features like Amazon’s Alexa Service, Modern Standby, Wake on Voice, Wake on Fingerprint reader, along with privacy and peace-of-mind with HP Sure View 9 and the HP Webcam Kill Switch solution.”
The new wood option will be available with the HP Envy 13, HP Envy x360 13, HP Envy x360 15, and the HP Envy 17 Wood Series. Consumers will also be able to choose between having the new next-gen Intel Core processors or the 2nd Generation AMD Ryzen Mobile Processors with Radeon Vega Graphics 7.
The HP Wood Series is slated for an Autumn 2019 release though no price has been revealed yet.
Do design choices such as these sway your tech purchases or are you more about what’s under the hood? Share your thoughts with the community in the comments below and then follow us on Twitter for more tech news.
