HP Debuts TouchSmart TX2 Notebook

By Colleen Bohen -- TWICE, 12/1/2008

PALO ALTO, CALIF. — Hewlett-Packard has expanded its TouchSmart brand to the notebook category with launch of the HP TouchSmart TX2, a convertible notebook with multi-touch technology designed specifically for consumers.

Like HP's TouchSmart desktops, the TX2 features a touchscreen and comes with HPs proprietary software which offers a variety of touch-related options to help the consumer organize and manipulate digital photos, music, video and Web content with the touch of a finger.

"Breezing through Web sites, enjoying photos or video at the tap, a whisk or a pinch of a finger is an entirely new way to enjoy digital content on a notebook PC," said Ted Clark, HP's senior VP and general manager, notebook global business unit, personal systems group. "HP is committed to furthering touch innovation and provides users an easier, more natural way to interact with their PC through the introduction of the TouchSmart TX2."

The company said its multi-touch display can recognize simultaneous input from more than one finger, enabling the use of gestures such as pinching, rotating, arcing, flicking, pressing and dragging, and single and double tapping. An included rechargeable "digital ink pen" allows the device to be used as a tablet PC, enabling the user to write, sketch, draw, take notes or graph directly on the screen and then automatically convert the handwriting into typed text files.

The TX2's twist hinge makes it possible to use the machine in three different position: standard PC mode, display mode (where the screen is upright but faces away from the keyboard) and slate mode (where the screen is flipped all the way around and lays flat atop the keyboard, facing up so the user can write on it).

The TX2 starts at less than 4.5 pounds and has a 12.1-inch diagonal BrightView LED display and an HP Imprint exterior design called "reaction." The machine has an integrated Web cam and microphone and is powered by the AMD Turion 64 X25 dual-core processor. It comes pre-installed with Windows Vista and is available at a starting price of $1,149.

As the TX2 launched, HP also announced plans to expand its partnership with MTV Networks by offering video content from 10 television channels and online brands within HP MediaSmart TV, some of which can be accessed through the MediaSmart software starting this month.