Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook: HP unleashes Envy 17 3D, HP Envy 14 Beats edition and specially-cooled Pavilion dm3

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/01/hp-unleashes-envy-17-3d-hp-envy-14-beats-edition-and-specially/

We know, it feels like it was just a few months ago that the new Envy 14 and 17 hit the market, but HP isn't quite finished tinkering with its aluminum laptops. First up is the new Envy 14 Beats edition, which just like the previous Envy 15 Beats has a totally different black and red design than the rest of the Envy line along with a a pretty awesome red backlit keyboard. Apart from the different aesthetics and bundled Beats headphones, it's essentially the same as the regular Envy 14, although the $1249 starting price is for big fans of beats or Dr. Dre only. The Envy 17 gets the most interesting update, though: it'll be available sometimes this holiday season with a 17.3-inch 3D Ultra BrightView display and active shutter glasses. Powered by AMD's 3D technology, the Envy 17 will also support 3D Blu-ray discs, and by that we mean Avatar when it finally hits in November. We got a chance to check it out a few weeks ago and the 3D content looked pretty, well... three-dimensional. HP says the rig will be priced south of $2,000 and claims it's been working very hard on improving viewing angles.

On the much-more-thin-and-light end of the spectrum, HP's also unveiling the improved Pavilion dm3. Starting at $549, the 13.3-inch dm3 will be available with Intel Core i3 and i5 processors and boasts HP's new CoolSense technology, which the company says combines hardware and software to keep the entire chassis cool. Beyond all that, the laptop is less than an inch thick and has been given a major makeover -- it has a very soft-to-the-touch lid and the same chiclet keyboard and ClickPad as the Pavilion dm4. We're planning to review a few of these, but until then head below to check out some hands-on shots and the full press release after the break.

Gallery: HP Envy 14 Beats, Envy 17 3D and Pavilion dm3 hands-on