HP Mini Note 2133 Cracked Open

If you're of a squeamish disposition, look away now.  Over at HP 2133 Guide the temptation to see what's going on under the hood of the well-considered Mini Note budget ultraportable was too strong to resist, and so Josh has taken his screwdrivers to the notebook to get down to bare silicon.  If you've been wondering how HP managed to fit anything up to a 1.6GHz CPU, 2GB of RAM and 160GB hard-drive into something measuring just 10.0 x 6.5 x 1.1-inches, you're in luck.

Of course, there's nothing actually surprising inside – it's not like HP have hidden a secret Core 2 Extreme CPU underneath the motherboard, just waiting for you to try to load Call of Duty 4 on the demure machine.  However it does make you wonder exactly how they'll make machines that are much smaller.  Even VIA's compact processor looks pretty big compared to the 2133's chassis.

Most obviously, there doesn't look to be space to squeeze in a 3G WWAN modem.  HP don't offer cellular connectivity as a customization option, so you're left using either a USB or ExpressCard modem; a common hack for these ultraportables is cracking open the case and integrating one instead, sometimes with a bigger antenna for better reception.