HP announces an update of the EliteBook and ProBook laptop series-- the EliteBook 700 and ProBook 600 series, offering Ryzen PRO-based processors and, in the case of the EliteBook 700, Thunderbolt 3 connectivity.
The 5th generation EliteBook notebooks are aimed at professional and enterprise customers wanting premium features such as advanced security, remote management and (optional) smart card readers. The addition of the AMD Ryzen PRO Mobile platform brings a number of AMD silicon-level security technologies, such as the Transparent Secure Memory Encryption (TSME) feature protecting data in DRAM via dedicated AES-128 engine.
Ryzen PRO Mobile processors feature 4 clocks with or without SMT clocked at 2-2.2GHz default frequency (3.4-3.8GHz max boost clock) together with Radeon Vega 6, 7 or 8 iGPUs. These come inside a machined aluminium chassis with 13.3-, 14- or 15-inch narrow bezel LCD displays, with optional touch, Sure View privacy screen and privacy camera (a webcam with a shutter).
Memory and storage is varied, with encrypted and unencrypted HDD and SSD options available, while wireless connectivity comes through 802.11ac wifi, Bluetooth and optional 4G/LTE modem. Wired I/O includes GbE, USB-A ports, HDMI ouptut, Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) header, microSD card reader, TRRS connector, smart card reader (in select SKUs) and the proprietary HP dock port. Audio comes via Bang & Olufsen-branded speakers, and an integrated microphone array comes as standard.
Customers wanting a more entry-level enterprise laptop get the 4th generation ProBook 600 series. Three models are available-- the 640 and 650, powered by Intel 7th or 8th generation Core processors outfitted with AMD Radeon RX 540 dGPUs (select SKUs) and the 645, based on AMD Ryzen PRO CPUs with Radeon Vega iGPUs.
The ProBook 645 has the same aluminium chassis as the 640 with a 14-inch display. It offers similar security capabilities to the EliteBook 700 machines, and includes up to 32GB DDR4 RAM, various storage options (500 GB HDDs (un-encrypted or FIPS-encrypted) or 128 GB – 1 TB SSDs with a SATA or PCIe/NVMe interfaces (un-encrypted, FIPS-encrypted, TCG OPAL 2-encrypted)). Wireless comes through 802.11ac wifi and Bluetooth, while wired I/O includes GbE, USB Type-A, USB Type-C, HDMI, microSD, and proprietary dock ports.
The HP EliteBook 700 and ProBook 600 laptops should ship from May 2018.
