2. Case And Connectivity

The nc8230 makes a very good first impression. Indeed, at a glance, one could mistake it for a Thinkpad by Lenovo (formerly IBM). Like its competitor, the case has a very good feel to it and conveys good build quality; it also seems quite warp resistant.

This is only partly true for the display case, however - if pressure is applied to certain points, for example by pressing on it with a finger, interference patterns can be seen. We have witnessed this before on other companies' widescreen models , and the patterns disappear when the pressure is taken away. Compared with the display lid of the Gateway 460 XLb, for example, the Compaq is much more solid. The Gateway shows interference patterns even when pressure is applied evenly to the lid. This can happen when the user tries to adjust the viewing angle to his liking. As a visual aid, we have prepared a video of this phenomenon. The Gateway machine is on the left, the HP Compaq nc8230 on the right.

We also noticed another irregularity in our review unit's display lid - it wouldn't close flush with the rest of the case, so the outer edges didn't make contact. In other words, the rubber pads on the front of the display lid don't touch the lower part of the case. As a result of this slight curvature, it almost looks as though the notebook was left lying out in the sun and became warped.