HP Compaq 2710p
System Specifications
Processors: One of the following...
-Intel Core 2 Duo U7500 1.06GHz
-Intel Core 2 Duo U7600 1.20GHz
-Intel Core 2 Duo U7700 1.33GHz
-Intel Core 2 Duo L7700 1.60GHz (oddly, downclocked from 1.80GHz...)
Not mentioned in the service manual, but part number 500404-001 has the chip and is compatible with the 2710p.
Processors are not user-replaceable and are soldered to the motherboard. The pinout is electrically identical to Socket P.
-1280x800 12.1-inch IPS LCD display, LED-backlit
-HP also offered an "outdoor viewing" panel with higher brightness.
-Wacom Integrated Digitizer with Pen (attached to the left side of the computer)
-Intel Integrated GMA X3100 Graphics Adapter; non-modular, shared video memory of up to 384MB, automatically allocated
-Configurable with a VGA integrated webcam and keyboard light.
-2 SO-DIMM DDR2 RAM slots, allows for up to to 4GB of PC2-4200/5300/6400 memory
Unofficially, can take up to 6GB or 8GB of RAM, as per chipset specifications and personal testing.
-1.8" Parallel ATA "ZIF" hard disk drives, aka "iPod Classic HDDs" as they were the same type of drives found in those devices (and can be swapped in)
This can easily be upgraded to any reputable 1.8" ZIF adapter, so long as it will fit.
-ADI SoundMAX ADI1981HD Chipset
-Intel PRO/1000 based Gigabit Ethernet Chipset (82566MM)
-Conexant HDA CX11270 Soft Modem; V.92, 56K, MDC 1.5
-Various WLAN cards, most commonly the 4965 Intel PRO/Wireless cards.
-Configurable with GSM and CDMA 3G WWAN cards.
-2 USB 2.0 ports, one of which is compatible with an external HP DVD-ROM drive
-VGA (D-Sub) Video Output
-RJ45 Ethernet Jack (to Intel Gigabit LAN)
-RJ11 Dial-up Modem Jack (to Conexant Modem)
-HP Black-Tip Power Connector (65W minimum)
-SD Card Slot (SDHC)
-Audio out and in jacks (headphone and microphone)
-Kensington Lock Slot
-Integrated Fingerprint Sensor
-IEEE 1394/FireWire "4-conductor"/"mini" connector
-Pen Slot
-ExpressCard/54 (select models only)
-Smart Card Reader (select models only)
-Bottom expansion port for HP 2700 Ultra-Slim Docking Station
-Internal speaker, mono
-SIM card slot
-Primary and Accessory Battery connectors
-Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005
-Microsoft Windows Vista and 7, all versions
-Microsoft Windows 8/8.1/10/11 (unofficially)
-Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional (unofficially; pen does not work)
-Pretty much anything that runs on a 965GM based laptop...
Known Issues
There is not much to put here but one thing worth noting is that the build quality is noticeably worse on the 2700 series of laptops than the tc4200 and tc4400. Speaking of which, this laptop feels more like a downgrade compared to those models as you lose the ability to use 2.5" internal drives and having the processor upgradeable.
However, this does share an issue that plagues quite a lot of older computers, and that's the rubber texture coating on the bottom (and especially the battery) that tends to deteriorate and melt over time. This can be quite painful to clean up, and when it gets to the state where it's deteriorating, it's really nasty.
My thoughts
I've used one of these as a daily driver when I was 10; it had a 1.2GHz processor, 3GB of RAM, an 80GB Hard Drive, and Windows Vista. It was a huge upgrade over my HP ze4500 laptop with a 2.4GHz Mobile "Celeron 4" chip (proof that clock speed isn't everything!), and it was quite a nice machine. However, it didn't take me long to see why these computers were quickly being retired from the school I went to at the time... because these were unfortunately underpowered compared to its predecessor, the tc4400. It was one of the redesigns HP had put into effect in 2007 that was not the best, especially considering the drop in build quality. It also had the ommission of features that made the tc4400 popular like a standard 2.5" SATA disk drive, and an upgradable CPU as mentioned in "Known Issues".
HP's actually made a few 2700 series laptops. The 2730p used newer Penryn chips and added in a (horrible) touchpad, the 2740p redesigned the keyboard and fixed the awful touchpad, and finally, the 2760p brought back the 2.5" SATA drive slot and added touchscreen functionality to the digitizer. All of these do have soldered CPUs, though it is worth noting the 2740p and 2760p use the BGA versions of the full-power mobile Core i-series chips, first and second gen respectively. HP replaced the 2700 series with the EliteBook Revolve 810, which wasn't anywhere near as successful as the HP Compaq/EliteBook 2700 laptops. Tablet PCs started to fall out of fashion in the early-mid 2010s, and were replaced with the 2-in-1 laptop design, which in some ways has been proved to be more durable and practical.
