89-533: OmniBook is a line of laptop computers developed and sold by HP Inc. since 2024. It is a single brand for all consumer-oriented laptops by the company, replacing the Spectre , Envy , Pavilion and Essential lines in the United States. A previous business-oriented line under the same name was marketed by Hewlett-Packard , HP Inc.'s predecessor, between 1993 and 2002. OmniBook was introduced in 1993 as
178-447: A hard disk drive (HDD) for storage; since then, solid-state drives (SSD) have gradually come to supplant hard drives in all but some inexpensive consumer models. Solid-state drives are faster and more power-efficient, as well as eliminating the hazard of drive and data corruption caused by a laptop's physical impacts, as they use no mechanical parts such as a rotational platter. In many cases, they are more compact as well. Initially, in
267-409: A printed circuit board (PCB) and covered by a thin, insulating film of soldermask which acts as a dielectric . For the most common, foam and foil implementation of this technology, the movable part ends with a flat foam element about the size of an aspirin tablet , finished with aluminum foil. Opposite the switch is a PCB with the capacitor pads. When the key is pressed, the foil tightly clings to
356-417: A separate graphics processor were limited in their utility for gaming and professional applications involving 3D graphics, but the capabilities of CPU-integrated graphics have converged with the low-end of dedicated graphics processors since the mid-2010s. For laptops possessing limited onboard graphics capability but sufficient I/O throughput, an external GPU (eGPU) can provide additional graphics power at
445-407: A touchscreen interface, have no physical switches and provide artificial audio and haptic feedback instead. This variety of keyboard can prove useful, as it is not limited by the rigid nature of physical computer keyboards. The majority of modern keyboards include a control processor and indicator lights to provide feedback to the user (and to the central processor ) about what state the keyboard
534-434: A 512 GB, 1 TB or 2 TB PCIe 4.0 solid-state drive . It is marketed as an " AI PC" featuring Microsoft Copilot . Laptop A laptop computer or notebook computer , also known as a laptop or notebook , is a small, portable personal computer (PC). Laptops typically have a clamshell form factor with a flat-panel screen on the inside of the upper lid and an alphanumeric keyboard and pointing device on
623-506: A beep or flash of light on actuation. Although this keyboard design was commonly used in the early days of the personal computer (on the Sinclair ZX80 , ZX81 , and Atari 400 ), they have been supplanted by more responsive and modern designs. Computer keyboards made of flexible silicone or polyurethane materials can roll up in a bundle. This type of keyboard can take advantage of the thin flexible plastic membranes, but still pose
712-414: A broad range of devices, which combined features of several previously separate device types. The hybrids , convertibles , and 2-in-1s emerged as crossover devices, which share traits of both tablets and laptops. All such devices have a touchscreen display designed to allow users to work in a tablet mode, using either multi-touch gestures or a stylus / digital pen . Convertibles are devices with
801-430: A buckling spring over a capacitive PCB, similar to the later Model M keyboard, but instead used membrane sensing in place of a PCB. The Topre Corporation design for switches uses a conical spring below a rubber dome. The dome provides resistance, while the spring does the capacitive action. Hall effect keyboards use Hall effect sensors to detect the movement of a magnet by the potential difference in voltage. When
890-425: A diode between each intersection, allowing the keyboard microcontroller to accurately sense any number of simultaneous keys being pressed, without generating erroneous ghost keys. Optical character recognition (OCR) is preferable to rekeying for converting existing text that is already written down but not in machine-readable format (for example, a Linotype -composed book from the 1940s). In other words, to convert
979-458: A few high-end models intended for gaming do as well. As of 2021, 8 GB RAM is most common, with lower-end models occasionally having 4 GB. Higher-end laptops may come with 16 GB of RAM or more. The earliest laptops most often used floppy disk for storage, although a few used either RAM disk or tape, by the late 1980s hard disk drives had become the standard form of storage. Between 1990 and 2009, almost all laptops typically had
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#17327802258071068-405: A full-featured desktop OS like Windows 10 , and have a number of typical laptop I/O ports, such as USB 3 and Mini DisplayPort . 2-in-1s are designed to be used not only as a media consumption device but also as valid desktop or laptop replacements, due to their ability to run desktop applications, such as Adobe Photoshop . It is possible to connect multiple peripheral devices, such as
1157-509: A horizontal beam). The mechanism of the optical keyboard is very simple – a light beam is sent from the emitter to the receiving sensor, and the actuated key blocks, reflects , refracts or otherwise interacts with the beam, resulting in an identified key. A major advantage of optical switch technology is that it is very resistant to moisture, dust, and debris because there are no metal contacts that can corrode. The specialist DataHand keyboard uses optical technology to sense keypresses with
1246-482: A key is depressed, it moves a magnet that is detected by a solid-state sensor. Because they require no physical contact for actuation, Hall-effect keyboards are extremely reliable and can accept millions of keystrokes before failing. They are used for ultra-high reliability applications such as nuclear power plants, aircraft cockpits, and critical industrial environments. They can easily be made totally waterproof, and can resist large amounts of dust and contaminants. Because
1335-453: A key is pressed, it oscillates ( bounces ) against its contacts several times before settling. When released, it oscillates again until it comes to rest. Although it happens on a scale too small to be visible to the naked eye, it can be enough to register multiple keystrokes. To resolve this, the processor in a keyboard debounces the keystrokes, by averaging the signal over time to produce one "confirmed" keystroke that (usually) corresponds to
1424-592: A laptop and provide display output over one USB-C Cable. Most laptop displays have a maximum refresh rate of 60 Hz. The Dell M17x and Samsung 700G7A, both released in 2011, were among the first laptops to feature a 120 Hz refresh rate, and more such laptops have appeared in the years since. A laptop's CPU has advanced power-saving features and produces less heat than one intended purely for desktop use. Mainstream laptop CPUs made after 2018 have at least two processor cores, often four cores, and sometimes more, with 6 and 8 cores becoming more common. For
1513-745: A line of business-oriented laptops and subnotebooks produced by Hewlett-Packard. It succeeded the prior HP Vectra LS models of computers. It was discontinued in 2002 following the acquisition of Compaq that year, with the Compaq Presario , HP Compaq , and HP Pavilion laptops succeeding the OmniBook line. The OmniBook brand was then revived 22 years later in 2024 as part of HP's rebranding of its PC product lines that year. The new "Omni" brand would be used for all consumer PCs (aside from Omen ), with OmniBook for laptops, OmniDesk for desktop computers, and OmniStudio for all-in-one PCs. It would replace
1602-403: A magnet and sensor are required for each key, as well as custom control electronics, they are expensive to manufacture. A hall switch works through magnetic fields. Every switch has a small magnet fixed inside it. When the electricity passes through the main circuit, it creates a magnetic flux. Every time a key is pressed, the magnetic intensity changes. This change is noticed by the circuit and
1691-507: A metal leaf, where the movable contact is a leaf spring. A major producer of discrete metal contact switches is Cherry , who has manufactured the Cherry MX family of switches since the 1980s. Cherry's color-coding system of categorizing switches has been imitated by other switch manufacturers, such as Gateron and Kailh among many others. Keyboards which utilize this technology are commonly referred to as "mechanical keyboards", but there
1780-516: A mouse, keyboard, and several external displays to a modern 2-in-1. Microsoft Surface Pro-series devices and Surface Book are examples of modern 2-in-1 detachable, whereas Lenovo Yoga -series computers are a variant of 2-in-1 convertibles. While the older Surface RT and Surface 2 have the same chassis design as the Surface Pro, their use of ARM processors and Windows RT do not classify them as 2-in-1s, but as hybrid tablets. Similarly,
1869-742: A number of hybrid laptops run a mobile operating system , such as Android . These include Asus's Transformer Pad devices, examples of hybrids with a detachable keyboard design, which do not fall in the category of 2-in-1s. A rugged laptop is designed to reliably operate in harsh usage conditions such as strong vibrations, extreme temperatures, and wet or dusty environments. Rugged laptops are bulkier, heavier, and much more expensive than regular laptops, and thus are seldom seen in regular consumer use. The basic components of laptops function identically to their desktop counterparts. Traditionally they were miniaturized and adapted to mobile use, The design restrictions on power, size, and cooling of laptops limit
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#17327802258071958-434: A pop-up computer mouse (This same pop-up mouse would later be used in the OmniBook 800CT; see the image above), and a 9-inch VGA screen. It had two PCMCIA slots for additional memory, modem, network cards or other peripherals. It was sold in three storage configurations: no mass storage (F1030A at US$ 1,515 ), 10 MB flash memory disk (F1031A at US$ 2,375 ), or 40 MB hard drive (F1032A at US$ 1,950 ). Compared to
2047-537: A single light beam and sensor per key. The keys are held in their rest position by magnets ; when the magnetic force is overcome to press a key, the optical path is unblocked and the keypress is registered. A laser projection device approximately the size of a computer mouse projects the outline of keyboard keys onto a flat surface, such as a table or desk. This type of keyboard is portable enough to be easily used with PDAs and cellphones, and many models have retractable cords and wireless capabilities. However, this design
2136-619: A single press or release. Early membrane keyboards had limited typing speed because they had to do significant debouncing. This was a noticeable problem on the ZX81 . Keycaps are used on full-travel keyboards. While modern keycaps are typically surface-printed, they can also be double-shot molded , laser marked , dye sublimation printed , engraved , or made of transparent material with printed paper inserts. There are also keycaps which utilize thin shells that are placed over key bases, which were used on several IBM PC keyboards. Switches allow for
2225-485: A small niche market , mostly for specialized field applications, such as in the military, for accountants, or travelling sales representatives. As portable computers evolved into modern laptops, they became widely used for a variety of purposes. The history of the laptop follows closely behind the development of the personal computer itself. A "personal, portable information manipulator" was imagined by Alan Kay at Xerox PARC in 1968, and described in his 1972 paper as
2314-411: A spring, and a slider, and sometimes other parts such as a separate tactile leaf or clickbar. At rest, the metal contacts inside of the switch are held apart. As the switch is pressed down, the contacts are held together to conduct current for actuation. Many switch designs use gold for contact material to prolong the lifetime of the switch by preventing switch failure from oxidization. Most designs use
2403-496: A standard for memory cards in PCs. The specification for PCMCIA type I cards, later renamed PC Cards, was first released in 1990. Displays reached 640x480 ( VGA ) resolution by 1988 ( Compaq SLT/286 ), and color screens started becoming a common upgrade in 1991, with increases in resolution and screen size occurring frequently until the introduction of 17" screen laptops in 2003. Hard drives started to be used in portables, encouraged by
2492-587: A type of portable computer that was smaller and lighter than mainstream laptops of the time, but has since come to mean the same thing and no longer refers to any specific size. Laptops are used in a variety of settings, such as at work (especially on business trips ), in education , for playing games , web browsing , for personal multimedia , and for general home computer use. They can run on both AC power and rechargable battery packs and can be folded shut for convenient storage and transportation, making them suitable for mobile use . Laptops combine many of
2581-488: A wide range of CPUs designed for laptops available from both Intel , AMD , and other manufacturers. On non- x86 architectures, Motorola and IBM produced the chips for the former PowerPC -based Apple laptops ( iBook and PowerBook ). Between around 2000 to 2014, most full-size laptops had socketed, replaceable CPUs; on thinner models, the CPU was soldered on the motherboard and was not replaceable or upgradable without replacing
2670-398: Is a concept for a laptop that can be easily disassembled. The terms laptop and notebook both trace their origins to the early 1980s, coined to describe portable computers in a size class smaller than the contemporary mainstream units (so-called "luggables" ) but larger than pocket computers . The etymologist William Safire traced the origin of laptop to some time before 1984;
2759-552: Is desirable. They can have non-tactile, polydome tactile and metal dome tactile keys. Polydome tactile membrane switches use polyester, or PET, and is formed to create a stiff plastic dome. When the stiff polydome is pressed, the conductive ink on the back of the polydome connects with the bottom layer of the circuit. Metal dome membrane switches are made of stainless steel and offer enhanced durability and reliability and can feature custom dome designs. Non-tactile flat-panel membrane keyboards have little to no keypress feel and often issue
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2848-486: Is in. Plug-and-play technology means that its "out of the box" layout can be notified to the system, making the keyboard immediately ready to use without the need for further configuration, unless the user so desires. This also enables manufacture of generic keyboards for a variety of language markets, that differ only in the symbols engraved on the keytops. A common membrane design consists of three layers. The top and bottom layer have exposed electrical matrix traces, and
2937-480: Is mounted, although, as of 2021, an increasing number of models use memory soldered to the motherboard, either alongside SO-DIMM slots or without any slots and soldering all memory to the motherboard, but a new form factor, the CAMM module , is slated to fix the size and timing limitation. Before 2000, most laptops used proprietary memory modules if their memory was upgradable. In the early 2010s, high end laptops such as
3026-462: Is no debouncing necessary. The sensor tells enough about the distance of the keypress to allow the user to adjust the actuation point (key sensitivity). This adjustment can be done with the help of the bundled software and individually for each key, if so implemented. A keyboard which utilizes these abilities include the Realforce RGB . IBM 's Model F keyboard is a design consisting of
3115-429: Is no clear dividing line in minimum or maximum size. Machines small enough to be handheld (screens in the 6–8" range) can be marketed either as very small laptops or "handheld PCs", while the distinction between the largest laptops and "All-in-One" desktops is whether they fold for travel. Having a higher resolution display allows more items to fit onscreen at a time, improving the user's ability to multitask, although, at
3204-404: Is not a universally agreed-upon clear-cut definition for this term. Hot-swappable keyboards are keyboards in which switches can be pulled out and replaced without requiring the typical solder connection. Instead of the switch pins being directly soldered to the keyboard's PCB , hot-swap sockets are instead soldered on. Hot-swap sockets can allow users to change different switches out of
3293-430: Is not unknown as of 2022, but since around 2010, the practice has been restricted to small-volume gaming models. Laptop CPUs are rarely able to be overclocked ; most use locked processors. Even on gaming models where unlocked processors are available, the cooling system in most laptops is often very close to its limits and there is rarely headroom for an overclocking–related operating temperature increase. On most laptops,
3382-443: Is prone to error, as accidental disruption of the laser will generate unwanted keystrokes. This type of keyboard's inherent lack of tactile feedback makes it often undesirable. The buckling spring mechanism (expired U.S. patent 4,118,611 ) atop the switch is responsible for the clicky response of the keyboard. This mechanism controls a small hammer that strikes a capacitive or membrane switch. IBM 's Model F keyboard series
3471-408: Is the scissor-switch, based on the scissors mechanism . Due to the requirement of many notebooks to be slim, they require the keyboards to be low-profile. Therefore, this technology is most commonly featured on notebooks. The keys are attached to the keyboard via two plastic pieces that interlock in a "scissor"-like fashion and snap to the keyboard and the keycap. These keyboards are generally quiet and
3560-581: The Socket G2 , but many laptops use processors that are soldered to the motherboard. Many laptops come with RAM and storage that is soldered to the motherboard and cannot be easily replaced. This restriction is one of the major differences between laptops and desktop computers, because the large " tower " cases used in desktop computers are designed so that new motherboards , hard disks , sound cards , RAM , and other components can be added. Memory and storage can often be upgraded with some disassembly, but with
3649-576: The flip form factor appeared in the early 1980s. The Dulmont Magnum was released in Australia in 1981–82, but was not marketed internationally until 1984–85. The US$ 8,150 (equivalent to $ 25,730 in 2023) GRiD Compass 1101 , released in 1982, was used at NASA and by the military , among others. The Sharp PC-5000 , the Ampere WS-1 , and Gavilan SC were released between 1983 and 1985. The Toshiba T1100 won acceptance by PC experts and
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3738-496: The input/output components and capabilities of a desktop computer into a single unit, including a display screen (usually 11–17 in or 280–430 mm in diagonal size), small speakers, a keyboard, and a pointing device (namely compact ones such as touchpads or pointing sticks ). Hardware specifications may vary significantly between different types, models, and price points . Design elements, form factors, and construction can also vary significantly between models depending on
3827-485: The shift , alt and control state of the keyboard. The keyboard switch matrix is often drawn with horizontal wires and vertical wires in a grid which is called a matrix circuit . It has a switch at some or all intersections, much like a multiplexed display . Almost all keyboards have only the switch (but no diode) at each intersection, which causes "ghost keys" and "key jamming" when multiple keys are pressed ( rollover ). Certain, often more expensive, keyboards have
3916-589: The " Dynabook ". The IBM Special Computer APL Machine Portable (SCAMP) was demonstrated in 1973. This prototype was based on the IBM PALM processor . The IBM 5100 , the first commercially available portable computer , appeared in September 1975, and was based on the SCAMP prototype. As 8-bit CPU machines became widely accepted, the number of portables increased rapidly. The first "laptop-sized notebook computer"
4005-450: The 1970s introduction of portable computers, their forms have changed significantly, spawning a variety of visually and technologically differing subclasses. Excepting distinct legal trademark around terms (notably Ultrabook ), hard distinctions between these classes were rare, and their usage has varied over time and between sources. Since the late 2010s, more specific terms have become less commonly used, with sizes distinguished largely by
4094-427: The 1980s using red plasma displays could only be used when connected to AC power, and had a built in power supply. The development of memory cards was driven in the 1980s by the need for a floppy-disk-drive alternative, having lower power consumption, less weight, and reduced volume in laptops. The Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) was an industry association created in 1989 to promote
4183-509: The 2011 Samsung 700G7A have passed the 10 GB RAM barrier, featuring 16 GB of RAM. When upgradeable, memory slots are sometimes accessible from the bottom of the laptop for ease of upgrading; in other cases, accessing them requires significant disassembly. Most laptops have two memory slots, although some will have only one, either for cost savings or because some amount of memory is soldered. Some high-end models have four slots; these are usually mobile engineering workstations, although
4272-558: The GPU is integrated into the CPU to conserve power and space. This was introduced by Intel with the Core i-series of mobile processors in 2010, followed by similar AMD APU processors in January 2011. Before that, lower-end machines tended to use graphics processors integrated into the system chipset , while higher-end machines had a separate graphics processor. In the past, laptops lacking
4361-470: The ability to conceal a hardware keyboard. Keyboards on such devices can be flipped, rotated, or slid behind the back of the chassis, thus transforming from a laptop into a tablet. Hybrids have a keyboard detachment mechanism, and due to this feature, all critical components are situated in the part with the display. 2-in-1s can have a hybrid or a convertible form, often dubbed 2-in-1 detachable and 2-in-1 convertibles respectively, but are distinguished by
4450-465: The ability to run a desktop OS , such as Windows 10 . 2-in-1s are often marketed as laptop replacement tablets . 2-in-1s are often very thin, around 10 millimetres (0.39 in), and light devices with a long battery life. 2-in-1s are distinguished from mainstream tablets as they feature an x86 -architecture CPU (typically a low- or ultra-low-voltage model), such as the Intel Core i5 , run
4539-581: The cost of physical space and portability. Higher-end laptops intended for gaming or professional 3D work still come with dedicated (and in some cases even dual) graphics processors on the motherboard or as an internal expansion card . Since 2011, these almost always involve switchable graphics so that when there is no demand for the higher performance dedicated graphics processor, the more power-efficient integrated graphics processor will be used. Nvidia Optimus and AMD Hybrid Graphics are examples of this sort of system of switchable graphics. Traditionally,
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#17327802258074628-476: The earliest attestation of laptop found by the Oxford English Dictionary dates to 1983. The word is modeled after the term desktop , as in desktop computer . Notebook , meanwhile, emerged earlier in 1982 to describe Epson 's HX-20 portable, whose dimensions roughly correspond to a letter -sized pad of paper . Notebooks emerged as their own separate market from laptops with
4717-417: The early 2010s. Optical disc drives became common in full-size laptops around 1997: initially, CD-ROM drives, supplanted by CD-R, then DVD, then Blu-ray drives with writing capability. Starting around 2011, the trend shifted against internal optical drives, and as of 2022, they have largely disappeared, though are still readily available as external peripherals . In 2021, Dell showed Concept Luna, which
4806-463: The hard drive, the flash memory disk reduced the weight and storage capacity of the notebook with increased battery life. One of its outstanding features was a technology known as "Instant On". The OmniBook 300 came with slimmed-down copies of MS-DOS 5.0 and Windows 3.1 . Due to storage limitations, the OmniBook 300 included both Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word pre-installed in ROM, a practice that
4895-769: The higher resolutions on smaller screens, the resolution may only serve to display sharper graphics and text rather than increasing the usable area. Since the introduction of the MacBook Pro with Retina display in 2012, there has been an increase in the availability of "HiDPI" (or high Pixel density ) displays; as of 2022, this is generally considered to be anything higher than 1920 pixels wide. This has increasingly converged around 4K (3840-pixel-wide) resolutions. External displays can be connected to most laptops, with most models supporting at least one. The use of technology such as USB4 (section Alternate Mode partner specifications ). DisplayPort Alt Mode has been utilized to charge
4984-407: The illumination of the " caps lock ", " num lock " and " scroll lock " lights. A common test for whether the computer has crashed is pressing the "caps lock" key. The keyboard sends the key code to the keyboard driver running in the main computer; if the main computer is operating, it commands the light to turn on. All the other indicator lights work in a similar way. The keyboard driver also tracks
5073-483: The inside of the lower lid. Most of the computer's internal hardware is fitted inside the lower lid enclosure under the keyboard, although many modern laptops have a built-in webcam at the top of the screen, and some even feature a touchscreen display. In most cases, unlike tablet computers which run on mobile operating systems , laptops tend to run on desktop operating systems, which were originally developed for desktop computers . The word laptop , modeled after
5162-650: The intended use. Examples of specialized models of laptops include 2-in-1 laptops , with keyboards that either be detached or pivoted out of view from the display (often marketed having a "laptop mode"); rugged laptops , for use in construction or military applications ; and low-production-cost laptops such as those from the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) organization, which incorporate features like solar charging and semi-flexible components not found on most laptop computers. Portable computers , which later developed into modern laptops, were originally considered to be
5251-469: The introduction of 3.5" drives in the late 1980s, and became common in laptops starting with the introduction of 2.5" and smaller drives around 1990; capacities have typically lagged behind those of physically larger desktop drives. Resolutions of laptop webcams are 720p (HD), or 480p in lower-end laptops. The earliest-known laptops with 1080p (Full HD) webcams, like the Samsung 700G7C, were released in
5340-419: The keyboard is in. Depending on the sophistication of the controller's programming, the keyboard may also offer other special features. The processor is usually a single chip 8048 microcontroller variant. The keyboard switch matrix is wired to its inputs and it processes the incoming keystrokes and sends the results down a serial cable (the keyboard cord) to a receiver in the main computer box. It also controls
5429-447: The keyboard without having the tools or knowledge required to solder. The reed module in a reed switch consists of two metal contacts inside of a glass bubble usually sealed with some inert gas like nitrogen to help prevent particle build-up. The slider in the housing pushes a magnet down in front of the reed capsule and the magnetic field causes the reed contacts to become attracted to each other and make contact. The reed switch mechanism
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#17327802258075518-516: The keys require little force to press. Scissor-switch keyboards are typically slightly more expensive. They are harder to clean (due to the limited movement of the keys and their multiple attachment points) but also less likely to get debris in them as the gaps between the keys are often smaller (as there is no need for extra room to allow for the 'wiggle' in the key, as typically found on a membrane keyboard). Flat-panel membrane keyboards are often used in harsh environments where water or leak-proofing
5607-667: The late 2000s, SSDs were substantially more expensive than HDDs, but as of 2021 prices on smaller capacity (under 1 terabyte ) drives have converged; larger capacity drives remain more expensive than comparable-sized HDDs. Alphanumeric keyboard The technology of computer keyboards includes many elements. Many different keyboard technologies have been developed for consumer demands and optimized for industrial applications. The standard full-size (100%) computer alphanumeric keyboard typically uses 101 to 105 keys; keyboards integrated in laptop computers are typically less comprehensive. Virtual keyboards , which are mostly accessed via
5696-431: The long-running Pavilion brand in use since 1995 among other brands in the United States. The current lineup of the OmniBook as of 2024 is made up of five different grades; Ultra, representing the highest-grade model, followed by X, 7, 5, and 3, with the last grade being the lowest-grade model. The other HP consumer series under the "Omni" branding (OmniStudio and OmniDesk) follows the same format. NOTE: This list includes
5785-478: The low price and mainstream performance, there is no longer a significant performance difference between laptop and desktop CPUs, but at the high end, the fastest desktop CPUs still substantially outperform the fastest laptop processors, at the expense of massively higher power consumption and heat generation; the fastest laptop processors top out at 56 watts of heat, while the fastest desktop processors top out at 150 watts (and often need water cooling). There has been
5874-560: The mass market as a way to have PC portability. From 1983 onward, several new input techniques were developed and included in laptops, including the touch pad ( Gavilan SC , 1983), the pointing stick (IBM ThinkPad 700 , 1992), and handwriting recognition (Linus Write-Top, 1987). Some CPUs, such as the 1990 Intel i386SL , were designed to use minimum power to increase the battery life of portable computers and were supported by dynamic power management features such as Intel SpeedStep and AMD PowerNow! in some designs. Some laptops in
5963-406: The maximum performance of laptop parts compared to that of desktop components, although that difference has increasingly narrowed. In general, laptop components are not intended to be replaceable or upgradable by the end-user, except for components that can be detached; in the past, batteries and optical drives were commonly exchangeable. Some laptops feature socketed processors with sockets such as
6052-542: The middle layer is a spacer to prevent current from passing through the top and bottom conductive traces passively. When pressure is applied to the top membrane, it bridges the top and bottom conductive contact pads, allowing current to transfer. Two of the most common types of membrane keyboards include full-travel rubber dome over membrane and flat-panel membrane keyboards. Flat-panel membrane keyboards are most often found on appliances like microwave ovens or photocopiers . Full-travel rubber dome over membrane keyboards are
6141-614: The most common keyboard design manufactured today. In these keyboards, a rubber dome sheet is placed above the membranes, ensuring that the domes align with the contact pads. The rubber dome serves a dual purpose: it acts as a tactile return spring and provides a soft surface to transfer force onto the top membrane. To bridge the connection between the two contact pads, the rubber dome must be fully depressed. Rubber dome over membrane keyboards became very popular with computer manufacturers as they sought to reduce costs while PC prices declined. A common, compact variant of rubber dome over membrane
6230-479: The most compact laptops, there may be no upgradeable components at all. The following sections summarize the differences and distinguishing features of laptop components in comparison to desktop personal computer parts. The typical laptop has a screen that, when unfolded, is upright to the user. Laptop screens most commonly employ liquid-crystal display (LCD) technology, although use of OLED panels has risen substantially since 2020. The display interfaces with
6319-927: The motherboard using the embedded DisplayPort protocol via the Low-voltage differential signaling (LVDS) 30 or 40 pin connector. The panels are mainly manufactured by AU Optronics , BOE Technology , LG Display or Samsung Display . Externally, it can be a glossy or a matte (anti-glare) screen. In the past, there was a broader range of marketing terms (both formal and informal) to distinguish between different sizes of laptops. These included Netbooks , subnotebooks , Ultra-mobile PC , and Desktop replacement computers ; these are sometimes still used informally, although they are essentially dead in terms of manufacturer marketing. As of 2021, mainstream consumer laptops tend to come with 11", 13" or 15"-16" screens; 14" models are more popular among business machines. Larger and smaller models are available, but less common – there
6408-428: The motherboard. Since 2015, Intel has not offered new laptop CPU models with pins to be interchangeable, preferring ball grid array chip packages which have to be soldered; and as of 2021, only a few rare models using desktop parts. In the past, some laptops have used a desktop processor instead of the laptop version and have had high-performance gains at the cost of greater weight, heat, and limited battery life; this
6497-441: The perimeter, mounted on a small PCB . The light is directed from side to side of the keyboard interior, and it can only be blocked by the actuated keys. Most optical keyboards require at least two beams (most commonly a vertical beam and a horizontal beam) to determine the actuated key. Some optical keyboards use a special key structure that blocks the light in a certain pattern, allowing only one beam per row of keys (most commonly
6586-462: The previous business-oriented models produced from 1993–2002, as well as the current consumer-oriented models from 2024–present. The HP OmniBook 300 ( OB300 ) is a subnotebook released in June 1993 as one of the first models of the original OmniBook line. It weighed only 2.9 pounds and measured 1.4 × 6.4 × 11.1 inches. It is powered by an AMD 386SX-LV processor, featured a full-size keyboard,
6675-481: The release of the NEC UltraLite in 1988. Notebooks and laptops continued to occupy distinct market segments into the mid-1990s, but ergonomic considerations and customer preference for larger screens soon led to notebooks converging with laptops in the late 1990s. Today, the terms laptop and notebook are synonymous, with laptop being the more common term in most English-speaking territories. Since
6764-417: The removal and replacement of keycaps with a common stem type. Almost all keyboards which utilize keys two or more units in length (such as the typical space bar or enter key) use stabilizers. Various lubricants and padding techniques can be used to reduce the rattle of components. A modern PC keyboard typically includes a control processor and indicator lights to provide feedback to the user about what state
6853-407: The risk of damage. When they are completely sealed in rubber, they are water resistant. Roll-up keyboards provide relatively little tactile feedback. Because these keyboards are typically made of silicone, they unfavorably tend to attract dirt, dust, and hair. Keyboards which have metal contact switches typically use discrete modules for each key. This type of switch are usually composed of a housing,
6942-403: The sensors send the information to the motherboard. Optical switch technology was introduced in 1962 by Harley E. Kelchner for use in a typewriter machine with the purpose of reducing the noise generated by typewriter keys. An optical keyboard technology utilizes light-emitting devices and photo sensors to optically detect actuated keys. Most commonly the emitters and sensors are located at
7031-432: The size of mainstream laptops has gone down and their capabilities have gone up; except for niche models, laptop sizes tend to be distinguished by the size of the screen, and for more powerful models, by any specialized purpose the machine is intended for, such as a " gaming laptop " or a " mobile workstation " for professional use. The latest trend of technological convergence in the portable computer industry spawned
7120-511: The size of the screen. There were in the past a number of marketing categories for smaller and larger laptop computers; these included "notebook" and " subnotebook " models, low cost " netbooks ", and " ultra-mobile PCs " where the size class overlapped with devices like smartphone and handheld tablets , and " Desktop replacement " laptops for machines notably larger and heavier than typical to operate more powerful processors or graphics hardware . All of these terms have fallen out of favor as
7209-495: The surface of the PCB, forming a daisy chain of two capacitors between contact pads and itself separated with a thin soldermask, and thus "shorting" the contact pads with an easily detectable drop of capacitive reactance between them. Usually, this permits a pulse or pulse train to be sensed. An advantage of the capacitive technology is that the switch is not dependent on the flow of current through metal contacts to actuate. There
7298-418: The system RAM on laptops (as well as on desktop computers) was physically separate from the graphics memory used by the GPU. Apple's M series SoCs feature a unified pool of memory for both the system and the GPU; this approach can produce substantial efficiency gains for some applications but comes at the cost of eGPU support. Since around the year 2000, most laptops have used SO-DIMM slots in which RAM
7387-499: The term desktop (as in desktop computer ), refers to the fact that the computer can be practically placed on the user's lap ; while the word notebook refers to most laptops sharing a form factor with paper notebooks . As of 2024 , in American English , the terms laptop and notebook are used interchangeably; in other dialects of English , one or the other may be preferred. The term notebook originally referred to
7476-465: The text from an image to editable text (that is, a string of character codes), a person could re-type it, or a computer could look at the image and deduce what each character is. OCR technology has already reached an impressive state (for example, Google Book Search ) and promises more for the future. Speech recognition converts speech into machine-readable text (that is, a string of character codes). This technology has also reached an advanced state and
7565-522: Was and still remains unusual to this day. The "International English" version of the OmniBook 300 used code page 850 (rather than the more common code page 437 ) as hardware code page . The HP OmniBook X is a notebook computer announced in May 2024 as the first model of the revived OmniBook line. It is powered by an ARM64 -based Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor, has a 2240 x 1400 resolution touchscreen IPS display, 16 GB or 32 GB memory, and either
7654-501: Was originally invented in 1936 by W B Ellwood at Bell Telephone Laboratories . Although reed switches use metal leaf contacts, they are considered separate from all other forms of metal contact switch because the contacts are operated magnetically instead of using physical force from a slider to be pressed together. In a capacitive mechanism, pressing a key changes the capacitance of a pattern of capacitor pads. The pattern consists of two D-shaped capacitor pads for each switch, printed on
7743-817: Was the Epson HX-20 , invented (patented) by Suwa Seikosha 's Yukio Yokozawa in July 1980, introduced at the COMDEX computer show in Las Vegas by Japanese company Seiko Epson in 1981, and released in July 1982. It had an LCD screen, a rechargeable battery, and a calculator-size printer, in a 1.6 kg (3.5 lb) chassis, the size of an A4 notebook . It was described as a "laptop" and "notebook" computer in its patent. Both Tandy/RadioShack and Hewlett-Packard (HP) also produced portable computers of varying designs during this period. The first laptops using
7832-420: Was the first to employ buckling spring key-switches, which used capacitive sensing to actuate. The original patent was never employed in an actual production keyboard but it establishes the basic premise of a buckling spring. The IBM Model M is a large family of computer keyboards created by IBM that began in late 1983 when IBM patented a membrane buckling spring key-switch design. The main intent of this design
7921-658: Was to halve the production cost of the Model F. The most well known full-size Model M is known officially as the IBM Enhanced Keyboard. In 1993, two years after spawning Lexmark , IBM transferred its keyboard operations to the daughter company. New Model M keyboards continued to be manufactured for IBM by Lexmark until 1996, when Unicomp was established and purchased the keyboard patents and tooling equipment to continue their production. IBM continued to make Model M's in their Scotland factory until 1999. When
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