IN THE BATTLE for dominance in the growing market for lightweight, battery-powered, briefcase-size portable
computers, Hewlett-Packard has unveiled its new model, the HP 110. The unit is outwardly similar to many of
its competitors - it's about the size of a metropolitan phone directory and has a flip-up LCD (liquid-crystal
display) screen that lifts to uncover a typewriter-style keyboard. But two aspects of the design philosophy
behind the 110 help set it apart from the crowd.
First, the 110's combination of abundant internal memory and silicon-based software makes it an extremely
satisfactory traveling computer, freeing you from a large part of the dependence on disks and other cumbersome
storage media. Second, the HP 110 was seen from the very first as the hub of an integrated system of
components, an ideal that has been realized with the concurrent announcement of related products from
Hewlett-Packard.
The guts of the computer are built around the Harris 80C86, a CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor)
version of the popular 8086 microprocessor chip, running at 5.33 MHz (megahertz). Available memory consists of
272K bytes of CMOS RAM (random-access read/ write memory), which you can divide between system RAM and
electronic disk emulation, and a whopping 384K bytes of CMOS ROM (read-only memory). System RAM can range
from a minimum of 96K bytes to a maximum of 256K bytes. Onboard ROM contains an assortment of software,
including HP's Personal Applications Manager (a shell-style user interface), MS-DOS version 2.01 (the
operating system itself plus a collection of utilities for file management, directory maintenance, disk
formatting, etc.), Lotus 1-2-3, Memomaker (a simple word-processing program), and a timer/ alarm program.
Also contained in ROM is the communications software to drive the computer's three output ports: an RS-232C
serial interface, a proprietary HPIL (Hewlett-Packard Interface Loop) interface, and a built-in 300-bps (bits
per second) modem that accepts a standard phone plug (see photo 2). There is no internal disk storage, but
the battery- powered CMOS chips are essentially nonvolatile; that is, you can turn off the display and come
back to the computer a week later and pick up exactly where you left off.
Photo l: The HP 110 links to two optional battery-powered peripherals, the HP 2225B ink-jet
dot-matrix printer and, the HP 9114 single 3 1/2-inch disk drive.
Photo 2: The back view of the HP 110. Shown from left to right are the two connections for the HPIL serial
interface, the socket for the plug-in recharger, a nine-pin RS-232C port, and a modular phone jack for the
internal modem. The removable panel in the center provides access to the lead-acid batteries.
Hewlett-Packard manufactures its own CMOS ROM and RAM chips at Corvallis, Oregon, home of the division that
has been producing hand-held computers and calculators for several years. Designers of the 110 took advantage
of this facility to engineer two other CMOS chips for this project: an ICD controller with 8K bytes of display
ROM, software fonts for the character generator, and bit-mapping for graphics; and another 8K-byte ROM chip,
known as "the kitchen sink," that includes the timer, interrupts, serial port, and keyboard interface. These
efforts resulted in a main printed-circuit board and an I/O (input/ output) board with lower chip counts than
you might expect. The final boards are not tightly packed; descendants of the 110 will have room for more
interesting goodies.
The display is an 80-character by 16-line LCD, though the large expanse of plastic bezel around the screen
suggests the possibility of a bigger display in the indeterminate future. In fact, HP engineers commented
that they had looked at 24-line screens but had decided that product reliability and image quality were still
too uncertain to make them acceptable at this time. You can select two character fonts: Hewlett- Packard's and
an alternate set compatible with that of the IBM Personal Computer (PC). You can program the display in
graphics mode as a grid of 480 by 128 pixels (picture elements). This is relatively high resolution,
particularly for an LCD, and is suitable for most types of business graphics. Brightness (actually, darkness
in this case) can be controlled with a single key on the right side of the keyboard. Characters and graphics
are sharp, and screen updates are quite rapid.
The 110's keyboard is laid out in the standard Selectric format (i.e., the Return and Shift keys are in the
old familiar locations) and has a full complement of computer keys: Control, Break/Stop, Escape/Delete, Caps
Lock, and Print/ Enter. A key labeled "Extend char" generates a non-ASCII (American National Standard Code
for Information Interchange) character and is equivalent to the Alt key of the IBM PC. An additional row of
keys along the top of the keyboard includes eight soft (determined by individual programs) function keys, two
menu keys that generate or remove a map of the function keys from the bottom three lines of the screen, a
Select key that chooses a highlighted option within a program, and four cursor- movement keys. There is no
separate numeric keypad.
The rechargeable lead-acid batteries that power the 110 are rated at 20 hours of continuous use. In actual
practice, the 110 can go for a week or more of sporadic use before the batteries become dangerously weak. The
system is designed to preserve memory at all costs. The display is the major power drain, and the computer
shuts it off at a preset interval of inactivity; you can choose an interval of anywhere from 30 seconds to 30
minutes. When the batteries reach 5 percent of capacity, the 110 refuses to turn on the display until they've
been recharged. If the 110 is not used at all, you can expect a couple of months on a single charge.
The unit is a compact device with a high-impact molded plastic shell, measuring 13 by 10 by 3 inches (closed);
its color is the typical nondescript off-white. It weighs in at 9 pounds. The basic package includes a plug-in
recharger (similar to those used for other portable products) and a black vinyl carrying case with a handle
and a wide, adjustable shoulder strap.
The HP 110 is tested to rather severe standards. However, the Hewlett-Packard quality-control staff stresses
that these are goals rather than absolute guarantees for each machine: 0 to 50 degrees Celsius for operation,
- 25 to 55 degrees for storage, and 95 percent humidity for five days at 40 degrees. The units are also put
through condensation, moisture absorption, and rapid temperature cycling tests. HP 110s have withstood
altitudes of 50,000 feet and forces of 100 G on all axes. The fact that there are no sensitive internal drives
- no moving parts at all, with the exception of the keys and the lid hinges and latches - makes the 110 an
extremely rugged computer. All units must pass FCC Class B limits on electromagnetic interference;
Hewlett-Packard is working with the FAA to end the controversy over computer use on commercial airliners and
to establish hard, published standards for portable computer radiation.
THE SOFTWARE
When you first open the HP 110, the screen is blank; pressing any key activates the display. The first time
you use the computer, you will see Hewlett-Packard's Personal Applications Manager (PAM), modified somewhat
from the original version distributed with the HP 150 touchscreen personal computer (see photo 3).
Subsequently, turning on the display returns you to where you were the last time you used the computer. PAM is
an operating-system shell; most file manipulation and system configuration is accomplished through PAM's main
or subsidiary menus.
The initial PAM screen shows a number of important status items: date, time, remaining battery life, and space
available on the electronic disk drive (called the A: drive). Most of the display is used to show the
applications you can run. At the outset, these applications are those programs resident in ROM (called the B:
drive); if at some point you load programs into the RAM disk, those programs are also displayed on the
screen. Moving the cursor to a program and pressing either the first function key (Start Applic) or the Select
key loads and runs the program. Data files are not listed.
The second function key (File Manager) leads to a secondary shell. The File Manager displays all the files in
the default directory and a list of alternate directories. On this screen, the function keys enable you to
print or delete a file or a directory, create a new directory (following MS-DOS path rules), choose a new
directory to display, copy a file, rename a file, or format a new disk (more on this later in the section on
peripherals). The File Manager serves as the shell for most of the MS-DOS maintenance commands.
The third function key (Clock Config) provides access to the clock configuration commands, letting you reset
the time and the date. The fourth key (Reread Discs) rescans the directories and updates the PAM screen. The
fifth function key (Datacom Config) leads to a menu for setting the parameters (communications rate, word
length, stop bits, parity, protocol) for the HPIL interface and either the modem or the RS-232C serial port
(you can't run these two outputs simultaneously).
The sixth function key brings up the system configuration menu (see photo 4). Here, you can allocate system
memory and RAM-disk space, indicate the number of external disk drives plugged into the computer, select a
read-after-write verification of disk action, set the display time-out interval, choose between a block or
an underscore cursor, select the character set, determine the length of the warning beep, and configure the
printer interface.
Pressing the seventh key, either from the main PAM menu or from any of the secondary menus, produces a menu
for a series of detailed Help screens on all operations of the HP 110 (see photo 5). The eighth key returns
you to the main menu from a secondary menu; if activated from the main menu, the key shuts off the display.
Photo 3: The HP 110's Personal Applications Manager, an operating-system shell for most configuration and file-
manipulation functions. The blocks along the bottom of the screen are a map of the eight programmable soft
function keys.
Photo 4: The system configuration menu. Using the function keys, it's possible to toggle among a full range
of choices for each topic.
Photo 5: Each of the HP 110 Help categories is supported with a full screen of information.
The four applications programs listed by PAM include Memomaker, Lotus 1-2-3, Terminal, and DOS Commands.
Memomaker is a rudimentary word processor developed by Hewlett-Packard for quick notes, brief business
correspondence, and ASCII program script files (such as the scripts PAM uses to trigger the alarm or run a
program at a specific date and time). If you're accustomed to working with a full-fledged word-processing
program, you might find Memomaker severely lacking in sophistication, particularly when it comes to formatted
output.
Lotus 1-2-3, on the other hand, is a delight to use (see photo 6). Maximum system memory enables use of a
spreadsheet with 2048 by 512 cells, certainly more than adequate for most modeling problems. Because
everything (even the Lotus Help screens) exists in electronic memory, movement, recalculation, and graphics
are all blindingly fast; in fact, the slowest part of the system is the LCD. Unless you're dealing with an
extremely large spreadsheet and very complex formulas, chances are you'll wait longer for a screen update
than for number crunching.
The Terminal program can be used for data transfer for all three of the HP 110's output interfaces, RS-232C,
auto-dial/ auto-answer modem, and HPIL.
The DOS Commands option lets you dispense with PAM entirely and operate the 110 as you would any standard
MS-DOS machine.
You can, of course, load other software into the electronic disk - within reason (a large program that needs
full system RAM would be impossible). The HP 110 is essentially a "generic" MS-DOS computer; any programs that
use only operating-system calls, rather than direct calls to the system ROM BIOS (basic input/output system),
and can be configured to use the 110's smaller screen size should run acceptably. Also, any programs that are
written for other Hewlett-Packard MS-DOS computers (significantly, the HP 150), that can be configured for the
screen, and that use only HP escape sequences should be okay. Thus, the 110 isn't fully compatible with any
other machine; it bears a family resemblance to the 150, but it's not an identical twin. Many programs that run
on the 150 should run on the 110, but there are no guarantees.
Hewlett-Packard claims to have done more market research on this product than on any other HP device before
it; much of that study went into determining the software bundle. The company apparently believes that the
current package will best suit the needs of today's portable computer user.
Although the ROM chips that will be distributed in the product will be permanent (unerasable), the ROMs used
during prototype production and testing were EPROM (erasable programmable ROM) chips, and the company candidly
admits that it is working with potential high-volume customers to help those firms develop customized software
packages for their employees. There is no talk at present of optional software configurations for single
users, but Hewlett-Packard representatives will not rule out the possibility. It stands to reason that a
skilled hardware/software hacker or entrepreneur could implement alternative firmware for the HP 110.
(6a)
(6b)
Photo 6: Lotus 1-2-3 on the HP 110 (6a). All Lotus features are fully implemented, including 1-2-3's Help
system. 6b shows the bit-mapped graphics chart produced from the table in 6a.
SYSTEM PERIPHERALS
The 110's HPIL interface enables you to connect the computer to two battery-powered peripherals specifically
designed to be part of a component system; the Thinkjet printer (see the April BYTE West Coast, page 82)
and the new HP 9114 portable disk drive. Both units weigh about 6 pounds, have the same exterior dimensions,
and operate for about eight hours of continuous use without recharging. The Thinkjet is a high-speed dot-
matrix ink-jet printer that handles 8 1/2 by 11-inch
single sheets or the equivalent tractor-feed fanfold paper; the 9114 uses one 3 1/2-inch Sony
microfloppy-disk drive that stores 710K bytes per disk. It's possible to set up the two peripherals and the
110 on a picnic table and run a full computer system without a single wall socket. Hewlett-Packard even sells
a vinyl carrying case for all three units that fits under an airline coach seat. HP is marketing (along with a
card that drops into an IBM-PC expansion slot) software on a 5 1/4 inch PC format disk that enables the 110 to
use the IBM's disk drives for mass storage. If the microcomputer industry has surrendered the Fortune 1000
personal computer market to IBM, as many analysts think, Hewlett-Packard is attempting to gain control of the
Fortune 1000 portable computer market. The HPIL can be connected to a wide variety of Hewlett-Packard
interface converters, enabling the 110 to talk to the large range of HP peripherals (plotters, controllers,
hard-disk drives, etc.) and devices designed to link to other HP computers. To make things even easier, the
110's Terminal program includes emulation of the HP 262 I terminal. The 110 can be linked to up to eight
peripheral drives or devices; one 110 could conceivably use eight others as temporary disk drives.
CONCLUSIONS
The HP 110 is a fast little computer, as functional as most desktop units, with a large line of peripherals
available. But the portable computer market is mushrooming; new products are multiplying at a tremendous
rate. What might very well distinguish the 110 from the rest of the pack is its simple approach to solving
the problems of portability. Software in ROM and disk emulation in RAM are not new
ideas. As employed in the 110, though, they free you from both the constant fussing with mass storage and the
waiting time associated with disk access. Can a computer user accept that much freedom? The Hewlett-Packard
110 makes that a good question.
BY EZRA SHAPIRO
Ezra Shapiro is a technical editor at BYTE's West Coast bureau, He can be reached at McGraw-Hill;
425 Battery St., San Francisco, CA 94111
Photo 3: The HP 110's Personal Applications Manager, an operating-system shell for most configuration and file-
manipulation functions. The blocks along the bottom of the screen are a map of the eight programmable soft
function keys.
Photo 4: The system configuration menu. Using the function keys, it's possible to toggle among a full range
of choices for each topic.
Photo 5: Each of the HP 110 Help categories is supported with a full screen of information.
Photo 6: Lotus 1-2-3 on the HP 110 (6a). All Lotus features are fully implemented, including 1-2-3's Help
system. 6b shows the bit-mapped graphics chart produced from the table in 6a.