HP Reveals Keyboard Computer with Ryzen AI Chip | Hacker News Reader

HP Reveals Keyboard Computer with Ryzen AI Chip

hp.com

89 pointstonymet124 comments

I don't want one, but all the skepticism is weird. I can see it making sense for hot desking office workers, or other similar. When I worked from home at my last job, I kept the laptop closed and out of sight and just connected my own monitors. Most people aren't picky about keyboards, so this seems like a perfectly reasonable product for plenty of people.

It would work, but is it any better than existing options like a little computer on the desk, a computer on the back of the monitor, or an AIO PC?

I dunno. I like it. I think it's neat. I won't buy one, but I look forward to the Cathode Ray Dude episode about it 25 years from now.

> It would work, but is it any better than existing options like a little computer on the desk, a computer on the back of the monitor, or an AIO PC?

I don't see how it would be better than just a mini PC. Presumably most people will be using a mouse in addition to the keyboard, so they've already got to plug in at least the mouse and the display. It seems like the added flexibility of being able to pick your own keyboard, and carry something smaller, would make a mini PC win at the cost of having one extra connector to plug in.

Well I did mention hot desking, and the options you mention definitely aren't as convenient for that. They also can't match some of the benefits this thing brings by including a battery.

Well, it looks "cleaner" and more "professional" than hanging a lump behind your monitor. It may not benifit to all people, but it is not worse than exist option, so, why not.

i've traveled with a Raspi + bt keyboard for this reason. Lighter, and far more durable. I don't mind stowing it in checked duffel bag. I would never put my laptop in checked luggage, certainly not a duffel

It could be how I titled it with "Ryzen AI Chip". It's a somewhat new marketing term from AMD. The chip itself isn't much different from a Ryzen CPU + embedded graphics + TPU/NPU

Ryzen AI is what AMD calls all of their latest gen laptop chips.

indeed, but it's still a bit new marketing for them, so maybe Hackernews readers assume it's related to copilot ?

How would you carry it on a laptop sized backpack? Too many pieces facilitates breaking with long term handling, the form factor seems weird.

I think there could be a protective carrying case for it. It would also be cool if it could plug into an iPad to create an x86-iPad-keyboard chimera.

in a case like a Switch

I agree completely. It's a cool product that has plausible use cases beyond hobbyists who might just want a retro-style keyboard computer. It might not be successful at $1000, but I have to applaud HP for thinking inside the box.

> Launch Microsoft Copilot in Windows with a touch of the Copilot key,4 to write content, analyze data, and stay organized.

Oh thank goodness.

This whole product idea is further trying to gatekeep computing hardware. You will pay a cloud subscription to perform anything remotely computationally taxing.

> You will pay a cloud subscription to perform anything remotely computationally taxing.

What’s wrong with that?

Concentration of compute will be used as a vehicle for further concentration of power and wealth.

Nah by then the collapse of jobs will have freed up 10s of millions with access to guns. Lots of guns.

People are being shot in the face right now by the government and the people who own the most guns are cheering them on. Guns won't solve this.

Depends on your definition of solve.

The complete lack of autonomy.

Some want to use their brain.

Do you market Copilot?

I'd like to own things and have control over what I can and can't do on a computer.

The inevitable price hikes once they've killed the local PC?

"Sorry, I can't print that article on social democracy for you as it violates our content guidelines."

"Sorry, I can't provide information on sexual reproduction due to our content guidelines."

"Your account has been flagged and locked for community guideline violations. No explanation will be given and this cannot be appealed."

The historical irony is that Hewlett-Packard was (debatably[0]) the inventor of the PC—the personal computer—the product concept which liberated users from mainframes, which replaced dumb terminals with fully-independent local computation.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_personal_computers#...

Here's[1] how HP marketed the "first personal computer", in 1968:

> "Ready to relieve you of waiting to get on the big computer," the ad declares. "Willing to perform log and trig functions, even hyperbolics and coordinate transformations at the touch of a key. Able to take on roots of a fifth-degree polynomial, Bessel functions, elliptic integrals and regression analysis."

[1] https://www.hp.com/hpinfo/abouthp/histnfacts/museum/personal... ("History of the 9100A desktop calculator, 1968")

They've now gone full circle, from "Ready to relieve you of waiting to get on the big computer", to "here's a dedicated key for remote computing, the core concept of this product".

this is easily disabled with 1 click.

we've had windows keys on keyboards for ~35 years it's never interfered with linux

I actually love the concept. It's effectively like the iMac, except more flexible and serviceable - great for kiosks and shared workstations.

One could also couple it with AR glasses like the XREAL One and have portable computing but more immersive (although it looks a little big for that).

I don't understand the scepticism - surely it's good that we see some experimentation again on the form factor of computing, we cannot just accept that the laptop is all we'll ever get. Yeah, the copy is stupid, but that's just marketing.

> great for kiosks and shared workstations.

Absolutely not.

For a kiosk, I want everything the user is touching to be effectively disposable. Keyboards and mice are cheap and trivial to replace, this design integrates the most important part of the system in to one of the easiest parts to damage/steal. It's possibly the worst way to do a kiosk.

For a shared workstation, likewise if I'm the user I want to be able to bring my own keyboard and mouse, both for sanitary reasons (have you seen the way people treat their own keyboards, much less shared ones?) and for personal preference. This design integrates the most important part of the system with the part most likely to get gunked up.

Even for the idea of a shared docking station where each user has their own keyboard PC, it's a crappy keyboard. Perhaps if it were a nice mechanical board with swappable keyswitches that might not be terrible, but as it is it's all of the downsides of a laptop without the ability to actually use it undocked.

Whatever use cases may exist where this is actually an improvement are very specific niches.

> For a kiosk, I want everything the user is touching to be effectively disposable.

Or built like a tank that is easy to powerwash.

As someone who's wrangled IT in college libraries before, that's slightly unfair - they do have a Kensington lock for the keyboard.

It's locking up the rest of the cables that'll be the issue, as well as a preference for ethernet. Mice and ethernet cables were stolen the most... inevitably the mice ending making cheapo Chromebooks less miserable, and the ethernet cables ended up at LAN parties.

The users we trusted got laptops anyway.

> Perhaps if it were a nice mechanical board with swappable keyswitches

Are you serious? 99% of computer users don't even know those words.

99% of computer users don't know any of the words that mean a computer is good.

Those of us who do still want to have the good things if we're stuck with it being a permanent part of the machine.

Incorrectly advertising battery capacity as 32W instead of (presumably) 32WH is a hilarious mistake for a company the size of HP

You beat me to it. 32W, but for how long? 8 hours? 11 seconds? 32W would be true in both cases.

5 attoseconds

I mean at least they didn't use mah. I am surprised it actually have a battery in it I thought you would have to plug it in to use it.

The battery is optional, and from the ad copy not intended to power active “use” only moving between different (presumably nearby) work locations without shutting down (probably sleep.)

I would guess that it also helps with accidental restarts due to power loss while repositioning the keyboard on your desk. It doesn't take much force to pull out USB-C.

If there was any doubt left whether Hewlett-Packard is still a company run by engineers, that was a clean way to dispel it.

Perhaps some rogue proofreader "fixed" a stray character

W & watts has become a colloquialism for watt-hours in the EV space at least.

e.g. "how much did consume at the super charger" -- about 10 watts (WH).

So it's not literally correct, but it's becoming commonplace to say that.

slang , pigeons and dialects all develop based off of context like this.

The HP EliteBoard runs a "AMD Ryzen AI 300 series processor", "50 TOPS NPU", with "800M series graphics" and up to 64gb of memory.

As far as I've seen, they have not publicly stated which specific processor its running. This combination means: Its not a Ryzen AI Max 300 processor, because these run the 8060S integrated graphics. (also, they'd have probably stated Max if it was). Moving down-range: the HX375 has 55 NPU TOPS, so its more likely that the best chip it could run is the HX370 (12c/24t); but it could be as low as the 330 (4c8t).

The HX370 posts geekbench 6 scores of single core ~2917 multi-core ~15249.

For comparison: the Apple M5, found in the iPad Pro and upcoming Mac Mini, scores single core ~4291 multi-core ~17469.

Overall, I think this is cool and evocative, and depending on the chip they use the performance could be pretty solid. However, I don't like the idea of a desktop PC being so integrated with a peripheral, such as a keyboard or monitor.

I want less microsoft/copilot in things, not more.

I don't know who this is for.

I don't understand the advantages of this over a laptop (this is essentially laptop-grade hardware and thermal profile but without the screen & battery).

It has an optional battery. This could be pretty epic for a glasses interface.

So a real cyberdeck then? (Case's Ono-Sendai was a plain slab with a keyboard and interface for the "trodes" that communicated directly with your brain.)

You'd want a TKL, not a 105 keys at the very least if you were interested by portability.

You don't have to pay for the small laptop screen. That makes it cheaper, smaller, lighter, in theory.

It also ties you to a desk. If you're working in one location, a desktop PC would be more cost-effective and more performant. If you need mobility between desks, a small form factor PC would be easier to carry. And if you are an employer and expect employees to work from home on this keyboard, you need to buy monitors for their homes.

> a desktop PC would be more cost-effective and more performant.

But ugly and taking up space, which is why the iMac exists and has been pretty successful for decades at this point.

> If you need mobility between desks, a small form factor PC would be easier

Maybe, but performant AR glasses are changing that equation. The cyberdeck, as an ideal, still exists for a reason.

> if you are an employer and expect employees to work from home on this keyboard, you need to buy monitors for their homes.

Do you? Is that law where you live? Because it's definitely not here in UK. I'd rather work on my trusty 4k than some shitty cheapo Dell only provided to tick a box.

The first thing I thought of when I saw this was using a phone as the display. Not as good as an actual monitor, but a far more interesting setup than what you're imagining.

It's for businesses that don't need high computation, achieving effectively the same "monitor and keyboard" effect as the iMac; and for people using AR glasses like XReal One, Viture, etc.

> It's for businesses that don't need high computation

100 svchost.exe processes, Croudstrike, Ivanti and one more antispyware for "compliance". Yes, no more power left for actual computation.

Countdown to the first blog post about Linux "running so fast" on this thing.

Companies often have flex offices with docking stations.

So previously you would have a screen, mouse and keyboard at every desk and people would move a laptop (ignoring its low res screen and bad keyboard).

Here you would have just a screen at every desk and people move their mouse and keyboard.

Also, this does have a battery.

> Also, this does have a battery.

It has an “Optional...internal battery” that “lets you go between workspaces without rebooting”.

So instead of carrying a slightly larger but perfectly useful computer (a laptop) I have to carry a smaller but useless keyboard and mouse for the benefit of not having a keyboard and mouse sitting on a desk when the desk isn't being used? I still don't get it.

I could see the benefit if this thing dropped the keyboard entirely to make it as small as possible but still I'd rather just carry a small laptop.

I guess think of it as a different form factor for a NUC?

Numeric keypad? Spill-resistant.

Office PC thats easier to steal?

> I don't know who this is for.

I think I could build a pretty clean and stylish looking office out of it.

No laptop banging around, no PC to hide away, etc. Could throw this on a minimalist or partially glass desk with an (unfortunate) single cable up to a monitor on an arm for video and power, use wi-fi, and essentially have a fully functional workstation for most people seemingly out of nothing. No bulky AIO, no PC strapped to the back of the monitor, etc.

So I guess that's my guess.

Though my impression from the linked page is more "HP doesn't know who this is for either". There's not much in the way of clear messaging, lifestyle photos, or anything else.

copilot is an easy toggle. It's a PC with UEFI so you could boot linux as usual.

If they strike the right price I will buy one. I currently carry a raspi + keyboard + power supply and I would prefer something clean with a backup battery (one less tether)

Cool to see some innovation from HP, this is actually unique and fills a niche of going from desk to desk (home->office), without needing mobile. Much better than ripping off the latest aluminum MacBook designs.

If this is better than a laptop for mobile work why include the keyboard? Why not just make it a tiny box with a single USB C connector to plug into the dock on your home and work desks? Since you already must have monitors and mice at those locations (or bring them with you) I'm failing to see the point of including the keyboard in this package (except of course to be able to advertise the "copilot key")

The battery + thermals give you either a large cube (like a Beelink++) or cigarette carton. It's wise to go with a cigarette carton and include a keyboard.

Especially since remote work took off, offices are full of vacant workstations. Why drag a small monitor around when you can hook into a 32'' monitor at the office?

They can design a Motherboard that can be used in both laptop and this machine, so no need for double NRE.

I like that it's washable! I wish all peripherals had some thought for cleaning them.

I'm embarrassed to have people over because of my mouse and keyboard. My last mouse fell apart (coating started to peel) when I cleaned it and other parts were just unreachable.

How does cooling get implemented? I can only really think of a Pi500 as a similar concept, except that the Pi is (likely) much less power intense. If they're using a Ryzen 300, wouldn't heat dissapation become an issue? The keyboard looks too thin for extensive heat transfer. I guess they could use a undervolted Ryzen 300 but it just seems like there is too much power delivery needs inside such a small frame.

specs are unclear, but given the size, TDP and optional battery, it almost certainly has a laptop-scale fan and heat sink. Modern fans are pretty quiet, nearly silent at idle, so it's not an issue.

there was a teardown showing the fan. very typical laptop fan

One of the YouTubers had open it up, it uses laptop fans, it itself, is basically a squished laptop.

I’m excited though. I always liked that form factor. Add some good HUD glasses and a mouse and were sailing free!

> the worlds most serviceable keyboard PC.

Any idea why raspberry didn’t use compute modules in the pi500? IMHO that should have been trivially upgradable but will likely be the shortest lived keyboard I’ve ever had when the pi6 comes out.

The fine print:

HP recommends Windows 11 Pro for Business. Not all features are available in all editions or versions of Windows. Systems may require upgraded and/or separately purchased hardware, drivers, software or BIOS update to take full advantage of Windows functionality. Windows 11 is automatically updated, which is always enabled. High speed internet and Microsoft account required. ISP fees may apply and additional requirements may apply over time for updates.

Features and software that require a NPU may require software purchase, subscription or enablement by a software or platform provider, and third-party software may have specific configuration or compatibility requirements. Potential NPU inferencing performance varies by use, configuration, and other factors.

Microsoft Copilot requires Windows 11. Some features require an NPU. Timing of feature delivery and availability varies by market and device. Requires Microsoft account to log in. Where Copilot is not available, the Copilot key will lead to the Bing search engine.

That's... standard Windows? It's 100% the same for Apple machines, if stated in more mellifluous tones (or not stated at all, because "screw you, we're Apple"), and even more so for Chromebooks.

> It's 100% the same for Apple machines,

> Requires Microsoft account to log in. Where Copilot is not available, the Copilot key will lead to the Bing search engine.

An Apple account is most certainly not needed to log in. In-fact being online is not even a requirement for Apple devices. Wild idea, I know.

Windows11 making it hard to create a local account is a separate topic.

The fine print notes refer to to specific features. In this cases it's "4." for Copilot.

You don't need apple account if you are fine with not using half the features listed in the marketing page for apple hardware. If you looked at the bottom of page for any of apple computers you will see similar fine print. For example https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/ .

> 22 Requires that your iPhone and Mac are signed in with the same Apple Account using two-factor authentication, your iPhone and Mac are near each other and have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi turned on, and your Mac is not using AirPlay or Sidecar. Some iPhone features (e.g., camera and microphone) are not compatible with iPhone Mirroring.

> 23. SMS requires an iPhone or iPad with iOS 8.1 or later or iPadOS. iPhone calls require an iPhone with iOS 8 or later.

> To access and use all Apple Card features and products available only to Apple Card users, you must add Apple Card to Wallet on an iPhone or iPad that supports and has the latest version of iOS or iPadOS.

> iMovie, GarageBand, Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are available on the Mac App Store. Downloading apps requires an Apple Account and a device that is compatible with the OS version required for each app.

And seems like there are a few more things advertised as features of specific apple hardware which probably won't work without apple account but lacks fine print at the bottom for example iCloud.

> Windows11 making it hard to create a local account is a separate topic.

Hard is a generous take. They litterally removed their offline phone mode.

> You don't need apple account if you are fine with not using half the features listed in the marketing page for apple hardware.

Can you name the hardware features? Because Apple take the approach of opt-in in my experience. And don't get me wrong.. I'm adamantly pro choice.

Features are one thing. Getting installed without an account is another thing. Imagine now you buy a laptopwith windows, you can activate it until you connect to the internet.

Apple, buy a notebook. Install the os. Nice airgapped system to test with.

Added software is another story. You're conflating the two I feel.

> You don't need apple account if you are fine with not using half the features listed in the marketing page

I want an OS I paid for. Why should I connect to your CNC?

> They litterally removed their offline phone mode.

https://www.reddit.com/r/sysadmin/s/ifseb3L17G

> buy a notebook. Install the os. Nice airgapped system to test with.

Whereas Microsoft provides testing images, so you don't need to kill the planet just to test if a link really looks blue.

Why are you trying so hard to apologise for one of the worst corporations in the world? They are all bad and they all want the same things from you (money and personal data); they just go about it in slightly different ways.

> They are all bad and they all want the same things from you.

I actually do agree with you on this, but my level of acceptance draws a line in the sand and where Microsoft has gone is past it. No, Apple is no Saint but these days there's no harm in pointing out the difference.

AMD Ryzen AI 300

These are great. The Ryzen AI series are the ones that allow memory to be shared between the GPU and CPU, so you can use almost all your system RAM to run local models.

The AI 395+ MAX is available with up to 128Gb RAM (and I think 256Gb is coming).

The important thing is how much RAM it comes with because it is soldered - and for some reason this doesn't seem to show the RAM!

If you scroll further down, there's an image of a woman holding an opened keyboard with a SODIMM in her other hand so I'd guess that means it's user-swappable.

If really aimed at the business segment, as it appears to be, it's likely to have serviceable RAM.

Editorialized title (The powerful AI PC that hides in plain sight)

Actual coverage from Ars: HP's EliteBoard G1a is a Ryzen-powered Windows 11 PC in a membrane keyboard (3 points) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46551335

Given the weird take on x86 being inherently "more powerful" and the copy-pasted error from the marketing site (32W vs 32WH) this "article" looks like gently massaged advertising copy:

> Alternatively, HP’s EliteBoard will bring Windows and a more powerful x86 architecture to the keyboard-PC form factor. HP says the EliteBoard will support Windows 11 Pro for Business and an AMD Ryzen AI 300-series processor with an up to 50 TOPs NPU. The device will be sold with a 32 W internal battery and is part of Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC program.

Wedge computers came out in the 80s, I'm not sure which part of this is "revolutionary".

I have seen a new wedge computer in the news every now and then since the '90s, and not just new retro computers with new innards.

The TRS-80 model I came out in 1977. It took HP just 49 years to launch a competitor.

HN, I find your lack of faith disturbing.

HP (ink.) has followed Raspberry Pi with a riff on the form factor of the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and other keyboard computer designs of the 1970s and 1980s.

But with a (possibly) better keyboard and 1000x (or more) the computing power of a comparable Sinclair system.

It's like a disaggregated laptop that you can plug any USB screen into (or go old-school and plug it into a TV with appropriate cable or adapter.)

This is a beautiful thing that should be encouraged. And I'm sure you can run Linux on it (or maybe DOS - I think some HP "no OS" systems ship with FreeDOS) and boot directly into a C64 or Spectrum emulator (or into Python, BASIC, or whatever environment you prefer.)

What's old is new again. Hasn't anybody seen a Commodore 64?

My first PC was a Schneider Euro PC. Now, this is even slimmer!

Compared with Commodore 64, this HP is a parody. They spared the space to a minimum (is cheap plastic so expensive ?), the keyboard is terrible.

The main advantage seems to be that, if you try to actually use it, it will force you to take a break, because your fingers will be burning from touching the keys heated by the processor.

I'd welcome a heated keyboard right now, temp is 17°C in my office as I am writing this and I do feel my fingers tend to be less reactive.

Funny because I don't mind 17°C outside.

In a few years, there will be more (relative} gold in thriftshop keyboard sludge-piles.

Yep. Found my cyberdeck, a couple years out!

making a beowulf cluster out of keyboards, maybe that's the future given the increasing scarcity around computer parts...

Finally HP launched a competitor to the VIC 20.

OK, great. I like what I've heard about the Ryzen AI chips so far. But can I install Linux on this thing?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAIzlGwEAO0&t=300s This seems provide instruction on that. There are a lot of other yt videos on this topic.

Of course you can. It's an amd64 processor with a different name and a coprocessor. Linux doesn't have any problem installing on UEFI, so unless they did something weird, it shouldn't be a problem. Apparently linux runs pretty well on the AMD AI cpus (benchmarks of lunar lake primarily vs Ryzen AI 300 in OP):

https://www.phoronix.com/review/core-ultra-7-lunar-lake-linu...

But concept-wise I think it's a dud. A laptop without a monitor. So you either carry the laptop as two pieces (some good portable monitors around) or you are limited to only plugging it in where there's a monitor available.

Also, it seems they couldn't be bothered to spring for mechanical switches when the entire product is focused around a keyboard. Sheesh.

so unless they did something weird

That is the concern! Hopefully not, but with HP who ever really knows?

Ah, the HP-99/4A. I'd heard of this and kinda almost wanted one, but I think skyrocketing RAM and SSD prices will make it even more not worth the money/hassle.

I want one the size and shape of the HP-200LX. Oh, in that case, please add a 4K color OLED screen and 5G radio. Lenovo stick for mouse.

So it's a laptop, without display. Can I attach my own keyboard? From the pictures, I get the impression the keyboard sucks.

It's got USB so I'm sure you could.

> From the pictures, I get the impression the keyboard sucks.

That was my initial thought. They made the keyboard a big part of the product, and that is the keyboard they came up with?

It's like advertising a fancy new type of AIO and then putting a crummy 50% sRGB gamut 480p TN panel in it.

Most people don't care about mechanical keyboards, they just use whatever their employer provides, comes free with the PC, or is just the best deal on Amazon.

And Lenovo launched an AIO with a 2560x2880 display.

I dislike how ai is a major selling point of this computer; then again, I understand it’s a buzzword at this point.

Funnily enough, with the name being “HP EliteBoard G1a Next Gen AI PC”, I know I’m supposed to read it as “(next gen) ai”, but I can’t help seeing “next (gen ai)”.

Think it's a good idea, whose time is way past due. Basically, a laptop without a monitor. However, think they need a version with a touchpad, so you don't need to plug in a mouse. Then it's much more portable.

Interesting idea, seems like an adventurous v1 idea. Feels like it would be hard to sell this to enthusiasts who want a nicer keyboard, and hard to sell to the average consumer who’d still rather have a laptop or iPad.

Raspberry Pi 400 did it (TM) , minus the AI PC crap.

like any PC you can run what you like. even on Windows it's easy to turn off AI stuff (I've done that for years , back when it was spammy Cortana and MSN content).

You want more designs like this, which will encourage more Raspberry PI and other competitors to jump in.

It's a win win for everyone

An amislop 500 or an atari 520 STslop ?

First thing I had in mind was "Oh, like an Atari ST"!

Are the little NUC sized boxes too obtrusive? I don't understand who will buy this keyboard.

integrated keyboard & power mean only a single connection when you arrive. Even BT can be a pain, especially if it doesn't pair, you are left with a headless and keyboardless NUC box.

I want it with a TKL layout, low travel mechanical switches

no thanks, i prefer a https://frame.work/gr/en/desktop

and to reset it you just have to type SYS 64738

I think I'll just wait for Chinese to create their clones of this and buy it at half the price.

I don't think I am ever buying another HP product. I've had enough with their office PCs and printers

“Ok hear me out, a laptop but without the screen”

Not any laptop, an AI copilot laptop!

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