HP Defends New Ultrabook Design Against Noted Similarities to Apple's MacBook Air

[MacRumors]

With the introduction of its new ENVY Spectre XT Ultrabook today, HP is finding itself defending the lightweight notebook's design as observers have raised comparisons to Apple's MacBook Air. The issue was addressed directly in a Q&A session with HP design executive Stacy Wolff, with Engadget reporting on Wolff's response to a question speculating that Apple might try to sue over the design. Wolff argued:

I would go back to the TC1000 [Tablet PC] from about 10 years, and that's a tablet. I think if you look at the new Spectre XT, there are similarities in a way, not due to Apple but due to the way technologies developed. Apple may like to think that they own silver, but they don't. In no way did HP try to mimic Apple. In life there are a lot of similarities.

Engadget followed up with Wolff after the session, and he offered some more thoughts on how there are only so many solutions to a given design problem and how HP's design differs from Apple's.

The thing is that you have to design what's right, and that is that sometimes the wedge is the right solution, silver is the right solution. I see a lot of differences as much as the similarities. I think anybody that's close enough to the business sees that there are differences in the design. Ours is rubber-coated at the bottom. We use magnesium; they didn't do that -- they use CNC aluminum. We did a brush pattern on our product; they didn't. We did a different kind of keyboard execution. We did audio as a component; they didn't. So there are a lot of things I can list off that are differences; but if you want to look at a macro level, there are a lot of similarities to everything in the market that's an Ultrabook today. It is not because those guys did it first; it's just that's where the form factor is leading it.

Wolff goes on to cite the "form follows function" argument in claiming that there are only so many ways internal components can fit into a notebook and that the wedge shape is a natural result of how those physical constraints manifest themselves in a usable product design.

Responding to comments about the black "chiclet" keyboard on silver body being similar to Apple's implementation, Wolff notes that a simple color choice doesn't amount to copying and that HP's work with chiclet-style keyboards dates back to the mid-1980s.

HP is far from the first ultrabook manufacturer to be the subject of questions about potentially copying Apple's MacBook Air. Most notably, ASUS was one of the first company's to show off an ultrabook design in the middle of last year, with that design bearing an even more remarkable similarity to the MacBook Air. PC manufacturers have been rushing to bring ultrabooks to the market, now taking advantage of Intel's new Ivy Bridge processors in an effort to take on the MacBook Air in what is predicted to be the future of notebook computing.

Article Link: HP Defends New Ultrabook Design Against Noted Similarities to Apple's MacBook Air

 

[RoboCop001]

The Spectre in particular isn't a complete ripoff, I've seen much worse. I don't remember if it's from HP or not, but it was so blatant. I think it was the ASUS?

The Spectre is different enough, I'd say. I don't think they copied much, if anything. Similar yes, copy... not really.

Aside from not being really into the aesthetic choices, it's not (too) ugly. I'd say good job HP.

I hope the Beats fad wears off soon.

 

[Mac21ND]

It's certainly different enough. It even uses two traditional hinges for the screen (very PC) - unlike the large clamshell that Apple uses for every laptop.

 

[MarkBubba]

Oh look, the HP is up to date with technology since it has USB 3.0 and I'll bet money it has user-upgradable RAM and SSD instead of being soldered in like Apple insists on using. How long before somebody makes a Hackintosh out of one? Probably not very long at all.

 

[jmoore5196]

If Steve Jobs taught us anything, it's that the future belongs to the innovators. Whether HP deliberately "copied" anything isn't the issue; their design doesn't bring much innovation to the table.

"Similarities" are seldom accidental. Had HP's design been genuinely innovative, it would have been on the market long ago. It wasn't. The reason is pretty simple: HP still leads by the bottom line. Apple leads with passion that isn't managed by the board or otherwise forced to conform to economic constraints.

 

[AQUADock]

The colours are the only thing thats similar to the air really. There are other ultrabooks that look much more alike.

 

[Konrad9]

The HP laptop is silver, has a keyboard, and a touchpad... THEY COPIED APPLE!

Edit: Bring on the downvotes for not being a raving fanboy!

Anyhoo, back to the topic at hand.

Apple has shown that customers crave simplicity, so the other manufacturers are simplifying their products. This is akin to car manufacturers getting boxy in the 90s, and the current flowing, smooth lines we see on vehicles today.

Saying HP copied Apple with this design is like saying Apple copied the IBM 5100 (look it up) with the iBook.

 

[Moonjumper]

there are only so many solutions

It seems that Apple are good at finding solutions that have not been used before. Others not so much.

 

[Skika]

Really sad. It is really clear, that HP aren't enthusiastic about their products. Shame.

 

[macmastersam]

should apple really care? the only thing that bogs these iMocks down is windows.

 

[ristlin]

and yet it still looks like crap.

 

[spencers]

*Scoff*... Ultrabook. Who cares! Apple has been doing the "ultrabook" for years now!

 

[SmileyBlast!]

In making his defense about the strong comparison points; It looks like the HP guy has really studied the Mac Book Air... a lot. Copying the best can work as a business practice. Look at Samsung.

 

[2bikes]

I`m not going into `the copied MBA or not` argument but a sentence like `there are lots similarities in life` to defend yourself sounds pretty weak to me coming from a company like HP.

 

[Mundty]

I see no problem with this design, and I think he's right about the industry as a whole heading into certain directions when it comes to design. Granted, Apple deserves an overwhelmingly majority of the credit when it comes to design choices... but you can't simply copyright the use of aluminum in computers. It's a natural element that occurs in nature, it's not as if Apple invented it, like say Carbon Fiber.
I realize this HP doesn't use Aluminum and Apple didn't invent Carbon FIber... I'm merely making a point

If you ask me, I think the aluminum MacBook Pro design that was implemented in 2008 is far more attractive and exquisite from a design and engineering standpoint than the MacBook Air design. In my humble opinion, Apple should have dropped the wedge design of the Air and just waited until they could make the entire laptop as thin as the thinnest point on the current MacBook Air.

 

[mkoesel]

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Apple didn't invent the notebook form factor, but they were all too happy to borrow it for their first Powerbook back in 1991. This latest Macbook Air imitation is the same sort of phenomenon. You know a good design when you see one. This time Apple did it first, but it isn't always the case.

So it is not really controversial nor significant. It is what it is. Much ado about nothing.

 

[AppleGuesser]

Is that a MacBook Air??? Oh yeah.......its an HP......My bad

 

[macmastersam]

*Scoff*... Ultrabook. Who cares! Apple has been doing the "ultrabook" for years now!

you might not care, but we do
apple now has a competition, which could easily knock, or slack off the macbook air.

 

[justperry]

Looks good and I have to agree with HP, Looks similar but by no means the same.
If I wanted a Windows laptop this would be a nice one.
Good on ya HP

Apple doesn't have the sole right to have a wedge shaped laptop with a black keyboard and silver body coulour.

 

[Cloudsurfer]

If the MBA was white, this laptop would've been white and their argument would've been 'Apple doesn't own white'.

You can't expect them as a company to say, yes we copied MBA.

 

[gwelmarten]

For a start, the keyboard has the split buttons poking through the case - Apple were the first with this.

 

[erzeszut]

Read through the corporate double-speak, and the essential message is:

"Yeah, of course we copied Apple. The MB Air is selling like hotcakes, and Apple got a head start on us. But we copied them in such a way to prevent them from suing us."

End of story.

 

[Takeo]

This doesn't copy the Air as closely as others. I was at my local big box store on the weekend and just out of curiosity I took a look at the MacBook Air wannabe's... I mean... some of them are darn near exact copies of the Air. Hilarious.

 

[shartypants]

Its funny how everyone is steeling Apple's keyboard. The rest of the machine looks like someone without design experience tried to copy the MacBook Air, but failed.

 

[ThunderSkunk]

Way to get some press HP.