Don’t tell HP that netbooks are dead, that tablets are the future.

Like so many old-guard PC companies, HP continues to hang on to the little ‘puter that could. And you know what, it’s doing a fine job of proving there’s life left in this market.

HP’s Pavilion dm1z is hardly a netbook that looks like it is swinging for the fences. It is modest and unassuming, a cleaned-up version of so many netbooks from years gone by. It aims to be your miniature workhorse companion and tries to look good while it’s along for the ride.

Perfectly at home in either a boardroom or an indie coffeehouse, the clean,...