Hello readers. This is a sponsored post written by someone else. Thanks for being supportive of the sponsors that help me be able to run Oh Happy Day.  This post is brought to you by HP.  For more information on HP and HP products visit them at TheNextBench. mwah-Jordan

By Gizmo Gladstone from HP’s TheNextBench.com

One of HP’s sexier notebooks is the ENVY 14. Its metal alloy case, muscular components and speedy processor make the system look and function amazingly. WIRED Magazine recently named it “Computer of the Year.” But there’s more than meets the eye here. Or should I say ear. The ENVY 14 sports audio technology that HP created with Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records. Called HP Beats Audio, it’s intended to make music sound like it does in the studio. You can hear Jimmy explain more about Beats Audio. He believes that the digital revolution that made music portable also eroded its quality. His partnership with HP is about undoing some of that damage. There’s a lot of secret sauce involved in Beats Audio technology. You can learn the basics and see a video explaining it on my blog post about Beats, where I talk about a very important part of the technology package, the audio jack.

If you’d like more information on the system, here are some other highlights:

• Integrated Optical Drive. It comes standard with a slot-loading drive, something that’s not common in systems this small (the ENVY 14 is 1.09 inches thick.)
• Backlit Keyboard. Whether you’re typing in a dimly lit cafe or on a late-night flight, being able to see the keys is, well, key. That feature is on board with the ENVY 14.
• More efficient port layout. Putting all jacks and ports in the same area may look good aesthetically, but it could block other ports. All it takes is one oversized USB dongle and you’re covering the neighboring inputs. The ENVY 14 divides the ports on the left and right sides to avoid that problem.
• The Right Price. Sure, I enjoy rolling up hundred dollar bills and lighting them on fire as much as the next guy, but for the most part, I’d prefer to save a couple bucks. The nicest surprise with the ENVY 14 is that it’s priced reasonably compared to similar systems, starting at just $999.

Gizmo Gladstone is a gamer, a full-blown nerd and Blogger-in-Chief on HP’s gadget blog TheNextBench.com, where he writes about how to get the most out of your tech.