HP's EliteBook 2540p is durable, capable and small enough to always keep on hand and can become a workaholic's best friend.

Priced at $1629 (as of May 5, 2010), the EliteBook 2540p is especially noteworthy for its solid case–a clean, metal-and-plastic design that HP says can withstand 300 pounds of pressure when closed.

The 2740p has specifications similar to the 2540p but does not offer the option for a 2.5-inch 7200rpm hard disk drive. HP rolled out other business models too on Monday.

The HP EliteBook 2540p makes the fewest sacrifices among its rivals, but you have to be willing to put up with a 12-inch screen.

All in all, the EliteBook 2540p is a good choice for frequent travelers who are looking for a nice balance of performance, ruggedness, and battery life.

Thought HP was done unleashing its new line of semi-rugged EliteBooks at CES? So did we, but apparently it needed just a little bit more time to pull the 12.1-inch 2540p and 2740p out of the oven.

HP were obviously demonstrating a reasonably-specified model, which whipped through Windows 7 with no issues. HP expect the EliteBook 2540p to go on sale in April 2010, priced from $1,099.

HP has announced a host of computing machines -- the ruggedised EliteBook 2740p multi-touch tablet and 2540p laptop, and a bunch of new ProBooks ...

“A new HP laptop, the EliteBook 2540p assembles zippy components and versatile ports in a nimble case. Though HP’s omission of a graphical processor slows the machine down for games and 3D software, ...

The HP EliteBook 2540p notebook may be netbook-sized but lands squarely in the business world with serious CPU choices, an available optical drive and plenty of peripheral ports.

There are two new devices from HP, the EliteBook 2740p tablet PC and a non-tablet device, the EliteBook 2540p that is most likely to be rolled out in the US market from this month.