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The HP Mini 5102 is the latest business and education-focused netbook from Hewlett Packard. It has a higher starting price than most netbooks, at $399 and up. But it also comes with a number of features that you won’t find on most netbooks, including:

• All-metal chassis with anodized aluminum and light weight magnesium alloy
• 7200RPM hard drive (or high speed SSD)
• Accelerometer and HP Drive Guard software that shuts off the hard drive in the event of a fall to prevent damage
• Spill resistant keyboard
• HP DuraKey finish which helps the keys hold up against wear
• 2MP webcam
• Ability to open the RAM access panel without a screwdriver

The laptop also includes facial recognition software, quick start software, and an application for synchronizing data with your primary PC. And that’s just what you get in the cheapest model. The HP Mini 5102 also comes with a variety of configuration options, including an optional handle, touchscreen display, HD display, Broadcom Crystal HD video accelerator, and 3G modem. You can also choose from a variety of operating systems including FreeDOS, SUSE Linux, Windows XP Home or Professional, or Windows 7 Starter, Home Premium, or Professional.

OK, now that the basics are out of the way, here’s the skinny on the demo unit that HP just sent me to review. It has Windows 7 Professional, 2GB of RAM, a 250GB hard drive, and a capacitive touchscreen display. In the unboxing video below, you can see me fiddling unsuccessfully with the touchscreen — because I completely forgot that it’s a capacitive, multitouch display rather than a resistive screen. As such, it doesn’t recognize taps from my fingernail, but instead requires a poke with a fingertip.

I’ll be testing out the HP Mini 5102 over the next few days, and I plan to share more details. But for now, you can check out the unboxing video after the break.

I should probably point out that the touchscreen model I’m reviewing is not available as a “Smart Buy” option, which means you’ll have to pay a pretty hefty premium to get the touchscreen if you order the Mini 5102 from the HP web site. But it’s available for lower (and negotiable) prices for business and education customers placing bulk orders.