HP Pavilion dv6929 Notebook And Bag (click for larger image)

Hewlett-Packard has tossed the usual big box and Styrofoam packaging that comes with a PC, and is selling one of its entertainment notebooks through Wal-Mart Stores with a messenger bag made of recycled materials.

The new approach in selling the HP Pavilion dv6929 notebook makes it possible for HP to ship three of the laptops to Wal-Mart in one box, using the HP-designed messenger bag as padding. As a result, HP has reduced the amount of packaging materials it uses by 97%, according to the companies.

Wal-Mart recently named HP the winner of the retailer's Home Entertainment Design Challenge, which sought to recognize the supplier that came up with the most environmentally friendly design in each product category Wal-Mart carries.

"We received many strong ideas from different suppliers, but the innovative packaging with this HP laptop really stood out," Alex Cook, merchandise manager for Wal-Mart home entertainment, said in a statement.

Wal-Mart will sell the Pavilion dv6929 with the protective bag exclusively at its Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores in the United States for $798. Customers who buy the system will walk out with the notebook and the cushioned bag only, no box. Along with the bag, the notebook comes with a battery, AC adapter, cord and documentation.

The notebook includes a 15.4-inch display, 4 GB of memory, a 250 GB hard drive and integrated Webcam and microphone. The system is powered by a Turion X2 TL-60 dual core microprocessor from Advanced Micro Devices, and comes with Microsoft's Windows Vista Home Premium edition.

Wal-Mart is a technology customer of HP. The retailer in August announced that it would use HP's new Neoview system to handle growing capacity for its 1,000-Tbyte-plus data warehouse, which is the foundation for business intelligence applications.