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Reviews:
 ·Time Warner VOIP
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| HP Evny, Any Drawbacks? I'm looking at either getting the Pavilion DV7T or 17" Envy from HP. Both configured equally as possible (just about maxed out) the price is $90 difference ($2304 for the Pavilion, $2394 for the Envy) before any cases and additional power adaptors. Price is not really an issue, features are.
I really like the Envy. The DV7T lacks a 1080p display, but has an available BD burner where as the Envy does not. However I really like that the Envy has a slot loading optical drive as opposed to a pop out tray. But the Envy only has 2 USB ports where as the Pavilion has 4. I'm planning on having two USB ports tied up at all times (Sprint Aircard, Mouse Receiver). Other than that I'll the specs are a wash . Windows 7 Ultimate, Intel Core i7 840-QM at 1.86 GHz, 8GB RAM, 640 GB 7200 RPM harddrive, 802.11n w/bluetooth. The two notebooks do offer slightly different graphics cards.
My big thing against the Envy is that it's seems to be a designer notebook, more of a fashion accessory you can show off at Starbucks while sipping overpriced coffee to compete with Apple, then a computer. I know the Envy line came over from when HP bought out VooDoo PC a few years ago. Anyone have any experience with the Envy specially the 17"? Is the display really that much better ? If the DV7T had a 1080p display, it wouldn't be so much of a contest between the two.
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 PeteC2Got Mouse?Premium,MVM
join:2002-01-20
Bristol, CT
kudos:5
 ·AT&T Yahoo
| Frankly, I think the 1080p display is a bit over-rated. Unless you have extraordinary vision, it is pretty darn unlikely you would discern much if any difference between a movie at 720p versus 1080p
Having a slot loading drive versus a pop out drawer drive IMHO is nothing but "gee-whiz" factor...how many CD/DVDs do you load in your notebook a day anyway?
If you want/need a BD burner, then your decision should be already made, but otherwise it may well come down to "look and feel" issues. For the kind of money you are looing at spending, I would not even consider buying either until I got my hands on each of them...that could be the final decision-point.
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Deeds, not words | | |
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 banditws6Shrinking Time and DistancePremium
join:2001-08-18
Frisco, TX
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to Steve Mehs
FWIW, you might want to check out the HP manufacturer-specific forums at NotebookReview.com. They've got dedicated threads for each specific model of notebook that are filled with actual user impressions, common issues and so forth. I've found that site to be a great resource once you narrow down your purchase decision to one or two specific models.
I don't have any personal experience with the Envy, but from what I have read, the Envy line may have a history of issues with heat management and fit-and-finish. These might have been corrected in the recent revision. I was originally considering an Envy 17 myself, but eventually decided on the Sony Vaio F series for about the same price, similar configuration, for a variey of reasons.
The thing I'll miss most about not choosing the Envy, I think, is the EyeFinity system where you can connect up to three external displays at the same time. Man...I could really have done with that. At least Matrox makes an outboard USB system called the TripleHead2Go that accomplishes same, albeit in a somewhat kludgy fashion.
Regarding 1080p, I absolutely would not live without it. But then, I'm a graphic designer and I need all the screen real estate that I can get for Photoshop's morass of tool panels and what-not. On a 16" or 17" screen, 1080p has (IMO) the perfect PPI. Smaller than 16" and the resolution might start to become uncomfortable for some. Once you get down to 14" I think a 1600x900 would be more appropriate.
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"I'll follow the law until it's just stupid." -Ted Nugent | |
 RyanPremium
join:2001-03-03
Attleboro, MA
1 edit | reply to Steve Mehs
Wow gorgeous looking laptops.. I really hate the shiny thick plastic design most manufacturers are pumping out right now. I hate to say it, but thats the only thing Apple has right now is their unibody macbook pro is physically a great looking laptop. Not worth the price though thats for sure.. | |
banditws6Shrinking Time and DistancePremium
join:2001-08-18
Frisco, TX Reviews:
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to Steve Mehs
said by Steve Mehs:But the Envy only has 2 USB ports where as the Pavilion has 4. Actually, according to HP's specs on the Envy 17, it has three USB ports, with one being a combo USB / eSATA port.
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"I'll follow the law until it's just stupid." -Ted Nugent | |
Reviews:
·Time Warner VOIP
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to PeteC2
quote:
Frankly, I think the 1080p display is a bit over-rated. Unless you have extraordinary vision, it is pretty darn unlikely you would discern much if any difference between a movie at 720p versus 1080p
I used to think along those lines. 1080p is great but 720p is good enough. Until last week. I upgraded my 2 year old HP 22" 16x10 monitor to a brand new HP 23" 16X9 that does 1080p, and while I had no complaints with my old display and thought it was pretty damn good, this one kicks it's ass. Both are extremely sharp and crisp but the new one so much more than the 22". It could have nothing to do with being 1080p, it could be due to a the higher contrast ratio and the fact the technology is 2 years newer and therefore two years better. But you can get a really kickass system maxed out with RAM and a blazing fast processor, but the display is how you interact with it, so I'd just like the best one possible that meets my guidelines.
quote:
Having a slot loading drive versus a pop out drawer drive IMHO is nothing but "gee-whiz" factor...how many CD/DVDs do you load in your notebook a day anyway?
I burn quite a few CDs and DVDs. I'd probably watch an occasional movie on BD. But I really don't know. I've never owned a laptop before. Just desktops, pocket PCs and smartphones. I'm actually not a big fan of the pop out trays on laptops and having it be slot loading would be nice, and I'd prefer it, it's not a make it or break it thing. Just something to consider.
quote:
If you want/need a BD burner, then your decision should be already made, but otherwise it may well come down to "look and feel" issues. For the kind of money you are looing at spending, I would not even consider buying either until I got my hands on each of them...that could be the final decision-point.
I don't necessarily need a Blu Ray Disc burner now, but I may want one in a year or two. I'm planning on keeping this machine around for at least 4 years. As for look and feel, I totally agree. One problem though, while I can walk into any Best Buy and look at a preconfigured DV7T and see what the physical unit is like, I have not seen the Envy product line in any retail outlet. | |
Reviews:
·Time Warner VOIP
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to banditws6
quote:
FWIW, you might want to check out the HP manufacturer-specific forums at NotebookReview.com. They've got dedicated threads for each specific model of notebook that are filled with actual user impressions, common issues and so forth. I've found that site to be a great resource once you narrow down your purchase decision to one or two specific models.
Thanks! I will check out those forums and probably register and post the same question there. Usually I'm know exactly what I want, but HP is making this difficult. If the DV7T had a 1080p display, I'd be good to go I think.
quote:
I don't have any personal experience with the Envy, but from what I have read, the Envy line may have a history of issues with heat management and fit-and-finish.
Thanks for the info, I'll look into that. While I know these higher end machines will give off quite the amount of heat, I don't want to burn anything up.
quote:
Actually, according to HP's specs on the Envy 17, it has three USB ports, with one being a combo USB / eSATA port.
Yep I missed that. One of the USB ports is USB 3.0. Which is another plus for the Envy.
As of this second I have more than enough money set aside for this. I actually could buy one of each and have quite a bit of money left over. But what I'm ultimately waiting on is for the release of Windows 7 SP1. Having the beta just being leaked out is a good sign. I'm hoping by the Winter it goes RTM. I've always had a little personal rule, I'll never buy a new machine until at least Service Pak 1 for the current operating system is released. Not sure why, just something I live by. Hopefully by then HP offerings will be tweaked a little and one of these machines will be the clear winner for me. | |
| said by Steve Mehs: But what I'm ultimately waiting on is for the release of Windows 7 SP1. Having the beta just being leaked out is a good sign. I'm hoping by the Winter it goes RTM. I've always had a little personal rule, I'll never buy a new machine until at least Service Pak 1 for the current operating system is released. Not sure why, just something I live by. Hopefully by then HP offerings will be tweaked a little and one of these machines will be the clear winner for me. You're wasting your time waiting for Win7 SP1. MS is not adding any additional functionality to the OS and its a few minor tweaks and here that aren't meant to be noticeable to the everyday user. You can read up on it if you want. If you currently have Windows 7 and keep it up to date, then you aren't missing out on much. It's no lie when people say that Windows 7 is stable out of the box.
Also unless there are some new CPUs coming out or some new hardware, I doubt HP will be doing much tweaking, but you might be able to catch a few sales during the Winter because of holidays. Good luck on your purchase. | |
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·RoadRunner Cable
| Actually I know nothing about Windows 7 other then I hate it. I downloaded a pirated copy of the RTM version on Win 7 Ultimate last year when it was released, used it for 2 or 3 weeks and went back to Vista. I for the life of me can't figure out what's so great about 7. At least with Classic Shell you can get the Classic Start Menu back now. But I understand things change and I need to adapt and I can't hold on to Vista forever.
Speaking of CPUs, are there any new Core i7 Mobile processors on deck to be released in the coming months? I can't find anything on that. When I bought my current desktop two years ago, I purposely held off until Intel released the Yorkfields. Got the Q9550. Is the Core i7 840QM going to be the best non Extreme mobile procreessor for a while?
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