*HP EliteBook 8730w Owners Lounge*

PS make sure you get the 150w power supply, that's the least you need for the Quadro video card and Dreamcolor screen.

 

Now, after 4 visits of the technician and all repairs are done the noise is gone. There were more parts not ok besides the LCD (wrong heatsink for the fx3700 with only one heatpipe, replacement LCD DOA...). So I asssume the usage of hwinfo32 and the death of my LCD is merely a coincidence.

After the changes (they changed also the main board), win 7 does not shut down correctly anymore and needs a real good time to boot. Does somebody have some hints for me?

And no it is not the drive mentioned above. It is the blu-ray burning drive.

The presence of this device leads to a different question. On my application and driver disc is no program to view blu-ray discs. On the hp sw download page for this notebook are two updates downloadable for windvd 8.5 but there is no complete install of this viewer.

Does your drivers and application disc contain the base version for windvd 8.5 (in such a case HP can provide me the correct disc, please give me the PN for the disc) or can somebody provide me with the correct link to this sw.

 

Hello guys,


I just bought a 8730w with the 3700 FX Card, the QX9300 processor and of course the DreamColor Display.

I read quite a lot of postings but it just takes too long to read them all.

To make it short, I´m a bit disappointet about the software and the display. I installed windows 7 and there is NO additional software being installed automatically. I even had to install the craphics card, fingerprint sensor and so on manually - thats not exactly what I exprected.

Now lets talk about the display. I have got a Color Munki Create calibration tool. A nice little thing - I´ve been using it for years on my NEC displays. On the laptop display it does a quite bad job though - the red rolor is MUCH too intense. It bleeds through/into white letters on the screen. Of course I have the blue and red dots in the corners, too. Is there anything I can do about that? Do any of you have displays without those faults?

Greetings from Germany,

Infidel (Webdesigner)

 

nice hardware

I am not sure but did you install W7 from the included DVDs?

However, of course you have to install a few things additional but normally there should be an additional DVD with all the HP stuff and the extra software.


Sorry, cannot help with the calibration of your LCD

 

Normally there should be a disc with the applications and drivers. If this is missing, give HP a call and they send it to you. And if you do not have a original Win 7 disc order them also.

 

Ich hatte das selbe Problem mit meinem 8730w

Now that's all I can say in German for now, know only little and haven't used it for decades so I'm quite rusty, Mein Herr

Two things you absolutely need for the screen:
1) HP's "Mobile Display Assistant". If you do not have it installed or don't have the HP disk, see it on the HP disk, you can get it from HP's site. This will allow you to select the proper color space, because the native has insanely intense colors (it's something like 135% of sRGB).
2) to further adjust the colors, forget the included nVidia app. It's useless. Look for Powerstrip instead. It will allow you to really fine tune the color profile. I spent DAYS creating the profiles I use... One for general use, one for pictures (for color fidelity) and one for games. Plus variants of each

As for the lower red red tinge and lower right blue tinge... Sorry, that's the 'superior color rendition' of the Dreamcolor panel. HP finally published a blurb on their site saying this is 'normal'. I had the panel replaced twice; first one was noticeable, second one was VERY noticeable and the third one is just acceptable.

Ich habe ein Schwarz-Weiß Foto meiner Großeltern circa 1920, und ich kann leider Farbe sehen im linke und rechte ecke... Aber kein Problem mit 35mm format (3/2) Bilder. In other words, the red and blue affected area are perhaps 5mmx8mm or something like that, and show only on black and white pictures or on a solid white page. So 35mm pictures, unless they are cropped to fit the 16/10 format of the LCD, because they do not use the whole width of the screen, are not significantly affected by this problem. You can check pictures of my worst screen in one of my previous posts in this thread here

Here is a screen grab of the Powerstip Color Profile I use most of the time with my 8730w, to get you started. I apply this after selecting sRGB color space in Hp Mobile Display Assistant. If you want the actual R, G and B figures, let me know.

Bottom line, you need HP's Mobile Display Assistant to get the screen into sRGB mode. No Mobile Display Assistant, no way to set the color right. It's as simple as that! Once that is done, it's a simple matter of tweaking the color response curves.

Good Luck!

 

Hello fellow 8730w owners,


thank you very much for your replies. I did check the DVDs for further software and must admit that there really was another DVD, it stuck to another one slightly so I must have overseen it.

Furthermore I contacted both x-rite and HP to find out more about those display issues. The x-rite helpdesk really deserves its name, they helped me a lot with my calibration. HP however helped me none, they said they were going to send me an email but it never came - maybe the guy on the phone wasnt able to spell "design" correctly (a sad but common thing in Germany).

Anyhow, tomorrow I´ll give the Mobile Assistant a try (thanks for the hint, 83bj60 [ich frage mich ob du wohl bald 51 wirst? :-]) and re-calibrate my display (question to the native speakers: is it ok to say "screen" or "monitor" as well?).

I already tried to use powestrip... but... it might take some years until I can actually USE it the way I want. Is there any more complicated software out there apart from Maya?

Thanks again and best regards,

Infidel

 

Can somebody please tell me how to start the hp Mobile Display Assistant. I used the software I found under color adjustment but I´m not sure whether it´s the right software.

 

Hmmm! Not far off! What did I say to get you so close to the mark?!

Sure, everybody does: Screen, Monitor, Panel.

I'm not sure I can help you there, as I don't know Maya at all. Powerstip writes to the Look-Up Table. For those who don't know, it's basically a "table of equivalence" of sorts, so that, say, a color stated as 255 Red, 235 Green and 225 Blue is translated through the LUT (if I am to follw the curve in my previous post), to something like 225R, 230G and 225B. You get the idea...

For testing, I take basic screen test images consisting of different colors and grey densities (If you can run the old Nokia Monitor test, it is ideal), apply the color curves and judge visually. I then try these with real pictures.

Of course, if you use a calibrator, it should create these curves for you automatically. I like Powerstrip because I don't need a calibrator to do a good job with it. It also makes it very clear that as much as the Dreamcolor I panel present in the 8730w is marketed, it is still an 8 bit per color panel and it cannot get nearly as neutrally balanced as a 10 bit per color panel or better, an old Trinitron CRT with a good Matrox video card, IMO still the best combination for stability and color purity for use in photography.

 

Start->Programs->HP Mobile Display Assistant, Color Tab, Presets, select sRGB, Preview, then Accept in the box with the people picture if the colors seem fine to you. You can then tweak them using Powerstip or calibrate your screen further.

 

Does somebody have some informations about the sw and where to download from the hp website?

 

Proprietary or crippled and re-branded software is not my cup of tea. I promptly uninstall those when I get new machines and install something much better and more versatile, such as Media Player Classic, which you can get free with the Klite Codec Pack, or Vplayer. With these two freewares, you can anything to play, and they have an impressive array of controls..

But let me look at my original CDs and check whether the machine came with it.

 

I can´t find this program on my machine although I installed it twice. The search ended without results either. Any ideas?

 

1) You should have the folder "Portrait Displays\HP Mobile Display Assistant" in your Program Files folder (or whatever it is named in German). Look for the file "dthtml.exe".
2) This utility only works if you have an actual DreamColor screen. No DC, No HP Mobile Display Assistant.

HP has it on their website for download. Don't confuse Display Assistant with Mobile Display Assistant. Two different things. Also, there are two types of DreamColor screens. The one on the laptop, and the one for the desktop, 'real' Dreamcolor screen.

Hope this helps!

 

Hi!
I have owned the 8730w, but have had problems since start with black-screen, probably due to overheating while playing some games. I recently got StarCraft II and I can't play for long before the screen turns black. The temperature doesn't go over 70 degrees Celsius but still it turns black.

So I've been thinking of doing two things:
a) Undervolting the card using Nibitor and gpuz, but NiBiTor doesn't support fx2700m (it says) so I don't know how to go on with this.
b) Upgrading to the fx 3700m (perhaps undervolting this aswell...)

I've been reading posts from rcboyit among others but I havn't been able to see if either of these two options are possible. If an upgrade is possible that would bee great!

Hope to get some response as I would really like to fix this asap.
Thanks!

 

never heard of overheating will result in a black screen, maybe a different problem

which os? Do you have the latest driver and installed them correct?

70 is not high

I had an upgrade from the 2700 to the 3700 (by HP) but did not get the latest heat sink (there is a special heat sink which was released later for the 3700)

I do not game that much and only older games that is the main reason for not getting over heating problems.

However, it is possible to upgrade.

Try NVIDIA ntune to reduce clock speed, you can download it on the NVIDIA site (yes, it is older but should still work)

Maybe lift the back of your laptop a little during playing (on the table, of course, never play on the lap ) like it would be in the dock, every little more cooling helps

 

I agree with Sotton on NOT laying the laptop on your lap.... It blocks the ventilation inlet... So many laptops use this stupid design, when it would be so easy to move that at the back or the front... Then again a real solution is what Apple is using in some of its machines, to use a the full metal casing as the heat sink...

 

Hi there,
maybe someone here can help me out when not even HP is willing to help...

We have an NN270EA and thought it would come with DreamColor RGB LED display.

Does anyone know, if NN270EA comes with DreamColor or does it have normal LED WUXGA WVA panel?

Thank you very much for any information regarding this product number.

Kind regards,
Mathew

 

as far as I know the NN270EA should have the WUXGA Dreamcolor RGB LED 8-Bit TN Panel

and I think all other WUXGA panels of the 8730w are CCFL and not LED

and all are WVA (wide viewing angle)


Edit: does your version have the Dreamcolor sticker in the upper right of the display frame?

 

Thank you very much for your answer.
I had opened a case with HP Support and they say "as far as we know it doesn't sport DC panel".
So they closed the case and left us alone.

Well, even if it is a Renew machine it should have all the hardware the new one has, right!?

But as long as we can not find an official spec site for NN270EA what can we do?

Again thanks a lot for your answer!

Kind regards,
Mathew

Edit: No it does not have the sticker, but as I mentioned it is a Renew machine and not new retail...

 

there could be different models for different countries, though

what is the complete number?
e. g.
NN270EA#ABU

 

I found a German site

Hewlett Packard Elitebook 8730w (NN270EA) - Datenblatt - CHIP Online

it says DreamColor (under "Besonderheiten") but this could be an error

 

Really? I wasn't aware of that fact...

Yes, it is the NN270EA#ABU (Renew Gold)

The only official spec site I found was: https://h10057.www1.hp.com/ecomcat/hpcatalog/specs/provisioner/05/NN270EA.htm

Thanks a lot for your help.

 

Yes, I found that site a few days ago (before opening the case with HP Support).

HP Support says that NN270EA has the following SPS: 494017-001 SPS-PANEL, DSPLY 17.0 WUXGA WVA AG W/CAM

So I think there is nothing we can do about xD

The funny thing is, our customer is HP and they wanted it for their CCW booth during CeBit *lol*

Maybe we should do an update with some 8740w sporting DC panel

Thanks a lot!

 

the number after the # should only be for the keyboard and maybe the WLAN card which differs but who knows...

 

Yeah, absolutely

We do lots of re-localization (AK8, ABU, ABA, ARL --> ABD) and normaly the Hardware is all the same (Western Europe). WLAN cards are different in russian models e. g. and restricted WWAN cards.

 

Hi all,to anyone interested there's a cheap 3 in 1 NAS Dock on EBAY Brand new , they work pukka with the 8730w I have 2 of them ,Item number: 150565874056.Not often you see these so grab one if you like the idea even comes with the 180w supply that work with the 8730w aswell.

 

Does it come with the 160GB hard drive? I was under the impression those were option$$$... Thanks for the tip!

 

Yup,the hard drive is std fitment 160 GB 7,200 rpm ,the extra multibay II drive is the optional part, and yes hard drive can be boosted to 650GB.Check some of my earlier posts got pics of my 8730w on one of them it looks like its gonna go for a steal its worth it for the power pack at that price !! I'd have it but got too much junk as it is missus would kill me if she saw another dock appear

 

LOL!!! you should just see how much space in our house is already occupied by 'Stuff'!!! Although I have many shelves already, what I really need is a warehouse!!!

 

what is the maximum of hard disks anyway?
2 in laptop
2 in NAS docking

this won't work, I read somewhere? Is 3 maximum?

 

Are you really sure about that?

When I tried mine on my 8530w a while ago the laptop didn't even recognise the multibay HDD, not even on USB let alone SATA/PATA.

The NAS drive was there on the network, but I'm talking about an extra drive in the multibay II slot. The max drive size you can get from the NAS is 650GB. I have a 500GB in mine.

 

I do not have a multibay II item to try in the dock so can't be sure on that ( it's the only bit I haven't tried on 8730w Multibay II DVD ROM did work on a NX6325 I had ages ago when on Dock, and if my memory serves me well ?? lol it did load the Multibay drive via USB not IDE/PATA/SATA ) BUT I am bidding on Multibay II DVDRW on EBAY as we talk so shall let you know on that However the rest of the dock works fine even had the express card slot on the Dock ( Belkin FW800 Express Card ) attached to my Firewire 800 caddy that has a 600GB IDE hard drive and a HP Lightscribe DVDRW unit ,both of these were recognised and worked fine ? The Docks DVI output and the VGA output are pukka.All the USB's work and so do the PS2 ports , it also charges both the internal battery and the "C shaped" extended battery on the bottom of laptop ,so I reckon you may have had other issues Stumo ?? or 8530w is different to 8730w ?

Sotton I think you can only have 3 hard drives/Inputs connected at one point all to do with legacy IDE/PATA only 3 inputs at one point per motherboard was the way it was explained to me when I enquired of a true geek But you can add a hard drive ( or apparently a Printer for sharing -not tried this ! ) to the powered USB port on the Dock and it is added to the NAS pool, which is seperate to the IDE as it is a Network drive and NOT connected via the IDE/SATA input, so in answer to your question I guess 2 hard drives in lappy and if the Multibay works 1 hard drive in there aswell , that gives 3 inputs,and as the Dock is seperate as its via LAN 1 or 2 drives depending if you use the powered USB port , there is no direct connection on NAS drive to laptop even when docked , it has to be connected to a router or switch so the internal LAN on Dock can talk to the Laptop, via LAN Network.

 

Just to keep you all updated as I said I would.

Multibay DVD/RW drive arrived today , and I couldn't resist banging it into NAS 3 in1 Dock straight away to see if it would work, I braved it and tried with Win 7 first and lo and behold it worked ,I was amazed that Win 7 didn't do its usual trick of locking up and then refusing to log off without the button

I tried a DVD and Win 7 autoplayed it via media player with no setup of regioning or anything, and watched "How to be an Umpalumpa" from daughters DVD collection didn't try XP but if Win 7 was OK ,I KNOW XP will be.

Anyway down to the loading info for all geeks out there

Booted Win 7 on Dock with Drive in Multibay:

1/ USB MASS Storage Device is found and loaded
2/ MATSHIITA UJ-822Da USB Device is found and loaded ( Should read Matshiita with only 1 i, but forum thought I was swearing )

Goto "Devices and Printers" and a " USB MULTIBAY IDE 2.468 " is listed.

Checked "Device Manager" and both a USB Mass Storage Device is loaded in " USB Devices " and under " DVD CD ROM Drives " there is a " MATSHIITA DVD/RW USB Device"

So the answer is "YES" the Multibay does work on NAS 3 in 1 with 8730w , and by the way it has loaded I would say you could definitely exchange the " DVD/RW " with a " Multibay Hard Drive " module as it is also "USB MASS Storage " ,one interesting thing to note is the way Win 7 lists it as a "USB MULTIBAY IDE " device.

So for the record 8730w on NAS 3 in 1 , EVERY PORT and ALL Interfaces seem to work fine , the only thing you can't do is swap Drive in Laptop with Multibay Drive as they are different connectors.

I have added some pictures of the Caddies and connectors , note the difference in thickness between Multibay drive and 8730w Caddy, the 8730w drive will not fit into slot for Multibay on Dock.

 

Hi guys, thanks for all the replies to my latest post. I got my fx2700m replaced and now it's working.

But since that time I got fascinated in doing a little upgrade and found a really cheap x9100 dual extreme cpu to replace my p8700. I had read that there are two different motherboards, one for quad and one for dual, so I knew I shouldn't buy a quad since that wouldn't work. But just now I found a post by quasi51 were he says that no processors with TDP at 45W will work on the "low-end" motherboards. The x9100 is at 44W... :S

So my question is will it work? If I can be certain that it won't, then I don't have to open the package and can just sell it further immidiately.

I am aware that a new heatsink might be necessary but I haven't ordered it since I wanted to see how the old one managed first.

Thanks

PS on the 8530w the change seems to work. http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-compaq/443803-upgrading-8530w-cpu-core2duo-quadcore.html

 

did you get a new fx2700?

cause my fx2700 broke and was replaced by a fx3700 and I wonder if they just had trouble with all fx2700 or I was lucky cause they had only fx3700 in stock...

 

Yeah, got a new fx2700. You must have been lucky cause I specifically aked if upgrade could be combined somehow, but no no.

 

anyone knows how the warranty works for HP?
my 8730 shows that it has 3 years left

 

at least you can call HP and they pick up your laptop, repair it and send it back, no costs for you

if you have a special warranty (you have to pay for it) you can get repair at your house (but I don't know much about this)

 

do they require original invoice?
or they just go with serial number?

 

serial is enough, no invoice required (own experience last year, but I don't think it has changed)

I called and it was picked up by UPS, no package needed, the UPS man had a cardboard box, I got a tracking number by mail.

They told me to send power supply and battery with the laptop.

My unit was sent to Poland, there seems to be the main repair center for Europe, it took 8 days from and back to my door (graphic card was replaced)

 

Ok, since I didn't get any answers to the CPU question I went ahead and installed it. It seems to be working just fine! I use Core temp and see that both cores get a load. So everything seems great.

Just to be sure, is there anyway to see notice any problems with the processor if there are any?

 

thanks i need to call them to get warranty as well

 

It's pity to admit, but the quality of HP EliteBook 8730w and its components leaves much to be desired.

After two years of usage the following items of my HP EliteBook 8730w were replaced (under warranty):

• CPU fan (clicking sound when operating)
• DreamColor LCD display with upper lid (red corner problem)
• HP 180W Smart AC Adapter AK875AA (clicking sound when operating)

I thought it's all, however on the last week I've installed HP System Diagnostics UEFI 3.6.0.0 on specially dedicated partition "HP_TOOLS" of my HDD and performed full system diagnostics with results below:

• Hard Disk Drive Test Failed (FAILURE ID: MANEK1-4HK5HS-XD6W2K-60TP03; Capacity: 320 GB)
• Primary Battery Test Failed (FAILURE ID: MANEK1-4905J8-XD6W2K-C0EC03)

Both items were replaced under warranty by my local HP office. There was no any error messages during boot process or anywhere. New replaced items have successfully passed all tests.

If I didn't use HP System Diagnostics UEFI I would never have thought that there were some problems. Sudden battery loss is bearable, but the recovery of 320 GB HDD is too much for me.
Therefore I encourage all of you to install and check you units before it's too late!

 

good to have 3 years warranty...

my battery is worn out but this is because of normal usage, I think (it is no long life battery)

my case shows strong signs of wear where the hand palms rest (I don't use an external mouse)

yeah, it could be of better quality

 

just checked, 6000 hours of power on time, so I think besides the graphic card failure once I should not complain

 

Where did you get this value?

 

yeah, little work around...

I have a Seagate hard disk and used SeaTools from Seagate

Downloads: Hard Drive Installation & Computer/PC Diagnostic Software | Seagate

there is a menu entry to get information about your hard disk and it shows the power-on hours of the hard disk (besides other information)

I almost used only this hard disk and so it has only a little less power-on hours than the 8730w itself.

I think SeaTools may work with other manufacturers but you can not use all features or get not all information but if you have a Seagate it is worth a try.

 

Just to remind the useful information from HP Battery Health Center...

Battery care practices
Battery cells suffer gradual, irreversible capacity loss over time. Such aging occurs more rapidly as temperature and discharge loads increase. Here are some suggested ways to minimize the capacity loss for your battery.

• Store Li-Ion batteries between 20°C and 25°C (68°F and 77°F) with 30% to 50% charge.
• Do not leave batteries exposed to high temperatures for extended periods. Prolonged exposure to heat (for example, inside a hot car) will accelerate the deterioration of Li-Ion cells.
• Remove the battery if the notebook will be stored (turned off and not plugged into AC power) for more than 2 weeks.
• Remove the battery if the notebook will be plugged into AC power continuously (via a wall adapter or docking station) for more than 2 weeks.

 

Agreed. This is good advice. Furthermore, the HP8730w, and presumably others laptops in its class, has another ace in its sleeve, it charges the battery only if the level goes below 95% ("Plugged in, not charging"). This is akin to unplugging the battery (sometimes for days if your power supply works correctly), it prevents repetitive, constant charging and keeps the battery cooler.

I have a spare battery for my HP 8730w and I switch it every couple of months, and when I switch to the spare, its level is usually still very high, usually more than 75%. This is a good way to extend the life span of both batteries if you have more than one, but will not double them (If you only use a laptop off the wall occasionally, it's not an economy to get two batteries, but for me it was mission critical as the DC panel can gobble a lot of power). Also, never keep a battery in a discharged state for too long, most Lithium batteries have a chip which prevents charge if voltage falls below a set point ( I believe it's 2.5V per cell). Excessive discharge is as bad as excessive charge, more so than NiMH or NiCd batteries, and they don't need to be totally discharged except for the first few times of use, to establish the battery capacity, and on occasion to reestablish it.

For utmost longevity, keep the battery around 50% state of charge and cool, as advised. It has been discovered that Lithium batteries wear the longest when kept at a 40% charge level and relatively cool, as stated.

Lithium batteries in laptops should last about 3 years when used tethered with a smart charging algorithm before their capacity loss becomes problematic. My Toshiba laptop, which is used every day, has had its battery capacity reduced to about 1 hour and 20 minutes from about 2 hours and 20 minutes after 3.5 years, with occasional use on battery.

If your battery lasts less than your warranty, either it's bad, it's poorly charged or you are using it on battery most of the time. Lithium Ion batteries are light and convenient, but they are claimed to be able to go only through about 300 charge cycles. Lithium polymer batteries, like those used in some Macs, are "supposed" to last longer.

Modern batteries, when of good quality, are a far cry from those that equipped the first laptops. The batteries then used to last no more than a about a year, less if used as a portable. Quality is also important. Unless you get a smoking deal, cheap batteries are often, well, cheaper

As you can see I'm pretty much into batteries, sorry for the long ramble, but essentially, I concur