*HP EliteBook 8740w Owners Lounge - PART 1*

20 day is much too long, did they wait for any part? 1 week should be normal...

you have the WUXGA resolution with LEDs? which manufacturer?

you can check out with this tool called SIW (free) SIW | System Information for Windows by Gabriel Topala

have you tried to change the refresh rate and so on?

 

yes

10char

 

Yupp it has WUXGA with leds and Nvidia 2800.

I have tried all sorts of things, refresh rates (60hz is max), etc.

I also has a Lenovo X201 and a Lenonvo W510, which i don't have any problems with.

My colleagues don't se anything wrong with the screen. But they only look at it for a short moment.

I thinking of retruning it to HP and buy an other computer. I bought it because i really liked the 8710w.

 

Maybe you should try different drivers for the 2800 or replace it with the FirePro. I think the screen HP uses is a pretty standard one that can also be found in Lenovo W7xx and Dell M6500. If you are able to see flickering then for some reason it doesn't operate @60hz. It can be due to a driver problem, since you say that they replaced the system and the issue is still there.

 

Folks,
I am thinking about buying this machine, and I do not care that much about the DC2. I have a great dell 24' panel at home that I am using for photo editing etc. But what about the quality of LED WESGA 1900x1200? I am currently using Mac book Pro 13, and really like its LED screed. How does that compare to WUSGA? Any feedback from those of you who own the machine is greatly appreciated. Thnks

 

If the non-DC2 WUXGA (1920x1200) screen is the same as the previous generation (and Dell Precision M6400/6500), then it will be better than the MBP 13 since it would be 8-bit as opposed to the latter's 6-bit. FYI WSXGA+ is 1680x1050, WXGA+ is 1400x900, WXGA is 1280x800. FHD is 1920x1080, HD+ is 1600x900 (typically), and HD is 1366x768.

 

ARGH still waiting on reply from sales rep to last week's email . . .
Once I get it, pretty sure I'll be buying right away, so this evening or tomorrow . . .

One question he probably won't/can't answer because warranty: do we think the i7-9xx processor they're planning to offer will be able to be dropped in to an older mobo (i.e., one bought now with an 820)?

 

If you get it with the 820QM now and they offer the 920XM or 940XM in the future, then yes, you will be able to upgrade to either of those CPUs (most likely also require a BIOS update).

 

I believe, it was already done by Xsrx a while ago and generally, shouldn't be a problem. The only concern is the heat and possibly some power related issues if paired with the upcoming Quardo FX4800M (or whatever it's called).

 

Thanks guys. Yeah, I'd probably try to replace the heat sinks/pipes if I did the upgrade, and I'm going for ATI gfx.

 

If you're going for a quad CPU to begin with - no need to replace HS and pipes. There are 2 types of sinks, 1 for dual-cores and 1 one for quads. With ATI you have more TDP headroom for a 940XM

 

How much did extra did DC2 cost before HP pulled the option?

Having a better display would be nice, but it's hardly a dealbreaker for me.

Can anyone confirm the specs on the non-DC2 1920x1200 (WUXGA+) display? 8-bit color, IPS, etc?

 

Ok, good then. Easier is better! (I probably won't do it at all, but knowing I can is helpful.)

 

I have now tried all that i can think of to get the screen look alright, but every attempt has failed.

It is too bad, i really liked the computer, but i can't live with the blue/grayish/flickering/cold screen and the headake i get after 20 minutes of use.

I don't think there is anything wrong with it(no one else seems to have my problem), its just not compatible with my eyes....

The new plan is to return it to HP and go for a Lenovo W701 (which i will test before i buy).

In the mean time i have to rollback to my trusty old 8710w

 

DC2 is a $500-ish upgrade. I say 'is' and not 'was' because some of use still have open orders w/the DC2 screen.

Non-DC2 is 8-bit, and not IPS.

 

I think the price was closer to 600$ with camera and mic.

 

Just ordered my Elitebook 8740 for $1861.92 (2010.87 after tax) with free 2 day shipping. Thank you Knight427 for giving me your rep info. The rep was able to swing the 28% after a little nudging I like how you can opt of the "Windows Tax" (I have my own licenses)!

Here is my config:
VG305AV
Alternate OS
HP Elitebook 8740w Mobile Workstation - QUAD
FreeDOS
Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor (1.60 GHz, 6 MB L3 cache), Up-to 2.8 GHz with Intel Turbo Boost Technology
Intel Core i7 Label
Mobile Intel QM57 Chipset
Intel vPro Processor Technology NOT Supported
17.0-inch diagonal LED-backlit WUXGA+ WVA anti-glare (1920x1200) with camera
Webcam Integrated 2.0MP w/HP Skyroom Required selection for Camera Display
ATI FirePro M7820 graphics with 1 GB dedicated GDDR5 memory
2 GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (1D)
250GB 7200RPM Hard Drive
DVD+/-RW SuperMulti with Double Layer LightScribe Drive
Backlit - Full-sized keyboard with numeric keypad and dual pointing devices (touchpad and pointstick) with scroll zone
HP Integrated Module with Bluetooth® 2.1 Wireless Technology
Intel Centrino® Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3)
Built in HP Mobile Broadband not included
56K v.92 high speed modem
Integrated Fingerprint Reader
200W HP Smart AC Adapter
8-Cell 73 Wh Li-Ion Battery (1 year warranty)
Limited 3 year standard parts and labor warranty (3/3/3)

 

You mean you ordered the laptop without either W7P or XP Pro OS installed?
Am I understanding this right? Damn, I didn't know you could order them without OS.
I have extra copies of genuine W7U laying around that I could use instead.

So when you ordered it, did you just tell them that you wanted the laptop without any OS installed and that's it?
If yes, how much did they deduct from the price by not having OS installed?

 

Just sent a config off to Knight427's guy. How did y'all place the order - is it through him, or do you use the site and he gives you a code?

RampageII, it looks like you save $102 (base price) by going with FreeDOS.

With a 28% discount, HP's RAM is almost reasonably priced (16GB for $850) . . . but I'm buying with 2GB and getting two of these (16GB for $640, with a lifetime warranty).

Anyone have advice on what SSD to buy? (HP's SSD is no-manufacturer-specified ) Gonna get the bottom HD and swap it out.

 

If their SSD is 80 or 160GB, it's an Intel, else it will be a Samsung. As for SSD, there are many good choices. If you want performance, consider a Sandforce based drive, if you want battery life, Samsung is where it's at. On average, performance based on controllers is: Sandforce > Intel > Indilinx > Samsung > Toshiba.

 

Oh, so to avoid paying for Windows license, you just select the option for Free DOS?
I 've seen that option before, but I never bothered to config one with it before. It just never occurred to me that by selecting free DOS, you we're saving some cash from windows license fee.
Although if it's only $102 to get both W7 and XP, it may not be a good idea to skip it when it's time to sell it.

Thanks.

I agree with you on the selection of RAM and HD. I would also get the bare minimum and later upgrade to my liking.
You're almost guarantee to find those two for less if you buy them from aftermarket vs getting them from HP.

That's how I got my 1TB RAID0 and 8GB RAM setup on my 8730w.
If I would have bought those two things from HP, the price would have been ridiculous.

 

50 min of playing Portal and about 10 min of cool down. You can see that about 30 min in the data has reached the slow portion of the log curve rise as it gets close to 80 degrees, but then the GPU load starts to get sporadic and the nice log curve is lost.

 

Are you suspecting some throttling? Was the gameplay always smooth? No lag? If so, there's nothing to worry , but I'd keep an eye on it for some time. The temp's perfect, BTW.

 

The game played smooth, no problems at all. If the 2 clock speeds are an indication of throttling, then there was none. They were at 700/1000 the entire time. Thanks for the feedback, I'm new to benchmarking and temp monitoring. So if I keep tracking the temps while playing, what should I be looking for in the data?

 

It's just sometimes vendors would use some tricks to ensure the lower temps of CPU/GPU by throttling their clocks down at certain temps. In your case it doesn't really look like it, so don't worry. Normally, I just keep the monitoring software up and running and look at the max temps once in a while to ensure that no critical limits reached. I'd start worrying if the CPU/GPU hits 90C occasionally.

 

You only get XP in the same sense that you would with any Win7 Pro purchase - HP won't send you XP recovery media unless you buy a system preconfigured with the XP downgrade [in which case the configuration insists that you select the *32-bit* Win7 recovery media . . .]. You have "downgrade rights" in any case since it's Pro, but you have to supply your own media (and activate over the phone using an old XP key and the new Win7 license).

If you're swapping out the drive, you could just leave it hanging around with the original OS and software, then pop it back in when you go to sell the machine - pristine condition! Never used system! First-run out-of-box-experience all ready to go!


Also, thanks for the SSD tips, sgogeta4.

 

So by selecting "XP downgrade" (instead of just W7P) you get W7P pre-installed, as well as the OS discs for both W7P and XP Pro (should you choose install later) right?
If you just select any of the W7 options, then all you get is W7 and no XP right?
My old 8710w and my current 8730w both came with vista 64 pre-installed, as well as the OS discs for both vista 64 and XP pro. So I guess someone selected "XP downgrade" as an option. Otherwise, it would have come with Vista only.

 

Correct, you can order hp elitebooks with FreeDOS, which is free. You can do that on the online configurator page thing

 

Nope.

The tech replying to my email said "This option is for those customers choosing XP Pro pre-loaded with Win 7 as the upgrade in the box;" -- You either get XP on the machine, with Win7 (32 bit, according to the order page) discs (and optional XP media), OR you get Win7 only (with optional Win7 discs, and no XP media allowed).

He could have been wrong, but I specifically asked if one could get both discs with Win7 loaded, and the answer was no.
Presumably, the XP preload uses a one-time key, based on your Win7 license - so if you removed XP and put it back, you'd need to do the phone thing over again. Also, note that downgrade rights do not permit simultaneous installation of Win7 and XP - don't know if the update service enforces it, but the single-use key thing would make it possible for them to kill one if they see the other.

 

My mistake. I meant to say that my laptops were preloaded with XP and that they provided the OS for both Vista 64 and XP pro.

As far as using both at the same time..... I always dual boot my laptops (and desktops) with W7U and XP Pro and I've never noticed any conflict. With the XP pro OS disc, there is no need to enter a key. It's automatically entered while it's being installed.
I've performed multiple OS reintalls (both my 8710w and 8730w) and not once have I ever had to enter the XP serial number.

 

Do you mean the "top non-DC2" panel is the same as the DreamColor 1 panel for the 8730w? This panel is an 8-bit TN panel with Wide Viewing Angles (WVA) and it uses a RGB LED backlight.

Can you confirm this? Thank you.

 

Unfortunately, I can't confirm that it's the exact same as in the 8730w as I don't have access to either @ this moment; can only point you to things I read in this thread.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-...ebook-8740w-owners-lounge-25.html#post6151327

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-...ebook-8740w-owners-lounge-67.html#post6217359

It would makes sense that it would be the same display but I'm not going to make any unequivocal statement as I have no basis for saying so. (no rep for me! ) One might be able to compare the model numbers in the service manuals to determine that, if HP isn't in the habit of changing part numbers with laptop models that is.

 

I am on the verge of buying an 8740w, but I confess to being nervous about the vertical viewing angle of the screen - this is what ruins most laptops for me. The small viewing angle on many TN screens means that, even when you are positioned perfectly in front of it, colors start to darken and lighten near the top and bottom of the screen. Personally, it gives me a headache after working more than an hour.

8740w owners: is any one of you willing to do me a huge favor by posting a snapshot or two showing the vertical viewing angle (ie.with the screen viewed from slightly below and above). Thanks so much!

Oh and I am talking about the regular WLED 1920x1200 screen.

 

For these reasons (vertical angles, color inversion, poor brightness and so on) most of us we are expecting the DreamColor 2 panel. As an IPS panel's user with two desktop monitors using this technology (NEC 20WGX2 S-IPS & NEC 2490WUXi with H-IPS) I don't want any other TN. The DC2 release is scheduled for June, 21st and it's expected it will have, at least, 300 nits of brightness. If you can wait, then wait. I'm pretty sure the wait will be well worth.

 

300 nits? really? Fingers crossed for that, as our coming DC2 will have RGB edge light, not direct backlight; unless things were dramatically re-engineered in the last month and and perhaps a 1/2 inch added to the lid thickness.

 

@m80:

At least, this is the brightness level for the old DreamColor 1 panel. Only it's a speculation, but it's very likely the new DC2 screen will have this quantity or even more.

 

If you're like me, you hate paying inflated HP prices for upgrades! Here's the best deal I found on memory:
Super Talent 2gb DDR3-1333 for $47.02 before shipping. There's a coupon code (easily found on the site) that knocks 15% off the price. They also offer USPS First Class as a cheap shipping option!! My order for 2x2gb of DDR3 came out to $82.05 with USPS First Class.

 

You know it's weird, sometimes HP offers amazingly good prices (e.g. dual SSDs in the Envy15, 4GB 1 dimm "upgrade" on the Envy17), and sometimes they offer amazingly bad prices (8GB 2 dimms).

 

Looks like I'm not gonna get the backlit keyboard, just got a message from rep there saying that in order to do so I'll have to cancel and rebook the current order (and that's after they assured me that they would send me the keyboard separately! ) This is the second time I'm about to cancel my order and stay away from HP for the rest of my life, lol. They didn't even offer a discount for all the hassle.

 

Wow. ... I sure hope they don't send me some 14" consumer laptop when they finally send me something!

 

@Micael_aman

To correct the color temp problems - you can try to adjust it in the nVidiaControlPanel under Display>Adjust desktop color settings

As for the flickering problem, I think this could be a contact problem - you can try to check the panel cable/connector all the way to the board.

Lastly, you didn't mention whether you switched off the Ambient Light Sensor...


I switched off the ALS on the 8540w loaner I'm using - the brightness (@70%, any brighter and my eyes hurt) and color is very satisfactory.

 

I spent an hour on the phone with Support. My primary issue is sudden crashes similar to those reported by users with all 4 DIMMs filled (I only have 2x2GB though). My tech had no information regarding a similar problem in her files though. Anyway, in the end, she said I need to re-image the hard drive. I ordered my Win7 disks yesterday. But I'm doubtful this is the problem. She was having me look into the event logs for information, but we had a hard time communicating b/c my screen didn't seem to exactly match her prompts (plus she had an accent which becomes problematic when things go according to script).

I think I am going to live with the problem until BIOS F.04 is released. I really don't want to have to start over on setting up my system when I'm unconvinced my tech found the true problem.

EDIT: also still have the fan on after waking from sleep issue, changed setting in BIOS to fan is not always on while plugged in...didn't help

EDIT2: just got another crash, went to event log (I learned that much from my tech at least)...this appears to be at the time of crash, anyone know what it means?
The following boot-start or system-start driver(s) failed to load:
AFD
AvgLdx64
AvgMfx64
AvgTdiA
CSC
DfsC
discache
NetBIOS
NetBT
nsiproxy
Psched
rdbss
spldr
tdx
vwififlt
Wanarpv6
WfpLwf

 

I don't know if having all for RAM slots is actually a problem. I've been running that way since almost day one and have yet to have a hard crash like has been experienced by others. I'm thinking the RAM was a red herring.

knight427, onto your event log entries. There are two you need to be most concerned with - Application and System. (In win 7 do this: Start, type 'compmgmt.msc' then expand event viewer > Windows Logs) What you are looking for are events BEFORE your crash. The drivers failing to load would either be directly after boot or on your previous boot. Take a look in your logs and document some timestamps THEN reboot. See of you get the same errors. I'm thinking what the tech mentioned about re-imaging your system might actually solve your problem - it is a little drastic, certainly, but would address a software / driver issue. If you find some events that you feel need further research just go to eventid.net and enter the details there.

Anyway, I can confirm that the 'fan after sleep' is an issue. I'm also attempting to document a couple of other minor problems:

I've got an external monitor attached via VGA cable. When I restart or boot my laptop with this connected about half the time it doesn't seem to come on - it'll just flicker. I don't have display port on my monitor so this is the only current way I can connect it until I get my docking station.

My other one is one I found today. I'm a little puzzled by this as well. I was trying to get some better audio via external speakers. I was tweaking with the IDT EQ and listening to some music. Well, after I had to pause it for a couple no sound came back after unpausing it. It seemed like the driver was causing confusion between the headphones and speakers in WMP. I even ran into this after a reboot.

 

Thanks Tyraxus. I had many problems following the tech b/c she made me boot in safe mode. The Computer Management in safe mode is nearly unusable. I'm glad I can check those in "normal mode".

I noticed 3 errors that happen at startup. They have the same event id but have not been addressed on eventid.net yet. I guess I'll keep an on eye on things and see if I can id some repetitive errors correlated to crashes.

I'll be bummed if I have to re-image my hard drive. I'm so dumb about this stuff...I didn't get a restore disk or Win7 media. I ordered the media yesterday, but I'm not sure I'm getting a restore disk. I can burn one of those, right? Are they perfectly reliable when you burn one, or should I make 2?

 

@ Tyraxus,
Nice troubleshooting tips! +1 rep.
It's a relief that you don't have those crashes with 4 memory banks. Hopefully the problem reported by others is software/drivers related.

@ knight427,
I'd suggest getting another HDD, swapping those and making a clean install on the new drive. Minimal drivers, free antivirus (AVAST, MSE) and check if the problem re-occurs.

 

Doesn't HP include a utility which generates and burns recovery dvds? There should also be a hidden partition which can restore your system to factory defaults.

Another option would be to do a clean install of Windows 7 through this guide. It's for Acer, but the same concepts apply.

You can download legal Windows 7 .iso direct from Digital River, a Microsoft distributer:
- Windows 7 Professional x64
- Windows 7 Professional x86

 

Just ordered mine, through knight427's guy. I just said in the first email "I hear people have gotten 28% discounts, can you give me the same?" and he did, plus free two-day shipping. So, it's pretty easy to get - just ask. (He did add that he was able to give that "for now," implying that at some point he would not - perhaps after the DC2 relaunch?)

Spec:

Configurable - HP EliteBook 8740w Mobile Workstation Quad Core (ENERGY STAR) VG305AV
-HP Elitebook 8740w Mobile Workstation - QUAD
-Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64
-MS Windows 7 Logo Label ** doesn't apply to Win 7/XPP downgrade OS AV's
-Intel® CoreT i7-820QM Processor (1.73 GHz, 8 MB L3 cache), Up-to 3.06 GHz with Intel Turbo Boost Technology
-Intel Core i7 vPro Label
-Mobile Intel QM57 Chipset
-Estar Label
-Intel® vPro Technology (Only available with Intel WLAN)
-17.0-inch diagonal LED-backlit WUXGA+ WVA anti-glare (1920x1200) with camera
-Webcam Integrated 2.0MP w/HP Skyroom Required selection for Camera Display
-ATI FirePro M7820 graphics with 1 GB dedicated GDDR5 memory
-2 GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (1D)
-250GB 7200RPM Hard Drive
-DVD+/-RW SuperMulti with Double Layer LightScribe Drive
-Backlit - Full-sized keyboard with numeric keypad and dual pointing devices (touchpad and pointstick) with scroll zone
-HP Integrated Module with Bluetooth® 2.1 Wireless Technology
-Intel Centrino® Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3)
-56K v.92 high speed modem
-Integrated Fingerprint Reader
-200W HP Smart AC Adapter
-8-Cell 73 Wh Li-Ion Battery (1 year warranty)
-Limited 3 year standard parts and labor warranty (3/3/3)
-Windows 7 Driver DVD - Recovery Media Not available with FreeDos
-Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 OS Restore Media Not available with FreeDos


About to buy two of these (=16GB RAM).
Still working on picking the SSD, and the backpack.

 

I had 3 crashes tonight, all after 10-15 min of playing Portal. This gave me several chances to check out the logs. I found the 3 errors that occur after every startup and sent them to HP in chat. The tech believes it is an OS problem (which I'm now inclined to believe). I'll be receiving my restore disks in 1-2 days and should have my Win7 disks by then I think I'll wait until I have the "real" disks in hand to do this.

I'm also working to escelate the Sleep Mode (fan on) issue. Gotta reinstall F.03 and video drivers now to make the HP tech happy.

EDIT: 2 hours later I've updated all drivers, reinstalled F.03 and run system diagnostics on HP's website. The diagnostics kept hanging on the Video Adapter test, so they finally said they would escalate it to the next level and get back to me in 24hrs. I can see why these issues don't get fixed, most people don't have the patience to jump through the endless hoops.

 

What were the three errors?

Also, I agree with the "get real discs" method, 'cause I don't know that the recovery partitions have checksums from a known-good config or other protection against corruption.

Re: my SSD

If this is true, then if the Corsair P256 is representative of Samsung drives, buying the SSD from HP is a good price to start and *excellent* after the discount. This implies to me that it's not a Samsung or that not all Samsungs are equal. All the other HDs are ridiculously marked up over brand-name drive prices even if you discount the price of the base one. Dunno.

In any case, I've decided to go with an OCZ Vertex 2E 240GB. With current pricing (everyone has it marked way down - introduction period perhaps?), it's cheaper than the normal Vertex 2 AND the Agility 2 line, and just about the same as previous-gen drives like the P256. The Crucial RealSSD C300 is faster on most read tests (but needs SATA III to see major gains), is worse in a number of write tests, and when active draws 3-4x the power, enough to make it actually potentially affect the abysmal battery life of this ridiculously power-hungry laptop.

Also, I waited on the RAM and it's now sold out @ Newegg. That's fine, the G.SKILL is cheaper, and I'm not sure how I missed it before.

Now all I need to find is a backpack that won't bounce when I run, and I'm all set!

 

have you tried another game? this could be a driver problem with the ATI drivers (or maybe directx update could help, there was just an update
Microsoft Download Center: Product Family Search Results )


about the fan: do you have any programs installed which show temperature and so on? maybe this has something to do with it

have you tried sleep mode after booting in safe mode?