Dv5t-First Laptop?

Hi, this is my first post here and I'm looking to get my first laptop. I have made up my mind to get the Dv5t. I know a little about computers but have never had a laptop so I would appreciate some feedback on my configuration, am I missing anything, should I do anything different, etc.? I am planning to upgrade the memory and the hard drive to save some money and get better performance. Also, I will not be doing any gaming and would like to have a good balance of performance vs. battery life.

Here is my configuration:

2-year Accidental Damage Protection Extended Service Plan for Notebook PCs
UA046A
$249.99

HP Pavilion Entertainment dv5t customizable Notebook PC
KQ574AV
• – Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
• – Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8400 (2.26 GHz)
• – 15.4" diagonal WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Display (1680 x 1050)
• – FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 1GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• – 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 9200M GS No Gaming
• – FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection Will upgrade to 7200rpm and would like to know what to search for to find out how to reload vista on new drive
• – [For BrightView Infinity Display] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
• – HP Color Matching Keyboard
• – Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN and Bluetooth(TM)
• – No Modem
• – LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
• – No TV Tuner w/remote control
• – High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
• – Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
• – HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
$1,293.99


HP Deskjet D1560 Printer Free After Rebate
CB710A#BGJ
$69.99

TOTAL: $1341.93 - $70 printer rebate = $1271.93

I would also like know what everyone thinks about these items from newegg:

D-Link DIR-655 IEEE 802.11n (draft) IEEE 802.11g IEEE 802.11b IEEE 802.3 IEEE 802.3u Xtreme N Gigabit Router - Retail $99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127215

Seagate Momentus 7200.2 ST9200420AS 200GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Notebook Hard Drive - OEM $99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148307

OCZ 4GB (2 x 2GB) 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Laptop Memory Model OCZ2M8004GK - Retail $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227251

Thanks

 

These look good. Is 200GB the limit? I would go for a higher one. If there is a 320GB at 7200 RPM I would definately get that. But this maybe your budget, so 200GB is still a lot of space.

Also, since you have that 250GB spare, I would get a 2.5" enclosure and use that as an external HD. Newegg has them also.

As for re-installing Windows Vista to the new HD, it's easy.

1. Burn a copy of the "Recovery Disk".
2. Swap out your old HD with the new one.
3. Use the recovery disk to re-install Vista or do a clean install. [There's a clean install guide here in the forum, but you need to get your hands on a Vista disc]

That's all you have to do. RAM is pretty easy to install as well. Good luck.

 

200GB is what I want for the money and like you said, I will still have the original 250GB. Do you have any recommendations for the enclosure. I looked at newegg and there were hundreds.

As for as installing Vista on the new hdd, why do I have to burn a copy of the recovery disc? Is it because there is no disc, it's on the hdd?

Thanks for the help.

 

You can burn discs using the "recovery" software that comes pre-installed on the laptop.

 

Thanks Harper.
Also, will I need to buy a draft n card for my desktop?

Thanks

 

You'd only need one if you have a Draft-N wireless router and want to take full advantage of it.

 

kmb997, choose any of them. As long as it's a 2.5". Is the 250gb SATA or IDE? I'm not quite sure, just make sure you choose the correct interface for your notebook.

If you're spare HD is IDE, then this will be okay:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817334008

If it's SATA:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817334012

Both dont require you to plug it in to a powersource. USB will power it up.
I'm pretty sure all HP hard drives on the dv5t are SATA interface...Both are under 10 bucks too.



As for the draft-n wireless card for you're desktop, you don't have to...you're current wireless card should work fine, but it won't get the 300mbp speed...because it would be limited to the card.

 

I don't have a wireless card on my desktop. I just figured if my desktop was connected to the wireless router, I wouldn't need one. Is this correct?

Thanks

 

You should really look for a coupon code. I got 30% of my laptop, brought it from 1300 to like 926.

 

The price I listed includes the $200 off coupon. Are there any other coupons that you know about?

 

The OCZ RAM from Newegg will work fine. I got that for my dv4t, easy install, no problems. You have to burn the recovery disks because HP includes no disks with your laptop purchase. You need to burn them first thing after starting the computer, and put them somewhere safe. There is a little card that will come in with the laptop that will tell you how to make the disks. Plan on about an hour or a bit more for the whole process.

 

I have the same laptop (I bought mine at best buy for 1000 dollars, but it was on sale and still came out to 1200 after tax lol) and its awesome. I use it for school and I just put it into sleep mode when I am not using it in class, it lasts all day on high performance that way. Ive gone 3 days on my customized power saver mode (lowest backlight setting, low CPU usage, etc) and wifi off and i didnt have to charge it (keep in mind that I used it an hour at a time, 15 minutes in sleep mode, then another hour class and I was only typing on word)
It does great with media, visually and with the audio. The HP speakers by lansing are kickass
get it
i did
and its good lol

 

Thanks for all the help.

 

Does it make sense to get the 2 year warranty if I'm planning to upgrade the hdd and ram? Is there anything else I should get, like a surge protector or extra battery, etc.?

 

If you upgrade the RAM & HDD and something goes wrong, you'd have to replace them with the factory installed ones in order for your warranty to stay in tact.

Other than that, the extra battery is if you need to use your laptop for longer than 2-3 hours at a time. I'm not sure about the surge protector though.

 

The surge protector and extra battery was all I could think of. I'm just wondering if anyone bought some extras that they feel are essential to have for a laptop.

Thanks

 

maybe a lock if you're going to be traveling.

 

The DV5T is a great 'first' laptop.

Here's the best deal on 2.5" 7200 RPM drives going:
http://www.provantage.com/seagate-st9320421as~7SEGS1LL.htm
This drive has 16 MB of cache.

OK, if you have an Amex Card you will get one extra year of warranty coverage.

I just cloned my Hitachi HD to a Seagate HD using Acronis. Note: I had to run a quick "repair" to make the cloned drive bootable. I used a spare Vista 64 bit OS disk I had and selected repair disk when it booted. Apparently, there was a single missing/damaged boot file after the clone. Not sure why that happened. This is the first Vista clone I've done with Acronis 10. Perhaps version 11 doesn't have this issue. ???

If you plan on traveling with your computer I would recommend the Lojack option. I got the 4 year version.

Anyway, good luck with your decision.
JohnG

 

the complimentary extended Warranty is available on many Platinum level cards. I checked with mine and they said as long as I put the full balance on there of the purchase, it gets extended

 

Does the credit card extend just the regular warranty or does it include the accidental damage?

 

I'd check with your CC company...my guess its just regular warranty...in my case I believe its the manufacturers warranty

 

I called my credit card company and they do extend the warranty for an additional year. I don't think I will get the extended warranty from HP now.
Thanks

How much of a difference will I see upgrading the HDD from 5400 to 7200rpm and the RAM to 800mhz?

 

For the HDD, it depends on the size. Between two higher density platters(250gb+) there won't be a big difference. Also as of now Seagate is selling their harddrives (320gb 7200rpm) for under $90. You might want to shop around for those (I find a lot of em at slickdeals.net).

As for the RAM, I'm not sure, but IMO it's always a better to have faster RAM.

 

I don't have to get it here, but I was looking into this Seagate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148307

 

http://www.frys.com/product/4446976
http://www.buy.com/prod/western-dig...gb-3-gb-s-8-mb-cache/q/loc/101/206459164.html

320gb 7200rpm for less than $99.


edit: http://www.buy.com/prod/seagate-mom...320gb-7200rpm-serial/q/loc/101/208177962.html

another.

 

I just purchased the Dv5t with the $500 coupon. Here is what I got:

HP Pavilion Entertainment dv5t customizable Notebook PC
• Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
• Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T9400 (2.53 GHz)
• 15.4" diagonal WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Display (1680 x 1050)
• FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 1GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 9200M GS
• FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• [For BrightView Infinity Display] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
• HP Color Matching Keyboard
• Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN and Bluetooth(TM)
• No Modem
• LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
• No TV Tuner w/remote control
• High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
• Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
Total= $$1,026.59

Never had a laptop before, but this seems like a good deal.
Thanks for everyone's help.