ENVY 17-32XX Intel Ivy Bridge (AMD 7850M)

is 8gb vs 6gb of RAM really worth it? I'm not doing super demanding tasks

 

In my opinion, I'd skip the 2GB upgrade. If you feel the need to upgrade down the road, it would be more cost effective to buy the ram from a third party instead of the overpriced RAM from HP. Same thing goes for the SSD.

 

What do you guys think is best?
The 750gb hybrid drive (with the ssd cache?) or the 80gb ssd + 750gb?
So basically... Ssd cache or seperate ssd entirely

 

Nice to see the updated Envy 17 out...

now when to trigger the c/c and buying it.

 

Thanks everyone for keeping tabs on HP so I'd know when the new Envy 17 was out... I'm upgrading from a ClarkDale Envy 17 3D and looking forward to the performance boost. (Annoyed by the non-removable battery, though.)

Just ordered my replacement Envy 17 3D last night and was confused by a couple of things:

- 16 GB of 1600 memory was less expensive than 16 GB of 1333 memory????
- The 7850M graphics card was the same price as the 7690M graphics card????
- The wifi module was offered with and without the "Wireless Display Support" for the same price????
- The CPU description didn't mention the Turbo Boost ability, whereas they do everywhere else??? (I assume this is just a typo.)

Ben

 

Looking at Newegg the savings would only be $12. The cheapest and well rated 8gb kit on is $48.

 

The 80GB + 750GB option is faster. It should also be more expensive.

 

How long do you guys think this coupon will last? I talked to HP about returning my DV7T and they said they couldn't do an exchange since I placed the order using my HP Preferred Account. I have to wait until the refund is processed in order to place a new order. Worse case scenario I'll place the order with my credit card.

Edit: Nevermind. I called HP and they fixed whatever it was on their end and I got my order placed!

• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• 3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3610QM Processor (2.3 GHz, 6MB L3 Cache)
• Radeon(TM) HD 7850M Graphics 1GB GDDR5 Memory [HDMI, DP]
• 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 750G 7200 rpm Hybrid Hard Drive
• Microsoft(R) Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word/Excel(R) only, No PowerPoint(R)/Outlook(R)
• FREE 2-year Norton Internet Security subscription (a $99 value). Pre-installed.
• 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery - Up to 5.25 hours of battery life +++
• 17.3-inch diagonal Radiance Full HD Infinity LED-backlit Display (1920x1080)
• Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
• 720p HD video streaming webcam supports Skype
• Intel 2x2 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN + Bluetooth(R)
• Full-size Radiance backlit keyboard
• Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 10 & Adobe Premiere(R) Elements 10
• 2 year limited warranty included
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

Estimated ship date of June 13 with 2 day shipping.

 

Ok, now that the Envy 17 is coming I'm ordering an SSD for the primary drive. Is this the caddy I'll need?

Hard Drive Caddy & Cable for HP Envy 17 -3000 series (3xxx) [HP-ENVY-17-3000] - $27.95 : NewmodeUS, Hard Drive Caddys for Notebooks

 

Expecting to see a full tutorial on adding the new SSD... Youtube video would be great!

 

I'm pretty annoyed... I got the 17 3k about 2 months ago... and now this refresh is making my new laptop underpowered... Sure, the 7690 can take on quite a bit, but the 7850 will blow it out of the water from the seem of things... I would've waited on a laptop, but I was needing it for CAD.. and I couldn't wait..

 

Try not to feel too bad. I know how you feel, but that's the frustrating way it is with these things. Think about it this way, you're two months closer than the rest of us to the NEXT laptop upgrade!

The overall improvements from Sandy to Ivy aren't that big, and while I'm sure you might get a few extra fps with the upgraded graphics card, I can't imagine it'll really impact you all that much. And you've gotten the value of several months of enjoyment of a great laptop.

 

Hey Guys,

I posted this in the dv7 forum also, but wanted another set of opinions:


Newb here. Joined to ask this question. I recently received my dv7t, but the new envys are out. How much better are the Envys?

I am really contemplating returning my dv7 for an envy. Spec-ed similarly, the Envy comes out $110 more. I can also do the cashback from ebates or fatwallet, which I didn't do before on the dv7. What do you guys think?

For the dvy

dv7t Quad Ed
• 3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3820QM Processor (2.7 GHz, 8MB L3 Cache)
• NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GT 650M Graphics with 2GB GDDR5 memory [HDMI, VGA]
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 1TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• 32GB mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
• 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery - Up to 5.75 hours of battery life +++
• 17.3-inch diagonal Full HD Anti-glare LED-backlit Display (1920 x 1080)
• Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam
• Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
• Backlit Keyboard
• Included 2 Year Warranty

$1391.99

For the envy

3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3820QM Processor (2.7 GHz, 8MB L3 Cache)
Radeon(TM) HD 7850M Graphics 1GB GDDR5 Memory [HDMI, DP]
6GB 1600MHz DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
750G 7200 rpm Hybrid Hard Drive
FREE 2-year Norton Internet Security subscription (a $99 value). Pre-installed.
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery - Up to 5.25 hours of battery life +++
17.3-inch diagonal Radiance Full HD Infinity LED-backlit Display (1920x1080)
Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
720p HD video streaming webcam supports Skype
Intel 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R) with Wireless Display Support
Full-size Radiance backlit keyboard
Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 10 & Adobe Premiere(R) Elements 10
2 year limited warranty included

$1,501.86


dv7
has 8gb ram
1 tb hd
32gb mssd
gt650m 2gb graphics


Envy
has 6gb ram
750gb hybrid drive
7850m 1gb graphics


This laptop would have to last me at least 4 years, so that is why I have the highest processor. To my understanding the cpu would be difficult to change out compared to upgrading ram and ssd, so thats why the other components are not maxed out. I would really appreciate some help on this matter. Thanks!

 

Yeah, I know.. And I know about the whole thing about there always being something new out there that you'll want. The Ivy bride cpu upgrade wasn't the big piece I was wanting, sure, it would be nice.. but the i7 2670 will do fine. The GPU in my current is powerful enough to do what I want anyways... I think the main thing for me is that I can't have 16 gigs of 1600 mem.. I like messing with some virtual machines, nothing that major, but it's nice to have that much memory But really, the little differences won't make a major change..

 

the 6 gig set ships with a 4 gig and a 2 gig stick... So, for 4 gigs of corsair vengeance is only 25 bucks on newegg...

 

get the envy instead of DV7T
It is much nicer all over.
the WIFI is dual band in ENVY
but you wont get the finger print reader with ENVY.

and it is a big waste of your money to get a 3rd gen i7 with a 5400RPM HDD

 

How come the envy 15 has a different graphics card? and How come the envy 15 doesn't include the hd screen by default?

With the 33% off coupon, the envy 17 is about the same price. Is the website just messed up?

 

hey, I'm new here, I might get this laptop. How is the radeon 7580m overall.
Vs gtx 560m, 650m, 660m????

 

I currently have tthe new DV7.

The DV7 has good build quality, but the envy GREAT build quality. It has no plastic and is built with more aluminium The keyboard is also nicer and has more support for more displays.

The HD screen on the DV7 is very good and has very nice viewing angles. This new screen has not been reviewed yet, and people have said that if it is an IPS screen then it won't be good for gaming because of refresh rates. So that is up in the air.

Also the DV7 has an nvidia 650m card which uses Optimus technology. Switchable graphics were a nightmare on the old Envy that had 7690m XT which I had experience with. The nvidia is a NIGHT and DAY difference. Much better performance. Not much is known about the new radeon card on the Envy so again.. this is up in the air

The DV7 also has an exchangable battery. The battery on most laptops fail around 2-3 years. Right when the standard warranty fails. You CANNOT take out the battery of the envy (its in a solid enclosure)

So with these points in question it is difficult to make a decision unless someone posts a review about the screen/build quality/graphics performance

 

New user here who just registered on NBR.com. I just purchased the new Envy 17t-3200 with the 33% off coupon, with a ship date of June 13th. Very excited to get my new machine.

I've seen a few people post about a non-exchangable batteries. But the user manual linked in the first post clearly shows how you can remove it yourself (see page 39). It's not as easy as the usual slide-and-yank laptop batteries, and requires you to unscrew a few bits after popping the bottom panel, but I thought that it was a removable battery. Can anyone confirm that I'll be able to replace the Envy 17 battery when it starts losing its charge after a few years?

Oh, and here's my configuration with the 33% coupon:

$1,128.94 + free shipping + $71.69 tax
- 36.01 (3% fatcash) - 24.01 (2% fidelity amex credit card)
= $1140.61 final price

 

Yes. You can change an envy 17 3k battery. It will void your warranty to do that however..

 

Oh, hadn't thought about voiding the warranty. Good point. Hopefully by the time my battery's capacity to hold a charge has dwindled, it will be past my 2 yr warranty... Thanks.

Does opening it to install RAM or another hard drive also void warranty?

 

I don't really need the finger print reader. I do plan to get an ssd in the future when money isn't an issue, thats why I went with a mssd cache for the dv7. I would imagine a 7200rpm hybrid drive should perform similarly.

What are you guys opinion on the 3820q vs 3720q? How about for the graphics card, the 7850m vs the gt650m? I don't want to pay more for an inferior graphics card, you know.

Thanks for this! Definitely stuff to think about now.

 

I ordered the new 17 Envy Ivy Bridge on Sunday. It should be here on the 13th. I might write up a review if enough people are interested. I posted a review on the dv6t last month.

 

Wow. When is your ship date? I think there's a lot of people interested in a review. Not only because it's a refresh of the Envy line, but also because it's the only laptop with a 7850m. I'm going to post a comparison with the DV7T once I get mine.

 

Ok... So im confused. The "2x2" makes me assume that the first is dual band capable and without WiDi...

Is truly the only difference the WiDi feature? Because the second clearly says in the description that it's 2.5 and 5.0Ghz capable with improvements of 140% and 400% respectively. The "2x2" only mentions 2.5

•Intel 2x2 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN + Bluetooth(R)

•Intel 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R) with Wireless Display Support

HP Home & Home Office Store - More Info

 

That would be awesome!

Thats the biggest thing for me right now also, how well the 7850m performs. I prematurely asked hp to return my dv7, so I might have to ask them to extend it, lol. The coupon out there though won't last that long so i might still bite the bullet on an envy.

 

Thats the same impression that I got

 

I ordered the Envy with the following specs along with a Crucial 256GB m4 SSD. As of right now, I can't seem to decide whether I should do a fresh install of windows on the SSD, then install all the necessary drivers and software or if I should clone the original HDD that comes with the Envy so I can keep Photoshop, Norton, etc since I read that cloning degrades SSD performance.

Any advice?

 

I'm trying to figure out the best method as well. I also got the 256gb M4 and plan to install it as I get the laptop. Can the new Envy boot from a usb HDD since it has 4 USB 3.0 ports? I'd like to do a minimal install from a USB HDD if possible. If not, I suppose creating recovery DVD's is the only other option.

 

Does anyone know if you can send in the envy 17 for the newer Intel Ivy Bridge upgrades and AMD 7850m GPU

 

Also, quick question. There wouldn't be a problem putting in an ssd in the future correct? I would just have to order a caddy or something to have dual hard drives or do these have everything ready to just add an ssd and move the original drive over? Thanks!

 

The original 17-3xxx came with the cable for the second drive, but no caddy. I expect the same with 17-32xx. I plan on the same thing, ordering it with the hybrid 750 and throwing in a 280GB Intel 520 series ssd

Sent from my SGH-i917 Windows Phone using Board Express

 

Don't know if this was mentioned before, but I was customizing the HP Envy...

I saw that their version of the 7850M has only 1GB? Isn't it supposed to have 2GB?

 

You cannot. You'd be buying a new motherboard, processor, and GPU...the cost would be prohibitive enough that it makes more sense to just buy a new one.

 

From what I've seen, you likely won't utilize more than 1GB of the graphics card's memory in any game. You might only need it if you are doing some heavy CAD stuff, I think.

 

That's what's making me think that hp as messed with the hardware. Hope it's still fully supported by amd

Sent from my SGH-i917 Windows Phone using Board Express

 

The 7850M can come in 1gb and 2gb configuations (just like the 650M). It's up to the OEM's to determine which one they want to put in there. It's odd HP chose to only have 1gb, but it's not likely I'll use more than 1gb for any reason.

Although GTA IV can use more than 1gb, but it's a poorly coded game. For all other games, the performance of the 7850M isn't good enough to handle more than 1gb worth of textures anyways.

 

I asked this in another thread but thought I'd also ask here too since this thread seems more active...

With the i7-3910QM, 1GB 7850M, and 8GB 1600MHz RAM, should I be able to:

Play: Supreme Commander, SWTOR, Star Trek Online
at: 1080p w/ Med-High Settings w/ decent framerate?
at: 1080p w/ High-Ultra Settings w/ decent framerate?

I don't plan on playing any future games.

 

Thanks for the info! This is the caddy correct?

Hard Drive Caddy & Cable for HP Envy 17 -3000 series (3xxx) [HP-ENVY-17-3000] - $27.95 : NewmodeUS, Hard Drive Caddys for Notebooks

 

the 7850m should be right around the gtx 660m if not better. the gtx 660m gets 46 fps on supreme commander
40+ fps on SWTOR
idk about online... and thisis all ultra settings so u should be fine

 

Awesome awesome, thank you for the info!

I already ordered the HP... now I have to go cancel my Alienware m17x-r4 order before it ships LOL.

Pricewise, the HP is WAYYY better. Here is what I upgraded:

CPU: i7-3610QM
HDD: 160GB SSD + 750GB 7200rpm Hybrid HDD
RAM: 8GB
TOTAL: $1422.17 (Is that a good deal for what I got?)

To Compare:
Alienware m17x-r4
Upgraded to:
7970M
1080p Screen (Have no idea WHY this is not standard)
500GB 7200RM + 32GB mSATA caching
TOTAL: About $1853 (After Factoring in Gift Card Incentives ~$290 and having to purchase my own RAM and SSD)


I would have just gotten my own SSD and RAM and installed it myself but I am afraid of messing up on installing the OS on the after market SSD. The RAM upgrade of $60 (before 33% coupon code) is cheaper than buying my own ram plus I won't have to install it myself, which I don't really trust myself to do LOL.

 

The only thing to keep in mind is that the 7970M is the current top of the line card and trounces the 7850M. It's nearly double the performance. Something to keep in mind if serious gaming is important to you. If not, the Envy is a great choice.

 

So after coupons my order came up to $1200 w/ tax. Pretty much base config with just upgraded CPU, 7200 rpm hd. I am contemplating whether Samsung Chronos 7 17" with a better matte screen and nicer design would be worth $200 more or not.

 

too be honest, I dont think u need the hybrid drive with the ssd...

 

Hey there, thanks for the input! For me, defining myself as a hardcore or moderate gamer is a bit tough because I just started to game when Star Trek Online. Maybe someone can help "define" me lol.

So let's see... am I considered hardcore or moderate?
I play Star Trek Online and SWTOR because I love the franchises, which is why I don't see myself playing any other games. I do mostly PVP where I am playing in an environment where several other connected players are--in my current computer, if there is any place where I experience lag, it's during PVP. I don't really care about having the best benchmarks or whatever but when I am playing in a pvp match or whatever, I do not want to have to experience any lag--smooth as butter is the way I like it. I plan to keep system for 2-3 years.

I want to say I am a moderate gamer but at the same time, I do invest quite a bit of time & effort into playing the games I currently play--so I don't know if that can be considered a hardcore trait.

And yes, the 7970m for sure destroys the 7850m and pretty much any other mobile GPU (sans prob 680m) but I wonder if the price is worth it, especially considering that I will not be playing other games except for the ones listed in my earlier post.

I'd still get the HP. Designs IMO are similar enough where they both look rather awesome compared to other 17-inchers I see out there.
The Samsung is about .25-inches thinner but from what I've read, I believe the HDD it is using is a 5400RPM. According to notebookcheck, the 650M is on par, if not a bit below, the 7850m. I agree that I'd prefer a matte screen but if I find myself unable to tolerate the gloss, I'll just get a matte screen protector.

 

They didn't have a 160GB SSD-only option and didn't want to pay $125 more for the 300GB SSD-only option.

The rep I spoke with specified that the OS would be installed on the SSD so the other HDD will simply be a storage device.

The only thing I am worried about is the SSD drive being a SATA II and not III; however, being a first time user of SSD, I am sure the performance improvement will be great--especially for game loading-times.
Edit: The 160gb SSD is probably a SATA II since I can't find another 160gb after-market that is SATA III

Again, I would have just purchased an SSD on my own, but I am deathly afraid of messing something up along the way while installing the OS and drivers onto the new drive.

Here are the options:

1TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
Included in price
750G 7200 rpm Hybrid Hard Drive
+$10.00
Dual Drives TB 5400 rpm + TB 5400 rpm
+$200.00
MSSD 80GB+HDD 750GB 7200 rpm Hybrid
+$295.00
SSD 160GB+HDD 750G 7200 rpm Hybrid
+$345.00
Triple Drives 128GB mSATA SSD + 1TB 5400 rpm HDD + 1TB 5400 rpm HDD
+$460.00
SSD 300G
+$500.00
SSD 300GB+HDD 750GB 7200 rpm Hybrid
+$625.00

 

in terms of hardware, hardcore gamer = will pay for a rig that runs highest fps at the highest settings. casual = as long as the games are playable and looks ok.

 

I don't think you need to shell out the big money for a top end card if you are mainly playing MMOs. I'm pretty much in the same boat. Not to mention the extra heat and fan noise that comes along with top end mobile video cards.

 

Appears so yes