Envy 14 Beats Edition unboxing video

I went ahead and posted a really bad short video showing the screen and keyboard backlighting. My camcorder was not cooperating with me, I couldn't get the lighting right, and YouTube butchered it in processing.

But, nevertheless, if you want to take a look, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oboYFtURh4

 

Looks great - thanks very much for taking the time to record these videos! You have provided a very thorough review of this laptop.

Not sure if this would work with your camera, but you might consider recording one shot with the screen brightness dialed down so that the backlit keyboard illumination is more prominent.

 

You're welcome! Thanks for the idea, but I tried that (dialing down the brightness) and no luck. If I get a chance, though, I'll try it again--maybe I was in too much of a rush. I do have a new camcorder coming in a few days, and I might try with that one and see how it goes.

Also, maybe I'll try it with one of my still cameras and see if I can at least provide some kind of legible image. The red backlighting is a nice effect, even if mine isn't uniform (grrr!), and I'd like to provide a good idea of what it looks like.

 

Mine is being built as we speak. Any regrets about the screen resolution?

 

I've been really torn about the screen. On the one hand, it's fine in terms of color, brightness, and viewing angles. Fine, but not great--nothing like the Radiance, from what I've heard. And for me personally, I'm okay with the resolution because my eyes are getting older anyways. On the other hand, it does bug me that I wasn't able to configure the system with the best options.

The more I use it, thought, the more acceptable it seems. If I didn't know about the Radiance option on the "standard" Envy 14's, in fact, I'd probably not think twice about it. That said, once the Radiance monitor becomes available aftermarket, I'll seriously consider doing the upgrade--but if I do, it won't be because the screen on mine is bad, it'll be just to have the best possible configuration.

Ultimately, I'm very happy with the purchase, screen and all.

 

Just order a Envy 14 w/ Radiance screen, swap it, then return! bahaha!

 

seeing as though i've been dwindling around so long, i simply went out and bought the cheapest/most decent laptop i could get and ended up with a dell inspiron 15.6 that has the "WLED HD" screen or something like that, same resolution as the original envy, just on a bigger screen.
Whilst its an improvment on my decade old desktop, the contrast is shocking. So if the envys normal screen is anything like this dells, get the radiance.

 

how much difference is there between the radiance screen and the screen on the beats edition?

 

I have question on the solo headphone. I saw lots of negative reviews on this headphone, is it that bad?

 

There are a number of threads that discuss the benefits of the Radiance screen. I'd definitely read through those before making your decision. I'm fine with the Brightview screen myself, but some others have strong feelings against it.

 

I found them to have very good quality sound compared to some others I've used. Definitely have a character to them--they're not perfectly flat, but really pull out the bass and low midrange. I liked them, but not enough to keep them. Now that HP has come out with the Beats Edition with the headphones as an option, I'm going to return mine and order the machine without them.

My short answer, then, is that I didn't find them good enough to part with an extra $150 or so to keep them.

 

Can you post your specs?
I just order mine with the i5 460M, 6 gigs of memory. I order it when they dropped the price and left out the headphones.
With the academic discount it came to $989.99.
Your review/unboxing helped convinced me to give the Beats a try.

 

I ordered mine at Costco, which in this case actually charges a bit more than the standard price at HP.com (to account for shipping, I believe). I'm willing to pay a little more for Costco's 90-day warranty--gives lots of peace of mind.

I got the i5-450M, 8GB RAM, 500GB HDD. I paid $1470, plus tax. I'm very strongly considering returning this machine and ordering the same one with only 4GB RAM (not finding the 8GB to be worth it at this point) and without the headphones. I'll pay $1115 for that configuration, and happy to save $350.

 

Another reason the Beats is of some value is it come with a 2 year warranty as opposed to the normal 1 yr.

I know what you mean about Costco, we buy most everything there, I actualy started my laptop quest with a DM4 from Costco, unfortuntly it can with a crummy internet card.

 

No not really, they have different purposes altogether. The Asus has a gpu that's quite a bit more powerful and a nicer screen, but it's also a heck load heavier and bigger. I mean, 7.5lbs and 2.5 inches thick, that's no joke. Fermi cards have also been known to be stupidly power hungry, though I'm not sure about the 460M since it has a different architecture from the 480M.

The Envy 14 to me is the best compromise of power and portability right now, though I wish they'd put in a 5850 or 5870 too.. And the beats edition really is just downright gorgeous. No pictures or videos on the web do it sufficient justice, you gotta see it yourself.

 

HP Slim Travel Power Adapter (65W) VF685AA#ABA

 

Well, you'd think that's it, but I'm not sure:

1. I believe that part number is a 65W unit (doesn't say it on HP's site, but ther sites that carry it say it's 65W). The adapter that came with mine is 90W.

2. That part number is actually two pieces: the main adapter, and then a unit that plugs into the top with it's own outlet plug. What came with mine is just the adapter itself without the add-on--i.e., you have to use the cable to plug it into the wall.

So, it remains a mystery to me. Mine does say "travel adapter" on it, but it also says it's a 90W adapter. And while it clearly is meant to have another part plug into it, mine definitely didn't come with it.

 

That number came from the Envy Beats ad from HP

http://www.hp.com/united-states/campaigns/envy/pdf/envy14beats_datasheet.pdf

 

Dose anybody have the Envy Beats 14 with the i5-460M processor?

 

That's listed under optional accessories. All it says for what's included is "90W AC Adapter." Unless they shorted me a piece, I didn't get the travel adapter that's listed as optional.

 

Where did your order your Envy? How did you get that price? with 6gb ram? =s

 

As an aside, I stopped by Costco today and checked out the machines they had on display. There was an Asus that I'd been considering before choosing the Envy, and I have to say: the overall look and feel is night and day between the two machines.

Where the Envy feels solid and high quality, the Asus feels like the cheaper plastic that it is. The keyboard has a significant amount of flex, the lid isn't balanced nearly so well as the Envy (you have to hold the Asus down when opening the lid), and in general the Asus felt cheap comparatively. Yes, it's $350 less than the Envy (ordered without the headphones) for similar specs, but the Envy is worth at least that much more for the build quality alone.

In fact, they had a number of systems in stock, and none compared well to the Envy. After that short trip, I'm feeling even better about the purchase (except for my one pet peeve: the trackpad. Man, that thing needs new drivers). The Envy is definitely a cut above.

 

I am considering buying this laptop now. Is there any PC whine on your beats edition? and how are the fans (loudness of sound) and heat of the laptop?

 

Also is the huge beats audio sign on the cover of the laptop paint? or sticker?

 

There's no whine whatsoever, and the fan noise is typical for this class of machine. That is, it kicks in when the processor is really working (such as encoding a video), but it's not so loud that it bothers me even in a quiet room.

 

It's paint.

 

Its either this or the Envy17 for me. For some reason I just dont like the look of the other Envys after seeing the Envy 14 beats. I know the bottom is painted with soft touch but is it metal or plastic? If i purchase this it will be with the i7/6b. Which would be the same price as a base i7 Envy 17

 

If by "bottom" you mean the battery and motherboard cover, then it's a rubberized plastic. If you mean the palm rest and keyboard tray, then it's metal covered with some kind of rubbery paint. Best I can describe it, but it's a very elegant and comfortable feel. And then as I've also mentioned the strip around the sides is a blackish chrome metal that's very solid and stylish.

Overall, a very good looking and solid machine.

 

One more thing lol. Is the screen is adequate for watching movies and browsing the web? I'm not much of a pc gamer nor do i photo edit

 

Thanks, would you happen to know how this would run Starcraft 2?

 

The screen's more than adequate for watching movies and such; very good at it, in fact. However, no 16:9 screen is probably best for editing photos, and this one's pretty low-res for that purpose at 1366X768. However, the colors are decent enough, so one could do it in a pinch. My suggestion would be to attach to an external monitor with maybe a 16:10 aspect ration to give more vertical room to work.

 

I haven't installed it yet (although I mean to), but if you read the threads in general I think you'll find that the Envy 14 runs it quite well. Remember that the Beats Edition is the same performance-wise as the standard Envy 14 (outside of the option of the Radiance screen).

 

this might have been asked before and if it has i apologize but if you got to choose between the envy 14 and the envy 14 beats edition which one would you go for? (assuming its the same price)

 

Well, that's a difficult question to answer, really, because it's not possible. The E14 BE comes with a two-year warranty, right off the bat, which helps justify the $100 difference in price for the same configuration.

I'll say that I love the way the machine looks, and so I'd pick the E14 BE over the standard E14 any day from that perspective. However, the Radiance screen isn't an option for the BE, so if I were inclined the spend the extra $300 over the standard E14, I might do that.

I'd say that if you can live with the Brightview screen, get the BE. If you just have to have the Radiance screen, get the standard E14.

 

thanks very much for that. Yeah thats just the only concern for me atm. Like i really love the design of the BE but then the trade off for that is that i have to get rid of the radiance display. I've got an 22 inch external monitor at home so i should be okay with the brightview screen. hmmm i think i might just go with the BE

 

I ordered mine from HP.

One night they dropped the price to $999.99. It was listed on Logicbuy but the price went up the next morning. Although I just happened to be on the HP site and noticed the price drop and jumped on the 14 Beats.

So mine w/6gigs memory came to $1099.99 minus the student/faculty discount
(around 10%) came to $989.99.

 

I saw the same thing the other night at Costco.com, and didn't act fast enough. I wasn't really sure, though, that the deal would actually go through, since I'm not really sure HP is actually shipping the i5-460M yet. I'm inclined to think that those systems all pull from the HP database, and it was just in the process of being updated.

Good luck getting yours. If you do, then I'll be kicking myself for not acting fast enough.

 

Actually I'm inclined to believe the BE cools better too. It's thicker, which allows more room inside for airflow. Under Prime95 stress tests my temps are almost 10 degrees cooler than the regular envys, with an i7. But not many people have stress tested their i7s.

 

Well, now, I didn't know that, but you're certainly correct. There's a .07" or 1.78 millimeter difference. Crazy.

Now, I'm not really sure where the difference comes in, but your theory is certainly plausible. I'd have to put a standard Envy against mine to see exactly where the difference lies to know for sure.

 

So the E14 beats edition is 1.18" thick? That's quite a difference.

If I understand correctly, the E15 beats edition is the same thickness as the non beats (1.04").

 

I'm not sure that I'd personally count less than 2mm as a significant different in thickness. Certainly, it doesn't seem overly thick to me, and honestly I can't see where the difference would lie.

But, if one is sensitive to things like that, then it is what it is. And I wouldn't mind knowing where the extra girth is hiding.

 

Hey all, I just ordered my beats edition envy 14 last night, wynand32 your video (among other reviews) helped me with my decision, thanks a bunch!

Even though it looks like HP isn't even offering the radiance display anymore I thought I would give my thoughts on what seems to be a recurring topic in this discussion. Kinda weird, I just priced out an Envy 14 last night with the Radiance display and now it is nowhere to be found...

I was very interested in the Envy 14 Beats Edition but I do a lot of photo/video editing so the increased resolution of the Radiance display on the Envy 14 was very appealing. I still wasn't ready to let go of the BE though so I went out to see if anyone around town had an HP laptop with the Radiance screen and one with a Brightview so I could compare them in person side by side... no one did .

I did however get a lot of opinions from some friends, the geek squad at bestbuy, and a local computer shop. Everyone pretty much had the same opinion, that the Radiance display was really more of a gimmick on a 14.5" screen and that it wasn't worth the extra money, let alone not getting the laptop that I really wanted because it wasn't an offered feature. The guys at the local computer shop brought up a great point, which was anyone who is really serious about photo/video editing is not using their laptop screen but rather docking their laptop and using a larger monitor. Which is true, for myself and my friends at least, I'm currently using a desktop but I had planned on docking this laptop and using a larger monitor. So at that point what real advantage would I see from the Radiance screen? None. The brightview is more than capable in a pinch and the money I saved not getting the Radiance was enough to get me a 27" 1080p monitor, which will work MUCH nicer than a 14.5" higher resolution laptop screen. It might also be telling that HP isn't offering it anymore. I did see a few reviews from people that indicated the Radiance was not significantly better than the brightview, maybe HP was getting some complaints so they just pulled it as an option.


After all of that the only thing I'm still a little disappointed about was not being able to get a blu-ray player/burner. Only because it would have saved me having to buy one for my home theater but oh well, not that big of a deal.

 

JHew - I tend to agree with you re: the Radiance monitor. I've grown accustomed to the Brightview monitor and really have no problems with it whatsoever.

And then regarding Blu-ray, I remember reading an article lately arguing that with streaming becoming more prevalent, Blu-ray might be dead before it really gets started. So, I'm not really worried about that, either...

 

Yeah I have a couple friends who are convinced everything is going digital in the very near future. I think eventually that will happen, but not in my lifetime, there is still a pretty strong market for hard copies and I don't see it diminishing at a rapid rate. A few years ago I lost all of my media to a virus, some of it I had a hard copy for but most was digital and gone forever. So I don't download anything anymore if I can help it.

It's not devastating not to get the blu-ray though, just would have been a nice option to have, especially since it has so many HD capabilities.

 

It mentions that the headphones are now an option...on the HPA site I have not found a place to add or remove them...am I missing something?

 

it is because they are out of stock so they took it out of the options that is what they said to me

 

please correct me if I am wrong..
It is my understanding that the Beats edition come standard with the headphone and slim travel adapter ? Or are they something extra that I need to buy ?

 

HP has made the Beats Solo headphones optional, and in fact they're not even available for ordering right now (according to an earlier post, they're out of stock). They did drop the price accordingly.

The slim travel adapter isn't actually what you get if you order the kit separately. In fact, it's confusing overall, because the optional "travel adapter" (with the additional component that plugs into the adapter and has a wall outlet plug, which doesn't come with the machine) is a 65W part while what ships with the machine is a 90W part. Yet, the adapter that ships with it looks like the adapter part of the optional kit, and says "travel adapter" on it.

So, really, I have no idea what HP's done with the adapter here.

 

what is the price difference with and without the head phone ?
I almost place the order thinking that the price they have right now is such a good deal with a head phone came with it.

 

wynand32 , so the travel adapter that you showed in your video is the standard one or the optional ?
Also, you said that you bought yours at Costco, but I could find it anymore today. DId they take it out ?