Envy 14 Beats Edition unboxing video

I believe the price difference is about $180 or so, but I can't remember exactly. But yes, the current configurations don't include the headphones.

 

origional price w/head phones was $1249.

The price keeps changing, if you really want the head phones I see them listed all the time on craigslist.

 

The adapter that I showed in my video is what shipped with it. If you look in the specs for the machine, it shows a particular part number for an optional adapter that is not what I received. There's a travel adapter that's 65W (mine's 90W) and that includes a piece that plugs into the adapter instead of a cable and allows the adapter to be plugged directly into an outlet. That's what makes it a "travel" adapter--it lets you skip the cable.

However, I didn't receive that part. But, yes, again, in answer to your direct question what I showed in the video is what came with the notebook.

 

Thanks for the review! I just got my yesterday and one thing I notice right off the start is that the fan is always on. It never stops running even when idling. I did turn off the BIOS setting to disable the "fan always on" option but that didn't see to do anything useful. It's still on 100% of the time and at full speed even. I tried to apply a patch to BIOS they have online dated 9/8/10 that's supposedly "fix" the fan issue. After the update, I bring up System info and the BIOS date didn't change. It's still said 8/27/10 which is the original version that came with the laptop when it was shipped. I called tech support but they were useless. Is the date suppose to change? BTW my fan is still on 100% after applying the patch. I wonder if the patch didn't get applied or they just didn't change the date of the new patch to show the correct date. Does anyone have the same issue? Thx.

 

Mine doesn't do this. The fan only comes on when it makes perfect sense for it to do so, and I haven't changed any of the settings that might affect it.

 

do they not sell this anymore at Costco ? I cant find them

 

My comes with the new processor i460m. Wonder if that has anything to do with it but I'm consider returning it since the tech guys just try to get me off the phone by saying it's a powerful system and the fan has to run to keep it cool..I think that's bs..but i don't know what I should do now. BTW what BIOS version is on your laptop at the moment? Is it F12 dated july something or F13 dated 8/27/10?

 

Yes, you're right, Costco's not listing them any longer. Could mean nothing: Costco often adds and removes products. But, they had just recently added the Envy line, so maybe they decided to drop it. I know that they don't tend to carry the highest-end products, so I was surprised to see the E14 BE show up in the first place.

 

Mine came with F12, and I recently updated to F13. Didn't make a difference in the fan either way.

I can't really imagine the i5-460M causing different fan performance than the i5-450M. Is there really that much of a difference between them?

 

Just for peace of mind, will you please check the BIOS date on yours to see if it's 8/27/10 or 9/8/10?

 

Where are you finding the date? I looked in the BIOS, and don't see it.

 

After logging into Windows hit fn + esc keys at the same time then let go. The System Info dialog should come up. It should show BIOS(configuration): F13 "date". I'd like to know what the date is on yours.

 

Ah, very cool, didn't know about that key shortcut. Mine's listed as 8/27/2010.

 

Two questions for you:

1. Does yours have QuickWeb installed?

2. Does your AC adapter have the additional part that allows the adapter to be plugged into a wall outlet without using a cable (from the adapter to the wall)? This has been a point of confusion...

 

1. I'm not sure if QuickWeb is installed. I can't check because I'm at work..
2. No, my adapter is like yours I think. It still has the cable plug into the adapter.

 

Okay, great, thanks re: the adapter. Good to have that cleared up (was just bugging me). Please report back when you're in front of your system re: QuickWeb.

Thanks again!

 

Hmm..my says the same thing..I guess when they made the patch F13A, it must be built onto the F13 and they didn't even bother changing the date to reflect the change. The tech did say it was a small patch only. I'm still worrying about the fan issue though...

 

I'd find the other, longish thread on fan noise in the E14's in general. Maybe something in there will help you. Mine certainly has no issues with the fan, and I'm very sensitive to it: I work in the middle of a pretty quiet office, and so if mine were making a great deal of fan noise I'd hear about it.

 

It's not screeching or anything but it's just that the noise from it blowing the air out is just annoying. It must be at full speed for it to blow that hard and it does it all the time. Maybe I just need to get used to it or something. Does your laptop fan ever stop running completely or it just keep on running but at low speed and only ramp up if you're loading it?

 

I'd say my fan is usually running, but at a very low speed and very quietly--so much so that I don't normally notice it running. Then, if I'm really pushing the CPU or GPU, the fan will kick on for a few seconds (usually) and then throttle back down. The only exception is when I'm encoding video, in which case the fan does run at higher speeds usually during the entire process.

If you really push the processor and don't notice the fan changing speed, and it's definitely running constantly at 100%, then push for more support from HP, because it's not normal behavior.

 

Thanks for the info on the headphones, HP was no help on them. I am waiting for Beats to update their line before I purchase them..Also if anyone is interested in the headphones..Bestbuy and Amazon usually have them for almost $30-$40 cheaper than HP or Beats

 

Did you get a chance to check?

 

I'm wondering whether HP can ship to outside US. I'm in indonesia.
And what shipping does HP I wonder. If it uses 'regular' shipping man I'd most likely have to pay 40% of the price

 

Nope, HP only does domestic shipments if I'm not wrong, as prices between countries are slightly different.

 

hi ... im having a very TOUGH decision in deciding between the 2 envys !!!!

first is the normal envy 14
i7-720
radiance screen
4gb ram
or
beats edition
i5-460
2gb ram
brightview

the normal envy in my country is $400 more expensive than the beats edition !
i could use the $400 to buy a 23 inch dell ips monitor which i could connect externally to the laptop .

Which 1 is a wiser choice ? also , does the radiance screen really make a difference compared to the 23 monitor ?
wynand could u comment on this and pls make a beats review soon !!

 

About the screens: If you never seen or never will see a Radiance version you'll probably fine with the Beats edition. However when putting the Radiance screen next to a normal screen you'll clearly see the difference. It's not only the resolution, it's also the contrast, viewing angles and color gamut.
Sure you'll see people who say the screen isn't worth it and you'll better spend the extra money on a 23" Full HD screen. However I can't take that screen with me wherever I go. With the Radiance screen I always have nice screen with me.
In my country the Radiance was the only option and I absolutely love it. At first I also had my doubts if it was worth the extra money (comparing what the similar Envies without radiance screens would cost in other countries). However after a few weeks I'm really pleased with the nice screen. Wherever I take my laptop everybody is always talking about the great screen. Even the Apple guys.

But don't forget looking at the processors too! This will maybe make your choice even harder but when you want to buy this laptop for the batterylife then I would not recommend getting an i7 CPU, the i7 version lacks the Intel Integrated Graphics Card and thus you'll only get 2 - 3 hours out of the battery where the i5 CPU with Intel GPU will give you 4 - 5 hours out of the battery.

Good luck with your choice, it's a though one..

 

I try to do a find but it didn't find anything related to QuickWeb. BTW what is QuickWeb and is it installed on yours?

 

thanks alot for ur input but it still dosent make my decision easier haha !
i really like the radiance screen but i dunno whether is it worth and comparable to the 23 inch monitor . normally , getting a bigger screen is a more logical way . also , i dun really bring my laptop arnd , only 2 days for sch .
i only have 1 config which is the i7 . which 1 would u prefer ? i5-460 or i7? i know about lousy battery life but there are many available power sockets in sch.
very TOUGH decision argh!!

 

QuickWeb is HP's "instant-on" Linux OS that can be made available for a quicker startup than with Windows. It allows access to email, the Web, Skype, etc.

I'm pretty convinced that for whatever reason, HP just didn't put QuickWeb on our systems. You'd see it as an option at boot, and as a boot option in the BIOS.

 

So yours don't have QuickWeb installed either? I think I'm going to call support again on the fan issue. If that doesn't go anywhere again, I'll see if I can get them to exchange. If not i'll have to part with it...sad but true as I do like it a lot aside from the fan issue. Does anyone know if hp is easy with the exchange process?

 

Nope, no QuickWeb on mine. And note that I'm not missing it--from what I understand a lot of folks turn it off anyways--but I just find it strange that HP wouldn't put it on this model of the Envy 14, when the "standard" models have it.

Good luck on your exchange. You'd think HP would accommodate you, because your fan situation just doesn't seem normal.

 

Seems pretty simple to me.

You really don't use your computer much outside of the home, and never for anything that would even hint at needing a higher resolution display. So go with the Brightview and get that beautifully large 23" monitor! With the money I saved not getting a Radiance I got myself a 27" HD monitor, FAR more useful than a 14" display with lower resolution.

If you think you might need the extra processing power just go with the i7, doesn't sound like you'll really have much need for an extended battery life if there is an abundant supply of outlets to use where you go to school. Unfortunately for me there are limited outlets in most of the Kiva's I have classes in, but as long as I keep it charged up even with the i7 I should not have any issues at class. Just in case I ordered mine with the slice anyway, not sure I'll use it all the time but who knows, I may, and for only $100 extra it wasn't worth not getting.

 

This is just lame..I called in to try for an exchange but being charged $150 more than what I originally paid. I'm now torn between keeping it and live with the fan issue since I got it for a discount or returning it entirely....

 

just wondering, how could they charge you extra for something that is a mistake on their side ?

 

When I chat with the rep requesting an exchange, she configured a new machine and the price came to be 150 more than what I originally paid. I asked why if it's the same machine and got "our price is subject to change at anytime..." I went ahead a request an RMA instead but still undecided if I'm going to return or not because of the original discounted price..

 

that does not make sense at all..that you have to paid extra if you are exchanging to the exact same thing...especially since the item is defective..

 

That's HP for you I guess..

 

Some good news on the exchange. After chatting with rep for an hour, they're going to charge me 150 more but will credit it back to my account once I get the exchanged pc. The sale rep didn't even offer to credit my account on first attempt so in the future don't chat with a sale rep..at least in my case because they didn't even bother to try to get my business..oddly enough. Ohh well, we shall see if I get lucky with the new one.

 

by the ways, is anyone's beats edition envy 14's trackpad is loose ? I just got mine and it is loose

 

Nope, mine's fine.

 

boedi_hehe, what do you mean by loose? Is the trackpad actually moving around? Mine seems very sturdy, just like the rest of the machine. I love the overall build quality of this, it feels very sturdy overall.

While not as good as the radiance display, I think the screen is really good, especially after tweaking some of the Catalyst settings. I compared it to my two year old sixteen inch NEC laptop (which has the same resolution) and its not as bright, but it does have better color and black levels.

 

everytime I click on the trackpad, it is making noise and just tapping the corner slighly (not even clicking, I can see about 1-2 mm gap between the trackpad and the top surface.. it is becoming very annoying overtime

 

Well, I haven't looked at mine super close yet since I just got it last night, but I'm pretty sure that there isn't an actual gap between the trackpad and the top surface. I do think the trackpad is recessed a bit and therefore is not flush to the top by design. As for the noise, mine doesn't make any noise at all when tapping, except for the usual clicking sound that the left and right buttons make.

 

What setting did you tweak to make the display better?

 

If you go to Graphics -> Video there are a bunch of options you can tweak, such as saturation and color vibrance. It's similar to what Nvidia has in their graphics control panel. I found tweaking some of these settings made it look much nicer.

 

I just ordered mine, estimated build date of 11/03... And I'm already checking the status 10 times a day

wynand32, I gotta say, your video was really "professional", especially your speech and what you were saying. Thanks man!

I got the i5-580m

 

Well, thanks for the kind words, but I have to say I considered the video kind of... you know.. bad.

Hope you enjoy your Envy. I'm loving mine.

 

Hey wynand32, you can say whatever, I enjoyed the video Hey, just one little question... the Envy doesn't come with the "back-up" DVD's right?

 

Nope, you have to make your own with the restore utility. Which reminds me......

 

HP says that they have "custom" beats background and music software. Can you show a screenshot or two of these? Thanks!

What kind of software (or crapware) does it come with?