HDX16 or HDX18

Hi there, this is my first post so please bear with me. I've done a lot of searching but most of the threads tend to be geared more toward the gamers. I am a designer (graphics, website, multimedia, video) so while I don't play a lot of high end games, I do work with a lot of high quality imagery. (Note: I don't do much if any 3D rendering, so I'm safe there.)

Now I've been looking for a new laptop because the one I currently have (HP dv8000) is actually "owned" by my "day job" (also design) and I have been "let go" so the laptop has to go back. I have been very happy with this HP, and have looked at many in my search, but always seem to come back to the HPs.

Originally I was looking at another dv model - the dv7t I believe - but called HP's sales line and after a few questions the sales rep said without a doubt I need the HDX line.

So I've come to my question. I gave myself a $2k budget, so the closer to that the better, but I *do* have a little extra to play with in case something pops up. And having that extra is making my decision hard!

Should I go for the HDX16, maybe save a few bucks, or go for the HDX18 and upgrade to a dual-HDs and quad processors and the 1GB video card????

 

OOPS forgot also to ask: Do either/both of these machines run hot? Do they have more than one fan? My dv8000 always had fan issues (might also be because I live in the country [DUST] and have a longhair cat LOL). I also wonder if the increase in RAM/GHz or the existence of quad-processors will increase or decrease the generated heat?

 

This is really the decision I had to deal with myself, to get the HDX16 or HDX18 and I ended up with the 18 in the end. I debated for days before I ordered it.

Basically comes down to this:

HDX16:
Smaller screeen size
Option for larger battery

HDX18:
Larger screen
Dual hard drives

That's honestly really the main difference between teh two laptops. If you are not going to need to take it around very much, the HDX 18 might server you better as you can get more storage capacity. The drives are NOT in RAID 0, nor does the BIOS support it from the looks. They are seperate drives.

As far as heat, yeah they can get warm, I haven't really tried any games on my just yet to see how loud the fans kick up. A quad core will generate more heat than an equivalent dual core as there are two more cores generating heat on the chip. I am unsure if the Quad's are a mobile version or not. I got the 2.8GHz dual core T9600 as I didn't think I'd really need to spend the extra on the quad.

I endded up paying about $2100 for mine after a 30% off coupon, which is the HDX 18 with T9600 2.8GHz Dual Core, 4GB of RAM, dual 320GB 7200's, 9600M GT 512MB, 3 year accidental coverage warrenty, 2nd ac adapter (needed to buy a $50+ accessory for the coupon I used), and a lightscribe burner with blu-ray play back.

 

Hey Martog, thanks for the quick reply.

Does your HDX18 have more than one fan on the bottom? I saw a Sager (which I know is built for gaming) that had 4 (yes FOUR) fans underneath. Impressive!

How do you end up finding the coupons? I've done some searches but every coupon I seem to find/enter is either invalid or has expired. If I could get the HDX18 down to about that price that would ROCK. I think I maxed it out and it bumped it up to about 2800. The HDX16 fully loaded is about 2500.

 

From what I can tell there is maybe 2 fans at most in the one corner of the laptop, as that's the only place that had hot air coming out so both gpu and cpu must be located up there.

Far as coupons, I know there is a link at the top of the forums, can always google search "hp coupons" and see what you find too.

I am really liking the HDX 18 thus far, I got enough storage space to multi-boot as I like (I dedicate one drive to Vista, the other is my multi-OS drive) and the screen size is brilliant. I'm also liking the TV tuner, too bad I can't get good ATSC recption here at all to use OTA .

 

Both the HDX16 and HDX18 run quite warm/hot (as do many HP laptops). If I understand you correctly, though, you don't seem to need the power of the HDX series' graphics card and CPUs. You would probably do better to find a less powerful graphics card laptop (which will drain less battery and run cooler).

 

I dont know about you guys, but my HDX16 runs icy cool. it idles at about 28 when not doing anything. about 32 when browsing the web. never above 40 when watching a blu ray, or HDTV.

In fact, you have to REALLY get this thing angry to get the heat and fans up there. When gaming, the fans get kicked on higher of course, but its not "quite warm or hot".
peep my temp in the corner

PS, i'd get the 16, the 18 is MASSIVE.

 

I have an 18 and in general it run warm to hot at ALL times. From what I hear it's mainly due to the qx9300. The 16 doesnt allow that option so it should run cooler. The 1gb vs 512mb of the nvidia 9600 really make no difference as far as I know. The 9600 is a low to mid range gpu no matter how much mem it comes with.

The screen isn't as good as you'd think. Because of it's super high gloss and not great lamp power, the colors can look a little washed out times. Bluray playback could be better also. Also, HP appears to have some minor QA issues especially with the 18, if you check the 18T owners thread. Don't know how many fans there are but it's NO WHERE near the quality of the high end clevo/sager (see d90/n9262) cooling systems.

In the end, I think it's an above average laptop, but for the money it should be much better. If you check out the ASUS w90 x1 on newegg, it's a much better config option for less money. I absolutley wish I waited a month. Anyway, for you, I generally wouldn't recommend the 18 unless you really can't live without the design (it's nice) or you get a 30% off coupon. Otherwise, I feel there are better and/or cheaper notebooks out there.

 

Ok so you're saying (in general) that the Quad Processors run clock for clock hotter than their Duo counterparts? I'm not *too* terribly concerned about the heat. I know all laptops are going to have heat issues in comparison to desktops. (Except that Sager LOL!)

That's pretty much what I'm looking for ECyde - an above avg laptop for the money. I need to get my hands on the 30% off coupon tho. That will seal the deal for me. Right now the way I have them both spec'd I think it's like 2500 and 2800 respectively.

Would things like increasing the GHz increase the heat?

MidnightSun - What do you suggest if you think I don't need the power of this graphics card? My current dv8000 has an nVidea GeForce 7400 which is 256 and it does lag sometimes when doing video editing. Wouldn't a higher graphics card help me?

How are the cases on either of these laptops? Do they both seem to hold up? I know the HDX18 is a monster but my current laptop is about 8lbs and I'm wondering really exactly how much bigger side by side it would be. I didn't WANT to go bigger, but I wonder if expanding to the HDX18 and NOT getting the quad processors (but at least have the option for doing that later) would be the way to go. If I drop the quads and go back down to the 512 video card, my price is pretty much back to that of the HDX16 the way I configured it.

QUESTION: If I got the HDX18 with 512 video card and DDR2 ram -- can it be later upgraded to the 1g video card with DDR3 ram at a later date fairly easily??

 

ARRGHH HP's site is down. Anybody know how long it usually takes for them to get things back up and running?

 

Well yea naturally a Quad compared with a Dual in the same package should have a higher heat output. In general, the QX9300 DOESNT have the same heating issues that it has when packaged in the HDX18, however. I have an OCZ Whitebook with the same processor and dual graphics cards, and it runs much cooler in both light processing situations and during heavy load. In fact, I always have my HDX18 laying on yellow pages with at least 3 inches on the left side hanging off to keep it cool. Of course Ill be getting a notebook cooler eventually, but right now it just gets too warm for me when laying down normal on a desk.

I got my HDX with the %30 off, so it was a pretty good deal. You definitely should hold out (if you can stand the wait) until the next %30 off coupon is released. From what I've seen, it's released at least once every other month. But since September last year, I know I've seen at least 4-6 %30 off coupons. Not including the %40 LIVE.com scandal on Black Friday.

BTW at this time HP doesnt allow overclocking via the BIOS of their processors. You'll need some other means if you plan on doing any of that. I'm looking into it because the QX9300 is supposed to be able to overclock extremely well - minimum 3.06 GHZ stable in the OCZ Whitebook. You can overclock the GPU via Riva tuner and any other similar tools. But yea, overclocking anything absolutely increases heat. It can also void your warranty, depending on the company, so you should do it at your own peril.

Lastly, no you cant upgrade from DDR2 - DDR3 at all. Thats all motherboard stuff, and if it accepts DDR2, it doesnt accept DDR3, and vice versa.

 

any 18'' owner can you please take picture of ur laptop like one of the guy on page 1 did and post here please. I just wanna c how big the screen is. Thank you

 

How about upgrading from Duo to Quad at a later date? I doubt it but just thought I'd check.

 

Oh and also... about that 30% coupon... anybody know when the most recent one was released? In other words, how long has it been since the last one came and went. I wonder what my chances are getting one and how long I might have to wait. I can't wait TOO long but if I know one might be around the corner...

 

Another question just popped into my head... are either or both of these graphics cards integrated or dedicated? Thanks!

 

They are both dedicated graphics cards

 

Just saw this in the HDX 18 owners thread for a 30% coupon:

NB5463

 

I am the proud new owner of an 18!!!!!!! Here's my specs:

- tHP HDX18t Premium Series Notebook PC
- Upgrade to Genuine Windows Vista Ultimate with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
- Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad Processor Q9100 (2.26 GHz)
- 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm) - For 1GB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT graphics
- 500GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (250GB x 2) with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
- 1GB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
- 18.4" diagonal High Definition HP Ultra BrightView Infinity Display (1920x1080p)
- Lightscribe Blu-Ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW Double Layer
- Webcam + Fingerprint Reader with HP Imprint Finish (Fluid)
- Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card with Bluetooth
- HP Integrated HDTV Hybrid Tuner
- HP Color Matching Keyboard
- 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
- No Productivity Software
- HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

My coupon saved me almost $850! I bought an additional warranty and some stuff but before tax the above configuration was $1976.09. Not shabby! Now I just have to wait until March 3 for the build date and 5-7 days for shipping!

 

Sweet. Congrats on the new rig. BTW mine came almost a week early. So cross your fingers.

 

is 18'' laptop is too big? how bigger the screen compare to the 16'', i dont know whether I would go for 16'' or 18''

 

Okay - 30% coupon is back - they go quick though. NB5463

My vote is for the 18t. I had a 17in laptop and side by side they are almost identical in size. The 18t is a little wider - which really works for me because two windows fit side by side on the screen much better than on my 17in. It sounds like that would work well for you too.

The Nvidia will be a perfect card for your work. It is the same card as on the macbook pros - so it is definitely a designer approved card. Getting the 1gb card will give you little or no improvement by itself. All the research has shown so far that the 1gb is a total waste (for now). In the future, maybe not, but who knows - I think dual cards will become more prominent before more VRam, but you never really know. HOWEVER, you do get the DDR3 by making that upgrade. The Vram is NOT DDR3 only the regular ram - though they lead you to believe both are DDR3. The DDR3 has not shown to be much faster, but newer versions could change that as it is newer. It is a little faster maybe 10%. You CANNOT upgrade the DDR2 to DDR3 on the 18t. For my money I'd go with the DDR3 to make it more future proof.

I personally like the quad - not for use now as much, but for future use. From what I hear Windows 7 will put a quad to work and may help some of the programs better use them too. Long term, I think you'll see much more benefit from the quad. Short term the duo will be faster.

This computer has room for 2 great easy upgrades -
If you get the DDR3 - wait a few months and upgrade to 8gb of improved DDR3
Windows 7 is supposed to also be better set up for the SSD's - right now you have to teach windows how to use it. On the 18t it is relatively easy to add an SSD which will give you a great speed boost.

So in all next year you have a quad core 18in widescreen HD laptop with 8gb DDR3, a speedy SSD, and a blue ray player - sounds like a system that will give you a few years to me! My two cents

 

Sorry, just realized my post was late to the game - didn't see page 2. Sounds like you hooked it up though! Enjoy it and join us in the HDX18t owners lounge as a proud new owner!

 

Congrats on the purchase..I rec'd mine 2/16/09 and I was not disappointed at all. I have a few other laptops with smaller screens so I am spoiled with the larger screen and hate having to use anything smaller. As for the sound that to is great. I think you will be in awe when you open the box. Good Luck and welcome to the Proud owners of HDX18t...Don't forget to join the owners thread, there is a lot of helpful info there on a daily basis.