HP 8510w - first impressions

My original review in german is posted here on www.notebookforum.at


Since i always liked to inform myself about notebooks via reviews and reports from users and always found them very helpfull i figured i would write down my impressions about my new HP 8510w (GC115EA, german localization) too.

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The notebook is the 15.4" workstation version of the new HP 85xx series based on Santa Rosa. To be honest it initially was only my 2nd or even 3rd choice. My first choice was the 8510p (same body though, just without workstation graphics and having a HD2600 instead), as sucessor for my now 2 year old HP nx8220. I pretty much wanted the same package with current hardware (basically 2 generations newer).

Over here however the 'p' so far only was available in WXGA versions, and since i used WSXGA+ since 4 years that wasnt ever an option for me. The 'p' version i had initially thought to be perfect is the is the GR539AW with WSXGA+, also T7700 and HD2600. Its priced at 1880,- € here too though, and not available. I also looked at the Samsung X65. Its a quite attractive and even more lightweight notebook thats quite comparable. Surprisingly its also quite cheap with ~1500,- €, however with its silver-black looks its maybe a little too stylish for me, i prefer the HP look. I have to admit though that if the Samsung had already been available on schedule i would have bought it.
So with summer over and my patience ending i decided 'what the heck', and settled on the 8510w which was only a 200,- € more than the 'p'. I was sceptical about WUXGA on 15.4", but i had seen it before and more room to work with is always nice. Additionally the notebook also comes with teh FX570 which should be able to handle that screen well.

But now some words and pictures to the 8510w
(the reference notebook, below or to the right of the 8510w is my old nx8220)




Configuration

(Model GC115EA)
Display: 15.4" WUXGA (LTN154U2-L07, Samsung)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo T7700
HDD: Seagate Momentus 7200.2 120GB
GFX: Nvidia Quadro FX 570M, 256MB GDDR3
RAM: 1 x 2GB DDR2 (667MHz)
Optical Drive: DVD +/- RW/R (Lightscribe)
Akku: 8 Zellen, 73Wh
Connectivity:
Bluetooth 2.0
Gigabit LAN
Intel Wireless AGN (most datasheets from teh shops only had it listed as AG)
Dimensions: 35,7 x 26,0 x 3,0 (front) - 3.8 (back)
Weight: ca. 2.8kg
Warranty: 3 Jahre
OS: Windows XP Professional SP2
Installed Software:Some HP utilities, Roxio, Intervideo DVD, Lightscribe Disclabeling, Norton Antivirus 60d Trial
Price: around 2000,- Euro (online, look here )



Built and Design:

The HP businessline design should be known to most. Its black and dark grey, clear lines yet conservative stylish (i like it quite a lot). In comparison to my old nx8220 (and from what i ve seen also to the nc84** series a generation in between) not that much changed. For me the Trackpoint and ist buttons were new, teh fingerprint sensor on the right front. Both i ll likely not use very much, but they are not in the way. A nice new detail is the dark high gloss strip above the keyboard for the extra buttons. The buttons are touch sensitive areas on it, and the volume control works much like touchpad scrolling with moving your finger just over the volume field. Looks good and also works well.

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Links das 8510w, rechts das alte nx8220 (click for larger image)
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The dimensions are virtually identical to my old notebook. On pictures i had seen the 8510 series ahd somehow looked not as sleek but in reality there wasnt a difference.
The built quality overall is very good. The body outer shell is just plastic with an inner magnesium case, but its not feeling nor looking cheap at all. The body is quite compact and there is no noise whereever you lift teh notebook. Only in the are of the optical drive there is a little flex from above and below. The Display lid is basically robust too, especially the dual hooks hold the display well in place. Only the backside of the display could maybe be a bit more stiff. Punctual pressure is no problem, but if you hold the display at its sides and apply some pressure to the middle (bending it) then you have some ripples on the center screen. One can open the screen with one hand and the display is still held good in its position then (a very slight wobble only).
The speakers moved from teh sides of the keyboard to the front center. A little unusual, however they do their job there too. Like the speakers from my old notebook i consider them as quite ok. I have heard a lot of worse notebookspeakers and think one can call then good.

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The connections are mostly on the sides, only the VGA and power connectors are on the back next to the battery. The battery itself is just a little on the lose side.

Like in the last generations the HDD is equipped with a shock protection system. To be honest though i have never ever seen it in action in my old notebook either though and havent tested it. I am sure though it wont hurt to have it.

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The keyboard layout changed a bit, but i think i like this one better actually. The keyboard is held in place well, only can be pressed in with quite some pressure in some areas, but i m sure nobody has such a keystroke. The keyboard isnt noiseless, neither was my old one, and the noise is sort of a bright clicking noise. Greg in his review here on notebookreview called it slightly worse than the keyboard of its predecessors and only just above consumer level. I cant really agree fully there, its clearly different compared to my old one, but not bad, just a matter of transition to it getting used to. Maybe i am less critical about typing though and in any case its a quite subjective thing and i would recommend anybody getting a new notebook to actually test the keyboard at least on a comparable model up front before buying.

 

Display

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Mine has a 15,4" WUXGA (1920x1200) Display. Thats the highest resolution for this display size. I had seen it before, but was sceptical, and admittably i was looking for a WSXGA+ one, i was used too again. Now though having it in front of me i have to say i am happy with it. It will need a little more getting used to it with some applications, but thats normal when changing, and my eyes are still good too. Where WSXGA+ is already sharp, this is ultrasharp! (for many ppl it would be too fine though, some already dislike WSXGA+ !)
The display is a matte version, in direct comparison to the nx8220 display there is just a touch of more gloss. But in any normal use you wont get any refections.

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The brightness is for me subjectively good and sufficient. Its a bit better then my old one. Also the viewing angles are very comparable. Horizontal as well as vertical you have the best brightness and contrast from straight ahead. The horizontal angles are a bit better. The brightness lowers pretty fast but then stays constant over a long range and is acceptable. At full brightness it shouldnt be any problem to present something to several people. Vertical the stability is a bit worse, but there it is less critical i think.

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The brightness has 10 levels. The lowest is probably mostly useless. Maybe for use only when you are desperate for battery runtime at all cost when lightning conditions are good. 50% brightness and upwards is ok to work with.


Performance & Benchmarks

There probably is not much available at the moment in the 15.4" segment thats faster. It came with a T7700 Core 2 Duo, Nvidia FX 570M, 2GB RAM (1x2GB) and a 120GB 7200rpm HDD. Everything i ve thrown at it so far runs fast. The FX 570M is a workstation graphics card but its apparently based on the 8600GT, so also DX10 capable and from what i have read and seen a powerfull card for this size range.

My notebook came with XP Professional which is fully supported. In fact it even has a 'Designed for Microsoft Windows XP' sticker. HP offers on its support site drivers for different versions of XP as well as VIsta. So there should not be any problem with upgrading. I might do that, but havent made up my mind entirely yet. Eventually though i am sure to use it, so its good to know that it will run it.
All tests i ran were run with thh 'outofthebox' installation and drivers, i only did the windows update.

But now some figures ...

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I dont really have any classic fps games. The most graphic demanding game i m likely to play is Eve Online, which actually is very CPU heavy though.
A comparison from there though. My PC with an Athon 64 3500+ (single core) and an ATI X800 GTO at 1280x1024 delivers about 90fps. This notebook at 1920x1200 delivers about the same 90fps when running on power supply.


Vista

I have now installed Vista Business, and everything runs just fine with it too.
With the stock drivers from HP Support pages i have also run 3dmark06 again. Results in a 3750 3dmarks. A little lower than in XP, but that wasnt unexpected. For stock drivers ok again though i d say.

The WEI is again pretty much the same as in Greg's review.

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Emissions and Heat

The cooler is running always. I first set up everything in a lab environment where there is always some ambient noise. During office applications and work one only notices a slight constant fan noise which isnt distracting. Under load the fan becomes clearly noticable, considering the notebooks powerfull configurantion thats not really surprising though. Personally i dont have a problem with it, was like that with my old one too, and hearing it under heavy load is no issue for me. If you are maybe playing which usually generates the most and constant load then also the sound you ll probably have along with that will cover up most. In the office or lab as well there always is ambient noise.
I have now also tested it a bit at home in a very silent surrounding. When its silent you ll also notice the fan in normal operation, but its running constantly and not producing any awkward noise.
Under high and constant load without any other noise around the fan becomes loud! In that case when the fan runs on its highest speed it can remind you a little of a hair dryer. In comparison to the nx8220 unter heavy load (which wasnt silent either) it is a bit louder.


In normal operation like office stuff and running some music i couldnt notice any real heating. Neither the keyboard, touchpad nor the handrests get warm. Under load and the fan running at higher speeds it of course blows out some quite warm or even hot air at the vent. Also the bottom becomes warmer fast when operating under load. Again that compared pretty well to my old notebook though.

Via Everest and NHC i now also read out some temperatures: (always in home(office profile)

Idle: CPU: ~40°C , GPU: ~42°C , HDD: ~30°C
DVD Playback: CPU: ~50°C , GPU: ~53°C , HDD: ~38°C
(Very) Heavy Load (*): CPU: ~71°C , GPU: ~71°C , HDD: ~39°C. The air blowing from the vent is hot, at the bottom the notebook gets quite warm too, maybe too hot to have it on your lap for long. (the bad thing there would be mostly your blocking the fan inlet at least partially) The handrests get noticable warmer, but they are not too warm to disturb working on it.

*3 open Eve Online Clients simultaneously, playing music and having open several other programs in the back.

One thing i noticed, NHC always shows one of the 2 core temperatures as the CPU temperature. Everest shows a CPU temperature (temp zone 0 i think) and the 2 core temps. There the CPU temp often is lower than the actual core temps. In the case of heavy constant load the single core temps were at 80-84°C while the overall CPU temperature remained at 71° C.


Battery runtime:
According to HP: 4h

XP: DVD Playback:
With a brightness of 50% and in the 'Maximum Battery' mode of XP the notebook ran exactly 2h 19m. That should be sufficient to watch the most movies.

Under loadt: 100% brightness, in Home/Office profile. Music playback, installed some programms, ran 3dmark06 twice, and then had 2 Eve Online clients (cpu heavy) open. The FX 570 clearly ran a lower frequency as 3dmark now only showed a 3000 and the fps were lower than compared to when on power supply. (i didnt found where to turn off Nvidia's power savings)
In any case, under these circumstances after 1h the notebook was at 55% charge. So its realistic to assume a runtime of about 2 hours when doing some more heavy work.

I havent yet done an office only rundown, but at 50% brightness and with max battery mode one can surely exceed 3 hours, maybe come close to the 4 specified by HP.
In Gregs review running Vista he reached 3h 15min at 60% brightness for Officework. That can be found here .



Conclusion:

The 8510w is clearly a worthy successor to my nx8220. Actually its stronger than what i initially was looking for. Of course that comes with a price, however i think the bang for the buck is alright.
For ~2000,- € you get a well built quality workstation notebook which doesnt have to fear its competition and will be hard to beat. The only directly comparable one i can think of the Lenovo T61p.
The WUXGA Display definitely will not be everybodies choice, however there is also a WSXGA+ Version available (lower speced, but with at least the same price though!?).


Pro:

• Very high resolution and lots of room on the screen
• Very powerfull configuration
• Very well built
• for a 15.4" notebook its sleek and light

Room for improvement: (not bad, but only average)

• Battery is a little losely held in place
• Brightness and viewing angle (not bad, but displays with lower resolution are partially clearly better)
• a little flex in the area of the optical drive
• the display lid could be a little more stiff
• The cooling system manages, but there is room for improvement

Contra:

• obviously the price ... but then quality comes with a price
• under heavy load the fan becomes loud

 

Wow, awsome review, great pictures.....I'm really think hard about this laptop. Newegg has one for $2649.99 with Blu-ray which is really $600 more then what I want to pay but it does have Blu-ray which is something I wasn't looking for. I can config a 8510p but its lacking the FX 570M which I want. Why can't HP just let me config my own 8510w!

 

Awesome review, thanks!

Those are some sweet 3DMark06 scores, btw.... heck, I can't even get as many 3dMark05s on my nw8440!

That 8510w looks like one sweet machine, though it is out of my budget (plus my nw8440 is only a year old, and besides, the freshman at my school just got the same model as my class did [nw8440], but with C2Ds and 2Gb RAM standard)

 

Excellent work. I just checked my 8510p and can confirm the battery is a bit loose here too. Nothing extreme but you can jiggle it a bit.

 

I love how HP gave us a single 2GB stick. Props to them. I have a 1GB stick on the way for a nice 3GB of ram in a notebook BTW I am moving back to Vista. Its nice HP gave us a clean Vista Disk. Once you use a tweaked install of vista, you don't want to go back to XP. I am still working on my review. Look for mine soon.

 

Yeah, the nw8440s the freshmen received at my school also have 2Gb RAM on one stick. Even though their machines are already dated with the 8510w now on the scene, I'm still jealous because they have C2Ds, 2GB RAM, and an INTEL wireless chipset (Centrino Duo)! (My class got stuck with a Broadcom a/b/g wireless card)

 

Have now switched to Vista Business, added the WEI above. 3dmark06 is just slightly lower in Vista with stock drivers, a 3750'ish.

Only reason for Vista was to get used to it. It ran perfectly fine in XP Pro too without any problems. Same goes now for Vista.