*HP ENVY 14 & Envy 14 Beats (1XXX series) Owners Lounge, Part Deux*

Well its a pain to have the extra weight (lots) and extra girth (also lots, at least more than you would expect), but its very convenient to have everything all in one unit. However, the slice battery lasts for less time than the regular battery, so you would be better off getting another main battery (or even two, if your budget for the slice allows), if you don't mind having mulitple parts.

 

Has anyone else noticed that with the latest version of the graphics software released by HP, switching from the High-Performance GPU to the Power-Saving GPU and vice versa is now done completely automatically with the battery/plugged-in status?

My apologies if this is old news, but as I very rarely use my Envy on battery power, I was surprised to see that whereas I used to be prompted as to whether I wanted to do the swap, now if I unplug or plug-in everything is done by itself. Likewise, if I shutdown plugged in and startup on battery or vice versa it will automatically change the graphics on startup.

Perhaps it is simply that I didn't have the "Automatically select..." box checked prior to the most recent update, and again, I have very little experience with my Envy while on battery power, but now realizing that everything is done completely handsfree I am at a loss as to why some had complained that the ATI switchable graphics were inferior to NVIDIA Optimus because one had to make the switch manually.

Is this automatic switching new with the most recent update? Regardless, what then is the difference between what is available on the Envy and Optimus?

 

It was like that since the beginning. I think Optimus actually switches on the fly though. So on regular web browsing it will be using the integrated graphics and as soon as you load up a game or something it will switch to dedicated.

 

Random question for everyone: So since optimus switches automatically, are you not able to, for example, lock it on the integrated gpu when you may be doing some intensive stuf but you want to max your battery life? Or does it have this feature? Also, does it allow you to choose what is considered "intensive" enough to switch to the dedicated gpu?
(Sorry this doesn't relate much to the thread)

 

No, you have almost no control over it. There was a big fuss when it first launched because some games were not listed on its switch to discrete mode and thus they ran really poorly.

 

Actually im pretty sure you can mark certain programs/games to run strictly on the dedicated/integrated. In other words, you can edit the list that it uses

 

Yes, I have considered the fact that it is a pain with the added weight and size. The main benefit for me was the fact that slice battery can be charged along with my main battery and I do not need to chnge batteries to charge each of them separately.

I am afraid that having two normal batteries will be a pain and I will not use that on a daily basis - only while travelling. I use the laptop all day in the office and then go to my accommodation and use it too to watch movies and browse the Internet. If I have two internal batteries it might be too much for my laziness to change them. Then I would go to the office every morning and have to charge both batteries (I do not carry the charger to the shelter with me).

Slice battery gives me the ease of use where I do not have to change batteries to charge them.

On the other hand, for the cost of a single slice battery I can buy 3-4 internal batteries.

This is another issue. It is supposed to last longer as it is higher capacity AFAIR.

Has anyone tried buying the internal 8 cell battery that the same capacity as the provided one? I can only see ones that are 3760 which is much less than the provided 5900.

It is going to be a very difficult decision I think. I will have to think this through once more as I was pretty much sure it was a good decision to buy the slice, but it seems it is not as easy as that.


P.S. Has anyone got the PowerGorilla external battery and uses it with an HP laptop? This seems like the best option as it will also charge my phone and everything else.

 

Nothing is ever easy unfortunately

But I do wonder if you need the battery life why didn't you get a Acer TimelineX 4820TG similar specs. The CPU is a bit slower, but by a fraction. Screen is the standard 1300 x 700 whatever, same as the BV. People have been getting 9 hours with the timeline.

 

I bought the Envy because it is most suited to my needs.

I had one Acer laptop and will never buy an Acer again after the service I received from them.

 

As the title says..if there any notifications?

 

thanks for the clear up Sza, I heard that Acer support is pretty bad. Glad you made the switch I hope you are enjoying it! Does your E14 come with the BV screen or radiance?

The slice battery is no longer being sold by HP apparently, so you have to buy one off Ebay. Really for the sake of convenience (I'm lazy aswell) I'd take the slice it may be more than the batteries but its easier to charge instead of replacing one battery after another.


I like your photography, especially the toddler and the church, good shooting!

 

As for Acer. I had a power socket problem where my external screen was flickering when the power was connected to my Acer laptop. I sent it for repair and Acer rep said I broke RAM socket while replacing RAM and would have to pay 300GBP so I said thanks and got the laptop back. They almost broke RAM socket and I fixed it myself - sold it with no regrets and plans to buy an Acer again.

Yip, found it on eBay. Time to stop thinking and take some action. I will buy the slice and see how it goes.

Thanks, just a hobby of mine that I do not have time to practice anymore

 

Man I keep mis-reading things, I thought you said you were never buying acer again? I'm really off today it seems.

Good luck with the slice I may purchase one for more battery life for UNI, or if I want to be a tightass and save some money ill just buy an extra battery.

 

I did say I am not gonna buy an Acer again. They did ot want to fix the laptop and said I broke it even though it worked fine when I had it at home and -suddenly when they received it the RAM socket was loose - they must have loosened it on purpose as at home it was ok. So they said it was my fault and did not repair as I did not want to pay for the new mainboard. They also wanted to charge me 40GBP for just diagnosing the laptop and I just said f... off.

I have 184 Acer desktop PCs and 300 HPs/ Dells ad 75% of network related issues are related to Acers as they are crap.

 

Ah alright, Im way out of whack today. How much is the slice battery costing on ebay?

Why can't you practice photography much ?

 

$250 + $60 delivery to the UK where I 'live'.

In the place I am in ATM I can not take photos or even carry a camera - a military base.

 

Here's my sad Envy14 saga so far.

I purchased my Envy on Dec 17th from Staples. After a few days I came to the conclusion (rightly or wrongly) that my display might be defective (I posted in another thread about this), in addition to which my trackpad was loose. Since Staples didn't have any more in stock and I had just spent the entire weekend cleaning the bloatware, migrating my data, installing my apps, etc., and since I was leaving for vacay anyway, I decided to send it to HP for repair rather than returning it and ordering a new one. HP customer service was fantastic, sent me a shipping box immediately and off it went to HP on the 23rd.

I received confirmation early this week that the display would be replaced (I assume confirming my suspicion that the display was defective) but that they were waiting on parts which were scheduled to be delivered today, on the 7th. Today, my service order status was updated, indicating that the necessary parts are now not expected in until the 21st. So, assuming that the 21st holds, that will mean that my Envy will have spent approximately 30 of its first 36 days in service.

The only silver linings in this are that (i) apart from the display, I absolutely love the Envy (brief though my time has been with it), and (ii) HP's tech support personnel with whom I've spoken have been fantastic (not the regular call center people who I think are out of India, but the US based tech/service people). I spoke today with a repair service rep (Michael) who was one of the most helpful and communicative reps I've dealt with at any tech company, Apple included (though I think Apple is still the standard bearer both in terms of products and support).

All I can say is that it's a good thing I have a couple spare computers to use in the meantime, that I like the Envy as much as I do and that the tech people have been first class, because otherwise I'd be boiling over with frustration. Instead, I'm just looking forward to getting my Envy back.

 

You know, HP's reapir center is horrible, they are alwasy "short of" parts, well, I could tell they never have any parts stock.

Because I sent my envy 15 to them for repairing heat issue, I waited for 26 days for the parts to arrive their center...

Good luck

The best way to get repair, just buy in home service.

 

Rant of the day:

Loving my Envy 14 as usual, about to take it with me to the coffeeshop to work on cover letters and school prep.

But still kind of annoyed that neither Intel nor some other non-Kingston brand has yet to release another slick deal on a 120gb SSD for my beloved Envy. I missed the $165 deal back in November.

 

Rant of the day:

I have a ton of keyboard flex on the right side around the L key.
The top lid is squishy as jelly.

And one last one;

Why can't a computer company care about the costumer

 

Hence why I might go Lenovo or Dell for my next laptop, unless the Elitebook is going to be cheap at one point. HP really makes me irk as a faithful customer.

 

Has anyone tried the 12/01/2010 touchpad update? Have there been any improvements that warrant not using the Google touchpad tweaks available on page 1?

 

I might go dell too, but I'm holding onto this for 3 years so I hope they make a machine that looks good because the XPS range is hideously ugly.

 

FWIW, I've been using the generally lauded Dell Studio 14Z for the past year and half and while at first I thought it was decent, I've grown to hate it for reasons that I think are common to most of Dell's line. Cheap and ugly look and feel, mediocre build quality, terrible trackpad, runs way too hot and loud and generally buggy. The only two things it has going for it are low weight (thanks to omitting an optical drive) and the gorgeous 1600x900 display. I looked at the new lineup before deciding on an Envy and decided that nothing has really changed at Dell despite new cosmetics and performance/tech advances.

 

Just bought my Envy14 BEats from Microcenter. They even offered to open it in store for me to make sure it looked right, which it did.

I'm backing it up now then putting in my OWC 240GB SSD from my MacBook Pro. So far I'm loving it. I plan to in the future buy a dead ENVY14 or find a store that sells a 1600x900 to upgrade the LCD.

Are there any BIOS versions I should avoide or stick to?

 

This just me. But I'm reading more and more that the 1366x768 substitute screen isn't a whole lot different from the Radiance display. Just has higher pixel density. Color reproduction quality seems to be about the same when you put 'em side by side.

Whoever is making the new screen seems to have done a pretty good job if the experiences of the new Envy 14 owners is anything to go off of.

 

It's actually the higher resolution that i'd like to get. Colors dont hve a huge influence on me. I'm used to enterprise notebooks.

 

Hey guys,
So I've had my Envy 14 w/ radiance screen since October and I was in the school parking lot overloaded with holding a load of books (to let a friend borrow for the quarter) and my Envy slipped out of the bag. It was a dramatic moment...the corner of it demolished, which my SD card is now stuck inside and the LCD screen cracked as well.

I do have the accidental damage plan that HP offered (well technically it's still shipping....i just bought it Q_Q), do you think they would send me a new one with the radiance screen? I have been told by the reps that they would typically send me a new one because it would cost too much to fix...but I dont really trust the reps.

Has anyone dealt with sending their laptop in with the accidental plan recently? How long did it take for them to build and send you a new one? I am currently borrowing a friends Eee netbook for school...its cute and all but it's not something that I can really stand using after the Envy.

Thank you for your replies,
Kangu

 

Just pulled the trigger on an HP Envy 14 with 1600x900 Radiance display. Very happy with it, and it's one of the last few left in New Zealand.

 

Well from what I have seen people talking about, the Reps will say they will replace it with a radiance screen but they either take a month to send it back and its a BV or just whack a BV in it as fast as possible and set it back.

If you don't want that you can yell at them for a refund or get a new one.

Sorry mate, looks like your out of luck on this one.

 

Sorry if this was asked before but how do I fix the volume bar interrupting full screen programs such as games when I'm changing the volume??? :/

 

get a different one, it's called 3vrx, uninstall the hp crap. You can find skins for this volume OSD at the beginning of the thread.

 

my envy 14 beats has a broadcom wireless card, is it possible to interchange this with my dm4's intel? since the envy is configurable with the intel card, i was thinking it should be okay so swap. is it also correct to think that the intel card is better?

 

I have a question regarding the Envy 14's BIOS. What is the difference between BIOS and UEFI? And what type is the Envy 14 using? As I understand it UEFI is an upgrade of BIOS that will replace BIOS in due time, but what type is the Envy 14 using because looking at threads about updating the BIOS and also around HP's website, the term UEFI seems to be used almost synonymously with BIOS.

 

Also, anyone else having problems installing the latest BIOS F23? I can't get it to work, it just freezes when I try to update via the SP5xxx.exe. The reason that I want to update is because I get bluescreens when it tries to sleep or hibernate and I thought it best to update the BIOS.

 

Alright guys, I've had my Envy 14 for a week now and am interested in doing some overclocking. Having never overclocked before, what are the steps I need to take? Will this harm the life of my computer? What kind of FPS increase can I expect in games like Starcraft 2? Thank you!

 

Hey there,

You should use the MSI afterburner tool when overclocking the GPU, most people either set the base to 550mhz or 600mhz. You can find this tool and guides to using it on the internet. I think there is one around here somewhere.
The problem is SC2 and RTS genre games rely more heavily upon the CPU so your not going to see the biggest increase, however in other games you should see a good increases.

good luck mate!

 

To sum it up, UEFI is more advanced than BIOS and that uses software "firmware" on top to the BIOS, to give BIOS a more advanced set up process that BIOS can't do (yes BIOS is very old that lots of modern computer hardware no longer can be managed by BIOS in its original variation). So UEFI is like an "expansion pack" to the existing BIOS.

That being said, UEFI is harder to crack and config than the original BIOS and it is one of the reasons that enthusiasts kind of hate it in regards that can't modify the BIOS's with UEFI easily than they could back then with a OEM BIOS.

 

This is why I'm perplexed that it's not running terribly hot since I have a i7 720qm. Thank you though, I will give overclocking a go.

For some reason I can't OC the core clock past 585. Does this have anything to do with the shader clock set to minimum? Thank you.

 

Im not sure mine is usually at 550mhz base, you can ask some other people around here but I think its something to do with what HP has done to the card.

People in the Acer 480tg aer overclocking to to 650/700mhz base, so I can only assume we can't go higher because of something Hp has done.

 

Same.

10 char.

 

I believe you can just unscrew a few panels from the bottom, and pop out the wireless card. My old HP Pavilion dv2 had this ability as well.

I've been testing the Broadcom wireless card in my new HP Envy 14, and it seems pretty solid. It's far better than anything I've ever used, and wireless reception and latency appear to be very good, on both 2.4 and 5GHz bands. I live in a large house where the router is on the other side and can still achieve 4 or 5 bars constantly.

 

you are probably out of luck as they dont have any more radiance screens. The company that made them went out of business, and they are no longer an option.

 

To update the BIOS to F.23 try this: Re: Trouble with F.23 bios on envy 14

 

To update the BIOS to F.23 try this: Re: Trouble with F.23 bios on envy 14

 

So does that mean HP won't be selling the laptop with the Radiance screen? I thought there would be 'The Return of the Radiance Screen Saga'?! OHN! o_0

 

well, i guess my only choice left is to have them give me a new one or demand a full refund =/

 

By the way guys, the Envy 14 got a $50 price bump.

 

I'm in the same position as you (even with the Accidental Damage warranty .)

 

Hey guys,

I am about to do a clean install for my envy 14.

But I'm worried about the switchable graphics drivers after I reformat.
How am I to install the video (intel and amd , original version or hp's modified drivers?) drivers to get switchable graphics after a reformat?