*HP ENVY 14 (1XXX series) Owners Lounge, Part 1*

I take back the video comments. it looks the same way on the laptop screen.

it's just the video I was watching.

 

I have the i5 520 and the 500GB hard drive - boot times aren't bad for me - I'll time it once I'm done downloading this one thing - time to find my handy stop watch. Stay posted...

 

Okay thanks a lot

 

Splitting hairs on weight and thickness, but ok. Decent battery life, however it seems they don't have a dual core option available for the E15 now. Maybe just temporary, but if a good BCB deal comes back, I won't even consider the E15 with a quad core.

Good points. I thought this could be fixed, but maybe not. That's just stupid. I thought they may have fixed that with the Gen 2? When was Gen 2 released?

 

I finally finished making my recovery discs, can I get rid of the recovery partition now? Is that possible?

Now if I do a clean install and stuff gets messed up I can just use those and get it back working right?

 

what the heck is a recovery disc? am i the only one who literally always ignores that stuff?

 

Alright I had to test this on battery since I'm in the process of draining it, I'm looking at 58 seconds from push button to the Windows 7 password screen. Now remember this is on battery power - I'll retest after I'm done with my drain on AC power (probably will not be until tomorrow).

FYI - I did a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit.

 

Normally I create my own System Image in Windows 7 - Goto Start > Control Panel > Backup and Restore > on the left pane select Create a system image. Then the wizard steps you thru where you want to save it on a hard disk, DVDs or a network location - follow the steps.

NOTE: This option may not be available in all versions of Windows 7 but I know it is in Professional and Ultimate.

 

Nope no fix for throttling, they claim it has to do with maximum current draw available from the internal 6 cell battery, funny how the E 14 is not throttled even with i7's apparently. Thought it would be a problem for me but to be honest I hardly ever notice it when on battery, and if you game you can still fully OC the 5830 on battery...

 

Quick question about the 21 day return policy. The 21 days starts when its delivered and not built right? Also, if I receive a replacement laptop, my 21 days restarts right?

 

Yes and yes

 

Do you guys think it'd be possible to repartition the recovery partition with the disk management tool installed with windows?

 

Thanks...I am convinced I am going to get an envy 14 without the CPU whine. I am not quite sure if I should just order an identical laptop or go with an i7 processor.

 

Hmmm, you can get the i5's in the Beats edition. I guess the only way I'd consider it is if there was a 40% BCB or better promotion. Not likely, but I like to keep my options open!

The dual SSD's, 1080p screen, and HD 5830 sounds quite tasty, however. I guess I could always get a slice battery on top of that in times that I might really want extra battery time.

Well, bottom line is there has to be a significant BCB (40% or more) for me to choose E15 over the E14 at this point, and it very likely will not happen.

 

@HTwingnut

I have a good pic of the E 15 interior if you want to see it....

 

Sure, post it up here or at the E15 2nd gen lobby, I posted there too, probably more appropriate there.

 

BTW the slice is more of a monster than the E 14's. It's 93Wh and 2.7 lbs, I have 4 of them for the machines my photographers use and They all refuse to use them, just to bulky and heavy to manuaver in tight places and in and out of camera packs etc. I ended up ordering 8 extra 6 cell which are 53Wh and 4x8x3/8 and .8lbs we get 5 hrs easy on 2 and 7.5 with 3 and they even fit in a suit pocket easily...

Here's the pic:

View attachment interior-1-full[1].pdf

BTW those are 2 x 1.8" intels mounted sideways in a 2.5" bay with HP's cutom bracket.

 

Okay thanks for testing it. It took me 01:13:00 to password screen, 02:00:00 to show desktop icons, then 03:00:00 to connect the internet but the internet time could just be me. I did not do a clean install. Final time was 3 minutes.

 

Once I've backed up the SwSetup folder, is it needed? Is it just for reinstallation purposes? Can I delete it?

 

Delete at your hearts content. It contains the drivers and HP bloatware should you ever want to install it, especially if it's not avialable from HP's website.

 

Hey guys I just got it!

Very pleased so far. Incredibly quiet, cool, little-to-no flex, great screen, no whine.

Well done, HP.

 

You can delete it from your envy, but I would keep a backup on an external just in case, it includes some drivers that are not available for download from HP.

 

Someone here get a confirmation email from HP for the discount that HP offer to many of us to keep our order and make us happy wont void the BCB, I forgot who, but I'm trying to get one too on my case but HP email customer service just playing stupid on me, they do not answer my question, instead they were talking something else about the credit. Should I call them instead and get it recorded?

 

kill this fan and this laptop would be perfect

 

Ok I'm gonna delete SwSetup and get some space on my precious SSD
Also, in the Recovery Manager, I found that there's an option to Remove Recovery Partition, which I am also going to do

Man, that was quick. It did it in about 10 seconds and now there's 2 partitions. beautiful

 

hey guys i'm thinking about ordering an Envy 14 with 160 SSD & 4GB Ram 1 Dimm (in case i want to make upgrades in the future) today.

Wondering if you all can give me an advice on whether or to stick with the i5-450m or should i pay an additional $100 for the i5-520m?

Thanks in advance!

 

What is the problem with the fan?

 

i say stick with the 450. the 520 isnt that big of a difference and isnt worth 100$.

 

Glad to hear! Have you noticed any gaps? (Look real carefully)

 

nothing, just wish it was a bit quieter or would stay off...

 

Jeez, why does there have to be like a million different volume settings with the hotkey f buttons...makes it too hard to adjust, gotta click too many times
eh nvm, u can just hold it down...3rvx is a nice download , i gotta look at the first page more

 

Sorry guys if this question was repeated. But when I do get my envy, I am planning on doing a fresh install after the first initial testing, etc. So I can obtain all the space back from the recovery partition since space on a SDD is valuable. I plan on using an WD My Passport 1TB portable harddrive for storage, music, and everything else apart from programs. And was wondering if all the drivers needed for a fresh install was included in the swsetup folder?

 

people complaining about the fan is useless without additional information to diagnose a problem or compare it with people who have no problems...

if you messed with the settings in the bios or operating system related to the fan, what settings is it using now?
do you have it sitting flat on a table where the underside intake vent is clear?
what is the ambient room temperature where you are?
what CPU, HDD, and how much RAM is installed?
did you overclock the video card or anything else?
what programs are running when you notice the abnormally loud fan?
etc

 

Ok so I stopped following this thread since it went into over drive.

My question to all those people that bought from that EBAY person, any of you guys receive your laptop yet???

 

I don't believe any of them has received it yet, earliest that I've heard was this coming Tuesday.

 

Ok thanks for the update.

 

Does that eBay person refer to Computer Upgrade King?

I was planning to order one from him today..

 

Thanks for the tip!

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by DannyPants View Post
It seems that some Envy 14 owner's experience unacceptable on-off cycling and noise from the fans, while others do not. I would like to start a poll to see if this problem is specific to a certain CPU. Let us know your specifications and if you experience any fan issues. Also, if anybody has found a resolution to the fan issues please post in this thread. If you have time, please post your idle CPU temperatures, thanks!

Here is my current problem with the fan, and I have read that others experience this as well (although possibly with different temps):

With the "fan always on" disabled in the BIOS, the fan constantly cycles on and off, and never stays off for more than 2 seconds, even with no programs open and clean Win7 install with minimal processes, and using integrated GPU. It seems that my fans kick on every time the CPU temp reaches 35 deg C. Once at 35 C, the fans kick on at about medium speed/noise and cools it to 34 C in 1-2 seconds, in another 1-2 seconds it's back at 35 C and the fans kick on again. The fan noise is loud enough to be very distracting.

My specs:
i5-450M, 6GB RAM, 160GB SSD

I have the same fan problem(2 seconds off, 2seconds on x5)
I decided to take look inside and found another problem. The whine noise that everybody is talking about is coming from the cpu(buzzing sound).
Sending my lemon back to hp

envy 14 520m

 

If you make two partitions, what do you guys normally keep on each? IE, one partition would be smaller of the two and would hold the OS. Would you put anything else on that partition?

 

Does anyone know what's causing this on my screen? When I look at my screen at really angular there's this blob of colors (photos below). It's not noticeable looking straight on it but once you look at it at a certain angle it becomes pretty apparent pics for reference

sideview


straight on (not noticeable)


view from above

 

There was an eBay seller under the username opal_cadet (who happened to be an employee of HP) selling ENVY 14's before but it seems she has stopped now.

I am expecting mine from her sometime next week.

 

loryk I would definitely RMA that, that's a messed up screen
mine has nothing like it

 

Yeah, mine was shipped fedex on the 20th so should be with me tomorrow

Its going to be bitter sweet, as no doubt I will get a £170 customs charge, I love living in the UK

 

My F10 wireless key is not working correctly after the clean install. The LED does not turn orange when the wlan is toggled off. Does anyone know what could cause this? I have installed the newest quick launch button drivers and it is still not right.

 

Did it first ship to her in the US before she sent it off to you in the UK? Or did she have it directly sent to the UK from China?

In either case, wow fast shipping.

 

Same here. Also, synaptics gestures don't work after my computer wakes up from a sleep, which is fairly annoying. The trackpad basics still work though. I have tried uninstalling and updating drivers but haven't had any luck.

 

did u also do a clean install?

 

Yeah (10char)

 

For the person talking about slow boot up times. After some testing I noticed that when ati drivers are installed the boot times are almost doubled which is terrible, Im not sure what it is about the ati switchable graphics card drivers but right now they increase the boot time by almost 20 seconds.