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

well i store basically all of my movies/music/everything on hard drives, so that's not much of an issue. I'd rather carry around a portable HD with around 500 movies on it than an OMGHUMONGOUS cd case w/ 500 dvd/cds in there =P

Although I admit it would be handy for the occasional time a friend wants to watch one of their dvds on my comp, rather than looking stupid w/o an ODD, or since BlueRay movies take up so much HD space, but the envy 14 doesn't even do BR, so that's moot.

But now i'm seriously going to make a sandwich...

P.S. and you're very welcome for the laugh! I do enjoy the occasional humor in this thread

 

I just did *almost* the exact same thing (I also threw in the cable lock for ~$16).

 

On another note, is anyone sad they didn't put the beats logo for the "b" key? I liked that touch on the 15. how am I ever going to know that Fn + B activates ultra Bass mode! (and then pressing it again deactivates it cuz i'm pretty sure i don't want THAT much bass...)

 

I know what you mean about storing movies. but hey, why bother if you can just watch it with a dvd and save space.

 

So I went to Best Buy today to check out their laptops. I didn't realize all the HP line now has the same large trackpad like the Envy line. I messed around with it and man, it's not as awesome as I thought it would be. I know it's not like the MBP's but they're pretty lackluster. It feels kind of cheap plastic and with one finger it tracks fine, but the thing I like is the two finger. One system I made sure to enable the two finger scrolling and it did not work at all. A second system I made sure the two finger scrolling was on and it worked off and on, but not very well... this was one of those big things I was looking forward to. I tested some other trackpad things, like click and drag, where you can click the pad and hold it down whilie dragging another finger to move windows. Does not work at all. I know you can tap and lock and drag but just testing the multitouch capabilities. having owned a unibody MB before with the glass pad, this was no comparison. These two HP's I tried on was using the synaptics drivers and looked exactly like the envy's even with the button on the corner. Was pretty bummed about that.

I do wonder if the google labs two finger works better b/c that's what I use instead of the synaptics ones on my M11x and it's buttery smooth and accurate for two finger scrolling. But even the synaptics drivers worked better than the HP ones and the drivers looked the same.

 

haha nice!
What's the cable lock do? Lock it?

btw ur name made me laugh haha, just took AP Bio last year...dont remember which one telophase is anymore though lol

 

me too. I have uses for it

 

Yeh same here. I refresh this page every few minutes to check any new info and stuff. I can't wait to get my e14 so I can brag about it here.

 

ok people. Let's compare the Alienware m11x to the Envy 14. The alienware is better for gaming but the envy 14 has greater performance right? Alienware has better graphics card but envy has better processor. What do you think?

 

Envy 14 has better GPU not just CPU.

 

Trust me. Some people are still stuck in 1998. I argue with people who won't admit that they've only used their optical drives maybe 1-2 times in the past 2 years. They're unwilling to admit there's not much use for them. But when Steve Jobs comes out and says there isn't a bright, long future for blu-ray, the Apple haters come out in full force just to disagree with him, even if it means that their purported desire to keep optical drives means pushing back progress.


1. Movies - Watch 'em on your TV. Even so, the number of streaming/downloading possibilities are out there. DRM protection will inevitably slow down the growth of such possibilities

2. OS Installation - Plenty of guides on NBR that cover how to turn a USB into a bootable OS installation drive. Use them.

3. Music - Plenty of legal downloadable means out there. Amazon.com is one I occasionally turn to.

 

The cable lock will secure the laptop to whatever heavy piece of furniture I can find in my dorm room (via a steel cable loop and a combination lock). I figured that I might as well protect my investment.

As a side note, I took AP Bio last year as well... Telophase is the last step of mitosis where the new nuclei form in the daughter cells

 

Proof:
GeForce GT 335M

vs.


ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650

 

I'm pretty sure this was already discussed a lot in another thread. My take on is it that they are intended for for different uses.

The m11x is a nice portable gaming setup, but the small screen size effectively rules it out from being a laptop you would regularly use for Word, MATLAB or what have you.

The Envy 14 can do some gaming, but can also be your work laptop. And I'm not sure I agree with your claim that m11x is better for gaming than the Envy 14. The GPUs are about the same, but the Envy has a faster processor.

The m11x is a great deal in terms of performance for price; the Envy 14, less so. But at the end of the day, they are meant for different things. I would feel comfortable bringing my Envy 14 to a meeting and looking professional with it. I would look stupid if I brought an m11x in.

 

yeh i'd feel stupid with an alienware too. the e14 looks professional and better built.

 

I HATE(!!!!) MATLAB on my netbook, gah, SHOOT ME!
(there there *pets aspire ONE currently typing on* i know you weren't meant for that kind of thing. I forgive you.)

 

Have to agree about the optical drive being a bit dated. But there are plenty of old schoolians (of whom I'm a member) who use CDs/DVDs. But HP should make it optional. Say, an external USB drive.

Or better still, if not optional, make it modular. On my tablet (TX2500) it's modular and has a "filler" insert when you are not using the optical. Saves weight and about 5 mins of battery life by leaving the optical out. Last time I used the optical on that thing was last weekend to Acronis back using the recovery disk to an older image after installing ATI video driver 10.6.

Right, so what do I use the drive for? Jazz CD ripping mostly (collection of 1000s of CDs) and for hard backup to DVD-RW of important software, drivers and data.

All my techno, nu-jazz, classic rock, classical and lounge is on a server with portable HDD backup.

TMI, right?

 

ignore any issues with the new trackpads at best buy, if you want to play around with it go check out a costco.

Best Buy puts a program called Archie on all their pc machines, it is a sort of sandbox software that resets the entire system back to original settings every few minutes or so. No installs will stick or anything else, even files added, unless it is disabled and thawed.

The pertinent part though is the following, it seems to muck with the trackpad settings so that only the most basic tapping and movement works. If you try and go to the settings for the trackpad on a best buy hp machine it will give an error message.

They will probably come out with a fix to archie later on in an update, but for the moment, it is broken at best buy.

 

sick! One of them was in german but I understood roughly what it said (learnt german for 2 years). I thought the nvy had a much weaker gpu. I'm loving the e14 more and more!

 

Not a pro...but here is a review http://forum.notebookreview.com/6421176-post2308.html and here is a video YouTube - HP Envy 14 - a first look.

 

Haha yeah, they just aren't meant for for that kind of work. A few guys in my lab run all their computationally intensive tasks on their desktp lab computers and just use their netbooks to remote desktop/VNC in and run tasks as necessary.

Portability of a netbook, processing power of a desktop. MATLAB and GAMS really fly when you run them like that

 

envy 14 has more powerful cpu options, slighty more powerful gpu, MASSIVE improvement in screen quality along with a higher resolution.

The cons are its slightly more expensive for the base config I believe, and a bit larger and heavier.

That said, I think the mx11 will sell better than the envy 14 because apparently alot of people have a great love of the netbook sized form factor with more powerful graphics.

 

Is anyone else wondering why HP didn't put a higher capacity battery into this laptop?

 

they did. It's the $200 brick you attach to the bottom.


yeah it'd of been nice to put a higher capacity main battery in there but oh well. Can't help it now.

 

The GPU is good for moderate gaming (L4D2, SC2, BioShock 2, etc) but keep in mind technology is always evolving. I can see HP announcing either Envy 15 or 17 with 3-D screen and 3-D graphic card at CES 2011.

NVIDIA GeForce GT 335M Benchmarks (in English)

 

Yup. So I asked. Know what they said to me?

"Got slice?"

So then I was like. "Got coupon code?"

And then they went all face palm and said, " pfft."

 

+1 (tenchars)

 

hmmm. but I don't want 3d technology. I just want to play games like COD4 etc. And I'll be playing less and less games to study.

 

Not TMI I think, because this really shows HP that people definitely still do use their ODDs, even the techies, so why would they all but abandon a pretty large population of consumers to please a smaller population? I think we all know that optical disks will probably be extinct soon as storage technology and data streaming tech progresses, not to mention that no moving parts is clearly a better thing. (has anyone seen what happens to a disk when you turn an xbox 360 on its side while its running? it's not pretty, nor is that grinding sound.)

I think modular would be a pretty decent compromise tho. I'm pretty sure alienware did that on their first m15(x?) The problem with that is it basically has to be specific to that particular computer model, as a modular kind of thing is difficult to expand to an entire lineup of computers, and just makes everything more expensive to manufacture.

 

bought my envy 14!! i5-450m/160 gb SSD/ 4gb Ram

 

i want my OS to be 3D....I'd so buy a laptop with a 3d screen that didnt require glasses *drool*

 

Yeah, 3D with touch interface, now that be sick...VR here I come

 

Thats the exact same specs as I want to get

 

wish i had that

Did you see that before they released the e17, there was a page on the HP website about pre-ordering new laptops, and the e17 had a little sticker-bubble thing that said it would have a 3D display... But then it came out and didn't have a 3D display :sadface:

 

I'm extremely disappointed in seeing that HP could have put this into the Envy 14 if they either delayed the release a month or pressured Synaptics.

The optimist in me would like to believe that this model they are seeing is a production USA model of the Envy 14 and it will feature this touch pad.

 

So let me get this straight. The m11x is better for gaming? Or is the e14 better? Or the same?

 

Yeah, dawg 'cause you know [Deleted by 2.0 due to indecent innuendo. Mods should know better*] would be da bomb!



*We really should.

 

lolz.

On another note, 2.0, I think your sig is in violation of the laws of the internet. Your not permitted to divide by zero for that long. Can cause space continuum instability. I'm surprised the whole forum hasn't been sucked into some kind of internet wormhole. Must be the tin foil hats.

 

LMAO

No its cause........I AM INFINITE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I CONTROL SPACE TIME...SO IM LETTING HIM DIVIDE BY ZERO

 

E14 is slightly better by 1-5 FPS but playable nonetheless.

 

Anyone know if an updated touchpad is released, if HP will let someone pay a technician to put the updated one in the Envy 14?

 

it shipped! my notebook sleeve that is...

 

Interestingly enough, it's actually quantum derp regression that accounts for the paradox. So we're safe ATM.

Yes, I know what you're thinking. But then you have to ask yourself, "do you feel lucky?"





Question of the day: When a mod goes off topic, does God kill a kitten?

 

Case in point.... See above illustration.

 

Good stuff. Music too!

Nice Premium feature.

Imagine: Envy - The only laptop line with 3D Touch Screen, standard.

Self moderation. As you would say: pfft!

 

Ordered! Default specs but with a 500 gb HDD.

 

LMFAO.....

AND OMG IF THE ENVY HAD THAT.....THEN I WOULDN"T EVEN BE CONSIDERING A W510 or a Y560d

 

I don't doubt your sentiments regarding the archie program messing up the trackpads at Best Buy, but I would have to strongly echo aznguyen316's original thoughts - regardless of what Best Buy does to their machines.

I played with really the entirety of HP's new line (as well as the ENVY 13 and 15) outside of the ENVY 17 at Microcenter, Fry's, and TigerDirect over the past week on several different machines of the same models and I can confirm that with each of their respective stock drivers installed, the trackpads really are nothing impressive at all, and even a bit bothersome at times.

I didn't have much trouble with the two finger scrolling, however I almost always use the trackpad with my thumb resting on the left mouse button and HP's trackpads REALLY don't like that. In order for it to work correctly, the thumb has to be completely aligned within the center of the left mouse button and cannot move while the index finger is moving, or it mistakes the movement for a two-fingered side-swipe.

Honestly, if there is any possibility at all my E14 will be going back (barring an unforeseen manufacturing defect), it will be because I get so fed up with the trackpad I can't handle it. I love everything about the ENVY design, except HP's trackpad decisions befuddle me. I hope the next revision with the new synaptics pads that debuted at computex will fix all of HPs design woes, but unfortunately, I won't be waiting around long enough to find out.

 

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Yes!?

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

I wear my boyfriends MBP on my head. No issues here. :wub: