*HP ENVY 17 & 17 3D (1XXX series) Owners Lounge*

Any reports yet on how it manages heat/cooling? Better or worse than the 15?

 

I must say, good to have some different opinions about what some of you will do after receiving your laptops.

It sure does break the growing unrest that the delay of the laptops is causing on this thread recently.

With regards to the 'personalization' of computers, I always do it as I have built many desktop computers from scratch, and love to have the confidence of knowing that I can always reinstall the system to fresh stats every once or twice a year. It will be no different with the ENVY.

So, how may are betting our units will get their Fedex marching orders in less than 48hrs?

 

I have to disagree with a previous poster. The benefit of a clean install of Windows 7 minus the Hp bloatware was substantial, in booting up, shutting down, and in overall performance. My Envy 15 2nd Gen peformance was greatly improved, and my 3Dmark score went up +500 points. So, yeah, I would definitely do a fresh install (after creating restore discs and saving the SWSETUP folder and extracting the Windows Key).

 

I'm doubtful, but they better ship within 48 hours (by 6/5). They still have the "or within 7 days from original ship date (6/1)" in their clause, so they already have a fallback plan ready. The supervisor I spoke with said "I will closely monitor your order to make sure it arrives promptly", but that's just PR too. At this point, I just want them to get it shipped ASAP and w/o defects.

 

I urge any Envy 17 buyer who has already received a delayed shipment notice to please let us know if you get a second delayed shipment notification with a even later estimated to ship on date. My estimated ship date is June 8 and if i see 5/19ers getting strung along multiple times, well...
would love to have the machine but coulda had something else by then.

 

I'd say a little worse than the Envy 15, but still good. Jaxxy reported palmrests stay comfortable even while gaming. Check the first page of thread and read their reports/benchmarks.

 

Oh, you know I will


As for the people who got delayed, PLEASE do everyone a favor and call in a complaint to HP. Consumers need to voice their opinions on matters like this instead of taking a hit every time it happens. There are lazy and mismanaged companies out there, and they need to know that at the end of the day, we're the ones who are paying for their salaries and they should realize that. Even though it'll take up a good 30 minutes of your time, every call adds up. Thanks guys

 

Instead of a clean install, I recommend novice computer users to just uninstall the bloatware using RevoUninstaller or some other program. I think the Remove Program from the Control Panel works too though.

 

I vote that we have someone volunteer to do a 'How to do a clean install and Set up guide for the ENVY 17' for this thread - to be placed on the first page of this thread. Of course, to be accomplished only after our fabled 17s actually start appearing in our hands.

Any takers?

 

I second that motion.

 

@mobilezila

I just PMed you.

 

A Couple Comments:

1) On the topic of Jaxxy's laptop noise not heard/hearable by the middle-aged (like me), have you attempted to record the noise with the internal or a plugin microphone?

Common Sound Editors and even an Audio visualization for VLC media Player display spectral graphs of the sound. What can't be heard might be seen.

2) Nohm's comment about Nvidia GPU reballing etc. made me smile. I am typing this message on an HP dv9700. The gpu beeped dead three weeks ago, exactly two years after I bought it. I ordered the Envy 17 (with service contract this time) because I don't have time for second guessing repairs. I am gambling, perhaps wrongly, that lightning doesn't strike twice, given the different gpu and marketed design capabilities of the Envy.

It's all about the time. I've modded or built my PCs since my first (the first) Compaq Portable, but I don't want to spend my time on this box. Once I decided to order the Envy (with a free drive bay to load the data from my two drives on the dv9700) I decided--what the heck--wrap the offending machine in a wool blanket (with power cord, but minus battery and hard drives) and let it cook for its sins for an hour, just to see what happens. As with other users, my laptop came back to life for a week and then failed. So I did it again--good for ten days so far.

After/If the Envy arrives and the hassle of data transfer is over, I will donate the dv9700 with all but the hard drives to a local non-profit computer recycle center/store/training group (FreeGeek.org). I'll include references to the Nvidia issue, the overheating/reflowing/reballing fixes and efficacy and let someone else enjoy the rebuild possibilities. The project would have been fun when I was twenty.

3) On the topic of backups, I've been comparing costs for 1.5 TB drives plus a USB 3.0 hard drive dock against DVD and DVD DL disks and the drive plus dock approach comes out cheaper in dollars and faster in transfer time by a large amount--oh yes, shelf space too. Hard Drive MTBF may be exaggerated (see dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=6404), but DVD/DL media are not archival either. The lower usage hours of backup hard drives, combined with SMART -data analysis can provide some warnings for copying to new media that DVD/DL disks cannot. The Envy's USB 3.0 port makes this approach my plan for now.

 

OK - I am wondering if my super hot temp for my laptop is being caused because I am using the Intel OverClock app they provide with the laptop.

I am wondering if I should log a call with HP & see if this is a warrantable issue.

Hey Jaxxie - have you left the Intel overclocking app run when you were gaming?

 

Has anyone noticed any cases and/or accessories for the envy? I know it's really early but I'd like to keep my computer as scratch free as possible and make sure I got a good air vent! I want to take care of this one heat wise because my last hp got hot one day and never worked again! Research online led me to believe it was a motherboard issue and far too expensive to fix. So now it's just collecting dust.

 

Which one? I only Intel app i have installed is the Intel Inside app which seems to be just a splash screen with the Intel logo and a button to open Resource Monitor. I don't see any options to overclock.

@Benny, I tried recording with my phone, but it doesn't pick it up, I think there's just too much background noise. I'll try again with an external mic, thanks for the idea.

To the poster that suggested that my sound issue maybe related to wifi/screen brightness. The sound actually disappears when I turn wifi ON, and comes back around 10 seconds after I turn it OFF.

 

To the person with the whine. it sounds like the CPU whine Core2Duos get. Playing with the C states helped mine.

 

Cool, how do I play with the C states? Couldn't see anything in the BIOS.

I took the laptop into a quieter room to see what it sounds like and the issue did not occur. I had the power plugged in but no ethernet, so it may be related to the ethernet somehow. I enabled wifi but it made no difference.

 

If its that the noise should go away when the processor is in use, and come back when the CPU is idle.

Google RMclock (program I use to lower mine) and CPU whine or something like that

I also use it to save power and keep my laptop cooler by using the Performance on demand profile. Normally my laptop idles at 70C and wth RMclock and power on demand it idles closer to 50-55.

 

Thanks Mike I'll check those out.

You know, apart from these issues I've had with this laptop, I'm pretty happy with it. My only real gripe with it is that all the cables plug in on the left hand side, and very close to the front of the laptop. I use the mouse in my left hand so I have to have the mouse farther away from the laptop than I would like. The other thing is that it's huge, I want to use an external keyboard and keep the screen closed, but my desk hardly has space for a keyboard AND the laptop...this is a personal gripe and not really a fault per se.

 

Adding another temperature screenshot, this time idling with nothing open except for HWMonitor. The reason some temps are higher than the minimum is because Norton's scan/background tasks kept kicking in and I had to move the mouse to stop it, sometimes I didn't catch it quick enough.

 

OP updated with Jaxxy's "idle" temps.

 

makes me sad to see all of these errors/defects happening to the envy 17.. its really pushing me away from the envy 14... COME ON HP GET IT RIGHT!

 

It's not HP's fault it's the components themselves. The high pitched wine happens to almost all brands of laptops.

 

could be the components but HP assembles them.. making it HPs' fault.

 

World Fair is going on now in Shanghai. Labors in China get some days off as well just for that...so expect delays. So you know...

Anyway, anyone received their orders from Amazon.com yet?

 

The only problem with this theory is that my first Envy 17 did not exhibit this high pitches buzz/morsecode noise at all! How do you explain that?

And thanks for educating me on how the processor works. I downloaded the Intel applet and it's pretty cool.

EDIT: I just played around with the max CPU power setting and found that it needed to be set to 100% before it would go into turbo mode. Even at 99% it was not moving from 1.6GHz. My test was doing a factorial of 99999 in calc.exe

 

love seeing the only two people who have received their laptop this far have received problems.. really makes for a bad ratio.

 

Can anyone suggest a series of tests that should be done with the new laptop when it arrives to "double check" and make sure that its working properly?

 

Supposed to be receiving mine today even though the estimated delivery date was for June 7. I'll be keeping you all posted on the quality of mine.

 

Thanks, can't wait to see a review of a direct from factory custom build and not pre-configured system that our Kiwi friends got that are obviously early production line systems. Maybe some of the breaking in issues have been addressed already. Anyway if the only problem with mine is only to re-install a rubber foot then I in no way would ship it back in fear of receiving a different more substantial issue on a replacement, would reinstall the rubber foot myself.

Anyway can't wait for mine and may every one else receive a faultless system on time!

 

I've already gotten ahead of myself in prep for my envy. I have used the stickys in the forums to burn a Windows 7 ISO so I can do a clean install. I have even downloaded all the HP drivers from their support site and created a list of programs from my old computer I want to install on my new one as well. I'm probably over-prepared. Additionally I have looked at several optimization guides for an SSD and will be putting those in once I do a clean install. Les over in the hardware forums has a fantastic guide for that!

I did a clean install on my dv9500 after my first year because I was still getting HP popups and crap and it really made my system fly. Hell it still works great, just want something even better! Honestly I'm fairly computer savvy but as long as you follow the instructions here in the forums it is a painless process. My only concerns is this is my first SSD and I just want to make sure I don't screw the drive up haha!

Will probably put another 4gig of ram in my envy too but might wait for prices to drop a little bit. Honestly how much of a performance difference will I get going from 4 to 8 since I have an SSD? I lightly game and multitask but nothing intense.

Finally I bought a new swiss gear laptop backpack for when I travel and I travel for work a lot!

Yeah I'm ready, hurry up HP and ship it!

 

My belief is you can never go wrong with extra memory. Two years from now you'll be thrilled you added it. I'm still debating whether I should do a clean install.

 

The difference between 4 and 8 GB ram is very minimal. Unless you are editing HD video or high resolution photos or even big CAD projects, you are not going to see much improvement. The difference between 2 and 4 GB ram is quite noticable. Windows 7 will barely touch the page file with 4 GB ram.

Don't bother with 8 GB ram until prices drop.

 

Some people earlier were asking abourt i5 540 vs i7 620. This is why I choose the i5, along with the fact that its 35W instead of 45W for the power, resulting in better battery life and less heat:

Notebookcheck: Mobile Processors - Benchmarklist

note: for many of the benchmarks, lower is better! As well, even though the memory is slower for the i5, the overall performance is better, which is what is important.

Also, I bought an extra 4GB of ram from newegg for less than $200:
Newegg.ca - G.SKILL 4GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Laptop Memory Model F3-8500CL7S-4GBSQ

I'm going to be running virtual environments, so I can keep 4GB for my host, and assign 3-4GB to my virtual env...

 

So I called HP to ask about the delay, but she couldn't give me a reason, but did offer $75 cashback, I asked for $100 and then she then went to ask for approval and it was given. So I'll also be getting $100 back, yay!

She told me: Estimated book date: June 5th, delivered June 15.

What I did to get money back:

Called: 1 (888) 999-4747
press #2
press #5
and asked about why the laptop was delayed. Wasn't given a reason, but $75 was offered as compensation, I asked for $100 and they obliged

 

love laptops:

I see you own a DV8T also. I remember your name on the DV8T board?

I'm wondering about which one I should purchase: DV8T or envy 17?

I am not a gamer just want a powerful laptop

Does DV8T still have screen blank outs that recover due to the inferior graphics card?

The advantages I see for both are [off the top of my head]:

DV8T
larger screen
greater gb SSD drive
cheaper
hopefully had bugs solved over time


Envy 17

USB 3.0
backlit keyboard
better graphics card

problems with envy 17 - unknown quality and much more expensive?

How would you evaluate the two together?

 

I noticed that your link refers to the DDR3 1066 RAM, however, I think the ENVY comes with the DDR3 1333 RAM. Not sure if that makes a difference to you but I think its always recommended to get similar RAM sticks.

[Updated]
Oh, I just saw that you had the i5 CPU, my bad. I think those come instead with the 1066 RAM. You got the right ones than.

 

Woot! My 160GB SSD arrived today, my 1TB drive will arrive early next week. Now all I need is an actual notebook.

 

o.o

So I got the regular delivery and my estimated delivery date is June 8th, but the FedEx tracking says it's on the truck for delivery.

 

Ok, unless somebody else also has their ENVY 17 on route for delivery today, that means that you will be the first NBR forum member to receive the fabled laptop in this country!

That means more unboxing pics and the possibility of a youtube vid?

 

I think I can oblige with at least part of that. Still waiting though.

 

some one please report manufacturer of the screen and the model number also? I need to know the quality of the screen.

 

Lol mine was delivered at 9:43 am. unfortunately im still at work!

HP Envy 17
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-820QM Quad Core Processor (1.73GHz, 8MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to3.06GHz
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 660GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (SSD 160GB + 500GB 7200RPM)
• 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5850 Graphics
• 17.3" diagonal Full HD HP Ultra BrightView Infinity LED Display (1920x1080)
• Blu-ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam
• Intel Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth
• Full-size island-style backlit keyboard

 

Jaxxy,

Sorry, I hadn't really been tracking the noise aspect of the thread, just hooked in when I saw the overclocking reference.

First things first: you're being bugged; the high pitched noise has to be NSA/CIA/DOD/HOWDIEDOODIE!!!!! Actually, I've seen many threads dealing with such noises across brands, and I think the Core i7 was the constant, at least the "often." Check out the early pages of the Sony F (current) series Owners Lounge - or just Google it. Seems to me they figgered it out, and before they did, someone came up with a workaround that involved turning on the webcam mic and leaving it in background. Don't ask me why, I just remember it definitely made the noise go away until SONY came up with a fix.

Very interesting data on the turbo/power plan setting, and very creative approach to the problem: gold star I will experiment with my dv8 and report back.

One last phrase that pretty much covers everything that will be discussed in this thread for the next 3 months: Early Adopter Blues

 

pedro, you spec-ed yours out, AND you got shipping on time ! You're one lucky customer...

Are you officially the first one here to get the Envy17 in the US? Remember us, and follow up with photos and/or review.

 

WHHHAAAT! You did not stay home to give it the red carpet greeting?

OMG....

Anyways, not sure if this validates you as being the first forum member to receive the laptop as technically, you still have not 'received' it. ...so.....GO BACK NOW!

Jaerb4, have you officially 'received' your yet? Man..this is like the amazing race

 

Sorry all. I was just trying to give this man some useful input to a legitimate notebook comparison and, somewhere between word 300 and 800 I just plain LOST IT! If it seems amusing, it will be; if not, skip right past it.

My responses in italics following Neil's questions/comments:

Well, I guess some would say I kinda answered that, in a ridiculously overdone, ad nauseaum fashion. I had lots of fun; hopefully you didn't bother to read all my drivel unless it genuinely interested you! Peace.

 

lovelaptops:

Thank you very much for the effort to answer my questions [including the humor]. I am awed by the level of technical knowledge of the people on this board.

I noticed the change of the so called NEW DV8T but I saw the same older specs with the addition of I5, reallly nothing new at all. I caculated it was just a marketing ploy since the feedback on the HP site was terrible before and it now starts over. Also they now charge more for a fully loaded DV8T since I added up the cost for what I want.

I am leaning towards the Envy 17 but of course the opinion on this board will determine what button I push.

Thanks again since it was a lot of work to answer in the detail you did.

 

Just got my Envy 17 this afternoon. I had to go to the FEDEX location to pick it up since it arrived there too late for delivery.

First impression is WOW!
Great build quality, great screen. As I start to set it up I'll give a more detailed evaluation.

I ordered mine on 5/20 and it was supposed to ship by 6/2 with 2 day delivery. It was a bit late so I called and got the 2 day Fedex refunded.

I also took the recommendation from an earlier post and called them since they had lowered some of the option prices after I placed my order. I was able to get an additional $80 refunded. I suggest others do the same.

Here are the specs:

HP ENVY 17 customizable Notebook PC
• Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
• Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-820QM Quad Core Processor (1.73GHz, 8MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to3.06GHz
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 1TB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (500GB x 2) with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5850 Graphics
• 17.3" diagonal Full HD HP Ultra BrightView Infinity LED Display (1920x1080)
• SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam
• Intel Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth
• Full-size island-style backlit keyboard
• 50% OFF! One 6 Cell (standard) and One 9 Cell (over-sized) Lithium Ion Battery
• 50% OFF! HP Pavilion additional 120W AC Adapter
• No Productivity Software
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope