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

I haven't gotten one for my envy (still in production) however I have gotten the warranty for another product and didn't have any issues with squaretrade. You can even transfer the warranty to another person if you plan to sell.

 

The first page of this thread has a number of reviews, and the other 260 pages have tidbits of discussions. Just skim through this thread and you'll find plenty of info.

Personally, I'll do a write-up and possibly a youtube video review of this laptop once it arrives (hopefully 2 weeks from now).

-Ian

 

I've used squaretrade in the past. Just a few weeks ago they transferred #429 into my paypal account for a refurb lcd that I purchased for the bedroom. They sent shipping materials and prepaid label. I sent the malfunctioning unit in and they credited without a hassle or further questioning. In the past I've received credit for cellphones. All in, a reputable and hassle free way to go.

Make sure you check out slickdeals.net for a 30% off coupon. I remember seeing one posted recently.

 

After looking for coupons and trying some out, I found out that the 20% off coupons are better than the 30% off. It's because the 30% off is "30% up to $30", whereas the 20% off is just "20% off" which for something this expensive, is much more than 30 dollars.

 

I've used Square Trade warranty services before, a lot cheaper than standard warranties. My Samsung broke after the 1 year and they paid to have a local repair guy come and look at my set. he determined it would cost more to fix it so Square Trade mailed me a check for the full amount of my purchase. Highly recommend Square Trade.

 

Seeing as how this data was published by SquareTrade, I imagine it's fairly readily accessible to them and they are quoting appropriately. What was your quote?

SquareTrade Notebook PC Reliability Survey: ASUS Wins, HP Loses :: displayblog

 

Don't know how long you're looking for, but I got an HP 2 year accidental damage protection warranty + Lojack theft protection for $99 from Costco. Just registered it for my Envy 17 with no problem. This is a screaming deal compared to HP's prices.

This is send-in service and not on-location, but the folks on the Envy 15 forum say that HP requires Envy machines to be sent in for any non-trivial service anywy.


Costco - HP 2-Year Accidental Damage Protection and Computrace LoJack for Laptops

 

So cool, after all of what you guys have told me, I probably will end up getting the square trade warranty, because honestly, if 3 years from now, my Envy breaks, I would rather have the cash to go toward my next laptop which I'm sure I would be getting soon anyway.

 

Can you post the link to the 20 percent discount for square trade.

 

I found it on retailmenot.com

Here's the link: SquareTrade Coupon Codes - all coupons, discounts and promo codes for squaretrade.com

I used TWTYOFF

 

Does anyone know what the BIOS option to enable "virtualisation" does?

 

It's specifically mentioned here: Windows Virtual PC: Configure BIOS

The Documentation "tab" from the same page provides additional documentation: Windows Virtual PC: Documentation and Videos

The bios switch supports software products like VMWare in creating virtual machines. Microsoft has added some virtual machine features into Windows 7 as a competitive response to VMWare and similar companies.

Servers are increasingly virtualized to create customer "server environments" completely isolated from one another. These virtual machines can function or crash with no possibility of other users touching or being touched by them.

Personal users can develop and test new software on their PC without risking the parent environment. For example, I can run Linux on my Envy 17 in a virtual machine that appears to all Linux app software as being "real" hardware rather than simulated hardware. I can do the same with Windows under Linux, too. There is a cost in performance, but a fast CPU can make up for this.

A virtual machine can completely crash and the user can simply switch outside the virtual environment and turn it off. All memory is made available and the real machine is just fine.

Too much info?

 

The virtualization option in the BIOS allows for separate allocation of memory for virtual machines. Basically with the option enabled in the BIOS, interrupts are assigned for the virtual machine for each device that is being virtualized. Thus, the virtual machine gets near native performance.

 

am i the only person keeping his envy17? its too bad that it's too late for me to return it. i'm about 3 days past my 21 day policy. also, what happened to all the active contributors who were the first to recieve their envys? i seriously hope that chart that joe bleau posted is somewhat illegitimate. im planning to have this envy run for at least four years.

 

For the record, I posted the chart. Captain obvious felt compelled to edit the chart to include a red arrow to underscore the fact that Sony laptops are superior to HP in this respect. He then suggested we all get our toasters warrantied.

I purchased my E17 with a credit card. One of the perks of the card is that the manufacturer's warranty is doubled. So, that gets me two years.

 

Can anyone confirm that the E17's motherboard controller is locked to AHCI mode? There are no options in BIOS to change between IDE and AHCI that I can find.
But apparently there is a way to unlock this in the registry by altering the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci file.

Since I don't have experience fiddling with registry files I'm not about to start changing things now, but on my path to try and get my Vertex 2 drive to work, it occured to me that most laptops have options for AHCI and IDE modes in the hard drive options in BIOS.

Can anyone comment on this?

 

Thanks for the detailed response, much appreciated

 

"For the record", I posted first that SquareTrade notebook failure rate chart with a pointer for_Sony on March 8, 2010. Visible right here. I just re-posted a link to it because the current topic was the SquareTrade extended warranty. It was the first time I posted that chart outside the Vaio_F thread.

 

I'm keeping my E17 and am quite happy with it. It suits my purposes as a software developer and geek-book author. I've even made peace with the touchpad, which was the reason I returned my E15.

 

I'm over 3 weeks also; I am keeping mine. I am not a gamer. I have many screens runing at the same time. My seems fine -no wobbles, fit is fine. heat is more than manageable even without Zalman cooler that I use. My E17 is on ALL day and doesn't heat up. Admittedly I am in Seattle which had a cool summer [except for last week] this year. Also my basement is relatively cool.

While I'm a happy customer, I keep thinking that a more perfect E17 is just around the corner in the next rendition and maybe I will be upset that I didn't return mine.

Even HP customer service was more than fair with me.

I think most people without problems just don't post anymore. Most are not computer fanatics and have moved on and use their computer.

 

Pretty much, ones who voice their complaints are heard more than those that are perfectly fine with the computer.

 

Nice! Fedex just dropped a black box on my ping pong table. Four days ahead of schedule! Three days after being marked as shipped in China. Was in anchorage yesterday morning. I'm in the office and hoping I can get some work done with this thing here..... sigh.

Th first thing I did was put it on a slate slab... no wobble. Keyboard flex, there, but not perceptible or intrusive. I don't see what the fuss about the touch pad is all about, I actually like the tactile feel of the pad. I hooked up a Logitech wireless mouse and noticed that the USB ports are shallower than usual. I did notice gaps in the case at all four corners.

I'll post photos and reviews as I familiarize myself with it with it over the weekend.

Oh, and the 1080p screen? Very nice! Coming from a Sony Vaio F12, this screen is on par with what one would expect from a premium multimedia laptop. Crisp, bright capable of pretty good viewing angles! Now if we could just go matte... Nevertheless, difference between LED and CCFL is perceptible.

Beats audio - Fittingly, I slipped in Dr. Dre's 2001 offering. Eh, look it's still a laptop, and so as long as you keep this in mind, you'll be impressed. It does have more fidelity in the low range, a nice low kick, sound is not as harsh and tinny but this front firing system will not "fill a room" as others have said.

 

What ?

You are switched from the super premium dual lamp ccfl 16.4" matte Sony F12 to a standard 17" led grare of HP ?? Why ???

Which screen/pc prefer of the two and why ?

I was/am in doubt to buy or not because the screen of Sony seems extraordinary but you are writing that are so equal ?

Can you post a photo with one near each other with the same wallpaper to compare better the visual appearance of the screens ?

Btw wich model exactly of F12 do you have ? Complains about it, problems or other ?

Thanks a lot.

 

Lifebylife,

Sony Vaio F12, for the United States market, is not available in the dual lamp CCFL matte 1080p configuration. The only option is the 1X CCFL 1080p "premium" glossy panel, which among other things, offers very limited viewing angles, inversion and washout. Some North American customers have gutted their F notebooks and transplanted euro spec matte screens.

If you are an Asian/European customer, the dual CCFL premium panel offered in those markets is supposed to be an absolute class leading, IPS poking, chest thumping beast.

That said, if you are a North American customer, the E17's screen, while glossy (not a fan of gloss but this is what the buying public wants) is clearly superior.

PS- Stupidly lifted my E17 to check out its undercarriage while my recovery disc was buring. "Bzzzt! Disc write failed. Please insert a new disc" Sigh.

 

"While I'm a happy customer, I keep thinking that a more perfect E17 is just around the corner in the next rendition and maybe I will be upset that I didn't return mine."

I doubt it's just around the corner. Inevitably, there will be a successor but come on... they barely broke in the dies and stamps over in China. I would think you're safe until May + 6 of next year.... November 2011?

HP is not Apple and the Envy is not MacBook. Speaking of,

YouTube - iPhone4 vs HTC Evo

PS- Burning recovery media, I'm on disc 4 of 5. Core0: 48C Core1: 55C (max: 55/61 respectively) running fairly steady at 2.926.11MHz (133.01 * 22) Plugged into wall.

The left palm rest is surprisingly warm but the temps are certainly acceptable. I think a lot of the perceived heat issues are due to, as someone mentioned earlier, the conductive properties of the casing materials.

 

Has anyone performed LCD color calibration yet?

Thanks in advance!

 

np,

I found this on the E15 gen2 board. Yes, it's not ideal and it's not even an E17 but it's something to toy around with as we wait for someone to post.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...ers-lounge-2.7gamma-7500k-envy-15-100-brt.zip

by the way, I haven't applied it yet.


Update: I called bullsh*t on the "no battery detected" icon in the lower right portion of my screen by yanking out the AC plug after my recovery DVD's were burned. The laptop died instantly. I called HP, we ran various tests and a new battery has been dispatched to me. Whats weird is that there was supposed to be a protective strip or something on the battery that wasn't there on mine. I guess it was late on a Friday...

 

I definitely agree with that. I still am following this thread to answer any reasonable questions etc but I'm definitely enjoying using my envy and have no complaints!

 

@NAZ_VEGAS

Did you try restarting your computer? I had a similar no battery detected issue on my ASUS G1S, but it was a fluke that was fixed by a simple restart.

If that doesn't worth, talk to Tech support and ask them to ship you a new battery. Tell them that the computer isn't properly detecting the battery. They should be more than happy to ship you a new one. Once you receive the new one, they'll ask that you ship the old one back.

 

The notebook couldn't make its mind up between "no battery detected" and "detected but not charging".

We did a whole battery of tests, some pun intended, and they deemed id dead. Strange.

I'm tethered to a wall until the 21st.

 

How long have you had your Envy? I remember some of the first people who got the 17 had the same problem, and they said after about a day of keeping the battery in, and the AC plugged in, it suddenly started to recognize it. If I were you, I would simply keep it in, and see if it fixes it self... I mean, you dont have anything to lose since you are already getting a new battery next week.

 

Huh. Thanks for the heads up.

 

Well I'm keeping mine, and I read over this forum each day usually if I have time.

Although still without problems. Been trying to get Windows to 'see' my SSD for the past week now so I can install Windows and start using it. Also, the BD-ROM makes loud grinding noises when reading blu-ray disks so I will be ringing the warranty line on Monday and sending it down to the repair centre.

Other than that, everything else seems to work nicely

 

alright, a new crazy thing came up with my envy. for those of you who currently have their E17's, try going on youtube and watch a video. then pause it anywhere after the video starts. then sleep your laptop for 5+ mins. log back into your desktop and continue your video. does the video stutter in one spot as the sound of the video continues to work?

 

Thanks naz. doesn't do any good. I'll wait.

 

guys check this cooler out. i think this one works great for the envy. there are two fans and we get to position them wherever we want.



YouTube - Coolermaster NotePal U1 Laptop Cooler

 

Hopefully, I didn't imply that people shouldn't look at this thread. I still do, I find it interesting to keep abreast of new developments with the E17. I am also appreciative of those who comment frequently, even those with problems.

I really meant that those who are not having problems or are not that computer sophisticated [like me] don't post frequently when things look OK and we are not more of a perfectionist [I guess ignorance is bliss].

I am now in the market but havent' found the best external keyboard for my office. while the laptop keyboard is fine, I prefer an larger external one for when I'm in my basement office with larger arrow keys. I'm spoiled I want one that does everything well but unfortunately all have limitations.

I want a great wireless or bluetooth model that is white backlit and has a great layout but all the ones on Amazon seem to have something missing.

 

@neilk47

Take a look at some ergonomic keyboards. I find them perfect for those long typing sessions. I especially love the Microsoft ergonomic sets. I have one (don't remember the model since it's back at campus) and have been using it for over 6 years. It's very durable and I take it apart once a year and give it a thorough wash after I've removed the circuit boards. No stuck keys and it still works perfectly.

 

Looks a bit small, if the guy in the video only had a 13" macbook, then the E17 may be a bit unstable on there.
I do love the grill design and the positionable fans, the double ended usb plug is great idea too.

 

I looked at the Coolermaster Notepal U1, but I am curious about the CFM. To me, it seems like the fans don't push much air. Maybe someone has some numbers?

 

I myself have been eyeing the Thermaltake Notebook cooler Model CLN0008.

Newegg.com - Thermaltake Notebook cooler Model CLN0008

It's got a goofy LED light, but you can turn it off.

edit-

and also this:

Antec Unbeatable Notebook Cooler 200

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16834997410

 

My Thermaltake cooler is the model sold before the one Ian H. links. Skip the heat data and scroll to the bottom of the pictures in my prior post here http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-envy-hdx/484905-official-hp-envy-17-owners-lounge-203.html#post6385578 to see my unit. An Amazon link for my model is included near the top of the same post.

The price difference is noteworthy, but both models prompt comments:

1) The LED lights are good marketing, but I respond to them in the same way I respond to "spinners" on the wheels of a professional athlete's SUV: your money and your car, but none for me, thank you. Granted, I am fifty years old, but I would have responded the same at fifteen. On my next lazy afternoon, I intend to kill all but one light, moving it to the front so I can actually see whether the unit is powered.

2) My model lacks the extra USB port that many coolers sport now, but I have alternatives.

3) The model Ian H. links has a metal screen that spans nearly the entire surface of the cooler. Buyers pay a premium for this extra metal real estate when compared to my model. Some sites claim that the extra metal improves cooler performance. I will bow to hard data on this point, but otherwise I remain skeptical.

Of course, metal conducts heat better than plastic, but most (all?) laptops have feet that raise the laptop bottom surface from the cooler surface. What good is the extra metal if its surface does not contact the bottom of the laptop? And the feet on the Envy 17 are rubber--little heat conduction there.

4) My model has an air path limited to the area defined by the diameter of the fan. The model Ian H. links allows air to escape down the surface of the cooler everywhere except the area defined by the diameter of the fan. This raises a number of questions.

Most laptops cool themselves by sucking cool air from below into the unit, directing that air over hot components to allow the air to absorb the components' heat, and then directing the heated air out the side of, and away from, the laptop. Laptop coolers contribute to the laptop's function by presenting extra air to the laptop's intake ports at a slightly higher pressure. This pressurized air would enter the laptop even if the laptop's fan(s) was not running. When the fan is running, its work is eased and its lifespan increased by some measure (significant or not significant) when a cooler is used.

As far as airflow is concerned, the zone of higher air pressure is similar to the function of a hovercraft. Sir Christopher Cockerel conducted brilliant experiments to demonstrate the benefits of containing pressurized air in lifting a craft. His great experiment with a hair dryer-like blower, some tin cans, and a scale proved that driving air into a space where it was allowed to swirl and escape was 1/3 as effective as driving the same air into an adjacent chamber where it remains for a longer time before escaping, allowing for a dynamically sustained, near-static pressure higher than with the simpler design.

Take a look at the first four pictures of this web museum and you will see what I am describing: Sir Christopher Cockerell

This site does not show a picture of Cockerel's first experiment. This was simply the "outer" can attached to the blower. The concentrically assembled cans created the lifting chamber.

Now, back to laptop coolers. It appears to me that the model Ian H. links will function like Cockerel's first experiment. Air will flow beneath the laptop. Some will enter the laptop, but the remainder (I speculate, the majority) will escape down the wider screen and create a vortex beneath the cooler. This air will repeatedly flow from cooler bottom to laptop bottom and then to cooler bottom, again and again. To the extent that heat is transferred from the laptop bottom to the cycling air, the air will become permanently hotter than if drawn from a fresh source. This can't be good. By way of an analogy, imagine what would happen to you in the family hovercraft as you traveled down the solid road to cross the metal grid surface of a modern drawbridge. Were you wearing your seat belts in your mind's eye?

The picture in my heat related post shows some crudely made dams or legs that I used to capture better the air intended for cooling. These were made from tape and look like a kind of wall. I have a plan to execute a more permanent mod to the cooler to capture and hold the air between the cooler and laptop longer. Before and after heat tests will be collected and reported regardless of results. This might not be the proper thread for that report, but report I will wherever the best thread (and links in this one, of course).

My plan is simple enough:

a) trace the vent and leg locations on my Envy 17 to a large piece of paper.
b) trace the cooler fan location onto the same paper.
c) draw lines representing the walls for the largest area on this two dimensional plan that allows for the cooler to inject air and the laptop to suck air.

This experiment is only partially similar to Cockerel's design, but it is more similar in abstract. My modified cooler will not have concentric walls as Cockerel used. That said, air currents, vortices, will be minimized by the fact that the pressurized volume is small in the vertical and broad in the horizontal. The primary vortex to avoid (where air moves up the cooler through the fan and immediately below the cooler through the grid) is avoided because of my model's design. The outer walls will then contain most of the air not sucked into the laptop.

The benefit of my future experiment may be below the margin for error in measurement, but its still a fun project.

And who says what you study as a kid can't be useful to you later in life? Sir Christopher Cockerell created an entirely new mode of transportation that remains in use worldwide even if the English Channel no longer resonates with the roar of Bristol Siddeley Marine Proteus gas turbine engines across the waters now covering today's Chunnel.

"Bristol Siddeley Marine Proteus gas turbine engine"--I still remember that term from an oral report I gave 37 years ago. The class was particularly impressed with my memorization of the many, long model names of hovercrafts and their engines. I got an, "A" in that Physics class. In metal shop, I made a working copy of the motorized, model prototype. Hovercrafts--well done you, people of the UK.

Again, back to laptop coolers.

5) Many sites make the point that larger fans, though they move more slowly than smaller fans, can cool just as effectively as smaller fans, but with less noise. This matches my experience. If you have a cooler with smaller fans that are not noisy to your ears and that cool to your liking, than that is answer enough. I just happened to buy this model.

Apart from recollecting old school assignments, I wrote this post because far too many "reviews" of products online describe their benefits against not using the product and not against using a competitor's product.

Compare a Yugo against walking and the Yugo looks pretty good, but, really, is a Yugo the best car one can buy?

Good caveat emptoring to us all.

 

been debating for a while and narrowed it down to envy 14 and envy 17. for the price difference and hardware difference im just gonna go with the 17.

before i pull the trigger here, someone pls point out to me major hardware issues experienced ... ? considering the post before mine looks like a book, i didnt go thru each page of this thread.

 

^^ your question has been talked about pleeeennnty in this thread. For some, heat issues, for some wobble issues, units dead after a couple days of use i mean it goes on and on.

At any rate, here is a question for you guys. What laptop bookbag or case did you guys end up getting for your envy 17?

 

There have been some hardware problems, but of course it's not a majority. The main issue has been heat, but some have said it's just slightly warm and others have declared the palm rests unusable. There is a good chance you'll get a solid unit, if not, there is always returning it for a brand new within 21 days if something is wrong. However, I would wait until they are offered with i5 processors again.

 

I got my Envy 14 yesterday and have been gaming on it alot..probably not close to the Envy 17's performance but there is no heat problems at all. I got an i5 and cores stay around 60-70C max so far is 72C. Can play most games on all high settings

 

i've been on the fence for a few weeks now ... i reevaluated everything again, then decided to order the envy 14 ....

so over to the owners lounge i go ... thanks for the responses to my questions ...

 

what makes you believe the i5 will be offered again in the Envy 17?

 

Nothing, but I don't see why they wouldn't put it back. Rumor was it was taken off as an option due to shortages or some issue with the 4th of July sale.

 

Hi guys, new to the forum and waiting for my Envy 17 to arrive, just wanted to talk about my experiences so far.

I ordered a custom Envy 17 from the HP website on the 12th with these specs (cut out the stuff that isn't as important):

• Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Quad Core processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 2.8 GHz
• 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 640GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive 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
• 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard)

Total cost after taxes and after my $50 coupon code (LOGIC50) was $1590. I didn't think this was so bad... until I went to Amazon and looked at their Envy 17. Here's the specs on theirs:

• Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Quad Core processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 2.8 GHz
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory
• 640GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive 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)
• Blu-ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
• 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard) + 9 Cell Battery

Total cost is $1650 w/Prime shipping (free because I'm a college student). So for a difference of $60, with the Amazon laptop you get an extra 2GB of RAM, a Blu-Ray drive, and an extra, larger battery.

Obviously, I have put in an order for the Amazon system. I'm going to be sending back my HP order once it arrives. Unfortunately there was no way to cancel the order once I submitted it.

I'd highly suggest anyone looking to get one of these (and if you can wait the time it takes for it to ship), do it on Amazon, because you can get a far better deal than through the HP website.

As for people looking for laptop coolers, I have purchased the Zalman ZM-NC2000 in anticipation of getting the Envy and the airflow on this thing is amazing. It's an incredibly sturdy piece that promotes good airflow (pushes air onto the base of the system) through two adjustable speed fans and a raised base.