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

@Celibate

Where did you find the quick ship? I just went on the HP website and I couldn't find it.

I suggest you order from Amazon if you're in the U.S. You get a lot better machine spec wise for $1650. Use a Prime trial for free 2 day shipping.

The dual-cores run a bit cooler than the quads. Though is is arguable how much cooler they run because I don't think anyone has actually run a CPU specific stress test and posted temps.

 

I did not want anything that would go above the price of my replacement. My HP Envy 15 turned out to be a little damaged (multitude of scratches along finish as well as a finicky keyboard that loses keys and fails to register the space bar). Thus, it had to go for under $1399. I talked with their customer service for about two hours and they were willing to offer me the quick-ship Envy 17 as well as a nifty $320 discount.

Found that quick-ship model here.

HP ENVY 17-1010NR Notebook PC | HP® Official Store

 

1. i have the same machine you're going to get. as for heat, i5 vs. i7, the i5 may run a bit warmer than the i7 because the i7 has a lower clock speed/more cores. i found this thread and read that i shouldn't have turboboost installed unless i have switchable graphics (which this machine doesn't). when i had turboboost installed, the left side of the machine got pretty toasty most of the time (HOT to the touch). but since i uninstalled it, the left side has only been getting lukewarm, which is much nicer.

thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-...3-dv7-gen-4-select-edition-envy-17-intel.html

2. yes. this screen is nice, but not as nice/crisp as the 1920 display. i am probably the only one here that swapped out the 1600 display for the 1920 on a core i5 envy 17. but before i did, crysis ran fine on the 1600 display. if you want nice visuals comparable to a macbook, i would say spend the extra few hundred and get the 1011. for me, i bought mine in a store and they would not refund once opened. so i had no choice but to buy the display i wanted from HP and install it myself.

3. they are 2.5" laptop drives. 1.8" is usually found on mp3 players, but in the future as capacities go up, i see manufacturers stuffing laptops with 3 or 4 1.8" drives as opposed to 1 or 2 2.5". i swapped out the boot HDD of mine and replaced with an intel X25-M 80GB SSD. WELL WORTH IT. only after the swap i had realized how much an hdd lags behind the motherboard and memory buses. you will not regret getting an SSD. some figures: windows 7 installed in under 20 minutes (with reboots). normal startup time for me is right around 20 seconds with all my software fully loaded. as for the windows page file, its now living on an SSD, which is just as fast as RAM. SSDs are freakin amazing.

4. i just updated my machine to F08 bios (from F06), i cannot really make a comparison as i also uninstalled turboboost, but i don't think heat will be an issue unless you plan on plopping this thing on your bed and and gaming with all the air vents underneath covered by fabric.

5. can't answer this yet, but the 9-cell should net you a good 3.5 hours. since it's a core i5, i'd expect the 6-cell to net you 3 hrs if you're conservative.

can't help with 6 as i don't mess with over/underclocking. i'd guess this is trecherous water with a laptop not designed for it. alienware and dell are more experienced in this realm. i could be wrong, this is a voodoo machine, but the bios looks very basic to me.

 

I know this might have been discussed before, but whats the difference between eggs and amazons return policy? Aside from 30 day RMA/no refund.. well if I got an acceptable 17 from newegg, i'd be ok, since I'd know within the first 30 days anyways?

 

1. Unless the conventional figures on i5/i7 are different on the Envy 17, I'm pretty sure the i5 would output less heat.

2. I'm not really that much of a screeniac. 1600x900 is more than enough for me. I've used a 1440x900 screen with a 17" and it's never bothered me. But I'm glad you are enjoying your Full HD screen.

3. Thanks for the info. Those are indeed nice figures, and I'm happy to find out I can simply swap the HDD for an SDD.

4. I don't really think the Turbo Boost driver has anything to do with the actual Turbo Boost of the processor. It isn't handled by the OS.

5. So around six hours altogether? If so then that is absolutely great news. Thank you for the output.

 

Guys, remember me? Well, I just came back to report that I'm experiencing no issues with my Envy 17. I've just been busy with life and will be for the rest of summer (extremely busy...hence the lack of posting -_-), but my 17 has been a champ for the past month that I've used it. I was initially experiencing some painful heat issues with the left palm rest, but ever since I ordered and installed the Zalman NC2000 cooler, the heat has become a non-issue (even when the cooler is turned off and thus passively cooling). I'm also one of the lucky ones that don't have any cosmetic issues with the 17 either. It looks like I'll have to catch up on 50+ pages on this thread to learn of other's praises or gripes...


Now for some news outside of the Envy 17 itself, but relevant to it:

I was one of the few who opted to order a single drive (SSD for me) and am now dealing with the pain of needing to order a mount for my secondary HDD that I purchased separately. I called HP again today, after a month of waiting, to see if they might have updated their parts inventory to include the secondary mount by itself, but it seems that they haven't and most likely won't. BennyPac's post regarding the defacto HDD mounting kit is IMO too expensive and redundant (why would I need to pay $88 + shipping costs for a kit that wastes half the cost on a primary drive mount that I won't need?). Though it's gonna be a hassle, I'd rather spend $15 on an external drive enclosure and wait for a 3rd party company to release a secondary drive mount.

Funny thing is, the tech support I spoke with today insisted that the same HDD mount kit (uses the same part# as the one BennyPac ordered) now only includes ONE mount and that this mount works for BOTH primary and secondary drives (in contrary to the original two mount and physically different mount shapes). The absurd part is that this single "universal" mount still costs $88.35 + shipping! I even went out of my way to provide the tech support with the links to their own service manual that describes TWO mounts and also BennyPac's post link regarding his mount purchase, but the techy was soo adamant about his and his mother's description of the kit and said my sources were likely false. I don't feel the need to order their craptastically expensive kit just to prove my point. Also, it's needless to say that I will NEVER be ordering anything of this low caliber from HP.

I just wanted to let potential mount kit purchasers know of my case for future reference. I hope HP wakes up and sells the secondary mount by itself at a respectable price, but that will be unlikely with the way they're managing things. It still remains to be seen if a 3rd part company can produce a kit (like BennyPac said before) but time is the issue. I hope you guys find a proper solution, and please let us know if you've found out any news regarding this matter.

 

@zero7404

There is no driver for Turbo Boost. It is a built-in function of the processor. The Turbo Boost driver listed on HP's support website is actually the integrated graphics driver. It is mislabeled. Furthermore, the Envy 17 does not support switchable graphics at the moment. Thus, that driver is pretty useless.

When you installed the driver, you enabled the integrated graphics core on your i5. The Envy 17 does not support integrated graphics at the moment. Thus, at the moment there is no way to disable the integrated graphics core or control the graphics core's frequency and state. Even with the driver installed, your system was still using the discrete ATI graphics card; the 5850m. However, because you installed the integrated graphics driver, the graphics core was stuck at full speed. In other words, the Operating System understood that you had a GPU in the core i5, but it did not know how to control both the integrated GPU and the discrete GPU.

It's like knowing how to say "Hello" in another language, but without knowing more, you can't really have a conversation.

When you uninstalled the integrated graphics driver, the integrated GPU was disabled. Thus, without the integrated GPU running full throttle all the time, the temperatures dropped.

 

Anybody have any idea as to when there will be some better coupon codes available for HP's site?

I really want an Envy 17 w/Core i7 740, 8GB, SSD+HHD... and the only place I know where to get it from is HP's site. The config I want goes for a whopping $2500, despite the fact that it's probably only $400 more for the components I want versus the models available via NewEgg, Amazon, etc.

I doubt BCB will be at 25% again before it shuts down, and the best coupon I've found is $50 off.

 

i never had an i7, so i shouldn't speak to it and heat. but logically, the higher clock would yield higher temps. not 100 % on that as there may be cores being turned on/off as needed.
as for the batteries, if you run out of juice on one, just hibernate & swap to the other.

a good battery tip (if you're not using both all the time) would be to discharge one of them down to 40% charge, then ziplock bag it and stick it in your refrigerator (not freezer). it'll preserve the battery's cells over extended periods of non-use. as far as batteries are concerned, heat is a an accelerated death throw. but luckily the battery is in a spot where it doesn't see the majority of the heat produced by the machine.

so unless you want to replace a battery in a year, stick one in the fridge and use the other until it croaks.

as for turboboost, i saw the folder and figured it was the driver for the technology. turns out the 'turboboost' software is mislabeled (as someone else pointed out on this page).

SSD is simply ridiculous. get one. it breathes new life into your equipment.

 

It seems that my laptop screen shakes when I press down on it. Is that normal? Who else has this problem?

 

Shakes. You mean wobbles?

Then yeah, unfortunately that seems to be relatively common around here.

 

Oh, I wasn't sure. Because there was the wobbles problem with the entire laptop. Wasn't sure it was different or the same as the screen wobble.

Did you return yours because of the screen wobble issue?

 

What I returned was the Envy 15.

And yeah, the wobble I'm referring to is the laptop wobbling due to an uneven rubber foot (or two). I wasn't referring to a screen wobble.

 

@ThinkFr33ly

No one knows when better coupons will be available. If you need a notebook now, buy it now. Else just wait till better coupons come out.

The i7-740QM isn't really worth the $150 upgrade. I suggest you buy the Amazon/Newegg model and wait till Christmas when almost all retailers will have big sales. You can pick up a nice 160GB or more SSD for cheap then. Actually, Cyber Monday is just a couple months away.

@jetaimaster

I posted a video of my 4th Envy wobbling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQbP50WhPKI

 

First time poster. I've been sifting through this thread since I've been more interested in getting an E17.

I noticed that the 10% newegg cashback has ended and their twitter page mentions a "grand finale" tomorrow morning.

Newegg.com Deals (NeweggHotDeals) on Twitter

My question is should I really jump on the 1011nr if they bring back 10% or possibly even higher?

Does newegg allow you to exchange your laptop for wobbles, excessive heat or dead pixels? From reading this thread it sounds like I have a good chance of getting one or more of these problems.

 

Soo. Has anyone had freezing happen with their laptop? It happened two or three times today, all while transferring files through remote desktop or viewing youtube. I played about 15 minutes of WoW without freezes. I didn't have any issues beforehand, so I'm hoping it's more of a fixable glitch than a hardware issue.

 

That story points to good customer service by Newegg. They offered a refund or a free upgrade because they could not replace the defective unit as specified in their return policy.

It does not mean that they will refund a non-defective unit as they write in black & white in their return policy that all sales are final - non-refundable.

If you are nice to a sales rep, he can refund a non-defective unit but they don't have to. It's at their entire discretion.

One question: did you install ZoneAlarm on the first unit? It's known to cause BSOD on Windows 64-bit systems.

Good luck with your replacement unit!

 

Here's a cool web tool. Notice that when you load the CPU to 100% the high pitched whine disappears. Idle it and it comes back. Doesn't sound (somewhat intended) like something that can be remedied.

Fossil Free Online CPU Load or Stress Test.

The duration of the "chirps" changes depending on the load placed on the CPU. Faster and more chaotic at idle and more rhythmic at 75%.

BTW, I decided to keep the 500GB OEM Hitachi and purchased an icy dock for it. (USB 3.0!)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817198045

 

Well, got my Envy 17-1011nr from newegg.com today. So far, there's one minor flaw on it, but it's not enough for me to really care about. There's a little chip or something above the keyboard on the casing. It's about the size of the 0.5mm lead that is used in mechanical pencils. Other than that, no dead pixels and no wobbling. Yes, the laptop runs a bit warm, but it's hardly any different from my Gateway P-7811FX. Overall, I'm very pleased with the laptop. I went ahead and updated the BIOS, drivers (mainly the video driver), and did Windows Update. I'm currently installing some games through Steam right now and will test them tomorrow. It does come with two batteries. A 6 cell and 9 cell battery. My only gripe with HP is why they can't incorporate the battery life timer like other manufactures (Dell, ASUS, Gateway, etc.). Overall, solid laptop. Can't wait to game on it and see how it holds up. I'll be honest, I'm a bit concern with it only having one fan for the whole unit. My Gateway at least had a dedicated fan for the CPU and the GPU.

Oh yea, no gaps in the casing either and the mouse pad isn't fully flushed with the casing, but I can deal with that. I'm just glad the screen is beautiful

 

Check the first post of this thread for the fix for this "morse code noise issue".

 

The mini-DP to DVI works fine if you are just using a single external monitor, but it won't work in Eyefinity mode*. You need the mini-DP to VGA for that.

*unless the adaptor is an "active" one as listed on the ATI site.

 

this is not what you're thinking about. this is in the electronics somewhere, electrical noise....something like power supply noise. it's not coming thru the speakers or anything, it's coming from inside the case.

it is very subtle and low volume, but after a while makes my ears ring. wasn't happening before i did the display swap, so maybe there's some kind of voltage modulation that's making that noise.

 

I has question.

The bottom is hard plastic isn't it? I mean it looks obvious from pictures but... reviews say it's the build is all aluminum... so... =l

 

Jax,

I followed instructions; it did not fix the issue.

 

The Norwegian versions are Envy 17-1080, 1085 and 1090. The 17-1085 has one 2 GB memory module and one 4 GB module. I was wondering if this could have a negative impact on the dual channel memory technology? I sometimes heard that the two memory modules should have the same size? Or is it sufficient that the memory modules have the same speed? (1333Mhz DDR3 for the i7 version). I found some info here:
Dual-channel architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

i has answer:

the entire chassis is aluminum and magnesium. the bottom is black coated cast magnesium, including the drive and ram covers.

wouldnt be much of a high end laptop if it was plastic.

 

Are you not getting the Smart Adapter message? I keep getting that on start up where it tells me that my computer exceeds the power of the Smart Adapter. I too got mine from Newegg, same specs as you.

I have one usb mouse, one usb keyboard, and a WD MyBook USB drive hooked up to the machine. Do you have anything hooked up via USB?

 

I just got Starcraft II and it plays great on the envy 17

 

Remember that YouTube video from a few years back with that weird freaky, blonde girly sounding guy crying and saying "leave Brittney alone?"

I was thinking of modding that to say, "leave JoeBleau alone."

Heh, anyway, had to delete a lot of posts. Catch my drift? I'm indiscriminate like that.

 

Just got in contact with HP. Apparently, my Newegg-shipped model came with the incorrect power supply.

My power supply was 100-240v, 19.5 volt and 6.15 Amp, and it should have been the 120w model. Just an FYI for those who bought from Newegg. You may want to check out your power supply.

The proper power supply is: AC adapter (120-watt) - 110-240VAC input, 50/60Hz - 18.9VDC output - With power factor correction (PFC) technology

 

Thanks for the replies. It makes sense that the bottom cover is magnesium. But I had a dysfunctional DV6T:SE which had a similar build with the bottom being hard plastic, which is why I came to that conclusion.

Anyhow I hope HP enables switchable graphics by the time I'm in college... I could use the ~10 hours usability from the 6+9 cell batteries.

 

My E17 purchased directly from HP has a 100-240 adapter. Are they sending out the wrong one too? I noticed that it makes a chirping sound.

 

Yup, I'd say that you also got the wrong one. This may be a systemic issue on s some of these 1011-NR models (or for models of the same vintage).

I used the online chat tech support function on the HP support page, and they were VERY accommodating. It took about 15 minutes of chat time (I was also able to do work stuff, etc.), and they promptly put my order in.

Sounds like this could be a fairly widespread issue....

 

But 19.5 volt x 6.15 Amp = 119.925 Watts, so what's wrong with that?

100-240 VAC input, 50/60Hz is normal & fine @ home & when traveling.

Why not post the exact model numbers printed on the bricks to clarify?

*****

 

I dunno what to tell you. All I can say is that the HP tech rep. told me that my power supply was the incorrect unit, and that was why I was experiencing the "Smart AC Adapter" error messages.

 

OMG! I FINALLY GOT ONE THAT SITS FLAT! OMG! ALL THE LEGS ACTUALLY TOUCH DOWN! NO WOBBLE!

There are some small gaps around the thing, but for $1650 for the given specs, it is a steal.

EDIT: FROM AMAZON! WOOT! YAHOO! OH !@$ I DROPPED IT!
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Joking! It's safe and sound in my arms.

 

I'm'ma let you finish, but what BIOS does it come with? I'm scared of flashing them, but if it doesn't come with the latest, I will flash it. Which scares the hell out of me.

Congrats on your lucky break though .

 

Congratulations

 

Ok, been trolling these forums for a while now and I am looking to take the plunge on the HP Envy 17. I have read a lot of concerns over build quality and wondering if I should wait a bit longer or just order the $1499 config from Newegg with the 10% Bing cashback offer going on now ($1350 is a good deal!).

Anyone out there running LightRoom or Photoshop CS5 on their Envy 17, how does it run? I will definitely be gaming on this thing but am more interested in using it for photography...


Also, can someone give me an idea of the battery life of the laptop. Watching a bluray movie on the plane for example - 2 hours of battery life???

 

I haven't tried it, but I would imagine that running the BD drive for 2 hours will be a no-go, unfortunately.

 

Stress testing my 5th Envy 17 (2nd from Amazon) right now. The i7-720QM seems to run about 4-5 C cooler than the 840QM. Furthermore, it's actually staying above the rated speed of 1600MHz whereas the i7-840QM used to dip below 1600MHz.

 

Can you please tell me what BIOS it's running? Appreciate it. And it seems you got a stud there.

 

There's a sheet included in the Envy 17's box, stating that users should have the AC adapter plugged in for bluray playback. Anyways, I'll see how far the 9 cell gets me with my copy of The Matrix in Bluray format.

 

It is running BIOS version F.06.

 

No, I was unable to install anything on the Sony Vaio. It would BSOD before I was even able to log into the desktop. The rep said there was some issue with the F-Series models that required a BIOS update but I never got the chance to update the BIOS.

Like I said before, the replacement E17 arrived with multiple dead pixels, a warped rubber bezel on the bottom left corner, gaps, etc, too many issues to really list. Funny enough, one of the pixels in the middle of the screen totally went super nova on me last night while watching a movie! So now on top of the four dead pixels on the screen, I've got the north star sitting happily dead center of the screen lol!

 

Thanks. The ~5 minutes required to flash the new BIOS will absolutely torture me.

 

What the freak is BSOD... i use zonealarm and im worried now... whats going on?!??!?


Also is it worth updating the BIOS or should i leave it alone... what do yall think???




Thanks...

 

I have never heard even a whisper of brickings on this thread, and usually updating BIOS is always worth it. However I heard someone mention it lowers the stock clocks for the GPU. Not sure if that is important for you.

 

thats what i saw that it lowers the clock, I mean if it keeps it cooler then ill accept the lower clock because i want this babby to last


Do you know about BSOD what does that mean?

 

BSOD = Blue Screen Of Death