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

i never said they'd take a laptop & trash it for a replacement. it is in thier best interest to fix, just cheaper to do so in the country the laptop is being made. if you think about it, labor rates in this country are higher, so maybe it does make sense that if these laptops have mainboard issues, they be placed on a bulk palette and shipped to the manufacturer to get recycled or refurbished.

either way, they have a time commitment to honor, the turnaround is 1 week. if the problem is just a faulty wireless module or cheap ram, then the repair is easy. if its a low power state unstable cpu modulation, then thats mainboard. it took me 1 hr to take the display panel off and put it back on. the biggest time consumer is connections. and it looked like getting the mainboard out would be about another hour because all the modules, speakers, etc need to come out first.

having taken apart 2 different models of laptop in the past, its time consuming.

 

Anybody have any ideas? How can you adjust this setting?

Mods, please do not move this thread to the Envy 17 lounge.

This is RIDICULOUS!! Why on Earth do the mods insist on moving threads like this!??? There are literally boatloads of Envy 15-specific threads on the main forum.

This issue deserves more attention than to be thrown into a thread with 3,300 posts in it! It's unnavigable and not conducive to addressing legitimate issues.

 

Some choices

 

@LanceDaGod

Bought it from NewEgg with BCB. I get your analogy but there's really no reason to believe that had I ordered from HP.com I'd end up with a problem free machine. I just hope HP didn't find a bad batch and ship them all off to NewEgg.

I took the HDD cover off to see if the rattle was there but it seems to be loudest right around where the speaker is located. Anyway, I'll be returning it to NewEgg this afternoon for a replacement. Oh, NewEgg does pay for return shipping, after all.

 

Albatross-

Thanks for the info, some fantastic options.. and I've never had a issue with anything from logitech. The diNovo Mini looks so sweet but doesnt look right for gaming in front of T.V. It looks like im going with the Logitech Cordless Desktop® MX™ 5500 Revolution, this is so awesome! Thanks!

Whats crazy is if you google bluetooth mouse and keyboard you get miserable results... weird

Clem- Yeah I know what you mean and your right, and you should send that thing back it should be perfect I wouldnt accept any less from a "premium machine" its just crazy because all the hardware "build quailty" issues make the Envy 17 out to be something to stay away from. When in reality its (IMO) the best thing competing against the MBP (I like Envy more, a lot more). You come here and you get links to people posting videos of it wobbling and saying they returned 4 and they're all terrible and its to0 hot and so on. IMO if you have had bad envys that may times you must have the worst luck on the planet. And also I know im not Mr. Lucky and my first Envy was freakin perfect out of the box not even close to one of the issues that people describe I almost can't believe it.

 

Hey,

here are my hardware results... i attached in txt file

 

Hey Guys, I am in the process of ordering my Envy 17 with the i7 Processor, along with upgrading to the Blu-Ray drive. I have been reading over countless pages here in this thread and finally decided to register.

I am noticing that there are some issues with the Envy 17 with some of the construction with wobbling, and excessive heat at the palm rests. I have been looking around for a new laptop and just fell in love with the over all components and the cosmetics are easy on the eyes as well as the Beats integration.

I am primarily using this as my main computer, love the portability of a laptop and being able to use it in my living room while watching TV, while also being able to hook up multiple monitors for easier usage for photo editing.

My question would be: I am going to use this computer to do photo editing to my pictures as I also do photography and when running multiple applications (CS5, Lightroom, Photoshop, ETC...) I thought that I would opt for the i7 processor, and will do with the standard 500 gig HD. Since I am not a gamer, I was wondering if anyone here also uses there Envy 17 to do this type of usage and what there thoughts were on it. I have also looked around youtube and have watched the unboxing and some others who have posted but there is really no one that has a comprehensive video how it runs, boot time, how it reacts between running applications.

Since I am not very computer savvy, I am looking at how to do a clean install and a how to on upgrading the BIOS as has been mentioned on quite a few posts to keep the heat down.

Any and all information or links to more instructionals would be greatly appreciated and opinions as well.

 

Give me 3 days and I'll post a video review of the Envy. Got some personal stuff to take care of. Also, I'm an avid user of Event Viewer. Yeah I know, LAME! But, Event Viewer is extremely useful for diagnosing problems if you ever have any. In the process of making a recovery disk for myself once I'm able to install all my programs without them fussing over each other. Honestly, hate it when one program messes up another.

 

I'm sure HP's technicians are just as skilled as you let's put this discussion to bed anyway.

 

Hey guys, I'm a relative newbie thats in the market for a new laptop and I've been snooping around the forums for a while. The Envy 17 definitly fits the bill for me but I have a question that I was hoping someone could help me with.

I have been looking at HP's site for custom ordering the Envy 17 (the american site, I have a friend who will order it for me, love my country, hate our consumer options and prices) and have noticed that its only available with the 720, 740, or 840. I have also noted that there are some heat issues with this machine. My personal preference for processors is the 620 because I love its mix of speed (stock and turbo'd), architecture, TDP, and power consumption, but I would take the 540 as a second choice (but thats as low as I'd go, the next choice would be a move up to the 740). I notice that some of you guys (and thanks for all your great work on this forum) have 540's listed in your systems specs.

So my question is this: First, how come the 540 isn't an option when custom configuring the Envy 17 any more? And second, is it possible to buy an aftermarket 620 and put it in (ie, will the BIOS support it, is the processor accessable to someone with intermediate tech skills, ie. built many desktops, done some simpler work on laptops, have some basic formal education in computer hardware).

I apologize if I'm asking questions that have already been answered but I've done a search of the forum and a cursory read through and haven't found an answer to these questions.

Thankyou in advance.

 

That will be great if you are able to do that. I look forward to watching it! Again, I am not a huge computer guru and only know enough to get my self in trouble, but I am not one to mess or even know how to update BIOS or anything like that, so I am constantly searching for vids on youtube for how-to's and what not. I do need to get a dummies book to help me understand somethings, but I learn a lot from how-to's and reviews.

When you have it up, please PM me or I will try to keep myself checking back each day.

 

Hello all!

I'm coming back to the PC fold after 9 years as a Mac user. I've pretty much settled on an Envy 17.

I'm curious for your insight: What's the best price I can expect to pay for a model with 1920X1080 screen, Blu-Ray, 8 GB, and a Core i7. I've saw one on newegg for $1,599... Is this as good as it's going to get for the foreseeable future, or are there better options elsewhere? I'm talking about this one: Newegg.com - HP ENVY 17-1011NR NoteBook Intel Core i7 720QM(1.60GHz) 17.3" 8GB Memory 640GB HDD 7200rpm BD Combo ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5850

Any suggestions are appreciated!

 

Well Fe_Boogie... it looks like as of today, Amazon's down to 1599 for the same setup as well (got an e-mail from them this morning saying to check it out, and if you click 'See price in cart' it's currently showing 1599) - but yeah, that sounds about right unless you stumble upon a coupon. (Average Ebay prices are still MUCH higher right now than Amazon/Newegg).

 

Fe Boogie,

A few days ago up to about a week ago the price on NewEgg for the model with the specs you were looking for was $1499.99. They raised it by about $100. I would wait a couple of days to see if the price drops any. On NewEgg they usually do.

 

$1,499 would make this a no brainer... Especially since there's no tax to my state, unlike Amazon.

 

I am supposed to get a follow up call today from HP to place my order for the Envy 17. I was given a $75.00 discount when I called into HP with my questions for the built and what not. The base was $1,399.00 + $100.00 for upgrading to the Blu-Ray drive, and now looking at the Newegg deal, it looks like it is a better deal. Out the door for the build thru HP was $1,604.00 and they said that they would credit my card after it has shipped for another $25.00 - Should I explain to HP today about the deal thru Newegg to see if they would give me a better deal to keep my order or should I just wait and watch Newegg for the price drop?

My build consists of: $1,604.00 W/Tax out the door with free shipping + $25.00 Credit
*Win 7 Home 64 bit
*i7 720-QM Processor
*6 gig DDR3 Ram
*500GB - 7200 rpm HD
*6 Cell Battery
*17.3" diagonal HD+ HP BrightView Infinity LED Display (1600 x 900)
*Blu-ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support (Slot Load)
*No Hard copy of windows - figured that I would just do my own back up.

Newegg Deal shows the following upgrades over my standard upgrades: Currently at $1,755.99 w/tax & W/Free Shipping
*8 gig DDR3 Memory
*640GB HD (320GB + 320GB with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection)
*Full HD HP Ultra BrightView Infinity LED Display 1920x1080 Screen
*6-Cell 62WHr Lithium-Ion Battery + 9-Cell 93WHr Lithium-Ion Battery

I believe that the Newegg deal is way better then the build that I did with HP - Now, should I just tell HP about this build and ask what they would be able to do for me, or should I just wait to see if the Newegg deal drops by $100.00 next week?????

 

Just like to report that I've had no problems with my Amazon order. I replaced my 320GB drive with a Intel 160GB ssd and it is blazing fast. I got a nice cooler for the laptop and it doesn't get warm to the touch.

 

diver,

which cooler did you get? its working well?

 

I've never bought anything through HP, but YMMV.

I'm just going to sit and wait to see if newegg drops the price a bit more before I pull the trigger. There's nothing indicating that they will or won't, but I can be hopeful. I'm hoping back-to-school will cut down prices somewhere!

 

Fe Boogie,

I just chatted with a Representative at Newegg about the deal and he apologized for the increase and in efforts to help out, he was willing to give a little discount to persuade me to order. He also stated that the prices do go up and down, so I would keep an eye out for the drop or chat with them to see if they can help out and sweeten the deal to get the order. I believe that they are willing to work for the order, and they have them in stock and will ship out right away.

 

Ok those 3dmark scores look about the same as mine. I have the envy 17 with the Q720 1.6mhz chip - just purchased a week ago from newegg.

My Scores are basically:

3dmarks : ran 3 x : got 6571, 6588 and 6612
Cpu score: 10700 to 10800 A little less than yours
Graphics score: 5821 to 5835 A little more than yours

The heat is a non-issue with me - tolerable and seems to be getting better

ARE THESE PRETTY MISERABLE 3dMark Vantage scores for comparable i-7 laptops or NOT ? Seems low to me.

In Addition: I ran the "performance setting" which is the only option using the $6.95 download version of 3dmark vantage:

And running the other "test" on the futuremark site I scored "8800 Marks" - this is a separate test.

I note the only other 3dmark stats i can find were posted by jarh3d and here is a copy of his post below:

OK everyone,

I called am I'm sending my Envy 17 back today! Darn it! I really wanted to like this machine, but it is just not performing how I expected. Let's forget the insane temps for a minute, and talk about performance. Here are my basic test results:

3DMark Score P6600 3DMarks
CPU Score 11523
Graphics Score 5777

Ok in addition to my Addition :

Ok , I did find the 3dmark vantage scores that user "nohm" posted : set of 3 pics of scores.
Well the scores line right up with my scores and pretty much with jarh3d's scores - so that
looks like the scores folks that the i-7 envy 17 with the Q-720 is gonna run.

Post #1419 from user hohm follows :

Ok, I had some free time and since my friend graciously let me borrow his 3DMark Vantage, I ran
three tests (using the Performance preset). I tried to space them out so the system could have
some time to cool down. Here are the average results:

3DMark Score: 6626*
GPU Score: 5877*
CPU Score: 10731*
*rounded up to the nearest whole number.

OK - looks like my scores

Now - HOW DO THEY COMPARE - i couldn't find any place on the futuremark site that would compare
scores for the same hardware? Is this score comparable ?

I did find one benchmarking site from Passmark which also runs benchmarks and which also lets you
compare your hardware to pretty much the same hardware and scores from a considerable number of
benchmarking visitors. In this case my Envy 17 was actually sorta good compared to a LOT of other
1-7 q-720 - apparently from non-hp manufactures [doesn't mention the manufacturer names just rates each
computer on a scale - mine rated between 1300-1400 there.

Ok in addition to ALL of the previous additions:

i'ts a little bit comforting to see a rating done of i-3 and i-5 MOBILE processors on Toms hardware site:
Benchmark Results: Gaming And 3DMark Vantage : Intel?s Mobile Core i5 And Core i3: Arrandale Is For The Rest Of Us

It's a recent article [Jan 2010] and they stated they used the "performance" preset in the vantage edition of 3dmark also and they are only getting P3800
for i-3's and i-5's if i am reading the page right.....

Compared to that my P6600 doesnt seem so bad ..but i'm not sure

 

Still on the fence between a 15" MBP and a 17" Envy.

The only thing that's holding me back is the heat/battery life on the 17" Envy.

Specifically (for anyone with this general configuration)

-i7 Quad-core

-Dual 500 GB 7200 RPM HD

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/474717-m15x-ati-5870-mod-174.html#post6482227

Anyone want to give this a go? Set 3d voltage to 1.1 and 550 MHz core with 1000 ddr5. If these instructions work, you should be able to flash the bios to get an appropriately functioning 5850m. Thoughts?

 

Gata - i been doing my own search on how my 17 in envy with the Q720 would stack up with the competition. It seems from what i am finding ....my 3dmark score is not bad at all - compared to other i-7 laptops. The benchmark programs may or may not be all that usefull - dunno.

I DID FIND a page that appears to be a REALLY good comparison using 3dmark vantage and other progs to measure mobile i-7 laptops and uses the MCP as a reference. Page lets you select 4 laptops at a time and compare their stats in a lot of usefull categories.

That page has only the envy 15 rated not the 17 - but especially in some games that seems to blow away a lot of the others.

I notice my envy 17 is rated at about P6600 while the envy 15 there is rated only at about 6100 AND the MCP is rated at about P6700

check it out :
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Core i7) - Benchmark Test Results)

P.s. i bought from newegg and i got 2 batteries - i'm not that concerned about battery life

 

Please forgive me for asking a dumb question, but what is the use of bench marking and what does it have to do with performance? I am not computer savvy, but I see numerous upon numerous threads on these bench mark tests, just not sure what it all means......Just trying to learn new things here guys!

 

revhard-

A test of computer software or hardware that is generally run on a number of products to compare their performance.

" The term 'benchmark' is also mostly utilized for the purposes of elaborately-designed benchmarking programs themselves. Benchmarking is usually associated with assessing performance characteristics of computer hardware, for example, the floating point operation performance of a CPU, but there are circumstances when the technique is also applicable to software. Software benchmarks are, for example, run against compilers or database management systems. Another type of test program, namely test suites or validation suites, are intended to assess the correctness of software.

Benchmarks provide a method of comparing the performance of various subsystems across different chip/system architectures"

-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benchmark_(computing)

 

So, I found out something interesting about the drivers. If you don't want to have useless services (my opinion) or redundant directories created, then read on.

Intel Management Engine Interface

HP has not configured the Intel Management Engine device. Thus, it is in the unconfigured factory default state. I have tried to access the Management Engine, but it seems that HP has disabled any access to it. The default access method is supposed to be the use of Ctrl+P at the logo screen. If that doesn't work, then there is supposed to be a menu in the BIOS. Neither method works.

Thus, the Management Engine really cannot be used at all. Besides, it really isn't meant for a home user. With this in mind, the Intel MEI package is pretty useless. It not only installs the HECI driver, but it also installs 2 services by the names of LMS (Local Management Service) and UNS (User Notification Service).

LMS is used for passing TCPIP packets marked for the Management Engine from the OS TCPIP stream. In other words, it acts as a middleman and passes along word the the Engine. LMS works with HTTP requests. To access the Engine directly, you need to use TLS. Again, this is definitely over the heads of a home user.

UNS is used to inform the end user of the Management Engine status and actions. It does this by taking HTTP requests sent out from LMS and then converts them to a generic set of descriptions. You can only see these notifications through the Even Viewer. Again, us users of the Envy 17 will see nothing but messages about LMS and UNS having successfully started up.

Since HP has not provided a way to access the Intel Management Engine device, more than likely the device has not at all been configured. Thus, there is no way for anyone to control the Engine and do stuff to your computer. The Engine will not work without being specifically configured to listen to a management computer.

Installing the Management Engine Driver is pretty useless. LMS and UNS will periodically write messages to the Event Log. They will both keep running constantly so as long as your computer is on. You can disable the services, but why do that when you don't even have to install them?

On a clean install, the Intel Management Engine Interface is seen as a Simple PCI Communication Device. To remove the yellow exclamation, simply go to the properties of the device and click on update. Then select the option that allows you to choose where to install the driver from. Navigate to the folder where you have the contents of the MEI package. If you do not have the MEI package extracted, you can use something like 7zip or WinRAR to extract the contents of the MEI setup executable. The executable is nothing but a self extractor that immediately runs the installer upon extraction. Using the installer will install the LMS and UNS services. Updating the driver through Device Manager will only install the driver. You can then disable the device.


Intel Rapid Storage Technology

Someone had asked about this package and whether the Intel Rapid Storage Technology Service startup delay affected Native Commang Queuing.

The Intel Rapid Storage Technology Service does not handle Native Command Queuing and all the other goodies that SATA hard drives provide. The Service is only for communication between the Intel Rapid Storage Technology configuration panel and the AHCI driver.

The Envy 17 does not support RAID. Thus, the uses of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology configuration panel as pretty small. The panel is mainly meant for creating and managing drive volumes for a RAID setup. On the Envy 17, you can only see how much storage you've used on each hard drive, the health of the drives (one word description basically), and whether the drives have been set up for advanced power management (turning off the drives, spin up/down).

If you have run the Intel Chipset package, then you have a version of the AHCI driver installed. As long as the AHCI driver is used, you will have advanced power management also in use. You can check on the health of your drives through the Resource Monitor that is included in Windows 7.

For the Envy 17, the Intel Rapid Storage package is pretty useless unless you really want the panel. Again, you really can't do much with it other than view 3 different tabs. Before you ask, the Envy 17 does not have lights on its SATA ports.

Thus, the Intel Rapid Storage Technology package doesn't really offer us Envy 17 users much. What we need from the package is the actual driver. To install just the driver, you can use Device Manager and update the driver.

In Device Manager, navigate to the device with a name similar to Intel AHCI. You can go to its properties and then select to update the driver from a location of your choosing. Navigate to the driver folder of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology package and let it update. You will now have the latest AHCI driver.

If you only have the Intel Rapid Storage Technology executable, you can use 7zip or WinRAR and extract the contents of the executable. The exe is a self-extracting package that will run the setup upon extraction. Running the exe will result in the installation of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology Service and configuration panel.

 

Good old HP, I ordered the 17-1050ea from HP direct about 3 weeks ago with a lead time of 4-8 weeks (although it seemed to vary day by day!)

So I thought I'd stroll into PC World yesterday and find out when they were getting them in - expecting them to say a couple of months.. 5 mins later walked out with a brand new 17-1050ea. Apparently there's only 11 in the whole of the UK Cancelled my HP order its all good!

Same price as HP direct, Discount codes on myvouchercodes as well all worked

Now just need to figure out how to turn reverse the F keys setting without fudging around in the BIOS!


Cheers, Simmo

 

@Simmo

The functions can only be switched back in the BIOS.

 

Hi Simmo,

thanks for the info. Can you please tell me which pc world store that was? Also what was the price after your discounts? With HP direct you can get 5% off with vouchers + 8% cashback with quidco, so just want to know if it's worth the waiting.

How is the built quality, any gaps/wobble?

cheers

 

Does anyone know any retail shops in/near the New York City area that sells the Envy 17? I'm planning on buying online (or wherever I can get the best deal), but I'd like to physically handle the thing prior to purchasing so I can know exactly what to expect. I'm basing my assumptions of what this should look/feel like on what I've seen from the MacBook Pro.

 

$200 OFF Stackable Coupon for Select HP Notebooks $1399+

Pavilion dv8t Entertainment PC with Intel- R Core- TM i7-740QM Quad Core processor - 1.73 GHz w/Turbo Boost up to 2.93 GHz; 640GB Dual HD; 4GB Memory HP Home and Home Office has a $200 off stackable coupon (with existing discounts, not additional coupons) for HP Pavilion notebooks $1,399+. Use coupon code NBG419735. Excludes HP Mini, Compaq, and ENVY notebooks. [added 8/7/2010 | expires 8/10/2010 11:59:59 PM ]

 

Lol someone changed the topic title. misleading if you ask me

 

Well I just recently ordered an Hp Envy 17 since the specs were impressive, but after going through some of the posts on this site, to me it looks like it spews out too much heat and it tends to warp. But I will take my chances anyways.

Do you think going to an SSD will reduce the heat output? I have a 128GB SSD in my desktop and I might swap it out into the laptop using a single drive config.

 

bh photo has it. 34th & 9th. no refunds on pc's so dont do any impulse buying ...

 

I'm a college student computer science major and I got my envy 14 a few days ago, and I'm returning it because of a dead pixel to get another. I played games on it for the past few days and really enjoy however... I played starcraft 2 and it played on mediocore settings, and I wished it was a little better. I was wondering if anyone thinks that the 17 inch is worth it more? I don't really want to lug a heavier computer, however the bigger screen and power is really something that intrigues me. Also note that I do not have a desktop, however I will be carrying this laptop everyday. What do you guys think is more important, gaming or my back?

Also hows the battery life? I need it to last more than 2 hrs.

 

@MishaFashionista

Your back will get used to it. This is coming from a guy who used to carry 4 of your thick reference-like textbooks and 3 binders every day to class for 3 years up a steep hill.

The 17" can easily get more than 2 hours. Buy from Newegg or Amazon if you're in the states and you'll get the 6-cell and 9-cell battery. Can get 3 hours easy with the 9-cell. Do a bit more tweaking and 3.5 hours isn't that far away.

 

I actually went to J&R today, but they didn't have any on display on the floor. The salesman said they only had 2 in stock, so they kept them both in the back.

I don't want to buy one until actually using the thing myself. If the trackpad is as finicky as I've heard and similar to the other HP laptops I've seen, I'm getting a bit nervous about it...

I'm actually starting to wonder if the Envy 14 would be a smarter buy after reading the Engadget review of it. Does anyone have an in-depth reviews of the E17?

 

Thanks metril for the quick reply! Yeah I'm only 5'8 and 140 pounds and I'm male. I think I can carry heavy loads though, and I feel I can carry that around a 17 incher no problem. But I just don't want to make a mistake. I like the envy 14 a lot and I hope the 17 is better for me. I do believe though that putting a 17 incher on the desk may be a problem. Have you used it for school at all?

 

I like my envy 14's track pad. It is a little weird for the 2 finger scrolling but you can change that if you want. I didn't though, I just keep my fingers about a centimeter apart and it works fairly well. I'm sure the 17 inch is about the same.

 

Going to be using it in lab this coming year.


By the way, could people report back on the Realtek USB Card Reader Driver version that Device Manager shows? You might have to stick in a card into the reader for the device to show in Device Manager. If it doesn't show as a card reader, it might show up as a portable device.

I cannot get the card reader driver from HP or from the Realtek site to install. Windows keeps saying that it isn't a proper driver. Even if I run the installer, the driver version does not change at all even though the installer package contains a newer version.

 

For anyone on the fence as to whether or not they should do a clean install, I would highly recommend it. It really speeds up boot-up times! I was doubtful of any meaningful improvements so I took some notes before and after the clean install and I was pleasantly surprised. Results are below:

System Specs:
Intel i7-720QM
160GB SSD
6Gb Memory

1st test: Memory Usage

I turned the laptop on and off 3 times and noted the amount of memory being used immediately after booting-up had finished. (I had not installed any additional software from what came pre-loaded at the time of this test. I did however disable HP Quickstart.)

Out-of-the-box: 1.18GB / 1.15GB / 1.22GB (avg of 1.183GB)
Clean Install: 1.04 / 1.04 / 1.06 (avg of 1.046GB)

2nd test: Boot-up time

I started timing when i pressed the power button and stopped timing when the mouse pointer icon stopped "thinking," signaling boot-up was complete. Some things to note, I did this with an SSD so I'm not sure if the same kind of improvements would carry over to those without SSDs. Also, I had HP Quickstart disabled so it didnt pause at that screen and I also did not have a password yet so that it logged straight into my username. I did this test 3 times as well.

Out-of-the-box: 43.10 seconds / 39.67 seconds / 42.82 seconds (avg of 40.86 seconds)
Clean install: 25.04 seconds / 25.70 seconds / 25.41 seconds (avg of 25.38 seconds)

3rd test: Shut down time

Similar to previous test, I started timing when i pressed power button which i set to shut-down the computer and I stopped timing when the front white LED light extinguished. I performed these shutdowns directly in-between timing the boot-up times so the machine was not taxed at all previous to shutting down.

Out-of-the-box: 13.13 seconds / 13.55 seconds / 11.24 seconds (avg of 12.64 seconds)
Clean-install: 11.31 seconds / 9.72 seconds / 9.92 seconds (avg of 10.31 seconds)


Take these results for what they are- I just thought i'd shed some light as to what kind of improvements you can expect because previous to doing my clean install I could not find any detailed improvement stats and would have really like seeing results like this to ensure me that a clean install was the right choice.

 

Can you modify the GPU voltage in the BIOS? I'd merely like my 5850m to run at "stock" specs, i.e. 550 MHz core. At the current undervolted .90v (which I cannot figure how to adjust), the machine is unstable even at 525 MHz. It's incredibly frustrating to know your machine can easily and safely perform at stock settings but you can't get there because ATI overdrive is disabled. Maybe a registry edit could fix?

 

@OsageCowboy

That is a misconception. The chip can run at 550MHz as long as there is adequate cooling. The Envy 17 does not have the capacity the cool the GPU if it were to run at the AMD recommended stock. Furthermore, you cannot modify the GPU in the BIOS. You could go the risky route of flashing the GPU BIOS, but that is a road that can lead to regret and tears if anything goes wrong.

 

Mine shows 6.1.7600.30111 dated 12/25/2009
It's a clean windows 7 install and I just installed the driver from HP's site.

 

Metril, this is just false. The 5850m will easily run at 550 MHz; however that requires adequate voltage. The 5850m in the Envy is minimally volted at .9v. This is why games "lock up" at 550 MHz. It has NOTHING to do with temps (mine never exceeded 80 at 550 MHz), it is ENTIRELY a function of HP's unacceptable voltage on the GPU.

 

Even so, there's nothing that can be done about it. HP locks the BIOS.

 

Well, they are going to have to enable overdrive in a future update or risk being sued for this practice across the entire Envy line. To call the Ati cards in the Envy notebooks the same as any other Ati notebook graphics card is a clear fraudulent misrepresentation. The common law, most states' consumer protection laws, and the Lanham Act do not permit HP to do what they've done with their Envy GPUs. On a $1,000-plus transaction, a 10-20% performance differential is unlawful.

 

I'm still on the ropes as far as getting an envy 17 is concerned.

Mainly wondering this; Will having 2 500 GB 7200 rpm hard drives with a quad-core processor and the 5850 GPU produce a whole lot of heat (particularly on the palm rests/keyboard)?

Anyone who has experience with this?

 

LMAO - haven't you bothered to read any of the reviews on the first page, there are about a half a dozen topics on heat? Get a laptop cooler and you will be find.