*HP ENVY 17 & 17 3D (2XXX series) Owners Lounge*

Alright so I was going to ship my laptop out for repair. Got the box today.

I got a call from HP, I was a bit puzzled as they had never called. The man asked if I had received the laptop, I said yes and if I had shipped it which I said no. He then proceeded to say
"Do not ship the laptop yet..." then he asked if I would be interested in a replacement. I of course would of agreed, however I had been offered that before but would take forever (weeks). So I asked when it would be delivered, they said by wednesday, or friday this week.
I was psyched, so I agreed.

To agree I had to agree to a few changes in specs...
I am getting a free hard drive upgrade (1TB) to 2x 640GB (unknown speed). As well as a free processor upgrade from an i7-2630QM to a i7-2820QM. That's a .3 ghz difference which I don't mind taking, and free! I assume everything else is the same.

I will seriously be amazed if HP really pulls through on their this week promise, as well as a product with no defects.

 

That.is.bizarre!! I wonder if their PR on this is in the toilet and they are trying to make amends. Seems like the batch that just went out for everyone is out early and with upgraded shipping. Maybe everyone before us did all the leg work and now it'll be easier on the rest of us

 

i got some questions
i am in the process of burning backups of my win7 and im going to install a 60gb ssd in it and put my hdd as a secondary. my question is would it be better to install the back up on the ssd or do a fresh install of a virgin win7?
also if i install the virgin win7 would using the SwSetup folder give me back some of the main apps? whats the best way for me to do this?

 

I'm pleased to hear Acidblast is getting his credits, Crimsoned by some miracle is getting a new upgraded system, and most people have their Envys shiped! I think maybe someone at HP is actually reading our little forums! LOL

KJ

 

It's likely they are reading forums. After all Dell go through PR hell with just one blog. From there it turned into a wildfire.
Personally I wouldn't be surprised if this next system comes out defective as well which is why I said I'd be amazed if it comes unhindered.

 

Processor upgrade? I'm jealous...or should I say Envious!

 

looking at my 6gb ram it shows two different brands of memory thought that was interesting

 

squish, I don't want to be rude, but all the information you are seeking is in this forum already. I know it is not easy to read through all the posts at this time, but one of the reasons why this thread is getting that long and really tough to use, is because people keep on asking the same question since they are too lazy to do a little reading.
Thus said, I will give you a quick answer to your problem. If you want to do a clean install, make sure you backup your win7 registration. You already mentione the swsetup folder, but DO NOT and I can't stress it enough DO NOT forget to backup your tridef software folder. You can install TriDef from their webpage, but you will need the registration key inside the TriDef folder if you don't want to pay for it again.
One thing left to mention, so far nobody was able to get the hotkeys back working after a clean install, so keep that in mind. If you think you can't go without hotkeys, do a recover from the backup CDs.

 

thank you for the reply i have been following this thead since i ordered on the 8th and its grown soo fast and the search on this site is less then stellar (it dont help im on my phone) i retained most of the info by memory and by going page by page on my phone but i wanted feedback pertaining to my particular questions so i can do it right the first time you answered everything i needed to know so thank you again and im sorry

 

Working on a clean install myself and popped my brand new intel 320 drive in and booted to my windows 7 disc. Setup launches and CANNOT FIND a drive to install on. It looks like my envy will not recognize my SSD. Huge bummer. Has anyone run into this??

 

Well, it's good things are working out for you guys, but HP still won't budge even an inch for me. I have 2 different credits that were offered and then either taken away or simply just not recorded in my file, and won't be honored.

And despite admitting it was their mistake that I called and confirmed the order 4 times and it was never reinstated; they have offered ZERO compensation for the fact that I had to make 18 phone calls to HP to finally get an order approved (after having to make 3 different orders because of their mistakes), and now will receive my laptop many weeks later than the original order.

I wrote to escalations at the end of last week and am waiting to hear from them, but don't have high hopes.

 

I would quickly check bios and make sure raid mode is set to off. Raid mode may be hiding the drive from windows. There are probably not a lot of other bios options that you can set but I would also have a look around in there.

 

I did a fresh install onto a ssd and all of my hotkeys are still working. I just installed the ati graphic driver from the swsetup folder. After having a few problems with the website drivers.

 

Has anyone installed any games on the 2nd drive when your unit was shipped from HP with a SSD as system and HDD as data ? I tried to run both Mass Effect 2 and now Portal 2 from my 2nd drive but they both showed the same symptoms : the HDD light is just stuck on stupid and the game never starts.

I already uninstalled Mass Effect 2 and reinstalled it on my SSD and the game works fine, so I bet Portal 2 will show the same thing. Wouldn't that be due to the famous RAID / not RAID drivers on this PC ? My drives do show the correct size and units letters, so I didn't think I would get those issues...

 

Very few bios options but I tried it with the raid option on and off. I am stumped. I am using a windows 7 disc I had around here. I am trying downloading the iso and seeing if that does anything different.

Did anyone that did a clean install on an SSD have any problems locating the drive to install on???

 

Did you install any intel HD graphics drivers or do the ATI drivers come with the intel drivers? If you do have to install the intel HD graphics drivers is it better to do it before or after the ati drivers?

 

I installed the intel drivers first from their website, rebooted, then installed the ati drivers from the swsetup folder.

 

anyone have problems with getting the adobe cs5 programs working after fresh install? I have my envy up and running a fresh install and everything is working except those programs

 

You have to use symlinks for this to work. Here's an article, just download the two programs it says for windows and use those. I don't have time to write a guide (law school finals this week and next), but hopefully I'll be able to soon.

 

Define "not working".

 

Hey guys... I was promised a $100 credit onto my credit card once my laptop shipped. I now received it over a week ago and no credit. I just called HP to ask them about it and the person is telling me "There is no documentation on your account regarding a $100 credit. Let me assure you you are receivng the best deal (I used a 25% coupon)". And theyre refusung to give me the credit!!!!! Can you believe that???

UPDATE: I asked to be transferred to resolutions. The guy offered to go half way and credit $50 instead of $100. I said NO. This is now about principal now. HP offered me a credit and now wants to back out of it because SUPPOSEDLY the salesperson didnt document it. I said listen to the call!!! I just told him "If I dont get this credit Im returning the laptop". now all of a sudden he wants to listen to the call. Im on hold. Stay tuned.

UPDATE: He came back and said "I am having a problem bringing up the phone call but in order to satisfy you today I am going to process that credit and it will be done within 24 hours

These guys tried playing hardball with me regarding this credit. BEWARE everyone. If you plan on placing an order and manage to get a credit, MAKE SURE its documented. Fortunately I was armed with a 100 pmh fastball, and that fastball's name is "RETURN". Once I mentioned that they moved heaven and earth to give me the credit I was promised. I ordered with a 25% coupon AND I got the $100 credit on top of that. I think what happened was they looked at that and said "Oh my God who did this?? Why is he getting $100 on top of the 25%?" and tried to take it back. But fortunately I stood fast and didnt just say "ok no problem". What a bunch of weasels over there!!!

Final numbers:
$2438.78 (laptop + tax)
-25%
= 1829.09
-$100

= $1729.09 SAVINGS OF $709.69
NOT TOO SHABBY!!

 

sorry i meant to put wont install (i was up waaayy to late), keeps asking for a serial #


Ok I took a shower and can kinda think strait. There are a couple install files in the adobe folders and one fails says use the setup.exe in the root folder, when you use that one it asks for a serial number. Also in the root folders there is a folder that has another setup.exe and it loads a big fancy adobe installer but says the program name and says size 0.0kb but you can still click install. It acts like I installs something but it don't.

 

I never had to use any trickery to be able to install programs on a D: drive before but I guess using a SSD is different ? I'll research symlinks, thanks for your reply.

By the way, there's no link to the article you mention

 

Hotkeys work fine after a clean install.

What breaks hotkeys is upgrading to Catalyst 11_3.

 

Thanks for the info, but who wants to stay with 11_2
All joking aside, this is good news. I guess I was simply too focused on the 11
_3.
Still fighting my game with resolutions. No cross shipping (without charging my card), no additional credir, no upgrades, nothing.

 

Okay I guess I could put a total savings. This is to show how much HP has lost with me a lone, all because of poor thermal design, bad QC, and bad customer service.

I started with an Envy 17
i7-720QM
6GB DDR3
750GB HDD

Total cost $1344.

I received an Envy 17 SB
i7-2620QM
6GB DDR3
750GB HDD
+2 years home warranty ($99.99)
Total Cost $1951.98

Now I am promised another Envy 17 SB, with some upgrades.
i7-2820QM
6GB DDR3
2x 640GB HDD's
+2 years home warranty ($99.99)
Total Cost $2381.98

Total Savings: $1,036.99

Yup. Saved $1,036.99 due to my massive hassles for nearly the past 2 months. Was it worth it? Not sure I could of ponied up $1,000+ within those two months to avoid the hassle but hey you know what I am happy now. HP really did great extending to contact me even though I had agreed on a repair.

 

Are you installing from an original disk? If it is a backup copy only, there might be some corrupted files on your CS5 copy. I ususally don't like installation programs either, but on CS, I always use their provided installer. My CS5 installed without any problems.
One more though. Since you mentioned the fresh OS install. Did you have CS5 installed before? If so, you probably forgot to unregister it. Adobe got really bad about it. You will have to call in to get a new activation code.
When you say it keeps on asking for a new serial #, what does it say exactly?

 

Ok, trying to track this down. I was looking forward to writing the SSD fresh install guide however I am stuck at one of the first steps, install win 7 on the new ssd. When I boot to the dvd windows cannot find a hard drive to install too. I have done 100's of fresh installs and I have never had the system not recognize the drive. It is strange because when I try the hard drive test in the bios it says no drive present also. My first thought was a bad SSD but when I plug it into another system it pops right up. For all you guys (and gals) that did a fresh install, could you please give a few details such as:

- Bios version when install was done
- SSD make and model
- SSD brand new or already formatted
- Bios settings
- Etc.

Thanks!!

 

For testing purposes, I just booted a DVD burned using the MSDN ISO for Windows 7 Ultimate x64 w/ SP1. I was able to choose the SSD as an option in the advanced setup dialog box. I'm running an Envy 17 3D SB Bios F.08 with the HP Intel X25M 160GB SSD. No special bios settings as I recall... I turned off the RAID bios option since my HDD and SDD are independent. Also, I enable Intel Hardware Virtualization as I run VM Workstation.

 

Basicly what I did was took my factory hdd and put it as the seconday without wiping it and installed a fresh install of windows on my ssd and set it to boot. So I just installed all the programs off the factory hdd (didn't install anything prior to the ssd upgrade)

I'm at work so I can't be exact but ill try and explain the best I can. There are two different adobe photo folders in the hp sw folder. I tried running the setup.msi in both of those folders,a box would pop up saying I needed to run the setup.exe in the root folder. So I ran the setup.exe in the same folder as the .msi. it brings up a simple looking installer for the program asking the country and I think user name and activation code. With out the activation code you can't continue with the install. In the adobe photo folders there are also a folder named something installer. In there, there is a set-up.exe when ran I brings up a more fancy looking installer that has a bunch of stuff greyed out but shows the program you want to install and says file size is 0kb but lets you click install. A couple of insalation bars sweep across the screen and I closes I go looking for the program and it looks like nothing installed

But I never ran it before the hdd swap and didn't touch or mess with the stock hdd so every thing should be good. I know of other ways to get the programs working but would prefer the legal way since it came with the pc

 

Oh gosh I'm retarded. Sorry I had my contracts final this morning and wasn't quite thinking straight. Here's the link: Complete Guide to Symbolic Links (symlinks) on Windows or Linux - How-To Geek

Basically, download the two programs at the end of the article, install your programs (games, apps, whatever) to your C: drive (SSD), then copy the folder in your program files over to the D: (big hard drive) drive. Once the files are copied over, delete the folder from your C: drive, right click on the folder in the D: drive, click "Pick Link Source" then right click in the program files on your C: drive, hit "Drop as" then "hardlink clone" (that's what the guide says to do, I did symbolic link and everything seems to be working fine. I'm not really sure what the difference is) and there you go.

Essentially what happens is it creates a fake folder with all the files in it on the C: drive, then when the computer goes to access them, it magically beams it over to the D: drive where the programs files actually are.

I've found this especially useful for steam games, but it works with standalone games, photoshop, and vm ware. I'm sure it should work with just about everything. The nice part about this is you don't have to worry about where stuff installs, just let it install on C like normal.

Hope that helps

 

@ squish,
aha, there is a missing piece to the puzzle. In your original post you said you would be installing Adobe CS5, but you are only talking about the two free photoshop programs that came with the Envy. I never bothered with them, first thing that went off, since I am runnign a full Adobe CS5 suite.
Here is the deal though, and the other please correct me if I am wrong.
You are trying to install form a HDD that has the program installed in another folder. Sometimes, I had similar problems with programs trying to install form a HDD. Try to burn onto a CD and install from there. It might be looking for installed photoshop applications and since you are installing form the HDD that still has the installed version on it, it might generate that error.

 

You want to have the same spec memory as the one that is currently installed. I use everest to check on the factory installed RAM and just get the same identical one (which would be the best thing you could possibly do) or get 8GB kit RAM from crucial and took out the factory RAM.

Not at all, HP get the 4 gig and 2 gig variant from different manufactures, as long as they are the same spec, they will work..though that wouldn't be the optimal way.

Dont they include the installer on swsetup folder?

 

Yeah I'm installing them from the sw folder on the hdd. Guess I can burn a disk and try or just go cs5 (I thought that's what they were, my bad)

 

so i've had like 3 or 4 BSOD's with an error message related to atikmdag.sys its has happend either when the screen saver was on, or when the screen was blank for a while, and while music was playing...does anybody have any suggestions on how to fix this?

 

Did you use driver from ATI website or HP?

 

the default from hp

 

If the Envy would inlcude a full CS5 suite, I would go and buy about 10 more right away. It's about $1,500 for a full version.

 

I havent have the chance to test it, but I dont use screen savers anyway...my tip is to re-install the driver from HP website, they might have newer version.

 

Do you happen to have a second hard drive in there? I do not have the second caddy yet so I only have the SSD in there. I set the raid to ON but I never see an option for a raid menu.

I have a theory that if you are not in raid you are in IDE mode. With the new RST drivers you get all of the features of ACHI in raid mode (I.E. Trim). I am thinking because I only have one drive in there it is not giving me the raid option therefore no ACHI and NO SSD. Just a theory for now. Does anyone have a system with an SSD only?

Thanks in advance...

 

Yes, I have a 640GB 7200 RPM drive in the second drive bay.

The RAID BIOS UI option in the main laptop bios just turns on the ability to display the RAID BIOS bootstrap that then allows you to hit a key to get into the RAID BIOS to configure RAID groups. Since I don't have any RAID groups, I just disabled the bios in the main laptop bios. My SSD and HDD are independent.

 

Learn something new everyday haha I had cs4 on my other laptop. All I really need is lightroom and photoshop

 

I enabled the raid setting in the bios and never had an option to enter the UI which makes me think the bios auto senses 2 drives and only offers RAID mode when 2 drives are installed. Got my caddy and cable from newmodeUS on its way. I also RMA'd my SSD just to be sure. The only bummer is waiting a week or so before I can try again.

 

Does the 6850M come with GDDR5 in the HP Envy or is it downgraded to DDR3?

 

It's GDDR5. Clocked at 575/900 I believe.

 

My Replacement Laptop from HP just left Anchorage, Alaska!

Expected Delivery is April 28th!!!!

 

Primary Adapter
Graphics Card Manufacturer Powered by AMD
Graphics Chipset Radeon (TM) HD 6850M
Device ID 68A8
Vendor 1002

Subsystem ID 159B
Subsystem Vendor ID 103C

Graphics Bus Capability PCI Express 2.0
Maximum Bus Setting PCI Express 2.0 x16

BIOS Version 012.020.000.049
BIOS Part Number BK-ATI VER012.020.000.049.039836
BIOS Date 2011/01/27

Memory Size 1024 MB
Memory Type GDDR5

Core Clock in MHz 575 MHz
Memory Clock in MHz 900 MHz
Total Memory Bandwidth in GByte/s 57.6 GByte/s

 

It's definitely GDDR5. It's almost as fast as a 6870M

 

TheAtreidesHawk!!!! Looks like yours is in the seat next to mine.... First class of course! LOL.

P.S. Pass over that Pepsi Max please. Actually, now my new favortie diet drink is Arizona Arnold Palmer Half & Half Ice Tea/Lemonade, but the new one, ZERO!!! No calories, and its amazing. I used to drink the lite version, but this is just as good.



KJ

 

memory bandwidth is 57.6GB/s means it is more than that of the 560M?

Leaked figures on notebookcheck.net show the 560M to have 40GB/s of "bandwidth"

560M clocks: 775/625/1550

Nvidia Geforce GTX 560M sighted - Notebookcheck.net News
is this possible??