HP Elitebook 6930p Review?

Any exist? Any coming soon?

 

I would love to see a review on this myself. I'm trying to decide between this and the new Asus F8v

 

bump.....?

 

I have one on order currently, but there is a slight delay in shipping. I plan to complete a review once I receive it.

BBGus

 

Thanks BBGus...looking forward to it....

Almost ready to press trigger on this machine...just waiting for the review.

 

Me too -- waiting to see how it compares to dv4t

 

When you do review it, please describe how reflective or non-reflective the case is. I'm considering the upcoming 8530p / 8530w, and since the 6930p has the same sort of exterior design, it'll be a big help to know whether the case is as annoyingly mirrorlike as that on the consumer laptops.

 

Don't worry...when I do my review, I will test everything as well as provide lots and lots of pictures . Furthermore, if anyone wants additional information and pictures after I post my review, I will be more than happy to answer them. Like I said, I have it on order, but expect about another week to 10 days before I get it and then another day or two (because I will be into school by then) for the review to be posted.

DanaGoyette - No problem, I will make sure to take pictures and describe the case to the best of my abilities.

BBGus

 

I’m actually a little upset… as it appears you cannot get a LED display if you go with the 1440 x 900 resolution. Look forward to your review BBGus…

 

It looks like on the 6930p they've gotten rid of the blue pointing stick that was on the 6910p?

From the 6910p review:


Image of the 6930p from HP:


Unless the pointing stick's black and can't be seen clearly on the 6930p. Anyone have a better image?

 

HP needs to put up some more high quality pictures—unlike other vendors they do a very poor job with this. Regardless, there’s a black pointer—and it’s diagrammed in the QuickSpecs, http://h18000.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/13061_na/13061_na.html.

 

Ah OK, great link. Thanks!

edit: yep, it's got a black pointing stick. played with it today - not as good as my Thinkpad's...

 

Played with it?!? I think you’re the first to do so. While the ThinkPads are renowned for their pointers, can you give us some feedback on your other thoughts about the machine?

Thanks.

 

The new HP pointsticks are the same as they have always been, just colored black. They're not as soft nor flexible as the Thinkpad pointsticks and they come off pretty easily. That's the main part where I find HP loses out compared to the Thinkpad's keyboard.

 

I posted some impressions here.. keep in mind I've never owned an HP and am looking for a replacement for my T43 (specs in sig).

I wish they had an LED backlit screen... only the 2510p (or is it 2530p?) had it, and it was soooo much brighter, and was also able to go much darker. Very light package, but a tad too underpowered for my tastes (I don't need the mobility that much).

 

Thanks for taking the time to write the write-up. I too am considering a ThinkPad versus the EliteBook, but the ThinkPad has nothing in the line-up that seems to compare with the new housing on the EliteBook. I currently have a 13” notebook and am looking to go with a 14” now—while HP’s 15” model has some better features (and the updated screen on the 17” is to die for), the size is more than I want. My only peeve about this EliteBook is while the 1280 x 800 LCD can do LED, it appears HP faltered by not allowing the 1440 x 900 to do the same.

 

Kai920,

I was previously posting under plsdonotbug, but decided to sign up officially and let you know I decided on a ThinkPad T400. Reasons for this are slightly better pricing, 1440 x 900 LED and the ability to custom configure the notebook right now. I hope I won’t miss the nice new casing on the HP too much.

Cheers.

 

Hey,

I've been checking out the T400 all morning too With the CPP code it's actually a really nice deal rivaling the 'education discount' I can get here, but the main problem (and it's a big one for me) is that there is no international warranty service.

Not much to be worried about IMHO, as you already know Thinkpads are built like rocks so even if the HP casing was really good, the other positives of the TP will more than make up for it

Congrats on the new purchase, hopefully I can follow suit soon with a T400 of my own.

 

An update to those who are going to follow this thread for the time being...

I contacted HP about when these pre-configured models would ship earlier this week. I was told that they should ship within the next week to 2, which I hope so since I want to not only do a overall review for everyone, but also provide a "real life" review with my observations during a few days of my typical college life (The whole reason I am getting a new laptop). Also, HP has stated that they will offer a CTO configurable model, but it is not in the immediate plans. My guess would be that you should expect that about 1 month after the pre-configured models are released. This falls into the typical time frame previous models have followed not only from HP, but from other manufacturers as well. It also makes sense when you think about how that would allow it to nicely fall into availability about the time early Christmas shoppers start to do their initial "window shopping" for the holiday season. With people wanting to avoid the rush earlier and earlier every year, it would seem reasonable to assume so.

BBGus

 

^Man, that was repetitive and sounded like crap...

I'm F*n tired so excuse my rare slip up in posting.

BBGus

 

Thanks to everyone who posted in this thread, and looking forward to the review, too. I was also wondering if Kevin or someone else was gonna do an "official" NBR review or something to that extent...
Either way, the Elitebook looks and sounds like a great machine, I wonder how it holds up compared to the T400.

 

One more thing before I go to sleep...

Just so everyone knows, I ordered the following pre-configured model from HP:

HP Elitebook 6930P Model KS082UT#ABA

I chose this model for two reasons. First, it fit what I needed as well as what I anticipated I would need to finish me through College with any luck. Second, the price is about middle of the pack comparatively amongst the current pre-configurable models you can order from the U.S. HP website. Add to that the fact that the specifications are about middle of the road as well means I should be able to provide a decent spread of review information about the models here in about a week or so.

BBGus

 

Hi folks, I am new here -
there is a review of a pre-production sample on a Slovak website, most of you are not going to understand it but the pictures are quite good.

(it's a three page review)
page 1, page 2, page 3

There is also a video review of it at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTJYBE_AN6k

I am seriously thinking about ordering this notebook.

 

Is it just me or is the lid on the 6930p in those links a different colour?

 

Thanks daniel_sk.

Can you tell us what that means, on the second page, about the battery:

Výdrž batérie HP 6930p Kapacita: 55 Wh
Max perf, max.load 1:25
Batt saving, max load 2:32
Batt saving, min load 4:53

Does it mean the battery (9 cells?) only lasts 1:25 under high CPU usage?

 

The battery lasts 1:25 minutes under maximum CPU and GPU usage, with full LCD brightness, this test was made with BatteryEater Pro software.
The same test but with energy saving and minimum LCD brightness resulted in a 2:32 minutes runtime.
The article mentions that watching a 3 hour movie on it is possible.
Reading a document with minimum LCD brightness = 5 hours.

They were not able to run newer 3D Mark software, only the 2001 version - probably due to drivers (it was a pre-production sample so they will probably fix this). But running games on it didn't make any problems - Half Life Episode 2 with high details ~ 30 FPS.

 

55WH should be the standard 6 cell that it comes with. The times listed mean

Under everything set to high mode, and max load, the laptop lasted 1 hour 25 minutes
Under battery saver mode, and max load, the laptop lasted 2 hours and 32 minutes
Under battery saver mode, and light load, the laptop lasted 4 hours and 53 minutes.

The problem here is what is the exact setup the demo was using. I skimmed over the article and didn't notice a distinctive specifications for the unit listed.

BBGus

 

Thanks! I'd like to compare the battery life to the Thinkpad T400 and Dell Latitude E6400.

 

what is the difference between (KS084UT) and (KS082UT) ??

On the website they both have same specs!

But on the QuickSpecs PDF the differ in HDD (084) is 160GB 7200 rpm and (082) is 160GB 5400 rpm.

So is there a typo on the website or PDF or am i missing something?

 

Two differences that account for the small price raise.

1) Dedicated video memory goes from 128 MB to 256 MB
2) Speed of drive goes from 5400 RPM to 7200 RPM

I would trust the support pdf specs over what the website advertises personally.

BBGus

 

Thanks missed the graphics card thing.

what do you ppl think, is the $100 justified? Because i was gonna buy that (084) model . Just waiting for more reviews and experience of ppl.

 

I would pay the extra $100 if you will run anything that can take advantage of the additional graphics RAM.

 

A slight change ladies and gents. My order has been approved and charged and I am just waiting for it to ship. After some consideration, I decided to bump up to the KS084UT model for the extra $100 as I want to be able to play some games both now and in the future when I am between classes. Command and Conquer Red Alert 3 is coming and I don't want to miss it .

BBGus

 

O.K. I am not sure what to make of this.

I just went and checked my order status and while I was told when I called in to the Small Business Customer Service that the laptops would begin shipping next week, my estimated delivery date is not until the first week in OCTOBER. I am not sure whether this is because of a delay or what. I will be calling HP Monday to ask some questions and get some answers. If I can't get it until October, then I am going to have to pass and find something else as I can't wait that long for school.

BBGus

 

DARN!!!

wow 1st week of october??? thats a record! I am glad you bumped it to 084 units as i am gonna buy that one too, so i wont have to interpolate the benchmarks to my model

 

Here's the specs of the pre-production unit they are testing:

Dimension - 330mm x 245mm x 35-40mm
Weight - 2459g (~2.46kg) <-- that's like almost .4 up from the 'base weight'
Battery - 6-cell, 55wHr, 5100mAh, 10.8V

Core 2 Duo T9400 (2.53GHz, 6MB, 1066MHz)
2GB DDR2 800MHz RAM
Toshiba 120GB 7200rpm HDD
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3450
TSSTcorp CDDVDW TS-L633L
14.1" WXGA+ 1440x900


If you put a P series processor with X4500 graphics in, together with a more frugal 7200rpm HDD like one from Hitachi or WD, I think we should be able to clear 5 hours on the 6-cell on minimal loading.

 

whats the diff between 085 and 107?

085 has 256 mb graphics, and 4 gb ram

107 is 128 mb graphics and 2 gb ram.

Both has same screen, same HDD, same battery and Wifi so why is 107 hiked up by 200$ ?

 

Sorry to hear—that sucks. Almost six weeks out is quite a bit of time.

 

I'm in the market for a notebook, and I'm trying to decide between a Lenovo T400, HP Elitebook, or the ASUS F8Va

Can anyone say how this may compare to the Asus F8Va or the T400

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220337

One thing that intrigues me about the Asus F8V is the ExpressGate feature which allows boot-up in about 8 seconds. I'm not sure if I need a 1GB video card, but it sure doesn't hurt.

I'm looking for a good blend of performance and portability with a little style.

 

Asus F8Va is very competitive.

however reading several forum posts it seems that Asus quality is good, but not near the HP and Lenovo business line models.

Also battery is a issue in ASUS as higher graphics card and generally weak management of battery power by ASUS will not give you the long hours you need when on move.

 

The Asus F8 isn't comparable at all, it's a low-end budget notebook. Basically, it's made of cheap and weak plastics, it flexes and creaks. It's also large for a 14.1" and almost as heavy as some 15.4" notebooks, and has horrible battery life (2+ hours) with no option for bigger battery. You can compare it to a budget Acer, but definatly not to a high-end business notebooks such as the HP 6930p and ThinkPad T400 since it's ridiculous.

Otherwise, it has a much more powerful video card, but then again, I would rather go for a 15.4" notebook instead of it.

 

Thanks madengineer and dreamer, I guess its now down to the T400 and the Elitebook, I'm happy to finally see a review on the T400 but still waiting for the Elitebook.

 

***Update*** ......sorta......

Howdy everyone. Unfortunately, I got called in to work today for an all day shift, so by the time I got out, it was past customer service hours to call. I have some free time between classes tomorrow, however, so I will call and update yall tomorrow night. I almost purchased a Lenovo U330 last night, but decided not to because I want the tested durability of the HP to the mil spec as well as the better overall performance especially in the CPU category as some of the programs I use for my degree are computation heavy. So, I suppose this means I am sticking with the HP until I get it. I just hope that my order turns out like some of the dv4t where they are being qouted 2 weeks and it is being shipped a week early. If I catch that kinda luck, I would have it by mid September. But, I digress. Hopefully tomorrow's phone call will be a positive one to note.

BBGus

 

Yeah BBGus do let us know the status...eagerly waiting for it!

 

Is the U330 a viable option. How does this compare with the Elitebook and the T400. Lenovo's site doesn't give much specs on the new Ideapads, and they are not customizable, can't even get XP if I wanted to.

 

Hey Guys,

I'm new here - but had some questions regarding this laptop. I actually have this laptop and was hoping to ask a few questions about the RAM. In return, I'll answer any questions you guys have this laptop.

Anywho. These are my specs.

Operating System: Microsoft Vista Enterprise
Software: Includes Microsoft Office 2007, Symantec Antivirus, Firefox
Display: 14.1-inch WXGA + anti-glare with Integrated Camera
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 Montevina
Memory: 4GB 800 DDR2 2DM
Hard Drive: 160G 7200 RPM FX
Optical Drive: DVD/RW Dual Layer with LightScribe
Batteries: 6 Cell 55W Hour Battery, 8 Cell Detachable Travel Battery
LWAN: 802.11a/b/g with Draft N
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.0+
Security: Fingerprint Reader
Media: SD Card Reader
Video: 256mb Ded. HD3450

My question is this, I'm playing around with it, but I have 4GB of Ram. Does Vista allow me to use it all? It's 32bit Enterprise, which ... still leaves me confused. Does this mean the 4GB is not being used?

Thanks. I'm at work right now, but if you have any questions I'll answer them when I get back.

 

FYI - A quick review since I'm at work. HP had to rush some of these out since our instituion received them early but the sound card drivers are incorrectly installed and are annoying.

Fingerprint device was not installed correctly, may not be our institution's tech fault or HP's fault. I haven't really bothered to fix it because, well - I type at 120WPM and it's easier to type in my password than slide my finger over and over.

Lastly, I don't have that much time since I have one project left to finish - but our last laptops were the T60s from Lenovo. So, I have some knowledge of the pros/cons.

 

Searching the forums will give you plenty of detail with regard to using a non-x64 operating system (OS) with 4GB of RAM, but, basically, yes, you are not getting all 4GB—most likely you are actually using a little over 3GB—and an x64 OS will address this. While the non-x64 OS might see the 4GB, it can’t make full use of it due to the non-x64 architecture.

PLEASE do tell/give us feedback on your impressions of the new box—especially with regard to build quality as, from reading the specs, it appears HP has done a more impressive job with this model.

 

Shekkery,

It sounds like your business/institution received some demo models to use. Some companies release their business notebooks to potential high order customers/companies in the hopes that the people like the demo units and that these can be switched out as soon as the final production product starts shipping. I am not trying to be rude or anything, just stating what I believe based on my previous experience working for the computer and IT industry.

***UPDATE***

O.K., so I called HP this morning a few minutes ago to check on my order and asked what was going on. When they said that the Elitebook would be launched in September, they meant it. As it turns out, according to the sales manager that I spoke with, HP concluded that the 14" Elitebook would be the most popular of the Elitebook series with the workstation being more purchased in smaller numbers by businesses and HP is unsure of volume on the 12" especially with its higher price tag because of the smaller size with similar specification options as the 14" models.

So, what does it all mean? It basically means that they are currently taking pre-orders for the model and sending an order status update of being "sold" and "back ordered" until they officially start shipping. While this kind of stinks because it means I will have to wait until some time in September to get my laptop, the upside is it means I have plently of time to choose a model if I want to upgrade or downgrade as well as earn the extra money to do that change. As of this date, HP's plan, again according to the sales manager, is to beginning shipping orders as of the first week in September barring any delays or setbacks for whatever reason. This means that my estimated shipping date of the first part of the month is a plausible one, so here's hoping.

BBGus

 

BBGus,

I didn't want to expose myself too much - but I attend a business school. All of the students in my year (junior and freshmen) received laptops. All in all, our school received about 1,600 elitebook laptops (it's probable why HP is being slower with this release).

Regarding this laptop, I've been using it as a desktop for the last two weeks. IE. attached to a VGA monitor. I'm using a wireless set.

I'll attach pictures later, but I felt that the bottom of the elitebook is not as "slick" as the initial pictures seem. IE, a lot of the blogs had the elitebook as an extremely thin laptop - which isn't entirely true. I'll upload a few pictures with it compared against objects for future measure.

I haven't used the webcam yet, but I'll attach a picture later with the webcam's pictures.

Again, the sound is annoying. Scratches come in from time to time, and I've been toying around with the drivers. Even with headphones, I'll listen to a song, and all of a sudden, it's scratchy, and then it's gone again.

The keypad is extremely light with a great feel. I can't describe it, but I really enjoy typing on this laptop. Although adjusting to where the FN key as opposed to the Thinkpad took a bit longer than I thought. I actually prefer typing on this than the Logitech Dinova/Dinovo. They're close together, so it seems like it prefers small hands - but it was certainly designed for fast typers.

The temperatures of these laptops seems low, but I don't know which software is prefered to run to see what temperatures these CPUs go to.

----
I avoided Vista for as long as I could until this laptop - so does this mean I should find a way to upgrade to 64 bit? It seems like a bit of a waste, but I don't really game that much either. I was able to play Gears of War at 30ish FPS on 800x600, but it really didn't seem like I'd play games that much.