HP Envy 14: Uneven keyboard backlighting. Common problem?

Thanks to many helpful posts in this HP Envy forum, I decided to purchase
and try/test an HP Envy 14.

Another deciding factor that persuaded me to try the HP Envy 14-1110NR, is the current sale at Staples. Hehe! The reduced price of ($949.98) and the HP $100 off Recycle promo made the price at ($849.98) plus taxes. I couldn't pass up an opportunity to get a new HP Envy this cheap.

But the problem is that as soon as I turned on the HP Envy 14-1110NR, I immediately
noticed that the backlighting on the keyboard is uneven. I thought it could be the
lights in the room, so I dimmed the lights in the room, but it became more pronounced
in the dark. Uuugghh! The keys that are not as bright as the rest are the esc, f7, f8
7, 8, Y, U, I.

I had assumed this might have been just bad luck and I bought one that had a defective keyboard.
So I went back to Staples to show them the defect and request an exchange. After much
arguments and debates with the Staples techs, I was given an exchange.

Got home, and when I turned on the 2nd HP Envy 14-1110NR, it had the same uneven backlighting at the same
keys. Aarrgghh!

I couldn't believe it! The same problem at the same location. I don't feel like going back to Staples
and requesting another exchange. They might think I'm some sort of weirdo going for another exchange
after the first incident. I feel embarassed going back to Staples.

I contacted HP Support Center. The good thing is the short wait time, and the lady I spoke with was
very kind and helpful. I explained to her my situation. She went to inspect the HP Envy 14s in her
department and she told me that the backlighting was fine and all the keys were evenly lit in their HP Envy 14s.

She offered to get the keyboard replaced with overnight shipping. But gave an estimated turn around time of 4 to 6
business days. So it'll be like 1 to 2 weeks waiting period.

Sheesh, buy a new laptop, and then have to immediately ship it out for repairs. Such a hassle, bah!

I also bought an HP Pavilion dv6-3160us from J&R. I'm deciding which to keep. To my surprise, the backlighting
on the dv6-3160us is evenly lit on all the keys and much brighter than the HP Envy 14.

To avoid any further headaches and hassles, I might just return the HP Envy 14.

Was I just unlucky and got two HP Envy 14s with defective backlighting?

Or is this a common occurrence that other HP Envy 14 owners experienced?

 

Same here. My keys are dimmer in the same general area as yours. It bothered me alot at first, but I've just learned to live with it.

 

That's pretty standard - mine's the same way. It's not really a big deal to me, but to each his own.

 

It's just a result of the placement of the LEDs.

Smaller details like that add to the price of a notebook. If every complaint was proactively addressed -- back lighting, keyboard flex, etc -- it would be priced the same (if not more) as macbook pro's. Hardware manufacturers have a price point they are trying to hit and some qualities are sacrificed to make it.

 

Thank you all for the replies. It's much appreciated.

I'm glad to know that other HP Envy 14 owners have the same
backlit keyboard characteristics. That I'm not hallucinating or
plain unlucky. Hehe!

But concerned also that it is a common occurrence.

The HP Envy series is supposed to be the premium models.
I'm surprised that HP didn't resolve the uneven backlighting.

On the cheaper, "lower class", HP Pavilion dv6-3160us, the backlighting on all the keys
are evenly lit and bright. Definitely much better/brighter compared to the HP Envy 14 keyboard.

If HP can design bright and even backlighting for all the keys on the dv6 keyboard,
I'm sure HP is fully capable of designing it to be same
or better on the Envy.

Sigh. I'm unsure now if it'll be worth mailing to HP for a replacement
keyboard, since it might come back with a different keyboard but the same
uneven backlighting.

But the HP support lady I spoke to said the Envy 14s in her department
have keys that are all evenly lit. Hmmm, maybe they have newer, redesigned
replacement keyboards that have better backlighting. Or maybe not. Hehe!

So that's my dilemna, if I should just keep it and accept it, or try for a replacement keyboard.


Besides that problem, I'm so far very satisifed with the feel/typing on the keyboard and the overall
performance of the HP Envy 14.

 

The back-lighting on my beats edition Envy 14 is also a bit uneven in some areas, but it doesn't really bother me. I have an Alienware M11x R2 and it also has uneven lighting, so it's not something that only affects the Envy.

 

LED's are very directional. They don't have the same "ambience" as normal florescent lights. They have a very narrow "spread", so it's hard to expect any laptop or keyboard with backlit lighting to have an even distribution. I have yet to see a good quality keyboard in a laptop or external that has good distributed lighting.

 

Good point.

But some examples I can give, that provide
backlighting that is evenly lit to all the keys,
are two I currently use.

The main keyboard I use on my desktop is the
Logitech Illuminated Keyboard.

Another is an HP Pavilion dv6-3160us I'm currently
using/testing/comparing with the HP Envy 14-1110NR.

Both of these have excellent distributed lighting, all the keyboard keys are evenly lit.

At certain angles and low light conditions,
keyboard keys on the HP Envy 14-1110NR (7, 8, Y, U, etc.),
I've used, are noticeably dimmer than the rest. What makes it
even more noticeable is the location of these dim keys, the middle
area of the keyboard.

I wouldn't mind if the dim keys were at the edge of the keyboard.
All the surrounding keys are nice and bright, but then, the very noticeable dim keys
right in the middle area. It's a distraction and just gives an impression of something defective.

That isn't the case, with the keyboard keys, on the Logitech Illuminated
Keyboard and, surprisingly, the HP Pavilion dv6-3160us.

 

I have an XPS 14 and was considering switching to the Envy 14 but this will annoy me..was it fixed once HP sent in a new keyboard? I have perfectly even lighting on my XPS 14, all the reviews I read kept stating that the backlight on the XPS 14 is so even, and I wondered why that was a big deal..now I see that most notebooks fail at this

 

Hi waleed786!

Glad to know there's another discerning user of evenly lit keyboards.

No, unfortunately, HP Envy support is not willing to send me a replacement keyboard.

The only option I have is to mail the laptop to them.

I'm still contemplating if I should continue with the replacement keyboard, since I just
recently purchased the laptop, then having to be without it for 1 to 2 weeks. Sigh.

Since you mentioned the XPS 14, that's one model I was really planning to purchase, the other
was the XPS 15. I was about to order it when the Boeing employees promo plus the additional coupon codes,
was available several weeks ago, that made a huge discount of hundreds of dollars. I wasted time
deciding between the XPS 14 or XPS 15. When I was ready to order, the promo was expired. Uugghh!

But I don't have anymore XPS regrets after getting an HP Envy 14.
It's an awesome laptop. Please don't just base it from my backlit keyboard criticism.

Please don't judge the HP Envy 14 only from my experience.
There are thousands of HP Envy 14s, I've only used two HP Envy 14s.

I must be unlucky, just got a bad batch, or something.
But other people have the same problem. So I can't really say.

If you're really interested in an HP Envy 14, is to try one yourself,
be it from a store, friend, co-worker, etc., then judge how the backlit keyboard is for you.

Another great thing is that HP Envy support is kind and helpful, and willing to replace the keyboard.

 

Here's a photo from the Computer Shopper review
of the HP Envy 14.



The photo seems to show an HP Envy 14 keyboard
that has excellent distributed lighting.

The keyboard keys are bright and evenly lit.

The keyboards on two HP Envy 14s I've tried looks nothing like that.

Is this photo a good example of an actual HP Envy 14 backlit keyboard?

Do owners here have backlighting as good as those in the photo?
Or is the backlighting on your keyboard uneven. Some keys bright, some keys dim?

 

I still want one even with the backlight problem =D
Yea it looks fine there..I guess it just depends on your luck. If I can send it back and have them fix it then it would be okay, as long as it gets fixed. And you have to mail in your HP notebook for warranty? My XPS came with in-home warranty. Do they offer free overnight shipping at least? Ive never owned an HP notebook so not sure how it works..
They still have a $100 off coupon for XPS btw, although im sure your employee discount was much more. I configured both the XPS and Envy with the same specs, and the Envy came out just $10 cheaper (after all coupons), I just want the Envy for the longer battery life

 

Hehe! Cool!

Well, for this particular situation (keyboard replacement), HP Envy support,
wouldn't send me a replacement, their reason is because it's not
an easily replaceable part.

I have to agree. Replacing the keyboard requires removing several screws,
disassembling parts, carefully removing some connections, the top cover, etc.

Imagine all the damage that might occur if HP allowed HP Envy 14 owners to replace their own keyboards. Hehe!

I'm sure if it's an easily replaceable part like the HDD, RAM, battery, etc., then
they'll mail it.

Yes, HP Envy support offered me free overnight shipping. They told me 4-6 business days for the keyboard
replacement. So around 1 to 2 weeks turn around time.

I have the standard warranty.

There are many other warranty options, like in-home warranty, provided by HP Care Pack Services
for an additional charge.

http://www.shopping.hp.com/shopping/pdf/ESP_Notebook_Tips.pdf

There's a Dell $100 XPS coupon? Hmmm, I'll definitely think about that. Thanks!
And I just recovered in regretting missing that Boeing promo. LOL

I'm not a Boeing employee. Just numerous people (Boeing employee or not) took advantage of that promo
when it was posted at Slickdeals weeks ago. Dell still accepted the orders, with the Boeing employee discount & codes,
from anyone. So huge discounts for those lucky buyers. Hehe!

 

Hi, personally I have a keyboard that is evenly bright, but definitely not as bright as the one in the picture. The one in the picture is really bright, comparable to a Macs! However, I'm glad that mine isnt as bright, since I frequently take notes in dark lecture halls and sometimes the backlit on the macs can be a little distracting for others. The brightness is just about right for me

 

yeah that picture seems to be overly bright/perhaps was shopped/doctored a bit.

I think mine isn't uniform either.

though honestly I don't notice it too often (and also forget to use the back lit keyboard option a lot too)

 

For what is is worth, mine too is uneven, with lower brightness in the f6-f8 keys as well as 6-8 and, to a lesser extent, t-u.

It's a minor issue, not that important to me given how happy I am with the rest of the laptop, but an issue nonetheless.

It certainly doesn't look like the image above

 

Mine isn't as bright in a general circle around the "K" key. But, as with some other folks, it's not nearly enough to bother me and all of the keys are plenty bright enough for comfortable use. As great as the machine is in every other way, I just overlook it.

 

I don't mind, the lightning on mine is a bit off but its a good level? of brightness. It does not peeve me that much I saved a hell of alot on this beauty of a machine.