*HP Envy 15 (11XX / 12XX series) Owners Lounge!*

Unfortunately I did not run them on my previous Envy.

Overall, I like this one a lot with the exception of the 1066 Mhz SDRAM.

PROS:
- I think the Beats coating has changed a little. Seems sturdier, thicker coat.
- No more creaking palm rest
- Better hardware. I only had the other Beats for a very short time so I did not test it out too much.
- Better connection to WiFi. Could not get a strong N with my old Envy

CONS:
- 1066 Mhz instead of 1333 Mhz (which was in my old one)
- Bluetooth Magic Mouse keeps losing connection. (Probably a BT config issue)
- Not sure if it is a CON, but instead of 3 partitions as my old Envy, there are now 4! 1) SSD, 2) HD, 3) Recovery, and 4) HP Utilities. The #4 is the new partition.

After trying that 3D Mark -- it now makes me want to buy a game for it!

 

Are you Taylor Plant?

 

Find a game benchmark that gives you more than 3% performance difference between the 1333 and 1066, and I'll give you $10 The only place you'll see a difference between 1066 and 1333 is in synthetic benchmarks and a very few very specific apps.

 

How much does it weight with a slice battery ?? I was expecting the weight of DELL Studio XPS 16 6.5lbs

 

Slice battery weighs 2.7 lbs so ~8 lbs total.

Noticed your xps 16 weight of 6.5lbs, iwas looking at the new i5 versions and they can only be configured with a 9 cell battery. The 6.5 is base weight with 6 cell (and W/LED display?). Any idea what the weight is with 9 cell and RGBLED display? (Don't see why they state the base weight with W/LED, can't imagine the rgb is much heavier??)

 

JJB, dont forget to add the adapter, which adds 0.6Kg to the weight

 

Thanks.

I found a 95W (with a 130W peak rating) adapter that weighs 374g. Requested more details about the 'peak' rating etc. they are going to have a tech support call back to discuss. will advise if they think it will work for the envy. Here's the link:

https://www.myinnergie.com/mCubePlus/specification.aspx

 

OLED screens will be too expensive at 15-17" screen sizes. I don't think they will be able to get 8+ hours out of the same batteries with the core iX processors. Besides, their discrete graphics right now are the 9600gt which is extremely outdated and doesn't use as much power.

 

I'd also love two order couple of extra adapters but don't know what to get. I am nervous about getting something other than what HP sells for this model, but would really like something slimmer.

The issue is that I saw someone reporting that envy was locking the processor multiplier down to a very low value or something when connected to one of these after market adapters (I think it was a 90W).

It'd be great if people buying new adapters can post results, so that we know what works.

 

I would definitly like to hear anyones results on alternative PSU's. Whats odd is the darn Envy 15 comes with a 120 brick but then they list under the accessories for an extra brick the 180W one so I'm just wondering what to get so I can keep one here at home at my desk and a second one in my bag so when I or my other half are at school we have a backup with us, just in case. I did come across a post mentioning a slimform one by Kennsington

Kensington 120-Watt Ultraportable Wall Notebook PC Power Adapter (K33336US)

but I emailed them and apparently right now they don't offer a "tip" that will work with the Envy 15

 

That one may be my second choice, not a big fan of kensington product quality.

The tip for the envy is the same as the Pavilion DV6,7 & 8 series, you'll find very few aftermarket accesories that list the 'envy' as compatable because it is so new and not a high volume product.

 

I recall seeing that post about throttling also. seems odd that 90w would not be enough unless maybe charging the slice and full load on system, even with that I don't know why CPU would thottle back, todays charging designs should drop current to battery if it senses a voltage drop.

Will report back if I find a unit that works well. This may not be a direct comparison for you since I will have a i5 vs. your 820qm and no slice for me.

 

I think that was with the HP 90W adapter that it throttled. I don't think it was aftermarket.

 

why didnt this thing beat my last year system (p7805u)? it has a better cpu n gpu!

 

But GPU supports DX11.

 

Which system are you referring to? The one in your signature?

 

Wait why does your gpu says HD 5850? I thought hp is only offering HD 5830...

EDIT: Sorry was intended for diablonyc2

 

Wait why does your gpu says HD 5850? I thought hp is only offering HD 5830...

 

5850 and 5830 are identical besides memory and memory bandwidth, or so i gather...could just be an error on the program's part

 

Most likely the program, although both 2006 and vantage seemed to identify it as a 5850.

Hey diablonyc2, sorry if you already posted it and I just missed it but could you expand your device manager and post a screen cap? Maybe HP upped the chip and didn't tell anyone hehe

 

Stupid HP. I wanted USB 3.0 for Core i5 Envy's. Now i have to wait for another Envy update. i wonder how long they will gimp USB 3.0 on Core i5 Envy's its not even an option.

 

much gimping to go around, not even including the usb 3.0. I think they wanted to keep it close to $1000 so they gave it flashy numbers that people care about (gpu/cpu/hd/ram) and skimped on equally important things like the chipset and bios.

aka a ferrari with broom sticks for axles.

 

Don't knock broomsticks LOL

 

Gateway p7805u scored above 8k (think 9.2k)

 

I could careless with USB 3.0, there ain't any devices I have or will need in the near future that uses it.

I am still waiting for the design to change hehe

 

True, but the current consumption of the 9800M GTS (which the Gateway has) has a TDP of 75W. The HD 5830 in the Envy 15 is only 23W. 23W < 75W

Your Gateway p7805u is a 17'' monstrosity weighing 9lbs and 1.7'' thick. The Envy 15 is a 15'' light and sexy weighing only 5.1lbs and 1'' thick.

The 9800M GTS scored P4060 @ 3DMark Vantage [according to notebookcheck], whereas the 5830 scores above 4K and has DX11 support.

I sincerely beg to differ

 

Thats why Apple charges an arm and leg for their stuff. The 9600 is not very power-efficient compared with todays 40nm Gfx chipsets like the Ati Mobile 5xxx series or the Nvidia Mobile 3xx series.

By combining the IGP with the discrete the current gen Macbooks are very effective in utilizing the H/W but with the next gen stuff its going to be more interesting.

 

So did they change the design on the lid?

 

Weight & Size is not a big factor to me. Im just saying that with newer parts it should have a better performance. but i guess everyone has their quality vs performance vs size vs battery life preference.
Why didn't the "better" gpu bump up the 3dmark06 score? Now im not a big "oh look at my big score" just wondering

 

See my previous post in the *other* HP Envy 15 owners forum.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5762557&postcount=6142

In addition, the 3Dmark06 that I was commenting about was actually run at lower than 1280x1024, which should emphasize the CPU even more. All 3DMark06 scores are supposed to be quoted for the standard settings which means 1280x1024 because using different settings or resolutions will result in even more confusion in terms of which computer is really faster.

 

New info on i5 models just posted on the main 'HP Envy 15 owners lounge' thread. It appears the i5 is limited to a x9 multiplier while on battery.

 

Any word on any improvements done to the build construction, differences in weight, and the jumpy trackpad issue? I'd really like to know! Planning a purchase in a few months!

 

... where lol?

 

The BQ of mine (first batch), is well above average. Quite sturdy and well put together.

Weight should be around the same, I see no reason for it to change.

Trackpad was solved with a driver update. Just be careful where you lay your hands when typing.

Hope this helps!

 

If you got the SSD/HDD option, will you get two 1.8in drives or one 1.8in (ssd) and the other 2.5?

 

Two 1.8" drives. You can only fit two 1.8" drives or one 2.5" in the bay.

 

Thanks...

 

Hi , all

I had a envy 15 i7 before, but I returned it because these problems

1 Fan runs very loud at all( I know I can turn fan always on off, but still bother me )

2 short of battery life, like about 1 hour

3 mute control or sound control issue
when I was playing game, if i press increase sound volume , then the game will minimze to window. This is annoying

Would someone tell me if these issues have ben solven ?

Thanks

I know envy 15 can switch video cards , how's the battery life and noise when it's running at IGU ?

 

You don't know this; nobody knows this for definite. If the already shipped Beats versions are anything to go by, the graphics are NOT switchable. Truth is that until the regular Envy 15 i5 versions are in peoples hands, we will not know answers to ANY of your questions.

 

Maybe the delays mean that they are working out the bugs for the switchable graphics

At least one can hope...

 

That's too optimistic. It doesn't make sence for them to ship the Beats units out before finalizing the final spec.

 

Then what is your take on the regular Envy's getting delayed and the Beats being discontinued?

 

engraving laser broke i bet.

 

I was told by a CSR that it was a part shortage, but they did not have info on which part. I am hoping that part has something to do with the HM55 chipset.

However, as Chasse pointed out in the other thread, the most likely answer is that it's a case shortage because i7 quads are also being delayed. (This would indicate a problem other than switchable graphics.) This is the only feasible reason I can see there being for HP only having shipped refreshed Beats editions.

 

I figured they shipped the beats version first because they almost always cost more than the regular version so those customers get priority.

 

Maybe they are repainting the chassies to cover the beats logo. LOL
As good as any other speculation.

I did notice that they no longer mention the "crystal clear audio and deep controled bass...." on the envy 15 pages anymore. They must have decided it wasn't worth paying a royalty to Dr Dre for a really crappy sound system.

 

if only HP understood high school physics they wouldn't even lie like that...well yes they would.

 

im pretty sure they're paying him to use his name.

 

They dropped the Envy 15 beats version yesterday and no longer mention the beats sound on the standard envy 15 web site pages.....So what I am saying is that they most likely parted ways with Dr Dre and no longer will be paying to use his logo/name.

 

yes its a 9x multiplier with the i5 on battery power.