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

Regarding 90W power adapters and i5 processor throttling. Does the HP 90W adapter throttle the processor?

I just purchased the Targus Compact Laptop Charger (APA6911US) which is pretty damn compact and can supply up to 90W. However the CPU throttles at 9x multiplier unless I use ThrottleStop to override it.

Hooked up to a Kill-A-Watt, with all 4 cores going on the 120W HP Adapter I see ~72W pulled, battery charging. With the Targus it stops at ~55W. The Targus also only provides power about 1 in 3 times I plug it in. The other 2 times I get the plug icon in the tooltray, the display gets brighter, and then the plug icon goes away and the display dims. Power at the wall never exceeds 2W during this time.

Targus's official response:
"I am very sorry, but we have not yet tested your computer for compatibility with our power adapters. I apologize for the inconvenience."

 

Its a targus power supply, they are junk to begin with.

 

How many DVD's should the recovery discs be? I just ran mine on my brand new i5 Gen 2 and it only made 1 DVD; that can't be right can it?

 

It may compress the data, so...maybe.

 

Why would it be more than 1? Windows 7 + a bunch of bloatware should be less than 4.4 gigs (the Win7 DVDs I have as an MS partner are about 3 gig ISOs)

 

Out of curiosity is it possible to use a USB thumb drive to make the restore set? I have a lot of spare 4-8 gig drives and might be nice to make an emergency backup on one of them as well as by DVD.

 

Using the HP recovery disc option you should get 3 recovery discs using standard DVD +R discs. It should also do a 'self check' on each disc before it finishes and tells you to label and insert next disc.

It is only supposed to let you make 1 copy of the discs so I hope it let's you try again, if not HP support should ship you a set for free.

To those questioning the size, remember this is the full factory shipped software package, not just win7. It is 12.4 GB on it's own 14GB partition from the factory and expands out to ~40GB when installed (includung a copy of the original 14GB partition).

EDIT: Oops, got the quotes backwards.

 

HP's software can't split it for usb flash, so you need a 16GB driver.

 

Glad to here you finally got it working. It's to bad you had to go through so much hassle to get there and it's odd the the 8.681 did not work. Did you end uo using 'drivercleaner'? If so did it find a lot of things missed by your other programs?

 

It also stated that could only make 1 set of recovery discs and to store safely blah...blah...blah... Not sure if it's true since I never tried to make a second set, but if your going to try I would suggest making the DVD version first just to make sure you have a working set.

 

Well it is a pretty sweet adapter, too bad it doesn't work.

So does the HP 90W adapter throttle the CPU or not? And what's the model number on that?

 

I actually tend to accumulate thumb drives just because of impulse buying when I see em on sale so have some 16's and 32's as well. I didn't realize you could only run the app once. I was under the impression that it was just removed from the start menu or something but you could stilll run it via command. If you can only run it once then experimenting with using a USB instead of DVD's could be risky.

I haven't made a set yet, in part because I already have upgraded to Win7 Ultimate x64. I have a backup of the SW folders saved as well so just figured if I ever had to try and restore my system I'd just use my disk.

 

One thing, when building the Windows 7 USB Key to use, don't forget to slipstream in all of the drivers, patches, etc while you are at it. This way you can save time installing it later.

Google Slipstream.

 

what is the battery life some you people are getting with the i5 processor when you are really trying to extend it with just wifi and light word processing?

 

About 2:45 to 3 hrs. Check this link to the envy 15 Benchmarks thread to find out more details;

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=453084

 

Thanks a lot! I'd ordered this weekend with the $200 coupon, but I just called them up and used that code to knock another hundred off.

 

Has anyone been able to install the Added value S/W like Corel Videostudio or Paintshop Pro after a Clean Windows 7 install without going through recovery discs?

I have a saved Recovery partition but I do not want the original bloatware only certain S/W.

 

No, I gave up trying. They seem to be very well copy protected. Every time I got them on the new install I got 'illegal copy' messages. I even tried to get into the recovery partition to copy directly from there but it is also protetced. If you figure out how please let me know

 

There's a "Protexis licensing v2" service running on preinstalled windows.

 

Not sure if you were replying to me? I was talking about trying to get the Corel photo and video programs to work after a clean install of Win7 not the OS itself.

 

I think corel use that service.

 

No it seems it left other programs alone. I did have to manually remove some software it left behind (Ati install manager extensionns, etc) and some keys were left abandoned in the registry as well.

 

Can you get a clean win7 iso out of these recovery disks?

I just downloaded an OEM copy of home premium 64 off the net and stuck it on a 4 gig flash drive. I'm going to install an SSD and I would like to not have all of HPs crapware on it.

BTW, regarding the SSD, I bought a X18 G1, and I am thinking of getting another one later for raid(or a 160GB G2 for TRIM). Do I need some sort of cable to hook it up? Do I have to get that bracket thing?

And yes, I do regret not buying the SSD from HP.

 

There is an HP utility that allows you to create a recovery thumb drive. I had the same question when I first got my Envy since the factory-installed recovery program will not work with thumb drives (I mean hello HP, the laptop doesn't have an optical drive so it would make sense for you to provide us with a factory-installed USB alternative). Thankfully, someone was nice enough to link me to the app located on HP's support site.

It is buried somewhere in the 100's of pages in the original thread. On my phone heading to work now so I won't be able to find it but I can try to look it up later. In the meantime, you might try searching the original thread for "usb recovery" or "flash utility." Note that you need a 16GB drive to create the recovery drive. Tried with an 8GB first but it wouldn't work.

 

I believe this is the link you're looking for. http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01890478&cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en&product=4121195

 

Regarding the HP recovery discs that we can order online; I ordered them and they came in 3 cds. 2 cds for windows re-installation and 1 cd for drivers. Now the drivers cd has no executable files inside. It has bunch of folders with unaccessible extensions. Any idea how to use that driver cd sent from HP?

Do I have to boot from it?? whats the deal..

 

You probably have to run the 2 Windows install DVD's then after it boots into Windows it asks for the drivers disc.

You may be able to tell Device manager to scan that disc for drivers for your hardware.

 

This is in my cart:

HP ENVY 15
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-540M Dual Core processor (2.53GHz, 3MB L2 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.06GHz
4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
320GB Dual Solid State Drive Flash Modules (SSD 160GB + SSD 160GB)
1GB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5830 Graphics - For i5 and i7-620M Processors
15.6" diagonal Full High Definition LED HP Ultra Brightview Widescreen Display (1920x1080)
One 6 Cell Lithium Ion Polymer Battery + One 9 Cell HP Envy Slim Fit

All for $1999. Someone help me pull the trigger.

How often does HP give out a 300$ off coupon?

 

The last one was around New Year

 

Looks like a very good deal. The coupons pop up quite often but $300 is the highest I've seen so I would take advantage of it while you can. Remeber they have a 21 day no questions asked return policy and they actually pay return shipping.

In don't like the slice battery, it makes the computer over 8lbs. With my replacement envy I went with the spare 6 cell which I love for traveling, it's small 8 x 4 x 3/8" and only wheighs .8 lbs (slice = 2.7 lbs.). You may want to consider this option and save some $.

 

Damn. Well.................. I wish the new Macbook pros were out now so I could make my decision. I'm going to feel like I threw away 300$ if the MBP turn out to be lame

 

@ JJB

Okay, I love the idea of the slice, but I don't want something heavy. How large is the the AC adapter?

How often does HP release coupons? What are the average coupon prices?

 

@jon03021

Why wait? Order it and test it for 3 weeks, return if you want for no cost. I doubt the Apple refresh will be shipping any time soon and I am sure you'll be looking at a $1200+ premium for comparable performance to the Envy you configured. Just look at Apples current SSD & CPU upgrade prices on the MBP 15's.

EDIT: The AC adapter I got is a 120W 1.8LB brick. The new specs show the i5 models should ship with a 90W adapter but not sure if this is happening yet. The 65W slim travel adapter works but throttles the CPU clocks (there is a workaround) it very light and portable.

 

One more thing, How would someone play games on the Envy when it has no optical drive? Is there an alternative to this?

 

Does the three week return policy start when you place the order, or when they ship the laptop?

 

Either digital download (Steam, D2D) or the external drive that they'll sell you for fifty bucks.

 

When you recieve it.

I think I underestimated the premium for a MBP upgrade (refresh). Just configured the current model with 3.06Ghz CPU and single 256GB SSD and your at $3,250, add the photo and video software and your at $3,650 (then envy comes with similar programs).

 

It suppose to be when it is delivered.

 

The macbook also has old generation video card, and CPU.

 

I would never use Apple's upgrade paths; those are the biggest rip offs ever. If i did purchase an MBP I would buy the following:

15in Macbook Pro
2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB
320GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm CUSTOM UPGRADED to Intel 160gb ssd X25-M G2

1849$ Laptop w/ education discount
499$ Intel X25-M Mainstream G2 160GB SSD
2348$ = Total

But, as is i wouldn't dare buy a MBP because the hardware is basically old. What I'm cautious about is Apple should be refreshing their laptop line very soon, and If the prices stay about the same with upgraded i5's and a faster GPU, I will go with the MBP.

 

Don't want to burst your bubble but when has apple ever lowered prices on a MBP new release ?? Never. And this new refresh will be the biggest overall hardawre change they have ever done, new CPU tech and GPU tech (which will need new mobo design) and I'm guessing upgraded display (probably IPS like the new iPad). No way it will be close to current pricing. I wouldn't be surprised if they actually make this a new premium series of notebooks...

 

Steam.
or, use the external dvd drive to install the game, then download a no-dvd crack for it if you can't stand having the thing attached.

 

Yeah, I expect Apple to increase there prices, but if the laptop costs 2,500$ or so, I guess I would be willing to buy the MBP. Not if it costs 3k+

. Well, I'm so undecided when it comes to purchasing new expensive gadgets. Maybe I will do the 3week, return policy thing. So you're saying I can try out the HP envy 15 for basically FREE for 3 weeks? No charge, what so ever?

Okay, Thank you. I could use a virtual mount and copy the iso's over to my computer, but that is taking up a lot of space considering i would be using SSD

 

Your actually debateing a 2k spec'd laptop vs a 2500+ spec'd Apple?

My 13in MacBook was spec'd to 1400, 18months ago. I'm now replacing it with a 1500(-300) spec'd ENVY. The Envy will DESTROY the MacBook in performance.

 

@Jon03021

Yes no cost to you except if you pay for upgraded shipping on the order (assuming they still offer free std shipping). For returning they email you a prepaid fedex return label and you can even schedule a pickup for it from fedex. Call HP sales and they can probably send the terms to you, I don't know of anyone who has had a problem with returns.

 

Just find a computer on your netwrk with a cd drive, right click it, click on Sharing and set it up. You SHOULD be able to see it from your envy now, assuming you have a network set up.

 

Hi, I want to do a clean install of windows 7 on my envy 15. I have been looking in this thread concerning which drivers to bring over from the HP windows install... and how? anyone can point me in a direction please?
I am also liking the idea of slipstreaming windows 7 so I can remove stuff from windows 7 original to up the performance and down the size for my little 80gig ssd. Anyone got experience from this? is it really hard? I found www.vlite.net which seems to be a very good walkthrough of the process....

// Cal

 

just copy your swsetup folder first, save all the drivers and programs just in case. I think I only installed the chipset, audio, trackpad, wifi/bluetooth, hdd stabilizer thing, and downloaded most recent graphics card drivers.

 

@Callecal

I read about that vlite program and it sounded interesting but of course this was after I just did a fresh install. Here is a link to the guide from maximumPC, look for the vlite guide link. It also has some other good info.

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/13_steps_any_new_computer?page=0,0