HP Envy 15 - Like it? Love it? How is it?

Hey all,

I'm interested in buying a lightweight, durable, medium-to-high performance laptop that is also lightweight. So far, the HP Envy 15 seems to be able to do it all.

I have a few questions concerning some issues I've read about it:


1. Touchpad - I've read on and off about how it's buggy. Some users reportedly found their cursor jumping all over the place. Has this issue been fixed as of late?

2. Heating issues - I'm well aware that packing an i7 processor and a high performance GPU onto a slim design can be a risky venture, especially after seeing how wary Apple has been of packing high performance GPUs into even its most expensive MBPs. Which brings me to the question. How are the temperatures on this laptop while gaming?

3. How are the build construction and weight?

4. In the event that I'm unable to use my restore partition to reformat Win7, how would I be able to reformat without an optical drive? I've seen people mention something about using a thumb-drive? Without going OT, could someone post a link or two explaining how that's done?

5. Finally, what is the main difference among the processors? Is it worth paying $250 for the i7 for light-to-moderate gaming?

Envy 15 CPU offerings shown as of today:

Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-430M processor (2.26GHz, 3MB L2 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 2.53 GHz
Included in price

Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-520M processor (2.40GHz, 3MB L2 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 2.93 GHz
+$100.00
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-540M processor (2.53GHz, 3MB L2 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.06 GHz
+$175.00
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L2 Cache, 1333MHz FSB) w/Turbo Boost up to 2.8 GHz
+$250.00
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-820QM Processor (1.73GHz, 8MB L2 Cache,1333MHz FSB)w/Turbo Boost up to 3.06 GHz
+$650

 

definitely check out the envy owner's lounge. most people are PO'd since their order has been delayed and everyone else who got theirs likes it but there are problems. I suspect those who truly love it are too busy doing other things with it to be on a forum talking about it lol. Therefore the opinions may be a little too negative.

 

Haha I'll post there instead. Thanks! Mods delete!

 

Hey hey hey. I have an Envy, I love it, and I keep posting around...lol

Like it. Love it. Both! Just ask in the Owners' Lounge. People there are just waiting theirs, but I am quite happy with my "old" Envy (first batch)

 

I was about to get a Macbook Pro but now this ENVY came up... hard time choosing. But I'll still stick getting Macbook Pro on my next laptop in the future... because I already have 2 windows laptop (dell + hp)...

Note: the price of the ENVY costs much more than Macbook Pro now in Canada... wow..

 

I returned my first envy, and am waiting on my refreshed envy2 to ship.

I loved it!

1. The touchpad is bigger than most, so it took a day of getting used to. I had no compaints after a few days. You have to learn to not keep a finger ON the click button.. but to hover over it. It will think you are doing a multi-touch gesture if u keep another finger on the click area.

2. Mine warmed up a bit, but the cooling system worked very satisfactorily! There was never an uncomfortable level of heat... during encoding or benchmarking. I used the thing on my lap alot too! it sucks most of its air thru the front, so blocking the small ports on the bottom isnt a big deal. I had the i7 verion as well.

3. It is very solid, great feel to the magnesium. I was impressed and very satisfied with the overall quality and weight.

4. I formatted and Reinstalled via the usb bdrom, but the envy does support usb sticks as a boot device. With the right steps it is fully possible to install via a usb stick on the envy.

5. Light to moderate gaming... you will be fine with an i5, any of them. If you want the best of the best and super fast video encoding, pop for the i7. So far it seems to get USB 3.0 you need the i7, so i do recommend the upgrade.

-Jimmy