*HP Envy 15 Owners Lounge! PART 2*

if zagg doesn't produce any invisible shield for envy, does anyone know if there might be any japanese brand that produce those clip ons like thoes for macs?
the easily chipped paint of envy is making me irritated.
definitely need something to shield the bottom.

 

You should return it and get a replacement. I have had 4 envy's and none of them had any issue with the paint chipping or scratching. They must have missed a step during the painting process or something.

By the way how are you getting the scratches on the bottm? The rubber feet should protect it on any flat surface.

 

I don't seem to have the options described above on the speaker icon-- clicking it takes me directly to the mixer, and then clicking the speaker button in the mixer takes me to "speakers and headphones properties", but I don't seem to have a way to change headphone types. Am I missing a driver or something? The beats control panel appears to be working, though.

 

You need to have headphones plugged in for the options to appear (it's text right below the icon with a small 'down' arrow). If you did and the options still don't appear then try with the phones you said worked correclty for you. You may also want to see if you have the most recent IDT audio drivers; HERE

 

Even if Zagg DID make an Envy shield in the near future, it's unlikely they would create any protection for the underside--they typically only do the lid, palm sections, and trackpad (exception being Mac models).

Depending on how much effort you're willing to invest, you could disassemble the base unit, separate the bottom frame, and spray it with a clearcoat or two... I doubt it would trap heat any worse than a dedicated 1mm thick skin shield lining the bottom. Thoughts? I wouldn't try it, but it's an idea.

I wouldn't recommend a clip system or a clamshell case to surround the unit--it's already too prone to overheating issues.

 

My was from HP Direct, but it was ordered from a company that orders parts from HP for their customers. I checked the prices that after shipping charges and taxes, the place I got it from was still cheaper than from HP. In fact, the people I order it from actually orders the part from HP after I submitted my payment so.

In addition, mine was made in 08.04.2009 and it was never opened. Intended as a repair part from any Envy Beats that needed a bezel swap. All good.

 

@Strikesaber

I'm confused, are you in the US or another conuntry?

I just ordered a CPU fan assembly for $ 62.70 from HP parts directly and it cost $4.95 shipping and no tax as it is a replacement part, shipped the same day.

It should have cost you about $72 delivered from HP, not a huge savings but enough that I would've gone with it. Here is the HP parts line for the beats bezel:

 

United States. Well I did try ordering from them but I wasn't able to and when I realized that a reseller was able to do the same thing for 10 dollars more, I'd figured they can deal the hassle for me, so I went with them.

Maybe if I need to swap anything else their warranty can't cover well enough, I will go with their site and try again. At this rate, I might go for a 2nd Year Warranty instead of a 3rd Year.

 

If you paid with an AmEx or Visa card, you've almost certainly already got a second year of warranty coverage.

 

What do you mean by that?

 

It's common knowledge. All Amex cards and the majority of Visa's offer an additional year of warranty coverage when you pay using those cards. Buy a TV with a 3-year manufacturer warranty, and the card adds on an additional year at the END of the original warranty period. It's handled by the card company, you provide receipts, ship the product to them for reimbursement, etc, etc.

 

I know this has been discussed before but anyone has gotten to a resolution to the purple webcam? I have updated the firmware and still no go. Mine is still within 21 days, is it worth to send it back for a replacement? or all Envy's have this cam problem?

Any solutions please are appreciated.

 

LOL! I have that problem with my webcam too!
SOo purple!
reminds me of barney.

 

I recall someone saying that you can adjust the white balance setting to get rid of the purple tinge.

 

Hello all. I have had my Envy since November, and I'm wondering about battery performance. Last night I hibernated my Envy (that's the default action I have set for when I close the lid while on AC power) before disconnecting the AC. Then I left it unplugged, sitting on my desk. Before powering it up this morning, I connected it back up to AC then turned it on. As soon as it came up and I logged in, the battery was at 93% and not 100%. Hibernate mode has the laptop completely off. I know it wasn't in "sleep" mode, it didn't come up super-fast like it does with sleep, but rather the typical amount of time it takes to come out of hibernation. So, has anyone else started noticing battery charge issues like this?

 

Those of you with passive coolers: do you have one that has a hard top surface but cloth/soft bottom, something not heavy, that you can place on your lap that the laptop sits on? If so, what is it's name?

 

I use the thermaltake ixoft. I have absolutely no idea why you'd want something with a hard bottom surface for your lap.

 

You are right, I have no idea either why someone would want a hard bottom surface, I meant hard *top* surface.

 

Ohhhh... disregard my suggestion then. The inside of the ixoft basically "melts" when it comes in contact with heat. I use it, and I'm happy--mostly because I can store it along with anything else in a bag and it won't scratch or damage other items.

 

Is anyone here using Lightroom 2.5 on their Envy?

I'm having an issue where images do not become viewable, only grey boxes fill the void. I'm sure that Lightroom recognizes the images becuase when I hit the develop tab, the histogram will come all pretty and colorful like.

There have been some threads on other forums that mentioned the issue, although I have yet to find one with a solution that works.

 

I'm using Lightroom 2 version 2.6 and have no issues like you describe. Have not looked at newer upgrades yet, so is there a LR 2.5 or are you .1 version behind me (LR2 v. 2.5 vs. LR2 v. 2.6) ?

Note: I had PS CS4 issues with the 10.3 preview drivers and did not really test LR with that ATI driver version. Now using 10.3 final drivers and so far all works well in LR and CS4.

 

Would someone be so kind as to tell me how long your battery lasts with the 540m, 9cell, 100% brightness, normal usage e.g., surfing, email, word, youtube, etc.

Thanks so much!

 

I'm also on LR 2.6--am not experiencing your issues. Upgrade from 2.5-->2.6 and see if the problem persists?

 

6 cell gets me between 2:30 and 3:00 depending on usage (youtube eats battery life). That's at 70% to 80%, trust me, anything brighter hurts the eyes (glossy screen) and since it's LED there really isn't much difference between full and minimum (2.4W vs 4W).

Have not done a full discharge and timed it with the 2 batteries. The 6 cell is 53Wh and the 9 cell is 93Wh. So 7+ hrs or should be easy.

FYI: The 9 cell adds 2.7 lbs (1.23 Kilos) to the envy. The 6 cell only weighs .8 lbs ( .37 Kilos) and is much easier to store in a bag when travelling. I take 2 extra 6 cells and get more running time and less weight than with the 9 cell slice battery.

 

Turns out it's just slow to display the down arrow, and I was jumping the gun. Something about the jack must be a little bit "off" on mine-- none of the various permutations I tried changed much. I have since found another pair of headphones and a 3.5mm-to-RCA adapter that work in my bin o' cables. It's not currently a big enough issue to send it back over, but I've got two years worth of warranty should it become more annoying down the road. (Thanks, Amex!)

Thanks again for the help, and the fantastic color profile for the matte screen.

 

Installed 2.6, still have the same issue.

Some of the other forums, including Adobe support, mention the changing of color profiles to sRGB, but AFAIK, all of my settings reflect that.

 

from what i see, people are recommending the isoft as the notebook cooler for envy? anyone else using another one? it seems like the isoft will kinda block the bottom the bottom of the notebook isn't it? doesn't convection kinda cooler works better than the conduction kinda cooler like ixoft?

 

Maybe an ATI Driver issue? I'm running the 10.3 final WHQL version from the ATI direct: http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/windows/Pages/radeonmob_win7-64.aspx

 

Did it ever work properly for you? In addition to uninstalling/reinstalling video drivers, it couldn't hurt to uninstall lightroom, restart, swab the registry (ccleaner), then reinstall 2.6 from scratch.

Actually, I was the only one who recommended the ixoft. You could always go with a passive heat-pipe cooler, but they run 2-3 times more than an ixoft. Don't expect miracles, but it's better than nothing, and it's perfect for transport.

 

@JJB

Could I install my own 640um, is it compatible?

 

I ran the installer again for kicks, i'm already up to date on everything in the package.

 

I can't say that it ever did with my Envy. It did work on my other desktop PC when I had it loaded on there, using 2.5.

 

Well, I'm sure you did it, but I state this since you didn't make mention of it: when in doubt, uninstall current software before reinstalling more recent versions.

As you already eliminated this possibility, next step would be a reinstall of LR as I stated on the previous page.

Hmm... could it be one of those little bonus's of having your product improperly licensed after going beyond the usage limits of your serial? Doubtful, just throwing out ideas. If you uninstalled and reinstalled and stuck with a free trial for a run and found it working... hey, who knows.

 

Here's what i'm looking at:



I'll try a fresh reinstall in the morning.

 

The 520 and 540 actually use a little less power except at 100% load, here is a link to test results: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Intel-Core-i3-i5-i7-Processors-Arrandale.25085.0.html Scroll down to 'power usage' graph and click on it to enlarge.

That being said, on the envy it won't make much of a difference (if any) since all the i5 CPU's are throttled to an x9 multplier while on battery. The same would apply to a 640UM.

 

Yes but did you ever completely uninstall all ATI software and drivers from your system before upgrading to the new version to begin with? When I update ATI drivers I make sure it is all 'uninstalled' with ATI install manager and then run driver sweeper, then install new version from the default MS VGA driver. I'm a firm believer in doing this, as recommended by ATI, not just 'updating' a new version over the existing one.

Although this may have nothing to do with your problem. I've never seen the grayed out thumbnails in LR before.

 

Thx JJB. Seems the 540m or 520m is the best for power/performance. Wish the Envy had switchable graphics.

BTW, how much is an extra 6-cell and where do you purchase it from?

I'm looking at getting the 540m, dual SSD, 1366x768 screen (using 100% brightness) and the 9-cell. Hoping to get around 7 hrs. If need be I'll get an extra 6-cell.

-----

Also, is there a guide somewhere to maximize battery life for the Envy 15 in Windows 7? How about optimal graphics card settings?

 

I would strongly recommend the 1080P glossy screen if it's available in Italy, it is 1000% better than the 1366x768, and windows 7 does an excellent job of scaling the fonts so things don't look to small to read the text...

Right now the only source for the 6 cell that I know of is when you order a custom build from HP direct or from the HP replacement parts site at a high premium. The CTO (custom to order) options for batteries are $75 USD for the extra 6 cell and $125 USD for adding the 9 cell

 

Even my 8" netbook has higher resolution than that Spring for 1080p--best upgrade investment you can make.

 

Not until you are gaming. Over the future, you will need to rely on scaling.

 

Not sure what that has to do with anything. Who plays games with integrated graphics?

My vaio P can handle Minesweeper. Know what else it can handle? 1600x768 resolution Eat that 1366x768-equipped Envy

 

The HD 5830 Chokes on many newly-released and upcoming titles running on 1920. You will struggle with it and revert to 1366x768, by which due to scaling would not looks as pretty as a native 1366x768. So you should take that back.

 

mmkay,
1. we're talking about two separate things here, so there's nothing to take back. I'm comparing my vaio p to the lower-res envy, while you're seemingly comparing the 1080p envy to the lower-res envy
2. you're trying to make a case that 1920x1080 equipped envy is no better than the 1366x768 version because not every single game on the market can be played at full settings on the 5830? Really? Now lets apply your logic to the 90% of games on the market that play fluidly at 1080p (or baring that, max settings). Its arguments like this that remind me of the fanatic zealots who twist the facts to support their erroneous claims. I know you're just saying that in jest, but... really?
3. if you're talking about the 5830, you're in the wrong thread, my friend. The 5830 places your argument squarely in the 2nd gen thread, not this one.

 

Actually that's not quite correct. The original split of the threads was supposed to seperate the i7's from the i5's and had nothing to do with the GPU version. But since nobody seems to pay attention it doesn't really matter.

 

I am so fed up with the USB 3.0 ports on this machine. Pretty much everything I plug to these ports has stability issues, devices hang, etc... I plug them to the one and only one usb 2.0 port and everything is good. I wish I had my two other usb 2.0 ports back.

 

I asssume your running the newest driver from 3/20/10 v. 1.0.18.0 ?

 

Well I would love 1080p guys, but I sit pretty far back at times with an external keyboard/mouse, so I think 1080p would be too small and eye straining. Also TBH I don't care for scaling in Firefox much especially since it breaks certain themes I use.

So do you guys think I could manage 7hrs battery life with 540m, 9-cell, 100% brightness, dual SSD, and light usage?

 

As I said before yes. Also the 1080P and win 7 scale most things perfectly, but I don't use firefox so not sure about that. Trust me when I say the 1080P is much sharper, brighter, higher contrast and larger color gamut than the inferior 1366 display. Also you will not be able to view it at 100% brightness for any length of time without your eyes hurting (unless outdoors in direct sunlight) It is very bright! I use 60 or 70% in a very bright room.

If you have issues with the win7 scaling you can always set the resolution to something lower say 1600 x 900 or 1400 x 1050 if needed. You can never move to a higher res from a 1366 x 768 native display. Remember the 1080P has ~140 pixels per inch vs ~100 per inch on the 1366, this allows for much smoother scaling on the higher res screen than you may be used to.

I just changed the zoom level in IE8 to 200% (and the win7 setting was at +125% to start with) and this post now takes up the whole screen, the text looks perfect and I can read it from 10 feet away.

 

@JJB

I believe the 1366 display is 165 nits and may be tolerable @ 100% brightness in a very bright room (sunlight coming in strong).

I guess I never thought of lowering the res cause it generally looks crappy like that. But that might work fine.

I've tried zooming Firefox and didn't like the results. But I'm using themes, maybe when FF4 is released I can ditch third party themes like Strata40 and the default FF theme might zoom better.

 

That's correct. 1.0.18.0, firmware 3021