*HP HDX DRAGON Owners Lounge, Part 1*

^ yup the board has been experiencing problems. I also have been getting 404 errors. There is a thread in the Site Suggetion Sub Forums too.

 

Wow, how can HP throw the HDX tag on this computer? Thank you for the valuable info. Maybe someday HP can beat the Dragon.

 

The dates on mine are fine. I'm looking at a Vista Ultimate 32 bit Add/Remove list. I also like..er..not like, but do go through the registry via regedit manually most times than not..I just use CCleaner as a backup, and I usually try to uncheck things I think it will mess up if there aren't too many, but that's difficult to always spot out.

 

I asked the "Ask the Experts" HP Techs the other day about upgrading the MXM, and they seemed to suggest that the only reason it can't be upgraded is because its soldered...but I mentioned that people have upgraded their ATI GPUs to the NVIDIA 8800s (don't know if the ATI ones are soldered) but they had no comment on that.. Anyone know if the ATI GPUs are soldered in? Even if it was soldered, can't that still be upgraded anyways? I got word from another HP tech that they thought it COULD be upgraded because it has its own on board BIOS and doesn't depend on the systems BIOS, but you just have to make sure there are the right number of pins. This is just what I'm relaying from techs.


This is the email I got forwarded to me:


HP Klantenondersteuning http://www.hp.nl/diagnose/

Thank you for your reply.

Personally I think the MXM slot in your laptop is equal to a PC-E/AGP slot in a desktop computer. The card slot is independent from the motherboard's bios as the gfx cards holds a bios itself. This means you can upgrade to any gfx card you want as long as it has the same size for the MXM card. The extra ram on the gfx cards will increase the frames in any game, as long as the game would use the memory on the card. (shaders, etcs).

The appears to be a known issue with the F.40 bios. I would recommend not to upgrade the bios unit HP has launched a new type of bios. I can't tell you when that will be.

I hope I've informed you suffciently.

With kind regards,

Ken Verkissen


Geachte heer Menken,

Thanks for your reply.

You can contact HP (amerika) on the link underneath:

- http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/c...roduct=3547191

I don't know if they are capable of helping you in this matter but it's worh a try. (My inserted comment: Lol! GOOD ONE RIGHT?)

I don't think the gfx cards (mxm) will need the laptop's bios to function. I think they will have a standalone bios.

With kind regards,

Ken Verkissen

HP E-mail Team

 

america link is dead. thanks tho.

 

hey, I'm wondering if you guys can help me out... I've been looking for a Dragon for about 2 weeks, and I've found many....but I want one with the X9000 (Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme) This is the only processor I'll accept in a dragon...So, I was wondering if anybody knows of one for sale on a legitimate site? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Note: I'd also like an Nvidia 9800 series as the original was sold with, if possible...

thanks in advance.

 

This may a bit left field, but I'm hoping to be able to connect a Mac bluetooth keyboard and mouse to the HDX. Has anyone tried this before, and does it work?

I tried to so a search on the forum, but the search field seems to have vanished?

Cheers

Ralf

 

The 9800 has never been in the 20 inch DRAGON HDX as far as I know..only the earlier ATIs and 8800 NVIDIAS. Are you talking about the HDX18 possibly? This is why were talking about possibly upgrading the 8800 to something like a 9800 GPU. I'd like one as well, Craigslist, Ebay and other auction sites are your best chances.. but they're still very pricey.

 

My bad man, they must have changed it.. The HP repair videos were down as well for a while.

 

Just a quick update. I went and purchased the apple wirekess keyboard for blue tooth connection.

I seems to work fine for general use, and the pairing was very easy. It's a nice compact kb with normal size keys and spacing, however the num pad and a few other things have been lopped off to create a compact design. Feels nice to use. Some of the f keys don't do what they normally would ona mac, but I don't use then anyways. It feels very stury and appears well made.

Cheers - Hope this helps other folks considering same.
Ralf

 

Which one/model did you get?

 

would a Panasonic UJ-120 Blu-ray BD-ROM/8x DVD±RW DL Notebook IDE Drive fit the HDX ? SIW says i have a LG Electronics DVD/CD-ROM drives || HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GSA-T40L ATA Device. some sell as cheap as 64.99$.

 

this sucks. i really hope someone here will eventually find some sort of solution(s). yesterday, i saw a small black speck on my dragon's touchpad left click button (mind you the finish for the whole area underthe keyboard is silverish non shiny)...

well i thought it was dirt or something, so i wipe it...woudn't go away so i used a finger nail and now i have a ~1.5 mm square black spot there. i know it doesn't affect functioning, but . i looked carefully and i noticed one more small dust size black speck (which i am not scratching)below the touchpad buttons.

i have never taken this hdx out. left in same room, as desktop replacement, since i got it in september. climate controlled, etc. never used any chemicals to wipe this, etc. never ate and keyboarded/mouse...hands always washed and clean and dried before i touch this thing. no doubt the tiny wear was from over 9 months or so of resting, touching the same areas, but , i had 2 laptops before this that i used for years and more aggressively and this never happened!

i just had to vent a little, as now i don't know what to do. i made sure i babied this dragon, and i don't believe this should happen. the keys that i smash so to speak are not worn, etc. nothing else.

is is less than a year. but i don't know if hp would cover this under warranty, although they should. and im not sure i want my dragon out for 2 weeks or more (not sure how long it takes).

when i called hp in past, i ALWAYS got india, but i know there is a number for the usa case manager team or whatever they are called.

if anyone can help, i'd appreciate it. i'd rather try and deal with some sort of warranty for this before the year is up.

thanks ahead of time.

 

Ok, then I misunderstood something my friend said. Then an 8800 will still be worth it... I've been looking at auction sites constantly...but no luck...I just hoped I'd be able to get some help possibly..

 

^ where r u located? i kinda want to sell mine to get a desktop

 

Yea thats the one I have. You could also get a UJ-220 which is a Blu Ray burner. I don't know what configuration you have but you'll need QuickPlay to view BluRay disks.

 

I have half of the touch pad black because a spec pebble got in one of the dimples somehow and when I used t it took the paint off. It doesn't effect funcationality so I personally don't really care other than it would be nice to replace the front part like others have done in the past. You could likely spend around $90s for a replacement of the front part where the touch pad is, but you'd have to disassemble it yourself which is kinda pain in the neck. There are videos online that show you how to do it, but Id be shocked if HP did it for you. Usually to get a case manager you have to have the problem 3 times, though I guess you could request to talk to one, usually if you call during the day/afternoon you'll get America's techs, early morning I usually get Canada and India late night..but it's not a science. Either way it never hurts to ask, but last time I asked HP told me they wouldn't do it. If you have the GeekSquad or someone actually competent, others have pointed out that you need to give them the manual and videos (and perhaps something else..can't remember) so they don't screw it up because it's not intuitive. Are you saying you want to sell it just because it has a spec? Which model is it?

 

Yea you'll want one that says HDX9000, but watch out because there are a lot of scammers out there that post a listing for the HDX9000..Also I'd be weary of listings that don't get the specs correct.

 

It's the latest model, just called a "Wireless Keyboard".

It is almost exactly the same size at the Dragon keyboard area if you eliminate the num pad. The keys are very easy to type with, and I'm really liking it so far.

Cheers.

 

thanks for your response dominick. i thought i was the only one with that front area finish thing.

i don't believe i was the one selling, but mine is the bone stock HDX 9494NR, i truly probably had the last dragon, or one of them, as i got it in september technically speaking i think they stopped officially selling it.

since it is a desktop replacement, i have been tempted myself to perhaps sell it and get a desktop, or at worst, the hdx18 with backlit keyboard, which i envy. i don't do any gaming, though, just knowing you have the biggest, baddest, is nice.

what would be a good price to sell if for, if i did, given the market?

 

Im an hour north of Atlanta GA.

 

Coolbeans. If I got a wireless one I'd want to get one with backlighting, does it have that as a feature?

 

No problem man. My bad. I didn't sleep much when I responded so I confused you for Umar for a second I think. Actually if you can find the post where I left pictures of my HDX with the keyboard cover you can see how bad the silver pain is scratched off. I was thinking of scraping it all off the touch pad just so that its even. Nice. Yea I LOVE backlighted keyboard on the HDX18 and the Blu Ray burner..but I'd HATE giving up such incredibly built Dragon AND ESPECIALLY the screen real estate..the HDX18s screen looks so squashed and dwarfed compared to the Dragon. I can also buy a Blu Ray burner for my Dragon. The Dragon beats the HDX18 on screen size, build quality, sound (from what I understand), and GPU. I think until the HDX18 came out with the latest Quad Core 2.5Ghz 1000mhz (I BELIEVE it came out with it or I could be mistaking it for Alienware and the Acer 18 inch notebook) the processor likely didn't beat the Dragon either as it ran slow and hot. I guess one thing that's good besides the backlighted keyboard is the fact that the HDX18 is a bit more portable for those that complained about how big and heavy the Dragon is.

 

Sorry - No back lightling.

It would probably chew through the batteries very quickly, as backlit keyboards rely on the USB port for power.

Cheers.

 

well folks. bad news on the job front for me this week........so the 9000 might be going.

Trying to get an idea of value.

here are upgrades

CPU: x9000 (upgraded from T8300)
8gb Corsair memory (DDR2 6400)
2 500gb hard drives (5400 rpm)
wifi link 5300

Has the ati 2600 and a blu ray drive

unit is in FLAWLESS shape with no issues of cracking like some

can do restore disks install of os.

or

install vista ultimate for you

Or

install Windows 7

so whats a fair price guys & gals

 

Sorry to hear about your job status! In any case, it looks like you have quite an investment in your Dragon! In my opinion, one of the best attributes of the Dragon is it's portable graphics performance with the nVidia 8800M GT, which you don't have. The ATI video is now considered low-end. Gamers are attracted to Dragon's with the nVidia, so you will miss out on that market. You also don't mention which LCD you have (std or the WUXGA).

The X9000 CPU, back in the day, was considered very high end, but the Dragon, unfortunately, is not able to utilize the unlocked capability of it (and the reason for it's high price). As such, it is really a lower FSB version of the current T9600, which is about 1/3 the price of the X9000. Your RAM is good and the 500GB x 2 is nice.

All in all, it really depends on who you sell it to. If the prospective buyer is tech-saavy, then you'll get less, because he/she knows the price, value, and current "state of technology" of some of your components. Just a month ago, ebay was filled with HDX's and prices were pretty low. Right now, there are hardly any, so you might be lucky to get a bit more from someone who just "has to have one". My estimate is that somewhere between $1500 and $2000, again, depending on who buys it. Specs alone, you're looking at closer to $2000. But, value...given the current pricing of a new 2.8Ghz (T9600) notebook, I think you're looking closer to $1500-$1700.

Technology depreciation really sucks!

Good luck.

 

I have the 1080p screen and while the 2600 isnt a gaming brute force it isnt as bad as everyone says it is.

that said, I understand how it works and my thinking was fairly close to yours in terms of price. I also know these are harder and harder to come by and especially one with no flaws.

 

you bring up good points. i don't think it'd be worth selling, sure it's technically older than hdx18, but it really is superior, and i did have the latet version. I bought it for around $1700 with tax, shipping, etc. and another $100 on a bag and cooler underneath it, but I honestly don't think i would sell it even for $2500, only because they do not make it anymore and it is so powerful. i need convincing to keep it! im such a perfectionist, although the little scratched off area is less than 2mm square, i need something new! kidding!

if you could point me in the right direction of those pics (~date, etc., that'd be great. also, not sure if i want to take it apart, but hp i would think would at least send me the front part under warranty (not sure why they wouldn't, as it should not wear that soon, especially since i baby it). is there some manual or such that would help?

lastly i got a usb fully backlit (meaning not just the characters), water proof/resistant keyboard awhile back i might just start using (you can also roll it up). it is very bright! will try and find a link. (got it on ebay).

thanks.

 

i think it's 8800 GTS, fwiw. no matter, hey i would love to upgrade the processor to anything better than the stock T8100. What do you recommend that would work, that i would get a performance gain, but cheapest? basically i am wondering what the cheapest way to get a better (not complaining, just relative term) performance, whether its processor or whatever.

i have 4gb of ram that came with it. 8gb, is nice, but i don't think i will get any performance gain. comes with the 320gb 7200 rpm drive already. perhaps easiest is a different disk??? on that note, can you post a link anyone for a hard drive caddy that would fit the Dragon?

 

Well, since you have to disassemble the whole unit to change the processor, make sure you get the best, cuz you're not going to want to do it twice!

I'd skip the X9000, unless someone was giving you an exceptional deal. Opinions are that the performance difference between the 2.53 T9300 and a X9000 are negligable (at least in the Dragon where you cannot unlock the CPU). The T9500 (2.60Ghz) is such a small step above the T9300, that unless they were the same price, I'd opt for the T9300.

Best performance increase for the buck? An SSD. Currently, OCZ Vertex series is the way to go. The first time you boot up on one of these babies, you'll soil your pants! Seriously! I'd probably try that first...get an SSD for your OS/boot and then a big 320 or 500GB drive for your data. Then, if/when you want to put more money into your Dragon, go for the T9300.

 

thanks lan. i'm guessing the 30GB model is best bang for the buck, and enough to hold windows vista 64-bit with service packs, etc.??

link to usb keyboard fully backlit, rollup, etc.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Flexible-Cool-Blue-EL-Illuminated-108keys-Keyboard-WH_W0QQitemZ260420899646QQcmdZViewItemQQptZPCA_Mice_Trackballs?hash=item3ca24b933e&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1234|240%3A1318|301%3A0|293%3A1|294%3A50

$23 shipped with insurance(which you shouldn't need) $21 otherwise.

 

Personally, I would start with the 60GB model. You want your OS AND applications on the SSD. 30GB, runs out of space relatively quicky (in my experience). Plus, with most models, the bigger the SSD, the faster the read/write times are. So a 60 is faster than a 30, but a 120 is faster than a 60, etc.

 

Concur with Lancorp, get a 60GB Vertex. Also recommend upgrading to Win 7 RC. It's free, the anit-virus is free, and runs much better than Vista. 35 second cold boots, and less than a second to open most apps, you'll think you have a new PC. Shut off Superfetch and the C: drive indexing after you get the SSD.

 

Hey lancorp good to hear from you man. You make a lot of good points. The other thing not emphasized was the fact that the hard drives are 5200 speed which is good BUT is also significantly slower than 7200s, and also the fact that you can't possibly get a warranty for this because it has parts that didn't come with the HDX originally. You may be able to get a warranty from a 3rd party but I'm not sure about that. Alienware I think covers it IF you let THEM upgrade the parts but not HP.

About the processor while I always like to try to get the best possible specs in a unit I buy like Lancorp and CyberVisions, this benchmark test may give the other side of why many in still go with the 2.8GHz T9000 still even now: http://optimitza.cat/news/2008/09/1...00-t9400-t9300-p8600-p8400-t8300-t8100-p7350/.

You can price it whatever way you want but I think Lancorps suggestions may be good. Keep in mind though, as someone who sells on Ebay regularly, times ARE tough not JUST for you but for everyone. I have noticed it's getting harder to sell items on Ebay as I STILL have 3 out of 10 4GB GSkill memory units left that I need to sell and cannot seem to get rid of them just yet.

 

This light up keyboard cover looks like a possible way to tide me over! Thanks man

EDIT: Oh its a separate keyboard..I just noticed the keys don't line up on the HDXs keyboard...not a bad price but, a keyboard cover for the HDX I think would be even better.

 

Oh well. For me with my HDX I think an illuminated keyboard cover would be ideal. Do you or anyone know where one can buy one from?

 

Since practically every laptop keyboard is slightly different, I doubt you will find one specifically for the HDX, that is lit and that matches, key-for-key the HDX keyboard.

 

If you can get HP to cover that front part under warranty that's I'd like to see..if you get it done please do report to let us know how that happened. I believe they over cover manufacturer parts that are defective and not accidental or aesthetic problems unless its 3 or more dead pixels. I tried to find the pics but I cannot find the thread post to save my life.. If I can find the picture itself I'll post it again though.

Here are the manual/video repair videos: http://vsslfpro.zcce.compaq.com/plmcontent/NACSC/SML/default.htm


Here the manual:

h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01279508.pdf

I might have missed something else 2.0 suggested though..

 

Are there such a thing as illuminatd keyboard skins/covers even?? I can't seem to find any..

 

dominick, how much for the mem? linky please?

 

Is it possible to update the ati 2600 video chip in the 20" dragon to the more advanced current ATI video cards?

 

Here you go: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESCX:IT&item=280355316260

They're clocked at 5-5-5-15, which are the fastest and cheapest. You can see the benchmarks that were posted in here by CompuTrekkie: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=4788023&posted=1#post4788023

 

No.

Radeon 2600 or Geforce 8800 are your only options.

 

Greetings,
I have the HDX949NR, FE882UA. I've had it just under a year and sadly enough i've had to send it in to be fixed... the screen completely died on me. Despite that, this has been a dream machine and i hope they can fix this issue and not offer me something else. In this hope, when/if i get it back, I want to upgrade it as best as possible.

I remember seeing a list in one of the manuals the different cpu's that it can be upgraded to. I'm not worried about the GPU, I've got the 8800. I was looking into getting 2 x 500GB HDD's, but is there anything I can do about the ram? it's the stock 4gb ram, can it hold more? or can I only attempt to get more efficient ram?

sorry for rambling, and if this info has already been posted, searching doesn't want to quite work for me.

thanks.

 

Hey there. If they give you any trouble you really need to insist they fix the screen. If they don't they sell WUXGA and WSXGA screens online at places like Ebay. You'll need to watch the HP repair/replacement videos to know how to exactly disassemble the HDX (though putting in different parts will make sure you can't extend your warranty with HP), and check out the manual just in case but I think the videos are sufficient in themselves. Personally I would wait for however long they want to take with it to fix it. If you have difficulties ask to speak to a case manager if you haven't done so already. They have say on what to actually do with your laptop.

I can't remember which models can upgrade to which processors if at all, so someone else will have to answer that but several have done upgrades all the way up to a 2.8GHZ without a problem reported.

I currently have 2 500GB Seagate 7200 HDs (you can get them for around 130 or even cheaper I've seen recently) that work well, I don't know what others have. Some mix SSD with a regular 7200 so their boot time and I guess software operations are extremely fast.

You can get up to 8GBs of memory if you have either a 64 bit Vista system or install the service pack. I could be wrong but if I remember correctly if you try to get either faster or "more efficient ram", as in a different class, I thought 2.0 said it would work slower in the HDX. Hope that helps.

 

Thank you for the info. I just thought it was odd, about the ram, that i read that the mobo on the laptop had a max capacity of 4gb, but I saw others with more. I thought they had something I didn't and I was curious about it. Thank you though.

I haven't yet had troubles with the tech/customer support with HP.. knock on wood.. but I hope it doesn't come to me having to throw my weight around with them. HaHa. I just want my laptop to come back to me.. it was perfection incarnate

 

X9000 is the is the top-end CPU. Might be hard to find an OEM version and due to the Dragon BIOS, isn't overclock-able. T9500 (2.6ghz) and T9300 (2.5ghz), with the latter being best-bang-for-buck, are also options.

8 gigs of RAM is definitely doable.

 

Yea I believe officially they said 4GB (can't remember the reason) but it definitely does support 8GBs. I have a pair of the Gskill 4GBs memory units in mine and I get a lot more performance out of it than I did with only 4GBs.

Thank God for that.. many times Cs in general and HP in particular will make you want to hit your head up against wood instead of knock on it The only problem I can foresee is what they did to me with my desktop. They approved a repair within the last 30 days of my warranty and because the repair went past the 30 days they refused to continue finishing the repairs..which I thought was ridiculous.. They refunded me my money but still.. every other time I've done repairs they said they would extend the warranty by another 30 days in order to make sure you're covered during the whole process, so that you can get it back, make sure it works and have coverage during the whole process. Hope you get it back safe and sound. They give you any progress report on how its going?

 

http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_notebook_winvista_186.03_whql.html

 

hello there. im thinking of buying a hp dragon 9390EE or hp hdx 18 2.53ghz quadcore. will a quadcore processor be much better in terms of performance rather than the 2.53ghz dual core processor, 8gb ddr3 vs. 4gb ddr2, vista 32 bit vs. vista 64 bit, is there a big difference? how about their video cards, 8800m vs. the gt 130m? i really love the tilting screen of the dragon. im not a hardcore gamer, i only use the laptop for everyday use but i like max performance.

btw, someone's selling me the dragon for $1350, used but still in excellent condition. is the price ok for the unit?