HP Pavilion dv6 with Phenom II N930... opinions?

Hello

I saw this laptop in Futureshop (Canadian version dv6-3064ca), with Phenom II X4 N930, ATI 5650, 640 GB HDD 5400 rpm, metal chassis, touchscreen, for 999 $ CAD (1,050 $ US). I can get a 50$ rebate for bringing an old laptop.

Is it a good computer? I read HP laptops have the highest failure rates, overheat and the AMD quad-core can be slow in single core applications... But this computer seems very well built and it's very light, I really like it.

Is it a good buy? Can it withstand 3-4 years of use in your opinion?

Thanks for now...

 

there's been a review

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-pavilion-notebooks/492617-hp-dv6z-se-user-review.html

might try looking there

 

yes i checked that thanks...

today i went to check it better in store, it's actually not that light... and it was pretty hot on the left (top left especially). The touchscreen is amazing though, and the sound quality is great by my standards...

i was especially wondering about these second generation AMD processors... so many computers have them, especially the Athlon II P320. I was wondering how slow they could be in using programs like office, sas. The P320 didn't seem much different from the N930 in office programs, they all have a little bit of lag when opening the program.
However i was wondering what would happen with huge (thousands) amounts of data... I'm a bit afraid of them lagging and taking forever to run huge amount of calculations, but on the other hand they have much better integrated graphics that their intel counterparts, to make for a generally more well rounded experience...

 

I have the N830 triple core. Upgrade these machines to 8GB RAM (I used G.skill's DDR3 kit) and they're nice and snappy. Win7 uses the extra RAM to buffer HD I/O and makes my dv7 feel much more responsive when switching between apps. Having additional physical cores does wonders when running multiple apps and/or multithreaded apps. If you're running a CPU-intensive single threaded app... well, probably not the best CPU but still pretty decent. A 2GHz Phenom II CPU core is no slouch.

 

Hey, also consider this:

Newegg.com - HP Pavilion DV6-3050US NoteBook AMD Phenom II Quad-Core N930(2.0GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory 640GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650

I figure for $719 (I found a $10 off coupon code for newegg) I can't go wrong. The cheapest I have ever seen a laptop with ati 5650 was $699 but it was an Acer with AMD dual core and I believe DDR2 RAM. This laptop is not really what I want but what I want does not exist so I figure if I'm going to settle why not pay as little as possible (I do like the Envy 14's but too many reports of problems, don't want to chance spending 1,000+ on something that may have cpu whine or whatever else).

And yes, I have seen these in-person and they are larger/heavier than I would like but again, the price seemed right. Not sure how these have not sold out. I guess everyone is on the intel bandwagon and wants an i-core. From what I've read the i7's run hot and eat up battery. This AMD quad core runs cooler and is more battery friendly.

Another suggestion? Since you live in Canada check out futureshop, they have an i3 Gateway ID series laptop with 1 GB of 330M with Optimus for like $749. The i5 version of this should hit Best Buy in America next month. I had been waiting to see one in-person but the pics of that track-pad alone worry me. Might be worth a shot though. They are super thin and lighter than the Hp we discussed here.

 

thanks for the reply. What do you think of the Athlon II P320 and Phenom II P820? Would increasing the RAM improve their performance too?

Yes I went to futureshop, i saw that model, it looks good and light, but I don't trust much Gateway...

I'm actually thinking of downgrading my purchase, i will probably buy an AMD laptop with integrated HD 4250... I hope it will be enough for light/medium gaming. They have a Toshiba Satellite and HP Pavilion with this at futureshop, the Toshiba has the P320 and the HP has the P820 and costs 130$ more before taxes.
They both have 4GB of RAM but I'm not sure the Toshiba's is expandable, it's not written in the specs... Also the Toshiba is AMD vision and the HP AMD Vision Premium, which means the triple core might be a significant improvement above the dual core to justify the increase in price.
I'm really in doubt as to what could be the best option...

 

Hey SpiritedEneregy...what did you think of that Gateway at futureshop? Did the touchpad look like it would break in no time at all? That was the main reason I just got this Hp instead. I see so many Gateway refurbs (mainly the NV series from last year) that I do not trust them (they are Acer after all). Eh, perhaps in 6 months I can get a refurb'd one for cheap and just keep it at work for lunchtime gaming.

And I do think the 4250 is sufficient for some games. Check this out: Can ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250 play games? - Yahoo! Answers

I highly doubt you can play Crysis even on low but maybe. I heard people had a hard time playing Crysis on a Nvidia 330M which is a billion times better than a 4250.

 

What about this?

Dell Inspiron 15.6" AMD Turion X2 Dual Core RM-75 Laptop - English - Future Shop Exclusive - Future Shop

it's only $500 and comes with ati 4330 which is better than the 4250, at least notebookreview.com shows it can play crysis on low.

Sure it's only half a gb of video memory but then again i think the 4250 is only half a gb too.

NO HDMI though which is odd.

 

I'd pay up for the top-grade dual, triple or quad core. The price diff is minimal. If your apps are mostly single threaded the 2.8GHz dual core is probably worth a look. Given the choice I'd buy the 2.0GHz quad but the N830 triple is much more popular in retail models.

8GB RAM will help on all CPU models. Make sure that whatever notebook you buy uses DDR3 RAM so you know you're getting a current model.

 

hey guys thanks for the replies... I'm still in so much doubt lol.

I would really like a cheap laptop, but then if think it might be money wasted if after 1 year problems start arising due to poor built...
For example right now I'm in doubt between:

1. HP G62 Phenom II P820, integrated ATI 4250, 599 $

2. HP dv6-3037ca core i3-350M, switchable ATI 5470, 749 $

3. Asus K52JC-X2 Core i3-350M, Optimus GeForce 310M, 749 $

The G62 looks so poorly and cheaply built... the dv6 is plastic but looks much much better, the Asus looks ok but the keyboard is awful, it flexes horribly...

I would probably go with a dv6, but again without extended warranty I might run into troubles in 2-3 years from now. The G62 I just know it won't last more than 2/3 years, the screen is so flexible and cheap... Then again if I bought the dv6 and it also breaks down in a few years it would be a total waste of money...

About the Gateway someone asked about before, it's actually well built, it's metallic, and the keyboard is ok... the only problem is, it has the thinnest and cheapest screen panel i've ever seen, it looks like cardboard, awful... But it's not only Gateway, i was checking all the budget laptops up to 750 $ and they all feel so cheap and awfully built, Toshiba C650 series especially is like cheap plastic. The only one that felt sturdier was an older version Inspiron 15, that felt good but it has poor specs (Turion RM-75, please...).
Actually people at Futureshop thought i was a thief probably, they were looking at me so bad while i was bending and touching all the parts to test sturdiness

But anyways, my advice is to be careful with budget laptops because they feel awful, there might be some good one around but check in store first...

And please if someone could advise me about the HP G62 versus DV6 it would help me to finally decide...

EDIT: there is also an ACER Timeline X at Staples for 699$, core i5-430M and ATI 5470... but the screen is too small, I can't work on it sadly.

 

yes as i said in the previous post, it looks very well built, great keyboard. But that processor, I think it's the previous generation AMD, I had a Turion 64 that fried... I really only trust the newest K10 AMD generation with those multiple cores and low TDPs (I would actually prefer those to the core i3).