HP Pavillion dm3 Notebook

It's worth asking twice since lot of people don't check other threads.

 

I saw this lappy at Best Buy today and I must concur with everyone who has seen it before, it's one great notebook. The LED screen was spectacular, the AMD NEO's speed was more than adequate with AERO. I thought the trackpad was fine, albeit a little small. Trackpad buttons were too small though -- narrow slivers that will take some time getting used to.

I will be at Best Buy at 10am sharp to buy it and prop up the U.S. economy by buying from this classic Palo Alto, Calif. firm.

 

Would you mind loading up a 3D game and see how long it will play on battery when you get yours? This is extremely important to me. I did this when I received my HP Mini 311 and reported it to the community.

I want to see if the AMD Neo + HD3200 are on par with the Ion under full load, or near full load (CPU + GPU). I would even be fine if you tested the battery at 100% life and then started the clock and played a game as long as you can until the battery life came to 50%. This would allow me a good guestimate on endurance during load.

Thanks in advance - and for that matter, anyone who gets one of these first and has the opportunity to test 3d gaming unplugged. It can be low settings in any 3d game... I just need to know how the AMD Neo lasts. If it lasts long enough, I will be making a purchase as well.

 

I wish I could help but this lappy is going to my GF and she has no patience for 3D games.

 

http://store.microsoft.com/microsoft/HP-Pavilion-DM3/product/C026CBA0
Anyone know if this black version of the dm3 is for real? It looks so sexy.

 

Wow. It's...black.

I don't know I mean, it must be real, right? I doubt they messed with it...a special MSFT version? Who knows. You might want to email MSFT/HP and see...

Man, I can't wait till reviews hit. I am dying to see the battery/heat differences between the 1.3ghz Intel and the 2.26ghz Intel.

 

I have not seen one picture/video that did not have the silver interior. either that is a special thing through them or it is a picture of some other computer

 

Wow it looks pretty sick in black, though I would not bank on that being something more than a prototype since it does not even have an HP logo on the lid, I would def get one if it was real however

 

The fact that you're buying one is a good sign for me.

 

It's zeer goed, Phil. I love the tank-like build. Perfect for someone like my GF, who likes to drop things.

 

anyone know if the amd one with discrete video card have switchable graphics?

 

we know the nvidia card won't, still not sure about the ati though.

 

The local Office Depot has the DM3-1030US version (AMD with ATi Graphics) with 4GB Ram and 320GB HD for $499 after $50 rebate - I am going to head over and pick one up - seems like a good deal to me !

 

No it isn't. It's typical Intel integrated junk.

Phil, in that gigantic thread about the 1810 you mentioned you had issues with playback quality. It has the 4500mhd. I found it to be a very disappointing performer.

 

OK I picked up my DM3-1030US

First impressions are good - the build quality seems excellent and the laptop feels very solid. I love the case and it doesn't look as if it is going to be a fingerprint magnet like most of the other HP's I have seen/used.

Specs :

Athalon Neo x2 Dual Core L335
320GB 7,200 rpm Hard Drive
4GB Ram (DDR2)
Windows 7 Home Premium
13.3 LED HD Brightview Display (1366 x 768)
ATI Radeon HD 3200 with 128MB Display Cache
802.11 a/b/g/n WLAN
Bluetooth 2.0
5 in 1 Digital Card Reader
6 Cell Lithium-ion Battery

So far it seems like a good deal for $499 plus tax

Here are the windows experience scores :
Processor 4.2
Memory 5.8
Graphics 3.5
Gaming Graphics 4.9
Primary Hard Disc 5.9

Base Score 3.5

Will post more when I have had time to play with this more.

 

What do you mean, no? The 4500MHD is more than capable of handling HD content.

Reviews all over the net, all over this forum confirm this.

Only when it comes to gaming is it lacking.

 

http://www.anandtech.com/mobile/showdoc.aspx?i=3654&p=6

The hd 3200 is intergrated but turned off in the msi according to anand.

Wonder if anyone was able to make a hack to switch between the gpus. Anand believes the 4330 uses 10w at idle and 15-20w under load. Being able to switch would have been great.

 

Thanks for the initial impressions and yes, please let us know what you think after playing around for a bit. I've already ordered mine, but I'd still like to hear what people think.

 

The chipset in the specifications list (index for that article) lists the 690 chipset. I believe Anand made a mistake, since the original single core Neo only has been paired with the X1270 (690) integrated solution. The other possibility is that Anand was just referencing the HD3200 just as another reference, but not to imply that it was in the X610 and was integration disabled. I believe the X1270 was 'disabled' as the RS690 chipset does not have HD3200 integrated GPU nor does it support it.

As far as I know, only the new Neo's (dual cores) have been paired with a 780G derivative. The model number is probably, RS780 or something like that, though I am not sure on the official 780 based chipset name for these netbooks. Something 780, at any rate.

 

I am going out to pick up a dm3 from office depot =). Be back in an hour or so with impressions

 

I already bought mine today.. 499+tax-rebate=$538. I feel its a real good deal. They are running out of stock. Didnt have time to play around with it.. but looks pretty neat.

 

Just got back from office depot. The DM3 is probably too large for me... However, if the HD3200 can perform decently, and the power consumption of the Neo+HD3200 can remain in check, I might pick one up. At this point, my initial impression is that 13.3" is to large for me, and I am unsure of its performance and endurance.

OD has a great price though. 549.99 - 49.99 MIR. Again, does it dissapoint with endurance? Waiting for one of you guys to report on the endurance under load (3DMark looped, 3D Game being played, etc.. Just something to stress both CPU+GPU for a accurate endurance under load.)

 

Directly from the service manual -
ATI RS780MN based low power:
Southbridge: SB710 low power

 

i just need someone to say that the AMD Neo HD3200 version lasts >= 4 hours then imma jet to office depot

 

I was referencing the MSI X610, which uses a GS690 chipset. The DM3 does in fact use 780. Thanks for getting the proper name of the chipset though, it is the RS780MN and that is what is utilized in the DM3 for the AMD solution.

 

anyone know if the amd one with discrete video card have switchable graphics?
i am deciding between getting that one or an office depot one.

 

I just bought one from Office depot before I went to work. Stuck at work now

Anyways I'll see about getting a mini review up.

I'd have to say though the machine felt quite warm running the win7 demo video software on the display. The palm rests were quite warm vs a plastic hp notebook that I touched beside it.

I was actually slightly disappointed by how it looked because it didnt feel polished/clean but that may be because of all the plastic protection that was still on it.

I quickly felt the machine. There was very very minor flex over the entire machine. Keyboard flex very minimal. The screen is very strong and has minimal flex.
(I find certain small plastic netbooks feel actually much more solid then most laptops. This notebook felt very close to that level of solidity from the limited time I touched the display model)

To give you an idea of flex, I'd say its on par with an FW vaio, W series (both plastic machines). No noticeable plastic flex noise (but it was locked down so i'm not 100% on this). Much stronger than the 14z I returned.

Not too certain about battery compartment and how loose it may be. I really like the way sony has changed their battery design (FW and W series has a reverse battery loading so there is no give at all with traditional Li-on cells). Bad and loose feeling would be the Lenovo T series, Sony CR, studio 14z. I know this HP uses li-poly so hopefully the latches are solid

The shiny touchpad kind of had a bit too much friction but the sticker was still on it. I tried the part that wasnt covered and to my surprise the friction wasnt too different. The buttons though were defintely better than the 14z size wise. In comparison the FW i thought was too loud when clicked. 14z was too soft and buttons too small. (I also had a dell mini9 [same design and color scheme as 14z] and the buttons were horribly small) the FW and W series both have good friction and good sized buttons. The thinkpad I think has one of the best touchpads and buttons however the buttons do become soft and as a result less responsive over time.

 

If anyone could load up some games at some point and give some impressions i would be interested to see how games like left 4 dead, or like battlefield 2 handle on the 3200 build. As well as battery life.

 

Yes, the AMD dm3z has switchable graphics between the Radeon 3200 and the 4330 (which is about twice as powerful).

I'd like to see some benchmarks as well, especially battery life.

Does anyone know if any stores are selling the dm3z with the ATI Radeon 4330 in it?

 

I'm not sure if you're talking about flash HD video from hulu/netflix, etc--that video is pretty much entirely CPU dependent and therefore could not run off a 1810.

I had an aspire timeline 4810, and it ran Youtube HD video perfectly. It had an SU3500 dual core processor in it though... but it had an Intel 4500 in it. The dv3t also comes with an intel 4500 in it, and it has a blu-ray player in it that plays HD video flawlessly as well. So yes, the 4500 can handle HD video just fine.

 

anybody notice the office depot page says 6 hours battery?
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/328626/HP-Pavilion-dm3-1030us-13-3/

i wonder what that means for the L625 processor with 4330, or the SP9300 or SU7300 with the 105 ...

 

Who knows man. I'm guessing the SU7300/4500MHD will get you around 8-9 hours, since they claim 10. Throw in the 105M with that, probably around 6-7? SP9300/105M probably 4-5? The AMD platform, I don't know? 4-6?

 

Well, hopefully for the L625 w 4330, which is supposed to have switchable graphics. The battery life should be pretty close to 6.

As for the SP9300 with 105, expect a lot less than 10, like 6 probably.

 

6 hours is probably a pipe dream for the SP9300/G105M combo, unless you turn it on and walk away. The battery is just over 5000mAh, and the CPU spec says 25W at full load, plus the draw from the dedicated GPU...
I am going to guess that the actual battery life under normal (read: wireless on, reasonable brightness settings, and at least 2-3 open programs running) conditions will be ~4 hours.

 

if the L625 and L335 are both 18 w tdp, would you expect them to have the same battery life? su7300 is 10 w tdp so maybe 8 hours, and sp9300 is 25 w tdp so maybe 4 hours?

how fast of a processor would i need to run the dreamcast emulator?

 

Can't wait to hear you all's battery life results.

 

About 5 to 6hrs of Battery life is enough (i can't see myself spending more than 6 hrs a day outside on my laptop).

Can the dm3z/AMD with (switchable) 4330 Graphic play games? with only 1.6ghz? is it decent for all games?

 

Hi all, I've just joined the forums after I've been following the dm3 and mini 311.

I'm interested in light gaming and a long battery life, so I couldn't resist the deal with the dm3 and just came back from Office Depot with it. I'm interested in testing the battery life as soon as I can. Are there any free test software out there? Are there any you might prefer? Just let me know!

I also jumped on the 25% bing cashback to get the mini 311 so I'll definitely be testing the battery life and comparing the two.

 

I don't think so, guy. It's been able to handle everything I've thrown at it including Blu-ray playback in Full HD on a 1080p TV. Can't think of anything else that would be more video intensive than that. If anything, it's the first Intel integrated graphics solution that will please the masses (everyone except those who play the more 3D-intensive games).

Issues with playback quality could exist in with HD Flash video (flv), but that's 100% dependent on your CPU and not your graphics chip. That's because no graphics solution currently supports hardware decoding for Flash video. Any playback issues people have with Hulu or YouTube is from having an inadequate processor (which is the case with many thin and lights and netbooks) or some other reason.

I don't know how performance is with the Core 2 Duo SU7300, but it may not be able to handle HD Flash video playback consistently. That would be my main concern with the dm3t. They currently have the C2D SP9300 with the G 105M, but that's overkill for those who don't play games and therefore necessarily shortens battery life. Having the C2D SP9300 paired with the GMA 4500MHD would be the most ideal solution, I'd say. Unfortunately, that's not currently an option.

 

Usually when people test battery life they just surf the web or something until it runs out of battery and then see how long it lasted. I don't know if there's an actual program that is just meant to test battery life....

Or you could just put on a movie and see how long it can play on the battery. I remember I did that with my Asus 1005HA netbook, I nearly made it through all 3 LotR movies, all extended editions too. But I digress

Or then again, does that mean every program is a battery test program if you run it on batteries?

Edit: Also want to add, I can't wait to see some benchmarks posted, especially of the Amd with Ati 4330. Very interested in that.

 

Even unplugging a fully charged unit and seeing what Windows tells you. It usually over-estimates, but at least it would be a starting point, and it's really easy to do.

 

Don't worry. I had a Acer Timeline with a SU3500 dual core, 1.4 ghz. It played Flash HD like a champ (except for a couple vids, but like 96% was good). All the processors in the dm3t shouldn't have a problem with HD video except MAYBE the Neo X2 and the SU4100, but I don't think that even those would have any problem.

 

How would you compare the Timeline with your 14z in everyday tasks? Running a few applications like Itunes, Firefox, Word.... and the like, would there be any difference between the speediness of the system?

 

Nope, not really any difference. Things opened quickly and closed quickly, just as responsively as on my 14z... I was really impressed with the Acre Timeline but it just didn't have the graphics power I wanted... a.k.a. the dm3z does... so wahoo!!

I honestly expect to have no problems running games as good as Batman Arkham Asylum and Crysis on the dm3t. The Radeon 4330 is a superior GPU to the 105, and I could play Crysis on low settings at 1168x580 (or something right around there) with the G 105. I think Batman: AA is going to run fantastic at 1024x768. It runs okay at 800x600 with the 9400 G in the dell 14z, but again, the 4330 in the dm3z is about 50% more powerful than the 9400 G.

Whatever, so in answer to your question, in terms of doing day to day tasks, I noticed very little difference even between my desktop and acer timeline in terms of opening and closing browser tabs--simply because both of them opened and closed basic programs instantly, unless of course you are trying to open like 5 programs all at once, then you would notice a difference of course, but typically you don't do that.

I just found a review of a Samsung R620 ( http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/laptops/352354/samsung-r620/benchmarks). It has a C2D paired with a Radeon 4330. It got 41 FPS on Crysis with low seetings at 1024x768, which proves that the 4330 (at least when paired with a C2D) is fully cabable of running Crysis. I guess we'll just have to find out how big of a difference the Neo X2 processor is going to make. I'm going a fairly substanial one. I'm guessing that Crysis will probably take a 10 FPS hit, but that would still leave the dm3z playing Crysis at 1024x768 at 30 FPS. That'll do pig. That'll do.

 

Hey everyone, I found a video review of the dm3. http://blog.laptopmag.com/the-hp-pavilion-dm3-promises-brushed-metal-long-battery-life

Enjoy!

 

Old video and is essentially just HP info that can be found on their website. Anyway, thans for posting still. We just need a real review now.

 

yea...september 15th was when that was posted.

I kind of wonder about games like batman arkham asylum though, like if the processor will do good. I tried that game on an hp dv2 and an hp mini 311, and got around 5-7 fps i think on absolute lowest. I think its a decently cpu intensive game, either that or the cards were alot slower. but that is one reason i decided to go with the faster cpu of the intel build.

But i will hope to see it running good on both platforms.

 

Yes, it was a lot of what we already know, but it wasn't just the information from the HP website. Plus, it gave us some close up shots of the machine + gave some extra background information (a.k.a. the dm3 series is the new version of the dv2z) + it also gave us her initial opinion of the laptop with it's looks, keyboard, ports... etc... it was more than just what we already know...

But you're right, we do need a real review. Badly.

 

Bloatware is removed, Passmark Performance Test installing now...
I'll snap some pics soon too.

 

Is HD video from youtube and hulu playing without hiccups? Could you also run 3dmark06? Maybe do a couple game tests as well (Team Fortress 2, Crysis, CS:S)? What configuration do you have Intel or AMD?