*HP dv5t (1XXX series) Owners Lounge*

HP Pavilion Entertainment dv5t customizable Notebook PC

* Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8400 (2.26 GHz)
* 15.4" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
* 4GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
* FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
* Webcam Only
* HP Color Matching Keyboard
* FREE Upgrade to Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN from 802.11b/g WLAN
* No High speed 56K modem port
* SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
* No TV Tuner w/remote control
* 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
* HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

*************$982.24 shipped******************

I was debating over blue ray drive or 4 GB ram....but I guess I can watch blue ray on my PS3, not really on a 15.4 inches screen so i opt for the ram ( I need the xtra $$ on order in order to qualify for the 400 off 1299 discount.

Question is, I opted for the 1280 x 800 screen over the 1680 x 1050...cause I thought the character would be a bit too small to read, and scaling will make the characters seem a bit blurry. Besides, Ill be playing cod 4 and world at war on this one when it comes out, I thought 1280 x 800 would make faster frame rates..

Any suggestion? should I have or change it to 1680 x 1050?

Howard

 

Hey, my dv5t just arrived today and I can't wait to get home and open it up!

Date Ordered: July 31
Scheduled Build Date: August 11
Actual Build/Ship Date: August 7
Date Delivered: August 11

HP didn't update the expected completed build/ship date throughout the build process. I think they give a lot of headroom and don't update so they don't have to worry about explaining themselves if a delay was to occur after they already updated the customer about an earlier build date. But anyways, I had the laptop in my hands the same day it was supposed to be completed and shipped out. Not to bad

 

Well, how is it? everything is OK?
Post photos!!!

 

Been reading this thread for a couple of weeks, lots of good info, but Nobody has mentioned the current 5% cashback for linking through live.com's shopping. I actually clicked on it last week just to see what the cash back amount was, it said 5% on the link but told me 10% when it transferred me. Too bad the $400 off coupon wasn't around then.


I just pulled the trigger for $1078 plus tax after the $400 coupon...be nice if that 5% was for the full price, either way, it's 50 bucks!

* Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8600 (2.4 GHz)
* 15.4" diagonal WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Display (1680 x 1050)
* FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 1GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
* FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
* [For BrightView Infinity] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
* HP Color Matching Keyboard
* FREE Upgrade to Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN from 802.11b/g WLAN
* No High speed 56K modem port
* SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
* HP Integrated HDTV Hybrid Tuner
* High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
* HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

gonna get some memory from newegg now.

john

 

I ordered mine on 7/24/08, expected build date was 8/6/08. It was actually built and shipped on 7/31/08 and received on 8/5/08. So my order was built way ahead of time and shipped out almost a week earlier than predicted.

 

$400 coupon? Mmm...i've never been aware of such a coupon. May i kindly ask those of you who know where it was discovered/found, and how people became aware of it? even if it is no longer available, it would be good to know for future reference as a good "source of information".

thx in advance!

thx also for the information re: order/finish/ship/received dates!! As i looked at the dates, it looks basically like 11 days from your ORDER date, you actually receive it. I ordered mine on a Saturday though, so i don't know if the Sat and Sun counts or are they not counted.

wish hp.com were more like dell.com in terms of keeping customers informed. i used to, years ago, enjoy looking at that highly graphical time line at dell.com to see that they were "picking / selecting your components", and then several hours, assembling your computer, and then testing phase, and then boxing, then finally, shipping. then you have to check non-stop the ups.com site, etc.

 

http://www.techbargains.com/news_displayItem.cfm/129570

COUPON!

 

I had a 2.4 core 2 duo and a 256mb nvidia card, but i can upgrade both to 2.56 and 512 for less than the original price with the coupon.

I really want to, but im afraid thatll just kill my battery life and create massive heat.

 

I was wondering about the "HP Integrated HDTV Hybrid Tuner". Did anyone here order it? I am thinking about adding that option in order to avoid lugging my TV back to the dorm in the fall.

I e-mailed HP to ask if it could be used with standard-def cable by plugging in a coaxial cable. They said it is possible.

Can anyone take a picture of it so I know where the cable would hook up to?

 

Compromise, stay with a P series CPU but get the better video card

 

I received my dv5t today. it works amazingly, although i gotta say the overheating is a huge downer for me, i'm just surfing the web and it's so hot that it is almost unbearable. I suppose the fact that i'm in California and it's a hot summer day has something to do with the fact, but either way, my old laptop (4 year old toshiba) is not nearly as hot as this one.

I do have a problem though. for some reason the cd drive won't read my old CD games, like AOE III or NFS Most Wanted that i burned a couple years ago. What's the deal with that? The DVD games work fine though..

 

greg_mirzaavakyan: hi there, congrats on getting it!

may i ask you to please remind us of your configuration?

i forgot which processor you have and which graphics card.

thx!

 

how do you guys get student discount with HP?

 

Woot!!

My estimated build date was August 14th. Shipped out today, the 11th.

Hoping I get it on Thursday.

 

It's a straightforward install, no quirks. You'll need a Vista disc to install though - one of the kinds mentioned in the Clean Install guide - because there is no WAU folder on the hard drive.

I personally prefer high-resolutions . . . 1280x800 works reasonably well on the 1680x1050 screen. It's not as sharp as it would be on a native 1280x800 screen, but sharp enough and you won't notice the difference while gaming. You won't be using this machine exclusively for gaming I assume, so the extra screen real estate afforded by the WSXGA+ screen will come in handy while surfing the web, reading text documents, etc. Just about everything.

Make sure the surface you have your notebook does not hold that much heat. Some surfaces hold heat more than others.

I am fairly certain the CD issues are Vista-related . . . I had the same problem trying to get a different old game to run.

 

Can I get some more info on this? What type of surfaces are bad and what are good?
I have a wooden desk, my girlfriends desk is a glass top.

Also, whats up with this $400 coupon? Can I call them about this, or nay?

 

Does hp have a price guarantee and if so how do you contact them. I look on there site and couldnt find anything.

 

just ordered my laptop with 1 year warranty for $1,087.52
HP Pavilion Entertainment dv5t customizable Notebook PC

* Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor P8600 (2.4 GHz)
* 15.4" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
* FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 1GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
* FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
* [For BrightView Infinity] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
* HP Color Matching Keyboard
* FREE Upgrade to Intel® WiFi Link 5100AGN from 802.11b/g WLAN
* No High speed 56K modem port
* SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
* No TV Tuner w/remote control
* High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft® Works 9.0
* HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

 

So did I!

* Genuine Windows Vista Ultimate with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8400 (2.26 GHz)
* 15.4" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
* 3GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
* FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
* [For BrightView Infinity] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
* HP Color Matching Keyboard
* FREE Upgrade to Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN from 802.11b/g WLAN
* No High speed 56K modem port
* SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
* No TV Tuner w/remote control
* High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
* HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
+ 2 yr warranty Pick & drop
+ FREE Deskjet
Price: 1,030 USD

 

I got my dv5t today.

Date Ordered: August 2
Scheduled Build Date: August 12
Actual Build/Ship Date: August 9 (Shipped from Shanghai, so 8/8 in the U.S.)
Date Delivered: August 11

Working pretty nicely... opted to uninstall programs instead of clean install. Bootup memory usage is now about 1GB

 

Many posted in this thread already.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=277341&page=62

 

Not sure if this was answered yet, but here is one being recommended often on this thread.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227251

 

Got mine today too. I'm in the middle of the epic saga of recovery discs.

Likes:
- It's shiny.
- Crisp screen, webcam is nice.
- It's shiny.

Dislikes:
- Bloated
- Not to hip on the volume/quickplay/wireless controls. would rather have knobs and wheels and buttons.
- I had to pay for it.

Also, I noticed that when you hit the WiFi button, it shuts off the wifi and bluetooth. Is there a way to do one or the other?

Edit- anyone know what audiodg.exe is? It's hogging like 3.1GB of RAM. I only see in in the resource monitor. WTF?!?

After creating recovery discs, only heat so far is from HD. A little air underneath seems to help. Should I go for the Xpad or the Zalman 2000???

 

I've been lurking for a couple weeks and just pulled the trigger for the following (Also got the 3-year Accidental Damage Protection Extended Service Plan):

- HP Pavilion dv5t Entertainment Notebook
- Upgrade to Genuine Windows Vista Ultimate with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
- Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8600 (2.4 GHz)
- 15.4" diagonal WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Display (1680 x 1050)
- FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 1GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
- 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
- FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
- [For BrightView Infinity] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
- HP Color Matching Keyboard
- Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN and Bluetooth(TM)
- No High speed 56K modem port
- Blu-Ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW Double Layer
- No TV Tuner w/remote control
- High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
- Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
Total: $1902.10 (which included $369.99 for the extended service plan)

Can't wait to join everyone as an owner of the dv5t! Estimated ship date is 8/20. There was a ton of great info in this thread from everyone that helped make up my mind. Thanks to everyone!

 

Geezman...I just put your configuration into the HP website. Having done that...I am assuming the price you paid does not include the 400 dollar discount that is possible with the correct coupon. If you see this post some time soon, it might be good for you to see if you can apply this coupon, or just cancel and re-order the system. I would hate to think someone lost 400 dollars because they didn't know about a six character code (NB6997), so I hope you read this soon! (Fingers crossed)

 

Coupon doesnt work on dv5t

 

MCAP61...Maybe the max number of coupon users has been hit? I ordered the dv5t about an hour ago using that coupon, and I got 400 dollars off.

 

Didn't work for me either. I wonder if its the dv5t, or the student pricing it didn't work with. Whatever. I'm done ordering, reordering, price dropping. Not worth my time anymore. I'm happy with what I got. It's playtime now.

 

5strings, I tried using my faculty discount (I work for a school) with the 400 dollar coupon, and it wouldn't let me. I used my second HP account which does not have faculty discount info (I created two HP profiles while attempting to sort out how to even add student/faculty discounts), and it let me use the 400 dollar coupon.

 

I had to get it with the $400 code. With tax, it came to this:$1207.77. I had to get out of APP to use the coupon as well. I ran it both ways and going with the $400 code in the non-app site saved me almost $140. I'm excited.

- HP Pavilion dv5t Entertainment Notebook
- Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
- Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8600 (2.4 GHz)
- 15.4" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Infinity Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
- 4GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
- 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
- FREE Upgrade to 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
- [For BrightView Infinity] Webcam Only
- HP Color Matching Keyboard
- Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN and Bluetooth(TM)
- No High speed 56K modem port
- SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
- No TV Tuner w/remote control
- High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
- $100 OFF Microsoft(R) Office Home and Student 2007!!
- HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

 

i used the $400 coupon with the same configuration, and its about $100 more expensive with my student discount and 5% coupon... maybe i can haggle a little with HP

 

Coupon didn't work for me on the dv5t either. Why does it work for some and not others??

Edit: Whoah, after logging out of the EPP and logging back in, the coupon now works! $200 difference in savings.

 

Yeah, I don't know what the student discount would have been for me, but the faculty discount was only about 50 bucks. Technically I am still both a student and a worker at my university (though only a student for one more day due to graduation), but given that I don't think my university has a very good partnership with HP, I didn't think it would be worth it to get into the fight of "I bought it while I was still a student, but I have graduated since then".

 

probably becaue you have a student discount. you have to sign out of your account hence not applying the student discount then you can qualify for the 400 off.

 

Really? I ran it both ways too, and the APP method saves me about $12 over the $400 off coupon.

 

Any difference between the P8600 vs P8400? Should I save my $50 for newegg.com memory?

Thanks for everyone's great inputs on this forum.

 

Actually, that was with the $400 coupon. It shows a unit price of 1,841.99 and an extended price of 1,441.99. Did you add the Blu-Ray and 3 year accidental insurance to your cart? If so, maybe I did something wrong.

Edit: I just went and redid it and it came up with the same price. I noticed that as soon as I applied the coupon, it removed the existing discounts they where offering and stated: "We have compared the coupon submitted to the available instant savings and applied the best offer. Promotion rules allow only the coupon or instant savings to be applied to any item.". So apparently that is why the price come out this way.

 

If you are getting the whole deal for 1,441.99, that sounds about right (figuring in the blu-ray and the insurance), however, on the post I was referring to your price was "Total: $1902.10 (which included $369.99 for the extended service plan)". If that was the pre-coupon total, that would make sense. I was more concerned if that was the POST coupon total, as that would be way too high given the specs you listed.

 

Yep. I had an ie7 window up in the non app site and firefox with the app. identical configs. Even after the 5% coupon, the app site was almost $140 higher. It's odd that you got different results. I actually did it both ways twice to make sure before I made the order.

 

I have to admit...a minor gripe I had with the HP site was that, to my knowledge, I had to create an account to even see the possible discount prices. I ended up ordering from them, so they would have gotten the info anways. Still though, it would have been nice to not have to give them my name and address to even look at the possible discounts after my customization was done.

 

yea save for the memory. That is something i should of done. There is no noticeable difference. Maybe 10 points in benchmarking but thats it.

 

Ahhh....clean install. If I were only smart enough to write a batch for all the drivers...

Speaking of which - Hey Chaz, after the clean install, did you just reinstall what was in the "Drivers" folder, or was there other stuff (like the quickplay button software) - and do you have to install the You Cam software for the camera? I dont need the software, just the drivers for Skype purposes.

And the WLAN driver? I have the Intel WLAN card. All I should need is the Intel Chipset drivers, correct? EDIT I gues the intel drivers are in the WLAN. I'm sure I'll answer all of my own questions as I go through this. I wish I had more vacation time at work.

 

I'm also interested in knowing the answers to 5strings' questions as I plan to clean install.

 

Ah why are all the dv5t's getting shipped so early!?
Did HP mass produce the chassis and screen or something?
I'm getting a dv7t so I'm hoping maybe, just maybe it will ship early. Afterall, it pretty much share the same hardware, just different sized chassis and screen.

 

If I wasn't so tired I would write up a short of the drivers in the swsetup folder. Clean install is working well right now.

WSXGA+: What was I thinking?!? It is pretty though...

 

What do you mean? Are the fonts too small for you?

I've ordered the WXGA+, I hope that wasn't a mistake...

 

5strings: does that mean you do regret getting the 1680x1050 and wish you had the larger font/print size of the 1280x800?

i've tortured myself over this but i do have an old IBM T40p laptop which is a 4:3 1400x1050, which translates to a 16:9 1680x1050. so, i figured that i haven't complained about the miniature font size of the websites on the T40p for the past 4 years so why would 1680x1050 bother me? it's the same! i think the roughly 25% of extra scrolling required if i had gotten the 1280x800 would be terribly annoying to me (i'm only speaking for myself) as i have gotten accustomed for 4 years with essentially the identical resolution.

would you have opted for 1280 now that you've had a chance to see 1680 right there in front of you?

my eyesight has deteriorated over time and it's certainly not better than before... that said, i spend most of my time on my desktop pc which has a large monitor, and when needed, i can use either Vista to scale it or Firefox 3 which has memory for INDIVIDUAL websites!! yea for Firefox 3.

 

very tempting with the 400 coupon..very impressive specs HP..gratz to anyoen who is getting this beast

 

It's just late, I'm tired, and I have a habit of beating myself to death with buyers remorse. "Is the resolution too high?" "Would a 17-inch have been THAT much more to carry?"

 

no buyer's remorse, Mr. 5strings!

the VERTICAL resolution is really important, in this specific instance, in my humble opinion.

look at it this way: the 1680x1050 has a vertical of 1050, obviously. the 1280x800 has a vertical of 800, also obviously.

1050 minus 800 = 250 ; 250 / 800 is just over 25%.

that means, you'd have to scroll virtually EVERY webpage/site 25% MORE! would you think that it's annoying?

i'm not speaking for others, who actually PREFER 1280x800. that's perfectly fine for those who know what they are buying and actually PREFER the 1280x800. it's like someone likes chocolate ice cream and someone likes strawberry. there is no right or wrong. it's a subjective matter of preference. i'm strictly speaking for myself, and those who have used and are accustomed to 1400x1050 4:3 already for 4 years (i.e. me with my 4-yr old T40p IBM) and that is equivalent to 16:9 1680x1050. i would not want to change my current resolution.

i hope i helped, in a small way, to make you feel better and thus, get some sorely needed sleep tonight ha ha... you said you were terribly tired!