*HP dv5t (1XXX series) Owners Lounge*

First call to Tech support and I get disconnected. Lovely....

30 minutes later and I get through Technical support. The guy on the line didn't know what a dead pixel was. Wow. Now, I'm on hold with HP Shopping to order a new one and arrange for the exchange of my old one.

Ahh....yes another disconnect. Oh boy this is fun.

Update: 30 minutes later and I'm on hold. HP is submitting the RMA. I was told that they would honor the $400 coupon. I did take the opportunity to upgrade to the P8600 proc from the P8400. Hope this works out.

 

I got disconnected the first time I called too. Had to wait a day to cool off before I called back again.

 

is it easy to obtain an rma number if i decide to do a return if i give them a good excuse?

 

So I finally finished my re-order with HP. Guess what, my new total is $1005! My original cost was $1247. They applied the $400 discount and then some. I asked the HP rep why that was but they couldn't give me an answer. I had them double check the specs and it all checked out, including the upgraded P8600 processor. Is this too good to be true?

Also, for those that exchanged your defective notebooks, did you wait until you received your new one to return your old one?

Update: It turns out that my real final price is actually $1121.85. This was confirmed after speaking with another pleasant HP rep. The first one gave me the wrong info.

 

Greets

I'm getting ready to order the DV5T and have a couple of questions for you fine folks:

Are the "System Recovery DVD with Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)" the real deal? i.e. real OS disks that can be used for a "clean" install?

Which case is everyone purchasing for "light travel"? I.e. one that will protect the computer but not be tooooooo big.

What's the deal with Lojack? I'm thinking of ordering it for this computer since it will be in a 'vulnerable' remote location.

much thanks
JohnG

 

Sorry.. see below

 

Well.. guys..I've given up on the dv5t..

My gripes: clicky keys..very..to the point of hearing double clicks.. the 6700t I have here (that's going back to Costco) has a great keyboard
Speaker grid..just a bad design..I don't think any of them are going to line up perfectly flush
I've had to restart a few times only to get the wireless thing unglitched..
Volume glitchy
Touchpad I like better..but buttons I can't stand..this is personal preference..I just like the quiet springy ones better on the 6700t than these hard clicky ones

I have a better (than the one I have here) 6700t coming now instead.. I'm going to miss this thread!! My new specs LOL

HP Pavilion dv6700t customizable Notebook PC

* Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T5850 (2.16GHz)
* 15.4" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
* FREE Upgrade to 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS - For Core 2 Duo Processors
* 250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
* Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
* Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth(TM)
* SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
* 40% OFF HP ExpressCard Digital/Analog TV Tuner
* High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft(R) Works 9.0

Used the coupon for $200 off.. going to upgrade to 4gb RAM ... I notice I had to upgrade to the dedicated graphics in order to have the hdmi port.. please tell me this graphics card will be okay

I will miss the display..and the pretty white lights (I do love the blue though on the 6700)

I may be crazy... but oh well

 

If you are talking about the speaker grid not sitting flush, my dv6400 is the same way. It is bowed out towards the center, but I got used to it.

As for graphics, the 8400M GS is better than the x4500 (if that is what was in your dv5t)......

 

sorry mr dv5z, i just had to replace you with a DV5T

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 WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen 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
Webcam Only
HP Color Matching Keyboard
FREE Upgrade to Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN from 802.11b/g WLAN
No Modem
SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW

$924 Before tax, and after $200 off coupon

a couple of hundred dollars extra that i know will be worth spent. now all i gotta do is get 4gb of ram. i'm so happy, it says my build date is sept 2nd, but it will probably be here by then!

i'll be waiting for my extra 5% off from live.com also!!

 

When I returned my first one I just said that it got too hot and wasn't going to work for me and my work. She just said ok and that was that. Kind of scared me like they were use to hearing that or something.

 

^ Did you get a new one?

 

Yeah I decided that I wanted a better cpu and to take advantage of the $400 coupon.

Also I did a clean install of my dv5t and installed the eSATA driver from the hp website. The external driver works fine but it seems like hourly my computer will just stop working for about 10 seconds as the external boots back up. Audio will just stop and stutter and I can't move the mouse. I know its the external cause I can hear it waking up as this happens. I used this drive with a desktop via eSATA and don't remember ever having any wait times for it to gear up or freezing of the computer. Anyone have any advice? Also in iTunes I may have too wait a couple of seconds for a song to play if I haven't used the drive in awhile. I never had that on the desktop. It isn't that big of a deal but the info may be helpful.

 

so i guess it's better to just to a refund and reorder so that way you won't risk getting a damaged unit or a unit of less powerful specs?

 

Be very careful with this one! If your cashback dosen't show up immediately, cancel the order and re-order through the fatwallet or ebates cashback sites! live.com has denied every claim that I've heard of of the people that ordered using the $400 coupon, and it is part of their service agreement that you are ineligble to get cashback if you use a coupon!

 

Be careful. You may not get your 5% off from live.com because you used a coupon. Apparantly in the Live.com ToS (17g to be exact), if you use a coupon you may not get your cashback. Well, I am running into that problem. I am hanging on by a thread in my hopes to get an exception, but I wouldn't count on it.

 

Boy, you all have me worried about the dv5t. I have had it for a couple of days and I am not noticing many problems. I don't notice the speaker alignment problem that you all are experiencing -- maybe I am not looking correctly. Also, I am not sure about the sticky keys AshleyVA is talking about either.

As far as heat, it does get warm, but I have not noticed it being hot. I have not tried any games yet though. I will try Tiger Woods tomorrow. Also, I use an external mouse and keyboard, so it would not be as noticeable unless I proactively touch the machine.

Am I just missing things? I don't want 21 days to go by and all of sudden it all has crapped out on me.

Argh!!!! I am not sure whether I should return this machine or not -- part of me wishes I had a bunch of problems so I wouldn't have to agonize over the decision. Right now I am leaning towards keeping it....

*sigh*

 

I haven't had any problems either. I don't notice any misalignment with the speakers, and the keys are perfect. I played a couple games and it does get hot, but it wasn't too bad.

 

I worry a ton more than most people about potential problems and so far the only one I have is the heat. I'll use a external keyboard and mouse for most of my computing and will only be doing basic things when without at least a mouse.

 

Folks, I have a question about the fan.

Does your seem to run pretty much constantly? I mean, mine is quiet and all, but I can tell it is running out of the upper left corner of the laptop. It doesn't seem to go off. Could my anti-virus (Nod32) be making it run and run?

I just want to know if this is normal for folks?

 

Alrighty, I have a question regarding battery drainage on my dv5t. On Friday morning (very early...5 am-ish), I turned off my dv5t after having had it plugged in for a long time (I know it was fully charged). I went to bed, got up and went to work Friday night. I did not use my dv5t when I got home, but I elected to bring it with me to work tonight. As of about 11 p.m. (when I turned it on), the battery is reading 87 percent.

Is 13 percent batter drainage in 42 hours normal? I have the p8600, and the 512 mb Nvidia...so I know the lappy can be a power hog when it is on. Still though, while I am not exactly a math wizard...some quick figuring leads me to believe that if I left my laptop off for 13 days, the battery would be completely drained.

I know I am shutting it down (it is not going into sleep mode or hibernation), and I am just curious if anyone else is experiencing such a rapid battery drainage rate?

 

Ohhh I am so sorry..I don't want to make you paranoid of having problems..some of the issues were my own personal preference... the keys aren't sticky.. they're clicky..
I'm still wondering if I made the right decision..I mean, when some of you are saying your speakers are lined up correctly... argh...

 

Aug 23, 2008
6:01 PM
Departed FedEx location
ANCHORAGE, AK

3:45 PM
Int'l shipment release
ANCHORAGE, AK

2:29 PM
Arrived at FedEx location
ANCHORAGE, AK

Hey y'all, can any of you tell me exactly what this means to me, the consumer, on a Saturday night NY if that shipment date was four hours ago. The expected shipment date is Wednesday, August 27. Can I expect a Tuesday shipment day? Would Monday morning be pushing it?

I really want to move back to school ASAP, but I don't know what day to plan to leave yet... maybe I should stop being OCD about this...

 

There is a setting for the fan in the bios. By default it is set to keep the fan on all the time. If you disable this setting in the bios setup, the fan will shut all the way off. It will only come on when your laptop reaches a certain temperature. Hope this helps.

 

My complaints weren't related to the actual laptop itself. I loved the model myself. I didn't notice any speaker grill problems. Don't get down on the dv5t -- the machine itself looked great. The customer service, in my experience, hasn't been too wonderful, but it is what it is. Heat is heat -- it won't blow up your computer and send shrapnel flying into your brain, but it's something to keep a watch on. Most people here are just stressing about totally minor issues, but most of us are of the same personality type. At least, I know I will focus on imperfections a little too much.

If you don't have any problems, you don't have any problems. Keep the laptop. Overthinking anything will ruin it for you.

 

I do notice my left grill slightly raised, barely noticeable, nothing to really obsess about. I regret not upgrading to the higher resolution, icons are huge! And I have to scroll down way too much compared to my desktop.

 

Wow, those are some nice numbers. Much cooler temps than what Chaz was getting in his review by 10-20 depending on how you position your laptop. I think I'll get one to get that peace of mind. I'm going to run the ATITool artifact test later to see how much my GPU fares.

 

So what sort of battery life is everyone getting from their DV5t's? Mine gets about 2hr30mins on Power Saver with min. brightness. Is that about right on a standard 6 cell battery?

 

re: Screen Resolution

I agree with you, Chango99, that the 1680 x 1050 is the "better" resolution of the two to get. Of course, to each his own (a chacun son gout), and each of us not only have our own, very personal preferences, but our own requirements as well.

That said, there's one thing that i do not read about but i think is important: vertical resolution is much more "precious" and valuable than horizontal, as there is less vertical resolution available AND webpages, as well as documents, are longer rather than wide! So, what I think is extremely useful to do is to move one's task bar to the left or right. I've moved mine on both my desktop as well as my dv5t to the left, so the "Orb" button (aka start button for Windows Vista) is at the top left of the LCD.

This way, you have more vertical resolution to work with, and not "waste" any for the task bar. The difference between 800 (of the 1280 x 800) and 1050 (of the 1680 x 1050) is ONLY 250!!! So every bit you save is VERY worthwhile and valuable. This will, Chango99, reduce somewhat your need for vertical scrolling, as well as give you back some of the vertical resolution that I sense that you're missing.

Hope this helps.

Enjoy tonight's closing ceremony of the Olympics!

 

So there are some of you who have computers that actually don't look like they've been dropped.. the left and right sides are lined up correctly? I really thought I would just be getting the same thing again..I thought you guys were just letting that go 'cause you liked the rest of the machine.. I'm having second thoughts..

One more thing.. can someone with 64-bit pleez just try some shockwave games? Can it just be my laptop? You guys would know super clicky keys.. so some of you don't have them? I just wonder.. am I judging the dv5t too harshly because I got one that quality control failed to hold back?
I'm gonna feel like an idiot calling them back and telling them to cancel the 6700t and go ahead and stick with the dv5t exchange now lol but I WILL do it...I've been an idiot before..
Please people who don't have problems let me know quickly if you could? I have to make a decision fast.
Although I really like the 6700t, I do feel like I'm not getting the newest technology and certainly not as good as a deal.. but then again (this is my go back and forth thing) I am a casual, non-gaming user..does the newest stuff really matter? hellllp
*that's another one.. I can't even get the higher res with the 6700t.. and boy, THAT I will miss if I do this*

Actually I'm calling them and telling them to stop everything.. I have 21 days.. not three.. going to stop rushing this.. lol

 

I configured my dv5t specifically for long battery life. With WiFi on, in
power-saver mode, I am getting a minimum of 3 hours run time, before
I get a low battery warning. I have gotten as much as 3 1/2 hrs. on a
few occasions. This is with the P8400 and X4500 graphics.

One thing that seemed to help was turning off the Aero Transparency
feature. That got me another 15 minutes of battery time. YMMV.

Rob

 

Thanks!

What do most people do? Do they just keep the BIOS default and let the fan run all of the time? Or do you change it so it only comes on when it gets hot?

 

All the talk about people getting their laptops got my hopes up. My laptop was scheduled to ship on August 22, but it hasn't left yet. It seems as though I'm the person who will receive a late laptop. If it ships Monday, I won't be too disappointed.

 

just ran pc decrapifier on my gf's new dv5 and am wondering which startup programs I can rid of as well. Thanks guys.

 

guys come on sumone try xp on their dv5t, it will be a gud experience if it runs 100% perfect.
As there is a thread for the dvx500t xp installation, why not do tht for the dv5t as well and make lyf easy for all the dv5t owners

 

What cooler(s) is(are) recommended for the dv5t?

 

Here's a couple of screenshots of my temps, using HWMonitor (note max temps). The first was from last night, running 3D screensavers for about 15 minutes on my kitchen table (tile top, it seems to reflect heat back upwards). The second is using the same screensavers, but this time on my kitchen counter, which doesn't reflect heat as much. Plus I used 2 coasters to lift up the back, instead of just one (coasters about 1/4" thick).

The CPU cores are a little different. One of the screensavers is touted as being CPU intensive, so I attribute it to that. I don't know why it says I have a T8300 CPU - I have the P8600.

Please reply with any thoughts or comparisons. I'm also thinking of undervolting. Anyone do this yet to their dv5t? Does RMClock work in Vista 64?


The screensavers I used can be found here

http://www.reallyslick.com/

 

Is thermal paste such as the arctic silver something we need to apply on our own if we want to, or does it come applied on the dv5t?

 

I don't think you need to apply any type of thermal paste, at least I wouldn't. It would probably void your warranty.

BTW, I replied to your thread on coolers. Got mine from newegg.

5strings, thanks for the screensaver link. Those look great.

 

Hey everyone!

Just wondering what LCD panels HP is putting in the dv5 series? Or rather, I'm interested in finding out what panels HP is using, based on what people have gotten in their laptops.

I've got the WSXGA+ (1680x1050) display on the dv5t that I ordered on August 11th.

According to Everest, I've got an AUO1B7B [B154SW01 VB] panel.

The only specs I've been able to find seem to show it's a 6-bit 200nit panel with a 8ms response time. The contrast spec for an older version (V7) was 400:1, so I'm assuming that it's similar.

http://www.udot.com.tw/data/AUO/15.4/B154SW01_V7_Functional_Spec.pdf

I can't say that I've got any complaints. The screen looks nice and bright with good contrast, and I can't find any dead pixels. I'm not sure how to check for graininess, but from the desktop I can't see anything that looks strange. As for backlight bleeding, there's just a small amount along the bottom, maybe going up about a millimeter or so.

 

^ I agree. There is a small amount of backlight bleeding on a black screen but it's not bad. You don't notice it really. The display is quite good. Good to hear you didn't have any dead pixels. My new dv5t is being built and should arrive by 9/2/08. I just hope HP comes through with their credit promise. Other than the dead pixel issue, my laptop was perfect.

I don't know if I should ship back my old one now or wait until the new one gets here.

 

Just played Sherwood, everything looks fine. I have the 9600M GT, maybe the funky graphics have something to do with the Intel card being so new? Maybe it's the drivers doing that.

 

Aug 24, 2008 9:46 AM

Arrived at FedEx location

MEMPHIS, TN



Aug 23, 2008 5:49 PM

Int'l shipment release

ANCHORAGE, AK



4:45 PM

In transit

ANCHORAGE, AK

Package available for clearance

10:16 PM

In transit

SHANGHAI CN



Aug 22, 2008 11:41 AM

Picked up

SHANGHAI CN

Package received after FedEx cutoff

10:35 AM

Left FedEx origin facility

SHANGHAI CN



Does this mean it might get delievered tomorrow(Monday) in North Carolina?(assuming it'll get moved again overnight)

NVM
Ship date
Aug 22, 2008
Estimated delivery
Aug 27, 2008 by 10:30 AM

 

^ No, I think you'll get it on August 26.

 

I know we're all excited to get our new toys, but can we please stop with the FedEx shipping updates? You'll get it when you get it. Let's reserve the board to tech talk. I work all day and then come home to scroll through 8 pages of FedEx tracking info.

 

Or create a new "Shipping" sticky thread, maybe...

 

I'm glad someone said it. I agree.

 

Or just rely on the estimated delivery date Fedex gives you once the item ships and enters the US, as it is calculated for your specific geographic location.

9 times out of ten, the date given is dead-on accurate. When Fedex says they are going to deliver something on August 23 before 10:30 AM, you can pretty much count on getting it within that time frame. There is little need to actually play "guess the date"............

 

hahahaha, sorry bro, just been really amped to finally get this machine. i completely understand being annoyed by scrolling through page after page of a topic which doesn't even pertain to you. i'm happy someone spoke up in the forum though, even if i was guilty of the crime... peace dudes

 

Yeah we can do without fedex talk. There is definitely room on the forum to make a new thread about shipping times.

I left my machine on from 9 am to 4pm and when I got home to work on it, it was almost as hot as it gets when I game. I only went for this machine over the xps m1530 because I figured the newer processors and newer graphics chip would result in a lower heat.

 

im planning on buying this lappy and i have a few questions.
1. does the HDMI port transmit audio along with the video or it just transmits video?
2. is anyone having heating problems with this one? cuz many hp lappys tend to get hot while running...
3. the GPU 9600M GT seems to be a good one but is there any chance it may fail? (older g84 and g86 ones seem to hav probs)
thnx in advance