*HP dv7t (1XXX series) Owners Lounge*

I'm definitly going to. I love the DV7t and would absolutely keep it if they had the ultra brightview option. I don't understand why HP releases thier new line of laptops at different times instead all at once. They will end up with a lot of returns because of this.

 

^ you can open it, etc, - you have 21 days from today to return it. i had my first unit for approx 8 days before i called to have it returned.

be careful tho - if you open it, you may fall in love w/it. l0l.

 

Yeah but it's a business. You have to keep buzz going on all year round. SO they stagger it like every other company.

But you're right. I predict there are going to quite a few returns due to this.

 

Here's what I used to calibrate:
http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/


My main concern was getting all the blacks and white scales to show up. Be careful with the Nvidia control panel as the color seems to shift to blue at certain levels when you move the sliders.

Here is the best I could do:
Brightness: 50%
Digital Vibrance: 0%
Contrast: 45%
Gamma: 29%

Using this, I was able to see all the black levels and barely ok with seeing the white levels. The screens on the DV7 are definitely very poor quality. Because they are unable to render deep blacks, people are interpreting this as not being bright enough because the contrast ratio is so poor. If there was a bigger difference between the blackest black and the brightest white, people wouldn't think it wasn't bright enough. Also, the viewing angle is horrendous. When you get color shifts between the top and bottom corners when viewing the monitor in the ideal position, you know there is trouble. IMO, HP really cheaped out on the display and used an LCD that performs to early year 2000 standards. Very sad.

 

Anyone have any suggestions as to why I can't download the HWMonitor now from cpuid.com? (see earlier post)

 

no idea dude but try these links

32 bit --

http://www.cpuid.com/download/HWMonitor_111.zip

64 bit --

http://www.cpuid.com/download/HWMonitor64_111.zip

hth.

 

I got my dv7t at the beginning of last week (on Monday 9/15, ordered on 9/02). After a week of trying to acclimate to its idiosyncrasies, I called yesterday evening to get a Return Authorization.

The primary issues I have are the intrusive fan noise and the area to left of the touchpad being uncomfortably hot. I have the P8400 processor and nVIDIA 9600M GT graphics card, the latter generating the excessive heat- causing both the hot left wrist rest (beside touchpad) AND triggering the fan to run at gale force most of the time.

I'm disappointed that it's turning out this way, because it's an amazingly beautiful machine and is even faster than I expected it to be. I'm back to debating between the other systems I was considering before deciding on the dv7t- primarily the Dell Studio 17, Dell XPS M1530 and ASUS M50/M51. Toshiba's configurable Satellite A305 and P305 will be available in the next two weeks, so they're back on the list too......

 

I can't believe how many people whine about the heat... I have never noticed mine to get "uncomfortably hot"

To each his own..

on a side note I'll be returning the dv7t on the 24th in order to just be issued a credit and I'll wait for the 18" HDX

 

I don't think the DV7 consumer line is built with the same QC as their business machines. Just a slight difference in how the heatsink assembly is installed could account for differences between samples. For example, the factory worker could have smeared on a smaller dab of heatsink paste, none at all, or the heat sink might not be pressing up against the chip as hard as the next DV7 in which case the laptop feels cooler but the chips are actually hotter than normal or vice versa.

 

Whining? I'm not whining about heat....I'm b*tching about it!

After paying $1200 for a notebook, I don't expect it to to sear my left wrist/hand.....I've used a friends Toshiba Satellite X205 with DUAL nVIDIA 8600M GT graphics cards and the 2.5GHz T9300 processor and didn't suffer first-degree burns!

 

Wear silicone gloves and stop whining

 

Do you guys leave the remote in the express card slot ?

I left mine out, rarely does the left palm rest get above luke warm

 

Either you're a genuis or I'm borderlin-retarded.....probably a mix of the two! =) I hadn't even thought about the remote slot being under there....I just took it out to see what impact it has on the temp. It will obviously help just by opening a little space there.

I may not need asbestos gloves after all...

 

LOL

I agree, but FWIW this isn't the hottest of the HP notebooks. Also, try taking out the dummy card from the express slot under the palmrest. That has helped for me.

As far as my dv7t goes, first I had a problem with the screen and now the housing is FALLING APART. Shame, HP. I just got it all set up too

 

HP announces today after numerous consumer returns and complaints and crappy customer service, and tech support, they are officially changing their name to "Highly Problematic" And due to the searing heat issue with these overpriced underperforming chrome plated pieces of crap they are now going to pull them from the market of computers, and move them over to K B toys, and Toys R US, where you will be able to purchase the new DV7 Easy Lap Bake Oven, guaranteed to make a steaming hot batch of chocolate chip cookies, and burn the crap out of your kids at the exact same time!

 

WOW, LMAO. Cobra im not quite sure, do you love your DV7 or not it's kinda hard to tell from your last post.

 

Doesn't this just accelerate the DV7's demise? Now there is nothing to conduct the heat away and out of the laptop. Cool palms = faster GPU death

 

It isn't the GPU that is under the palm rest, it is the hard drive.

The temp isn't as bad as it feels either- when it feels warm to me sometimes (after running something hard-drive intensive for awhile) it only gets up to about 40 degrees C at the highest.

I think people with higher temps must have faulty laptops. My processor hovers around 30 degrees C (mid 80s F) when I am browsing the web or running Office or playing music or whatever. It gets into the 40s when watching TV and maxes out in the 60s when playing games for awhile. I have the P8600 processor and I also use the NC2000 cooler (which probably accounts for a few degrees).

The only temperature issue that I get is the left of the palmrest (hard drive) and it usually doesn't get above lukewarm. If yours is getting hot enough to burn you that definitely isn't normal. This is cooler and quieter than my old zv5340 laptop.

 

Just ordered mine yesterday, estimated ship date is the 30th, I can't wait.

I was really pissed because the $500 coupon stopped working, but I called them and ordered it over the phone and they were able to still get me the coupon even tho it expired, somehow.

Final price was right under $1,200.

Vista 64-Bit
WSGXA+ BrightView 1680 x 1050
T9400 2.53GHz
nVidia GeForce 9600
4GB Ram
250GB HD

 

Grrr $#@%^&,
I finally pulled the trigger yesterday and ordered the HP9700t for one reason! The Ultra Brightview display. I sacrificed HDMI 1.3, an eSata port, the integrated TV tuner, 4 USB ports, and the 320GB (2-160s) 7200rpm HD.
IMHO, the DV7t display is completely unsatisfactory. I was surprised today, when I dropped by Best Buy, to discover that the standard Brightview on the 9700 was better than the Infinity on the DV5t. Go figure.

I had maxed out the 9700t and the salesman got me a $500 coupon. The price was $1686.98 (down from $2036 at the HP store).
I breathed a sigh of relief and had a good night's sleep with no buyer's remorse. Today I discovered news of the HDX18! All the goodies plus an 18" *Ultra* Brightview display. I immediately called HP and canceled my order. The rep was great and there were no hassles in spite of the fact that the free printer had been shipped.

Now I must wait until the HDX18 hit's the Web site and enough of you buy it to convince me that it's the way to go. Looks as though it may be another month or so before I'm able to fondle my new toy.

Ed F.

 

I was in the same boat as you were. I odered the DV7t about a week and a half ago. I played with the DV7t at BEst Buy a bit and was just totaly dissappointed with the screen. When I heard about the the Ultrabrightview on the HDX18t I called up and cancelled. It hasn't shipped yet and they haven't canelled yet so I have yet to see when I get the funds back.

 

I've committed MUTINY, it's official now!

I have my dv7t packed back in all the original boxes and bags and have the FedEx Return Authorization all ready to go. I'm sending it on Monday morning and HP should get it on Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest. IF I'm really lucky, they may even issue my refund on or before this coming Friday!

I also committed my act of treason by ordering a DELL Studio 15 from the DELL Outlet. It has the 2.5GHz T9300 processor and 256mb ATI Radeon Mobility HD 3450 as well as a 1440x900 LED display....so I can quit worrying about the nVIDIA saga and if/when mine is going to bite the dust.....or when the fan noise is going to finally push me over the edge and/or have heat radiating up to give me hot flashes.....I've heard of male menopause before, but I'm only 33 for god sakes!

I hate that the dv7t and I didn't mesh very well and that I ended up at this conclusion. But I'm not anti-HP overall and I'm sure I'll give them a shot again in the not-too-distant future! G'day!

 

Studio 15? Ill...

I would wait for the 18t...or if you want a smaller laptop there's the HP 16t. Just wait a lil bit until they put more options up their for customization so you get what you really want.

Sorry but Dell's studio line looks fugly to me.

 

I just don't understand all the hate on the dv7t's screen. Is it the Infinity that most people don't like? I think my non-infinity screen is just fine and plenty bright- I don't even keep it at full brightness.

 

jrm5100 it's not really hate on the screen, it's more or less the ungodly GPU temps that plague the DV7T's with the nvidia 9200m GS, I mean 1 heatsink for all 3 componants ie CPU, GPU, and the northbridge, as it's all surrounded by steel or aluminum with a small copper heatpipe, I mean 97 degrees celsius, or here in the US 207 degrees farenheit? All I can say is not long before something melts down and you have a $1,300 paperweight, or have to go a week or 2 with no laptop over poor design construction, and even poorer customer support, I have called HP numerous times and keep getting told "Well it must be within normal specs or you'd be experiencing BSOD's or some kind of errors, or the laptop would shut itself down" I've got my Dell Vostro 1500 now 8600 GT graphics card, and after 3 hours of gaming GPU is only at 68 celsius, whereas my 9200M would be cooking my laptop cooler and the desk, oh and FYI to everyone with the 9600 yours is running cooler b/c you have a seperate heatsink on yours, also just FYI the 9200 and 9600 are onboard GPU's not cards as they should be, quite shoddy design on all of them, well my DV7T leaves tommorrow, and sadly I can honestly say after this experience I will never buy another HP product.

 

Good to know the 9600's have a separate heat sink. The highest temps I've seen with my 9600 is 76 degrees C.

My CPU temps are also in check, highest I've seen with those is 60 degrees C while running stress tests. (regularly idles around 30 degrees)

 

hi, i just got the dv7 1070ee.... core 2 due t9400.. and nvidya 9600 card..im so happy with the performance of this laptop .. i was worried about hp as a brand at the beginning ... but its a gr8 gr8 laptop from wt i c...
concerning the screen issue .... its a nice bright screen in a good light conditions ...
and to adjust the colors i used the invidia calibration as
brightness : 50
contrast ; 75
gama : 45
digital vibrancy : 11
it gave me a pretty nice contrast and colors..

considering the heat issue..
its on an average of : cpu = 42 c
gpu 55
hard disk 45

if u raise the laptop by like 2 cm or something ,... to allow the fan to suck more air , and heat sink to repel more heat.. it will give these values which r pretty average and nice
the left hand side of the touch bad is just worm , and i can live with it
nb: its coming with 2 320 hd... total of 640 gb

the only problem i face is the booting time , which is pretty much slow...


overall, this machine is adorable, and a really excllent deal the screen issue is more or less solved with the stated calibration values.... and totally ,i dont ever think about a return.. its an amazing laptop..
hope to c reply for ur opinions

 

To those having excessive heat under the left palm - do you guys have a 7200rpm or a 5400rpm drive? The 7200rpm drives are always going to run quite a bit hotter than 5400rpm drives, but that is no fault of HP's. I always get 5400rpm drives in my notebooks for that exact reason, because almost every laptop I have tried putting a 7200rpm drive in has gotten pretty hot compared to the 5400rpm drive.

 

I think it has more to do with if you removed the remote from the card slot. I have my remote out and the handrest cools considerably.

 

That is true and it's the friggin' hottest when gaming. I don't use the kaeyboard at all when gaming; I use the seperate USB FPS keyboard and mouse. My hands aren't at the keyboard at all and therefore my palms are not above or on top of the palm rest of the laptop. No touch...no problem. I think I got that Snipa2 or Fang or something like that.

 

I have the 320 GB 5400 RPM hard drive with the fake remote insert out and it still gets warm sometimes when watching TV or gaming, although not that bad. The highest I have seen the hard drive get is 40 degrees C.

 

Man! This thread took a total 180... in the beginning people were singing the praises of the dv7t, now it seems like everyone is tearing it apart.

I am still more than satisfied with this machine and would have no problem recommending it to anyone.

 

LOL Gemiar, i noticed that too. but also notice that many (not all, obviously) of the people tearing it apart are ones that don't have the machine in their hands.

my only beef was with the infinity display but i have come to absolutely love it because i dont use my machine in bright areas so it's a non-issue for me.

aside from that, i absolutely love it.

in the end, everyone has their opinions, etc. but if the machine is good for you, that's what matters.

i have not had any of the heat related problems that so many people on here are stressing about the dv7t. i mean, human error - it may be a lemon, but then you don't bash the entire line because the one you ordered isn't right - especially when there are tons of us who have no issues @ all with our units.

i will stop rambling. i absolutely love my machine! ;-D

 

ya ur rit , the forum turns up about the screen and heat issues...
but for my side, i love this laptop a lot , i think its the best laptop till now in the markets ,............. sound, display,.... everything is gr8.. besides, the support of blue ray

 

If I'm reading your post corrently (funny, the really old school folks like myself who have been online way longer than 99% of you rarely adapted truncated, net blather) you're saying you have some BD issues?

I've played several disks including 3 of our own mint disks, and 2 Netflix rentals (that were in typical rental condition) and had zero problems with playback (including access to all the advanced features).

Care to elaborate?

 

I am returning my dv7 this week, and I'll be going for the HDX18 for the Ultra BrightView also, but I'm a little scared because it will only have the Infinity option. Hopefully the super-bright screen will blow straight through those reflections!

I'm back on my dv8000t now, and the screen is beautiful and bright again.

Also, for those of you who still have your dv7 and are keen-eyed enough to notice the cool (low color temp) bias of the display, don't forget you can change the color balance in the nVidia control panel by selecting which channel you want to change the settings for. It's not the most intuitive, but you can warm up the picture a bit if you adjust it carefully.

 

Quick question: what do you guys use for cleaning the screan? I have the Infinity one, and am prone to use the cloth that came with the laptop, but is it okay to spray some glass cleaner on paper kitchen towels and wipe it with that, when there are fingerprints on the screen?

Many thanks!

 

I suggest the 200 packets of "Wipe'N'Clear" you can get from Costco for $7. Alcohol free and good for all surfaces. I usually have a few in my bag and my desk at work, they always come in handy.

 

Cheers! Well, we don't have that particular brand, but wipe towels with no alcohol should do the trick, right?

 

^ i think so, yeah. like you, i've just been using the cloth that came with the unit. the last time i wiped it down was like 2 weeks ago. im surprised it's not getting as dirty as i expected.

well, now that i think of it, i use the machine at nights mostly, so i dont even notice anything on the surface of the screen. maybe it's dirty as hell, i just havent noticed =D

 

I just called HP To get an RMA # to send back my DV7T - I simply told the rep I wanted to return for financial reasons (need the $ for a new transmission for my car).

Right off the bat he offers me an additional 100 dollars off, when I declined he immediately offered me 200 off.

I had to decline since I don't really need the laptop in the first place, and I do need a running vehicle.

So if anyone wants $ back, call em up !

 

^ LOL - that's excellent. I would have taken the deal! The banker somtimes gives you good offers!

sorry, i was thinking about Deal or No Deal.

 

Haha, yeah with all that I would have gotten the laptop 1/2 price of the normal after you figure my 30% off coupon as well.

 

**** dude, that must have been tempting. today is the 20th day since i've had my unit and all this talk of returns got me thinking.... but im too happy with my setup to let it go so it's going to be on my desk now for 2 years - at least.

 

Call em up, tell them you want to return it because it cost too much and see what they offer.

Get some money back ! I was suprised how quickly he offered it.

 

Ha, I just ordered mine on Friday and I'm thinking about trying this..

but it will really suck if they are just like "okay" and don't offer it.

 

I suspect that HP screwed up by not offering the Ultra Brightview (1080p dual-back-light) display with the DV*t series. It appears that they may be attempting to quell the flood of cancellations from those (me )who want either the HDX16t or the HDX18t. My 9700t is in the cancellation mill and I will order the 18t as soon as it is available - with a $500 coupon.

 

My dc7t is just sitting here unopened at the moment. Hoping the 18t is put up their with a nice option for the graphics card and that there is a really good coupon I can use when I buy it.

If those 2 things are there and available I'll cancel immediately and then order my 18t...

 

Hell, you might as well open it up and play around with it - you can still return it even if it has been opened/used. I don't think I've ever let a package sit for more than 5 minutes after it arrives. Maybe I'm just an impatient S.O.B.!

 

So just to clear up some discrepancies - if I return my dvt7, which I bought with the $500-off coupon, I can still use that coupon towards a HDX16 or HDX18? And what if the replacement that I get is cheaper than the dv7 that I bought - will they still refund me the difference, plus give me the $500-off coupon on the replacement?