*HP dv7t Quad Edition (3XXX series) Owners Lounge*

I donwloaded the lates itunes version for windows x64. Even though I downloaded the x64 version, it defaulted to installing in the Program Files (x86) directory, weird. At first the device was not recognized by itunes, I did a few reboots and uninstalls in device manager. Eventually itunes picked it up.

I've got this far


It's a 1st generation ipod touch. Itunes was kinda freezing up and device manager was flashing a lot at first for a few minutes (maybe I have a flaky cable?) but eventually the connection started going properly.

The ipod shows up on device manager under portable devices, the driver tab says it's Microsoft driver version 6.1.7600.16365 from 6/21/2006. Oh and my fingerprint reader has stopped working for some reason. I hope it comes back after I reboot.

Mediamonkey (itunes replacement) also recognizes the ipod now, and I can play music read directly from the device, cool.

Edit:
Well after playing more with this I have to say the ipod is not connecting reliably at all. I rebooted a few times and everytime I plug it in it messes up my fingerprint reader. Itunes hardly ever detects the device, and when it does it now says I should reinitialize it.

 

For those that are considering buying, check this out today:

HP Pavilion dv7t Quad Edition customizable Notebook PC

Price: $1,199.99
Coupon: –$400.00
Price after rebate: 799.99


•Espresso Black
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
•Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L2 Cache, 1333MHz FSB)
•FREE Upgrade to 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 3GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
•FREE Upgrade to 500GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
•1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 230M
•17.3" diagonal HD+ High-Definition HP LED BrightView Widescreen Display (1600 x 900)
•LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
•Webcam Only
•Intel Wireless-N Mini-card
•No TV Tuner w/remote control
•HP Color Matching Keyboard
•8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
•No Modem
•Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
•HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
Estimated build date: December 7, 2009

Free standard shipping on this item

 

Do you guys know if the touch pad is multi-touch control, or if any of the usb ports can charge when the laptop itself is off?

 

I initially did receive the $50 price difference for the DV7t, but I just noticed today that the price dropped by another $100. When I called up HP the person I spoke to didn't want to give me the difference since she said that I couldn't because they wouldn't consider the coupon discount. So I will return the one I initially bought and I just bought a new one today for the low low price of $899.
HP has a lot to work on in their customer service department, it seems it would have been easier for everyone to give the customer the price difference.
I will use my Visa to get a 3 year warranty on it so I won't have to worry about it.

 

Hello everyone!

I just registered here and wanted to say that I'm pretty excited about my dv7t quad purchase!

This is what I got:

dv7t quad edition
• Espresso Black
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L2 Cache, 1333MHz FSB)
• FREE Upgrade to 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm) from 3GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• FREE Upgrade to 320GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 230M
• 17.3" diagonal HD+ High-Definition HP LED BrightView Infinity Widescreen Display (1600 x 900)
• FREE Upgrade to Blu-Ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW Double Layer
• [For BrightView Infinity Display] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
• Intel Wireless-N Mini-card with Bluetooth
• No TV Tuner w/remote control
• HP Color Matching Keyboard
• 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
• No Modem
• System Recovery DVD with Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

All that for $994 + tax (I wasn't aware of the Bing offer or I'd have definitely used it.) Still for less than $1k, I think it's a pretty darned good deal.

I'm still researching about being able to claim the Bing cashback deal since I made my purchase on Black Friday. If anyone has info for me don't hesitate to reply.

I have a question for those of you who already have your Notebook: What games have you been able to play at max settings with the nVidia GT 230M?

 

Okay, so any fellow geeks out there find a solution to the iPhone issue?

And is there a "checklist" out there... Something like DV7-T Guide to not screwing your system up? You know things you wished you had known before...

 

Just seems like HP needs to put out a bios update to get iphone sync to work. Right now plugging my itouch is killing my fingerprint reader and has a host of other issues. I guess it's disabling some internal usb hub, which is in line with what pople have been reporting on the net. Problem is HP does not seem to acknowledge the issue yet.

As for a checklist:
I think the machine works well out of the box.
A few people have been complaining about flex on left side of keyboard.
If you plan to do a windows fresh install, you should check out the drivers thread
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=404164
After doing a fresh install I could not get quicklaunch buttons to work (volume osd, player control buttons on top of keyboard). I'm using instead microsoft intellitype pro for those functions.
Enjoy your laptop

 

This became $865(taxed) last night, i was between buying and not buying it. i decided not to, I am just a bit worried about the graphics card and screen not being Full HD. what do you guys think? 799+tax is epic! i am sure, it is a similar price now.
what about heating? anybody planning to do a video review?
how is the keyboard?
my sony vgn-ar 730e/b though a dual core, is very sexy and nice and vibrant; and they keyboard is just right.

 

I canceled my previous order and re-ordered the DV7T with this $799+tax deal, and for what your getting, i think its a steal. You should check out the laptop in a store to see if the 1600x900 resolution will be enough for you. I checked it out and I think it will be good for me, and I'm coming from a nice 1920x1200 15.4" Dell Inspiron 6000. The lower resolution display will make games play smoother, and hopefully the HDMI port supports 1080i.

I've done research into what laptops are on the market now with an i7 processor, and there arn't too many.

Asus has a 15.6" laptop with an i7 and a Nvidia 260M for $1400, sager has a 17.3" i7 laptop with a 280M for $1900. Dell has an Studio 17 laptop for $1274 with an 1GB ATI 4650.

I wanted a i7 laptop to take advantage of the quad core processor for performing computations in matlab, and I preferred an Nvidia GPU since Nvidia is more Linux friendly. So for me, the DV7T worked out nicely spec wise (I havn't received it yet)

 

It supports 1080p... So yes, it does support 1080i

 

It appears the $400 off coupon is now invalid.

I was almost going to get the $799 deal and return the previous one with bing.com cashback (since I'm not positive that would go through).

If anyone can get the $400 coupon to work, please post.

 

The screen resolution is 10 times better than the vaio I currently have (Check under my signature) and I think, your vaio model vgn-ar730e is almost same as mine vaio vgn-ar630e. Bottom line, it's way better than my vaio in all department.

 

Yeah, I sometimes get my HD resolutions mixed up

With regard to the coupon expiring, if you wait around a few days, you might find that another coupon appears for the DV7T quad. When I first ordered on the 20th of November, one coupon was in effect, and when I ordered on the 29th, another coupon was in effect.

 

hi, my knowledge with notebooks isn't that strong. Hoping someone can help me. It seems like this notebook has 2 drive bays...i ordered mine with a 500gb harddrive. does this mean there is an empty bay? thanks,

 

It will have an empty bay if on the order confirmation it says 1 x 500GB.

If is says 2 x 250GB, than both bays will have a 250 in it.

 

Yea the great deal for the dv6T and dv7T has passed ): but you guys can STILL GET THE DV8T. The DV8T is the same as the DV7T except with a nicer screen and 1080p and 1.1" bigger lol.

Coupon -$450 OFF

http://www.logicbuy.com/deals/hp-pavilion-dv8-18-inch-laptop/14626.aspx


ACT NOW, coupon has redemptions.

 

I assume you ordered 1x500GB. Yes there's a second bay available, but to install the second hard drive, you need to get the hard drive caddy from http://www.partsurfer.hp.com. Search for part# 517639-001 (Hard drive hardware kit - Includes mounting rails, e-SATA interface cable, and mounting screws). It costs around $50 + shipping and handling.

Hope this answered your question.

 

Will it be easy to upgrade this laptop to usb3 in the future?

 

Anyone? Thanks in advance.

 

thanks for the responses. now to wait for it to arrive...for a regular user (web, document editing, media), do you think there is there any advantage to upgrade to windows7 ultimate?

 

yes it does, except that a sony is a sony. i had so many bad experiences with hp, especially tx1000 and tx2000 due to overheating.

thanks for your comment though, i will try to search for a deal... if the gpu was gt260m, i would buy it instantly, now i will wait 'till i get the 799 deal again, or until it comes with gt260m.

thanks.

oz

 

I also had the same opinion about Sony, but now after encountering several issues with their support system... I'm done with Sony... Regarding over heating issues, I too was very skeptical about buying HP, since I have seen and felt how hot it used to get on dv1000 and 2000 series... I just took a chance with this one. Now I feel like I made a good decision by buying this dv7 quad edition from HP...

Since all of them are assembled/made in China... What's in the name? (Shakespeare)

 

You're right. I'll think about it again, I have 5 computers now, I just don't want to give up even one right now, except the netbook maybe. I will give a chance with core i7, let me know if you find a coupon deal.
thanks, also, i wish there was benchmarking, temperature and video review of this thing. i mean, i never used a core i7, will i really see a difference i normal usage?

 

ANYONE?!?!?

 

To answer the question about multi-touch support for the trackpad, the answer is no. If it had a feature like that, they would advertise it.

To answer the question about usb 3.0: You won't be able to upgrade the existing usb ports on any laptop to usb 3.0, but you will eventually be able to purchase an ExpressGate to usb 3.0 card that will maybe give you 2 usb 3.0 ports.

To contribute to the discussion, One of my friends had problems with a Sony laptop overheating, and then purchased a Toshiba laptop, and then that overheated as well. This was on a desk as well. I have only had a Dell inspiron and it hasn't ever had problems overheating. I think this dv7t will be manageable heat-wise since one of my friends has a dv7 and it seems to handle just fine. I have a nice notebook cooler just in case. I also plan on benchmarking the laptop (3D mark) for a day or so to see what temp it goes up to, and then re-do it with the NZXT laptop cooler to see how much the temperature decreases by.

 

Hey guys,
This question has been answered before (i actually browsed throuogh the whole 28 pages!), but i just wanted to clarify for myself.
I'm getting my dv-7 soon and i just wanted to know that if i decide to add another HDD to the 2nd hard drive bay, what parts would i need exactly? Does the notebook alredy come with these parts or do i have to buy them seperately? Also, would the parts i need to get/or already have, be the same for a normal HDD and an SSD?

Thanks & Cheers!

 

hmmm... seems like you didn't read the entries on page 27 . I did mention the part number for the second hard drive bay... I'm using it on my dv7t.

 

When looking at video (DVDs or Media Center Recorded TV) or photos, the screen looks hazy, grey, and dull. Also, as another user commented, the viewing angle is extreamly sensitive. My 6 year old HP ZD7000's screen looks much better in my opinion. I really want to like my new dv7t quad...I love the performance...but the screen's poor quality is making it hard.

I've tried playing around with the Nvidia control panel settings but have found those settings to be of little help. When I set the brightness high enough to look normal, the black level gets all washed out and pictures and video look washed out. When I lower the brightness to where the black level looks good (not washed out) the photo or video is way too dark.

Has anyone found setting that make the image quality of this screen look good?

 

I had a question about SSD's and our DV7-t's, I read somewhere... and for the life of me can't find it now... That the bios doesn't support Secondary drive booting, therefore it is tough to configure the SSD if you don't have another PC. Is this true?

also.. I haven't received my system yet, left Shanghia early this morning... I have contacted the Resolution Department with HP and they have escalated the P55 BIOS not supporting iPhone syncronizing ( to a Product specialist, Jim Hansen (Wonder if it was a joke for the creator of Sesame Street passed away years ago) and he will get back with me in regards to HP's offical position on the issue... Wish me luck and will update ASAP~

 

Did you experience this out of the box.. or happened out of the blue.... ? And when was your DV7-T delivered?

i7TuckerMax~

 

This is my second machine, first one returned due to my ordering mistake, second one received around 11/16/09. Both screens looked the same...black levels look equal to a bargain basement lcd TV screen...very poor for a fairly high end laptop and not nearly as good as my old HP machine.

Do you think HP is using sub par screens these day? I read a post earlier on this board where a user said he returned his dv7t due to the poor quality of the screen so I'm pretty sure it's not just me.

 

I just got my dv7t Quad in and am trying to get it set up. I ordered the Intel Wireless-N card with Bluetooth, but I can't get it to connect to a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. I finally found where to add a device, but it never finds either one. I can't find any Bluetooth indicator anywhere on the laptop, so I'm wondering if I even have it.

Anyone have any ideas?

P.S.,
I used Search on this thread to try and find an answer but it didn't work. If this has been asked and answered, just point me in the right direction.

 

Well Well Well... I got an OFFICAL word from HP on the iPhone and P55 board... FIX January or February, but Jim Hansen (PRODUCT SPECIALIST) couldn't commit to a specific time.... Grrrrrrr... but I am authorized to return it.... #$^@#$$% very frustrating....


i7TuckerMax~~

 

I finally found where to turn the Bluetooth on, so it's working now. It's one of the settings in the "hidden icons" section of the taskbar.

 

wow, that's a while to get an update. as a temp solution, would itunes 8 allow for sync? do the itouch ipods have the same issue?

 

Thats a negative... from what other forums I've come across...

http://www.theiphoneblog.com/2009/1...fixed-gigabyte-motherboards-asus-msi-pending/

HP is the only one that doesn't have a fix... I think its a Verizon Droid conspiracy...

i7TuckerMax~

 

I am reading several posts about the screen on the DV7t. When I had it I had the base screen and it was more than bright. Sharp crisp detail. Amazing viewing angles. What exactly are you guys looking for in a laptop screen???

 

For the past six weeks, complaints from users running this trifecta of pain have been clogging a thread on Apple’s discussion board. The posts report that – in most cases – iTunes 9 for Windows will recognize the iPhone, but when a sync is attempted, users are greeted with a cryptic “error 0xE8000065″ – an iPhone-connection failure notification.

While not the oldest or most common chipset, and thus not likely to affect a huge swathe of users, those with problems just want them fixed. Microsoft is doing their… um… investigating:

Microsoft has not seen this particular question posed in the Microsoft Answers for Windows 7 community forum, nor in any of our call centers. We reviewed the issue raised on the Apple Discussion Board and are currently investigating. If we determine this to be a problem specific to Windows 7, we will post an update on the Microsoft Answers site.”

In the mean time, here’s what’s worked for some:

A USB port on a USB card not part of the P55
deleting the iPodDevices.xml file from C:\Users username\AppData\Local\Apple Computer\iTunes
disabling Bonjour
turning on C-state capability in BIOS

 

I returned by dv7t quad and got the dv8t quad =D

 

Viewing angles on mine are atrocious. Worse than my 5 year old Dell. I just got the RMA for this DV7T, they can't fix the fingerprint reader and I've been on the phone given the runaround from support for 6 hours today. I've had enough of HP and their support, can't wait for my new Dell to arrive!!

 

Well I guess its a matter of opinion then on the screens. I have read so many people bash HP and their support and just at the same time bash Dell and their support. Then others say HP is the world's greatest computer manufacturer and so is Dell.

From my experiences BOTH HP and Dell make solid machines. But Dell needs to get their orders out with the new Core i7 Studio XPS 1645.

 

So did I, what I want to know is the difference on the sreen. Brightview VS. Ultra Brightview Infinity??? Anyone???

 

How come? What made you go through all that hassel...

 

Let me just say that my previous notebook I've had for 5+ years. It's an Inspiron 9300. I've had to deal with support a few times over the time it was in warranty, they put a screen in, a motherboard in, and replaced the speakers once. I realize this shoudln't happen, ever, but when it does you want the most painless fix possible. I got on chat with dell each time and within 15 minutes and no BS they had parts ordered and a tech calling me to schedule part installation.

That's how support should work. None of this, spend 6 hours on the phone, send your laptop to us, we might loose it, and it probably isn't going to be right when you get it back stuff.

I deal with HP support every day at my job. I'm not going any farther than that right there.

 

I'm sorry to hear that, but the new Pavilion Quad Series are really good machines, I'm sorry you've had a bad experience.

 

Hey all, Just finished reading the 30 pages in here Lots of good information!

I'm likely going to be ordering mine today, unfortunately waiting too long cost me the free BluRay ROM but for whatever reason it seems to come out to the same price in the end anyways.

Just had a few questions I'm hoping I can get some answers to... if you have any input it would be greatly appreciated!

- Can the fingerprint reader be disabled during regular use of the computer? I've used a few of the HPs at my Dad's office and I constantly hit the reader accidentally which kept opening a prompt -- very annoying! I may just stick with typing in a password...

- Is it best/cheapest to get this directly from HP with the coupon I saw online ($20 off)?

- For the reformatting/fresh install of Windows, you don't need to get the $19 "System Recovery DVD w/ Windows"? I've always done system refreshes from a Windows CD, and then the Dell Drivers CD (always had Dells in the past). Or would I be better off springing for the disc?

- Have any of you gotten the TV tuner? If I use it at all, it would be for over-the-air broadcast. Is that any good? I have a TV for watching cable

-Lastly, trying to decide on Win7 Home or Pro -- what's the benefit to Pro other than WinXP? I figured I could just have a partition on the giant (500gb) HDD that it's coming with for WinXP (assuming I could install 32 bit, since that's what I have?) But I don't foresee any need really for WinXP Mode.

Thanks for any input, and I hope to be joining this thread later on as an owner!

 

This is a very good laptop. It almost does everything perfectly without breaking your bank account .

For your 3rd question.... You don't need to spend $19 for recovery disc. The system comes up with the recovery partition. Before you do fresh install, just make recovery disc (3 4.7GB DVD needed, won't work on Dual layer 8.5GB DVD) using recovery manager installed by HP.

For your last question.... Other than XP mode features, Windows 7 Pro, also has complete PC backup utility, which you can use to backup your entire operating system, on your portable hard drive (I think almost all of us now have a portable hdd), once you are done with the fresh install and drivers and software updates. This way, in the future, if for some reason your system starts behaving like spoilt child , you can use the Windows complete backup image to make your Windows 7 behave like a good kid

 

Thanks for the reply krips! It does seem like a good laptop, after about a month of research into i7 fueled notebooks I kept coming back to this for the price : performance!

Sounds easy enough to make those DVDs (I've never had a DVD burner before; it's like I'm going to the future! )

I guess I will have to weigh the Win7 Pro vs Home against the $75 premium they charge for Pro.

I guess all drivers are located online these days?

PS This will be a fantastic upgrade from my current machine - Dell D505 with Pentium M 1.5ghz + integrated graphics. The fanciest game I've been able to play on min settings is GTA:San Andreas. It is literally held together by duct tape -- both hinges broke, and the keyboard doesn't respond sometimes. No joke, it's more or less been ON for the last 6 years. Still runs perfectly fine, just needs external monitor and keyboard now. It owes me nothing at all. Will make a nice shop manual reference machine for the garage!

 

Put a photo on the screen, then tilt the screen up and down a little to notice how narrow the vertical viewing range is. It just seems much more narrow than I would expect and certainly more narrow than my old HP zd7000.

Also, I'm not saying the screen is not bright enough. I'm saying that if you have the screen brightness turned up to a comfortably bright level, the black level fades into gray too easily, making photos and video look somewhat grey/hazy. You can compensate fairly well with the gamma, contrast, digital vibrance settings in the NVidia Control Panel, but so far my results leave a lot of room for improvment.

This DV7T Quad is almost everything I had hoped for: super fast, light, quiet, dual hard drives, tons of memory...a huge step forward when compared to my old machine. But it is dissapointing that the screen's image quality does not seem to measure up to what I am used too.

If anyone has screen settings they are really happy with, I'd appreciate it if you would post them so I can give them a try myself.

 

Well I didn't notice any issues with the screen. I wonder if the ultra brightview offered on the dv8t is any better?