HP Zv6000

calyxman: hopefully yours ships tomorrow!

In the email I received from OD today they gave me 2 tracking numbers... it appears I *should* have mine by 4/27 (Wednesday). One tracking number points to my address (Fenton, MO) and the other to Memphis, TN... not quite sure why though...

687793710016
687796556630
http://www.fedex.com

 

Same thing here. Ordered mine on 4/12/05 and today they shipped two packages. One to Memphis and the other to Seattle. Since I live in Seattle I wonder what they are shipping to Memphis??? Hope it's not the guts of the laptop...haha I did order an extra 12-cell battery but it makes no sense to ship that separate. Can't tell what is in the packages from any numbers they are providing. If it was anything I oredered why would they send it to TN.?

Anyway, the slow boat from China is supposed to deliver both packages on 4/27/05. That's 15 days from the order day, so thats not to bad, I guess.
Gary

Gary Scherler
aka "CRUZR"
[email protected]
Seattle, WA. St. USA

HP zv6000
AMD Athlon(TM) 64 3200+ (2.0GHz/512KB L2 Cache)
128MB ATI RADEON(R) XPRESS 200M w/Hypermemory(TM)
60GB HD 5400RPM
8x DVD+/-RW & CD-RW combo drive
54g(TM) Integ. Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN & Bluetooth
12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Extra 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Home Edition with SP2

 

the reason they ship to memphis is because that is where fedex's world headquarters are. They use to ship everything there and distribute it form there. It is their main hub.

 

Received this insert today in a mailed Upromise membership benefits package. Says valid 4/22/05-5/22/05.

Additional $50 off any customizable HP notebook PC over $1,000...

Plus save 2% for college.

Instructions: insert NB8433 at checkout. I haven't tried or verified if this coupon works since I already ordered my zv6000 last Sat thru Office Depot. Also not sure if this is a one-time use or reusable. My guess is reusable.

This sweetens the deal for those folks ordering thru hpshopping.com, although I think ordering thru Ofc Depot / Techdepot.com is still cheaper due to the 1/2 off upgrade prices?

'You must shop online thru upromise.com to earn college savings.'

Fine print on back of coupon is not too restrictive:

'Valid for hpshopping.com purchases only. Each coupon code is limited to one usage per customer; one coupon per product. Non-transferable, not valid retroactively on previously purchased items [but what's stopping you from canceling an existing order and re-ordering to get the deal? -ed.] Not valid on employee purchase programs, auction products, refurbished products, or products combined with others in a bundle. For complete conditions see 'Coupon Information' in the 'Customer Service' section on hpshopping.com.

 

OD/techdepot was definitely substantially less, however, their promotion ended a couple days ago...Now, the cheapest way to purchase is via Hpshopping.com (even though their $500 off has changed to $200, their prices are lower for configurations than they have been under the $500 off instant savings)

 

I still haven't decided what to do with the 2 zv6000 machines I ordered. Torn between keeping the Inspiron 6000 (actually, going to order a new one tomorrow since the price will be about $75 less than the one I ordered last week) or the nicely-spec'd zv6000 - 3200+ CPU, 512x1 RAM, 60GB 4200RPM HD, 128MB video, Bluetooth, 2 x 12-cell batteries, CD-RW, etc.

If I keep the Inspiron, then need to do something with the incoming zv6000 - although it shouldn't be that hard to sell it for a profit? I got it for $1075 tax & shipping included and it is eligible for the $50 HP and $150 OD mail-in rebates. So $875 net for this machine which would cost me the following as of 5 minutes ago:
$1123 total thru hpshopping.com (free ship and no tax helps) or $1073 if the aforementioned $50 Upromise discount works
$1138 (plus tax?) thru techdepot.com
$1353 thru costco.com

It's interesting to see how dynamic the pricing and available components are. E.g. you can't order the DVD burner thru techdepot.com today. Costco added the higher-end 3800 and 4000 CPUs to follow suit with hpshopping, but techdepot did not.

 

ouch, got expensive Paid only $ 629 for mine, shipping $ 40 included.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by neevakee

 

I don't think these items are being shipped via boat, otherwise they would take weeks instead of days to get here. From the information I've gathered, they are sent via air and most of the packages are checked and cleared through customs in flight. According to the R3000-z5000 forums:

"This is a public service announcement brought about by the continuous number of complaints and issues regarding HP's shipping.

Currently, ALL Customized To Order laptop systems are shipping direct from China. Regardless of which shipping option is chosen, these systems will ship via FedEx International Priority Direct service, which is 2 to 4 day service to the USA. Selecting the 2-day shipping option provides no quicker shipping service, but will cost you an additional $70 or so.

If you have already placed your order and your system arrives more than 2 days after initial shipment from China, you can call HP and request a refund for the shipping upgrade. However, if your system arrived from China within the 2 day window, then HP will not provide a refund even though you paid extra money for nothing."

 

well maybe they are coming into diffrent ports? one is seattle and the other in california. I don't know how they work, i was just tring to explain whyy it goes to TN. Sorry i cant help you[ ]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by ofacto

 

Someone please run 3DMark03 and 05 on their ZV6000 with 128MB Radeon Xpress 200M![^] I've looked all over for benchmarks but can't find any.

Dell I6000

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by DMB14

 

Compusa has the zv6005 for $949 after $200 rebates for today only. Plus it comes with a laptop bag, wireless router, usb memory stick, and hp printer free after rebates. The guy said said this sale ends today. And there is no restocking fee if you plan on returning it. I picked one up finally.

 

Quick question on the Sempron that some zv6000 systems come with: is it socket 754 or socket A?


On the way....
HP Pavillion zv6000
AMD Sempron 3000+ 1.8GHZ
512 Mb (2x256)
128 Mb ATI 200M
DVD/CDR combo/40 GB 4200 rpm
Win XP Home / 8 cell batt

Current beater: iBook 600 Mhz G3/ 384 MB / 15 GB HD / 8 MB vRam

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by miner

 

are there any real reviews out on this notebook and graphics card by someone who actually has it? i've searched around with little luck and have only seen speculation. thx

 

Well, I received my zv6000 today... 8 business days from ordering. the speakers don't appear to be Harmon Kardon's and I have 2 dead pixels [V] Not sure what to do. I keep reading tht HP only fixes screens with 7 dead pixels. Really don't want to return it as I wouldn't be able to get the same deal again. Any suggestions?

 

Tech depot doesn't have a restock fee but I would have to pay shipping. I really like this laptop but it's always a bummer paying $1000 and it's not perfect.. ya know?

I have a little time.. but not much.

What to do....????

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

 

Perhaps u can return it and get the R4000z deal which is going on now? But it will be a loss of time and a restocking fee(if any)....

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by maxpower
Sorry to hear about the screen. As for the speakers, do they sound noticeably bad to you? I suspected HP switched to cheaper speakers because they removed the harmon kardon badge. But for all we know, they might be jbl or harmon kardons without the badge.
<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>

Well I'm listening to RHCP right now and they seem to be doing pretty good. Granted, I'm no audiophile. I also don't know what the Harmon Kardons sounded like...

 

have you tried playing any games with it?

 

Regardless of whether you went for the current R4000 special @ OD or any other promotions to follow...You won't find ANYTHING comparable to your Awesome deal after rebates of $992.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

 

Yeah, mines in Indy too. I agree about the kind of deal you still get, I mean heck $700 after rebates with tax and shipping included, where can you find a better deal with the specs I got in my sig? Granted it's not a powerhouse machine, but I did want something rather snappy for my business applications.


On the way....
HP Pavillion zv6000
AMD Sempron 3000+ 1.8GHZ
512 Mb (2x256)
128 Mb ATI 200M
DVD/CDR combo/40 GB 4200 rpm
Win XP Home / 8 cell batt

Current beater: iBook 600 Mhz G3/ 384 MB / 15 GB HD / 8 MB vRam

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by yumyum001
hey rc80, guess what, you are not the only one!!!![][V]

I got my this morning, and upon powering up, I found 2 dead pixels.... could we ***** about this to OD??[xx(][!]<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>

Very sorry to hear yum... I know how you feel. [V]

I did send an email to TechDepot late last night... they are supposed to respond within 24hours.. so I'm waiting on them. I'm thinking about the extra warranty they (Office Depot) offer. I'm trying to find out if they really cover the screen if it has just 1 dead pixel (w/ the extra warranty). After reading about how all these manufacturers just accept pixel failure, I have a hard time believing Office Depot would cover just 1 dead with their warranty. After working at Best Buy, I basically gave up on any/all aftermarket warranties.

You might want to very gently press the area with the dead pixel.. I thought I had 2 dead pixels and after VERY lightly pressing the one it vanished. The other one will not go away. Do this at your own caution...

AMDemon is right.. we probably aren't going to see another deal like this for a bit.

As for returning/keeping I'm still undecided. I just have to sleep on it some more.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

 

No I haven't bought the OD warranty... yet. I'm still looking into wether I can or not. When I worked at Best Buy, we would let people purchase the aftermarket warranties for up to 30 days after purchase (meaning, inside the return period). Aftermarket warranties are a HUGE profit for these types of companies.

Now I wouldn't go walking into OD and saying "I have a problem, I need to buy your warranty". Maybe just buy it and come back after X amount of days. That is only if A) They cover EVERY pixel on your laptop screen and B) They let you buy it after receiving and within your 30 day return time.

I would think they would be inclined to sell the warranty to you considering you are still inside your 30 day return policy AND assuming you haven't told them you are having problems.

 

Hello everyone,

I dunno, but when I bought my laptop from OD, the people were very friendly and helpful. The Guy who sold me the laptop said that I could buy the warranty. I asked him if I had to buy it at time of purchase, he said no, and that I have like 15 days to decide. but he said in kinda a hushed voice... so I really don't know if this is true or not. someone might want to look into this. so besides the pixels, hows everyone liking the laptop? I can't wait to get mine and to play guildwars.
oh yayur!

HP Pavilion zv6000; AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (2.0GHz); 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800); 512MB DDR SDRAM (1x512MB); 60 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive; DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive; 128MB ATI RADEON(R) XPRESS 200M w/Hypermemory(TM); 54g(TM) Integ. Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN & Bluetooth; 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery;

 

yeah that sounds like a good idea. I guess it depends on their policy on pixels. But I was looking at the chart, and if I remember correctly, it was something like $100- $120, it depends on if you went over the $1000.00 mark or not. Now when you return it, can you just bring it into the store? or do you have to ship it back to china? is there a restocking fee? So if all the variables are considered, maybe it'll be worth it for the return program.


HP Pavilion zv6000; AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (2.0GHz); 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800); 512MB DDR SDRAM (1x512MB); 60 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive; DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive; 128MB ATI RADEON(R) XPRESS 200M w/Hypermemory(TM); 54g(TM) Integ. Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN & Bluetooth; 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery;

 

so are you trying to pretend every is ok when I go back to OD? and if the warranty service is available from OD, then go back in (X) number of days, and say we have dead pixels on the screen? I just hope that the standard 1 year warranty from HP would cover the dead pixel you know, since the warranty for the laptop + LCD for the cheapest configuration ($0-799.99) is $239.99, I really don't want to shell out another $240 just to fix 2 dead pixels.... even though they are annoying as hell

Here is the warranty coverage Office Depot is offering:

***Notebook + 2 Peripherals*** (according to the sales associate, this does not cover LCD, it's just like the standard warranty from HP, except it's either 2 or 3 years


_____Retail Price___________2 Year Plan Cost_________3 Year Plan Cost
$____0___-_$__799.99_____________$109.99_________________$164.99
$__800___-_$1,199.99_____________$129.99_________________$194.99
$1,200___-_$2,999.99_____________$179.99_________________$254.99
$3,000___-_$4,999.99_____________$259.99_________________$354.99

***Notebook + Screen Protection + Mobile Lifeline***

(according to the sales associate,this is the full coverage, cover the LCD, battery, "accidental" damage, all the stuff you could think of)

_____Retail Price___________2 Year Plan Cost_________3 Year Plan Cost
$____0___-_$__799.99_____________$239.99_________________$314.99
$__800___-_$1,199.99_____________$299.99_________________$354.99
$1,200___-_$2,999.99_____________$409.99_________________$444.99
$3,000___-_$4,999.99_____________$509.99_________________$614.99

 

Office Depot's warranty also covers accidental coverage.

On the way....
HP Pavillion zv6000
AMD Sempron 3000+ 1.8GHZ
512 Mb (2x256)
128 Mb ATI 200M
DVD/CDR combo/40 GB 4200 rpm
Win XP Home / 8 cell batt

Current beater: iBook 600 Mhz G3/ 384 MB / 15 GB HD / 8 MB vRam

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by calyxman

 

damn... I got mine and I got a dead pixel too, bastards

HP Pavilion zv6000; AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (2.0GHz); 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800); 512MB DDR SDRAM (1x512MB); 60 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive; DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive; 128MB ATI RADEON(R) XPRESS 200M w/Hypermemory(TM); 54g(TM) Integ. Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN & Bluetooth; 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery;

 

A few things...

First, I received an email back from TechDepot just now and they have instructed me to take my laptop to my local Office Depot and have them issue an RMA (Return Authorization) so I can return and get a new one. While initially this sounds good, I still have to physically go there and work through the process. I'm bringing everything with me. As well as the email from TechDepot. I can't take it back until tomorrow, so I'll post an update tomorrow.

Second, In regards to going and buying the extended warranty after receiving the product. You can call it pretending if you like. IF that warranty is as good as it sounds, than that should provide 2-3 years piece of mind. In my current situation, if Office Depot does exchange my notebook out and I get another even without dead pixels, I'll still be buying that warranty (again, if it covers all pixels). I should have looked more closely into it the first time around, my mistake.

The way I see it, if laptops come new with dead pixels or can die later on down the road, I want to do my best to avoid or easily fix it/them. I was crazy to think it wouldn't happen to me. I've read quite a bit lately on how many laptop manufacturers are in acceptance of a few dead pixels on new units. Not refurbs, but NEW units (http://www.lcds4less.com/industry-standards.shtml & http://graphics.tomshardware.com/display/20030319/lcd_pixels-03.html ). Newegg.com for example won't take notebooks back unless they have 7+ dead pixels. Now, I can hear it coming.. "If every notebook had to be perfect, than the price would be higher". That sounds like a manufacturer's problem. Why release a product that's not properly working? Rush to market before the kinks are worked out? Call it whatever you like but by us accepting defective notebooks, we are saying ok to the manufacturer's acceptance of dead pixels.

Enough ranting.. OfficeDepot/TechDepot is working with me to resolve this problem. They have been easy to work with since the day I bought it. I have nothing negative to say about them at this point.

Will update tomorrow.

Rich

 

wow, Rich

looking forward to hear from you again, please keep us posted

now, what's the email address that you send to office depot about the problem that you are having?? and what did you say exactly? anything "special"??[ ] (even though I won't be able to bring it in until Friday or Thursday, I would like to know how to go about doing this)

and what warranty are you talking about??

the ***Notebook + 2 Peripherals***?? or *** Notebook + 2 Peripherals + Screen Protection + Mobile Lifeline***??? if it's the later one, $300 is kind of steep, don't you think??

 

Guys, a few dead pixels are par from any laptop manufacturer. For the price of this laptop, you'd almost expect them. Granted no one wants them, but I don't know of any manufacturer other than maybe Sony, that has such good QC that almost no screens with dead pixels get shipped.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by maxpower
Guys, a few dead pixels are par from any laptop manufacturer. <hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>
Par? Who set par? ISO? Manufacturers?

<blockquote id='quote'>quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by maxpower
For the price of this laptop, you'd almost expect them. Granted no one wants them, but I don't know of any manufacturer other than maybe Sony, that has such good QC that almost no screens with dead pixels get shipped.<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>
I didn't expect them, nor do I want them. I'm not going to just fork over $1200 dollars and not have a perfect product out of the box.

I might understand dead pixels had I used the laptop for years... but on the first boot? C'mon...

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

I might understand dead pixels had I used the laptop for years... but on the first boot? C'mon...


<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>

Amen, that's just wrong[B)]

 

yeah that sucks, im surprised that there are more people.. now im really starting to worry. dont they test and inspect these things? anways, i bought my notebook from costco, will OD be willing to sell me an extended warranty?

also, how is the hp warranty? do they have on-site service? free fast shipping if it goes somewhere?

i dont think anyone should keep their notebook with dead pixels.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by yumyum001

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rc80

 

this sucks, it looks like they are using the defective LCD for the laptop, that's probably why they are selling them for cheaper, because of the defective LCD + the warranty that they can sell it to you, in the end, this might cost more than the previous deals[ ]

 

Has anyone that purchased at Costco received theirs yet? Seems like the Office Depot orders are coming in pretty quick; costco offers no tracking of the order progress and all they say is "4 to 6 weeks for delivery" which I'm hoping is on the pessimistic side of things.

 

lol, can't wait to see that, remember to post a picture[ ]

 

Now that some of you have received your zv6000 notebooks, could one of you do some battery life tests? I'm curious to know how the battery life is on this notebook.

 

All I was saying was that all manufacturers ship screens with dead pixels or other screen anomalies. Some have higher rates than others, and of course the cheaper the laptop, usually the higher the chance. You guys were making it sound as though it never happens. Order a dell and you'll probably have the same chances. Go look at dell forums and you'll see tons of posts about bad screens. But dell is much nicer in terms of letting you replace it for any reason.

I doubt HP bought a pack of known defective lcds and used them.
However, I wouldn't be surprised if maybe HP had to loosen their normal testing standards for LCDs (if any exist) to get enough for the last round of deals. Maybe allowing more dead pixels to pass. If you want to return it or get it replaced, I absolutely agree you should do whatever until you're satisfied. But it usually is true that you get what you pay for.

Having said that, I know my order will probably show up with 10 dead pixels right in the center...

 

I read on another forum that someone thinks costco ships the laptops to themselves first, and then to you, so that might be the reason for the delay.