Help Please....dv6000t laptop specs?

Ok so I need to order my dv6000t laptop in the next couple of days, but im having trouble deciding between some of the specs...

1) First, I am between Windows XP Home Edition and Windows XP Media Center. Does anyone have any preferences or experience with either one? I'm using my laptop for the basics for school purposes so i don't know which is easier to use, less complicated.

2) Graphics Card--I have no idea what any of this stuff is. I don't think I will be playing many games on my laptop, so which do you reccommend? I also want my laptop to be pretty decent though because i plan on keeping it for a while, hopefully.

Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 950 - Celeron
Inter(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 950 - Core
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7400

3) Primary CD/DVD Drive-- I want something that allows me to burn and play CD's and DVD's, but i don't understand what the double layer support is. Do any of these options have any problems with CD compatability in different CD players or cars? Will the burned CDs that are made with any of these options play in various CD players or do you need special CDs for them? Pros or cons to any of them?

DVD/CD-RW COmbo Drive
Super MUlti 8x DVD +/-R/RW w/double layer support
LightScribe Super MUlti 8x DVD+/-RW w/double layer

4) Does anyone have any problems with the 12 cell lithium ion battery since it kinda raises the back of the laptop (doesn't sit flat)? How long is the 12 cell battery life?

Thanks so much for all your help....this is my first laptop purchase and i don't want to order the wrong thing.

 

1 -Deff get tha 7400 mid range card will do ok even for odd game.
2 -if just school work etc home is fine mce is not need.
3 -Id get the super multi dual is basically and 8.5 dvd disc so can backup more.

I have a dv6000 and its a great laptop if that is any help to you and is my first build quality is great and its speakers are surprising good for a laptop. No idea about 4 as mine has 6 cell battaray

 

1.) get whichever is cheaper--if both are equal, go for MCE. You will probably not notice a difference.
2.) I'd go for the 7400, even not gaming. Having a dedicated GPU is just nice. If you decide to get integrated graphics (GMA950), make sure to get a Core processor.
3.) Double layer is a standard which allows twice as much data to fit on a DVD. If you don't know what it is, you probably don't need it. I'd get the supermulti without lightscribe. Any CD burned in any burner should work in any CD player as long as the disk is finalized properly.
4.) I don't know of any issues, some users actually like the 12 cell because it raises the computer up a little bit (allowing for more ventilation & easier typing) The 12 cell might not fit into certain laptop sleeves.

 

first post sorry not trying to steal your post, but I got a ? also about the dvd burner, I got the lightscribe super mult 8x with dl support what does the dl support mean?? Can i burn dl disc or not?? I was wanting a dl burner hope I didn't pick the wrong computer

 

DL Support = Dual Layer, meaning you can use dual layer DVDs (9.4GB)

 

Please check out HP support before you buy. THey are terrible. Bad foreign customer service. No true expertise and troubleshooting unless you demand a US rep or escalate. Built in obsolescence. Pay for all the extra warrantys if you want your computer to work for more than a year. Big expenses marginal quality. POOR support!

 

graphics and video card hard soldered into motherboard if they go out you need new motherboard. Bad idea. Personal experience on this one.

 

Star..

You need to read thru this thread, first section is buying advice, posts that follow being "TECH TIPS"...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=86901

One of which being info on the various GPU's used. (GPU=Video card)


I'd also consider other mfg's.... Consider the support after the sale. This gentlemen finally getting he money back from HP after multiple failed attempts at repair, going with a Clevo M570U instead:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=1713329&postcount=18

Or maybe an Asus S96J, with the x1600 GPU. You can get a fairly nice configuration for a little more than $1,000 dollars, and that includes a 2 year warranty. (Note, there may be a "newer model out now, point is shop around the various mfg's.)

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2975

Two other things, gpu on just about all laptops are part of the motherboard... very few have replaceable gpu's... and even fewer have a GPU that can be "Upgraded". Very few...

Second thing is go ahead and go for MCE. It's from what I've read more like Pro, than the home version.. and can be hacked to provide some features not in it (as shipped), or home.

PS: Going for MCE also entitles you to a better version of "free" Vista Upgrade. (Next step up, Home just getting the base version of Vista)

.

 

Thanks for all the replies!

I guess right now I'm just questioning the burner. Can anyone please tell me the difference between the DVD/CD-RW COmbo Drive and the Super Multi 8x DVD +/-R/RW w/double layer support? Thanks!

 

The DVD/CD-RW combo drive will read DVDs and CDs, but will only write to CDs. The other drive will read and write to both.

On your other question about the OS. If you plan to upgrade to Vista, be sure to get MCE now, as you get a free upgrade to Vista Home Premium. If you get XP Home, you only are entitled to a somewhat "discounted" upgrade, not a good deal at all.

As for the graphics card I think most people here are right. If you plan on gaming AT ALL on the machine, get the NVIDIA GeForce Go 7400. If not, then the integrated graphics is cheaper and will yield longer battery life. Both work fine for Vista's aero interface for what that's worth.

Hope that helps.

 

I would definitely recommend going with the Super Multi-Drive, just because, if nothing else, you eventually learn how to burn movies, it can be a blast. Plus for storage purposes, since laptops have smaller HDDs, 8.5GB space means half the storage or backup discs over a single layer drive.

And I would recommend going with the Go 7400 as well, too. Using a dedicated graphics card will free up more memory and give the CPU one less thing to do, giving you better performance over an integrated card. It would be one thing if you could upgrade from an integrated card down the line, but with a laptop, unfortunately, you can't.