How to buy an HP DV2700t?

Hi, I currently own a 4 year old Toshiba Portégé A200 (see sig) and would love to buy a customised new HP Pavilion Laptop (don't mind if its special or standard addition).

Because I live in Australia, I can't buy from the US site so does anyone know if I can buy a new dv2700t with Penryn and the 128m 8400m GS? All I can seem to find is the "KM836PA" which does not have Penryn.

So basicaly I would like a new hp pavilian dv2700t with the following:
1. Any Penryn processor (2.1 to 2.5 ghz)
2. 2-4 Gb ram (not too important because I can always upgrade)
3. 128mb 8400m GS (Definite must)
Vista Ultimate would be nice but I can always buy the upgrade.

Thank you so much for your help.

 

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/au/en/ho/WF02a/1090709-1116637-1116665.html

What you see is what you get.

 

That's what I thought until I saw a low specked version of the dv2700t in stores. So there is no way to customise in Australia or do you know of an online retailer that will customise the laptop for me and then ship it over?

The US version shows that it can have a lot faster processors:
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s...=Travel/mobility&series_name=dv2700tse_series

Also, will there be newer versions of the series anytime soon?

Cheers

 

A 2.5 Processor will be good.

As for your question about 64 or 128 MB, it doesn't make much of a difference if you stay on the same card i.e 8400 M GS. In case you have a 8600 GS option, upgrade to that. It is a lot better than the 8400 Card.

 

Thanks radopod. 2.5ghz would be nice but I will be happy with any Penryn processor because they all have at least 3mb cache and 800mhz FSB which is a bit better than the 667/2mb in the one Australia offers.

As for 64mb, are you sure theres not much difference between that and 128mb? I would like to play Medieval 2 Total War on low-med setting with smooth frame rates and I don't think 64mb will cut it. 128mb will also be nice for future games.

Again if anyone knows how I can get this laptop in Australia please post links.

Thanks heaps guys

 

only problem with the dv2700 is that the vent for the fan on the bottom of the laptop is 1/4 size of the fan. very restricted airflow.

 

Thanks for pointing that out mate. I was planning to keep it on balanced power or find another way to keep the fan up and cpu power down so I can keep it cool.

Noticing your display picture, I cant wait to play GTA4 - do you reckon it will run well on the 128mb 8400m GS? GTASA runs well from what I have heard.

Worst case scenario is I get the 2ghz with 667mhz but as you can see it will be alot better than my current laptop

I am so ready for a laptop with a dedicated gpu.

 

flipfire is from Australia and he has a rig similar as me. Wait for him to post. And just to tell you mate, penryns aren't that fantastic as you think. Mine has 2.2 GHz with 4 MB cache. So ultimately it is the graphics card that it ultimately comes down to!

 

From the research I did, it didn't seem like the Penryn processors offered so much of an improvement as to justify the cost premium. I don't know if cost is an issue for you, but it was for me. The 2.2ghz processor I ended up getting is humming right along. I think I made the right choice.

Go Google the Penryn for laptops and you'll see a 5-10% improvement in power consumption and a 10% increase in speed. Very marginal in my opinion, and for my needs.

Also, make sure you buy with a coupon or sale event. In my case, I was waffling between an m1330 and the dv2700t. I called them up and told them that I was pretty sure I wanted to cancel my order because the m1330 could be in my hands by the end of the week, but the dv2700t was still going to take another two weeks plus shipping. Well, they knocked off $100 and I thought to myself, that's not a bad trade for the two week delay. Now, I may frown on the guy who calls them up to cancel just to get the $100, but then again $100 is a $100. Your mileage may vary.

As for the graphics card, the 8400gs is just barely enough to run the new Orange Box games I play. A 8600 option would have been nice, but I don't think I would have liked the sacrifice in battery life. The laptop isnt my main gaming machine so I can afford that trade-off; not all can though. But if you are considering a 14.1" screen then I dont gaming is at the top of your priority list.

 

Between equally clocked processors the speed difference between merom and penryn is 5-10%.

However, the T9300 which is equally priced on intels lists to the T7500 is actually 20% faster as you can see here.

 

the dv6700 has a 256mb 8400gs

 

The laptop in my sig cost $3995AUD so my budget is anything less than that. Penryn also seemed nicer because it offered 2.1ghz with 3mb cache and 800mhz which was better then the 2mb cahce and 667mhz of the 2ghz of the 65nm in the Australian dv2700tse. (Should I wait for an improved preconfigured model?)

I see where your coming from but I will be using this laptop for school and although the difference is only an inch, the 15" are just way too big. I wont be gaming too much I only want playable framreates on Medieval 2 Total War (even on lowest) and smooth gaming on highest settings for Age of Empires 3 and Rome Total War (which on lowest settings ran okish on the laptop in my sig).

Yeah thats what I read too and it seemed nice but I will be happy to settle for a 2.1ghz Penryn too especially for the battery life even if it is small. Then again the 2ghz C2D is still a huge improvement from the 1.6ghz solo at 90nm.

I dont think I want to wait and see if HP Australia will ever offer customisable laptops but I might wait to see if they release a better model of the dv2700tse with Penryn.

Thanks for all your help guys.

 

If you can wait a bit , wait and get montevina laptops.

And as for CTO , you should consider a Dell , outside of US , most of big makers do not do this.

I was surprised when I came here first time there was no company in Thailand that did CTO........

I miss Dell CTO system and HP ones as well.

 

I have been waiting for a fair while and Centrino2 does look VERY tempting. How long do you think it will be until a dv2700t or tse hits stores? I heard Centrino2 comes out in June but I would really like a laptop in a few weeks. Is HP able to upgrade processes in preconfigured models? That would be awesome.

Cheers guys

 

Unfortunately, Australia doesnt do customised orders. They are all pre-built. So far ive seen penryns nearly every brand besides HP! Their sales here are very slow and updated.

You can buy the same specs as mine for AU$1600+ now(minus 4gb ram), thats after the cashback offer of course

Undervolt a T7500 and its the same thing as a 2.1 Penryn's battery life

 

Yeah I have seen your model in stores but I think it only has 64mb of dedicated graphics memory right? Would I be right in thinking 128mb with 2ghz would be faster in games than 64mb with 2.2ghz? Thats what I thought.. Although I would love a new laptop the one in my sig still "works". I think I should also wait for Centrino2 because I will be keeping it for three or four years so I would like it to last as long as possible.

Also, how have you been finding the laptop? Is it nice to use etc? If yours also came with a sleeve or wireless mouse how have they been? If the mouse is bluetooth does that mean you can use the inbuilt bluetooth or do you need a dongle? Thanks heaps FlipFire.

 

Theres not much difference between the 64mb and 128mb 8400m GS. I was just playing battlefield2 on nearly highest settings possible (minus dynamic shadows and lighting). CS:Source run perfectly on highest settings 2xAA. Tell me which game or program you wanna play and i might know how it handles it

I love this laptop, performs like a star and looks sexy for a tiny 14.1"

No it did not come with the verve sleeve or the wireless mouse. Those are only available in the USA as free accessories when u customise an order.

If you buy one with BT module built-in like mine you can use it on right about anything. Im using it right now to upload music into my phone

Buy it from Dicksmith, they have a 14day refund period. If you dont like it, return it.

 

Thanks, the most graphically intense game I will be running is Medieval 2 Total War and I would like it at low-med settings but I have seen it on all lowest settings and I would not mind that but preferably not on 1024 by 768.

Oh, I though it did. This is what it says on the Australian site: Do you need to pay extra then?

So I could buy one with the specific intention to try it only to return it again? because that would be awesome to have a nice laptop over the holidays. I have to know there is a 100% guarantee I can return it though else is stuck with it. Is that what you did?

Thank again for you help - I added to your rep

 

You know, I was just looking around some computer stores in Melbourne, and to my surprise the first one I came across could order in an HP 2752 for AU$1399! The specs are as follows:

PROC: Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 2.00GHz, 800MHz FSB, 2 MB L2 cache
MEM: 1024MB DDR2 667MHz
HDD:80GiB 5400RPM
DVD: DVD +/- RW DL
DISPLAY: 14.1" WXGA display (1280 x 800 Res)
GRAPHICS: nVIDIA GeForce 8400M graphics

Considering the HP website online offers a similar package for a much higher price...

The only downside is that he said they won't be available until 14 MAR.. Well if you live in Melb check out the store www.digiworld.com.au (though what I was looking for isn't on the website...)

In any case I've been seeing variants of the 2700 around many computer stores, so I don't think they're that hard to find. It's rather strange that direct orders from the HP website have so little options, yet retail stores have various models and setups to choose from...

 

Yup dicksmith has a 14day change of mind refund policy. Ive returned about 5 items by now mostly because i tried it out and didnt like it

omg where does it say it comes with a free bt mouse and sleeve. I have to purchase my verve SE sleeve from america for $50. Please show me link

I havent actually played medieval 2 total war before but looking at the system requirements its nearly the same as BF2 which i was able to run on nearly high settings. So go figure.. medium settings @ 1024x786 at the least.

My computer is pretty tweaked and it has 4gb ram so it might be different. Gaming was still fine when i still had 2gb though. Like most manufacturers, HP's has alot of bloat/crapware pre-installed that slows down the computer so much just out of the box.

 

Not exactly true flipfire. I got both of those with my purchase as well, the verve sleeve and the mouse! Both are really cute.

 

Hi, did you get yours inn Austrlia or India? It might be a little bit different but I will be very glad if it did come with the mouse and sleev.

Yeah I know what your saying. My "educational" laptop - the one in the sig came with so much bloatware I was surprised it even ran. It even had a few gig worth of language packs for exchange students. It should be ok though on the hp. I will just play around with it and remove stuff I dont need from the start up.

I probably will then because im scared I might not like it after using it for a few days but what I have felt at the shops all feels very nice and I cant wait to get it. Im thinking about Centrino2 because I will be keeping it for three or four years and I want to be 100% sure that its got what I want.

Awesome - after looking around on youtube I saw that it ran pretty well with 64mb so I am sure it will run fine with 128 so im happy. Thanks though. As you can see from my sig I havnt played a "new" game for a very long time.

 

Radopod is from India

Bloatware is annoying. Read the clean installation guide by orev. Once you do this your machine will run like a dream. Cuts down bloated 3min boot up times to 45 seconds

Buy it from dicksmith, they wont even ask why your returning it.

Search or Ask in the gaming section if a 8400m GS can play Medieval 2. They should tell you what frame rates. Apprarently the 64mb and 128 are the same thing, they just use different type of memory (ddr2,gddr)

 

Can I not simply remove them from the startup? Thats what I do on my laptop now and I get 12 scrolls under the xp logo apposed to 40-50 of other people with the same laptop.

I read a few posts about it on the forums and they are all identical like "yeah it will run fine on low settings but better on an 8600". The hp website and posts on this forum say it has GDDR3 which shoud be good right? I am confident it will work though and I will be happy with low settings.

I just hope HP releases a penryn/centrino2 model soon because that will be awesome. I also have to get the Home Premium to Ultimate upgrade back because Hope Premium will not work on my school network. Does anyone know if upgrading vista is a clean and simple process or will it wipe all my settings? Thanks heaps guys and thanks again flipfire, I really appreciate it.

 

Uninstalling them wont remove everything imo. Nothing beats a fresh clean install. You can do so if you like though, cant tell you what to do

All you need to do is get hold of ANY vista disc, Create the HP recovery disks and put all your drivers from the C:/Swsetup folder into a dvd. Then your all set. Its quite simple if you follow orev's guide properly. Yes you will loose all your settings but will gain alot more.

They should be releasing penryns on dv pavilion laptops by end of this month or next. Its up to you if you wanna wait. Try Call up HP and ask.

No problem

 

But they would be pretty costly just as them come out. You might have to wait a month or two after it comes out to let the price cool down a bit.

 

Yeah thats what im hoping because if they release a refresh within a month that will be perfect rather then waiting for centrino2 which will be the same performance as penryn since there the same right?

So if I dont create a recover disk I will loose all the hp stuff etc? As for the drivers, will they not be maintained either on the computer or on the update disk? Because which ever laptop I get I will definitely have to upgrade to ultimate.

Yeah but I was hoping it would not be too bad since the american line has had penryn for a fir while now.

Also, is it possible tp upgrade the processor in the future? Because after 3 years could I just upgrade the processor and ram and essentially get a new laptop with a relatively old graphics card? Because at the rate intel is going in mobile chips, power consumption and heat should not be an issue.

Thanks again guys, I have been reading this forum for about a year now and i am so glad I have finally signed up. You guys are awesome.

 

Recovery disks are just there as a fail-safe backup incase some does happen to go wrong. This disc will just return your computer like it was out of the box. Its recommended one way or the other to create this.

The SWsetup drivers folder will have ALL the HP drivers & programs that was pre-installed. After you do a clean install, you can choose which programs you want and DONT want (which is alot of them)

I walked past JB HI-FI at lunch today and saw alot of penryns lappys, still no HP...