Is upgrading from my laptop to DV4 series worth it?

Hey guys! I've been lurking around in the NotebookReview forums for a long, long time. I use this site mainly for the articles and reviews. Finally decided to join.

At any rate, I purchased the HP Pavilion dv2815nr at Best Buy for $680.

Specs:
2.8GHz CPU
3GB RAM
250GB HDD
NVIDIA MCP67M (1068MB Shared Memory)

I noticed that the dv4 series notebooks are significantly higher. Considering the deal I got and the price of the new series, do you think it is worth it to return my old one for the new?

 

well,i think yes,cod montevina will have lots of cool staff

 

Well it depends on what you need to do and what added features you are looking for. At any rate, I believe BB will charge you 15% restocking fee to return it.

The main feature that your system lacks is HDMI. If this is something you need then it may be worth it.

 

Best Buy doesn't charge a restocking fee as long as it's within 14 days (at least in Canada, I work at best buy). Personally I would return it and wait for the Montevina dv4.

 

Yeah, but if the laptop is out of the box and you used it do they still take it back?

 

As far as I know, if the box is open they cannot sell it as a new computer anymore.... thus the 15% restocking fee. If you buy directly from HP you can still get all your money back (within first 21 days). This is the main reason to buy online if you ask me. Plus you customize to order which is nice.

Canadian laws are different and actual system configuration/prices are different as well. I know in the EU the warantees are longer on electronic devices then they are in the states and they have stronger consumer laws. The prices are generally higher as well. But that is changing isn't it? With the value of the dollar dropping like a rock.

 

Ok, I just didn't know if they charged the restocking fee if the laptop box was never opened. I'll always order the laptops direct from the manufacturer, unless of course if a reseller sold me one for half the price and was fully loaded, then I might consider it haha.

 

Thanks for the replies, guys!

At any rate, I probably should be doing more research on the features of the dv4, but to be honest, the main reason I'm interested in upgrading to it is simply to have the newest look and features. (HDMI would be useful, but to be honest, it's difficult for me to justify it with an extra $400). Besides the new design, are there any important features I should be looking forward to?

Oh, and I have the dv2000 power jack issue. I contacted HP and they told me to contact Best Buy. Best Buy, on the other hand, does NOT charge you 15% restocking fee if there is a defect. HP's recommendation for me to return the item is enough to claim that there is a defect.

 

Yes, if within the 14 days there is a defect in the product you can return it to Best Buy without the restocking fee.

As far as the DV4 goes, it will have much better video card options, so if you plan on gaming or want a stronger video card I would definitely wait for the dv4.

 

Actually, I've also considered the tx2500z. What are your opinions on the new version of tx2000z? The tablet mode would be cool -- because I plan on using my notebook for note-taking, I plan on using the tablet function for notes that must be hand-written, such as math.

 

First off, the one you have now the dv2815nr has crappy battery life with the AMD processor. The tx2000z also has AMD. Maybe the newer AMD chips coming out later will be better, but personally I would go with Intel since they are generally better on battery life and heat. I'm thinking the newer Intel’s integrated graphics engine, the X4500 / X4500HD with an intel processor will give you decent performance and battery life. If your planing on running this on batteries allot the integrated graphics should be good. You may also be able to run hdmi with the newer x4500HD.. I'm thinking this will be the best integrated graphics and may even be able to game at lower settings.

As for tablets.. I would much rather to math with pencil and paper. Can't get it with Intel processors anyway so I would not even consider it. The reason the DV4 cost more is because it has intel chips. But IMO its worth the extra bucks.

 

The tx2500z should be better, because it has an AMD/ATI chipset built on TSMC's 55nm fab rather than the MUCH less power efficient NVIDIA chipset HP used to use. You get a vastly better integrated GPU than with Intel too.

 

Yeah, it should be pretty good choice, if you are going to be using it for actual tablet use, otherwise a regular notebook would be better. I just ordered my tx2500 last week using the $500 off coupon. As brian mentioned there are two things which should help it run better than the provious tx2000,the Griffin cpu which has improved on the power saving technologies compared to the older Turions plus the HD3200/M780G like their desktop twins are expected to be very frugal as well. Plus, the HD3200 should be as good as some low end dedicated graphics processors. A good improvement over the Go 6150 which is almost 2 yrs old.