My dv9500t Review

Hi everyone:

I recently purchased a dv9500t. When researching laptops for this purchase I was unable to get answers to some questions about this model laptop. So I've written up a review of the dv9500t to help answer questions that other potential buyers might also have.

I hope that somebody finds this useful. If there are any questions about the laptop feel free to post questions and I'll update the review accordingly.

Regards,

Chris Mumford

 

thanks, nice review. good idea on getting the RAM yourself. I wouldn't mind getting a 7200 rpm drive sometime for my 9543. I got a microsoft wireless/rechargeable mouse 8000 which is nice. adds bluetooth. the touchpad is nice for casual use. enjoy

 

How hot is your hard drive? I've had two bad ones. A base line average of 50c+ and hitting 55C + had HP tech support telling to send the machines in for repair.

To me the warm is OK, an uncomfortably hot touchpad means something is wrong, either an overheated HD, poor production control in the cooling elements or a design failure.

Have you tried moving the HD to the 2nd bay? Can you. I would be love to know if you do how it works out. I am thinking of trying for a 3rd time but with just one HD like you and then moving it to the 2nd bay.

 

The only thing I noticed from your review that is untrue is about the RAM you purchased. HP notebooks can handle the 667Mhz RAM, so the RAM you bought is faster, but will only run at the 667Mhz.

 

Why to spend more money on a RAM which won't work in the machine at speeds paid. You could save at least $60 and to purchase 667MHz memory instead.

 

I don't know the temperature. Does the motherboard have a thermister so that a program can just monitor it?

The trackpad gets hotter with lots of CPU usage, but not hard drive usage, but I plan on getting a second drive fairly soon anyhow so that wouldn't be a long term solution anyhow.

Thanks for the advise though, if it starts to bother me too much I might give that a try.

 

Really? Are you sure? The HP website mentions an 800 MHz FSB in several places. Is there a way to verify this? My Windows Experience Index for "Memory (RAM)" reads 4.8. Does yours read the same?

 

My Windows Experience Index shows 4.9 for memory (4GB - 667MHz).

 

Interesting - thanks. I wonder if me being 64-bit affects the score at all?

 

32-bit Ultimate

 

The 800Mhz FSB is the "Front Side Bus", which is the speed at which the processor communicates with the Motherboard. RAM in all HP laptops, and most other manufacturers for that matter, are at a max of 667Mhz. So, even though you might have 800Mhz RAM, it is only running at the 667Mhz.

 

Yeah, the processor talks to the northbridge chip at 800MHz, and the RAM is on the other side of the northbridge. The RAM bus is only 667MHz. You can see on intel's specs that the RAM is only 667MHz: http://www.intel.com/products/chipsets/gm965/index.htm

IMO when intel launched santa rosa, they were very underhanded in how they promoted the "800Hz FSB", but did not explain any further that the only thing that can run at 800MHz is the CPU itself. So basically it can talk to itself really fast.

 

For your vista install, you can also do a clean install using the license and possibly the disc (anytime upgrade) that came with your system. There's no reason to buy another license/version. There is a 64 bit version of home premium, and your 32 bit license allows you to use that too. You just need to get the anytime upgrade disc for 64bit versions. That' about $5. Check my sig for the "clean install" guide for more details.