NOW AVAILABLE - Updated ENVY 15, ENVY 17 / ENVY 17 3D

Yeah it's fine for most uses, I wouldn't really worry about it.

I understand that these aren't really gaming laptops, but I would expect for this kind of money at least some mediocre graphics power. I wouldn't really care if it was just a very slight increase over the previous model.

But if it is in fact a literal downgrade from the previous generation, that would just be insulting.

 

Thanks I'll definitely be paying attention to this.

 

I customized mine and using the coupon it came out to $1,153. I am so tempted to pull the trigger on this. Although I really want to wait for reviews and see if any better discounts come in the next 3-4 weeks.

 

During a chat conversation an HP rep mentioned that the blu ray option will not be available for the 15". Very disappointing.

 

Is the new 17 3d available for order yet? Their store is still showing pictures for the old model.

 

How is HP's "Care Pack House Call" warranty service?

 

Did they say if one will eventually be available or if there was a mistake in the product description?

 

It's the Envy on the site. It says "new" and when you go to customize, it offers the new Envy features and takes away some of the options from the previous model. I had an older model saved for comparison. The newer models are slightly more expensive but hard to get a true apples-apples comparison.

When you go through the customization, it shows the new Envy as you go along. Also, the base price is listed as HP advertised.

 

You can check. I didn't pursue it any further.

 

Yes. The photos are still last year's model, but the big red "New" tag next to the model number, and a different set of options, tech specs and prices on the customization pages are a solid clue that this is definitely the new 3rd gen 17 3D model.

 

I pulled the trigger on the 15 with the 30% off coupon. I'm real picky when it comes to laptops and I went from a 2nd Gen Envy 17 > Thinkpad T520 > Asus G53SW. I loved my Envy 17, but it was just too big for my taste, this redesign sold me to come back to HP with the 15, the other two laptops can't compete.

 

Could it be that the SL Bluray just won't fit? That's the top reason it's not an option in so many other 15" slim-profile laptops.

HP did market the dickens out of this so to have it not be available is a big letdown. I'm shopping elsewhere for a 15" with BR right now. Was going to get 2 Envys, 15" for personal and 17" for biz. Bummed.

 

Hope not off topic but I am down to possibly choosing between dv6tqe and Envy 15. Usually buy business grade laptops but tempted with these.

Are the main advantages of new Envy 15 over dv6tqe

1. Better build quality.

2. Better screen - Radience 1080p

Otherwise seems like the other laptop has better port selection, longer battery life, Blu ray option about same graphics card and right now a lot less expensive. Thanks in advance.

Gary

 

Does anyone know how well external BRs work with laptops? I guess I could just get an external BR drive since it's not built in here.

 

It's (the dv6tqe) is also significantly cheaper for effectively all the same hardware as the Envy 15 save for the screen.

Right now you can get the dv6tqe for around 875 dollars after the 33% off with no options selected besides 6770M 1GB card and 1080p display.

Same hardware on the Envy costs like 1115 dollars after the 33% off sale. I'm having a hard time justifying spending 240 more dollars on a better screen and (arguably) better aesthetics.

I'd be more convinced if they'd release details about the screen (i.e. is it an IPS display).

 

7600M confirmed as a straight 6700M rebadge?

 

the problem still remains - is the 15 one and the 17 another?

i'm looking to buy the best display. if it's a radiance like the E14 on both, I'll go with the 17, but if the 15 has an IPS and is 'better', then I'll go with that.

 

I just went thru the same decision process and discovered one big "bummer" WRT the dv6tqe... right now you cannot get a 7200 rpm disk drive in it, only 5400 rpm or the super-expensive and small SSDs.

 

Yeah that was posted a few pages back as well. Seems to be the case.

I still can't believe that these have been officially released, and yet HP still isn't saying what model or specs are actually in the Envys. You can order one right now and all it says is AMD Radeon graphics card. That's pretty ridiculous to me.

 

Hi All,

About to pull the trigger on a ENVY 15. Anyone know what brand of 160GB SSD HP uses? I would think its an Intel as they are the only company that recently made 160GB SSD's.

thanks in advance

 

I thought HP's vids stated the radiance displays were IPS. I hope so because I got one.

As to whether it's worth the additional $240, I'd suggest yes. It's like the difference between a maxed Camry XLE and same configured Lexus ES350. Similar in almost every way and performance, but in 2-3 years, the Lex shows it's value. Spec-wise, the new Envy is also slimmer. That counts when it's being lugged around. Can't lose either way, but I'm thinking the only downside to the Envy 15 is the lack of Bluray, which I'll probably just have to get as an external drive/writer option.

 

Options USED to say Intel so chances are they still are. Going off-brand would not be good for their "premium" line.

 

does hp include a recovery partition on their drives that you can burn in case of a reformat?

i notice they charge $20 for recovery discs, but if the recovery partition is there i'd just do it myself.

 

I have had both. INTEL is the brand that HP uses exclusively in the Envy. My original Envy had the X-25. My new Envy has the 320 series.

 

YES, you have a recovery partition. You also have HP Recovery Manager, where you can create either a DVD set of recovery disks, DVD DL set of recovery disks, or even create a Flash Drive recovery disk...that is bootable using F9 in your bootup options...

 

@rigmaster

Thanks for the quick reply. HP is asking $340 for it. I think I'll do the upgrade myself for cheaper.

 

Hey, just came off the phone with a HP Sales rep, she asked and told me the Envy 15 has a 7690 grahpics card. Don't know if she was right.

The Blue Ray option is "currently not availible" and she couldn't tell me more about the display, the IPS displays are manufactured by LG, the Envy one is not one of thoes, its a new one manufactured by HP.
I don't really believe the display part, but just telling you what I got to know so far.

So, if every one of us just calls and asks them about the missing stuff, we should be able to figure out in the nex hour:

1.) which grafic card it definitly is
2.) GDDR3 or GDDR5
3.) Blue Ray availible
4.) IPS panel

i guess that's all that we need right now

BTW that's the number 1-866-807-7196 and it's toll free (afaik)

 

$20 is mighty cheap insurance to have the factory recovery discs on-hand just in case something bad happens later on.

 

Why is the coupon code not working for the non-3D 17"?

 

yeh but if you read above, you can burn it yourself for much less.
i prefer custom installs anyway, but like to have that disc just in case.

kinda unfortunate. perhaps we'll get one later on, but will it be another 33% off?

actually, how often does HP offer the 33% off coupons based on past experience?

 

HP simply chose not to include the non-3D Envy 17 on the 33% discount coupon or the $400-off coupon.

 

What about the DDR3 1333 MHz vs DDR 1600 option ? Is it even possible for the motherboard or a upgrade scheme screw up ?

 

Not really. I've burned recovery discs from the recovery partition before, and it's a time consuming process. My time is worth a lot more that $20. I've also had dvd discs I've burned myself go bad after sitting in a box for only a year. The organic dye used to manufacture burnable cdroms and dvd disks has a limited lifespan and sometimes spontaneously degrades rapidly without warning.

I'll probably burn my own set of disks anyway, plus get the factory disks too. I like being double sure I can restore the system if I have to.

 

The HP site ( HP Envy17 | HP Envy) says 1GB GDDRV5 for graphics and up to 16 DDR3 for RAM. I think HPs had GDDR5 for graphics on other models too.

Looks like BR won't be available in the Envy 15" for the time being.

I think HP quotes the displays as IPS radiance in this YouTube vid - Hp Envy 15 Redesigned - YouTube

 

I'm wondering the same... There's only a $20 difference at the 8GB level and if the mobo supports the faster memory speed that would be a bonus, unless the CAS latency on the dimms is way higher, then there wouldn't be as big advantage as simply having lower-CAS 1333 memory. Too bad HP doesn't give us all the tech details of the memory. Knowing what the CAS latency and timings are of each type would be very helpful.

 

I'm shopping the ENVY 15 and I know the 2760QM CPU can take advantage of DDR 1600 while the lower end processor 2670QM and 2430M cannot. Now as far as the mother chipset is concerned I can't comment but, I imagine its a Intel HM67 or HM65 chipset.

 

Don't forget that when using maker-provided recovery discs, the support process can be simplified. I once had another maker try to deny me support because they thought my recovery discs were compromised. Of course they backtracked because I had photos of the unopened maker-provided discs I used.

I have burned recovery copies for other PCs before - it's not worth the time. Also it's really less than $15 by the time it's included in the 33% discount.

 

I didn't want 3d version, but it came out cheaper then non 3d with coupon, so why not.

 

Failing to specify the GPU model in specifications... not cool HP. Not cool.

 

That's what I ended up doing. I won't use the 3D. I have it on my TVs and BR players in 3 rooms and have yet to use it.

IMAX 3D - yes. Just about all others - no. On a PC - really, at that size what's the point?

 

As wild, unsouurced speculation, my guess is that HP originally wanted to use the new Southern Islands mobile GPUs, but found out late in the planning process that the 7000 series that would be available in December was going to be a re-badge, and are now hedging their bets between shipping the 'new old' 7000M versus trying to wrangle the legitimately new Southern Islands chips out of AMD in time to ship the new Envys by late December, which appears unlikely.

I wouldn't be surprised to see '1st gen new Envys' with the older chips and then a quick refresh in January, where everybody on this board who bought one out the gate will exchange it!

 

I just ordered an Envy 17-3D since the 33% coupon wasn't available for the regular Envy 17. Ship date is estimated at December 23rd.

Btw, I saved about $670 with the coupon. Not bad.

 

9:39:01 AM Long
Initial Question/Comment: Which graphics card is in the new Envy 15?
9:39:07 AM System
Nikki V. has joined this session!
9:39:07 AM System
Connected with Nikki V.
9:39:16 AM Nikki V.
Thank you for contacting HP Home & Office Store Chat. My name is Nikki. I’m happy to handle your concern. Let us get started.
9:39:56 AM Nikki V.
Based on your subject, you are concerned about determining the graphic card for the HP Envy 15, am I correct?
9:40:00 AM Long
yes
9:40:31 AM Nikki V.
I am happy to assist you with the search, Long.
9:40:37 AM Nikki V.
At HP, we lead in the marketplace by developing and delivering useful and innovative products, services and solutions.
9:40:46 AM Nikki V.
Please give me one to two minutes to check for you.
9:41:17 AM Long
ok
9:41:57 AM Nikki V.
Thank you. I will be right back.
9:42:53 AM Nikki V.
Thank you for waiting.
9:43:37 AM Nikki V.
The HP Envy 15 is a very powerful computer and is very convenient to use. It is a great choice, Long.
9:43:52 AM Nikki V.
With regards to the grpahics card, it has the 1GB Discrete Graphics AMD Radeon(TM) [HDMI, DP].
9:44:28 AM Nikki V.
This means that the laptop is very perfect for intense graphics and gaming since it is with the AMD card.
9:44:35 AM Long
do you have the model number of the AMD card?
9:45:27 AM Nikki V.
I can check on that for you, Long. That is a good question.
9:47:37 AM Nikki V.
Thank you for waiting, Long. The graphics card of the HP Envy 15 belongs to the AMD Radeon 6700M/HD 6600M series.
9:48:05 AM Long
is it the 6770 or 6790, there is a big difference between those two cards
9:48:15 AM Nikki V.
Unlock striking imagery, true-to-life visual effects, outstanding tessellation performance and fast frame rates with DirectX 11 Evolved technology. And with AMD App Acceleration, you can run multiple power-hungry applications simultaneously with great speed and little effort.
9:49:12 AM Nikki V.
With regards to the graphics card, this is with the 6700M series.
9:50:07 AM Nikki V.
This will perfectly fit any applications, especially with most games of today, Long.
9:51:35 AM Nikki V.
Would there be any other questions that I can help you with?
9:52:20 AM Long
I know its the 6700M series, but there are multiple models within that series. So is it the 7670 or the 7690
9:53:01 AM Long
or which model number is it in the 6700 series?
9:53:23 AM Nikki V.
I see. Let me do an in depth check with this graphics card, Long.
9:56:05 AM Long
ok
9:59:33 AM Nikki V.
Thank you for waiting.
10:00:18 AM Nikki V.
With regards to the classification, I am seeing that the graphics card for this notebook under the 6700 series of AMD is with the 7670 class, Long.
10:00:57 AM Long
ok, that's what I needed to know. Thank you.
10:01:08 AM Nikki V.
You are welcome.
10:01:18 AM Nikki V.
Would there be any other questions that I can help you with?
10:01:28 AM Long
Nope thanks again


Looks like its the 7670 in the Envy 15.

 

Connected with Erica E.
09:40:41 Bill
Hello the new HP Envy 17" 3d lists graphics card as "1GB Discrete Graphics AMD Radeon(TM) [HDMI, DP]", Do you have information what model number of graphics card is it?
09:40:41 Erica E.
Thank you for contacting HP Home & Office Store Chat. My name is Erica. I'm absolutely able to assist you with this issue today, let's get started.
09:41:15 Erica E.
Let me check on that.
09:43:05 Erica E.
It's AMD Radeon™ HD 6870 GPU.

 

I just bought one Envy 15 over the phone, we'll see what I get. She told me it has the 6870 GDDR5 memory and the Full HD display is IPS. Also, no blue ray availible and the WiFi is Intel 5300. We'll see how much of that is true, at least that's what I could get out of her after 30min on the phone

cool, so I am not the only one who was told 6870 another sales rep told be 7690 before, maybe thats the rebrand, would make sense. The one I bought from said that the 15 and 17 have the same graphics card.

 

whats the exchange period with HP laptops?

 

I think it's 21 days if you buy before the end of the year, but don't quote me on that - I thought I read that they extended their normal 14-day period for the holidays.

 

I just off the chat with a "Michelle" from HP and she stated the graphics card in the 17" is a AMD Radeon HD 6620G with 1GB. Surely she has to be mistaken.

 

Lol so now they're not even saying its a 7000 series? I guess even HP doesn't know what the hell is goin in these things.

Honestly, a 6870m would be great news to me, as it will be faster than the 7600's.

 

There's no way the 6870M is in the Envy 15, when they couldn't even fit the card in the original Envy 17.