Potential Envy 14 Buyer Questions

I'm currently looking at laptops and the Envy 14 really looks like it might be the one for me. I have a few questions I was hoping some Envy 14 users could answer for me.

1. I'm leaning towards an i5, but the i7 options keep beckoning to me. From my reading on the forums the i7 seems to be discouraged, but most people seem to have i3s or i5s. Are there any i7 users who could talk about their experience? How is the temperature and the battery life?

2. The thing that really swings me towards the Envy 14 is the Radiance (1600x900) display. When I checked today, that option was no longer available. Does HP do this often, and how soon would you guess the option would be back? Would it be possible to order the radiance display if I ordered by phone?

 

I can't comment on the i7 vs i3/i5 (I'll be going for the i5-520M, personally), but the fact that the Radiance Display is no longer being offered at the moment is really discouraging. I called HP Home Sales today, talked to a representative and he told me that it was being offered, no issues. I got home, checked online, still no option - what the hell?

 

Like some members have pointed out it could just be that HP is low on supplies and if you really want one with it with the Radiance screen you could always call sales and buy it that way.

Regarding i7, I think the performance gain is not really worth the extra heat and the lack of switchable graphics option. i5 all the way.

 

That seems to be the popular opinion, but I notice everyone who says it has an i5. I am hoping someone with an i7 might share their experiences.

 

My guess is that the removal of the radiance option is a supply and demand thing and will probably be available again in a few weeks. To give you some idea, about 2 or 3 weeks ago, HP removed the option for i7 processor from the Envy 15 order menu and yesterday they added it again.

Regarding whether to get i7 or i5, unless you are doing really, really demanding tasks, it probably won't help very much and the i5 will get better battery life. I got the i7 with the E15 mainly because it was the only way to get 16GB RAM and USB 3.0. I needed 16GB RAM for things like rendering motion graphics and working with extremely large image and video files in multiple creative suite apps.

 

You're seeing mostly people with i5s because the vast, vast majority of buyers don't need the i7. The i7's sole purpose is if you're planning on doing some heavy video encoding or number crunching (IE not 99.95% of the population). Otherwise, you'll have less heat, more battery life and switchable graphics with the i5, all of which are what make the 14 such an interesting choice in the first place.

I mean, personally, I wouldn't be picking a 14'' laptop for video work, I'd take a desktop replacement 17+'' or downright use a desktop. I guess most people are that way, too.

If you want details, look at the battery log thread. You'll see the difference the i7 makes on the battery.

As for the screen, yes, this is a really really bad thing that HP is doing. I'm guessing they're out of stock or something. Whatever the case, try to wait until they have the Radiance in stock; you'll be thankful you've waited. Truly stunning screen.

 

I'm interested in ordering ASAP, do you think ordering over the phone would allow me to get the Radiance Display?

 

Only one way to find out.

 

Hi

Can someone tell me the difference between the 14,5" and the normal 14" (like Dm4t) display ratio? Ist the Envy just wider or also higher/lower in hight size?

Thanks

 

Dm4 is 9 inches high. Envy 14 is 9.3 inches high.

And to the OP, no, there is no way of ordering the Radiance Display right now, so you're pretty much SOL if you wanted an Envy 14. My advice would be to explore other options while keeping an eye on the situation.

 

Problem is only 14" or smaller laptop with dedicated GPU and high res screen is the Envy 14 and Sony Vaio Z. Otherwise you step up to 15" screen, which may be ok though, especially if you're not that interested in battery life.

 

At the mo I'm concidering:
Envy 14 (but only if radiance display returns)
Dm4
Asus U43
Asus U45

The HPs definitly have the better screens, but worse touchpads. U43 also comes with usb 3.0 and WiDi.
I'm not a huge gamer but I'd like to play Starcraft 2 and have the optionof a decent external display output. Not sure if a Nvida 310m will be enough...

Any thoughts?

 

Hi guys I am in some kind of Dilemma and could sure do with some advise. I am in the market for a new laptop and obviously my first choice is the Envy 14. However It is not that easy because of some of the issues I have been reading concerning QA on the laptop. Some have reported that their model works fine but a large minority of users have complained of CPU/Fan noise and in some cases badly built hardware. Now I wont be bothered by all this issues if I was living in the US were I can easily report the product and probably get a new one right? well I live in Nigeria and was hoping to buy this system through a professor who would be coming to teach at the university where I work next month. I would really not want to have to stress him further with the hassle of returning the laptop with him when he leaves and help me get a reformed me and him are not bodies and helping me get this is enough favor from him.

My Question (About time I know )

- Could it be that most of the folks reporting issues with the HP Envy are early adopters and as such such issues have been corrected in recent builts of the Envy. from The poll chances of getting a "defective" unit is quite high. I just want to know how many people have gotten the laptop say this month or later encountered same issues.

- The CPU/FAN issues is it something which can be corrected via a software (i.e BIOS) update in which case I can always cope with it and wait for an update to fix the issue.

- How bad is the CPU/FAN issue. is it something which I can live with even if it is not fixed. and how bad is the Envy QA is this a rare case affecting some systems (hence a case of silent majority of happy users not having issues with their envy) or is it really something to be concerned about. Especially if in my case chances of returning the Unit is very limit or very expensive.

My other alternative is an HP Probook 4420 not as sexy but at least there seem to be no complaint from that side and it is well supported here in Nigeria by the HP people here so even if I have issues I can always find someone to fix it. (Not sure about Envy though)

last question is for forcloure in case am not getting the envy.
How bad is the 1366x768. My current laptop is dell m1330 (non LED version) with a 1280x800 and so far am quite happy with it (yeah its a case of what you dont know can't kill you - more or less ) is the 1366x768 a downgrade from the 1280x800?

I know my question is long am sorry for that I just have less than 24 hours to make a decision and I want to make an informed one I would really appreciate inputs

 

I ended up getting the second or third batch and the only issue I have is with the battery. The fan is pretty much on all the time but I can tune it out pretty easily. Unfortunately, you'll have to argue a bit to get the higher resolution screen for the price that we paid.

 

From the sounds of it, most issues were product launch growing pains. Just QA snafus that HP let ship out the door. Bad on HP's part, but seems most people now have little to no concerns.

 

I've had a different experience than this. I've now had to return three envy's and the issues have been getting worse over time. The most recent one came in just this morning and had a hinge on the right side that was scraping against the frame, there were deep scratches on the left side of the trackpad, and there was a gap between the frame and the base on the left side I could slip a credit card into.

It sounds like most people have been happy with their Envy's so statistically you should be ok with your purchase. Just be aware there are those of us that have received extremely poorly made products with little to no quality control.

 

Yeah I thinking along the same lines especially since most recent batches seems to be happy with their by. Guess I might just take a plunge

 

I am really looking to buy this laptop ASAP but I have the same problem as 9twalker; I cant return it easily if its defective but I was wondering if there was any way to see when a new batch/edition is due to launch so I can increase my odds of getting a non-defective one. Do they display that information or is it internal? (I cant find it anywhere). thanks for any input.

 

Hey, I'll comment on an i7 setup.

i7-720qm, 4gb ram 1 stick, SSD, 16x9 screen.

Well, since I don't have any experience with the i5, I do have to say the battery life on the i7 isn't great. It's around 2 hours, so I can watch one movie or do some surfing at a coffee shop. But it bleeds power.

My last computer was a Q6600, so for me to spend over 1k on a computer, I just felt that couldn't get something with the same processing power as my last computer.

That said, I've found he i7 to be a dream when running everything I can think of. I have some virtual machines that I use for programming environments, secure systems and insecure file testing. So overall it works out.

I think that with the i7, I just have to carry the charger around, which doesn't bother me too much.