R3000z vs. ZV5000z - questions

I am probably going to purchase a laptop soon and I've narrowed it down to these two. I have a few questions first though.

1. There is no real difference except the case, correct? I like the Compaq case better externally, but the HP better internally. Is either one more tough, heavier, etc? The speakers are different I know but I won't use them much I don't think. Just for system sounds. Any music will be thru headphones or ext speakers.

2. Is the 15.4" WVA WSXGA+ (1680x1050) screen a Brightview screen? On either? Or is only the 1200-whatever screen available in Brightview? I like the 1680 as I like having lots of screen real estate to multitask and overtax my systems. My eyes are fine with that as well. 1900 sounds insane though.

3. Should I add Bluetooth at a cost of 50-78 dollars (depending)? I have no Bluetooth stuff at the moment but I figure I should do it now because it doesn't look like I can add it later (internally).

4. The HP says it comes with a "slimline" adapter whereas the Compaq is a "universal" adapter which I've heard is a brick. Are they different?

5. I don't see much reference to what warranty options people are buying with these. I am probably going to buy mine at Costco.com and the warranty options (upgrades) aren't available. Should I care? See next.

6. I'm probably buying it thru Costco.com. Anyone have experience with them? I like that you can return any product from costco.com to the Costco (=Price Club) store for 6 months, probably no questions asked like all their returns. That makes me feel a lot safer having read some support horror stories. I am competent with computers but new to laptops so I want to be sure I have a chance to break it and get rid of it early if need be without a restocking fee or shipping etc.

7. If I buy a 40gb drive to start with and upgrade it later, does a 7200rpm drive consume more power or produce more heat etc? Or is it just faster with no or few side effects? The 80gb 5400rpm is a $100-125 upgrade, depending. I have them config'd for the 80gb for the purposes of this comparison.

8. If I get it with 1 512mb stick so I can upgrade it later with another 512 or a 1gb stick, am I going to have problems with memory compatibility? Would it just be wiser to spring the $125 and get a GB to start out with?

Configured exactly the same, the HP is $1,582.99 + $50 rebate = $1532.99 and the Compaq is $1,517.99 + $30 rebate = $1487.99. Not a hell of a lot of difference.

 

Brian, thanks.

which one do you have?

2. I don't remember seeing an HP without Brightview in the stores, but that doesn't mean they all have it of course. Do you have an HP w/o brightview?

3. I am going to be using the computer to bring with on service calls on others' computers, so it could come in handy if they have Bluetooth problems. Also wireless accy's are neato.

4. Which one do you have, the Compaq or the HP? Is your adaptor huge? I don't care that much but it is something to consider.

7. How much was your drive? And what size is it?

 

1) The only diffs are the case and speakers. The guts are more-or-less the same, if not identical.
2) Only the 1280 res screen is Brightview. I like my 1680x1050 res screen.
3) Bluetooth... tough call. I really like having a Bluetooth wireless mouse. It wasn't as expensive an option for me since 802.11g wasn't "free" at the time.
4) Dunno.
5 and 6) Dunno. I generally distrust extended warranties.
7) My 7200RPM Hitachi is currently at 38C. Power and heat diff versus a 4200RPM HD is negligible. VERY worthwhile upgrade. If you're comfortable with swapping drives and doing a full OS reinstall (no big deal for anyone with modest technical ability), buying the cheap HD and doing the swap is the way to go.
8) Given that you wouldn't save much money upgrading later, buy 1GB from HP. You're reasonably safe adding Crucial/Micron or Kingston RAM later, I don't think I've read any reports of either of those failing. Infineon gave me trouble but I think BIOS R.12 fixed the Infineon and Samsung RAM problems. Wouldn't swear to it though.

 

Oh yeah, how do the keyboard and touchpad compare between the two? I'll have to hit the stores again and see how I feel about them. I really like the whitish keys on the Compaq because I can see them in dim light, but the HP does look much cooler inside IMO. Anyway, durability? Anything else?

Thanks.

 

I have the zv5000z with 1680x1050 res (not Brightview, since that's very recent and 1280x800 res only). The adaptor is fairly large, weighs about a pound and a half. I bought my 60GB Hitachi 7200RPM drive for over $200, they're $160-$170 these days (see Newegg.com, MWave.com, ZipZoomFly.com, etc). Durability is good, they're well-made machines. I think the keyboard is the same between the two except for the inverted colors. Wireless range is excellent thanks to the two antenna panels integrated behind the screen (I can see several neighbors' networks). The only major flaw is that the GPU is too weak for serious gaming. And you have to go through the nuisance of swapping in a proper HD. Otherwise it's a great notebook.

 

i have a 15.4" WVA WSXGA+ (1680x1050), i know this isn't brightview but my question is how does the screen stack up against a 1280x 800 brightview? i just bought this computer & would hate to have an "OLD" type screen.

 

By the way, I wonder if one could just buy the Brightview filter somehow and stick it over the higher res screens. I don't know if there's really much more to the 'technology' than a high contrast filter.

 

I've seen the two side by side, though not the 1920. I think the picture looks somewhat better on the brightview but the higher resolution is obviously better (for me) than 1280x800. Although I could make do with that, why should I when I can get a lot more done on the higher res screen? I figure I'll never be sitting more than a couple feet from the screen so I'll have no problem reading it and I can always hook an ext. monitor to it either way. If I want to watch movies, I'll hook up the TV to it. (Or use the coffee-table-mounted movie/recording computer.)

Basically, if you've seen the VAIO and other glossy screens you've seen what the brightview looks like.

 

Well I only really have something to add about the screen. I opted for the brightview screen. I looked for info on this for a whole day and the the main reason I went for it was because everywhere I looked people were saying "I will never own another laptop without bright view". So I went for it. It hasnt arrived yet it just shipped form China last night but it was over 4 days early. good job hp!!!

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by tekniq