UPDATED (WITH VIDEOS): dm4 / dv4 / dv6 / dv7 / g4 / g6 / g7 Notebooks (2012 Mosaic)

Very good assessment. And the Clevo W110ER 11.6" notebook with the GT 650m is looking quite tasty at the moment.

 

If only the W110ER had the ddr5 version that does not cripple at high resolutions it would be the perfect solution for people like me who want to have a portable laptop but be able to plug it in to some nice dual 1080p monitors (well having to use vga for 2nd monitor wouldn't be optimal but not a deal breaker imo), mechanical keyboard, and wireless mouse when at home.

As it stands I'll probably end up getting the dv6 with gt650 ddr5 and standard (read: crap) screen and put that saved 100$ (after discount) into dual dell u2312hm ips monitors for $200 each (they frequently go on sale for this price). You know buying the crap screen might even be better because the pixel pitch would be able the same as the 23" 1080p monitors and I could use it as a 3rd monitor for less critical applications like media players, or streaming al jazeera.

I do have a question. Most of the time do the 30%/35%/etc coupons for the dv6 require you to have a pre-discount price of over 1000$? This shouldn't be a problem for the i7 version, but I'm in China until august and surprisingly computers are expensive here so I wont be picking up the laptop until I return. By this time the i5 version should be out, but if I need to have a 1000$ base price to use the coupon, I might as well just get the i7 rather than paying for some overpriced ssd or something.

 

Yeah.. I checked the lenovo forum here and the new Y580 with the 660m looks a lot less attractive than hp's dv7-7xxx.. not to mention a lot thicker as you said.

Hmm 10%'s not really that much.. and price is definitely going to be a factor here but shouldn't a 660m with 2000MHz memory speed give a 650m dd5 with 900MHz a beating (as opposed to the 10% dif)?

 

That's what I believe also. however, the gigabyte p2542g seems to be an exception to that also we gotta c how the amd cards are goingt o perform

 

Frankly I have no idea how specs of video-cards translate to performance. However keep in mind that my analysis was based on the graph being true, and what we do know is that the more simple a chart is the more lies it contains.

I believe memory speeds are more relevant at higher resolutions. If the benchmarks taken were not on 1080p then it stands to reason that the 660m might break farther away from the 650m at that resolution leading to a gap in performance of over 10%. I'm sure someone with more technical knowledge about this could answer better. If you are not in a rush your best best is probably just to wait for some benchmarks of the 660m.

 

wingnut any new info about trinity?

 

Probably for the best that they haven't released these without IB. I am sick of waiting and totally would have ordered a SB with that sweet 650m and just regretted it in a few weeks

Also, not sure if it was posted before, but the 650m with DDR3 even is supposed to be comparable to the 560m, DDR5 is going to be even faster. NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

 

There were some benchmarks from the ddr3 and dd5 versions of the 650m from the clevo w110er and w150er respectively. They were only about 5% different, however the benchmarks were using a low resolution. The theory is that the ddr3 version will get crippled and preform 'significantly' worse than the dd5 version at 1080p.

 

That would be a shame, but personally I'm not overly concerned for what I intend to use it for. I really want 1080p for writing code, I can live with gaming at a lower res.

 

Next week? Confirmed with SB's?

Latest version of the HP Pavilion DV6 and DV7 revealed - Notebookcheck.net News

 

I really hope that the Dv6 will have the GT 650m as a choice, even with sandy bridge.

If that's true, then I'm not really sure weather I should wait for ivy bridge. From what i read the performance difference is minimal, and from what i understand the 2.2 SB i7 is plenty of power as is.

 

ivy is just a die shrink so a tad less heat+ alittle more battery life... for regular consumers there wont be much of a difference between sandy and ivy. However, most people want to say that got the latest tech

 

Is that a tad less heat with light use or heavy use? And for me battery life is note gonna be a problem as i plan on buying the 9 cell battery, as long as it is compatible with the old models or they have new ones for this model.

 

uhh i believe it is heavy usage... dont quote me on that lol but due to that less heat there is a 35w quad core ivy bridge i7 whereas all of the sandy bridge quadcores are 45w

 

Lol alright i guess i just have to see how long the wait for the ivy bridge is. If it's April 29th or beginning of May, then I'm gonna go for it.

 

You could order the new MSI ge 60.
MSI GE60 0N-006US - XOTIC PC - MSI 15.6" (GTX 650M) Gaming Notebook

Spoke to a rep today at Xotic PC. He said there is an "Intel embargo" so no information on what CPU it will come with, other than it will be a IB. If you pre oder it today, you will not know the CPU until 4/29. haha thats lame...

 

HP has already begun issuing driver updates to these notebooks even though they are not readily available yet.

It looks like certain dv4 models will have the GeForce GT 650M graphics option as well!

Version: 295.93
ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp56501-57000/sp56575.cva
ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp56501-57000/sp56575.html

From NVHM.INF:

Code:

[B]%NVIDIA_DEV.0FD1.189A.103C% = Section021, PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0FD1&SUBSYS_189A103C [/B]

Code:

NVIDIA_A = "NVIDIA"
NVIDIA_DEV.0DE9.181A.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M"
NVIDIA_DEV.0DE9.181B.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M "
NVIDIA_DEV.0DE9.181D.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M  "
NVIDIA_DEV.0DE9.1837.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M   "
NVIDIA_DEV.0FD1.181A.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M"
NVIDIA_DEV.0FD1.181B.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M "
NVIDIA_DEV.0FD1.181D.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M  "
[B]NVIDIA_DEV.0FD1.189A.103C = "NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M   "[/B]

 

Looks like if true then DV4 has an upgrade option in the graphics dept.

 

If this is true then then the hp will have the 2gb 650m ddr3 model!

Just check the device id it seems to be correct



BTW from the notebookcheck article

hp dv6 series hp website

 

let's not forget this
HP Pavilion dv6-7017tx Entertainment Notebook PC Product Specifications - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

"HP Pavilion dv6-7017tx"
"Video Graphics NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M (2 GB GDDR5 dedicated)"

so GDDR5 is still an option I believe

 

I see a benchmark of a 1GB DDR5 650m with SB (2760qm), and I hate to say , it is NOT that impressive.

Kepler-Notebook mit Nvidia GT 650M: Erste Benchmarkwerte von PCGH

A 12,357 3dmark06 . -_-

My a8-3530mx and 6750m overclocked can pull an 11,100 3dmark06, and an average SB+GTX 560m machine can pull a 15,000 3d06.

Did this guy run a test at gimped settings or do you think performance has been exaggerated? I really hope he had bad drivers or something.

EDIT: He must have messed something up, as this post shows a DDR3 card getting a 14,000
http://forum.notebookreview.com/8406849-post210.html

 

i really hope the dv4 gets the 650m dd5 cause im actually looking for a 14 in laptop that has a good dedicated card... however, wil its cooling be efficient?

 

I really wish the new dv4 at least had the option to upgrade to a 1600x900 screen. Then it would be PERFECT.

 

btw with all the deals coming out for the dv6/dv7 (my email is being spammed by hp academy) they must be clearing out their stock making room for the refrsh

 

wait what does it have now? only a 768p??

 

Unfortunately, yes. I haven't seen any indication that the screen can be upgraded to an optional 1600x900 screen.

 

well if thats the case dv4 is out the window but then the 650 ddr5 even ddr3 will be overkill i believe

 

There must be something dodgy about a GPU test where the only benchie run is with a 2 year old game eheh

 

Oh wow if the dv4 has the 650m ddr5 I am definitely going to buy it.

Do you guys think that one could replace the lcd with this 1440x900 matte lcd from the lenovo T420?

IBM-Lenovo THINKPAD T420 replacement Laptop LCD Screen from $55.99 Brand-new screens (never used).

 

No. Wrong aspect ratio.

 

First Intel Ivy Bridge launch expected on April 23 | Nanotech - The Circuits Blog - CNET News

Report: Intel Bumps Up Ivy Bridge Launch to April 23 | News & Opinion | PCMag.com

------------------------------
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-5...tests-surface-ahead-of-apple-windows-laptops/

 

Have we officially confirmed that the new DV's will have a backlit keyboard, or will we have to wait until they are released for "official" confirmation?

 

Wow I'm an idiot.

What about this one?
Alienware M14X replacement Laptop LCD Screen from $59.99 Brand-new screens (never used).

What I'm trying to say is I don't know much about installing aftermarket screens, and will it probably be possible (perhaps judging by the last gen dv4) if one could just swap in a nice proper size screen like the alienware or hp elietbook one into the dv4. From this website it seems like that would be cheaper than just getting an upgrade from hp even if they did offer one.

 

I'd say it's possible, but there no way of knowing without someone actually trying. The Alienware panel from the picture seems to have sort of bezel around it, but I'm not sure if that's removable. If you take a look at the dv4 panel, it seems to have less material around it.

 

No official conformation by HP, but notebook italia said that a back lit keyboard was an option.

 

Not really new to these forums (been lurking for years now) but first time bothering with an account.

So, I just bought a DV6t Quad Edition (2630QM, 7690m, 8gb, 1080p screen, etc) , should I return and wait for these Ivy Bridge models or stick with what I bought? I realize it's just a better IGP on the CPU and lower TDP but will it improve cooling on the HP models (and we all know how HP is with cooling).

Also, any prices for these models released yet?

 

I would say wait till your 20th day with the noteboot, see if Ivy Bridge is already out and what's the pricing on them.
If you are happy with your current model and the new one would end up costing like $300-400 more, would it be worth upgrading?
Do you game? if you do then it's probably worth upgrading to the new nVidia cards, from a gaming perspective.

 

If you are still within the return period, I would suggest waiting until they are released and then return it if the refresh turns out to be better. I just returned my dv6z earlier this week since my return period was running out.

As for cooling, the lower TDP of both the CPU (IB) and the GPU (Kepler) should in theory translate into less heat, but it also depends on the actual form of these new models and how the parts are arranged within, so we won't truly know until they are released.

Pricing should be somewhat similar to the current models.

With that said, if you don't really care for having a better GPU, battery life, or a backlit keyboard, I would say stick with what you got unless you absolutely have to have the latest technology.

 

Yeah, I do game but not as much as I used to and besides, laptops aren't really meant for gaming unless you buy one of those monster truck Clevo's or Sager's; too bad no reseller's offer financing options on those otherwise I would have bought one instead. Yes, I'm still within the return period I would assume, especially since I actually haven't received the laptop(or notebook as the cool kids call them these days) and won't until this Monday hopefully. Guess I'll have to see and I am tempted to return it since Nvidia is much more friendly with Linux than AMD ever was/is. I'm just worried they will be priced too high, I got this DV6tqe with one of those coupons floating around and it was just to good to pass up.

With or without those rebates they offer? Oh boy...

The first two I'll admit are tempting but I doubt they'll be much of an improvement, then again, I've only ever owned IGP solutions so who knows? I don't care about having the latest and greatest and I don't understand the obsession with backlit keyboards (why not just learn to touch type?).

 

I explained that i was planning on returning my DV6z (arrived 3/30), or exchanging it with the new DV6z-7000. After the rep. told me the new series was launching that day, April 9, she extended my return to 31 days to allow time with mine until the new one arrives.

Well that day passed, and it did not launch.

Just some food for thought.

 

Just in general. Companies usually always say you're getting a $500 rebate or whatever just to make it seem like your saving money even though they actually intended the price to be the "sale" price in the first place. There's probably going to be a 30% off coupon or similar at launch like other releases too. But again, we won't truly know until they are released.

 

With HP it's even more true than with anyone else. They have had 30-35% (or $400-$500 off) coupons on semi-permanent basis for the last couple of years. I don't believe there was a time period longer than a month when they haven't had some discount going on.

 

Sorry, I meant coupons and yeah, it looks like I'll be returning this one since (my fault) I've been reading online that there is a ton of problems with the AMD drivers for this laptop.

 

It is unfortunate, but fairly true. To enable dedicated graphics on battery you must change it in the BIOS; causing you to select when you want to use DGP vs. intel IGP.

 

Out of curiosity: are HP's 'back to school' promos better than these 30% discount coupons?

 

I haven't bought any laptops during 'back to school' season, but according to this, it's pretty much the same exact thing.

 

It makes more sense to look at HP laptop prices w/ coupons as regular prices, as oppose to the "extra-price" periods when no coupons are available, sort of "I want it now, don't care how much it costs" price.

 

Not the case with their AMD models now. Seems they only care about selling their Intel inventory for the last 2 months.

 

amd is already cheap compared to others in p[rice

 

Nope it isn't. I configure 2 laptops one with AMD and the other with an i5, everything else was almost the same except with the i5 they gave you more memory and the price difference was like $50.

Things is there's a coupon to get the i5 for either 35% off or $450 off for at least the last 2 months but no coupons or deals for the AMD.