Waiting for Envy 17 3D SB thread

One can also do this:

Purchase with the 1TB drive and simply replace with whatever they want. The 640 GB drive, when I made my purchase, is a Samsung. That particular drive can be had for $60. OR...get the Western Digital Scorpip Black 750 GB for $109. Still cheaper than the SSD option. Luckily I placed my order with the 640. HP should really reconsider...you don't put a Toyota engine (5400 drive) in a Premium car (Envy)...you really bottle neck it...

 

Well that's still $60 or $109 extra on top of the $50 they already added to the price, and this for a laptop that can only compete with it's design.

 

ok couple of quick questions. I just purchased this laptop before they added the 50 dollar charge and changed the hard drive options. I choose the 640gb drive option, but when i check order status it says no orders have been submitted. My card has already been charged, do you think they will disregard my 640gb option and give me the 1TB hard drive option? Second this computer comes with dual hard drives correct? because i have a 128gb solid state drive that i want to add. If it does comes with dual hard drives, do i have to purchase anything in addition? also i purchased the 3 year accidental damage plan do you guys think its worth it?

 

It has two drive bays, but if you order it with only one drive you will need to purchase a drive caddy/cable kit if you want to install a second drive. This has been covered a few times in the thread, check page 99 for the most recent time this was discussed.

 

Thanks fiver5 for the response, but I just saw this thread today and there were more then 100 pages so I'm sorry for not looking through all of them. But I would like to get your opinions on the hp accidental damage plan, I purchased it for my envy. Does any one have any past experiences with the accidental damage plan, and how well HP is with fulfilling the plan. Any info would help

 

wow! they definitely made some content changes out there! I didn't see the $50 upcharge for the "SSD + 7200' option though, at least when I checked just now (late Sun night)

I wonder if that price hike was a mistake. right now this option is priced just as before (580 more than the single 5400), although I can see the $50 penalty imposed by virtue of taking away the 640 7200 single and forcing the 5400 single. I sure don't get why that happened...

yea that's total craziness. before SB, the std Envy was very nearly if not exactly the same price, when fully loaded to look like the 3D model. now its 200 more, which I don't understand at all -- they really soak the customer in processor upgrades --- and the display upgrade for std Envy is 150 now instead of 100!

One can only hope that the warm bodies in the sales call center can smooth things over.

+1 Bobmitch I can't see it either. I'm thinking some crazy supply issue maybe, either too many 5400s around and not enough 7200s; it just doesn't make sense.

happily for me, my desired config is still the same price as it was introduced as: 2289

oh - and one more silliness I see out there -- HP still has got the flash product demo for the std Envy 17 calling out the 5850 GPU

 

For me, the critical thing is the touchpad.... can you drag with right mouse button, and MIDDLE-click (and preferably even middle-drag) with it?

How about pressing right and left buttons with a slight delay... can you get both pressed at once?

I have a Magic Trackpad, and it's nigh unusable -- you can't hold down the right button for right-click context menus!

 

VectorX, well, I'm glad you and your best mate found a laptop you can enjoy. Your straight forward honesty should be heard by HP themselves. This is something they would benefit from.....


KJ

 

The STD Envy 17 SB has been posted but it doesn't seem to have switchable graphics so the battery life is still only 2.25 hrs. I called in and asked to confirm that this isn't a mistake and they said that it wasn't. They seem to have upgraded the GPU on the DV7 as well to an AMD 6770m so I just bought a DV7 Quad Edition with a $325 coupon instead. I think its quite a deal.

All for only $1099 plus tax.

HP Pavilion dv7t Quad Edition customizable Notebook PC
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• 2nd generation Intel(R) Quad Core(TM) i7-2720QM (2.2 GHz, 6MB L3 Cache) w/Turbo Boost up to 3.3 GHz
• 1GB Radeon(TM) HD 6770M GDDR5 Graphics [HDMI, VGA]
• FREE Upgrade to 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 640GB 7200RPM Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• No Additional Office Software
• No additional security software
• 6-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery (standard) - Up to 5.25 hours of battery life +++
• 17.3" diagonal HD+ HP BrightView LED Display (1600 x 900)
• FREE Upgrade to Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam with Integrated Digital Microphone and HP SimplePass Fingerprint Reader
• Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
• Standard Keyboard
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope

 

I received the machine today. It DOES have switchable graphics. In device manager I have the AMD HD6850 AND the Intel Graphics chip...so YES...even the machine with the 2360QM has switchable graphics.

 

So who is going to start the SB owners lounge thread ?

 

very nice! cant wait to see more of your unboxing posts. start a new thread and maybe the mods will move it for you!

 

fiver5 she looks beautiful!!! Oh, and the Official Envy 17 3D SB thread is up. Please post your review on it there. Congradts....wow...

KJ

 

Yes, absolutely, for those who don't need that gorgeous 1080p display, the DV is very attractive. BTW std SB Envy also has switchable graphics (see the product flash/demo -- although they forgot to mention the 6850 they did mention swtchable graphics.

 

@Vector X : seems like the SB Envy 17 is available in Belgium too, I don't think you're gonna wait very long to be able to buy it in Netherlands

 

Woot, my Envy 17 3D SB is "shipping"!

On a side note, I was about to order the HP slim 90w laptop power adapter for my Envy (since I had to return the last one when I shipped my last Envy back) when I did some research and found this one instead:

Thermaltake ADP95W0003 AC Adapter - 120 W - 5 V DC, 19 V DC | Overstock.com

The interchangeable adapter heads look like they have the right angle on them and if it can truly put out 120W in a slim design without having to "dumb down" the cpu like the HP does, then this might be a great WIN! It's cheaper than HP's too. I'll let you know how it works out once I get to try out my Envy with it.

P.S. I'm assuming the new Envy ships with a 5lb brick like the old one did. Not very mobile when you travel which is why I liked the HP slim one but hated the idea of slowing down my processor.

 

Creating my recovery discs now...then I will clean up and play

P.S. Called the customer support team. These machines are SO NEW that the model XG360AV isn't in the sytem. Tech support has my two year warranty registered...now just waiting for my additional 2 years with Accidental protection to get put in and good to go. HP has called me three times in the past hour over this. Their customer support is really impressive.

 

Bobmitch, thanks for the close up pic, very nice. I noticed that the edges are nice without any noticable gapping, also the click pad seems like its not above the edges.... you have a good one my friend. So you are copying this on DVDs? Is it only asking you for 5 discs?

KJ

 

I was thinking that once I get my system, I would go into device manager and completely disable the AMD HD6850 device, just to see what all would and wouldn't work. Is that even necessary to test switchable graphics? Or do we automatically know it works just because we see both the 6850 and the INtel Graphics chip in the device manager?

 

Well there are two things to test/verify, imho

1. disable the 6850 and see what works on the IGP. for example, what happens when you try to play 3D or DX11 materials. in other words, verify exactly what the IPG will do and what it won't do

2. Enable automatic switching and, using content verified to work in (1) above, test the switching scenario itself to verify the experience. does it flicker, what happens to the app if it is running during the switch, do you have to restart the app, etc.

 

How do you "enable" automatic switching? Is there a built-in HP or Intel program for that? Or is it just enabled by default?

 

Not sure I would disable the AMD 6850. I checked in Device Manager...Even the Intel graphics chip is running off the AMD Drivers...check it out!

 

sweet. that answers a question many of had -- so AMD really DID tackle this! yea I didn't mean to imply disabling the 6850 in device manager necesarily, although that would be amusing, to be sure. I meant configure switchable graphics in a way that gives you confidence that you are using the IGP. Details i'll leve to you Bobmitch since you are playing with it already!

 

Still doing my normal work while I play with this thing. Around 6PM CDT, I will be able to do more...

 

There is a system tray thingy that lets you manually switch the active GPU.

When you remove AC power a prompt also comes up to warn you that you are about to switch and lets you confirm the action.

 

nicely done hp

 

Very nice!!

 

HAWT.....God those laptops look so sexy. Now I'm getting envious....I should be placing my order soon. Just waiting for a few things....

 

I do hope you mean waiting on some good coupons! That is the only way to do it my friend. Good luck. Hope when they come up with some, the good people here will post them up.

P.S. I do hope they bring back the 640GB 7200 HDD option too.

KJ

 

Lol you ordered yours right?

 

I've been following this thread for a while, and this is what led me to finally buy this laptop. I finally get mine friday, but it's been really hard not to get excited with all these infos coming in from those who got theirs already. The laptop looks awesome!

 

Finally the Sony Vaio SB 3D is out, I was a bit excited since I like the design there, but it turns out it only has the GT 540 GPU, and not the advertised GT 555. This is a huge step down from what they said, and with no option to upgrade, it's definitely a dealbreaker.

 

I can tell you first hand...from experiences with HP and my son's laptop (Pavillion) and just dealing with registration and customer care over the past week...HP will blow Sony away any day any how...

 

Yeah Sony charges a $420 premium to upgrade to the fastest CPU, and insane $750 to get a 256gb SSD (I have one of the fastest, and paid $450 on ebay).

I'm not one of those guys who'll cry on the phone about every single small issue, and ask for refunds or a new laptop because of a dent, dead pixel or a flex in the keyboard, and say their customer service is bad if they don't give me 50% off etc. Consumers are waaay too spoiled these days.

Having them replace a defective laptop or take care of a warranty issue at all is good enough for me. If they refuse, THEN it's bad customer service.

That being said, I doubt I'll go HP, the Radeon 5850 (6850) isn't fast enough for my use.

 

Hahah, yeah, check some pages back. I caught HP on a good day. $300 coupon meant for the Envy 17 and one day sale $100 off. Made like a bandit and ran, lol. Anyway, I'd have a hard time justifying a sale without a coupon at this time.

KJ

 

Sony...ewww but just to be open minded what Vaio model are you talking about? I couldn't find it on sonystyle.com....

You sound like you're 90% committed to buy Alienware....

 

Nah I'm not, the 3D Alienware uses a last generation GPU, there's just not any laptop on the market right now that suits me, so I guess I'll wait.

Sony has a great contender to Envy14 though, with dual core Sandy Bridge (i5 2410m and 2540m), 14" 1600x900 display and AMD 6630m.

I'm not interested in those small laptops, but just giving you a heads up.

 

Gotcha

Well I hope you eventually find one that suits your needs and I hope its the Envy down the road...just cuz you seem like an informed chill guy. So you def should be in the HP group haha.

 

I'm just sad the Envy doesn't have the option of upgrading the GPU. I'd pay $1000 more for a 6970 if it was available.
Cause apart from the GPU it's a near perfect laptop, especially if the switchable graphics is working, cause that means it won't burn your lap when not gaming.

 

Based on 3D Mark 11 score that was posted on this machine earlier of 1865, it is right there with the Asus G73SW Sandy Bridge laptop...and that has the GTX460M. I think we'll all be OK...

 

That doesn't sound too bad, but something isn't right then, cause the 460 is supposed to be around 25% faster.
(and the 6970 twice as fast, I want it )

 

Now, why do we still have conversation here? Shouldn't we move over to the owners' lounge? It's silly having to follow both.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-...hp-envy-17-3d-sandy-bridge-owners-lounge.html

 

LOL, I was thinking the same...in reality, both threads are crossing similar ideas....yet, the other thread really should be focused on those who have the laptop, and those who are asking questions to those whom have the laptop.... hope that makes sense.

KJ

 

Makes perfect sense to me. I'm still debating if I even want to buy an Envy so I've been jumping back and forth to keep up with the latest. Also following the MBP forums because that would be my alternative. I mainly work with video, pictures and music programs so the 3D thing is not a biggie for me. I'd prefer the Blu-ray in the Envy but again it's something I can live without. I'm not good at deciphering benchmarks and wondering how a fully loaded Envy stacks up against a similarly outfitted MBP.

2.3-3.4 GHz Quad i7 8MB L3 cache
8 MB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM
Radeon HD 6750 1GB GDDR5
Intel HD Graphics 3000/384 MB DDR3 SDRAM shared
Auto-graphics switching
128 GB SSD

edit: noticed that the MBP memory can be upgraded to 16MB but the cost makes it prohibitive to most.

 

The Envy is marginally faster, and alot cheaper. I wouldn't even consider the MBP unless you MUST have OSX.

 

I don't know if anyone noticed but the Envy 17 (not the 3D one) has been updated with the SB CPU and the 6850 GPU HP ENVY 17 series | HP Official Store hope they soon update the Envy 14 or bring back the Envy 15

 

Thanks Apoxxx. Though I'm more familiar with Windows, there's a lot I like about OSX as well. Mainly what I'll be basing my buying decision on between the Envy and MBP is build quality and bang for the buck. HP Canada doesn't offer a standard 2 yr warranty and customization of the Envy, otherwise I'd likely been leaning in that direction. In fact there's still no sign on their website of the update. At any rate, the next couple of months should tell the tale, thanks to those who share their thoughts and experiences here and at the Mac forums.

 

maybe 2.0 can close this thread, as we (really) are no longer waiting for the SB Envy.

 

Good point.... and those who are waiting, can join us in the Official Envy 17 3D SB thread. Less confusion for all.

KJ

 

On the verge of buying an Envy 17 for work. I can't figure out why the 3D is $200 less than non-3D even though it comes with glasses. A chat rep had -0- clue.

Has anyone been able to get a good discount, 10% off or so?

HP ENVY 17 3D customizable Notebook PC
$2,688.99
XW930AV
• Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
• No Additional Office Software
• 2nd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2820QM (2.3 GHz, 8MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.4 GHz
• 1GB Radeon(TM) HD 6850M GDDR5 Graphics [HDMI]
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 800GB 7200RPM Dual Hard Drive (SSD 160GB + 640GB 7200RPM)
• 6-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery (standard) - Up to 2.25 hours of battery life +++
• 17.3" diagonal Full HD HP 3D Ultra BrightView Infinity LED Display (1920x1080)
• Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam
• Intel 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
• Backlit Keyboard
• Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 9 & Adobe Premiere(R) Elements 9
• HP 3D Active Shutter Glasses
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
Estimated build date: April 13, 2011


HP ENVY 17 customizable Notebook PC
$2,888.99
XW929AV
• Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
• 2nd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2820QM (2.3 GHz, 8MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.4 GHz
• 1GB Radeon(TM) HD 6850M GDDR5 Graphics [HDMI]
• 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 800GB 7200RPM Dual Hard Drive (SSD 160GB + 640GB 7200RPM)
• No Additional Office Software
• 6-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery (standard) - Up to 2.25 hours of battery life +++
• 17.3" diagonal Full HD HP Ultra BrightView Infinity LED Display (1920x1080)
• Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam
• Intel 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
• Backlit Keyboard
• Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 9 & Adobe Premiere(R) Elements 9
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
Estimated build date: April 6, 2011