Waiting on Envy 17 3D thread...

Sounds awesome. I cant decide if I want to splurge for the Bluray player or not...

 

not sure I understand. Do you own an Envy 17 already? If not, the Envy 17 3D comes standard with the Bluray player.

KJ

 

Finally got my girl to hold the camera long enough to do the unboxing vid. Here ya go...

YouTube - HP Envy 17 3D unboxing

Booting it up for the first time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKjrNNAkMsQ&hd=1

UPDATE - Just tried MW2 at 1080p res, 2x AA, and everything else maxed, and I'm getting on average 50-90fps. I switched between 60 and 120hz and there is no difference in framerate, only a sense of smoothness about it all when going to 120hz. It's nice.

 

Engadget just posted info that HP will be refreshing their line of Envy models with Sandy Bridge. Guess I'll be returning my Envy 17 3D that I just got on the 29th of December. They better refund my drop and spill protection plan too!

 

I just want to know what the new price will be before I return mine (which i got for under $1200. also want to see if the new 6850m is a whole lot better or not.

 

Ok Im at my 20th day with my laptop. If I m gonna return it I better do it now. Only thing is I ask myself if its gonna be worth it.

 

If I were you, I'd do it. This is the only chance you've got to get the full refund price of your laptop. Non-Apple second hand laptops, you'll always loose a ton of money on.

 

Ok DONE.. just got my RMA number and its on its way back. I like the Envy 17 3D as it is, but the overheating issues worry me to no end. So if Sandy Bridge runs alot cooler that alone is worth it, everything else it offers is a bonus. So the waiting game begins once again!

 

AMD Radeon? HD 6800M Series Graphics


YES!!!!! The 6850 will have HDMI 1.4a support!!! Woot! Now we can watch 3D movies in full HD 3D on our 3D capable TVs with HDMI cables using our Envy 17 3D refresh SB edition, love it! This is what I've been hoping for....

KJ

 

it appears that the 6800 is the same as the 5800 just looking at the spec sheets, they look identical, with just some speed bumps here and there.

the 6900 and the 6700/6600 appears to be new chips, the rest of the line is going to be a basic rebrand.

 

Well, the point is, HDMI 1.3 was what the 5850 has so no 3D output to 3D tvs. The new HDMI 1.4a will be on the 6850~ Now I understand some are saying the 5850 is a bit more poweful than the new 6850, but the 6850 is gonna be better in DX 11 with tesselation....hmmm I wonder if making it less powerful is what will keep it cooler, or is it really less powerful? I'm no techie here, so I need help, but one person stated the 5850 is better at OC than the 6850, lol, not that HP allowed us to OC the 5850 anyway...bah


KJ

 

The 6900 series is based on the desktop 6850 (blackcomb):
AMD Radeon HD 6970M - Notebookcheck.net Tech
AMD Radeon HD 6950M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

the 6800 series is a rebranding:
AMD Radeon HD 6870M - Notebookcheck.net Tech
AMD Radeon HD 6850M - Notebookcheck.net Tech
AMD Radeon HD 6830M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

The 6700/6600 is a new chip vancouver is thy name:
AMD Catalyst 8.783.2 mobile driver by ACER exposes Vancouver GPUs

The 6500 series is a rebranding:
AMD Radeon HD 6570M - Notebookcheck.net Tech
AMD Radeon HD 6550M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

The 6400 is a new chip vancouver is thy name:
AMD Catalyst 8.783.2 mobile driver by ACER exposes Vancouver GPUs

I hope that it clears things.

On the nvidia side it appears that it will all be rebranded

 

Wow, so the new Envy 17 will have a rebranded GPU. LAME

 

Best bit of information on those 6900 series - 256 bit. This thing will fly in conjunction with GDDR5.

 

lets hope that they dont skimp on the shadders too!

 

Hi friends,

My exchange came in excellent conditions:
-No warps
-No dents
-No dead pixels

Still warmer than normal temperatures and REALLY LOW battery life.

It will be returned for a full refund by 1/15 and will be waiting for SB + AMD 6800 series (HP dv7, Envy 17, or any other better alternative).... I just realized that I don't need all the fancy features in the Envy (illuminated keys, 3D glasses/panel, slot-loading discs, etc.) although the 1080p screen and the graphic card are worth to look at it.

A huge HDD and Blue-ray is not a priority thing but the processor type/speed, ram, graphic card, screen type/quality, battery life, and temperature are.

 

I bought mine at Costco.com and my 90 day return period is up in March so I need to decide whether to wait for the SB version to come out and order it then return current one or just return current one and hold out for the SB version. Has anyone heard anything as to when HP may have the updated Envy 17 with SB available? Sounds like the SB is the way to go especially with the longer battery life and better cooling. The graphics support for wireless display sounds like a great idea as well.

Just the other day, I had signed up for the Total Care including accidental damage coverage. I wonder if I would be able to transfer that to a new machine.

 

HP will have a sh*tstorm of people returning their Envy's. I guarantee they will pay us to keep these laptops - I know Dell did for the Alienware R2 guys.

If HP offers me $100 off - I would have gotten this laptop for $1000 w/tax. If that's the case then I have no choice but to keep this thing. I can make a profit out of it by craigslisting.

All I really need to put is "Plays 3D blu-ray" and I've got customers.

 

exactly, i ended up selling my envy 15 beats edition for a profit even after i'd owned it for 8 months... got this one for under $1200, should sell for $1500 easy, especially to eager overseas folks.

 

several of us have posted this link today!!!

HP Infuses New Consumer PCs with Latest Technologies - HardwareZone.com


Looks like late Feb. As to price I do hope they are mistaken. Are you kidding me about a $400 and $500 price increase!? Not many will buy it then. I do think its a mistake, but we'll see.

I wonder also if this price increase is due to the fact so many of us are now returning their Envys back to HP....and they are not happy with the loss, so to make up for it...they are gonna overcharge us...bah..please be wrong. With all the upgrades I get, mine might go up to $2700, and I have no intention of spending that much.

KJ

 

If theyre taking a loss because of all the returbed laptops its their own fault. They release a "new laptop" with older technology and 3 months later re-release it with the newest and freshest of everything and dont expect a load of returns? They should have held out of releasing the Envy 17 3D until Sandy Bridge came out

 

100% agree! Also, they should have put in the HDMI 1.4 support in the first place I would have been happy. But, its water under the bridge. Let's move on and hope that the prices listed are just errors.

KJ

 

They didnt held the release for the 3d envy because they needed a laptop that could fill in that niche before xmas.

not everyone is going to return the laptops, specially if they got as a gift. You guys have to remember that not everyone knows that you have a return period. Nor that they will notice the difference between the new hardware and the older, and make the sensible choice for the new.

There are other consumers who follow the if it aint broken dont fix it philosophy.

The volume of returns will be high? its only wait and see, no way of knowing that.

 

End of February? That sucks, I was hoping it would be instantly available. Ah well, guess I'm going Dell afterall then, can't wait 2 more months to get a laptop I need now.

 

Apoxxx, I hear ya, but consider getting a "hold-over" laptop from Costco in the meantime...until the new Envy 17 3D comes out. After you get your new Envy, you can return the "loaner" from Costco and you will be a happy camper Just a suggestion. Got to love Costco for that. A while ago Costco used to have a 6 month return policy on computers and tvs but they finally wised up, lol. 3 months is good too.

KJ

 

I wouldn't be surprised if they are delaying the Envy availability just so current owners can't just return it and get a new one.

 

That is a good point.... but those of us on here do know! I love NBR, without it I'd be up the creek without a paddle.... Too bad I found NBR a little too late. I came onto the NBR scene a week after HP discontinued their short lived $400 coupon for the Envy 17 3D

KJ

 

Speaking of the $400 coupon, whats the chances we see something like that for new Envy 17 with Sandy Bridge? Being that its gonna cost more that cooupon is gonna really be in demand. I dont plan on missing out on that one like I did this last one. MMUA HAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!

 

Heck ya!!!! I might have to be on here 24/7 because this site would know first if there is such a coupon and I don't plan on missing out on it this time.... come on NBR come through for us and show us the COUPONS!!!! Please.... lol

KJ

 

the delay is because the i5 chips will be launched in the middle or so of Q1.

The only chips available are the quad cores.

CES hasnt even started right yet (today is only for the big boys), and we only got a leak from yesterday commenting about some part of the hp line.

So following the train of thought that you guys use, HP is going to cut the elitbook, probook,, half the envy, half the dv, half the dm, compaq and some other lines due to it not being leaked before CES, they are actually only going to sell the dv6, dv7, envy 17, and the dm1, along some desktops.

That actually makes sense?

 

6850m = rebranded 5850m

Turns out to be such a deal breaker for me, why can't they slap the 6950m in there? Such a better GPU.

 

I know....but HP will not go that extra step up for some odd reason. I swear, I won't mind paying another $100 or so for higher FPS graphics...but for some reason HP is scared to go that route.

I mean, the Envy has such a classy, sexy chassis, with wonderful features, Bluray, Bluetooth, 1080P, now HDMI 1.4....etc...but yeah, its ashame, but still, I have not seen a better looking, put together laptop that would turn me away from the Envy, I still want one and am willing to wait a couple more months.

If I had tons and tons of money I'd buy a Eurocom system!!! Just found out about them this very morning, wow...I customized a panthom 2.0 that came out to more than $13,000....I kid you not. Try it.

Eurocom Corporation - Number 1 in Desktop Replacement Notebook Technology


KJ

 

Ok, I just called HP and made it official!!! Return label sent to my email..Envy 17 3D will be going back Monday. I'll miss it, but looking forward to the refresh.

On a side note...I pray that HP will NOT lock our GPU BIOS this time around so we can overclock it like I hear the Envy 14 people are allowed to do...argh, so not fair! lol

Oh, on another side note I find it interesting that HP returns do not even question why I am returning it...afterall it is my second Envy 17 3D return. First one was for body defects which HP corrected, this one of course we all realized there is no HDMI 1.4 even so no 3D on external TVs...bah. But she never asked me. Was polite and easy to deal with....

KJ

 

i'll return mine on monday too.
I just hope 2 things, the new one out before feb and pricing within 200$ increase.

 

Hahaha, oh boy... noodle9527, I am sure I am not reading it right, but you are hoping for a $200 increase? Lol, you mean decrease? Which of course won't happen. I doubt it will stay the same price. I am sure you meant as I do, no more than a $200 increase right? I could live with that.

Still, I would not mind paying even more if HP would kindly take my request to cutomize mine with the HD 6970. Seriously, why do they offer only one kind of card spec? If we have the money to pay, they should be glad to accomidate..weird. Again, I hope to at least be allowed to overclock the HD 6850.
KJ

 

lol, i meant to type within but in a rush so that came out

 

@killa joe, try to configure this one, it uses a desktop i7 processor, I dare you!
GAMING NOTEBOOK Clevo X7200 Core™i7 Gaming Notebook, 17.3" Full HD Glossy LED LCD, NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 460M / 470M / 480M SLI® Graphics : AVADirect Custom Computer Configuration

And HP cant put the 6900 series cards in the envy, the cooling wont handle it, unless they start to drop some of the features. The 6900 is for gaming notebooks, like the asus g series and the boutique AWs

 

The 5830 in a chassis like the Envy 15's was already considered ridiculous. 5850's in 15.6" often end up being very bulky and heavy unlike the thin and light Envy 15. The only other company that pulled it off was MSI and their GX640, but that laptop I heard with the 5850 (that you can overclock like mad) can easily overheat without proper care. Envy 15 had to strip away the optical drive to add in three fans split into two separate heatsinks (that is right, two heatsinks) to cool efficiently the 5830.

So don't expect 6900's in an Envy 17, especially that thin and lack of proper cooling design to manage to sustain heat from it. If you need a gaming laptop, get ready to shell out big bucks on the big names like Alienware, Asus ROG, Clevo or Sager and live with the bulk and weight. Even Asus struggled to keep a GTX 260M cool and efficient in their G51's and they had to cripple the later G51 revision with the GTS 360M just to sustain heat.

Laptop's biggest weakness is cooling. Their potential gets crippled on the fact of cooling and HP seems to can't decide if they want a gaming notebook or a thin and light. Based on how the cooling system works in the E17, they definitely won't make the 6900M series a reality on top of that thin chassis and integrated optical drive. Something has to go from the current design in order for it to work and that is fatten it up or ditch the blu-ray to add more copper pipes and fans.

 

cant agree more with you there, and this is worrisome we are agreeing too much lately

 

Great minds think alike.

 

Thanks, it is a nice system. I also discovered eurocom.com, amazing laptops that you can configure to max if you have enough cash...$$$$$ I was looking at their Phantom 2.0 and playing with their configurtion before purchase and mine came to over $13,000! So I'll have to settle for medium game play for now.... I love the Envy 17's design and majority of features.


KJ

 

Anyone who spends $13,000 on ANY type of system would need to have their head checked. =) Just MHO

 

Right, but it is a fact you can do it that is the funny part.....sky is the limit.

 

You're right and if its for sale than someone is actually buying it. Crazy.

 

Lol $13,000 is nothing. Check out their D900F Panther Server. The on I configured came to $18,258. Now THAT is a beast.

 

Finally did some game benchmarks on my Envy 17 3D with some of my friends, in the video they voice some of their opinions of 3D, and of the laptop.

Left for Dead in 3D (1 of 2)

Left for Dead in 3D (2 of 2)

Starcraft 2 in 3D

 

I will add these to my Envy 17 3D YouTube videos thread in a few hours...I need to get some sleep, thanks!

KJ

 

So the dv7t quad edition on HP.com's site allows for a Bluray writer configuration!!! I am hoping they give those who wish to purchase the Sandy Bridge version of the Envy 17 3D with the option to get it with a Bluray writer....but this of course would have to be a 3D bluray writer and I'm not so sure HP would put such a drive in its machine....

KJ

 

So I just got off the phone with customer service, and I'm very happy! I wanted to return the laptop, and was concerned about getting a refund for the protection plan as well. The CSR was very polite and professional, telling me that they will refund the protection plan. There was no hassle or any issue. She even told me the total refund amount that will be credited to me when I return my Envy 17 3D.

The whole process went very smoothly. She emailed me the prepaid return shipping label, and stayed on the line to make sure I had received the email. She did ask why I was returning it, and I said that the palm rest gets to hot under use, which is true. She informed me that the new Sandy Bridge versions of their laptops are coming, and asked me if i would like to exchange my Envy for the SB version of the DV7. (straight up hassle free exchange!) I politely declined, saying that I would just wait for the SB version of the Envy 17 3D. She had no problem with that at all. I was still able to return everything for a full refund, and don't even have to pay shipping!

All in all I am very satisfied with their customer service and definitely interested in buying more HP products in the future, like the Sandy Bridge Envy 17 3D, whenever it comes out, and/or the HP ZR30, whenever I get the funds, lol.

 

I had the same pleasant experience when I returned mine. I also gave the same exact reason for returning it. Hopefulyl everyone said that so they can finally address this heating issue.