dv2530 or dv2535

If you had the choice of these two what would you pick? Actually, thinking more of me - if you were focusing on portability, battery life, power and for light gaming what would you choose?

Here are the specs:
http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/uk/en/ho/WF25a/21675-38187-38191-38191-38191-79745007.html

Would you go for the cheaper one with the dedicated graphics (I am not worried about this personally, I am also worried about it saying a max of ~800mb shared?...Will it prevent the OS from accessing this?) or the better processor with the X1300 shared GPU (cooler, extends battery life)?

Another issue is that the more expensive model does not come with a HDMI port that I would like to use instead of VGA...hmm.

I am having a hard time choosing! What do you think?

 

Well, the HDMI port requires one of those NVidia cards, so if that is a concern, go with that.

 

It is a small concern, simply because I could make use of it now and no doubt in the future it would be very handy as technology evolves more...But I am not that interested in the dedicated card simply because I do not game much and it drains battery. Having said that perhaps it would handle Aero better?

I am wondering if it is worth the extra few pounds to jump to the 1.8 processor and drop the GPU....what in real terms is the difference that 130Mhz makes?

Matt

 

You're probably not going to notice much difference.

Frankly, I would stick with the model with the dedicated GPU. I do not think the battery life difference would be that much better (but you might be able to find some comparisons to make sure); usually when you aren't actually doing 3D stuff, even dedicated cards usually don't use that much power.

 

OK thank you. My other great concern is the extra heat of the GPU - apparently this is considerable in the 2500.

Can someone shed some light on this line please:

What?....
Does this mean if I have 2gb total memory, only 1169mb of it will be available to the OS? Can someone explain that to me?

Matt

 

No, the shared memories are only allocated as and when needed. So, the system will see the full 2GB but along with the 64MB dedicated memory an additional 1169MB can be used by the graphics card if necessary.

 

That is a tough choice. I would probably take the dv2535 for the HDMI and 802.11n wireless (the dv2530 does not have 'n'). However, the nvidia choice will add heat to your system, thus killing your battery faster. I base this on a dv2500 review with the 8400M and without.

As for the processors, it is more than just a 130Mhz difference. The T7100 has a 800 FSB vs 667 for the T5450. Therfore the T7100 can handle more data at a higher speed. However, in everyday use, most people would never notice the difference.

If you don't mind losing HDMI, don't care about 'n' wireless, and value battery life, I would go with the dv2530. Also, the X3100 is designed to handle Vista Aero.

 

I would go with a separate video card. It'll have it's own memory and thus doesn't take away from the main RAM. HDMI is the way of HD everything in the future, like USB.

 

From reviews of other notebooks, expect discrete graphics like the 8400M GS and above to suck significant life out of the battery in comparison to the X3100 - on the order of 1+ hour for every 4.

 

Wow...this really is turning into difficult decision.

I do occasionally use laptops for games (GTA, A FPS called TC:E, I was looking at buying CS) but then battery life is important to me as I will be taking this to college and don't want to lug a charger around for a few periods.

I also don't want the extra heat as my current laptop gets hot and it annoys the hell out of me. And then of course I would also rather have the better processor...

I could of course get the 12 cell battery....but thats huge (and pricey!)

 

Consider buying a high capacity 6-cell. That should make up for the battery life loss from the dedicated graphics without adding to weight. The 12 cell, while big and heavy, does add much more battery life, lifts up the notebook for better typing and cooling, and can act as handle for easier one-handed (if you dare) portability.

I would personally go with the dedicated card. It opens up the possibility of having this unit replace the need for a desktop.

 

Dude,

I've had my heart set on the DV2560ea and have been waiting for it to be released in the UK for over 2 months to no avail. Called up HP today out the blue and was told that the dv6500 series has just become available in the UK for customised builds. You can choose your processor, RAM, wireless configuration, battery etc. So naturally, i went ahead and ordered one - decided to sacrifice the size of the 2560ea for the dedicated graphics & HDMI on the 6500.

Going down the customised route means you have to wait 2 weeks for the laptop to arrive, but you can also squeeze some good discounts out of the salesman, plus get the exact specs you want. There are great discounts on the warranties available too.

I bought:

Core2Duo 2.0Ghz
2Gb RAM
160Gb 5400rpm HDD
a/b/g/Bluetooth wireless
GeForce Go 8400 graphics
Digital TV Tuner (£42 extra)
12-cell battery (for £17 extra - compared to £100 retail) Does anyone know how much this sticks out the underside of the unit? I've heard it's not as pronounced as on the 2500 models?
3 year collect & return warranty with accidental damage (paid £150, retail is £260)
Plus all the usual stuff that comes as standard.
Paid £911 total - which I think is very reasonable considering the warranty.

I was all set to go for the smaller form factor, but got tired of waiting. If want to be able to customise the configuration so you get both the processor and the graphics card, instead of either/or, I suggest you give HP a call on 0845 270 4142.