Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
I am done with the HP sales department. It is a joke.
From what I understand from various threads on this forum, the SmartBay is essentially the slot in which the optical drive comes shipped. The optical drive can be removed by the user, allowing the user to replace it with:
a. weight saver (that comes packaged with the laptop)
b. hard drive caddy
I read that this can be used as the hard drive caddy. You can then place a 2.5" SATA drive inside and use it as a second hard drive.
My questions:
What is meant by the "Onyx" and "Bronze" editions in the product description to the caddy linked to above? What is the size of the HDD that comes with the dv4t? Is it possible to take the HDD that comes with the dv4t and move it to the hard drive caddy in the SmartBay drive and use a SSD as the main hard drive? Is the SmartBay hot-swappable? Can I remove the optical drive and replace it with an HDD while the computer is still on?
Has the fan issue been resolved? One of the sales agents says it has, but I have a feeling she had no idea what I was talking about. Based on what I've read on the dv4t Owner's Lounge, it seems like people who have received their dv4t's in more recent times have reported consistent noise results (loud at bootup, then quiet in non-intensive work). But it seems like the fan is still fixed to high settings after waking the computer from sleep.
How accurate is the rated 8 hours of battery life with a 12-cell battery in non-intensive work? How much of an improvement is the 12-cell over the 6-cell in terms of fan noise and heat?
Thanks
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Just to expand a bit
When the DV4t was first released it came in Onyx or Bronze. The Onyx versions are black with chrome appearing wrist rests and side bezels (i.e. where the remote fits on the left side and cd drive on the right). The Bronze versions were pretty much entirely bronze including the side bezels. The HDD caddies with matching bezels (i.e. chrome or bronze) were offered as an option on the original CTO notebooks. While I havent looked at the newer color versions in person, it appears (at least from the pictures at HP) that the sides are still chrome. They may have changed the texture a bit but Id guess the Onyx (i.e. chrome) would match pretty well with the new units.
Moving the original HDD to a caddy and using a SDD for the primary should not be a problem as long as your new SSD is a standard 2.5 SATA drive. Hot swapping works OK for the cd drive (I did it once just to see if it worked), but +1 for Lithus comments. Im not sure its something Id do as habit, and turning the unit off prior to swapping is sound advice (just to be safe). Besides that, the release switch is under the unit making the swap a little ergonomically awkward anyway.
Last, we have the config. below with a 12 cell and again Lithus is spot on. Running with balanced power settings and surfing we get just over 6hrs. A bit better with the wireless off Id guess . But I havent done a specific test and my daughter never turns the wireless off because when she uses the little blue button it kills the Bluetooth mouse. You can work around that by using the wireless assistant but thats just too much work for a 15 year old.
Weve had our Onyx version since last Christmas and its been flawless. It doesnt travel much (daughters room to the den on a lap tray) and is only used about 3hrs a day but she enjoys it and it does everything we ask of it quickly and without issue. No fan noise issues either. I think perhaps thats attributable to the P series 25w processor, Intel GPU, and the lift the 12 Cell battery provides increasing air flow under the unit. You hear the fan briefly at BOOT, but thats about it with the fan set in BIOS to always on.
dv4t Questions
Discussion in 'HP' started by Gossling, Jun 7, 2009.
