The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    dv6000 F.3D BIOS - Shorter Battery Life?

    Discussion in 'HP' started by Bog, Jun 3, 2008.

  1. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

    Reputations:
    4,018
    Messages:
    6,046
    Likes Received:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    206
    Ever since upgrading to the F.3D BIOS supplied by HP I have been getting less than 2 hours of battery out of my HP, where before I had been getting 3+ hours.

    For those who don't know, the F.3D BIOS updates the fan controls to run constantly at the lowest RPM as a preventative measure against heat damage to the computer's internal components.

    Has anyone else had these problems?
     
    Bog, Jun 3, 2008
    #1
  2. The_Observer

    The_Observer 9262 is the best:)

    Reputations:
    385
    Messages:
    2,662
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    If it forces the fan all the time,that might be the reason for lesser battery life.
     
    The_Observer, Jun 3, 2008
    #2
  3. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

    Reputations:
    4,018
    Messages:
    6,046
    Likes Received:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    206
    Does anyone know which BIOS allows for a higher RAM capacity for the dv6000 model?

    It would be great to rollback to that version (to keep my 4GB of RAM) and undervolt my X2. That way, I could probably squeeze around 4 hours of life out of this thing.
     
    Bog, Jun 3, 2008
    #3
  4. brianstretch

    brianstretch Notebook Virtuoso

    Reputations:
    441
    Messages:
    3,667
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    105
    I'm pretty sure that it was only Intel notebooks that had 4GB RAM issues, so any BIOS version will let your AMD laptop use all 4GB.

    But you risk cooking your notebook if you don't use the F.3D (or later) BIOS so I strongly advise against downgrading. Make sure power management is enabled and check your battery health with HP's battery check program.
     
    brianstretch, Jun 3, 2008
    #4
  5. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

    Reputations:
    4,018
    Messages:
    6,046
    Likes Received:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    206
    I decided to take the risk of overriding the F.3D BIOS with F.3B, the version immediately before it. Temperatures under D were idling at 54-58 degrees Celsius; the temperatures are actually a bit cooler with B, sometimes hitting 52 degrees Celsius. The fans occasionally shut off completely until the CPU hits 58 degrees again.

    I will test the battery life at the first opportunity.

    I have checked for any dv6000-related recalls; there is a warranty enhancement for customers already experiencing the effects of heat damage to their internal components. For those who are curious, the BIOS version F.3D was released to prevent these issues outlined here:

    http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01087277&lc=en&cc=us

    Strange, seeing as my computer seems to be better off without it.
     
    Bog, Jun 4, 2008
    #5
  6. ahe

    ahe Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    1
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    I have the same fan problem as described here after installing bios F.3D. And now it seems HP have removed all the previous bios files from ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq! As i don't have any of the older files stored, i'm stuck with this noisy ****! (running RmClock, undervolting, temp currently 30-35C...)

    So, if anyone could email me those older bios files i would be really happy! Any version that doesn't have this fan-always-on enabled would be great.

    Thanks :)

    aelvebakk at gmail.com
     
    ahe, Aug 23, 2008
    #6