HP Compaq 8510w Review

Knowing that my school has now picked the 8510w as the laptop for next year's students, are there any known issues with this model that we should be aware of before giving out these laptops?

 

Provided they ship with the latest bios updates and driver releases etc, I don't think there should be any problems.

 

Did any of the BIOS updates fix anything significant?

 

A BIOS update from January fixed a major bug which could cause GPU crashes/VPU recovery alerts. But all machines since should come with it pre-loaded. Other than that the BIOS updates only fixed minor things.

 

Good to hear.

How are the nVidia graphics and the accompanying driver for it on the 8510w? Because at this point, my entire school is pretty fed up with the ATI graphics on our current nw8240s and nw8440s. Even video stability on these models is just not good.

 

They're very good. My brother has a Quadro 570m and it runs everything he throws at it (general office stuff, photoshop/editing, web design, school work, occasional gaming) without any problems.

 

Very good.

Other 8510w testimonials, good and bad, are welcome as well.

Thanks

 

I`ll just say my NX is 2.5 years old and still kicking(use it daily), how`s that for HP`s bussiness class? Not too shabby

 

Today was my first day at my summer internship, and the company that I work for uses 8510w laptops. I was able to play around with one that had most of the same specs as the 8510w laptops my school will be giving students next year:

- Intel T8300 Penryn processor
- 2GB RAM
- 120GB HD
- etc....

My initial impressions were very positive. I noticed three main things. First, it's very snappy (of course, I'm coming from an nw8240, but still, it's very quick within Windows even when there's a lot of applications running). Second, its battery life is much better than previous models. I was seriously using it for well over 3 hours before I plugged it in and the battery wasn't even close to completely drained. Lastly, I was very impressed with how cool the 8510w remained, both on AC power and on battery. I had an nc6400 with me that was on but doing absolutely nothing. I was installing software left and right on the 8510w, and still, at no point did the 8510w get warmer than the idle nc6400. Impressive. Really, the only real downside I found while I was using it was the touch-sensitive controls at the top (a little inaccurate and better left as tactile buttons).

However, I did find a possible bug (or just a problem with that particular unit). Just for reference, the unit had the latest BIOS update on it. I'd appreciate it if those of you with an 8510w would try this out for me. I did this while I was plugged in to power and running Windows XP (not sure if this makes a difference or not). Turn down the screen brightness and put the laptop into standby mode. Bring the laptop out of standby mode. After I did this, I found that the screen would be back at maximum brightness until I turned the brightness level up or down and then it would go back to that setting. It wouldn't be the same brightness level coming out of standby as it was going in.

Like I said, it could be that specific machine, but does anyone else's 8510w do this?

 

We need more user opinions like these who confirm that the HP's workstations are just as good, if not better than the Thinkpad T61p. This thing is a solidly-engineered machine and anyone who discounts it simply for the fact that is is "HP-branded" and not "Thinkpad" should take a serious look and reconsider.

About your brightness issue, I'm having the same issue. Basically, it takes on the value set by Window's power options.

 

Not to start a war or anything, but to call a thinkpad "average" is kind of like calling a Mercedes the equivalent of a Ford. Thinkpads are much better than average, but I wouldn't say they own all notebooks. But for sure, they are better than 75% of the notebooks out there in terms of engineering and build quality.

I believe all business class notebooks have great build quality. The Dell Latitudes, IBM/Lenovo Thinkpads, and HP workstations (not too sure what they're called) are all pretty much comparible with one another IMHO.

 

That wasn't my intention. I've removed that misquoted term.

Unfortunately, most people don't see it that way.

 

...What? Why? The screen should have the same brightness level coming out of standby as it did going in. My nw8240 doesn't even do this.

This is a bug, not a "feature."

EDIT: And it is a simple bug that can be fixed by software. This is not a hardware issue.

Also, I again today was just overall impressed by the 8510w: Truly a great mobile workstation that is a joy to work on.

(...And then I come home to my 8240... XD )

 

I hate to bump this, I really do, but does anyone know if HP would ever fix this issue?

 

I have read carefully all the posts (I have tried)...
I have still doubt: are screens on 8510p and 8510w the same if 8510w has 1680x1050...
I really cant make decision between those 2 models, course ati 2600 seems enough for me...
I everything other the same???
thanks

 

To me, the decision is pretty simple: Do you need workstation graphics? Go with the 8510w. Otherwise, go with the 8510p.

And a quick update since the last time I posted here. I have my 8510w now, and for the most part, it's great. But the brightness issue is still here. Has anyone figured this out yet or at least figure out what it's related to (the BIOS or the video card driver)?

 

Interesting on the failed boot.

I've just asked my work to order me the 8510w, as I'm currently using a self-purchased Dell XPS1530 and as there's no TPM chip in it I can't bitlocker the thing.

Anyway - back to the failed boots. I've been experiencing the same thing on this Dell XPS1530, and it has the Penryn in it (someone else asked in this thread).

The source of the problem on this machine seems to be a human/boot/process thing. Here's how it goes.
1. take laptop out of bag
2. open and press power on
3. drag power supply out of bag & plug into wall
4. plug power into laptop, WHILE it is still booting
5. Vista/Windows boot screen (with the little green bar moving left to right) just sits there scrolling away endlessly until I hold down the power button and turn it off/on again.

Now - If I do the above but plug the power either BEFORE I hit the 'on' button (ie. still completely off), or AFTER it has booted to login screen, it's fine.

So it seems to me some type of effect on either the BIOS or Vista by adding A/C power whilst it's in the middle of booting buggers is up somehow.

Cue twilight zone music now...

Not sure if this is exactly the same as your problem - but try it out. Boot it with no juice at all (or already connected) and see how often it completes, versus adding the juice mid-boot (which is possible the most common laptop user process in the world impatient people that we are... just HAVE to hit the power button before plugging in the juice don't we! ;-) )

 

Oh, and can I ask one question on the HP8510w.. where's the friggin integrated webcam HP?!?! It's all this machine seems to be lacking to make it the complete package.

 

Hi there, My manager has a 8510w system and is getting a black screen during startup. She then has to do a hard reset, taking out the battery, and then it works. Does anyone know if this a known issue and if there is a patch she can install to help her.

Thanks!

 

I noticed a view of the internals on the 8510w... Does anyone know of a breakdown document so one can take this thing apart?

 

Hi, I've just bought an 8510p and mine is doing this exact same thing. Out of standby, it comes on at full brightness, until I hit one of the brightness keys (up or down) then it resets to where it was before standby.

Was there any resolution to this issue?

Cheers!

 

Hi my laptop overheats completely. the temps i saw with HWmonitor under high performance mode at the time were:

Core 1 100C
core 2 101C
GPU 98c

They were still climbing. i had to turn it off before it all died, but now im thinking i should of let it. If the notebook dies under warranty your entitled to a new replacement right?

Could do with it being replaced actually. next to the screen bezel is cracked which stops the screen closing properly. and the charge doesnt charge unless its adjusted in the laptop plus the battery seems to be knackered(wont hold charge) and this notebook is just shy over one year old (about 14months)
I have 3yrs warranty on this minus the 14months. So how could i possibly get a replacement.

Thanks to anyone that can advise me.

 

^ Well it seems to me that any one of those things warrants a replacement. Why didn't you take it in for a warranty replacement when you saw the bezel problem or the battery problem or even the overheating problem? Any of those things would get you a replacement. At least here in Oz it would. What are you waiting for?

If you're in a dusty environment, your fans may be full of dust and not cooling the unit properly. Take it in for a clean at least, and see if that helps.

Personally, I wouldn't put up with any of those problems.

 

i no i would, but my gf uses it and under her care its gotten like this. i wouldnt say she abused it but how it came to that state. and if it wasnt for the fact that whilst it was away she would want to use my 8530w. "HELL NOOO" would i let her want to use it since the problems caused under her care. so i need something crap in order to send it away.
But just one of those problems caused is enough to warrant a likely replacement tho?

 

I got my 8510w today..the screen looks pretty awsome until I updated the lastest driver by win update. Does anyone know how to bring my screen become brighter?

 

try holding the "FN" and the press the brightness keys. maybe you could turn off ambient light. makes it ultimately brighter then.

 

The driver coming with windows update hacked my backlight too. Try using the drivers from HP ( hp 8510w drivers and other software). I'm not sure if it matters, becuse i did a lot driver (re)installs, but do not spare any reboot during the process (uninstall driver, reboot, install new one, reboot).

As a new 8510w user, you might want to read these:
http://eddietse.blogspot.com/2008/03/hp-8510p-fan-noise.html
http://eddietse.blogspot.com/2008/03/patching-dsdt-table-for-8510p-to-reduce.html
Works for me, and the machine didn't get much warmer but it got much more quiet when idling and a bit more quiet under load. You can play with the numbers to find the balance between noise and temperature.

 

A month ago a bought an 8510w, used but in pristine condition with the same config as the review. (I have owned the 8510 predecessor, NC8430, for 3 years.) The original 8510w review is right on the money. Some comments:

1. All of my NC8430 peripherals work on the 8510w--batteries (including the two versions of the external batteries), AC adapters, and docking stations.

2. Fan can be loud, especially when docked. (The GPU runs at higher clocks when the laptop is docked, causing fan noise to increase.) It is similar to the NC8430. I did remove my keyboard and look for dust, but there was none because the laptop was little used; I have not done the Arctic Silver mod. Do not buy the 8510w if fan noise bugs you, especially if, like me, you like to dock your laptop.

3. Keyboard is good (better than Inspiron 1720 and Tecra M7), but I prefer the nc8430 feel and layout.

4. I expected a big boost in gaming performance compared to my NC8430 (Core Duo 2.0ghz, ATI X1600) but surprisingly the boost seems minimal at best, at least in my favorite (and old) game, Halo. My 3dmark06 score is a bit higher than the review (at the same settings)--mine was 4180. Maybe the 2009 drivers helped the score.

5. The gpu is overclockable using Rivatuner. (I did not overclock it when running 3dmark06.) Mine is stable at 650/1300/800, peak temp 73 c when gaming.

6. Windows 7 is a vast improvement over Vista on this machine, so if you can get it cheap it's a good upgrade. This is especially true if you use hibernate a lot; Win7 is MUCH faster hibernating and resuming than Vista.

7. The wuxga screen is not so good, unless you need it for CAD or something. It is dim and colors are washed out. I much prefer the wsxga of the NC8430 which is bright and crisp.

 

I got my 8510W 2nd hand on 31st Jan 2009 and it is still running great! Screen has been replaced by HP(nothing wrong with it, just a bit yellowish) and I upgraded the HD to 500gb. Although I use it everyday during the past 2 years, it is still running strong. Probably one of the long living laptop I ever had.