averatec AV6130HS remarks

I too am thinking of getting this at Future shop next week. By the way that 1699 deal I think was only online buying because I checked at my local Futureshop and it was still listed at 1899.99 even though online it had the lesser price, and had no discount on the sign in store.

As well I'm looking at getting a Vantec cooling pad, they seem to be a good company.

http://www.vantecusa.com/product-cooling.html

Scroll down to the bottom for notebook coolers

 

rtms,

This laptop is available on 4Infinitech.com for $1350

http://www.4infinitech.com/Scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=1889

I bought mine through them with no problems. A bit of a language barrier, and slow e-mail response, but the unit arrived brandy-spankin'-new in the box.

 

Just ordered one from Sams online for $1198.00 Untouchable deal - for this high of quality laptop - anywhere. Except for the guy that got one for $700 because they couldn't find the box for it at Sams. [ ]

 

Just received my AV6130HS from Sams. Should I have received a users manual?

 

The manual is a pdf in the c:averatech folder. A bit cheesy, but it guarantees you have it with you always (unless you delete it).

If you're giong to use the wireless networking, make sure to press the little button next to the power button to activate the internal wireless card.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by michaelmuller

 

I'm glad I bought this notebook, it's awesome. When I bought it from Sam's Club, I bought the 3 year extended warranty. I bought one of those notebook cooler's so it doesn't get to hot and it works. If any of you are considering getting a notebook for this price, you can't beat it.
-andrew

 

Hey which notebook cooler did you get, since I'm looking for one as well. Does it fit well with the 6130HS?

I'm getting excited, I should be getting this notebook by Monday Sept.27. Getting the 2yr warrenty on it as well. From all the reviews here and in the magazines this is a pretty good solid notebook for the price it's at.

 

BTW, I just plugged in my new Linksys wireless router and I'm freeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Man, it's great to be wireless in my house finally. And I'm not being dropped every 10 minutes either, so it's not the internal card card on the laptop, it's the wireless router at my main client's office. I bought the Orinoco 11b/g Gold card thinking that would help (well, I'm sure it will but it didn't with the office wireless hub).

Once I have WinXP Pro installed, I'll be done.

...until I get the external firewire hd for the video editing!

 

michael wrote,

"....BTW, I just plugged in my new Linksys wireless router and I'm freeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Man, it's great to be wireless in my house finally..."

Glad to hear you got everything working. Wireless is great. I can sit out on my deck, and the signal is fine - provided I'm using my D-Link AirPlus XtremeG adapter. I generally always connect at 54mips. If I closer to the router, I sometimes can connect at 108mips! While that throughout is higher than a 10/100 LAN, I'm not sure if, in reality, that's what you really get.

redjr...

 

hey rtms,
I bought the antec notebook cooler from compusa for 40 dollars but i'm sure you can get is cheaper somewhere else. I had my notebook on all night last night and when I woke the next morning it was barely warm. You won't be waisting any usb ports when you plug it in because a usb extender comes with it.
-andrew

On a side note I passed my A+ test on wednesday morning. I'll receive the certificate from comptia in about 4 weeks.

 

I am looking at the same thing on the Sams club site. I noticed it did not say that it came with a DVD burner but the specifications for the 6130HS says there is one everywhere else.

Did yours come with a DVD burner or just a DVD player with the CD burner.

Thanks



<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by jedisolo

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by rg5million

 

When I went to Sam's Club last saturday the the notebook that i bought came with a dvd burner. What's cool about it is you can take it out and put a second hd in or a different dvd burner.
-andrew

 

Sorry.. ment to ask if the "...after market cooling fans/pads even work?"

 

I just got the 6130HS from sam's... It seems nice but I'm having the same problem that I read about in earlier posts.

The Wireless is very flakey. I can be right on top of my WAP and no go. I've talked to Tech Support (who were all very nice) and they had me reinstall the device. That seems to help in the sort term, like a kick in the pants, but after a while it will drop again.

Has anyone had/fixed this problem. I don't know what to do short of buying another wireless card which I can't really justify after dropping $$$ on a machine that's supposed to have one.

I like the laptop, but I really NEED this to work on a wireless net. If I can't fix it... it may be what makes me take it back to sam’s.

One other Q: Since the fans suck air from the bottom, do the cooling fans even work? Seems like the fan and the lap top would be competing for the same air?

 

What speed has everyone been burning DVD-Rs? I've only been able to burn at 2x max (the specs say 4x), and I've used 2 different brands of 4x dvdrs.

 

Not only is it probably WinXP Home (which should be replaced with WinXP Pro), but it may also be the wireless hub you're connected to:

1. The Linksys in my client's office drops me every five to ten minutes, and sometimes stays off for minutes. No one else has this problem.

2. The new Linksys I have at home (same exact model) drops me only every hour or so. Perhaps it's interference?

3. The hub a the local cafe never drops me, even though i have a low or medium connection with it. NEVER. So, who knows?

MM

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Arthurcw

 

Probably right about the $50 card vs., oh say, $1700 (w/o tax) for the HP Pavilion.

It is the Wireless on the laptop. My Compaq nc6000 (work laptop) stays connected 24x7 to the netgear router.

On a side note... I will be exchanging the Laptop for another because I just realized that it only has 256Meg of RAM. I looks like it’s got two simms inside. I'm not sure if one is miss-set or is bad. Anyway, I'm not taking any chances and am going to get #2 tonight. Maybe the Wireless will work better on the new one.

Thanks for the info about the fans. It runs a touch hot and in Houston summers, that can be a death sentence for a 'puter

 

Arthurcw,

Unless you got a re-configured puter, you should have 512meg installed. It's very unlikely that Sam's re-configured it. BTW, did the box look opened when you purchased it? It is possible that if indeed it was a returned puter, the orginal buyer may have taken out one of the 256 sticks prior to returning it. I've seen other such dishonest acts! My wife use to be in retail and she'd tell me all sorts of things unscrupulous people would do when returning merchandise. It's a shame. Let's hope that's not the case!

Anyway, that means there should be 2 sticks of 256meg each. There are two sockets in the 6130HS and I believe the puter can be upgraded to 2gig. My current memory configuration is 1-512meg stick and 1-256meg stick, for a total of 768. Works great!

Good luck on the 2nd one.

redjr...

 

Yeah... the machine had 2 dimms. One was either not set properly or was was malfunctioning.

I'm putting #2 through its paces right now. The Wireless will not stay connected at all on this one.

I also ran into someone else at sam's who was taking a 6130 back as well. they could not get it to work and when tech support tried to walk him through a system restore, the machine would not recognize the restore cd. He, like me, got a replacement. But I saw him 10 minutes later returning that one and getting the hp pav zd7000. He said, "heck, I'll pay the idiot tax to get this machine after the nightmare I had with tech support." Sam's just started carrying that HP model. It's A LOT MORE $$$$ (about $500) for about the same machine. the only real diff I could see was a better 17" screen, which may be over kill, and 20 more gig's on the HD.

As for his comment about Tech Support. I've called twice and they tried to be helpful (possibly not very knowledgeable--- but show me a large company Level 1 tech support that is).

I'll be running #2 all day. I'll drop a note with the results of my torture of it after I'm done.

 

Well, I certainly hope you have a better experience with the 2nd one. To bad the other chap didn't have a good experience with Averatec tech support. Thankfully, Sam's does have a goof return policy. Personally, I won't call any tech support - unless absolutely necessary. I refuse to talk to someone half way around the world that I can barely understand! You have a much better chance of getting something resolved on forums such as this one. Unless a puter is just dead(in that case exchange it), software issues can normally be resolved. Thanks goodness for the Internet and the wealth of information out there.

I have had some minor software glitches, but most I believe I can attribute to WinXP SP2. I quickly installed it after I loaded XP Pro, and I'm afraid some bugs still exist. Many problems can be resolved with latest drivers, etc. Hopefully, the general failure rate of the 6130's is not abnormally high. Overall, I think the machine is a solid performer in every aspect except maybe the weak internal wireless card. In time, Averatec will get the kinks worked out, and post the latest (tested) drivers on their website.

Let us know how you fair testing the 2nd puter.

redjr...

 

Ok... here are the results on Laptop #2...

As I said before, the wireless is useless. it's definitely the driver. it will work great for 5 or 10 minutes then die. If I turn the wireless off then back on it picks up everything (for the next 10 minutes or so). I tried to tell Averatec Customer care and tech support about the problem and they told me that, "There are no know cases of the Wireless not working properly and it must just be my setup." I guess they haven't read this forum or just about every review I've seen.

Customer Care basically told me to go away. I really just used this as a test to see what kind of service I would get if I need to get the laptop fixed under warranty. I was not impressed.

2) on the whole, everything else works great. The screen is very clear and not too bulky like the 17" ones. The keyboard is very warm but I intend to keep it docked and use a keyboard and mouse. The P4 screams! I can't wait to feel a bit more comfy and start moving my VB work onto the wide screen.

I have only one question left. The monitor makes a very loud chirping when scrolling and resizing windows. I don't remember that on the first one (however i was rather preoccupied with other issues. The only time i have heard anything like it is when an old VGA/SVGA monitor was about to buy the farm. Does anyone else have this issue and should I worry. The other laptop's I've used have had a slight chirp when drawing major color changes or resizing, but you have to be in a pretty quite room to hear them... this was discernable from a few feet away with the AC and TV on.

If you guys think the screen is suspect, I'm still gonna try one more time and exchange this one for #3. This thing is growing on me and I don't want to give up.

ACW

 

ACW, I mentioned my solution to your problem earlier in this thread, here is a copy of it. And to follow up since I posted this, I have yet to have a signal drop....ever.

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Frontier4x4

 

ArtherCW,

I don't have any issues or sounds with my screen. Totally quiet.

Still waiting for a weekend when I can wipe the drive and install Pro. I have the same networking issues as you, even if I'm sitting three feet from the hub.

Michael

 

FYI: I found the Ralink Tech web site and they had an updated driver for the Wireless card. I have been running it for a few hours now and have not had the drops I was getting.

I'll test it some more before I give out the link.

As far as the noise. It's a little un-nerving. I may get used to it but I think I'll try #3 this weekend just to be sure.

ACW.

 

Aurthurcw: FYI:" I found the Ralink Tech web site and they had an updated driver for the Wireless card. I have been running it for a few hours now and have not had the drops I was getting.

I'll test it some more before I give out the link."

could you send me the link? I wan to give it a try-- this has been driving me nuts

 

Ok Jasper24... With the caveat that I've ONLY been testing it for a few hours and that IS NOT a valid test. It may not work AND the driver installs its own config utility that disables some of the features in the Windows Wireless Network config.

Personally, I didn't care about that much cause the new utility is pretty nice. Not very user friendly but nice when you get used to it. I would have liked to have known this before I installed it though. Would have saved some frustration.

The bottom line is if you aren't used to networking you could hose yourself. But then again, if you were having the same problem that I was, you can't use the blasted card anyway. Ok... that was the long winded version of, "Don't blame me if it go boom."

http://www.ralinktech.com/supp-1.htm

I used the 11g version.

Check out the Forum. Some unhappy campers there.

sorry for the caps but BE SURE TO SET UP A PROFILE or you will do a lot of cursing like I did. It's equivalent to setting it up as a preferred net in the Windows config.

good luck.

 

Just purchased my very first notebook, the AV6130HS a few days ago and noticed that my lcd monitor has a dead pixel on it. Just curious to know if anyone else has noticed it on theirs?

 

Well, after reading and reading every single post on this message board, I have actually much to add to this:

I have owned my Averatec 6130HS-20 for approx 20 days and from what i can tell you, its quite asstonishing, but lets cut to the chase, the problems.

Like everyone, it IS the wireless thats a problem, which can easily be fixed with windows XP pro. turns out that the drivers that were used when installed from the images has incorrect drivers (try windows 98/2k or such) drivers, and windows XP installs a MSI driver that works well with it (if u go to windows update, and driver updates it will actually tell u to update the 'msi wireless g card').

Graphics, amazing, i've tested the computer with COUNTLESS games, including doom 3, sims 2, Quake 3, and any other high level game, and all ran virtually smoothly (doom 3 gave me nice 30-40 FPS while walking normally at settings set to normal with 1024x768 res)

Now one question: when those people that had upgrade to windows XP, did you do a FULL format and a FRESH copy of windows XP pro, or did you upgrade, and if so did u have a problem installing XP pro @ 13 minutes before completion of installation, because thats where i have had a problem at after my most recent formatting.

Thanks for the help
-Luis

P.S. Has anyone figured out a way to turn off the ANNOYING beep when turning on the laptop?

 

I also forgot to ask, those who got XP Pro running, did you notice that your cardbus stops working (the SD/MMC Card Reader), and also have any other users using XP Home, been able to use a USB Flash drive? because it says it detexts them, but can't access them... strange

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by catalyst_007

 

I upgraded to XP Pro shortly after I got my 6130. In my case, I decided to 'upgrade' rather than do a fresh install. [On my desktop systems, I generally will do a fresh install.] One thing to keep in mind is, even after doing a fresh install of XP Pro, you will still need to load up the latest drivers from the Averatec website. Since the 6130 is a new machine, WinXP MAY NOT have the latest (or correct) drivers in its database when it is installed.

I have noticed some funky behavior, but nothing real critical. For instance, after power down the puter with USB devices plugged in, I have to unplug them before power back up. Once the machine is booted, I can plug everything back in and it works fine. I can't necessarily attribute this to XP Pro, cause I use Object Desktop. This may be the source of some of my - less than critical - problems.

Otherwise, everything seems to work fine under XP Pro. The built-in wireless works fine in my hotel room with a Netgear Travel Router(WGR101). This one cool product that works as intended. You can simply use it as an access point from any wired ethernet port available. More information about the WGR101 can be found here;

http://www.netgear.com/products/details/WGR101.php

However, at home I always pop in my D-Link AirPlus Extreme G adapter card. It works all over my house, and on the deck - often times at 108mbps since I have the matching D-LINK AirPlus Extreme G wireless router in my home office.

I'm very pleased with the performance of the 6130, except for the limited battery life.

redjr...

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by michaelmuller

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by catalyst_007

 

Hi, I'm looking for an update on the averatec machine. Redjr, I thnk you've had it for a couple of months now in particular. I'm thinking of buying this machine this week and I'm wondering:

if anyone has found the relatively slow harddrive to be an issue.
if anyone has edited video with this machine (presumably using an external HD).
if any new quality issues have come up.
if you had to buy a machine today, would this be the one?

thanks so much!

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by questra

 

i've done some video editing, not much yet, but it is nice, when you render it is quite close to full speed. this machine has so much raw power that it is great for video editing. on intels site, they say the p4 with ht and 800 mhz bus is top notch for video editing. i would also have to agree with wipeout, but whether i would buy on today, i might try an IBM T series, i hear they are pretty good and have really good batt life, which the 6100 lacks on(1 hr and a half top battery time). but the 6100 is still a great machine and i wouldn't give it up.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by questra

 

Thanks everyone! I think I just might take the plunge. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

I love my machine, now 2.5 months old. I have yet to do video editing on it, which is what I bought it for, but I will soon enough.

The only issue I have so far is that a vertical pixel line at x-295, typically red or blue, has shown up when I first turn the machine on. It stays there until the machine warms up a little and I futz with the screen/lid to make it go away.

Also -- and I'm not sure if these are related -- a hairline crack has developed on the back of the screen (the lid) near the bottom right corner (if you turn the machine around and look at it from the back with the screen open). It starts about an inch from the bottom at the edge and goes diagonally to towards the top left about an inch and a half long. I'm thinking this developed because the hinge is so tight, but I don't really know. I've never bumped or dropped this thing so it's not that.

I called tech support today and they said I could send it in and have it repaired (manufacturers one-year warrantee), but that it would take about two weeks for me to get it back. Since this is my only machine right now I'll have to wait until I get another one to tie me over.

Would that other machine be another 6130? Probably not. While I love this machine and all it can do, I also need something that's a little lighter with longer battery life for the day-to-day coding I do on my client's premises. For that I don't need this hurculean machine... just a simple mobile processor with 256mb of ram, cdr, and any old hard drive, and maybe a better internal wireless card.

However, when I do demos to potential clients the big guns will come out. This machine never fails to impress.

Michael

 

I downloaded XP SP2 last night, and have had TONS of wireless issues since. So much that I did all the new drivers, etc and still had connection issues. When it would connect, it would drop after only a few minutes.

Un-installed SP2 and haven't dropped since (over 2 hours ago).

Just a word of warning, unless you really need it....I would stay away from SP2.

 

Where did you get your wireless drivers from? I have SP2 on and since i also added the Ralink drivers, i have had no problems whatsoever. If you used the drivers off averatecs site, that could have been your problem as they suck and barely work (they have some of the dropping problems). Also, your problem could be those chance problems that happen now and then.

 

4x4...

I too have noticed issues with wireless connectivity AFTER installing sp2 AND updating the drivers from Averatech site. Im reimaging now and will try the driver fron Ralink. Yesterday i checked the versions and they were the same, so it makes me wonder if something changed in the driver but the version was not updated?

Im also concerned that me new lappy will not charge the battery! [ ] I had it plugged in and using it for 2 days now, the charging LED is always on, and when i reboot unplugged...nothing!! Its gonna suck if i have to RMA this. I'm gonna call support after a fresh image sticks.

 

It has been widely reported in this forum, that the 6130 has issues with wireless connectivity after upgrading to SP2. The easiest solution is to download and install the Ralink driver. It should resolve any wireless problems.

On another topic, has anyone had any problems with reloading the entire system using the 3, supplied Averatec 'ghost' image discs? After upgrading last week to a 100gig drive, I was hit with some performance problems that I could not pinpoint (I think based on how I upgraded the drive). So I decided to try and reload from the discs and basically start over with my system. However, the reload process only made it through the first disc and aborted during the second disc. I tried this two diferrent times with the same results. The error message was not displayed long enough for me to catch the description of the error! In the end, I just installed XP Pro from scratch (including SP2) and reloaded most of the primary apps I use. The system is cleaner and meaner now. I did have to reload the Averatec drivers and the ralink for wireless.

redjr...

 

hey redjr, i had that problem too but fortunatly for me i returned the laptop once and i accedentily (well, now for MY benefit) was left with the copy of the backup disk, so now i got 2 copys, anyways

the first time i tried re-imaging i had a problem on disk one, then using hte second set, i had a problem with disk 2 with the same error u speak of, ur reloading when u insert ur 2nd disk, all goes fine until a blue screen pops up for a split second then it reboots on its own. my suggestion is keep cleaning the disk and cleaning inside ur tray, EVENTUALLY it will read that disk with the error then i would suggest u buy (or download) Norton Ghost and u image ur computer using that.

or get another set of backup disks like i got... a backup 2 the backup u could say =)

 

_007,

I think I will probably call Averatec and request another set of discs. They should not have a problem sending these out to registered owners. It seems to me that backup discs should work the first time around! If they don't you're kinda screwed - unless you have an alternative solution available. Even so, a second set of discs is worth having. Maybe Averatec should review their quality control process on these 'image' disks. Any other reports from users out there?

On a related note though, I've had on several different occasions, intermittent problems with the DVD-RW drive on my 6130. In particular, some brand of discs that have the printable coating, or discs where I have put on a paper label. Last night, I tried to install some software from a CD that had a paper label, and it sounded as if the CD was going to fly right out of the drive! It was so loud I quickly hit the eject button. I could see where maybe a label was not centered exactly which would cause unbalanced spinning of the drive - potentially causing damage.

The problem with the coated CDs was the drive was not able to write the entire disc using a couple different apps I use. It would get into about 90% of the disc and go no further. I would have to abort the burn. Another brand of coated discs work fine, as did plain CD blanks. So, I hope it's not my drive going south for the winter! I use this on a daily basis at client sites.

redjr...

 

hey redjr,


that also depends on the type of disks that ur using to write with.

i've noticed that it takes longer, when burning with DVD-R's then DVD+R's, i'd suggest u use DVD+R's because of hte quality of the media and u also have to realize that having lables that arn't centered properly can essentially be a problem with all dvd's that include the center locking mechinism (like on our DVD burner, and not on desktops) such as portable CD Players and such.

also, r u using Nero 6.13 or higher 2 burn with this DVD burner? if not i'd suggest it becuase the built in programs r horrible, bad buffering compaired 2 nero.

 

even if dvd+r's are faster, if you are burning dvd video for viewing on a dvd player, dvd-r have a lot better compatibility.