New version of NHC (Notebook Hardware Control)

Hello all,

After more than 3 years there is finally a new version of NHC available. Some of the old time users might still remember this great little program.
Notebook Hardware Control (NHC) - Homepage, Downloads, Help, Docu, FAQ, News - www.NotebookHardwareControl.net
It is freeware. There is also a professional version with some additional features.

For those of you that do not I will try to give a short history:

NHC started of as a fan control for the Samsung P35 (first gen centrino) notebook but soon developed into much more. It was one of the first programs that allowed you to easily decrease the voltage of the Pentium M processor. The program was later updated to work with Vista and Core 2 Duo processors.

The development was then stopped or slowed down so that we had to wait for 3 years to get a new version. It is developed by electrical engineering student and he was busy with his studies and also not able to keep up with the new CPU development and OS upgrades.

Anyway the wait is over now and a new version has been release for Windows 32bit. The 64bit version should follow soon.

The idea of the new version is that (advanced users) can program their own ACPI Control System and upload them so that they can be used by other users of the same or similar laptop model.

There are many options and controls. Have a look at the quick start guide here:
Notebook Hardware Control (NHC) - Advanced information
To make best use of this program some programming and technical knowledge is required.

Sadly I have to wait for the 64bit version to come out. But since I really liked all the previous NHC releases and used them extensively I am posting this without having tried it myself.

 

Meh, still no 64-bit support. "Coming soon", eh? Given the time since the last update, that may not mean much.

 

IDK, but it might have to do with 64-bit drivers requiring signing and costing the author 100's of dollars a year for the priviledge of doing that while providing freeware.

 

Personally, I was impressed with how many features the updated version eliminated. I've been using it for years, but the "update" eliminates most of why I use it.

I presume that this was in order to sell the program now and that you'll get these features back when you pay.

Usually they invent new features to charge for, but in this case it seems they just took away features from the free version.

I uninstalled it and put the old version back. I'm grateful they offer it as a download.

I might pay something (again) as a contribution, but not 20 euros. Too much for what it is.

 

The paid version does not give you any of the old missing features back.
The difference is minor and can be seen here:
Notebook Hardware Control (NHC) - Professional Edition

The reason why features are missing is
1. They will be added later as updates to version 2 are developed.
2. NHC has changed so that it makes it easier for other developers or users to add additional features. The author can not do it by himself. He does not have the time nor the means to test developments on different systems.

 

Well, that makes sense, since I didn't see reference in the paid version to the missing features either. And that's great that they are making it easier for others to add parts. I know that some of my favorite programs, like MediaMonkey, are especially useful due to the optional add-ons that others create to fill in the gaps.

I don't doubt that it's a lot of work to program something like this and this is a good solution.

But in the interim, yep, many features have been lost in the upgrade.

So, it seems to be simple; for those who need the utilities that NHC was previously offering, we can stick with the old V2.06 pre-release version.

For those who will want different, customized features, or are satisfied with the base level features that the new version offers, better to download the new.

Eventually the new one will catch up with the old it seems, and then surpass it.

All good! Thanks for the clarification. And thanks to the programmer for NHC !

 

I've been using NHC ever since it was first out until my Centrino Laptop felt apart! It is (was) an awesome little program, allowing more control over the machine! Loved it!

However, unless there are some new exciting features, I don't think I would be using it again nowadays... on an "i"-CPU architecture...

I am also looking forward to the 64-bit version to have a look at it

 

I'm retiring my 5-6 year old dell XPS M1210 for a new sony VAIO SA-series. I've been using NHC (the older one) in my M1210 since I've had it.

I love the way it shows battery level, consumption & charge rate in W, capacity in Whr, battery wear and cpu speed/voltage. Unfortunately there's still no version which does 64bit (which my next laptop will be running).

Are there any alternatives?

 

NHC was a GREAT little tool for XP machines. However, with Win 7, most of those features are already integrated or available as gadgets. So NHC (or an alternative) is actually obsolete for any modern system

 

I couldn't find any gadgets which did that, but I did find batterybar which appears to work just as well

 

Was really useful on XP to undervolt if im not mistaken.
Too bad i got a new notebook now, damn Intel i7 2720QM doesent undervolt. ;p

Of course il try it again on my older HP Compaq nw8440 with a Intel C2D T7400 in the future.

 

Yeah I haven't really found that capability yet.