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5.2 HP/Compaq·HP zv5000
·HP DV4170 Review by speedtesterp
·HP Pavilion DV9035NR
| | | HP Pavilion zv5xxx series
The HP 'z' series of laptops comes in a variety of hardware layouts, including choices of either Intel or AMD CPU. Some models can be had at around a $1100 starting price.
I went with a custom build setup that included:
AMD Mobile Athlon 64 3700+ CPU
1 GB RAM
80 GB 7200 RPM HD
12 cell battery vs the standard 8 cell
15.4" (1680 x 1050 resolution) display
nVidia GeForce4 440 Go 64MB video
NEC CD/DVD Reader/Burner
Windows XP Pro with SP/2 Installed
for connectivity it came with
1394 Net Adapter
Broadcom 802.1 b/G WLAN
Realtek 10/100 NIC
Built-in Agere AC'97 56KBps Modem
The price for this package was just under $2000 at $1997. I added in a leather case, docking station, 512MB digital drive (similar to a thumbdrive), and some other goodies for a delivered package price of $2784. That includes a 3-year bumper to bumper warranty that added $350 to the price tag.
It comes ready to go with a healthy software package that includes InterVideo's WinDVD, FilmFactory, iTunes, muvee autoProducer 3.5-SE, Sonic RecordNow!, SoundMax and more. Many of these are only semi-installed: rather than taking up HD space with them already installed, they install on demand the first time you decide to try them out. It also came with a trial version of Norton security, but I elected to use Kaspersky's security tools instead (a separate purchase, not through HP).
Speakers in the laptop itself are Harmon-Kardon, while the expansion base provides Altec Lansing speakers. One expansion cable I purchased lets you connect out to larger speaker sets up to 5.1 easily.
So, how does it work in real life?
First, it's not a lightweight - pretty close to 8 pounds all by itself. I'm guessing that the bag with all the accessories I carry around with it comes in at close to 12 to 15 pounds.
The monitor is very responsive and gives good DVD playback display. I've noticed that it is not quite as bright as my ViewSonic VP-series monitors I have hooked up to my desktops, and the white desktop background isn't quite white. You don't notice this unless you have it set up next to another display, so I wouldn't call this a bad thing, just an observation.
The volume of the speakers leaves something to be desired, though. I consider it pretty low even at maximum settings. It does have a plug for headset speakers and that might be a better deal, especially when using it in public places. I haven't connected it up to external speakers, so I can't comment on that setup.
Connections abound. There are 3 separate USB connectors and HP sells a powered USB extender to turn any one of those into four with their own power to connect power-needy USB devices to.
If you can't get connected with this machine, you are in pretty bad shape. It comes with 56K dial-up connector, 10/100 NIC and it's WiFi ready.
With the AMD 3700+ 64-bit processor and 1 GB RAM (2 GB is max), performance is outstanding. It is one of the fastest machines I have, being noticeably faster than either of my AMD 3200+ desktops, and just about even with my Opteron 150 based system. It's just damned quick.
Being a bit of a speed freak when it comes to CPUs, the reason I went with the AMD 3700+ was two-fold: #1 it is 64-bit ready, and #2 the fastest Intel offered on this line at the present time is a 3.2GH P4. I believe the 3700+ definitely outperforms the ranking available Intel CPU for this line.
Quality of workmanship appears to be good. I haven't noticed any flaws or misalignment or anything. It also has a full-length piano type hinge which should add to the life of that part of it.
The extras: I need to say something about the expansion base I got. There are two types, I went with the less expensive. It connects to the computer through a single connector and provides its own USB ports, and its own NIC/56Kb connections. This frees up the 3 USB connectors on the laptop itself for your use. It also comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse hookup which is a nice convenience.
I've never owned any other laptop, and it's been some years since I used one regularly (a company furnished Dell). But after about a month of ownership and use, I'm very pleased with it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a full featured laptop with a larger screen for "multi-media" use and possibly even gaming.
Since it has the power to run serious applications like MS Office Pro and Adobe's Creative Suite, there's no reason to shy away from it as a true workhorse either.
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by 2kmaro  | | | Well i just came back from work and i decided to chill out and write the review on the dv4170ca which i recently got.
My laptop specs
Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Home Edition with SP2
* Intel(R) Pentium(R) M Processor 740 (1.73 GHz)2MB L2 cache
* 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800)
* Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 900
* 1GB of memory
* 100 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive
* 8X DVD +/- RW/R & CD-RW Combo dual layer burner
* Intel Pro Wireless 2200 802.11bg WLAN
* 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* Microsoft(R) Works/Money
* Remote control
Overview- Well this is my first laptop , and the reason that i got this laptop was because this September i am going to a University. After doing some research and checking out other laptops i decided to get the dv4170.
My Reasons for getting this laptop-This laptop has everything which i need which includes 3:35 minutes of battery life , integrated wireless centrino card, a very nice high quality screen , sufficient amount of power, and it is also very quiet.
My uses for the laptop- This laptop would be mainly used to browse the internet , research , typing , watching movies , and listening to music. I would not use this laptop for games because of the integrated 128mb Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 900, and also because i wont have any time to play games because of my busy schedule.
Overall impression of the build- Well the build of this laptop seems to be ergonomic , although, i would not drop this laptop on the floor. This laptop does not feel cheap and i believe that there are not a lot of weak points in the build. The only thing i would not do is drop a dictionary on the 15.4 brightview screen :D .
Keyboard,buttons,overall placement of ports- The keyboard is well build and the keys are spaced out effectively even for my big hands. The keys do not feel cheap and they are easy to press and they do not make much noise. There are 4 USB ports , digital media slot reader, microphone slot, headphone slot, ,phone slot, and other various ports which are placed on both the left and right side of the laptop. There is the power button at the front which glows blue and looks pretty cool at night. There is also the DVD,Music,sound,and mute buttons at the front. In the middle of the laptop there is the wireless button which is very useful. There is also s- video out and other various ports.
Audio- the audio for this laptop is actually very good because and the build in speakers produce good quality sound.
DVD and CD drives- Well i have tried out a movie on this laptop , and the quality looks crystal clear on this screen. The DVD drive vibrates a little bit for the first few seconds when you put a cd , but this was not a big concern or a problem for me.
Wireless- Well i don't use wireless yet but i am planning to get it soon. When i turned on wireless it seemed to picked all the neighbors on my street that use wireless Internet, and i believe that this shows that the integrated card can pick up signals from far away.
Performance- Well i got the Intel Centrino , Intel Pentium M Processor 740 1.73ghz 2MB L2 cache 533MS FSB with 1GB of ram. This amount of power satisfies me because i will mainly use this laptop for work,watching movies ,and also listening to music. Like i said i will not play games on this laptop but for anyone who wants to play games i believe that you can play half-life 2 on normal setting. Here are all the playable games for this card »www.intel.com/support/graphics/i···0153.htm.
Positives
-great quality brightview screen 15.4 inches
-very good wireless
-very quiet
-good sound for a laptop
-good battery life - (3:35 hours on 6 cell)
laptop has a remove
quickplay feature
Negatives
-Hp could have included Windows XP professional with this laptop
-integrated graphics card (maybe a good thing because i am going to university)
Conclusion- Overall , this is a great laptop that i would recommends to anyone , especially a student. This laptop has enough power and various features that would satisfy most new buyer.
If you guys want me to add pics or ask questions just PM me
-Thanks
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by fire100
last modified: 2005-08-13 17:40:01 | | | fire100 asked me to review this notebook so I'm going to do just that.
 Introducing the HP Pavilion DV9035NR Notebook Computer.
This is a notebook fresh off of the shelves of Best Buy. Its a bit heavy since there are a lot of gadgets that this notebook has. It gets about two and a half hours of battery life if you use it lightly but if you use it heavily you get about an hour and a half. I know, a bit on the low side as far as battery life but considering the processor, well... you get the idea.
It does it a bit warm when you use it, especially if you are pushing the GHz on it, like playing a DVD.
Performance-wise this thing is a BEAST! Its got all the power you can dream of in a notebook without buying an overpriced Alienware. The video card is a very decent card considering its a notebook. You really don't find a decent video card in a notebook computer, usually you get integrated Intel or ATI graphics.
The processor is a Core 2 Duo, which is my first ever Intel processor. I've never bought an Intel chip before, I've always bought AMD. I feel like such a traitor buying an Intel chip based notebook. I feel as if I should buy some AMD stock to feel right again. 
This notebook has two GB of RAM in it so you have more than enough to work with without having to use the hard drive for swap space.
The hard drives in this thing are great, it has two 80 GB SATA drives in it so you have more than enough room to store your data on the go. Want to install a game with all of the stuff installed? Don't worry, you got the room!
It cost me about $1800 at Best Buy which includes sales tax and a three-year Accidental Damage Performance Service Plan Warranty.
Positives
•Its got a beast of a processor
•Lots of RAM!
•Great video card for a notebook
•Lots of hard drive space
•Full keyboard with number pad
Negatives
•It gets a bit warm when you are pushing the GHz
•A bit heavy (7.8 lbs)
•It uses an Intel wireless card, I like Broadcom better since it has better sensitivity
•Kinda' on the expensive side
These are the specs...
Microprocessor: 1.66 GHz Intel® Centrino® Duo mobile technology featuring Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T5500
Microprocessor Cache: 2MB L2 Cache, 667MHz FSB
Memory: 2048MB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
Memory Max: 2048MB
Video Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce Go 7600
Video Memory: Discrete 256M
Hard Drive: 160GB (5400RPM) Dual HDD - 80GB x 2(SATA)
Multimedia Drive: LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±RW with Double Layer Support
Display: 17.0” WXGA+ High-Definition BrightView Widescreen (1440 x 900)
Fax/Modem: High speed 56k modem
Network Card: Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector)
Wireless Connectivity: Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Connection
HP Features: HP Imprint finish & HP Pavilion WebCam with Integrated Microphone
Sound: Altec Lansing
Keyboard
•Notebook keyboard with scroll bar and integrated numeric keypad
•2 Quick Launch Buttons (HP Quick Play Menu and DVD)
Pointing Device: Touch Pad with On/Off button and dedicated vertical Scroll Up/Down pad
PC Card Slots: ExpressCard/54 Slot (also supports ExpressCard/34)
External Ports
•5-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader for Secure Digital cards, MultiMedia cards, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, or xD Picture cards
•4 Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0
•2 Headphone out - 1 w/SPDIF Digital Audio & 1 stereo
•1 microphone-in
•1 VGA (15-pin)
•1 TV-Out (S-video)
•1 RJ-11 (modem)
•1 RJ -45 (LAN)
•1 notebook expansion port 3
•1 IEEE 1394 Firewire (4-pin)
•1 Consumer IR
•1 HDMI
Dimensions: 15.16" (L) x 11.65" (W) x 1.57"
Weight: 7.8lbs
Security
•Kensington® MicroSaver lock slot
•Power-on password
•Accepts 3rd party security lock devices
Power
•90W AC adapter
•8-cell Lithium-Ion
What's In The Box
•HP Mobile Remote Control (Express Card Version)
•Mobile Stereo Earbud Headphones (1 pair)
•HP ExpressCard Analog TV Tuner with HP Media Center Remote
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by trparky edited by fire100
last modified: 2006-12-05 19:21:58 |
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