HP Envy? (Laptop) [Archive] - Spacetime Studios

KingFu

12-13-2011, 01:05 AM

First off I'd like to apologize, I hate posting threads like these. I've been eyeballing the HP envy (especially the beats edition. Hub-uh Hub-uh), but I'm a bit skeptical when reading reviews on laptops. Don't ask why, I'm weird about it. Tablets, phones, etc, I'm fine with, just laptops. I often feel when I read a review that the author is being biased/sugar coating it. So I thought it'd be good to ask a group of people I trust will give me an honest opinion. I'm wondering if anyone has one/knows anyone with one and can possibly tell me their experience with it? Or even if they briefly tried it out in the store. I know, I'm weird lol.

Thanks!

-Myst

Otukura

12-13-2011, 01:14 AM

KingFu

12-13-2011, 01:19 AM

Was looking over the specs...
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/store_access.do?template_type=series_detail&category=notebooks&series_name=ENVY14be_series&jumpid=re_r11260_envy14bse_buynow_nov2011

It looks like the graphics card is bottlenecking it(6630 on a i5 processor? ouch)... and I can't say I really like the resolution.

Then again, it's much better than the average laptop... and if you're not planning to do anything games....

I was hoping you'd comment:p

I'd mainly be using it for media. Movies, TV shows, Music (Why I find the beats edition so appealing) and of course web browsing. Wouldn't plan on really doing much of any gaming. I'm just tired of not really having a place to safely store and use my media, and being limited to how much I can have.

WhoIsThis

12-13-2011, 04:20 AM

I'm a bit nervous about recommending buying HP at this point.

1. They may or may not decide to drop the PC and laptops again.

2. HP generally has the lowest rate of reliability among the laptop manufacturers.

In terms of reliability, I'd put Lenovo, Asus, and Toshiba as number one, although each has their respective drawbacks.

Lenovo - bad screens and trackpads; good build quality (many laptops have a metal finish) and decent support
Asus - keyboard flex is a constant issue (except on the G series) and some of their ergonomics aren't great; also their RMA is a mixed bag, but on the plus side, they have some good models and their reliability (along with IBM which isn't in the consumer market anymore) is the best in industry (Apple, btw, despite what people think actually is not top in reliability)
Toshiba - stay away from their cheap models; there seems to be a huge difference in quality (probably different suppliers) between high and low end; their higher end laptops, if memory serves is pretty decent

Hp - Bad tech support, worse reliability in industry, although on the plus side, their prices are good

For media, I'd be worried about the quality of the screen. GPU shouldn't matter that much. I'd ignore the Beats if I were you ... it's a marketing thing and unless there are objective tests that prove otherwise. Screen quality is paramount and unfortunately, most laptops these days seem to have cheap TN displays. That said, there are good laptop displays and ones that you should just stay away from.

Edit:

In the ~$1,000 price range, I'd recommend:

A. A 1920x1080 screen if possible
B. A 15" or larger screen, if you don't mind the weight or size (carrying around a larger laptop can be a bit of hassle, but IMO if you can get used to it, it's worth it)
C. If you are storing large movies, then a large hard drive would be preferable, although to it's credit, that laptop does come with some options

It really depends what model you want Myst... the SSD offered on some of the models would be nice as well (I'm looking at getting an SSD myself). It also depends on your budget.

KingFu

12-13-2011, 10:22 AM

Kk, thanks for the info man:) Appreciate it

WhoIsThis

12-13-2011, 10:40 AM

Kk, thanks for the info man:) Appreciate it

I should mention individual models may buck the trends I have said. But for the most part, and this is after looking at and in many cases working with hundreds of models what I have observed.

Post an individual model and I guess me or Otu can evaluate. If skavengr is still around he might be able to help as well; iirc he works at a computer store.

Edit :

Also, don't expect super quality audio from a laptop. Your best bet is to get a pair of headphones.

KingFu

12-20-2011, 01:34 AM

This thread may be close to a week old, but I was wondering if you guys could take a look at the Asus Zenbook a little and tell me your opinion on it if you don't mind? I'd really appreciate it. Looks pretty sweet, but then again, I'm going off of what I know about it. So, appearance, and well, appearance:p

I'd be looking at the UX21 series rather than the UX31 with the i5 processor as opposed to the i7. The i7 seems too pricey. Would spending the extra amount for the i7 really be worth it anyways?

Thanks again!

WhoIsThis

12-20-2011, 01:53 AM

Gonna be busy for a bit - will take a good look on Wednesday or Thursday.

Otukura

12-20-2011, 02:03 AM

Just curious, are you going for performance or looks? You could probably get a i7 + 6750m for 850, if you want to go the performance route.

KingFu

12-20-2011, 02:09 AM

Just curious, are you going for performance or looks? You could probably get a i7 + 6750m for 850, if you want to go the performance route.

Both:p I really liked the look of the zenbook, with the sleek design and portability. Performance is a big concern of mine, but I'm almost equally concerned about the looks, to an extent. I just don't want a large, older looking machine. I suppose I'm not the most efficient laptop buyer, but the looks do matter a lot to me, I must admit. I can't help it:D

WhoIsThis

12-20-2011, 07:20 AM

Nvm ... it's an Ultrabook. Right now I recommend against them.

Rough idea of the performance - the model is different, but the internals are the same.
http://techreport.com/articles.x/21551

Battery life is not as good as one would hope either:
3907

i7 is not a big deal IMO. Laptop applications are seldom CPU limited, unless you're doing something like video encoding. i7 would also be bad for battery life as it would use more power.

WhoIsThis

12-20-2011, 07:23 AM

If you care about performance, I'd recommend the Asus G53SX series - get a lower end model. It looks cool, with the stealth black look.

As a gaming laptop, the i5 versions are quite powerful and the screen quality on the G series is very good. Only drawbacks are that is heavier than a typical 15" (it's a gaming laptop) and that the battery life isn't the best.

Otukura

12-20-2011, 12:48 PM

I'm probably a bit biased, but I love Samsung Series 7, always have looked good for me. If you'd want to wait until next year, Windows 8 should be out, and it would save you the hassle of upgrading.

WoundedEagle

12-20-2011, 02:33 PM

WhoIsThis

12-20-2011, 03:23 PM

I'm probably a bit biased, but I love Samsung Series 7, always have looked good for me. If you'd want to wait until next year, Windows 8 should be out, and it would save you the hassle of upgrading.

I can see why - metal finish? Yeah - my laptop also has a metal finish; Lenovo Z570. I mainly use it for study purposes, so I don't need performance. For that, I use my desktop.

Specs wise though:
http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/laptops/NP700Z3A-S01US

It's a weaker speced laptop. I haven't read any reviews, but on paper at least, it should be better.

WhoIsThis

12-20-2011, 08:51 PM

One things for sure, don't buy a Mac hahaha. But I wouldn't suggest an HP either, especially at this point and time. Windows is all going Cloud. Along with many other companies. I would suggest a cheap, okay laptop and wait. Because once it goes Cloud, that's 300 gigs + of useless memory paid for....

Cloud is overrated. There are some things you just don't trust third parties with that are best stored on your own hard drive or ssd. Plus the bandwidth consumption would be prohibitive, especially considering that the telecommunications firms here in North America are an dominated by a handful of firms, none of which who have the public interest in mind. Hard drives are well worth the money.