Customer Reviews
It's a great buy!
I saw this model at one of the Office Superstores (it was WAAAY cheaper)...not sure if I am able to say the name but it's the one that sponsors the arena where the Lakers play. Overall, this is a great computer. I purchased it as a replacement to a 5 year old Dell XPS notebook. I already own a quad-core version of this notebook (HP DV6) and was so impressed with the performance, quietness, and coolness, I bought this one too! (It's not for me.) The aspects of this computer that I like the most: it's thin, light, quiet, doesn't get too hot, the graphics, the LCD screen (LED backlit), and the 7200rpm hard drive. My only gripe with this model is that the touchpad is picky. I had to go into the touchpad properties and turn on/off a few features.
Oh, and another plus, press F11 when the system starts up and do a "minimal" system restore. It wipes out a huge majority of HP bloatware! After I did that, the computer beat my expectations! I highly recommend this to any user who is looking for a good, mid-range laptop that is good for HD-quality video, light gaming, and powerful with productivity applications. (ex. MS Office, Adobe, iTunes, etc.)
The battery issue in a previous post didn't happen to me. However, I will say that two of the USB ports are very tight...but I have yet to break anything...
I've owned HP computers in the past and this is my first one since 2002. I'm glad I switched back.
Excellent Machine!
I bought this unit two weeks ago from the office store named after the stadium where the Lakers play. The tech manager recommended it based on the specs, price and the fact that it had the lightscribe laser that could firmware upgrade to the new color lightscribe and a DVD burner that could easily be replaced by a Blu for about $99 via HP direct, if I wanted. It also can be upgraded to 8GB of RAM, something not all of the newer notebooks can do...many still max at 4GB. They had it on sale for $200 off list, then I had a $50 off any computer coupon, $50 for trading in an 8 yr old desktop, and there is a $50 rebate out there, for those willing to find it. At this price, I figured, "what the heck, I really didn't need that Core i5 that much, did I?"
Wow, now that I've owned it for a while, I am impressed. This unit is light for a 15.6" lappie and runs cool, I get almost 4 hours on the std battery (6+ hrs on a recently purchased 9 cell!) and it is fast and easy to use. It took a while to get used to the keyboard (HP trying to emulate Apple here...island style with no num pad) and the touchpad is challenging, at least to start (again, the Apple emulation thing....): however, I love how easy it is to turn off the touchpad and, with the built-in bluetooth...something you don't find all of the time in these lappies...it is easy to just add a bluetooth mouse, and away you go. Internet connection is great, with the unit smacking my Dell netbook upside down from any spot in our home....
Typically, HP has their bloatware installed, but that can be easily fixed. As others have reported, the USB ports are a little tight; however, I've had no issues with them at all. I love the new 'champagne' color as it shows no fingerprints at all compared to their previous units. I would have preferred the AC connection to be on the back instead of the right side; however, I can work around this. The speakers sound great for a low-end lappie...might've liked a little more volume on the top end but: what the heck....
The screen is bright and resolution/picture quality is excellent for a low-end lappie. Built-in webcam is OK, however, I would have preferred a higher resolution; however, the built-in bluetooth more than makes up for this as I use the bluetooth more. The AMD dual core proc with premium ATI graphics is a workhorse and does it's job well. A high-end gamer machine? Nope...what do you expect for this price?
Not sure about those who rate this poorly. They must've gotten a bad unit 'cause I'm quite pleased, especially for the price.
Recommended, especially if you can get the price down like I did.
Great computer especially for the price
Excellent buy works great .... Very smooth between applications...... Have had good luck with all HP products I have purchased .... This is just another good investment from HP
LightScribe Technology
