TOP BEST COMPUTERS

14.1" Diagonal WXGA HD HP BrightView Widescreen Laptop Display (1280 x 800)

5.20lbs; 13.15" x 9.45" x 1.34"/1.57"

6-cell Lithium-Ion HP Pavilion dv4-2161nr Laptop Battery

Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support

Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

HP Digital Plaid Imprint finish

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FEATURES

LightScribe Technology
Burn labels directly onto CDs and DVDs

Built-in HP Webcam
Video chat live from your HP Pavilion dv4-2161nr Laptop PC

Mobile Remote
Control music and videos easily from across the room

5-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Transfer photos from digital cameras to your Laptop PC without using cables

INCLUDED

HP Mobile Remote Control stores easily in the remote dock

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MORE INFORMATION

Datasheet (PDF)

Customer Reviews

HP, please do something about your batteries...
I had have this computer for a month now, so here goes nothing:

Pros:
- Excellent design
- 4GB Ram, enough for most tasks
- 500GB hard drive, for me that's enough for now
- Small size and little weight (even lighter when DVD is removed, which is an excellent feature in itself)
- Windows 7 (better than Vista, we'll see about XP)
- EXCELLENT PRICE

Cons:
- Battery life is about 2 hours, bound to decrease within 6 months, not on par with most other laptops this size.
- Touchpad really has a mind of its own on ocassion.
- Glossy design is beautiful, but it's also a fingerprint magnet
- Opening it is a cumbersome task, not really bad, but a little.
- Windows 7 "64bit" - Some old programs I use refuse to work in such environment.

All in all a solid laptop, with excellent features (and minor inconveniences), but please, HP, this is my third HP laptop and the batteries have never been your forte. (yet I keep buying HP) DO SOMETHING!

UPDATE: The battery won't last for more than an hour and a half, so I took two stars off my review for this major inconvenience. Sorry to say this, but I no longer recommend this purchase.

Excellent Computer for an Excellent Price
I've owned my computer for almost a week now, and I'm absolutely loving it. For the money I almost bought an Hp with a T6600 processor and 320GB hard drive etc etc. I bought this for the same price as the other hp and got MORE memory and a better processor. Why wouldn't you want an upgrade of 180 GB hard drive for free? If your a student and like to have lots of music, videos and play light gaming and still have tons of room for your homework and projects, this is a great computer.

I also love how its 14" monitor, so I can take it anywhere and fit it into any bag. It has a very sleek and glossy exterior. A little bit of work to keep clean, but that's no reason not to buy a computer. The speakers are great for a laptop. I was actually surprised how clear sounds and music was. As with most HP laptops, you get the lightscribe burner, which is great, but it also comes with a disc replacement thing so if you don't care to use a disc drive, you can remove it and save some weight. But really it doesn't weigh that much.

The only downfall I have with this computer is the slightly low battery life. I think a little bit of that might be my fault cause I just plugged in and played rather than letting the battery charge fully first before I started playing with it.

Great laptop for the price.

Good system, recommended for most
This is a good system to own if you can deal with a few minor annoyances.

Windows 7 works well. Most things are in different places than XP but it's easy to find them.

This system has a basic graphics card. The Windows Experience numbers warn that the Aero interface will be sluggish sometimes, and I definitely feel that's true.

The hard drive impressively large, although not all the 500GB is usable. It is split up into three partitions. One is the system restore partition (since Windows install discs are not included), and one is the quickstart partition (a fast starting non-Windows environment that lets you surf the web and browse your media collection), so the hard drive really has only around 320 mb free when you get it. That's lots for your pictures, videos, music, etc. It's also quite speedy.

4GB RAM standard, which should be more than enough, except that about 1.5 GB are used for the integrated graphics so you only have around 2.5 GB for programs. In the future, when RAM prices come down, I'll be upgrading to 8GB of RAM.

The only ads on the machine are trials of Norton Internet Security 2010 1-User, and Microsoft Office Standard 2007 FULL VERSION, prominent links to HP's accessories store (buy from Amazon instead), an ad for an online backup service, and an icon for one of Amazon's competitors (a Bay Area auction site). Not bad.

I have no problems with overheating here. The touch panel for adjusting volume is very very useful.

HP Pavilion dv6-3010us 15.6-Inch Laptop

2010-09-18T19:29:00.000-07:00

Product Description

Get a notebook that keeps up with your busy life. It’s always showtime with the HP Pavilion dv6-3010us Entertainment Notebook PC. Watch DVDs on the 15.6-inch diagonal High-Definition HP BrightView LED Display, plus video chat in low-light environments using the integrated HP webcam. Browse the Web using built-in Wi-Fi and sync this notebook to other digital devices using integrated Bluetooth®. You can also launch common apps with the touch of a finger using this HP laptop’s one-touch action keys. Count on a notebook that looks great inside and out. The sleek, sophisticated HP Pavilion dv6-3010us Entertainment Notebook PC has the HP Imprint finish with the link design in champagne. Burn custom labels onto CDs and DVDs using LightScribe Technology and transfer photos from a memory card directly to your HP laptop. Get powerful multitasking with the dual-core processor and enjoy music in premium audio. With a battery that lasts up to 5.5 hours per charge, you can avoid plugging in your notebook everywhere you go.

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #64 in Personal Computers
Color: champagne
Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Model: WQ678UA#ABA
Dimensions: 1.37" h x 9.65" w x 14.88" l, 5.35 pounds
CPU: AMD Turion 64 X2 2.3 Hz
Memory: 4MB SODIMM
Hard Disk: 320GB
Processors: 2
Battery type: Lithium Ion
Display size: 14.1

Features

AMD Turion II Dual-Core Mobile Processor P520 (2.3GHz, 2MB L2 Cache); 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 DIMM)
15.6 inch diagonal HP BrightView HD LED Display (1366 x 768); Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB total graphics memory
HP Imprint finish with the link design in champagne; HP TrueVision Webcam with integrated digital microphone
Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector); Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN & Bluetooth
4 Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0, 4th port shared with eSATA; 1 HDMI; 1 eSATA + USB 2.0; 1 VGA (15-pin) ; 1 RJ -45 (LAN)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Product Description

IDEAL FOR

Entertainment. Enjoy music in premium audio, edit photos and high-definition videos, plus play games using the mid-size HP Pavilion dv6-3010us Entertainment Notebook PC. Work in multiple applications at the same time and easily navigate this laptop PC using the large HP ClickPad and full-size, island-style keyboard.

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor

VISION Technology from AMD - Premium with AMD Turion^™ II Dual-Core Mobile Processor P520, 2.30GHz

15.6" diagonal High-Definition HP BrightView LED Display (1366 x 768)

Memory (RAM)

4GB DDR3

Hard Drive

320GB (7200RPM) SATA with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection

Weight & Dimensions (w x d x h)

5.35 lbs; 14.88" x 9.65" x 1.21"/1.37"

Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN & Bluetooth^®

Up to 5 hours

Wireless

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support

ATI Mobility Radeon^™ HD 4250 Graphics with 128MB Display Cache Memory with 128MB DDR3 (sideport memory) with up to 2045MB total graphics memory

HP Imprint finish with the link design in champagne

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FEATURES

LightScribe Technology
Burn labels directly onto CDs and DVDs

Built-in HP Webcam
Video chat live using your HP Pavilion dv6-3010us Entertainment Notebook PC

5-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Transfer photos from a digital camera to your laptop PC without using cables

Bluetooth^®
Save time with wireless synching and printing

INCLUDED

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EXCLUSIVE HP SOFTWARE

HP SimplePass Identity Protection

Keep passwords and important data safe

HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection

Help prevent data loss due to bumps or short drops

HP QuickWeb

Access your favorite websites fast

HP MediaSmart

Create, share and enjoy multimedia entertainment in one stop

Exclusive HP Software

MORE INFORMATION

Datasheet (PDF)

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

HP Pavilion DV6-2150US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black)

2010-07-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

Product Description

For those who want an all-in-one performance notebook with rich multimedia features, the HP Pavilion dv6 Entertainment series delivers excellent mobile performance that looks as great as it runs. Powered by the latest processor and graphics technologies, it delivers the features you need to support your digital lifestyle.

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #131 in Personal Computers
Color: Black
Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Model: WA779UA#ABA
Dimensions: 1.33" h x 10.15" w x 14.90" l, 6.34 pounds
CPU: Intel Core i3 2.13 GHz
Memory: 4MB SODIMM
Hard Disk: 320GB
Processors: 2
Display size: 15.6

Features

Intel Core i3-330M Processor (2.13 GHz, 3 MB L3 Cache)
4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 DIMM) (expandable to 8 GB)
320GB (7200RPM) Hard Drive (SATA), LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, * Up to 4.25 Hours of Battery Life
15.6" Diagonal High-Definition LED HP BrightView Display (1366x768), Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

Editorial Reviews

From the Manufacturer

IDEAL FOR

Entertainment. Buy an HP Pavilion dv6-2150us to enjoy music in premium audio, edit photos and high-definition videos, plus play games. Using this mid-size Laptop PC, work in multiple applications at the same time and count on fast data entry with the numeric keypad.

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor

Intel^® Core™ i3-330M Processor, 2.13GHz

15.6" Diagonal High-Definition LED HP BrightView Laptop Display (1366 x 768)

6.34lbs; 14.9" x 10.15" x 1.33"/1.61"

6-cell Lithium-Ion HP Pavilion dv6-2150us Laptop Battery

Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN & Bluetooth^®

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support

Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

HP Espresso Imprint finish

Enlarge

FEATURES

LightScribe Technology
Burn labels directly onto CDs and DVDs

Built-in HP Webcam
Video chat live from your HP Pavilion dv6-2150us Laptop PC

Mobile Remote
Control music and videos easily from across the room

5-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Transfer photos from digital cameras to your Laptop PC without using cables

Bluetooth^®
Save time with wireless synching and printing

INCLUDED

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MORE INFORMATION

Datasheet (PDF)

Customer Reviews

Big improvement over older DV6 line
Note: since I wrote a few reviews for some very simliar DV6 models Amazon has cross posted all those reviews.

I posted a long review of the current crop of DV6-21xx series of notebooks here: HP Pavilion DV6-2170US. The models are mostly the same with different CPUs (one has a discrete graphics chip). All include the newest mobile processors from Intel which eclipse the older Core2 line in terms of performance. Those with integrated graphics include Intel's new HD graphics which are also a big improvement over Intel's old 4500HD graphics (which are still inferior to discrete graphics chips from AMD/ATI and Nvidia when it come to 3D gaming). I would suggest avoiding the older DV6 13xx and 12xx series unless you can get a really good price (which may happen as HP discontinues them).

Here is the summary of models I posted in that review:

If you're staring at the various DV6 models trying to decide which one to buy my advice is (based on the models available when I wrote this):

- For home users who aren't gamers you can save about $100 if you go with the HP Pavilion DV6-2150US 15.6-Inch Laptop which combines a Core i3 with Win 7 Premium and a 6 cell battery. The performance for non-gaming software will be very close to the more expensive i5 models and you'll save money by going with Win 7 Premium and a smaller battery.

- If you need good battery life, run higher end software, or like to game a bit go for the HP Pavilion DV6-2170US which combines the Core i5 with the 12 cell battery. The Intel graphics aren't the best but it's a big improvement over past products. This is the model I think has the best balance of features.

- If gaming matters more than battery life you should probably look at other laptop lines but if you are sold on the DV6 go for the HP Pavilion DV6-2190US which has a quad CPU Core i7 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 230M graphics. It's only got a 6 cell battery and that CPU and graphics are going to drain it quickly. You'll pay about $200 over this model.

- If you have a lot of older software consider the HP Pavilion DV6-2157SB Small Business Edition which comes with Windows 7 Pro (which can run older software on a WinXP kernel). It has a Core i3 and a 6 cell battery. It also has a different finish ("Plaid Mocha") but I haven't seen it so I can't comment on it.

Excellent Choice
Been shopping for a new computer for over a year now as I could no longer put up with my slow-as-molasses 2003 Gateway. Shoulda' tossed it long ago, except I'm on a budget. I saw this HP Pavilion DV6 1250us at a huge (nearly 20%!!) discount at one of the chain office supply stores so I jumped on it. I'm completely knocked-out by how fast this thing is - runs like its hair's on fire! I timed it at 1 min 20 seconds to completely start-up, connect to wi-fi and be ready to go. My 20GB+ library of iTunes opens in about 5 seconds flat.

My favorite features are; the jaw-dropping sharp, bright, vivid display, next generation faster memory (4GB DDR3), faster than usual 7200rpm hard drive (320GB), and the excellent integrated graphics card (with 1.6 GB memory!!) for watching smoooth on-line video (hulu etc.). I find Windows 7 to be not so different from XP. It has wireless N - glad I thought ahead when I replaced my router a year ago. Lots of USB ports (3 + 1 combo actually), and a little remote control that stores in the expansion slot, though I'm not sure how useful that will be... Battery life was good (2-1/2 hrs without economizing, after running it down to 5% & recharging it a few times to break it in).

Did some research and found that this brand new i3 processor (released Jan 10, 2010) operates similar to a quad-core, so it's not too easily bogged down. Now the Norton Security Suite that I get free from my cable company runs in the background and I don't even know it's there. My old computer would sputter and fuss for 20 minutes or so just getting an update.

So far, it runs like a champ with anti-virus going, burning a dvd, multiple tabs in Firefox open, and torrent down & uploads going all at once. Also easily handles Word documents with lots of artwork, which used to be a problem for me. Took me awhile to connect to my home wi-fi because I didn't realize you first have to turn on the wireless via a touch-switch above the keyboard. Set-up wizard and on-screen prompts did not make that clear, but I figured it out before long. Wasn't crazy about the case design but it's not so bad... looks like rings left by a glass on a wood table. HP even includes a little polishing cloth to keep it shiny - a nice touch.

Overall, I'm thrilled with it. Cost half of what I payed for my Gateway in 2003 and I feel like I finally have a REAL computer that I'm confident will be current for at least a few years. I highly recommend you pick one up if you have the means!

Nice quality laptop
I just got this and it booted right up, the screen quality is very nice, much better than the older style of laptops with the satin finish. This high glass finish really makes the screen stand out. I've used laptops by dell, lenovo and gateway in the past so my first impressions are below.

The laptop is not heavy, very reasonable and despite the 6 cell battery, most times I'm plugged in so it's not a big deal to me. I haven't timed out the battery yet but so far as with any new laptop is seems to do just fine. I wish it came with a cover or bag of some sort until I get my laptop bag, but I guess I'll be careful.

The side connectors are well laid out, I don't see issues with too much in a spot, it all seems pretty nice. My version did not have a modem (which I hope we don't need much longer). The one thing I'm trying to determine and it may be my misunderstanding but this should have "N" network wireless ability but when I booted it up, my dual band router only showed the regular G.

The big thing I like is the touch controls of the keyboard layout, everything is touch sensor, no buttons to break. The other thing that I really like is the pc does not get hot like older laptops do. It has no "side vents" for the cpu so it's clearly a much cooler operations than its earlier laptops. I always had to make sure I powered down the laptops in the bag or they'd overheat. With this style I'd be surprised if I had an issue. It comes with a little video remote that is nice if you are watching movies on a flight or don't want to mess with the keyboard. The hdmi on the side probably would be of good use if showing videos that way.

I personally don't care for the "bubble" design on the black finish, it could have been left alone without that stuff but oh well. As I work with it more I'll be able to post more but it's a very nice laptop and they even have a 50 dollar rebate on some locations.

As far as gaming, I haven't tried it so far but I'd suspect in most average games this I3 should do fine. I'm sure on call of duty versions it probably will not work well but I have a home desktop pc for that kind of gaming.

HP Pavilion DV6-2162NR 15.6-Inch Black Laptop--Up to 4.25 Hours of Battery Life HP Pavilion DV6-2162NR 15.6-Inch Black Laptop--Up to 4.25 Hours of B

2010-07-26T20:29:00.002-07:00

Product Description

For those who want an all-in-one performance notebook with rich multimedia features, the HP Pavilion dv6 Entertainment series delivers mobile performance that looks as great as it runs. Powered by the latest processor and graphics technologies, it deliver the features you need to support your digital lifestyle.

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #13 in Personal Computers
Color: Black
Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Model: WH202UA#ABA
Dimensions: 1.33" h x 10.15" w x 14.90" l, 6.34 pounds
CPU: Intel Core i3 2.26 GHz
Hard Disk: 500GB
Battery type: Lithium Ion
Display size: 15.6

Features

Intel Core i3-350M processor (2.26 GHz, 3MB L3 Cache)
4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 DIMM) (expandable to 8 GB)
500GB (7200RPM) Hard Drive (SATA), SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, * Up to 4.25 Hours of Battery Life
15.6" Diagonal High-Definition LED HP BrightView Display (1366x768), Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

Editorial Reviews

From the Manufacturer

IDEAL FOR

Entertainment. Buy an HP Pavilion dv6-2162nr to enjoy music in premium audio, edit photos and high-definition videos, plus play games. Using this mid-size Laptop PC, work in multiple applications at the same time and count on fast data entry with the numeric keypad.

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor

Intel^® Core™ i3-350M Processor, 2.26GHz

15.6" Diagonal High-Definition LED HP BrightView Laptop Display (1366 x 768)

6.34lbs; 14.9" x 10.15" x 1.33"/1.61"

6-cell Lithium-Ion HP Pavilion dv6-2162nr Laptop PC Battery

Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN

SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support

Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

HP Espresso Imprint finish

Enlarge

FEATURES

Built-in HP Webcam
Video chat live from your HP Pavilion dv6-2162nr Laptop PC

Mobile Remote
Control music and videos easily from across the room

5-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Transfer photos from digital cameras to your Laptop PC without using cables

INCLUDED

Enlarge

MORE INFORMATION

Datasheet (PDF)

Customer Reviews

Relieved and Extremely Pleased
I bought this HP for my wife to replace her 3 year old Toshiba. It's 100% her computer but she places everything technical in our lives on me and then holds me accountable for its performance. My wife is brutal on electronics and her laptop is no exception. The Toshiba had a VERY hard life and ticked along perfectly until the past few months. After wasting $200 on a failed repair (hard drive) I decided it was cheaper to replace it than to nurse it along. I initially went shopping for another Toshiba and frankly, I feel like I would be writing a 5 star review for a Toshiba if it hadn't come down to a $150 price difference. I was able to use the competing Toshiba at a retailer, but when I went to Amazon I found this HP. Nearly identical in performance and appearance; aside from a couple of keyboard control features they were the same.

I bought the HP, Amazon shipped it FedEX and it arrived to Fairbanks Alaska in less than 48 hours (used standard shipping, nothing special). She loves it, charged it up and it performs flawlessly and much better than my 8 month old Dell XPS (Argh, never again...long story). I have not attempted to load Office 2007 yet, but suspect from my research on 64 bit systems, it will work fine. Neither one of us cares for the bubble scheme and thinks it detracts from the professional look of the rest of the finish (petty, I know).

The mouse pad works perfectly and I particularly like the keyboard layout and feel of the keys. I REALLY like the number pad without having to buy a 17+ inch system which is of course standard now.

4 USB ports, 1 HDMI output, a great LCD screen and Graphics card...zero to complain about. Oh, and Windows 7 works very well.

I'll report back if it doesn't hold up to the flagrant neglect my wife typically inflicts on her electronics, but as of for now she is rightfully treating like a shiny new sports car!

Excellent Midrange Laptop with power, speed, and flexibility; perfect!
Alright, so I'm 26 and a student, and I had been making due with a old Dell Dimension for the last 3 years, so hopelessly out of date that I wont spare you the details. I needed an upgrade and wanted a laptop in the $600-800 range that had a speedy processor, ability to handle videos of all types smoothly (esp. HD), enough RAM to multi-task with heavy programs and not break a sweat, lots of slots USB and otherwise and 500 gigs of space. When I saw the specs on this Pavillion it met all my qualifications, with good battery life for my traveling (I go from FL to NY often) and a nice look and smooth functionality/keyboard to boot.
Obviously, buying a laptop is not a light consideration, especially when you have been working toward it for a while like me. So naturally upon booting up I immediately put it through the ringer. I loaded a printer, scanner and second monitor into the USBs, then used Nero to burn a DVD while watching Futurama on the monitor and Inglorious Basterds playing in 1080p on the main screen. Additionally I had iTunes doing a mass conversion while scanning some images in the background, with BitTorrent and Limerwire downloading and WinAVI converter making a .VOB as well. I had NO problems whatsoever = no lag, no image interlacing, no errors or delays in the converting/burning, no internet problems, no scanning issues or anything. That immediately sold it for me; if it can handle all the tasks I use most frequently all at once and look terrific doing it, who am I to complain?
4 GB of RAM is plenty, and though I prefer AMD in general the Intel i3 chipset is powerful and well worth it over Core Duo processors. Everything looks gorgeous, especially vivid colors in HD - South Park is a good example. The HDMI exporting is wonderful and looks great on my big screen. I'm never a big fan of proprietary software, but HP has a number of useful programs on here. The Mediasmart app is really good for HD, much better than Media Player in my estimation. The IDT sound options are terrific, especially for creating an artificial depth of field out of tiny Altec Lansing speakers - not bad themselves, by the way. The pad is great, with a scroll bar built in, the keyboard is big and has a number pad, a mic jack and two headphone jacks are in the front, and it's not too heavy either - I mean I could go on and on but you get the point. The only thing remotely disappointing was the webcam but honestly I don't care about it one iota.
This machine is sleek, speedy and strong with lots of options and will definitely be in use for a long time for me at least. Highly recommended.

My desktop replacement
I picked this up at another store, the dv6-2155dx, and I was a little unsure of getting the i3 processor instead of a model with the i5 or i7. I'm sure those are even faster but I can say for sure, this laptop is the quickest, most responsive, of any laptop I've had and I go through a lot by frequently upgrading and selling or loaning my previous.
In this case I wanted to get a machine built with Windows 7 instead of trying to install it on my previous Vista system.
Standout features for me so far:
* Very solid and comfortable (and quiet) keyboard with lots of space, very ergonomic.
* The fact that it has a number pad area like a desktop keyboard.
* The widescreen performance and look. It just totally feels like a 17" screen even though its not.
* Speed, as I mentioned.
* Startup time is excellent. I can open and use an application in < 30-secs. I can also start many applications at once without it skipping a beat.
* Quiet and speedy CD-rom.
* Nice 500GB hard drive
Potential drawbacks.
* The i3 is very new but also the bottom of the tier of this generation of intel processors. It might become dated or bog down after I add a lot more data/programs to the system. The 4GB of RAM is a big help in keeping things moving.

Overall I am very pleased with what I got. It's very solid feeling and very quiet and doesn't get hot at all.
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Edit 6/18/2010 to add: When I said "*I can open and use an application in <> all before 30 secs have passed.
And I've now added photoshop over 10,000 large jpg's and RAW image files, large iTunes library, etc., and it's performance hasn't noticeably declined. Just takes a bit more time for maintenance (more files to scan and defrag).
Still no heat, even when running photoshop & iTunes, Firefox & Chrome browsers, all together.
And it's so quiet I do not hear it unless I hold it up to my ear and I've got normal hearing still (thankfully).
And Win 7 has been a pleasure. You can customize the desktop, start menu, and taskbar to your preferences and make them like XP, which I did at first. But I went back to the original Win 7 theme and love it. Explore the jumplist features.
Also, the 'Live taskbar previews' (when you hover over the icon or bar and get a small window) is more interactive than with Vista(Aero). You can turn it off if you don't like it of course. I did with my previous Vista laptop because it was sluggish but this laptop has no trouble with the enhanced appearance tools.
So still quite happy.

HP Pavilion DV4-2161NR 14.1-Inch Laptop (Digital Plaid)

2010-07-26T20:29:00.001-07:00

Product Description

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #4 in Personal Computers
Color: black
Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Model: WA691UA#ABA
Dimensions: 1.57" h x 9.45" w x 13.15" l, 5.20 pounds
CPU: Intel Core i3 2.13 GHz

Features

Intel Core i3-330M Processor (2.13 GHz, 3 MB L3 Cache)
4 GB DDR3 System Memory (2 DIMM) (expandable to 8 GB)
500GB (7200RPM) Hard Drive (SATA), LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, * Up to 4.25 Hours of Battery Life
14.1" Diagonal WXGA HD HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800), Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory

Editorial Reviews

From the Manufacturer

IDEAL FOR

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor

Intel^® Core™ i3-330M Processor, 2.13GHz

14.1" Diagonal WXGA HD HP BrightView Widescreen Laptop Display (1280 x 800)

5.20lbs; 13.15" x 9.45" x 1.34"/1.57"

6-cell Lithium-Ion HP Pavilion dv4-2161nr Laptop Battery

Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n WLAN

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support

Intel HD Graphics with up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory