I am in the market for a new laptop for my trading to replace my Dell Latitude D810. I have always been happy with Dell but this HP looks like a good deal. HP has the HP dv7t Intel Core i7-720 Quad-Core 17.3" Notebook Computer w/ Blu-Ray Reader for $899.99 Free Shipping after Coupon Code: NBD81578 (Exp Soon). Tax in most. 8lbs; 17.3" 1600x900 LED; Intel Core i7-720M 1.6GHz; 8GB RAM; 640GB HDD; 802.11n; Blu-Ray reader; Win7; ATI Radeon HD5650 1GB; webcam; 6-cell; 2yr warranty Any thoughts? I will use 2 or 3 external monitors with this.
I just purchased a new laptop and went through a similar decision process. That HP looks like a great deal, but feedback I have gotten from HP and Dell users indicates that Dell quality and support is superior to HP with regard to PC's and laptops (HP makes better servers). I went with the Dell Latitude for my recent purchase. I have used Dell's onsite support with previous Dell laptops and it has been very good. I am not aware of any other laptop brand that will come onsite to fix a problem, as they are usually mail-in or carry-in arrangements. I also chose the i5 CPU as a tradeoff between speed and reliability. The i7 is faster, but also runs hotter. Thermal-related issues are the leading cause of hardware failure, so I would only get an i7 chip in a desktop/server case where I can include redundant cooling fans. It's harder to keep a laptop cool, so I avoided the i7 chip. The i5 should be fast enough and not have the heat risk of the i7. You can Google the i7 chip along with key words like "overheating" to get more input on this topic. Whatever you decide, hope this helps.
My advice is: be careful. I have 2 HP laptops: 1) dv9730us (older) 2) dv8t 1100 (current) #1 was bought about 3 years ago. Sent back for repair 3 times. Disk drive problem. Chip overheating. And disk drive problem. #2 was bought in May 2010. Sent back for repair 1 time. 1) LCD display issue (reseated cable they said). 2) Disk drive problem - they changed out the drive. dv8t has a popularly-complaint problem: that their Wifi key (a soft key) and Treble/Base key randomly go berserk. End result is your Wifi go out unexpectedly. Bad for trading. I got around it with using landline while trading at home. And bought a USB wifi dongle to use in place of the built-in one. Not sure if this problem is in dv7t. Check the HP support forum. My 3rd laptop is a Compaq laptop. You think HP and Compaq are the same. No they are not. Compaq had started producing portables decades ago. Their products are quite robust. My Compaq laptop (bought about 3 years ago) worked and worked without problem. And the weight is lighter too. Not sure if they still produce new models in that line. "Compaq Presario A900 Notebook PC" I don't have experience with other brands, except IBM T43 Thinkpad (former company-assigned), which worked very well. Though from what I understand they are more expensive and geared towards the corporate market.
I have this one which looks pretty much like the same one except mine only has 4 gigs of RAM and only has a one year warranty. Works great. I paid $999 plus tax = about $1100. Have had it for about 6 months and have had no problems. BTW the battery runs about 3 hours on the dimmest screen brightness. And an additional battery costs about $140. I'd buy that one you're looking at. I upgraded the OS to Windows 7 Pro 64 bit. http://www.frys.com/product/6282180
anyone ever have the problem of the laptop monitor going blank. just not working. hooking up to an external monitor doesn't work either. its a dell xps btw
OP I also have a dv8t and love it The Wifi kicks on and off on occasion like Boliâs â but still love the PC Hard to beat the bigger screen imo (and the main reason I picked this model) RN
BTW those coupon codes don't usually last until the expiration date. They only dole out a certain allotment. I learned this while buying my last HP Pavilion before this one. I configured it and then decide to wait overnight to think about it and make sure this was the one I wanted. But when I went to purchase it the next morning the offer had expired, not time wise but allotment wise. Snooze you lose. But I eventually found a new code for $500 off a couple of months later and bought it. It was an HP dv9700t and was great until I dropped it about 18". Still have it. But it's in a million pieces.
I agree with you RN. I love the dv8t even with its problems. 18.4 inch screen (resolution 1920x1080p). The i7-920QM chip makes it about 60% as fast as my i7-930 box at home. When I go on a trip I sure enjoy the speed. I am prepared to change out the drive to a SSD when the warranty expires and the hard disk goes out again. Compared to the IBM T43 I used to use... only 15-inch screen. A far cry difference.
6 cell battery seems light for a quad core. If you intend to use it plugged in all the time that won't matter. I own both HP and Dell laptops. Dell flawless and HP few minor issues over time. If you go to Dell Small Business they have Vostro deals ready to ship out the door overnight free shipping most of the time.