The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Its not unusual to see prices marked up an extra $1000 USD for premium machines overseas. Add in foreign taxes, and high end technology simply isn't cheap abroad.
Sony makes crappy goods with a nice finish so that they can lord it over the people with lighter, faster machines that "it's better". Their stuff takes months to port to PS3, but that makes it "exclusive" lol.
When I had an HP Mini 1000, 1gb was also soldered on, but max ram support was 2gb. So, since this has ION, it can max out at 3gb then? I know the Asus N10 has the 9300 gpu and that also likes maxed out at 2gb of ram.
Some weird pricing alternatives, downgrading ANYTHING costs a LOT more! They must really want you to take the pre-configured units.....Not a lot of configuration options anyway.
Optical drive not included in base unit, no SSD's available.
Specs state that the memory slots are not accessible....I guess the warranty would be void if you pull it apart to add memory...bummer.
The alternate battery for the Envy 15 is a 9 cell, pic shows a fat bump out battery, not a "slice"
Some of the pricing options are messed up indeed. Downgrading to the 1366x768 display costs $799.99?
I am going to hold off for the reviews as well for further judgment. Both the Envy 13 and 15 resemble a MacBook Pro too much for my liking (I like the way MacBooks look, except I don't want my PC to look like one).
Chaz, would you consider the SXPS16 better than the Envy 15???
I am torn, since I just ordered a Dell, but the Envy comes at the same price with Bing! What do you suggest?
The pricing alternatives are lucrative because these are pre-configured models... meaning they pretty much don't want to have to do any real configuration. So if you want to change the screen, they are charging $1000... it sucks, but I expect that to change in the next few weeks. They are probably doing it so it can ship out faster/easier.
The picture of the extended battery is the same picture that is shown for every HP notebook at that step in the configuration process- its not the Envy. The 'slimfit' battery has already been shown on different websites, and it is not a single fat bump, it is about a .5 inch slice that covers the entire bottom of the machine.
The inaccessible memory slots may be referring to the fact that the HP Envy 13 has 1GB soldered into one of its slots (hence only 2GB, 3GB, and 5GB upgrade options for that machine).
Otherwise, the pricing seems about what I expected it to be, with both models easily topping $2000. People who were dreaming that this would be price competitive were, well, dreaming. But to those lucky few who can throw out that kind of money, they might yet get a good product... reviews will tell.
I haven't seen either in person so unfortunately I can't answer that. On paper it does not look like you can go wrong with either machine. I personally prefer the look of the Dell, the HP looks too much like a Mac. If I want a Mac, I'll buy a Mac.
How exactly do you define better? Each has advantages and disadvantages, you have to weigh them and see what is most important to you. Until we actually get a review of the Envy, it will be hard to accurately compare them. ie. How much better is the GPU than the sXPS? Is the screen better or worse than the RGBLED in the sXPS?
Thanks for the answers (that was fast!!) The GPU seems better for the life in the HP, and the battery does not stick out...
sgogeta4, I wasnt going for the RGBLED, it was too expensive, just the same regular screen.
So I did the math, and the lesser weight, smaller chassis, better GPU and more RAM is making me tip over the HP side (never though I was gonna say that)
I still wouldn't jump on one of these until they get reviewed.
The cost seems too high to me, for that kind of money you could buy a pretty decked out i7 gaming machine and still have change leftover for a CULV thin/light.
I meant an MSI GT640 at under 6 lbs, or a Sager NP8690 at ~7 lbs...
Really, the story for this Envy 15 is the look and the battery life. At 5.5 lbs, its not a whole lot lighter than the Sager/MSI machines, but its promising up to 2-3 times the battery life at a minor compromise to gaming performance. And the fact its a Mac clone... that too.
I'm sure the HDX will get refreshed eventually. The Pavilion Dv series isn't really their high-end multimedia label, and the Envy is much more premium than the competitively priced HDX series was. I think its a niche they aren't going to leave behind.
Wait I just went on the HP site and noticed the Envy 13 with the SU9600 cost more than the base SL cpu, which has twice the cache. Why is that? Also, how much is the batter difference between the SU & the SL cpu with the base and extended battery?
As far as the price difference, if you fool around with the configuration pages on both the 13 and 15, you will see that HP has pushed hard to steer buyers into pre-configured units.
Most of the pricing downgrades COST $799, clearly a arbitrary figure set to discourage modification of the base configuration.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
