HP Envy 13 Review Discussion

Last year, HP claimed to "redefine the premium notebook PC" when the company unveiled the new HP Envy 13. This 13-inch notebook offers high-performance, power-efficient processors, ATI switchable graphics, lightweight aluminum and magnesium construction, and features a bright screen with amazing color depth for exceptional picture viewing and video playback. On paper, the Envy 13 promises to be everything you want in a laptop. Keep reading to find out if this premium notebook is worth its premium price tag.

Read the full content of this Article: HP Envy 13 Review

Related Articles:

• HP Mini 311 Review
• HP Pavilion dv6z Review
• HP Mini 5102 Review (Updated)
• HP Pavilion dv2 Review

 

Couldn't agree more with the final verdict.

There is a lot to like about this machine - but also a lot to question. Why does it cost *more* than a MacBook Pro despite having no optical drive and a low-voltage cpu?

 

Great review, not so great machine -- for the same price, I could get a better speced Z540EBB (which I actually bought and am still using it now) and an external Bluray drive in 2008... Have to give credit to HP that at least they are trying to catch up.

Is there a non-Bluray option? I wonder how much of the price is due to that Bluray drive.

 

I agree with your analysis . . . I generally like HP products but this is not one I would consider buying. It is not exclusive enough to match the price since its design is essentially a MacBook copy. Whether it was designed before the new MacBooks came out and HP went with it anyway is irrelevant; it is what it is, and it's a MacBook copy.

I think the keyboard is very disappointing in terms of layout since there are no home, end, pgup, or pgdn keys. They did change the printscreen key to be primary and insert as secondary, which is the opposite of most of their notebooks; I like that change.

For the price, this offers nothing over competitors . . . 3GB of RAM and a slow 250GB 5400RPM hard drive for $2k, no thanks.

 

It's clear this 13-incher had promise, but HP squandered it quickly--by obviously sticking closer to Dell than to Apple. It's dm3t and dm3z models deserve much more consideration in this case.

Provided there is a future iteration of this Envy, hopefully HP learns to better justify the price tag.

 

I'm surprised you guys even reviewed this instead of the Envy 15, or heck, the DM3 for that matter...lol.
There's about three posts about the Envy 13, compared to about 9,000 about the 15. Nobody really cares about the 13, boys. And most of the posts about the 13 are asking about a refresh or upcoming Envy systems, that really should have told you something.....

You can get a more powerful system in the DM3, for considerably less...

Anyway.

 

I actually think this is allright system but the price tag is just absurd... I am quite sure there are better options out there for cheaper... can someone give me a few examples of more powerful and cheaper 13,14 inchers? Also like Nu_D said , i was suprised that a review for envy 15 wasn't done instead since there is way more interest in it.

 

Do you want more powerful CPU or more powerful GPU or both? Pretty much any C2D P-series or Core i CPU laptop is going to win out in CPU, but GPU-wise ATI 4330 is probably about the same to other 13". There are a couple 14" with GT330m, like Sony VAIO CW, but it's 14" and heavier than this guy. You can get it for $1000 or less though.

 

This laptop makes the Sony Vaio Z seem like a hot deal.

 

Sean:
Check out the DM3T... you can get SP9300+105m along with an X25 160gb, and 4GB... for about 1k with the coupons that HP is always throwing around. I've seen that combo as low as $900 even. It has switchable graphics with the 4500MHD, so you get very good battery life. A superior system, in my opinion, to the Envy 13, for a lot less.

This system has a more powerful CPU, but doesn't have the SSD...it's a great system. I've done a lot of research on it since I'm looking at it, I love the high-res screen, that you just won't find anywhere else on a system with a 14in or smaller screen. It runs very cool.

Stay away from the HP DV4. It's a very enticing system, great bang for the buck...but man, run through the owners lounge, those things just die. The HDDs run around 50C, easy. Very hot running system. Same basic design as the DV2500 before it, and the DV2000 before that. These things are designed to die about a month after the standard one year warranty ends.

 

Actually my friend got a DM3T for $780 including tax.
The specs :
SP9300+105M
250 GB
4GB Ram
extra 6 cell battery
external DVD/RW

It was a $300 off $1199 and they had an extra $250 off as instant rebate.

 

For whatever it's worth, I personally own a dv4t at home (it was my primary home laptop and now it's my wife's main laptop). I bought it on sale back at the end of 2008 mainly because I wanted a 14-inch notebook that has space for dual internal hard drives.

Yes, it runs HOT ... particularly the main HDD compartment. However, I can't agree that "these things are designed to die about a month after the standard one year warranty ends."

I'm sure there are a lot of happy dv4t owners out there who have been using their notebooks for more than a year, and the dv4t isn't the only notebook that doesn't do a good job controlling heat. I think you just hear about the dv4t more because it sells VERY well (lots of people have them) and it's an old notebook at this point (one of the longest-lasting models in HP's lineup).

 

Well, there are always exceptions to the rule. And apparently yours is one of them. Bet you a bucket of chicken it dies by the end of the year.
It's just a matter of time really.

Cavedog:

Ya, the setup I posted had the $300 SSD option...put that up there that even with the SSD, it's still a whole heck of a lot cheaper than the Envy 13...

 

G105M is just too weak.. something like GT330M will be great... will have a look at VAIO CW and Z series but the Z is too expensive ... the CW is more cheaper is allright...

 

Same here.

It just dont make sense. One thing i hate most is that you not simply open it and access your hardware (like Ram).

I recently ordered a Dell Alienware M11x and as you can see it beat the hell out of any laptop in this size. Sure its a ~12 inch screen but the resolution is same or better then many laptops in this size beside you get tons of ports, great design, good choice of CPU (long battery time), accessible hardware department and price is very hard to beat.

I thought this one could make me regret my buy but no way

Macbook Pro is also very nice but performance wise (gaming) alienware owns.

 

But in an i3 and lower the price by $500 and they have a winner.

 

If a small gamer is your priority get the Alien. Although it is a bit heavy.

But if you want to get a super light, strong all around machine that can do everything, is light, has a great 13" screen with full color gamut... Then get the new Sony Z. For the same price as the Envy (when you try and match specs) you get a machine that is superior in every possible way.

3.06 lbs
i-520
switchable HD-330m graphics
Built in optical drive
1600X900 full gamut, reduced glare 13" screen
128 GB SSD drive (Raid 0)

about $1600 after BCB. No tax most states.

Why anyone would spend similar $'s for this Envy is beyond me.

 

At this price, this Envy 13 should have come with one of the core i processors, a backlight keyboard, those fingerprint sign-in stuff, usb 3.0, an e-sata/usb combo, free laptop sleeve, 8 cell battery (the asus ul30 has 8cell in almost the same size), 8 gigs ram (at least 4gigs) and OMG, at least 500 gig harddisk.
And why, just why is it that HP cant produce a laptop do not run HOT.
If the price is because of the magnesium-aluminium case, I'll just get a thinkpad.

 

Since when did this laptop have a 7hr battery life? Ive never heard that one before.

Nice machine, but much rather have a Sony Z or MBP 13.

 

I purchased an Envy 15 and ended up sending it back - despite the awesome processor (Core i7 820QM) and video card (4830 in my interation - its up to 5830 now) and lots of great features like the truly innovative slice battery, it had some considerable drawbacks that were just unacceptable for a $2500 laptop. The reason that I didn't get the Envy 13 was I saw many of the same, and some additional features cut.

The Envy 15 (and from reports, the 13) as well had a HORRIBLE BIOS that was not ACPI compliant. All the thermal monitoring and fan control was left up to windows driver! This meant that you had a good chance of cooking your notebook if you installed Linux, or even Windows from an alternate clean source without the OEM bloat, something I always do. Skimping here is unacceptable and was a major reason why I sent my 15 back. 13 users shouldn't have to put up with it either.

The main reason I passed over the 13 was despite the top-of-the-line Quad i7 in the 15, the 13 used a tired out Core 2 Duo - low voltage and low power. The Sony Z is capable of cramming a Core i7 620, the most powerful of the non quad mobile processors into it, along with an optical drive! The Envy 13 needs this at LEAST. If they could put the same i7 720/820 that fits into the 15" into it, that would be a true feat.

The graphics were acceptable, but I would have rather seen a 4770 at the time when I bought mine, and a 57xx series today. At very least, it should get a 5000 series upgrade like its bigger brother.

The RAM is a weird thing, and it would be nice not to stick with 4 or 8gb like the 15. Soldering memory on is rather foolish and I'd like to be able to upgrade my expensive premium laptop.

The HP Radience screen is the one thing they did right, and I wish they could have included on the 15" model (which admittedly, had a pretty great screen as well) 13 or 15", if I'm buying a laptop close to or over $2000, I want the very best LED backlit panel available, with the highest color gamut, good brightness and more. The Sony Z (Outside the US) has a 96% Adobe 100% NTSC 1920x1080 panel - on a 13" laptop! Alas, here you need to buy the Signature series.

Finally, it may seem like a little issue, but for someone who uses his laptop in darkened areas and bed a lot, why why why would you omit a backlit keyboard? It seems nearly everyone does this and I would think if you were copying the bloody MacBookPro, you'd keep this feature as well. Even for touch typists, it is important because you're using a keyboard that has a different form factor, and lots of secondary functions with the FN key - not to mention gaming! Every single "Sophisticated, Premium" notebook should have this option. Sadly, I don't think manufacturers get it aside from a few.

The Envy was obviously going for the same market as the MacBook Pro - MY market - Thin, power, premium aesthetics and build quality. In some ways they trounced Apple especially with regard to power, but they cut far too many corners or trumped the price up too much.

I wish someone would make a 13"-15" "Premium" laptop without cutting corners.

 

Agreed...
Should do a review on the TM2, DM3T, or Envy 15 2nd gen.

 

You did try to overwrite the beats maximum volume? It is set to only 50 percent as a max. It was happening with the Envy 15. I had to go and do it manually to reach the true 100% capacity...though some distortion might appear on higher volumes.

 

Sony Vaio Z

 

Yes 10char ...

 

If I was in the market for a high end laptop, and it was between this and the MacBook Pro, I'd end up choosing the MBP. I think the HP looks better, but there seems to be too many odd decisions made like soldered RAM and a non backlit keyboard.. Are there drawbacks to Apple's system? Sure. No 7200 RPM drive for starters, the "sealed" battery, pretty weak port selection, decent but still integrated graphics, etc. but at the end of the day it just seems to make more sense, since it offers a optical drive built in.

 

There's ur answer!!! Also Available in 1080P

 

The sony z is a good machine but who wants a laptop with a battery leak, almost defeats the purpose of portability, unless you want to keep taking the battery out when yuo travel.

 

Amen to that! I've been looking for something along these lines for about 5 months now and basically its like all the PC makers are trying to force me to buy a mac. Incredible how they either ignore this segment or throw fake attempts at it.

Even the old alternative of going for the japanese market machines isnt really there, as they too are watering this down. For example Panasonic has killed its Y -series and the F-series that replaced it is not as good.

 

a battery leak?

 

what is a batter leak?

 

I get the feeling he means that the system somehow uses more power turned off than similar notebooks...like there's a constant draw of power...

 

I think the term used in the Sony subforum is "battery drain" i.e. that the battery loses charge, even when the notebook isn't being used. People have reported losing up to 5-25% overnight when the notebook is not in use.

 

How do you think the clock stays accurate overnight

 

I'm not a Vaio user so I can't answer that lol

 

That is plainly unacceptable... so really speaking , it is not an option. Sony really has to solve this problem.

 

I've been using Sony CW for a while, and I cannot say I have had a battery drain problem.

About Envy13, I agree with what everyone says. Within "premium" segment, I do not see any reasons to choose this over Vaio Z or MBP - Z or MBP have much better price-to-performance ratio, and that says a lot.

 

Idk, I recall the mention of the problem with the previous generation Sony Vaios(the FW, the old Z and the like). Idk if they fixed the issue with the current generation Vaios.

I do agree that the specs are a bit underwhelming given the price of the Envy 13 though.

 

I have not noticed battery drain in the new Z and am quite happy with it; I would definitely buy it again. Windows 7 needs a bit more work though IMO.
And I just HAD to kick Norton to the curb; wouldn't let me install certain programs like Wrye Bash, and when I turned Norton off it still prevented Wrye Bash, till I took it out and replaced it with AVG Free. How do you guys feel about Norton? I just couldn't take it.

 

I cant stand Norton

 

How does the ENVY 13 compare to high end Adamo Desire? I have the ENVY, and I love it, but I can not get over the sucky trackpad. Would I do better with the Adamo? Should I expect a performance decrease?

 

Even when playing graphic intensive games it does not break a sweat. As for the battery/s getting about 11 hours of constant use with Bluetooth on and wifi off. With wifi and Bluetooth on and streaming movies get about 7 hours of constant use. The laptop is small so the IO ports are at a minimum. It only has two USB ports so I purchased a Microsoft Bluetooth mouse and it works perfect. The included external DVD drive gets its power from the USB and also acts as a USB hub supplying 2 ports.

 

I would not recommend an Adamo as a primary computer. If it is a real problem I would get a Sony Z, Dell m11x or an external mouse (which is good anyway, I hate all trackpads).

 

Thanks Clutch. I checked out the Sony X a couple of times, but it is a bit thicker than I would like. From what I gather, the m11x is also rather thick. I ordered an Adamo Desire to compare it with my Envy 13, and will be sending the one I like least back.

 

I be honest I have found thickness and weight do not matter much, but I carry 3 1 inch binders and maybe a large textbook, a power supply, 2 reading books, calculator, and my laptop in my sig in my backpack. So any added weight or size does not make that much of a difference.

 

I am quite the opposite. I only carry a portfolio in my bag. I can feel the difference when I have to lug my old school Dell 15" work laptop instead of my Envy 13 or Asus N10J.

I found an excellent video online today to get an idea of the size the Adamo...its bigger than I thought. A gut was comparing it to a MBP, and its tip for tap. I guess the Envy 13 is a keeper (unless a smaller MBP or MBA comes out very soon).

 

Clutch

After reading your response, I started looking into the m11x. How does it compare to the Envy 13 in your opinion (both of them loaded)?

I am not a gamer, so I think the m11x may be overkill, but I am reading good reviews a a small computer overall. It may be thicker than the Envy 13, but it has the illuminated keyboard which I like, and the lights everywhere. What I am worried about is the slow processor, which over-clocked is still slower than the Envy 13.

 

you can check out the review here of the m11x
http://www.notebookreview.com/defau...=alienware+m11x+ultraportable+gaming+notebook

Personally I would go with the m11x. I dont think the CPU is as big of a deal as people make out.

The Sony Z is very nice but costs 2 arms and a leg.

 

You talked me into it. I will likely order a m11x as soon as Dell receives (and refunds me) for my Adamo. Hopefully Best Buy will have them in stock by then, so I can check them out in person. I am sorta worried about the keyboard in terms of typing (cramped). The Envy's keyboard is perfect IMO...

 

I hate to say it, but you will be disappointed by the mx11. Its thick, its bulky, and its only an 11.6 inch screen. Personally I hate the Ailienware look. Way to flashy. IMO you are better off with the Envy or the Dell Adamo. You can get the Dell Adamo for 899$ through the EPP, and they normally have 50-100$ off coupons that stack. While the weight is a bit more, its only .65 inches thick and has a nice Trim enabled 128GB SSD drive. Also the Adamo has a bit faster cpu and has more cache.

 

I did not realize that the Adamo Desire was faster and had more cahce that the Envy 13 (fastest one).

The reason I sent the Adamo back is because while it is slim, it is alot thicker than I thought. The Envy is noticably smaller all around when compared side by side.