Really Hot for high performance 16" laptop

[Yo2]

HP has a $500 (off laptops over $1399) coupon (NB0915)- coincidentally most of their really nice new big lappys are not configurable with this .This brand-new 16" rig however is discountable.

It is based on the latest Intel chipset and features the P/T 8400-9600 processors with the 1066 FSB.

I was not looking for all the multimedia stuff - blu-ray/ high def screen/ tv tuner/ bluetooth etc, but wanted a really high performance (possibly gaming) machine.

So here is what I ordered:

- HP Pavilion HDX16t Entertainment Notebook
- Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
- Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T9600 (2.80GHz)
- 16" diagonal High Definition HP Ultra Brightview Infinity Display (1366x768)
- 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
- 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
- 320GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
- [For BrightView Infinity Display] Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
- HP Color Matching Keyboard
- Intel(R) WiFi Link 5100AGN
- No TV Tuner w/remote control
- 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
- Microsoft(R) Works 9.0
- LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support

How much? $1049 AR + tax and this includes one of the fastest Moble CPUs available + plus a very decent graphics card ( memory will be swapped later)

Other configurations are possible too (Note that I splurged on the processor). - For another $ 125+tax or so you can get blue ray rom drive, high res display and other stuff.

Not sure how long this coupon is good for but good luck to anyone else getting in on this deal.

 

[Bitman]

It's silly not to get the 1920x1200 display, it's only $25 extra. I got an old Dell lappy with that resolution, and it always makes me smile. Two full pages in OpenOffice plus space left over for toolbars. Open all the views in Eclipse at once. The pixels are so small, you can't even seem them -- just a smooth white field with razor sharp text.

Granted I'm a pixel junkie, but if you use your lappy for real work, I highly recommend the higher resolution.

And also, I can't find any mention of the discount on their site, not even a box for a coupon code.

 

[iseestars]

Have to agree... it seems like high specs are wasted on low res screen. If it were a 13" or less I could see wanting that resolution.

 

[Insomniator]

If you got a 19x12 display you'd have bars for 1080 making the screen even smaller.

For movie watching on a 16, 720p probably looks crystal and games will be playable on the 9600 for a much longer time on the 720p than on 19x12.

Sure wouldn't wanna do any real work on there but.. as an entertainment notebook 720 seems more applicable.

 

[imported_Trailblazer]

Very tempting...I have the DV9000 series and it's been really great, but this one would be a nice upgrade and I could finally get a 64bit OS going with 4GB of memory. This old dog only takes 2GB.

I wonder if they fixed the hinge problem. Mine had it...completely came apart one day. HP fixed it 3 mo. past warranty. I think they are doing a great job IMHO.

Thanks for pointing out the deal!

Uh, oh. Looks like they have an 18" model coming out later this month! Maybe I'll wait...

 

[darkswordsman17]

Originally posted by: Insomniator
If you got a 19x12 display you'd have bars for 1080 making the screen even smaller.

For movie watching on a 16, 720p probably looks crystal and games will be playable on the 9600 for a much longer time on the 720p than on 19x12.

Sure wouldn't wanna do any real work on there but.. as an entertainment notebook 720 seems more applicable.

Its actually a 1920x1080 display, and you'll still get black bars on a lot of movies because there's a lot of them in 2.35:1 (or other) ratio.

 

[Yo2]

Originally posted by: Bitman
It's silly not to get the 1920x1200 display, it's only $25 extra. I got an old Dell lappy with that resolution, and it always makes me smile. Two full pages in OpenOffice plus space left over for toolbars. Open all the views in Eclipse at once. The pixels are so small, you can't even seem them -- just a smooth white field with razor sharp text.

Granted I'm a pixel junkie, but if you use your lappy for real work, I highly recommend the higher resolution.

And also, I can't find any mention of the discount on their site, not even a box for a coupon code.

I guess it really depends on what you intend to use this thing for. My purpose is mainly productivity (math calculations and graphic design kind of stuff) and possibly some gaming. I really don't care much about the AV stuff, and yes I too have a older 17" Lappy with 1900x1200 screen, and while I smile when I look at it, I cringe, when I work on it for a longer time, in particular in apps that do not let me readily adjust font-size and other parameters.

As for blue-ray, I may have that in my home audio system (60" kuro) soon, but I cannot see myself appreciate a difference between 1080p and 720p on a 16" screen