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HP Compaq nw8240 Review (Pictures included) - Page 5

post #81 of 111
9/18/05 at 11:19am
Thread Starter 
Yes, it indeed seems rather dull.
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post #82 of 111
9/18/05 at 11:46am
..now what? I guess I'll get it replaced first thing tomorrow.
what are your experiences with hp support?
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post #83 of 111
9/18/05 at 6:45pm
Thread Starter 
My experience with HP support is excellent. However, quality problems are problematic, since the computer is not clearly broken. You should send it in and let them judge, if the screen is not up to the standards it should be (there are several standard certifications for nw8240), or if it has some component broken, or not functioning correctly (e.g. backlight).
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post #84 of 111
9/19/05 at 5:19am

dull screen ....

... are you sure the problem is not caused by the use of the ambient light sensor? when using it, the screen tends to be rather dull ...

try pressing FN+F11, then adjust the brightness with FN+F9-F10
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post #85 of 111
9/19/05 at 5:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by adi1334
... are you sure the problem is not cause by the use of the ambient light sensor? when using it, the screen tends to be rather dull ...

try pressing FN+F11, then adjust the brightness with FN+F9-F10
Good point.
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post #86 of 111
9/19/05 at 9:58am
hi tommi, nice to know that u know a lot about this laptop.. i own one of nw8240 but dont know which variant it is(how to know actually)?

btw, im considering to upgrade the memory. I want to ask whether the motherboard and stock memory support dual channel. If not, i want to buy 1gb extra memory. But if it is supported, i think i want just another 512mb .and one more question, is the difference is significant if we are using dual channel or not?

here is what i plan to buy
1gb option:
ocz 1gb memory-$94.99 after $15.00 Mail-In Rebate

512mb option:

Kingston 512-$53.95

please suggest me if u know a better deal... thanks
cheers
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post #87 of 111
9/19/05 at 10:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by irwan6179
btw, im considering to upgrade the memory. I want to ask whether the motherboard and stock memory support dual channel. If not, i want to buy 1gb extra memory. But if it is supported, i think i want just another 512mb .and one more question, is the difference is significant if we are using dual channel or not?
Dual channel is supported, but the overall performance gain from it is very small. I opted to go for 1.5 GB and single channel, since I need over 1 GB memory sometimes. So I'd say, if you need over 1 GB memory go for 1.5 GB, otherwise settle for 1 GB.
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post #88 of 111
9/19/05 at 10:24am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by irwan6179
hi tommi, nice to know that u know a lot about this laptop.. i own one of nw8240 but dont know which variant it is(how to know actually)?
It is written in the part number label in the bottom of the computer (the text label which is near the serial number).
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post #89 of 111
9/19/05 at 10:38pm
is all ddr2 533mhz compatible with this laptop? or just certain only?
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post #90 of 111
9/19/05 at 11:18pm
Nice review!
I had been looking for a laptop that met my requirements for some time, namely a desktop replacement I can use for graphics and animation applications.
After reading this review, i was sold, and I managed to hunt one down (I'm in Australia, and the nw8240 was only released in august, with limited supply).
Thanks for such an in-depth review, and I am totally happy with my purchase, though somewhat more expensive here in OZ.
HOWEVER, I also do some VJ-ing from time to time using my own animation and such, and this requires a considerable ammount of button mashing with the app that I use. It seems though, that the nw8240 can only handle 2 or 3 keys being mashed at one time, any further mashing of keys doesnt register.
This pretty much limits me to two channels of video at a time....which sucks. Does anyone know of a way around this? Is it possible to tweak the settings or keyboard rate or something to allow more keys to be registered?
Sorry if that doesnt make much sense.

Oh and I agree with Tommi that this is one of the quietest laptops I have used.
Looman, after I turned off the ambient light sensor and increased the brightness of the screen, I found the print/screen quality is very accurately resembled on the monitor, and is even better than (dare i say it) colour reproduction on MAC flat panels.

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post #91 of 111
9/20/05 at 2:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by irwan6179
is all ddr2 533mhz compatible with this laptop? or just certain only?
Aside from normal compatibility issues that you can experience with memories, all normal ddr2 533mhz sodimms should work with the computer. Anything that is compatible with its chipset (Mobile Intel 915PM Express).
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post #92 of 111
9/20/05 at 1:24pm
thanks man, that is exactly what i want to know... im buying kingston 1gb ddr2 533mhz for 100$ (including shipping). It got a lot of positive review and also lifetime warranty... i'll buy at zipzoomfly.It got free 2nd day free shipping and also free photo frame... check it out click here
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post #93 of 111
9/20/05 at 8:24pm

Video Results from a maxed out NW8240

Hi All,

I just found this forum and thread today. It has been fascinating reading!

Thanks for all the great info!

I thought I would throw in my benchmarks for my NW8240.

Specs:

CPU: Pentium 770 M @2.13GHz
HDD: 80GB 5400RPM
RAM: 2GB DDR2 533MHz
Video: FireGL V5000 128MB
DVD-/+ R / CDRW
Screen: UXGA -- Max onscreen size without scrolling: 1920x1200

I've had this laptop for a month now and it is AWESOME!! Though it cost a bunch to max it out, it has an outstanding screen, low noise, and with the extra travel battery, I can go for 9 hours. Previously, I had a T23 ThinkPad and it was a real road warrior. So far, this is proving to be the same. Going to 1920x1200 from 1024x768 really makes my old T23 look like the Big Chief Tablet!!! :-)

So, anyway, I decided to do the benchmark from Cinebench from the link earlier in this thread and post my results. Here they are:

CINEBENCH 2003 v1
****************************************************

Tester :

Processor : Pentium 770M
MHz : 2.13GHz
Number of CPUs : 1
Operating System : XP Pro

Graphics Card : ATI FireGL v5000 128mb
Resolution : 1920 x 1200
Color Depth : 32-bit

****************************************************

Rendering (Single CPU): 279 CB-CPU
Rendering (Multiple CPU): --- CB-CPU


Shading (CINEMA 4D) : 331 CB-GFX
Shading (OpenGL Software Lighting) : 1392 CB-GFX
Shading (OpenGL Hardware Lighting) : 3403 CB-GFX

OpenGL Speedup: 10.29


****************************************************

Well, there you have it.

I do wish the DVD-R went faster and had DL capabilities.

I did add the extra memory module under the keyboard and it is really easy to do. You can find the online manual at HP. Basically, you drop two screws from the bottom, slide back the tabs in between the F-keys and the keyboard comes right up! Loosen a few more screws for a cover plate and you are at the memory module.

One thing that irks me is that I cannot run windows media files simultaneously on screen and output to a lcd. When I pipe it out the video port only, it runs fine on the projector. But, simultaneously display only shows the media file on my laptop screen. My thinkpad did this just fine. What can I do to make this work? Thank you for your help!

All in all, this notebook ROCKS! I love the widescreen, the brightness, and all the extra features.

Thanks again for all the great info!

Best,

--KR
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post #94 of 111
9/22/05 at 1:41pm

Different models - What is the difference ?

What is the difference between the different NX8240 models, PG818EA and PY442EA ? Both are PM770 2.13 GHz, but one of them has 7k2 60 Gb and the other has a 5k4 80 Gb Hdd ? Other than that I cannot see any difference apart from the price.

/hegge
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post #95 of 111
9/23/05 at 2:33am
Thread Starter 
Yes, it's the hard drive. HP first used 80 GB 5400 rpm in the more expensive version, but then noticed that people want 60 GB 7200 rpm more. Thus, the change.

Now, they have released a notebook with 80 GB 7200 rpm hard drive to replace PG817EA, which I bought. EK047ES is similar to PG817EA except that it has DVD+-RW and 80 GB 7200 rpm hd for the same price.
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post #96 of 111
9/23/05 at 7:11am
Very nice reviews!
I just got mine a few days ago after 2.5 months delay (HP had problems of meeting demand in europe, especially in France).
I also have the quite dull screen problem (1680x1050) and I checked the light sensor thing. It does not seem brighter than my dell latitude Cpx from early 2000 !!! Did loomen find a solution?
The fan seems quite often on and its noise is a bit anoying. So I'll give the undervolting a try.
Finally the HDD is quite noisy too (60GB 7K2). I have the feeling that the chassis of the laptop incraeses its noise(resonance). bad luck...
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post #97 of 111
9/24/05 at 9:38am
I live in the USA. Does anyone know if the 80GB 7200 is available for the NW8240 here? I have checked HP's website and I have not seen any models that come with this hard drive. Thank for your assistance.
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post #98 of 111
9/25/05 at 10:50am

Price difference

For me it seems strange that the harddrive is the only thing that is differenct between the PG818EA and PY442EA.

If one checks HP's UK pages, you will find that the PG818 is £337 cheaper than the PY442. A 60 Gb 7k2 harddrive cannot account for this price difference alone. There must be something more.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/uk/en...-12115746.html

/hegge
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post #99 of 111
9/26/05 at 12:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by uhoule
...just noticed, that there is a page number 4...

Hi Tommi,

the results tell me the following:[b]
- Rendering: about 30% slower than my Toshiba P20 (P4 3GHz HT)
- OpenGl performance more than doubles my p20 . I use my laptop 95 % with pure OpenGL NURBS-modelling (Rhino3D) so i ordered the HP with 2.13GHz yesterday.

[...]

OpenGL: the HP is 30% faster!

This will be my first NB that's faster than my Desktop.
Hi guys.... Just joined the conversation..... I'm **very** interested in the GL performence of the ATI FireGL card....

I also wanted a mobile graphic station. Started looking at a P4 Sager 9880 with the nVidia Quadro... but was just too Big, and while the Dell M70 with the Quadro card had everything I wanted --the case is definitely not my particular style (too boxy, too silvery) --I hadn't checked out HP, But this machine looks GREAT... Maybe nicer than the Thinkpad I'm getting....

Anyway.... I'm getting a Thinkpad T43P with the ATI FireGL (not delivered yet), and am very interested in what kind of rendering software people are running against the ATI card, any glitches or problems with specific software? The speed and quality of output.....

I Started a thread in the "General Section" on "mobile workstations".... But so far, most of the conversation has been "why would you even want something like this? What are you an architect or something??"... Well...

I'll continue to follow this thread if no-one wants to comment over there, but I'd love to hear more from everyone using workstation class notebooks (any brand/card) for CAD/rendering, but particularly folks using the ATI FireGL... since that's what I'm going to wind up with.

Thanks for the excellent review.... If I could find this HP machine at the price I'm getting the Thinkpad for... I'd be seriously tempted to switch.... the Case looks really nice, and it has all the bells and whistles.

Nice machine.... Congrats.
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post #100 of 111
9/26/05 at 2:31am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by hegge
For me it seems strange that the harddrive is the only thing that is differenct between the PG818EA and PY442EA.

If one checks HP's UK pages, you will find that the PG818 is £337 cheaper than the PY442. A 60 Gb 7k2 harddrive cannot account for this price difference alone. There must be something more.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/uk/en...-12115746.html

/hegge
Your pricing is really strange. The difference between PG817EA and PG818EA is £40, while here it used to be something like €600. And PG818EA and PY442 was priced the same here. So I guess PG818EA is just too cheap there, compared to other alternatives.
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