HP DV4000

This is my personal review of the Hewlett Packard (HP) DV4000 laptop/notebook Personal Computer (PC). After a lot of research on great sites like tomshardware.com, pcmagazine.com (their Editors choice review gave it 4.5/5) and cnet.com (didn't review what I customized and purchased), I decided on a customized HP DV4000 for its Quick Play capability, performance, features and battery life.

As I customized and purchased it, I give it 9.5 out of 10 stars. The remaining .5 is a couple of minor tweaks I would like to see, specifically a fully enabled IR port (transmit as well as receive), 7200rpm HD option on original purchase, and a method to separately power the 802.11b/g WiFi and Bluetooth.

I have owned many laptops. I stayed away from other than printer HP products for a long time due to personal experiences and now especially that they have outsourced their technical support as many other companies have. But all the aside, this made in China laptop is the best laptop I have ever owned bar none. I have to say that the HP shopping website was good in communicating the delivery of my order, they had delivered the accessories right off the bat and then the laptop later after it was built. Amazingly it only took 3 days to arrive from China on a holiday, and that was over a weekend. I had chosen standard shipping but HP FedEX'd the laptop.

HP has a trademarked feature called QuickPlay. This feature allows you to play DVDs or Music CDs without booting into the Operating System (OS). I like this feature as it saves on battery life. Other laptops I reviewed from Dell or Asus only allow you to play music CDs. The HP solution allows you to play both movie DVDs and music CDs. A word of caution here, not all models of the various manufacturers support these features. In HPs case, I can only confirm the Pavilion line has this feature. Their website does not allude to Quickplay on Compaq Presario or their tablet (TC line) and business (NX, NC, NW lines) laptops.

Some reviews out there on the DV4000 are based on weak processors and integrated Intel graphics media accelerator that shares system memory for video memory. Be sure to find the reviews that are based on the most powerful 2.13GHz Intel Pentium M 770 Centrino processor and the ATI mobility Radeon x700 graphics with dedicated 128MB video memory. Configured with these options, the HP DV4000 performs as well and better than many much more expensive laptops such as the Ferrari 4000. Here are the particulars of the HP DV4000 I configured and bought on HP's shopping website:

- Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Professional with SP2 (XP Home will do if you don't need VPN capability for work)

- Intel(R) Pentium(R) M Processor 770 (2.13 GHz) (533MHz Frontside Bus (FSB))

- 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen TFT Active Matrix (1280x800) (Brightview is a glossy finish on the screen normal is a matte finish, glossy reflects more but is brighter and sharper with more contrast)

- 80 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive (no 7200rpm HD available from HP although I'd bet you can install one, some say there is no performance difference between 5400 and 7200 but there sure is between the 4200 and 5400 let me tell you, I'd bet there is between the 5400 and 7200 I know there sure is in desktops. And no matter what anybody says the faster the spin rate the more power the drive consumes, its a matter of physics.)

- LightScribe 8x DVD+/-RW&CD-RW Combo w/Double Layer (what's important here is the +/- on the DVD writer so it will take either media type)

- Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2200BG 802.11b/g WiFi & Bluetooth(TM) (only thing not covered is 802.11a)

- Microsoft(R) Works/Money (Who cares? Standard option that you can uninstall when you get it)

- Earbud Headphones with In-Line Volume Control (better ones available aftermarket but at least these are light and portable)

- HP 90W Power Adapter Auto/Air/AC (very cool adapter for use on airplanes (has charge on/off button to allow power only on airplanes) or in an automobile)

I am very pleased with the performance. Boot time and game frame rate is as quick as my desktop. In fact I was surprised to see this laptop actually beat my desktop in framerate on one of games. Understand my current desktop is a custom built no-slouch gaming machine. My desktop has a P4 3.0GHz HT with 2GB of 400MHz DDR2 RAM an Asus P4C800-E Deluxe mobo with 7200rpm HD and full blown ATI X850 Platinum with 256MB. Both the desktop and the laptop are configured with xp pro default install no tweaks, MacAfee suite and Office 2K. So nothing else running in the background that might sap performance or configuration differences and the laptop beats the desktop! The only difference is the screen resolution. The desktop is running 1280X1024 and the laptop is running 1280x800 both 32bit color. Still that's not a lot of difference to account for the extra performance. In my favorite online game the laptop gets 70fps where the desktop gets 60fps. I don't know what all accounts for the laptops superior performance but I'll take it!

I also like the sound and the display. For a laptop the sound is good, clear and loud. For better sound you are always better off with a high end headset like the Bose or Entymotics no matter what the laptop. The display is bright, clear and crisp.

This laptop is absolutely loaded with features. I really like the bluetooth as I carry a Targus AMB01 bluetooth mouse. This mouse is small light and portable. With integrated bluetooth in the laptop I don't have a dongle sticking out the side of the notebook in a USB port. In the future I plan on buying a cellphone with bluetooth that will allow me to either dial up or use the emrging cell broadband technologies from anywhere on the road without a cable between the phone and laptop. Yes bandwidth will be constricted to that of bluetooth but one less cord to carry is always welcomed. I also like the 802.11g WiFi wireless networking and 10/100 wired LAN port and POTS modem. Here is a list of the features I believe are base features found on all DV4000s no matter how they are custom configured:

1 ExpressCard/54 Slot (also supports ExpressCard/34) & 1 Type I/II 32-bit Card Bus-enabled (also support 16-bit)

Built-in 6-in-1 digital media reader SD-MS/Pro-MMC, SM, xD (this comes in really Handy)

A very impressive list of base features. Lots of inputs and outputs to accommodate just about anything you want to do. A note about the IR port, it is receive only for use with the optional remote control.

The extra umpf of the processor and the video card requires more power. I really like the 12 cell battery over the standard 6 cell. Not only does the 12 cell battery last twice as long but it raises the rear of the notebook up. This is very important as the air intake fan for the CPU is on the bottom (exhaust out the rear) and all laptops get hot on the bottom. By raising the laptop off the table it helps keep it cool which translates into longer life and more reliable performance. And on top of that it helps with typing. Ergonomically I like a keyboard that is slighted tiled up at the back over an absolutely flat one. I bought an extra 12 cell battery. I have found with the LCD brightness cranked all the way up and wireless on (one button for 802.11b/g and bluetooth), I get 3 hours from one 12 cell battery. So two batteries give me 6 hours of play time when I'm not near a wall plug.

	The 12 Cell Battery
	Bottom of battery
	Side of Battery
	IR Remote Control
	Lid Closed Front
	Lid Open Back
	TFT Display Note: difficult to take these pictures it doesn't do it justice.
	Right Side
	Left Side
	Keyboard
	CPU Exhaust Port
	Bottom

I found some good informational downloads for the DV4000 that I will provide here in case they disappear on HPs website.