Review: A Trio of HP Laptops : HP Pavilion dv2 (continued)
6. HP Pavilion dv2 (continued)
Display
As on all current HP Pavilion models, the LCD panel has a reflective glossy finish. The reflections are highly visible and you need to take a lot of pains with your room lighting to try to avoid them. Using this notebook outdoors is even more of a headache. These difficulties are compensated for in part by the panel’s brightness - 270 nits. The 1280 x 800-pixel definition is good for a 12.1” diagonal. Fonts look neither too small nor too large. The default colors were extremely poor. The Delta E (average color difference) was in excess of 11. The colorimetric shift was significant, with colors tending toward blue. It’s high time that manufacturers faced the fact that calibrating a display is not a luxury – especially since it’s a very simple operation to perform. Unfortunately, we suspect that such highly saturated colors are really there to hide the display’s shortcomings. As is very common, the panel uses TN technology and has a response time of 5 ms. That’s good enough for the kind of tasks this notebook will be used for – office applications, photography, and video.
Performance
Despite two cores, the test results for the HP Pavilion dv2-1120ef’s AMD Athlon X2 Neo L335 processor were only slightly better than for the Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500 (found in the MSI X340 and the Acer Aspire 5810T). That’s disappointing. The processor did win points for its multi-tasking abilities, since they add flexibility to a notebook’s possibilities. That’s what kept it at a score of three stars on this part of the testing.
Overall performance scores were only half as good as with our reference computer, the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi3650. Still, this HP’s performance is sufficient for office applications. Photography and video won’t be a problem, provided you can be patient during heavy tasks like encoding or photo retouching.
Playing high-definition video (Blu-ray equivalent or 1080p) is quite possible. But we strongly advise you to leave the decoding to the dedicated ATI graphics card. To do that, you’ll have to use software that’s compatible with the card’s hardware acceleration (PowerDVD or WinDVD, for example).
Games
Though it performed better than an Intel integrated graphics solution (like the GMA 4500MHD, for example), the notebook’s ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3410 graphics card is still very limited when it comes to gaming. Nevertheless, you’ll be able to play fairly old games or ones that use 3D engines that don’t make heavy demands. Examples would be Half-Life 2 or Counter-Strike, provided you don’t play at the highest detail levels.
Audio
The sound exits from the front of the machine only. The maximum volume is loud enough, but the sound saturates fairly quickly if you turn up the level too much (beyond about 60%). We found the sound quality brittle and aggressive, unpleasant to listen to, with very little depth. And as is often the case with portable computers, bass was non-existent. The headphone jack generated a slight hiss and its output lacked brilliance. There was little detail or nuance.
Mobility, Battery life
We were rather disappointed in the 2 hr. 40 min. battery life this notebook clocked in our video playing test (with the display set at 100 nits, headphones plugged in, and Wi-Fi disabled), especially given its 6-cell battery. And the computer’s performance, which is only average, is no plausible excuse for that kind of results. The 15-inch MacBook Pro ran for 3 hrs. 19 min. with better performance. The AMD Neo platform just doesn’t seem to be as power-efficient as Intel’s solutions.
Fortunately, with its 1.73 Kg (3.8 lbs.) weight, the machine is in the average for its category, and is fairly slim. For an entry-level computer, that’s pretty good.
PROS
- Finish and design
- Dedicated graphics card: can play HD video
- External DVD burner included
- Relatively compact
- Glossy, poor-quality LCD panel
CONS
- Poor audio
- Somewhat noisy under load
- Disappointing performance
- Only average battery life
We were expecting a lot of this low-cost ultraportable, with its dual-core processor and the new AMD Neo platform. It’s complete, but unfortunately it’s held back by disappointing performance and limited battery life. Still it’s a good possible solution for anyone who wants to stay away from netbooks.
>>HP
no
Wow
Wow
What I meant to say, before the site automatically posted my message when I merely logged in:
HP dv2 - $650 15" MacBook Pro - $1580 - $2100 on the site I looked on. I bet HP could have included a better battery for a THOUSAND BUCKS, including a faster processor, better graphics, etc.
I don't get why this site always uses inappropriate references. I'm not saying HP is the best thing since sliced bread. They're the Ford / GM of PC makers. Would you compare a Ford to a BMW?
What I meant to say, before the site automatically posted my message when I merely logged in:HP dv2 - $650 15" MacBook Pro - $1580 - $2100 on the site I looked on. I bet HP could have included a better battery for a THOUSAND BUCKS, including a faster processor, better graphics, etc.I don't get why this site always uses inappropriate references. I'm not saying HP is the best thing since sliced bread. They're the Ford / GM of PC makers. Would you compare a Ford to a BMW?
I guess I would compare a ford to a bmw if I was interested in what parts create the difference between the low end and the high end. They aren't in the same class--that's a given--but the vast difference in performance is still something to remind yourself of, as a tech enthusiast. That said, this article should've also made comparison to machines it its same class, so good point.
amd turion x2 rm75 @ 2.2ghz on my hp pavilion dv6 1211ax scores 5.0 wei on vista which beats the intel core2duo t7250 @ 2.0ghz on my sony vaio lappy which only managed a wei score of 4.9 on vista and equals score of 5.0 with intel c2d t6500 @ 2.1ghz