7. Audio: Good Sound, But Bad Microphone Placement

The Compaq nc8230 is equipped with a SoundMAX audio chip. Its driver allows the chip to adjust its energy consumption during battery operation; there are two power saving modes to choose from. In "Normal Power Save" mode, the chip automatically stays in standby mode as long as there aren't any audio programs running. The chip is only activated and draws more power when an application requires it as a resource.

The audio chip can automatically adjust its power consumption during battery operation.

The "High Power Save" mode includes the option to set a certain time interval after which the chip will switch from the active to the inactive state. Since the deactivation takes place within the chip, Windows XP is not "aware" of this procedure, so the driver remains resident in the system memory. If an audio application is launched while the chip is deactivated, it will automatically be switched on.

HP placed the speakers to the left and right of the keyboard.

The two speakers produce good sound; even when they are set to full blast, distortion and overamplification is only minimal. However, the current version of the sound driver does not offer any options to improve the sound using an equalizer. The sound quality of the (built-in) microphone, on the other hand, can be adjusted using a filter implemented in the driver.

Rare feature: The recording quality of the audio input can be improved using a software filter.

HP's designers didn't have one of their better moments when they decided where to place the microphone - it is located on the right hand side between the two audio inputs. As a result, the clicking of a mouse can be more audible than the speaker's voice in telephony and audio-conferencing programs such as Skype. Not exactly a great choice.

The microphone is (mis)placed on the right edge of the case!