HP Envy 17" - way too much problems.

[sebkrier]

Hi,

So I bought this laptop a few months ago. The first time I used it, it was alright, but the graphics drivers did crash from time to time (that got fixed after I updated them). Now they only crash when I use the wrong charger. The main problem is that it seems the laptop is over-heating (it's really, really hot) and Windows often hangs/lags/freezes for 10 minutes. Every time, I have to restart manually and lose everything I was doing. I'm okay with computers, and I'm pretty sure it has nothing to do with virus/spyware, and I haven't installed a lot of programs on it. What should I do? Also, I'm not sure I still have the documents that came with the laptop, just the shiny ENVY box - does that mean the guarantee is void? Help!

[Knute]

Do you have pets? Like Dogs or Cats that would shed?

Many times a laptop overheating is directly related to the cooling of the processor. The main culprit is the fan. The fan sucks in air from the bottom and blows it out the side. It will also suck in hair, dust, and other debris. That stuff often gets trapped by the heat sink and over time builds up in a layer which chokes off the cool air going to the processor making the fan work harder.

Check this out:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01657439&tmp_track_link=ot_faqs/top_issues/en_u...


What I recommend is getting some canned air and blowing out the vents in the side and bottom of the laptop. If after doing this you still have problems with over-heating, and your laptop is in warranty, you can take your laptop to a HP Authorized Service Center and ask them to clean the fan and heatsink. You can check your warranty here:

http://www13.itrc.hp.com/service/ewarranty/warrantyResults.do?admit=109447627+1286541891570+28353475



If it is out of warranty, consider searching for the maintenance manual for your specific model, in the manual there are schematics for taking apart the laptop. Cleaning the fan is much easier that removing a motherboard, so don't feel to intimidated by the idea. Also you can remove the heatsink and then remove the thermal grease and apply a new layer which also helps alleviate heat related issues.



I hope this helps. If you like my advice and it works for you, please thank me by clicking the Kudos Star under my screen name, thanks!

[rogers1313]

I just purchased and envy 17 3d model.   Definitely gets hot.  In fact right out of the box started having problems with performance.  Because the machine has to do updates for everything as soon as you get it connected to the internet.  It took forever to get through that process.  Every window opening closing updating took forever to accomplish.   Task bars don't finish.

The worst experience I have ever had with a laptop.  

3 days later the laptop updates were completed.  I thought that this would solve the slow problems.   No chance.  So I shutdown the laptop and left it off for 1 day. 

Guess what?

everything is working faster than ever.   I am letting it heat up on my table.  I have a clear air path.

So If I get to use this laptop for a few hours before the heat compromises the laptop performance...Is this acceptable?

I will probably return this laptop if that is the case.

Was the machine tested with it on for long periods of time?

thanks for any information.

Roger

[narevill]

Here is my experience with the Envy 17

http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Lockups-Freezes-Hangs/HP-ENVY-17-1050ea-overheats-and-shuts-down/td-p/4...

I would say if you are running games you should use an external cooler, I am using a Zalman 3000s with good results. I believe that the machine is unable to cope with the amount of heat produced by the I7 and 5850, In the interests of longevity I am running the 5850 at 'maximum battery life' settings which pulls the max GPU temp down to 70C, whilst still allowing good frame rates for the software I am running. I think that if I run the machine at maximum performance (as I was for the first month) it will fail again.

Nigel

[mindstorm75]

The "maximum battery life" is a crap option: if you buy a PC and you can't use its hardware due to a bad project you just trashed your money. You cannot put an i7 and a powerful GPU with a poor/wrong cooling system. It's unfair.

For sure my next laptops will be a non-HP. For sure !!!!!!

PS: the design is so poor that also the idea to disassemble it to check if the fans are clean is not an option. Must be *completely* disassembled 'cause fans are not accessible from the bottom (removing some screws), but from the top removing  the keyboard, covers, internal components until the motherboard.