Does HP Support Asst replace HP Advisor in Win7?

[Davidoo]

I did an upgrade to Win 7 and still have the HP Advisor from Vista.  I note in the Win 7 software and driver downloads for my HDX 18 there is no entry for HP Advisor but now there is one for HP Support Assistant.  Does that replace the Advisor?  Does the Support Assistant still have the dashboard with the battery and hard drive meters or is this completely different software?

Thanks,

Dave

[ryguy2008 · Accepted solution]

HP Support Assistant does replace HP Advisor. Even if HP Advisor appears to work, you can safely uninstall it in Windows 7.

It still has the Battery Check software, hard drive meters and HP driver updates functionality, but it provides much more in-depth data about your computer than what HP Advisor provides. It also can do a much more comprehensive tune-up of your computer.

Hope this helps!

[Davidoo]

That helps very much!  Thanks!

[carolecarole]

not really, I am pretty sure the HP Support Assistant is not what actually replace HP Advisor in Win7, there are two differences software which come from shipping on my laptop with windows 7 32 bit...the newest HP Advisor should be 3.2.XX...and nothing below this version will work on windows 7

[ryguy2008]

No. I've asked HP Support directly. HP Support Assistant does in fact replace HP Advisor. HP Advisor was last released in September, whereas HP Support Assistant was last released only about 1-2 weeks ago.

[mj2009]

HP Support Assistant does not replace HP Advisor. 

There is an HP Support Assistant website with some FAQs that you can check out: http://h71036.www7.hp.com/hho/us/en/pclc/articles/hp-support-assistant.html?jumpid=ex_r602_go/hpsupp...

Below is the FAQ on HP Advisor and HP Support Assistant that I extracted from the website.

Hope this helps.

What is the difference between HP Advisor and HP Support Assistant?

HP Advisor is an HP application that helps customers throughout the lifecycle of their computer. HP Advisor makes a PC easier to use – you can view your status at a glance, access support, discover more ways to use your PC (edit photos, create video, manage music, etc.), and navigate easily to your favorite software and services.

HP Support Assistant is an HP application that addresses support questions. HP Support Assistant helps customers maintain their PC performance and resolve problems faster with automated updates and tune-ups, onboard diagnostics, and guided assistance.

[ryguy2008]

Ok, I do appologize. That's correct. HP Chat Support and Phone Support have told me otherwise, but anyway...

However, 2 observations: Firstly, there doesn't appear to be an HP Advisor version directly compatible with Windows 7 (yet, at least). HP Chat Support told me there won't be...

Secondly, when I installed HP Support Assistant on Windows Vista, and updated my HP Advisor to the newest version, HP Advisor didn't work properly, possibly due to a conflict with Support Assistant.

Either way, it does seem that HP Support Assistant has all functionality that HP Advisor does, but also has more.

[Davidoo]

I uninstalled Advisor and installed the Support Assistant which works great in Windows 7 and has all the same information plus more.  Based on what I see in the web sites and downloads it appears eventually Advisor will not be around.

[blgray]

ryguy and davidoo,

You both liked the old HP advisor?  I've heard many people diss it and I'm on the fence.  It seems that the Support Assistant is an improvement.  Since it will be my option of whether to install it after the Windows 7 install, I've been waffling on if I want it or not.  One thing that annoys me about it, since my free norton trial has expired I decided to try the Microsoft Security Essentials for virus protection.  The advisor shows that there is no virus software installed and when I went to "get antivirus" it only takes me to the Norton site.