Help me chose between these two HP Laptops

[honeyinsfl]

This is my first time chosing my specs as I usually buy laptops from Best Buy, this time getting from HP directly as I want to stick with Windows 7. I am leaning for the firsgt onne because it has the 750 GB 7200 rpm, whereas the second one comes with 5400 rpm. The only way to get 7200rpm on the second is to the the hybrind hard drive, and I have not been reading food reviews on it. The price for the first one is about $800, and the second one is $1006 with coupons and student discount. I am not much of a gamer, may be in the future. I am upgrading to the better resolution as I have been reading is the best, though I worry since I use readers and I hope not to have an issue with seeing my screen.

Immediate help is appreciated.


HP Pavilion dv6t-7000 CTO Entertainment Notebook PC C0L24AV
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3210M Processor (2.5 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.1 GHz)
NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GT 650M Graphics with 2GB GDDR 5 video memory
FREE Upgrade to 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
750GB 7200RPM Hard Drive
32GB mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
No Additional Office Software
No additional security software
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
15.6-inch diagonal Full HD Anti-glare LED-backlit Display (1920 x 1080)
SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
HP TrueVision HD Webcam
Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
Backlit Keyboard with numeric keypad

*********************** OR **********************************************

HP Pavilion dv6t-7000 CTO Entertainment Notebook PC C0L24AV
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3210M Processor (2.5 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.1 GHz)
NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GT 650M Graphics with 2GB GDDR 5 video memory
FREE Upgrade to 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
750GB 7200RPM Hard Drive
32GB mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
No Additional Office Software
No additional security software
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
15.6-inch diagonal Full HD Anti-glare LED-backlit Display (1920 x 1080)
SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
HP TrueVision HD Webcam
Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
Backlit Keyboard with numeric keypad

 

[honeyinsfl]

Sorry made a mistake, this is my second choice:

HP Pavilion dv6t-7000 Quad Edition Entertainment Notebook PC

A3F49AV


Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3610QM Processor (2.3 GHz, 6MB L3 Cache)
NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GT 650M Graphics with 1GB GDDR5 memory [HDMI, VGA]
8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
No Additional Office Software
750GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
32GB mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
No additional security software
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
15.6-inch diagonal Full HD Anti-glare LED-backlit Display (1920 x 1080)
SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
HP TrueVision HD Webcam
Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)
Backlit Keyboard with numeric keypad

 

[fudoka711]

I would go for the first one, not really because of the hard drive speeds (there is a difference, but its mostly in load times, not application/game speed) though. The first one has a dual-core processor (4 threads) and uses much less power than the quad-core (8 threads) version in the 2nd laptop.

If you are going to be hooked up to a wall socket most of the time, then it might actually be better to get the quad-core version as the 8 threads will help if you like to multi-task. It'll also perform a little better in gaming because I think the i7 overclocks a couple cores more than the i5 can.

From experience, the 6 cell lithium ion battery doesn't last very long. You should pay $60 to get the 6-cell plus 9-cell battery option. Plus, getting the 9 cell battery actually elevates your laptop, giving you a possibly better typing experience and, more importantly, airflow under the laptop.

 

[honeyinsfl]

I am sorry I am confused, is the #1 better than #2? Only reason I was thinking #1 was better was because it is better to have 7200 rpm. I can get the quad with a Hybrid hardrive that has a 750 GB 7200 rpm, but if I chose that then it does not allow me to get the 32mSSD card. Frankly I never heard of hybrid hard drives, but forums I have read so far do not favor this. Yes, it will be mostly pluggerd in, and I will take your suggestions and get the other battery though. Also, choice #1 has better reviews. I am new to this, so forgive the endles questions.

I would go for the first one, not really because of the hard drive speeds (there is a difference, but its mostly in load times, not application/game speed) though. The first one has a dual-core processor (4 threads) and uses much less power than the quad-core (8 threads) version in the 2nd laptop.

If you are going to be hooked up to a wall socket most of the time, then it might actually be better to get the quad-core version as the 8 threads will help if you like to multi-task. It'll also perform a little better in gaming because I think the i7 overclocks a couple cores more than the i5 can.

From experience, the 6 cell lithium ion battery doesn't last very long. You should pay $60 to get the 6-cell plus 9-cell battery option. Plus, getting the 9 cell battery actually elevates your laptop, giving you a possibly better typing experience and, more importantly, airflow under the laptop.

 

[kenrivers]

I think what fudoka711 is saying, and please correct me if I'm wrong, is that
Option 1 will boot faster and the CPU (i5 dual-core processor) will consume less power (longer battery life).
Option 2 will boot slower and the CPU (i7 quad-core) will consume more power (shorter battery life) but will be better for multi-tasking and gaming.
You probably won't see that much of a difference between the 5400 rpm and the 7200 rpm drives. I agree with staying away from the hybrid drive. However, if speed is a real concern you should consider an SSD drive (not the one from HP as it is overpriced for a 160GB SSD). With either you could upgrade to an SSD later as funds permit. For your current needs the i5 machine should work for you.

 

[honeyinsfl]

I wished I would have gotten this response sooner. My PC crashed and i had to get one right away so I went with option 2. Ther savings was actuially $200.00 and I just could not wait.

 

[Brett928S2]

Best answer selected by Brett928S2.

 

[Maziar]

This topic has been closed by Maziar