I currently have a Envy 15 (HP) with a few days left before returning. My issues with it are:
1) 6-cell battery life is 1.5 hours. 15-cell battery life (with 9-cell slice) is 3.5 hours. The slice adds quite a bit of weight.
2) On battery power, despite the shortened life, HP has throttled the Core i7 720qm to a 7X multiplier (931 MHz).
I'm contemplating returning it and getting a Lenovo W510.
Pros on the Lenovo:
- better battery life
- better CPU throttliing on battery (I think it just turns off turbo boost) but still much better than 931 MHz)
- Lenovo has better reliability and durability than HP...at least per reviews. I'm not sure how good their customer support is.
- I'm in the military and while Envy seems to have good build quality I have heard great things about the Thinkpad series.
Cons on Lenovo:
- Screen is only 1440 x 900 (The HP is a 1920 x 1080). I'm not sure how much difference this makes...if anyone has any experience, please post.
- Video card is lower. The Lenovo has a Nvidia Quadro FX 880M and the HP an ATI 5830. I'm not a gamer, but do value good graphics. Thoughts?
- The Lenovo costs a little bit more.
With this in mind, please shoot any recommendations? On an i7, is 931 MHz on battery power such a huge drop that lesser CPUs are now more powerful? Should I keep the Envy or go with the Lenovo?
1) 6-cell battery life is 1.5 hours. 15-cell battery life (with 9-cell slice) is 3.5 hours. The slice adds quite a bit of weight.
2) On battery power, despite the shortened life, HP has throttled the Core i7 720qm to a 7X multiplier (931 MHz).
I'm contemplating returning it and getting a Lenovo W510.
Pros on the Lenovo:
- better battery life
- better CPU throttliing on battery (I think it just turns off turbo boost) but still much better than 931 MHz)
- Lenovo has better reliability and durability than HP...at least per reviews. I'm not sure how good their customer support is.
- I'm in the military and while Envy seems to have good build quality I have heard great things about the Thinkpad series.
Cons on Lenovo:
- Screen is only 1440 x 900 (The HP is a 1920 x 1080). I'm not sure how much difference this makes...if anyone has any experience, please post.
- Video card is lower. The Lenovo has a Nvidia Quadro FX 880M and the HP an ATI 5830. I'm not a gamer, but do value good graphics. Thoughts?
- The Lenovo costs a little bit more.
With this in mind, please shoot any recommendations? On an i7, is 931 MHz on battery power such a huge drop that lesser CPUs are now more powerful? Should I keep the Envy or go with the Lenovo?