HP tm2t vs HP Envy 14, which to buy?

[chetorch]

hello, I omitted some questions because I already know I want either of these, or something very similar. ( as long as its not a Mac)

1. What is your budget?
$1300 max.


3. What screen resolution do you want?
thise is a hard one, on the Envy 14 I have the option of getting the (1600x900) Radiance screen. On the tm2t I get the (1280x800) Brightview, with touch screen.


5. How much battery life do you need?
this really isn't that much of an issue. my school has outlet just about everywhere

6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
would be ok, but I have a 360 I play on, so this isn't that important

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing,watching movies, Etc.)
I definitely want to be able to watch HD video, I might tinker with some video editing... it'd be amateur stuff really. but yes to the HD!



9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/home.do] I'll get student discounts with them 😉

10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
I've had my Compaq v6000 for almost 5 years now, its finally failing on me, but I'd like the laptop to last me 5 or more years 😀


11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
don't really need one since I have a desktop at home and I'll probably keep my old laptop around for that.

12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
the brand I prefer right now is HP because of their "HP Academy" discounts. plus, it looks like their newer notebooks are top notch. I was considering an ASUS 1215n, but I don't think it has the processing power i'd want for the price...
13. What country do you live in?
USA

14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
here is how I cutomized each computer on hp's website, with the student discount.

Envy 14:
# • Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
# • Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-370M Dual Core processor (2.40GHz, 3MB L3 Cache)
# • 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5650 switchable graphics [HDMI] - For Dual Core Processors
# • 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
# • 320GB 7200RPM Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
# • Microsoft(R) Office Starter 2010
# • No additional security software
# • 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard) - Up to 3.75 hours of battery life +++
# • 14.5" diagonal HD+ HP Radiance Infinity LED Display (1600x900)
# • SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support (Slot Load)
# • HP TrueVision HD Webcam and Dual Digital Integrated Microphones [For Radiance Infinity Display]
# • Intel Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth
# • Backlit Keyboard


and now the tm2t:
# Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
# • Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-430UM (1.20GHz,3MB) + 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5450 switchable graphics
# • 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
# • FREE Upgrade to 500GB 7200RPM Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
# • Microsoft(R) Office Starter 2010
# • No additional security software
# • 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard) - Up to 6 hours of battery life +++
# • 12.1" diagonal High Definition HP BrightView LED Touchscreen (1280 x 800)
# • HP TrueVision Webcam and FingerPrint Reader (on the display)
# • Intel Wireless-N Card
# • Standard Keyboard

so, in conclusion to this looong post, I really like both laptops. I'd like to know if anyone has had some hands on experience with either notebook and can add some feedback? thanks!

I edited this original post since I changed things withe the tm2t (with my student discount the price is under $1000

 

[buwish]

I think that you can do a lot better in terms of performance for $1300. Plus, I think that you'll be a lot happier with a brand that is far more reliable. Have a look at this one for example:

http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152207

 

[Maziar]

Hello and welcome to the forums
Well between your choices,definitely go with Envy 14 unless you absolutely need touch screen because it has much better specs.
However MSI GX640 which Kevin posted has a much powerful VGA than Envy 14,so it does better in gaming.

 

[chetorch]

thanks for the relpies. I don't really need a gaming computer since I have a xbox already. this notebook just needs to be portable and useful for school, while also being capable of playing HD video files and having it last me a couple of years.

I have owned several HP computers in the past and have never had a problem with them. besides, the new models they are coming out with, with aluminum bodies and such, are quite nice.

so far I am leaning towards the tm2t and decided to upgraded it to a i5 processor instead of the base i3 which I posted in the original post. I like the fact that I could take notes with it in class without having to carry so many notebooks. there are a lot of Ebooks out there now for text books so it seems useful. I don't really need it to be a speed demon, but compared to the laptop I have now, I wonder if it will outperform it. my current laptops specs are:

* Windows 7
*1.6 GHz AMD Turion™ 64 X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology TL-50
* 256KB+256KB L2 Cache
*1024MB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
*NVIDIA GeForce Go 6150 (UMA)
*802.11b/g WLAN ( which died on me about 2 months ago -_-)
*15.4" WXGA High-Definition Brightview Widescreen (1280 X 800) Display

so the reason I would like the envy 14 or the tm2t is mostly because of their smaller sizes. but their build quality is also a plus!

 

[chetorch]

so would the i5 be better for the tm2t than the i3? I hear they are about the same except the i5 has the turbo boost.... will this help speed up the computer much?

 

[subasteve5800]

I'm currently typing this on my tm2. It's configured exactly the same way as yours except mine has 4gb of ram instead of your 6gb. I've had it for about 2 months now and I really like it but there are some negatives you should be aware of. First off is that the viewing angles are pretty bad. In fact they are so bad that if I have the screen set in portrait mode and I'm reading something on the top of the screen, the bottom of the screen looks distorted. Because of that you can really only use it in landscape mode. Secondly the touch pad sucks. I either use it in tablet mode or use a mouse 99% of the time. Also, I almost never turn the discreet graphics card on because it eats battery life so if you are looking to save 50 bucks and don't need a gaming machine (if you can call a 5450 a "gaming machine") that's a good thing to get rid of.

Don't get me wrong, I really like the tm2. The battery life is excellent (I get around 4-5 hours of regular use when using integrated graphics). The touch screen is very responsive. Having the digitizer pen is a really good feature, I'm using the pen way more than I thought I would. The sounds is better than I expected. Both the physical and on screen keyboards are easy to use, as is the handwriting recognition.

It really all depends on what you need. If you are looking for performance I'd go with the envy. If you re looking for a mash up between an ipad and a notebook than the tm2 is the way to go.

 

[chetorch]

Best answer selected by chetorch.

 

[manxe]

😛 Neither. In 4 years HP will no longer sell laptops. 😱

 

[chetorch]

Talk about zombie thread! Oddly enough, I'm reading this from my tm2t lol