HP dv5-1003nr YES/NO?

[Francisco D'Anconia]

Can someone that own one please help me. I've spent hours online reading up about this laptop. Most of the reviews said it's a great laptop but some people responded by saying that the Blu Ray function freezes up. Blu Ray and its capability of carrying 8GB RAM is the reason I like it. Any advice would be appreciated.Thanx

[dondadah88]

do you have any links of this notebook

[allfiredup]

Can someone that own one please help me. I've spent hours online reading up about this laptop. Most of the reviews said it's a great laptop but some people responded by saying that the Blu Ray function freezes up. Blu Ray and its capability of carrying 8GB RAM is the reason I like it. Any advice would be appreciated.Thanx

I found the dv5-1003nr on HP's website and the specs are as follows-

2.0GHz AMD Turion X2 RM-70 processor
Windows Vista Home Premium
WXGA 1280x800 display
3GB RAM
ATI Radeon HD 3200 integrated graphics
160GB Hard Drive
BluRay ROM optical drive
56k Modem
Wireless b/g

I found it on the BestBuy.com website for $749.99. At that price, it's probably the least expensive BluRay-capable notebook available.

I also went over to HP.com and tried to configure one to the same specifications as the dv5-1003nr (starting with the dv5z base model). The HP site wouldn't let me choose the BluRay ROM option unless I also selected the ATI Radeon HD 3450 discrete graphics also! The BluRay option was $199 and the HD 3450 adds $100 more. With all other specs identical to the dv5-1003nr, the total price after discounts was $788.99+ tax.

Personally, I'd order one from HP.com for a few reasons- 1) I'd upgrade the standard WXGA (1280x800) display to the WSXGA+ (1680x1050) display, especially if I planned to watch BluRay movies on it! 2) I'd consider upgrading the processor to the 2.1GHz Turion X Ultra. The primary difference between the RM-70 and the ZM-80, other than the obvious 0.1GHz clock speed increase, is the L2 cache memory is 2mb in the ZM-80 (double the 1mb L2 of the RM-70).

[tpaxadpom]

I own dv5-1003nr and I like it alot. No freezes with Blu-Ray playback. I installed Power DVD 8 Ultra to enable AVIVO hardware support when I play HD files. I also installed ATI HDMI driver to enable Dolby Digital and DTS bistream. For some reason stock driver doesn't let you enable those (options are available). It works great with hauppage external USB HD tuner. If you buy it from BB you can subscribe to Comcast (if it's available in your area) and get additional $100 off.

[ZaZ]

Do you need 8GB of memory.

[tpaxadpom]

if you plan to add memory you'll have to install 64bit version of Vista. I was happy it came with 32-bit version to avoid driver problems with some of my external hardware.

[JackTheRipper87]

2.0GHz AMD Turion X2 RM-70 processor
Windows Vista Home Premium
WXGA 1280x800 display
3GB RAM
ATI Radeon HD 3200 integrated graphics
160GB Hard Drive
BluRay ROM optical drive
56k Modem
Wireless b/g

Why on earth would they give you a 1280x800 display and a BluRay drive? I would go to HP's online store and get the 1680x1050 display, otherwise it seems like waste of time.

[UseLinux]

Hello, Francisco.

Can someone that own one please help me. I've spent hours online reading up about this laptop. Most of the reviews said it's a great laptop but some people responded by saying that the Blu Ray function freezes up. Blu Ray and its capability of carrying 8GB RAM is the reason I like it. Any advice would be appreciated.Thanx

Obviously, by now, you have made a decision and I hope that you are happy with the notebook or laptop compute that you purchased.

In addition, Hewlett-Packard discontinued the HP Pavilion DV5-1003nr late in 2008 or earlier this year (2009).

I received a DV5-1003nr "Entertainment" Notebook PC as a gift in August 2008. Unlike the Intel/Nvidia configurations listed in this discussion, my DV5-1003nr has an AMD processor (2.0-GHz, Turion X2, dual-core/64-bit) and a 256-MB ATI Radeo 3200 video card. It came with a 2-GB DIMM, so I was able to upgrade it from the standard3-GB configuration to 4-GB, although the preinstalled, crippled, OEM 32-bit copy of Vista Home Premium SP1 could not take advantage of the RAM -- and a rude, unstable case manager at HP -- my first response from HP support after being ignored three months, and the result of my contacting CEO Mark Hurt -relished telling me that if I installed any operating system other than the preinstalled OS, I would immediately void my warranty (not true).

My DV5-1003nr was built with a defective AMD Turion X2 processor and I received second-degree burns from the bottom of the case (through denim jeans after contact of under two seconds).

I have been fighting with HP to get them to replace or repair the computer for eleven months now, and last week, I finally got a call from a safety specialist in the executive office -- ONLY AFTER I let HP know that I had reported my burn injuries to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC.gov) and HP thought I was going to take legal action against them.

I am backing up the data I foolishly stored on the hard drive since my most recent reinstallation of Vista (which "self-destructs" 24-30 hours after each installation, because the OS cannot keep track of in-use sectors and overwrites critical boot files), and will be shipping the notebook to HP soon.

After my eleven-month nightmare with HP (which has included ignoring me, lies, false apologies, and even verbal abuse -- and I still have a defective, dangerous product), I strongly admonish anyone against purchasing any HP computer (or other product for which you expect service or support).

Regarding running Linux on the HP DV5-1003nr, I built a custom Debian GNU/Linux 5 "live" boot disc and, without using ATI's proprietary "binary blob" video driver, the display ran at 1280x800 pixels (the native resolution, which has no vertical space and makes the remote control for watching DVDs on the tiny 16:9 screen absurd).

I did not use any 3D applications, but I never do.

I had no problems with the Realtek network card or Atheros wireless network card. (Atheros releases open-source Linux drivers for all of its wireless cards.)

I was using the optical drive, so I could not test DVD playback -- but I have never watched a single DVD on the "optional" $159 Blu-ray drive (which Best Buy, where the notebook was purchased, along with a retail, boxed Vista Ultimate upgrade, which remains sealed and unused and was $200 wasted -- because I doubt I can sell it on eBay with the release of Windows 7 being so close), nor do I intend to do so.

I did not attempt to test the Web cam, but the sound card worked fine.

I have read that the DV5-1003nr does support 8-GB of RAM, although HP denies the fact. Because the motherboard supports virtualization, 8-GB of RAM would actually be a good investment if one installs VirtualBox or a similar VM and wishes to run a 64-bit "host" OS and one or more "guest" operating systems concurrently -- although the scant description of the virtualization feature in CMOS is nothing more than a warning that it should be enabled by experts only and for "troubleshooting purposes."

Although many users find the "make every surface shiny and/or metallic" case design of the DV5 and other HP notebook series, I find it gaudy and the glare from the reflective display and bezel, combined with the reflection from the silver keyboard/trackpad/workspace, gives me chronic headaches from eyestrain. Also, as a touch typist, I got so frustrated with not being able to identify keyboard characters to reposition my hands if I started typing gibberish that I have been using an external USB keyboard (Happy Hacking Kebyoard Lite 2, black with a Linux key layout).

I suffer from bilateral carpal-tunnel syndrome and the excessive pressure required by the Synaptics track pad's buttons started causing me chronic pain, so I have been using a USB mouse. (Given the fact that I always use a USB/notebook-powered dual-fan cooling mat, because of the excessive heat problem, I have a NONportable notebook computer: I have read many complaints about heat and the DV5 series, and my ex-case manager at HP made the mistake of admitting that the DV5 notebooks "do get very hot," but he would never admit to the fact, and he also blamed me for my burn injuries because "HP makes a distinction between a laptop and a notebook computer, and the base of the notebook touched the top of your thighs -- so you abused the product by placing a notebook, which is not a laptop, in your lap." (He is supposed to be reprimanded for the abused that I endured and his calls monitored, according to the person in the executive office who finally set up my repairs two weeks ago.)

The shiny plastic top (black or ivory, the two options) of the notebook's case lid seems very prone to damage by scratches: I removed the clear protective cover from the lid this week, in preparation for sending the notebook to HP, but I do not ever move the notebook, but I suspect HP will scratch it (although I made it very clear to the person in Mark Hurd's office that I have absolutely no trust in HP and that I have done all I can to warn others to avoid purchasing HP products if they expect or need service or support -- and my warranty may end before/IF HP repairs the notebook.

I saw a well-used IBM ThinkPad T40 on eBay last week for $140, and the 1.8-GHz Pentium-D processor would have met my needs for a portable Linux notebook.

I realize that my nightmare with HP is an exceptionally bad experience that has lasted almost a year and is not yet resolved, but complaints about HP are legion and Web sites such as HPLies.com are easy to find.

Finally, if you have or plan to purchase an HP notebook with the same case design (shiny and metallic), make certain that you invest in several containers of LCD display/notebook wipes, because the computer's EMF is a dust magnet and looking at the computer the wrong way seems to cause fingerprints (although I have always been neurotic about not touching computer displays, CRT or TFT -- so I cannot state how difficult it is to remove finger prints from the screen without scratching its expensive reflective surface. (Also, there is a higher-resolution display available for this and other 15.4-inch HP notebooks, but you would have to order a custom-configured unit directly from HP -- but I suspect the higher resolution would be hard on one's eyes, unless perhaps you are still under 40 -- which is "when the eyes start to go," although I lasted until 43, and have perfect vision and are not bothered by glare.)

Cordially,

David

[crimzon_love]

I just recently got second degree burns from my HP Laptop Any suggestions?

[dondadah88]

How did that happen?