*HP ENVY 17 & 17 3D (3XXX series) Owners Lounge*

[MacHater]

Someone on here was speaking of a folder called SWsetup. It has the extra programs that come installed on that particular laptop. I just recouped some info off a hard drive of an older Compaq computer that had the power supply go. I looked for a SWsetup on there and couldn't find it. What I ended up doing is going to the recovery partition and going in and out of the folders. I found a folder that had the Apps in them. It wasn't real clear just looking at the folder name but going in and out you could tell what software was in each folder.

The SWsetup folder is machine-specific. You can't use one from another machine since it would contain different drivers.

You can find the appropriate SWsetup folder by extracting a .wim file from the Recovery partition using 7zip though.

[DruFaith]

The SWsetup folder is machine-specific. You can't use one from another machine since it would contain different drivers.

You can find the appropriate SWsetup folder by extracting a .wim file from the Recovery partition using 7zip though.

The guy (or girl) that was asking was referring to the Photoshop program along with the Norton that was pre-installed. I don't think those would be affected by the drivers. The programs that I took off ....I was able to install on another completely different computer (Microsoft Works for one). But you are right in the fact you could not do a full recovery from one computer to another.

[coreshooter]

665909-001, 665925-001

Does anyone know if these are the right parts (from hp partsufer) for the hdd caddy and msata screws for the envy 17? I want to get both but not sure if I can justify $37 for some screws.

[seanc100]

I just purchased my Envy 17 last night and ordered it with the 300gb SSD. I was told by the HP reps that they use the top of the line components and that I would be very satisfied. I purchased it last night before I had a chance to do enough research because I wanted to use the 33% coupon before it expired. So I looked into it today and it looks like HP uses the Intel 320 300gb SSD drive. I decided that I wanted the Intel 520 240gb HDD and that I would change my order from the 300gb SSD to the 750gb Hybrid drive. I could sell the Hybrid drive for around $100 I'm guessing and then purchase the Intel 520 for $260. So the upgrade would end up costing me $160.

Unfortunately, HP would not change my order. They said they could cancel it and re-order but I wouldn't get the coupon. No matter who's manager I talked to... they still could not change my order. Now I guess I'm just trying to justify the purchase of the 300gb SDD. Is the 520 really THAT much better? I also don't understand why the 320 is more expensive GB for GB than the 520. I could purchase the 240gb 520 for $260 and the 300gb 320 runs about $500. Shouldn't it be cheaper than the more advanced 520 series??

If it changes anything, I got 33% off of the $500 upgrade for the SDD... which is $335. I also used MrRebates.com for an additional 6% off for a total of $314.90 and then HP ended up knocking off an additional $50 because I was upset they couldn't change my order. So in the end the upgrade should cost me $264.90. I understand this is a good price for the upgrade but still would like to hear everyones take on it.

[Gigabitz]

I just purchased my Envy 17 last night and ordered it with the 300gb SSD. I was told by the HP reps that they use the top of the line components and that I would be very satisfied. I purchased it last night before I had a chance to do enough research because I wanted to use the 33% coupon before it expired. So I looked into it today and it looks like HP uses the Intel 320 300gb SSD drive. I decided that I wanted the Intel 520 240gb HDD and that I would change my order from the 300gb SSD to the 750gb Hybrid drive. I could sell the Hybrid drive for around $100 I'm guessing and then purchase the Intel 520 for $260. So the upgrade would end up costing me $160.

Unfortunately, HP would not change my order. They said they could cancel it and re-order but I wouldn't get the coupon. No matter who's manager I talked to... they still could not change my order. Now I guess I'm just trying to justify the purchase of the 300gb SDD. Is the 520 really THAT much better? I also don't understand why the 320 is more expensive GB for GB than the 520. I could purchase the 240gb 520 for $260 and the 300gb 320 runs about $500. Shouldn't it be cheaper than the more advanced 520 series??

If it changes anything, I got 33% off of the $500 upgrade for the SDD... which is $335. I also used MrRebates.com for an additional 6% off for a total of $314.90 and then HP ended up knocking off an additional $50 because I was upset they couldn't change my order. So in the end the upgrade should cost me $264.90. I understand this is a good price for the upgrade but still would like to hear everyones take on it.

Well, unfortunately, looks like you're gonna have to punt.

Not knowing your total retail cost, I can't say whether it's a better deal for you to cancel your order and pay full retail for another rig, or whether it's best to count your losses and move on.

If you're going to cancel, you should be aware that the cancellation process can take up to 48 hours and is not guaranteed to cancel, because their factory in China is not setup to abort a custom order mid-assembly.

Once you submit your cancellation order, you will not know for up to 48 hours, whether it was successful or not. If it is successful, then you will get the money back in your account within another 24-72 hours. If, on the other hand, you request a cancellation and it cannot be cancelled, then you will have to wait until it is delivered and return it. So... if you've got the cash or the credit to potentially float the cost of two complete systems for a month, then cancelling may be worth it.

You also might be able to find a working $250 coupon, or even a $450 coupon - but as far as I know, the $450 only works on CTO builds - not ready-to-ship models. And you may want to consider picking up a ready-built model. There is some cost savings built right into them, as opposed to the same specs done as a custom order. Just a thought.

So, there is no perfect solution to this puzzle. You can:

• Stick with your original order, and sell the Intel SSD on eBay at a loss.
• Cancel the first order, place a second order for another CTO build with a coupon.
• Cancel the first order and go with a ready-to-ship model (they already have some cost savings built in, compared to the CTO builds.).

You could also try to save some money on the other side of the stick, as well. What I mean by this, is you could buy a less expensive SSD than the Intel, which has a pretty high cost per GB, even among "fast" SSDs. Granted, the Intel software and their historical dependability are strong selling points, but if you need to save some money, you could get similar real-world performance out of a Crucial M4, or from a SandForce-based drive, like the Corsair GT/GS or the OCZ Vertex.

[shrike4242]

I know when I placed my first order that was 2 x 1TB HDDs and then called them the next day, they weren't sure they could cancel it. They eventually did, though it took 4 days (not business days) to cancel it, and in the meantime, I placed the second order on the same day I canceled it for a system with only a single hybrid 750GB drive.

[Jstr_MSFT]

Gaming video i just uploaded.

FSX PMDG 747 on HP Envy 17-32xx 2012 - YouTube

[llinuxer]

Llinuexer, did that recovery created the recovery partition on the SSD?

I tried 2 recovery options:
1 Factory Reset
2 Minimal System Restore
both recreate the recovery partition.
1 resets it to the original configuration with SYSTEM, C, Recovery and HP tools.
2 resets it with System C and Recovery.
I deleted the recovery after the restore. Here is my setup for now:
. SSD Disk 0, original HD Disk 1
Disk 1 will get blown away to be a DATA drive. Will probably get rid of SYSTEM on Disk 0 as soon as i confirm it is useless. Since i have the recovery disks i do not need any of the factory created partitions.

Here is how i solved my Adobe and Norton issues with recovery option 2 since that option does not recover your Adobe or your 2 year free Norton. Before your recovery process:
- For Norton. Create a Norton account from your original install. On the Norton site you will see that you are eligible for 3 downloads. So when you restore using method # 2. Just log onto your Norton account and download and install.
- For Adobe it a bit similar. From your 2 Adobe programs, register to the Adobe website. This will reveal the serial # of the 2 programs under "my adobe products" on the adobe website. Then you can download the programs and re-install them when. During the re-install you will need the serial #s. I did not do this yet but when through the registration process which reveals the serial #s. Maybe you can get these from the original installed programs but this is how i know how to get the serial #s out so far.

[NewDay]

Could multiple people CLEARLY define how loud the fan gets for them while playing INTENSIVE games? The cooling is absolutely normal during browsing, but I am slightly worried. The fan kicks up to a high speed/pitched level when playing Dota 2 at maxed settings. This is a little annoying. It goes beyond the noticeable fan sound. Has this happened to anyone before? I am considering on returning the Envy 17 I have right now because of this cooling problem. There are 3 fan levels for me. One that is almost unnoticeable and one that is noticeable. Then there is the high speed and high pitched fan speed that clearly does not sound normal. It is very obnoxious and lasts for 1-5 minutes. Does anyone have this problem once again?

[JSHidaka]

I tried 2 recovery options:
1 Factory Reset
2 Minimal System Restore
both recreate the recovery partition.
1 resets it to the original configuration with SYSTEM, C, Recovery and HP tools.
2 resets it with System C and Recovery.
I deleted the recovery after the restore. Here is my setup for now:
. SSD Disk 0, original HD Disk 1
Disk 1 will get blown away to be a DATA drive. Will probably get rid of SYSTEM on Disk 0 as soon as i confirm it is useless. Since i have the recovery disks i do not need any of the factory created partitions.

Here is how i solved my Adobe and Norton issues with recovery option 2 since that option does not recover your Adobe or your 2 year free Norton. Before your recovery process:
- For Norton. Create a Norton account from your original install. On the Norton site you will see that you are eligible for 3 downloads. So when you restore using method # 2. Just log onto your Norton account and download and install.
- For Adobe it a bit similar. From your 2 Adobe programs, register to the Adobe website. This will reveal the serial # of the 2 programs under "my adobe products" on the adobe website. Then you can download the programs and re-install them when. During the re-install you will need the serial #s. I did not do this yet but when through the registration process which reveals the serial #s. Maybe you can get these from the original installed programs but this is how i know how to get the serial #s out so far.

Nice! Thanks Alot! Im getting my Envy on monday(hopefully) and the SSD will arrive with the laptop too, so I will create the Recovery Disks, install the SSD like you did in you photos :P and recovery.

1 more question, after the recovery how much free space (%), you had?