I would have given this a 2-star review because of the very bad stock switchable video ATI drivers (which are HP's fault since they force ATI to go through them and not release drivers separately) but that has changed very recently.First off, trying to find a 17+" screen on any laptop for less than a grand is a hard search it's mostly Vaios and gaming Acers which are not cheap. Not to mention a real graphics card, an I5, 4 gigs of ram, and Win7. It's also got a pretty decent stock battery, which is large as stated in the other review but it's large in the right way, because it pushes the back up off the surface so it can cool without you having to suspend it over something. It's also surprisingly light: with a 17" screen and a full keyboard with numpad I thought it would be a brick but it's not bad at all.
Initially I was very annoyed at the switchable graphics driver which lets you go between the onboard Intel GMA chip and the separate ATI HD4560 because it was very flaky. For example if you let it sleep while ATI was selected, the switchable driver would no longer work until you rebooted, switching took a long time, and about half the time when you came back from sleep on the Intel GMA chip it would flash red green and you would have to put it back to sleep and try again.
That just recently changed however as they finally updated the driver, now it's quick to change and all the issues seem to have disappeared.
I would probably stick to the Intel GMA as much as possible because it heats up quick with the ATI card and most people don't do anything that requires the ATI card, I can watch full HD movies on the Intel GMA chip because the i5 is optimized to work for it and onboard graphics aren't as terrible as they used to be.
I doubt it would actually overheat if you left ATI on all the time but if you're on Intel GMA it's pushing out a slightly warm breeze whereas with the ATI switched on its definitely hot to the point where it will get uncomfortable if you're anywhere near the vents. Why make it work extra hard to cool down if you don't need to? I would say it's not a failing of the laptop it's just the way things work, graphics cards get hot and it's in a tiny enclosed space, on the onboard graphics it's actually much cooler than my old laptop which had a tiny fraction of the power this does.
As far as performance capabilities go I develop on it etc the heaviest test I have given it is Fallout: New Vegas and switched on the ATI card and it works as well as a desktop, much to my surprise. So the power is there if you need it but you usually don't.
Summary: very good laptop for the money, wipe the HP stuff off (my own personal preference since HP stuff is notoriously hard to root out completely, preferably with a format/reinstall) and update the video driver and you will have a very good deal.
If you want an even better deal grab the AMD one for $100-$150 cheaper which makes changes it from a good deal to an incredibly good deal as it's almost exactly the same performance-wise.
Pros: This is really a powerful laptop. Works well with CS5. A good replacement for my desktop.
I like the widescreen which helps me work on 2 documents at the same time.
Battery performance is excellent. I like the graphic card switching method which saves power.
The HP advisor is very helpful.
Cons:
The mouse pad buttons are not that user friendly. The left and right buttons are both hard to press. You have to find a 'sweet spot' which is the center for you to press it. Or you can just use a mouse or a tablet.
The paint finish is not that good especially at the edge. It easily chips off. The rubber finish also fades faster. (I just got this laptop for less than a month)
A little bit heavy but manageable. Lighter than the other 17" laptops.
Not that travel friendly. So if you are always on the go, try the 14 and 15s...
Buy HP Pavilion dv7-4180us 17.3-Inch Laptop PC - Up to 7.75 Hours of Battery Life (Argento) Now
I replaced an older Dv7 laptop woth this one. It is tough getting used to. My older model had all the bells and whistles while this one is basic. the touch pad is very hard to get used to. The level of the pad is the same as the laptop itself so you need to look down to make sure you're fingers are correctly placed. This pad does not respond like I wish it would. It stalls and then goes haywire.The screen is much brighter than my older model and it's easier on the eyes. I am hoping with time any issues I am having will resolve themselves. I will give an update soonI was shopping for the most laptop I could get with a blu-ray drive under a thousand dollars and this fit the bill very well. The i5 intel processor impresses, it has a dual video card setup one for basic use that conserves battery power, and one for "gaming." Overall, I do like this laptop but it does have a few niggles I would like to mention.
Cons:
1) The touchpad is horrible. Use a mouse. I constantly battle the stupid thing.
2) The blu-ray drive is very difficult to open/eject. Crazy as this sounds, the eject button is tiny and you have to press it in deeply with your fingernail or it just won't eject. I find it easier to right mouse on the drive in "My Computer" and select Eject from the menu. Come on HP! Give me a simple, larger button to press to open the optical drive.
3) The battery is a large 9-cell that has a large hump at the bottom. It nicely props up the laptop on a desk, but it is heavy, doesn't allow a nice flat profile to place in a bag/backpack, and doesn't even get close to the advertised battery life. I'd like to order a flat 6-cell version but if this one doesn't last that long, I'd hate to see how the "little" battery performs.
4) A lot of HP "Junk software" loaded on this thing. Takes time to uninstall it all.
5) No restore DVD included in the box.
6) HP accessories like extra batteries or AC/Auto power adapters are quite expensive.
Pros:
1) Plays blu-rays on my flatscreens with 1 HDMI cable and all the included software works great. Or hook up the VGA cable and use the headphone jack.
2) The large 17.3" screen is awesome, bright, and very crisp and clear.
3) I haven't really tested the processing power but this thing rates very well on the Microsoft Windows 7 performance scale. All my programs launch quickly and it is a pleasure to work on. This has replaced an AMD Dual core 2.8 Ghz desktop PC as my "workhorse" everyday computer.
4) I love the fingerprint reader.
All-in-all I rate this a good buy and would certainly purchase it again.One of the best laptop I have bought so far. I've been using Dell for the past 4 years and would like to have a change and bought this laptop.
It has wide 17inch screen for a good movie experience and with Beats audio experience. Played Avatar blu ray and graphics card did it work correctly but was not able to render the graphics in 2 scenes.
I was not much satisfied with the speakers. Even though, the sound level is high but it creates a jabbering noise which is kinda not good.
Other than that this is a very good laptop of its kind.
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