warm nest

Several months ago the HP dv7-4183cl ( $999.99 list, 4 stars) took the role of Editors' Choice in the desktop replacement laptop category. Prior to that, it was the dv7-4083cl ($999.99 list, 4 stars). The HP Pavilion dv7-4283cl ($999.99 list, at Costco) continues that tradition, thoughts blog as it is built with the fastest Core i5 processor and fills up its memory banks with 8GB of memory. laptop Furthermore, a decent graphics chip and best-in-class battery life lived up to its predecessors' reputation. While you can't go wrong with this desktop replacement, the dell XPS 15 ($1,115 direct, 4.5 stars) is the better of the two, serving up more features, acer better graphics power, and it didn't try to get fancy with the touchpad.

Design hp battery

Asus Design has remained consistent since this series made its debut. HP is one of the few PC manufacturers willing to use metal on a 17-inch laptop, as there's more surface area to cover.acer Similar size desktop replacements like the Dell Inspiron 17R-2950MRB ($949.99 list, 4 stars) and Toshiba Satellite L675D-S7052 ($738.99 list, 2.5 stars) use decorated lenovo plastic to trim costs. The dv7's top and palm rest area are etched with line patterns and sport a bronze tint. The dv7-4283cl (7 lbs) is thinner but not lighter than the Dell 17R-2950MRB (6.7 lbs). apple It's a beast compared with the Samsung R580-JBB2 ($729.99 list, 4 stars) (5.4 lbs) and Dell XPS 15 (6.3lbs), in large Sony part because of its screen size and big 87WH battery. The extended battery elevates it about an inch from the back.

A 17.3-inch widescreen is an ideal size for those who Fujitsu delve in photo and video editing and would like to surf the Web in an adjacent application window. Multitasking like this with a smaller screen is tougher. Its 1,600-by-900 resolution isn't what you call "true HD" or 1080p, Toshiba but it can support high definition content rated for 720p.Acer battery The full size, chiclet-style keyboard is consistent across all Pavilion laptops, and typists of all sorts will be hard pressed to find anything wrong with the typing experience. Asus battery There is no backlight though, a feature that can be found in the Dell XPS 15.

Another potential nuisance is the click touchpad. HP battery Although the multitouch gestures and the notorious jumping cursor didn't surface, there were times when the touchpad didn't do anything when two fingers were resting on it. Sony battery It still best to surf using a single finger, tapping anywhere on the touchpad to induce a click. Lenovo battery Turning off the multitouch gestures is yet another solution, which can be done in the Synaptics tab, located in the Mouse settings, in the Control Panel.

Features Acer battery

A Blu-Ray drive is frequently found in a desktop replacement laptop, Apple laptop battery as prices for it are coming down and sales of Blu-Ray movie titles are picking up.The dv7-4283cl includes one, so Asus laptop battery you can enjoy these movies on the 17-inch screen or stream them to an HDTV using the included HDMI port. Blu-ray drives are also available in the Dell XPS 15 and Samsung R580-JBB2. Dell laptop battery The dv7's two-speaker and subwoofer system are enhanced further by the included Beats audio software. Sound quality is excellent, bested only by the JBL HP laptop battery speaker system found in the Dell XPS 15 There are four USB ports divided equally between both sides,Toshiba laptop battery one of which (on the left) doubles as an E-SATA port. Lastly, the 500GB (7,200rpm) hard drive from the previous version is now a 640GB capacity.

Since this is a Costco configuration, Sony laptop battery this well-known retailer offers its customers some added benefits. Whereas most vendors provide just a one-year warranty, Costco bumps that up to two years.Apple laptop battery It also offers Costco's Concierge Services, a free service to Costco members who purchase electronics at the store. The service gives you access to technicians who can walk you system setup and troubleshoot any problems. Lastly, the store accepts returns within 90 days (which takes care of buyers' remorse).

Performance Asus battery

A new processor has been the constant theme with each dv7 update. Like previous versions, Asus laptop battery Costco and HP found the fastest Intel Core i5 processor available—a 2.67GHz Intel Core i5-480M. Dell laptop battery A slight bump in processor speed doesn't guarantee huge performance gains, though. Case in point: The dv7-4283cl, which had a higher-clocked processor, HP laptop battery fell behind the Asus N53JF-XE1 in Handbrake (2:41) and Cinebench R11.5 (2.31) tests. It was only ahead of the XPS 15 by one or two percentage points in both tests, which doesn't exactly scream fast.

Front-loading the system with 8GB of DDR3 memory sped up Fujitsu laptop battery Photoshop CS5 scripts, but it can do just as well with 4GB (Windows 7 and most applications can only address up to 4GB of memory). The Acer other benefit of having this much memory is for those who run multiple virtual machines or large databases. PCMark Vantage, which stresses all the components, is the best performance indicator. With the 8GB of memory and fastest Core i5 processor, the dv7-4283cl still finished behind the XPS 15, the N53JF-XE1, and its predecessor.

In terms of 3D graphics performance, I was left wanting more. The Apple AMD Mobility Radeon 6310M is basically a lateral move from the ATI Mobility Radeon 5470 seen in the dv7-4183cl . The dv7-4283cl's 3DMark06, Crysis, and Lost Planet 2 numbers looked almost identical to that of the dv7-4183cl. You'll get good gameplay out Lenovo of this gaming chip, but if you want to crank up the eye-candy in games like Crysis, and Lost Planet 2, the XPS 15 and the Asus N3JF-XE1 have better graphics alternatives.

The dv7-4283cl, like its predecessor, is equipped with a secondary graphics subsystem, Toshiba an Intel integrated chipset with which it can switch to for energy savings, when the tasks being performed aren't 3D intensive (or not playing HD Sony videos, hardcore games, and running CAD software). ATI includes a software configuration tool that lets you manually switch between graphics. The laptop also defaults to the Intel graphics when the laptop is unplugged from the AC adapter.

Despite the lackluster gains in speed and 3D performance, the dv7-4283cl is Fujitsu still the most road-ready 17-inch laptop. Its 87WH battery (9-cell) provides the huge lift, resulting in a MobileMark 2007 score of 5 hours 46 minutes. That was in line with the dv7-4183cl (6 hours), HP and it easily beat the Dell 17R-2950MRB (4:09), Samsung R580-JBB2 (3:33), and Asus N53JF-XE1 (3:15), which are equipped with 6-cell batteries. The Dell battery XPS 15 is the only other desktop replacement that has an option for a 9-cell battery.

Although the new parts only delivered moderate performance gains in our tests, more sophisticated users might find better use for the highest clocked Core i5 processor and 8GB of memory. I would call the HP Pavilion dv7-4283cl is a leading contender in the desktop replacement category because it delivered excellent battery life and good performance scores, but it didn't take a big enough leap to dethrone the Dell XPS 15.