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Customer Reviews for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
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HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Model: dv7-1285dx
SKU: 9166323
UPC: 884420712848
This entertainment laptop features a brilliant 17" widescreen display, NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT graphics and a double-layer DVD±RW/CD-RW drive to bring your movies and games to life.Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit with SP1 preloaded Which Windows Vista edition is right for you? Compare. Free Windows 7 upgrade.Learn more.Learn more about Intel® Centrino® 2 processor technology.Learn more about LightScribe technology. 1199.99
Average Customer Rating:
4.7
out of 5
(72 Reviews) 72
Rating Snapshot 72 reviews
5 stars
60
4 stars
8
3 stars
0
2 stars
3
1 star
1
93% of customers would recommend this product to a friend
(
67 out of
72)
Customer Reviews for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Review 1 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Great performance, bad issues, great cust service!
Customer Rating
5.0
Value for Price
4.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
So, computer ran great except for the touch buttons (vol, media, network), above the keyboard. Not sure these were well thought out. I wish I knew what scott1494 resolution was. I spent hours and hours on the phone with HP, partly because I was in Alaska. Vol cam up on screen every few seconds, network would turn off/on in lower right - all while I was trying to make presentations. The "best" part - aside from having all the probelms, is when I got home i called best Buy and they exchanged the Laptop for me. SOOOO much better than the 2-3 weeks they were telling me it would take for diagnosis and repair - and this is my work laptop, so really need it.
The upshot is that BestBuy won me over, big time. Sometimes the best way to judge customer service is how they work with you when you are having serious problems. Again, I still really like the laptop - although still worry about the touch buttons flaking out again.
The upshot is that BestBuy won me over, big time. Sometimes the best way to judge customer service is how they work with you when you are having serious problems. Again, I still really like the laptop - although still worry about the touch buttons flaking out again.
What's great about it: Speed, large screen,
What's not so great: Had issues with the touch buttons (vol, media, network), fingerprints also, I guess
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 2 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Simply outstanding!
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: scott1494
from Florence, AL
on 08/16/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
This is quite literally the best laptop I have ever owned! The hardware in this machine is unrivaled by any comparably-priced machine. After purchasing it, in order to shut my Apple-loyal in-laws up, I speced out a comparable Mac Book Pro to match my system, and the closest Apple I could get (which still was not as good as this one) was $3600. I paid $1130 for mine, and didn't have to wait for a custom-build to ship.
For the most part, I have to look very hard to find things to complain about with this machine, but here's what I've got:
*Touch-buttons (volume, media, network) failed in the first week, but a quick trip to Best Buy rectified this.
*For some odd reason, my finger does not glide as easily on the touchpad as on my previous laptops.
*Glossy finish is a fingerprint magnet.
*Large size=heavy (duh)
*It came with quite a bit of unnecessary software (like most laptops) but within an hour or so, I had it how I wanted it.
*Touch-buttons (volume, media, network) failed in the first week, but a quick trip to Best Buy rectified this.
*For some odd reason, my finger does not glide as easily on the touchpad as on my previous laptops.
*Glossy finish is a fingerprint magnet.
*Large size=heavy (duh)
*It came with quite a bit of unnecessary software (like most laptops) but within an hour or so, I had it how I wanted it.
The good:
*Just about everything!
*HDMI!!!! Combined with the outstanding graphics card in this computer, the HDMI output makes this an outstanding media machine! When using it connected to my 46" TV, video display is simply fantastic!
*The wireless card is amazing! Even when using it on a Linksys WRT54G (G only), its range is nearly double that of my previous laptop.
*Battery life! Even though the battery is only supposed to last 3:15, I was able to get over 4 hours out of it out of the box without having ever charged it.
*Audio! Plain and simple, find another laptop with a subwoofer!
*Just about everything!
*HDMI!!!! Combined with the outstanding graphics card in this computer, the HDMI output makes this an outstanding media machine! When using it connected to my 46" TV, video display is simply fantastic!
*The wireless card is amazing! Even when using it on a Linksys WRT54G (G only), its range is nearly double that of my previous laptop.
*Battery life! Even though the battery is only supposed to last 3:15, I was able to get over 4 hours out of it out of the box without having ever charged it.
*Audio! Plain and simple, find another laptop with a subwoofer!
Overall, this is an amazing machine, particularly for the price. Had I done more research, I probably would've gotten the dv7-2185dx instead of this one just because of the quad-core processor and 6mb of cache, but this machine is fantastic! Not only would I recommend this machine to others, I already have!
What's great about it: Pretty much everything
What's not so great: Touchpad shows fingerprints very badly, rather heavy
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 3 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Nice laptop but keyboard difficult to see at night
Customer Rating
5.0
Value for Price
4.0
Display
4.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
4.0
This is my first laptop and I purchased it a few months ago from BB along with the best protection plan they have - just in case anything goes wrong. I didn't realize it but they said within the 3 years of the plan I can get a new battery and a new power cord whenever I want one.
I bought this laptop for my videography business so that I could have some portability when editing HD video in case I am on the road and need to take my work with me. This laptop has indeed been able to handle everything I've thrown at it so far and Vista has been a positive experience despite reading all the negativity about it. I honestly don't know why some people have such a problem with Vista.
I was hoping for the nicer scree resolution - but no such luck. I've got 1440x900.
Also, I noticed the IEEE 1394 port is for a 4 pin connection, so if you're hooking up a video camera you'll need a 4 pin to 4 pin 1394 cable. That was a minor annoyance since my desktop requires a 6 pin to 4 pin cable.
The only thing I really do not like about this laptop is that the keyboard is not backlit. It's not a huge deal but it's almost impossible to see what you are typing at night, so you need to have a light on nearby. This might be a deal breaker for those who like to watch TV on the couch in the dark and type at the same time. There's nothing more frustrating than making typo after typo because you can't see the letters on the keys.
What's great about it: Pretty much everything.
What's not so great: No backlit keyboard!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 4 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Amazing computer
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: Jacob20
from Gainesville, GA
on 07/29/2009
Value for Price
4.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
I have had this computer for a bout 6 months now and it is still running beautifully. I have downloaded a lot of music and several movies, and I still have loads of space left on my hard drive, and with 6GB of RAM, I can watch a movie, play music, run photoshop and microsoft office with no problems. It runs photoshop CS4 64bit great. With the graphics card and memory it can run pretty much anygame you throw at it without issues.
It has three battery modes
Power saver, HP recommended, and Performance.
Power saver is a little slow, but the battery will last around 4-5 hours on that mode. I wouldn't want to do anything major using that becasue it can be a bit laggy, but that is expected. It will will run your more basic programs such as internet, email, and microsoft office, though I have had some issues trying to run photoshop in this mode. Things just lag a little bit with that.
HP recommended gets about 3-4 hours and can handle almost everything except for some of the heavier games
Performance lasts about 2.5 hours on battery, but it will run everything you can throw at it + more.
Power saver, HP recommended, and Performance.
Power saver is a little slow, but the battery will last around 4-5 hours on that mode. I wouldn't want to do anything major using that becasue it can be a bit laggy, but that is expected. It will will run your more basic programs such as internet, email, and microsoft office, though I have had some issues trying to run photoshop in this mode. Things just lag a little bit with that.
HP recommended gets about 3-4 hours and can handle almost everything except for some of the heavier games
Performance lasts about 2.5 hours on battery, but it will run everything you can throw at it + more.
I am very satisfied with the computer and would recommend it to anyone. Some people complain about vista, but I have had no problems with it, and have nothing bad to say about it.
What's great about it: 6 GB RAM 500 GB HD 2.4GHz processor. Nice sounding speaker and good graphics card
What's not so great: Battery life isn't that great unless using the power saver mode, which slows the computer down a lot.
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 5 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
A complete Laptop Plenty of Memory, really fast
Customer Rating
5.0
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
I have been looking for a computer with all these features this laptop has, and I finally got it. For everything it has the price is really cheap if you compare to others laptop with similar feature.
What's great about it: Everything, 6 GB of Memory Ram, 500 GB of Hard drive, Bluetooth
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 6 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Worst laptop I've ever had
Customer Rating
1.0
Posted by: Dave1965
from Ontario Ca
on 07/23/2009
Value for Price
1.0
Display
3.0
Performance
3.0
Convenience
1.0
This is the worst laptop I've ever had. I had it for 4 days with problems every day I used it. When I went on the internet, it froze instantly. When it froze, I couldnt even turn it off! HP used to make a great computer, but its not worth looking an now.
What's great about it: Incredibly fast, 17.3" screen
What's not so great: short battery life, freezing constantly, freezes on the internet instantly
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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Review 7 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Great computer, especially for gaming
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: Pitt
from State College, PA
on 07/16/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
I love using games on this computer. I have played GTA IV, Halo 2, COD 4, and Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, all on the highest settings, without any problems or lag time. Sometimes it has its slow moments on the internet, but so do all computers.
What's great about it: Very good for gaming
What's not so great: Nothing major
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 8 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Very Good.
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: DoubleWhammy
from FL
on 07/09/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
Runs great, everything perfect. The product description says screen is 1440x900 but that may be a misprint because I and others received the computer and found out the actual resolution is1680x1050. It's made to be a desktop replacement, which is exactly what it is, only downside to that is portability. Not the most portable, not light and screen doesn't lock to the bottom for carrying. Great battery life. Best laptop I've ever had.
What's great about it: Everything.
What's not so great: Not much.
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 9 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Small business!!!!
Customer Rating
5.0
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
MY SECOND HP LAPTOP. AND AGAIN BINGO HP PLUS BEST BUY EQUAL HAPPY COUSTOMER. THIS PRODUCT IS SO GOOD FOR HOME AND BUSINESS. IT'S MY RIGHT WING FOR BOTH AND ALSO FOR MY ONLINE CLASESS. TOP OF THE LINE!!!!! THANK YOU HP AND BEST BUY.
What's great about it: GOOD PRICE, EASY AND FAST
What's not so great: SO FAR SO GOOD
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 10 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Falling Apart!
Customer Rating
2.0
Posted by: Meachy
from Birmingham, AL
on 07/05/2009
Value for Price
3.0
Display
4.0
Performance
1.0
Convenience
1.0
The program media smart farted out after the initial startup. Mediasmart is part of HP's milieu. HP's tech support did fix the mediasmart issue. Unfortunately they killed my remote control software in the process. No remote = Angry Meachy! Next up is the fact that within 4 days the control button on the keyboard flew off like it was the door of a pinto. The DVD player broke.......... nuff said. The 512 mb of dedicated graphics memory was glorious. When it worked. Jimmy Hoffa doesn't have anything on the webcam software. Its impossible to find. And finally when playing media, be it music or video, and listening to it through headphones, if you close the lid remove the headphones and come back to it later. The sound will not work. A reboot will be in order. NO I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND TO A FRIEND, ONLY AN ENEMY.
What's great about it: It was exchanged for a SONY.
What's not so great: Its about as good as a dell inspiron.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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Review 11 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
great Computer for the dollar
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: nightdipper
from Jacksonville, FL
on 06/30/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
This computer has many features, some I have not gotten the chance to use yet. The speed is phenomenal and the screen is so bright and vivid.
What's great about it: Ease of use, Backed by HP's greatness
What's not so great: Windows Vista
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 12 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
GREAT!!!!!
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: compuser135
from New Orleans
on 06/27/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
this is a great computer. i had to pay extra for warrenty but it is worth it!!!!! i got this for games such as sims 3 and i threw it at it right away and it still ran amazingly fast. even with high graphics setting its almost like every thing is real!!!!!! i havnt relly tried out the batter but from what i hear iit is amazing as well. but the keys can get a little hard to see in dim lighting sometimes in bright lighting because the lkeys are so glossy but it is a nice toutch. the remote is relly fun even if u just turn it on it just fun to got 5 feet away from it and turn the computer on :)
What's great about it: Gphics card, RAM, Hard Drive, Almost everything
What's not so great: Keys are hard to seel in dim lit, with all the features it wouldnt hurt to add full HD or blu-ray or blutooth
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 13 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Stupid fast !!!!!!
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: willb4lyfe
from Joliet,IL
on 06/21/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
4.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
great computing power, is a lil big but light for the size i pushed it to the limit was runnin itune hulu limewire was doing it all at once without a hickup vista sucks though i hate it it takes up way too much memory
What's great about it: easy to set up, can run everything super fast, i burned a whole cd in under a min
What's not so great: looses signal from time to time, vista
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 14 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Very Impressive laptop,Very fast processor
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: spudler
from milwaukie OR
on 06/19/2009
Value for Price
4.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
this is the first laptop/computer I have ever bought brand new I have either built my own desktops or bought used laptops. I am very impressed with HP's help and information sections and the ease of getting software updates. I am new at Vista but so far seeme to be very user friendly. I am not used to the computer installing and coordinating files like this does.
It was a little expensive but I believe in the long run I will be very satisfied with this computer once i get all my extra software installed and start using it for school.It is incrediable fast online and running programs and I love the amount of ram and HD size that comes with this model.
It also has a empty dock for an additional HD for future upgrades.
It was a little expensive but I believe in the long run I will be very satisfied with this computer once i get all my extra software installed and start using it for school.It is incrediable fast online and running programs and I love the amount of ram and HD size that comes with this model.
It also has a empty dock for an additional HD for future upgrades.
What's great about it: Its very fast,has great display very easy to use and has very good help sections
What's not so great: keyboard is very hard to see in dim light.
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 15 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Good deal but ..
Customer Rating
4.0
Posted by: Leon247
from Los Angeles,Ca
on 06/19/2009
Value for Price
4.0
Display
4.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
3.0
It's a great buy. Since I bought my first one in 2003 I completely stopped using my desktop. The screen size is great. Since I use a mouse, I like the ON_OFF button to turn the pad off. I use this computer for CAD design work. I use it to listen to music and watch movies. The quality of the picture and sound is amazing, and ofcource I use it to surf the web etc. Overall I'm happy with this purchase, and by the way I'm very impressed with BestBuy and how easy they made it to purchase on-line and then pick it up 40 minutes later at a store.
CONS: The power supply jack sticks out and gets pusshed down under the weight of books or loads of paper that lay around the computer while working. After a year or so this will result in the jack yanking the internal connector off the motherboard. I had to solder it back several times. HP if you're reading this, all you need to do is provide power supplies with 90 digree jacks. Also the USB's location makes it very inconvenient if you like to use a mouse; jump drives or any plugged-in devise. The USB will be sticking out the right and left sides right where you want to have room for your mouse. AND yes, it is hard to see the letters on the keyboard keys.
CONS: The power supply jack sticks out and gets pusshed down under the weight of books or loads of paper that lay around the computer while working. After a year or so this will result in the jack yanking the internal connector off the motherboard. I had to solder it back several times. HP if you're reading this, all you need to do is provide power supplies with 90 digree jacks. Also the USB's location makes it very inconvenient if you like to use a mouse; jump drives or any plugged-in devise. The USB will be sticking out the right and left sides right where you want to have room for your mouse. AND yes, it is hard to see the letters on the keyboard keys.
What's great about it: The fact that after my 6 year old Pavilion died! I went and bought the same again tells that I'm impressed
What's not so great: location of the USB's; the power supply connector jack; little bit heavy; short battery life.
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 16 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Amazing Laptop
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: WaiChip
from Brandon, MS
on 06/18/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
4.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
I bought this product about 2 weeks ago at a local bestbuy store. I am happy with it so far. This machine is fast and runs smoothly. It also has an extra slot for an extra internal hard drive, which is nice for running RAID. This laptop gets a 5.0 for the windows experience index rating, which is fairly high for a laptop. However, with $1,200, I want the next generation DDR3 RAM and preferably a quad core processor. The GPU could also have been GDDR3 and with more memory. Battery life is acceptable but could be longer. In addition, the optical disc drive doesn't support Blue-Ray, which is not very good for an entertainment laptop.
What's great about it: Fast Processor, GeForce 9600M GT, great sound quality
What's not so great: no bluetooth, no blue-ray, DDR2 RAM, 16:10 screen, no fingerprint scanner, heavy
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 17 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
I love this thing!
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: Stacelings
from Columbus, OH
on 06/06/2009
Value for Price
4.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
4.0
It's sharp looking & is so fast with a windows vista experience rating of 5.0 if you want it for games with the graphics card scoring the 5.o the rest of the components score a 5.3 or higher.
If you want to play newer games like the Sims3 or above it's PERFECT. It also has an easy interface & while it's huge that makes the keyboard less cramped.
I like the touchpad play & sound features as well for watching movies/DVD's.
It's great for the price.
What's great about it: It's fast & can do anything plus it looks amazing
What's not so great: It's over 1k & it is honking huge
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 18 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
AMAZING
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: Sasori
from California
on 06/01/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
4.0
This laptop is SCREAMING fast!!! has tons of memory for the toughest tasks or games and comes with 64bit windows to get the full use of it! great all together in terms of CPU, GPU, and everything.. this laptop is freakin sexy, all my friends drool over it when i show it to them haha.. the interface above the keyboard works very nice.. although there are not alot of features about it, they respond well..
one thing is the fingerpad. if your finger starts to get sweaty even a tiny bit it sticks to the pad.. but aint a big deal for me cuz i use my nice G5 logitech mouse
What's great about it: SPEEDY SEXY
What's not so great: comes with norton crappp
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 19 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
Never been more excited about a laptop!
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: CatwithaK
from Columbus, OH
on 05/30/2009
Value for Price
5.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
This is my first laptop ever. I've always been a hardcore desktop person. Laptops were not my thing. I never actually needed one until now. I was very weary of getting a laptop but this HP pavilion blew all of my previous notions away. Far away! I would recommend this laptop to literally anyone. For business or pleasure, it has it all; the music capability, the movie capability, the nice built-in webcam, quick loading, the memory capacity, the graphics capability (awesome for a laptop for this price in my opinion =D), oh yeah...and it's freaking bronze and chrome!
I've had to remove a couple of random programs that I didn't need. Other than that, I haven't had to do too much tweaking. The actual laptop itself is a fingerprint magnet, especially the touch pad and buttons. But I'm also OCD about fingerprints so I am constantly using the cloth that comes with it to clean. As for the battery life, you can actually customize your options. My battery life sucks. But then again, I chose the "high performance option". But if I didn't, the battery would be pretty good.
Anyway, all in all, this laptop is definetly one I will be showing off and bragging about. Definetly a great buy!
What's great about it: Easy set up, fast loading, great price, unique design
What's not so great: Fingerprint magnet
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Review 20 for HP Pavilion Laptop with Intel® Centrino® 2 Processor Technology - Bronze/Chrome
No Complaints
Customer Rating
5.0
Posted by: Alkalinity
from Houston TX
on 05/29/2009
Value for Price
4.0
Display
5.0
Performance
5.0
Convenience
5.0
Great labtop, no problems so far. I have had this laptop for about 4 months and I use it every day. I wasn't familiar with vista before this but it's not that bad. Love the ram, less money to spend later whenever you want to expand, processer doesn't lag, good size hardrive. No complaints.
What's great about it: Not Bad
What's not so great: None that I can think of
I would recommend this to a friend!
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