HP's Pavilion dv9000t goes HD DVD

Looks like the bevy of holiday updates are getting a bit of a headstart this year, as HP is already hoping its revamped Pavilion dv900t will be the prized jewel under a few lucky trees. Raising the already heightened bar, the flagship unit in the dv9000 series is receiving an oh-so-coveted HD DVD drive that doubles as a dual-layer DVD burner. It also packs a 17-inch 1,440 x 900 resolution LCD, 2.16GHz T7400 Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of RAM, dual 100GB SATA drives, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 graphics, 1.3 megapixel webcam, HDMI, 7.1 audio out, ExpressCard slot, twin headphone ports, the usual complement of connectivity options, and battery life stretching just over 2.5 hours. For those of you who rushed out to pick up last month's flavor and just can't get that craving for HD DVD to subside, HP's also bringing the High Definition DVD-ROM drive (that's an external HD DVD drive, folks) to the table. Both items should be hitting shelves (and shopping lists) soon, and while the dv9000t will set you back a respectable $2,395, pricing for the standalone HD DVD unit remains up in the air.

[Ben Freedman @ Sep 28th 2006 9:39PM]

For dv9000t unboxing photos, drop by here:

http://www.neo-fight.tv/2006/09/unboxing_the_hp_dv9000t.html

Enjoy...

Best,

Benjamin

[Jacob @ Sep 28th 2006 10:15PM]

Bad news for Blu Ray, HP was one of the major Blu ray promoters. Lets see,
Apple won't give us (either format) until it's clear there's a winner.
Dell probably won't release any Blu ray pc's for awhile (hypothetical)
HP might just go for HD DVD
Basically it seems Blu ray is falling out of favor with pc manufacturers. (and I actually would have liked blu ray to win, but HD dvd is more consumer friendly, though still loaded with crappy DRM.)

[hmurchison @ Sep 28th 2006 10:24PM]

Nice. Sounds like the making of a nice portable HTPC

[danik @ Sep 28th 2006 10:25PM]

Looks likes hd is winning the war, I fully (100%) support blu-ray though, 15 & 30 gb is pretty shitty for hd dvd, acer + hp so far with hd and only sony with blu-ray

[hmurchison @ Sep 28th 2006 10:25PM]

HD DVD is making an impact with PC vendors. I'm a bit surprised by this. I imagine that once we have a bunch of HD DVD players soon we'll have HD DVD recorders as well.

[Paul @ Sep 28th 2006 10:33PM]

I think we can safely say HD-DVD has won now and sony is busy promoting another dead end format.

Besides, HD-DVD will win for one other reason, they have the porn industry already...

[quahogian @ Sep 28th 2006 10:39PM]

I really digg the look of this machine. Can they please please update the darn card to 7900 GS? Not GTX, just GS..pretty please...I'll even live without 1920x1200

[Psiven @ Sep 28th 2006 11:21PM]

I was just going to post regarding this, except I really want this laptop with the 7700, which is the first card to use an 80nm process. Faster and less energy consumption, c'mon already!

[James @ Sep 28th 2006 11:20PM]

danik,

You forgot about the Toshiba Osmio laptop(s) with the HD DVD. Also Samsung announced a laptop with HD DVD recently. The post was on Engadget recently.

As for the comment about 15/30GB pretty shitty. That is one of the dumbest comment. I'll bet you're the type of person that thinks that just because something is less than another, it must be crap.

[James @ Sep 28th 2006 11:21PM]

Oh, $2400 for the HP laptop looks like a great deal for being one of the 1st ones with HD DVD drive.

[quahogian @ Sep 28th 2006 11:46PM]

Well hell..7700 even would be a quite better solution, they gotta move on with the 7600 already. And they should take off that misleading bullshit about 512 of descrete video ram outta there, it's +256 shared and they are charging extra $125 for it. Ideally there should be three choices ragarding Graphics:

7600 Go 256 MB (u gotta accept that this is low end now for desktop replacements)
7700 Go 256/512 MB (Low mid/upper mid end)
7900 Go GS (Upper end, GTX would be little bit too much for purpose of dv9000t)

And of course would be nice to see C2D T7400 in there, I don't think it would give off that much heat. The rest is fine (except the darn Santa Rosa is gonna bump FSB to 800 in just 6 month), if I really wanna keep up with all the tech, I gotta get a second job with an extra banking account.

[David @ Sep 29th 2006 1:34AM]

HD-DVD and only a 1440x900 display? Where's the 1080p action?!

[James @ Sep 29th 2006 3:33AM]

You can configure for the 1680x1050 display but the 1440x900 is the ultrabright one.

[anonymous @ Sep 29th 2006 1:50AM]

Why does the external drive say BD (Blu-ray Disc)???
http://www.everythingusb.com/hp_hd100_external_hd_dvd-rom.html

[Dave @ Sep 29th 2006 2:47AM]

The first hd dvd drive :) At last. Blu-Ray have ... 10 already :)
http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=2615

[Psiven @ Sep 29th 2006 8:05PM]

You can get ultrabright in 1680x too.

[James @ Sep 29th 2006 11:30PM]

No you can't. Go try configuring one on HP's website.

The Ultra BrightView is only available as 1440x900.

[Z @ Sep 29th 2006 8:45PM]

This looks like a nice laptop (Merom, HD DVD, HDCP, HDMI, video camera) but what is the deal with HP sticking with VGA ports? Time to move into the 21st century HP! Time for Dual-link DVI!

In addition to this laptop's current specs, it needs the following changes or additions:

- Two SLI-enabled 512MB Nvidia GeForce Go 7900 GTX Graphics Cards (1 GB of graphics memory total)
- W-UXGA Ultrabright glossy LCD (not just SXGA+, standard brightness, or matte finishes)
- Dual-link DVI port (not just DVI (and certainly not obsolete VGA), and on the back of the machine, not the side)
- HDMI port on the back of the machine (not the side)
- Digital Optical Audio port on the back (not the side)
- AC port on the BACK of the computer (not the side. These AC ports always seem to become loose and break and then stop working when located on the side because of the stress placed on them when the cord is pulling at a 90 degree angle, which demands an entire motherboard replacement. So this port needs to be on the back).
- At least one USB port on the back of the computer
- Integrated Biometric fingerprint reader
- Swiveling videocamera (not just stationary)
- Integrated TV tuner
- An IR port on the front that will work with the remote (no stupid external IR receivers!!!)
- Backlighting on the keyboard (not just a glow around the keys - I want to see the letters, numbers, and symbols light up. Isn't it about time we have this on laptops? What's taking so long? Apple has it. Why don't PC's?)
- In addition to the multi-card reader, I'd like to see a separate CF II slot as well.


If they add these features and make these changes, in addition to its other current specs, THEN they would have the ultimate laptop. I've been waiting for SOMEONE to make a flagship laptop with these specs, but so far, none have. Makes me wish I could make these decisions for some of these companies.

Does anyone from these companies take note of what we're looking for? I know I'm not the only one who wants these specs. Many of us do.

[JustMe @ Sep 30th 2006 2:42PM]

HP was one of the original major supporters of DVD PC drives and was the one to push the + format.

I wonder if this'll have the same affect.

Dell always plays it safe. They'll follow whatever the industry is doing.

IBM/Lenevo seems irrelevant these days.

What other major desktop player is left? I know Sony makes desktops/laptops, but I don't anyone who owns one.

[regular reader from Poland @ Oct 2nd 2006 12:00AM]

What an outdated POS. My Dell Inspiron some 4 years ago had a 1600x1200 LCD. My current one, 9300, has 1920x1200. Can't imagine going back to 20-th century those guys are selling.

[Rene R. @ Mar 24th 2007 10:56AM]

Remember guys, that Sony ALWAYS makes products that are proprietary to Sony! In other word, if something breaks and it is from Sony, ONLY Sony can replace/repair it or you will have to buy the replacement part directly from Sony. HD DVD will be supported from multiple companies not just only one. That’s why Sony never wins plus Sony charges an arm and a leg just because their product is stamped with Sony. True that they do produce good produsts but if they were to be generous with their prices, people would be more Sony products. Sony is not the best company around. this is just the begining and they will perfect HD DVD soon. Give it sometime.