HP Compaq Presario C731TU Mini Review – ($498 laptop)

[danyell]

Compaq Presario C731TU - looks like amazing value to me.

$648 before cashback at Harvey Norman
$498 after cashback

note: This price originally came from Page 12 of the Herald-Sun (VIC), March 28. Ends 02/04/08 according to ad. Should still be avail. til 30th April in terms of Cash Back according to this page (thanks Graeme)..

Please see Miyagi's very well written review:

HP Compaq Presario C731TU Mini Review – ($498 laptop)

At the request / suggestion of danyell, here is a mini-review in the same format of the other great cheap laptop getting around lately, the Lenovo 3000 N200.

The laptop is currently on promotion @ Harvey Norman for $498 after a $150 cash back from HP.

Specs:

Full specs here

Intel Celeron M 1.86GHz
512MB RAM (2 dimms, 1 spare)
80GB HDD 5400 rpm SATA HDD
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
10/100 NIC, 802.11b/g wireless & 56k modem
15.4" 1280x800 widescreen, glossy finish – built in webcam & mic
6-cell battery
MS Windows Vista Home Basic

Background

Not sure of the previous discounting structure or history of the laptop, when I was picking the laptop up from Harvey Norman I noted they had it listed @ $744 with a $200 discount (both wrong). Yes, I spent the next 45 minutes educating the staff on their own promotion (had the ad with me) and eventually I got out alive @ $648 before the $150 cashback.

I’ve worked in IT sales (corporate level) for 9+ so I’ve always had a love / hate relationship with retail stores and my view is a little warped... so bear with me.

Build

Solid, hard plastic with a black exterior and greyish interior. The Lenovo N200 is a sturdier unit although neither exhibit a high enough level of build quality for corporate usage or someone who plans to really take their laptop everywhere (unless you stay conscious you need to look after it).

A practical example of the C731TU’s build quality is that when you press on the back of the LCD you indeed get dimples on the screen so I wouldn’t recommend sitting large things on top of the laptop for extended periods of time nor picking up the laptop via the screen. Basically if you treat it quite rough you could damage it.

Visually, it’s a tidy unit and looks quite nice (oh so important ). At the price the build quality meets my expectation as this laptop won’t really be leaving the house.

Hardware

To state the bleeding obvious, the system specification and features meets a very cheap price but with only 512Mb of memory Vista Basic struggles.

I did get everything loaded (Thunderbird, Office 07 & Acrobat) and running perfectly fine so long as you’re not multitasking like crazy it is adequate. The average non-IT person might just tolerate it although after setting it up for the mother in law I knew it’d need more memory.

Subsequent to the experience with 512Mb I added an additional 2Gb of Kingston Memory ($52 @ MSY) and now it runs perfect with 2.5Gb of memory available. It really does run quite well now, the X3100 graphics are up to the task and whilst Aero isn’t available on Vista Basic I’m sure it’d be able to run it fine. The 15.4’ Widescreen is very, very nice and a major factor in the purchase for my mother in law.

All the other usual features such as a 80Gb HDD, DVD Burner, Wireless, Webcam, SD Reader and video outputs are nicely suited. It plays music no worries and the Altec Lansing speakers are... laptop speakers on a $500 laptop so I don’t expect a lot. At least they aren’t at the bottom of the laptop where my gut typically blocks it when sitting on the couch.

The 6-cell battery lasts for a few hours (sorry haven’t really measured it) so should be suitable to the task of roaming home laptop.

One minor comment would be the touchpad feels a little cheap and doesn’t slide as nicely under finger, it works perfectly fine though.

Following is the Windows Experience scores of the laptop with 2.5Gb of memory in it:

CPU: 4.1
Memory: 4.5
Graphics: 3.1
Gaming Graphics: 3.3
HDD: 4.9

Usage

The layout is straight forward with a on / off button centred above the keyboard, a wireless on / off button is also available and the 2 x altec lansing speakers (as previously mentioned). The keyboard has a nice click feel and it all makes sense to me from a usability perspective.

The C731TU has the lionshare of the connectivity options (NIC, Modem, VGA, S-Video, 1 x USB2.0 & SD Card Reader) on the left hand side of the unit and 2 x USB.20 ports on the RHS. There is headphone and microphone connectivity at the front and no connectivity at the rear of the unit.

Overall

Firstly anyone who is on OCAU will be upgrading the memory so this laptop should be considered around the $550 mark. Moving on from that it represents awesome value for a laptop that is simply going to be used in the home for portable internet use, office applications and email. You can throw most of your typical applications at it and it’ll be fine, just don’t expect photoshop performance to blow your mind etc.

For the price it’s awesome with the biggest highlight being (a) the price (!!) and (b) the 15.4’ screen.

+

Awesome Price
Suitable Feature Set
15.4’ Widescreen LCD (Glossy)

-

Needs a memory upgrade
Touchpad slightly cheapish in feel
Not suitable for hardcore travel / corporate usage

Summary

Do NOT expect the world from a laptop that is so darn cheap.

If you are looking for a cheap laptop for a student / traveller or to do heavy lifting then IMO this laptop isn’t for you. If you are looking for a good internet / office / email type of laptop that’ll do basic work around the couch / in bed then this’ll be a good fit for the price.

----------End Review. Thanks Miyagi!

Cheers,
Dan

[Deanodriver]

Yikes, that is cheap.

Oh, I saw it in the paper as well.

[Graeme]

Here is the Compaq Rocketing Rebates page with information and claim form.

http://h50025.www5.hp.com/ENP5/Publi...D=367&pageID=1

Graeme

[Phreeky]

I think the Lenovo 3000 n200 is the better deal for an extra 100$ if you can get your hands on that

good deal none the less, loving these low budget laptops for next to nothing

[ironpaw]

Originally Posted by Phreeky

I think the Lenovo 3000 n200 is the better deal for an extra 100$ if you can get your hands on that

good deal none the less, loving these low budget laptops for next to nothing

+1. There's a few more left at Big W Broadmeadows if your quick.

for the same price you can get the Lenovo 3000 C200 from Big-W...no need for any cashback waiting crap.

[Deanodriver]

Originally Posted by Phreeky

I think the Lenovo 3000 n200 is the better deal for an extra 100$ if you can get your hands on that

good deal none the less, loving these low budget laptops for next to nothing

Agreed, they're bargains. In fact, I've considered getting one and getting rid of my desktop. Since I'm moving soon, a little less clutter wouldn't be a bad thing.

[FireTech]

Originally Posted by danyell

current promotions at harvey norman state $698 before, $548 after cashback.

Now altered to reflect the offer in the papers. $648 before & $498 after CB.

Long running thread on this notebook & modifications here.

What are the advantages of the Lenovos over this deal given it's a cheapo most will use as a second computer for writing letters, web surfing, watching DVDs etc?
Will the slightly better processor and larger HDD make a difference for the above usage? More memory is cheap enough to fix.
They seem to have smaller screens but are the keyboards and build quality better?
What makes them worth the extra $$s?

[ironpaw]

What makes them worth the extra $$s?

The build quality of the Lenovo is much better then that of the Compaq or Acer Celeron lappies. I tried them all before I bought the Lenovo. And like you mentioned - the Lenovo N200 has better CPU/RAM/HDD.

The C200 is the same spec I think, but you only have to pay $498 upfront so no need to wait for the cashback.

[Miyagi]

I just put an extra 2Gb (2.5Gb now in Vista Basic) of memory in the C731 i can't complain at all.

$600 and i have a great, useful, cheap lappy for the mother in law.

Build quality is fine imo... not sure what you guys are on about.

I'll take the 15.4' widescreen over the N200's 14.1' anyday...

[danyell]

Originally Posted by Miyagi

I just put an extra 2Gb (2.5Gb now in Vista Basic) of memory in the C731 i can't complain at all.

$600 and i have a great, useful, cheap lappy for the mother in law.

Build quality is fine imo... not sure what you guys are on about.

I'll take the 15.4' widescreen over the N200's 14.1' anyday...

care to do a mini review, miyagi? i'll edit the first post with your review if you wish.

[Tony]

try out a lenovo 3000

it feels a lot better than the HP compaqs

there's a lot of flex and give in the chassis of the compaqs

and the lenovo 3000 isn't even built all that well

it feels cheap compared to a thinkpad or a dell latitude

[ironpaw]

Originally Posted by Miyagi

I just put an extra 2Gb (2.5Gb now in Vista Basic) of memory in the C731 i can't complain at all.

$600 and i have a great, useful, cheap lappy for the mother in law.

Build quality is fine imo... not sure what you guys are on about.

I'll take the 15.4' widescreen over the N200's 14.1' anyday...

Did you even try the Lenovo? But hey, everyone to their own...my not $600.00.

I'll take my 14.1" display over the 15.4" since I take my laptop around.

[Tony]

compaqs are shit

just wait until something carks and you get to deal with ncss

i hated mine i gave it to someone and got something better

yeesh

[Miyagi]

HP Compaq Presario C731TU Mini Review – ($498 laptop)

At the request / suggestion of danyell, here is a mini-review in the same format of the other great cheap laptop getting around lately, the Lenovo 3000 N200.

The laptop is currently on promotion @ Harvey Norman for $498 after a $150 cash back from HP.

Specs:

Full specs here

Intel Celeron M 1.86GHz
512MB RAM (2 dimms, 1 spare)
80GB HDD 5400 rpm SATA HDD
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW with Double Layer Support
10/100 NIC, 802.11b/g wireless & 56k modem
15.4" 1280x800 widescreen, glossy finish – built in webcam & mic
6-cell battery
MS Windows Vista Home Basic

Background

Not sure of the previous discounting structure or history of the laptop, when I was picking the laptop up from Harvey Norman I noted they had it listed @ $744 with a $200 discount (both wrong). Yes, I spent the next 45 minutes educating the staff on their own promotion (had the ad with me) and eventually I got out alive @ $648 before the $150 cashback.

I’ve worked in IT sales (corporate level) for 9+ so I’ve always had a love / hate relationship with retail stores and my view is a little warped... so bear with me.

Build

Solid, hard plastic with a black exterior and greyish interior. The Lenovo N200 is a sturdier unit although neither exhibit a high enough level of build quality for corporate usage or someone who plans to really take their laptop everywhere (unless you stay conscious you need to look after it).

A practical example of the C731TU’s build quality is that when you press on the back of the LCD you indeed get dimples on the screen so I wouldn’t recommend sitting large things on top of the laptop for extended periods of time nor picking up the laptop via the screen. Basically if you treat it quite rough you could damage it.

Visually, it’s a tidy unit and looks quite nice (oh so important ). At the price the build quality meets my expectation as this laptop won’t really be leaving the house.

Hardware

To state the bleeding obvious, the system specification and features meets a very cheap price but with only 512Mb of memory Vista Basic struggles.

I did get everything loaded (Thunderbird, Office 07 & Acrobat) and running perfectly fine so long as you’re not multitasking like crazy it is adequate. The average non-IT person might just tolerate it although after setting it up for the mother in law I knew it’d need more memory.

Subsequent to the experience with 512Mb I added an additional 2Gb of Kingston Memory ($52 @ MSY) and now it runs perfect with 2.5Gb of memory available. It really does run quite well now, the X3100 graphics are up to the task and whilst Aero isn’t available on Vista Basic I’m sure it’d be able to run it fine. The 15.4’ Widescreen is very, very nice and a major factor in the purchase for my mother in law.

All the other usual features such as a 80Gb HDD, DVD Burner, Wireless, Webcam, SD Reader and video outputs are nicely suited. It plays music no worries and the Altec Lansing speakers are... laptop speakers on a $500 laptop so I don’t expect a lot. At least they aren’t at the bottom of the laptop where my gut typically blocks it when sitting on the couch.

The 6-cell battery lasts for a few hours (sorry haven’t really measured it) so should be suitable to the task of roaming home laptop.

One minor comment would be the touchpad feels a little cheap and doesn’t slide as nicely under finger, it works perfectly fine though.

Following is the Windows Experience scores of the laptop with 2.5Gb of memory in it:

CPU: 4.1
Memory: 4.5
Graphics: 3.1
Gaming Graphics: 3.3
HDD: 4.9

Usage

The layout is straight forward with a on / off button centred above the keyboard, a wireless on / off button is also available and the 2 x altec lansing speakers (as previously mentioned). The keyboard has a nice click feel and it all makes sense to me from a usability perspective.

The C731TU has the lionshare of the connectivity options (NIC, Modem, VGA, S-Video, 1 x USB2.0 & SD Card Reader) on the left hand side of the unit and 2 x USB.20 ports on the RHS. There is headphone and microphone connectivity at the front and no connectivity at the rear of the unit.

Overall

Firstly anyone who is on OCAU will be upgrading the memory so this laptop should be considered around the $550 mark. Moving on from that it represents awesome value for a laptop that is simply going to be used in the home for portable internet use, office applications and email. You can throw most of your typical applications at it and it’ll be fine, just don’t expect photoshop performance to blow your mind etc.

For the price it’s awesome with the biggest highlight being (a) the price (!!) and (b) the 15.4’ screen.

+

Awesome Price
Suitable Feature Set
15.4’ Widescreen LCD (Glossy)

-

Needs a memory upgrade
Touchpad slightly cheapish in feel
Not suitable for hardcore travel / corporate usage

Summary

Do NOT expect the world from a laptop that is so darn cheap.

If you are looking for a cheap laptop for a student / traveller or to do heavy lifting then IMO this laptop isn’t for you. If you are looking for a good internet / office / email type of laptop that’ll do basic work around the couch / in bed then this’ll be a good fit for the price.

[Miyagi]

Originally Posted by ironpaw

Did you even try the Lenovo? But hey, everyone to their own...my not $600.00.

I'll take my 14.1" display over the 15.4" since I take my laptop around.

Yeah i checked out the Lenovo, i think my review above adds my sentiments to why i chose the C731TU... basically it suited the needs of my mother in law better.