Hewlett-Packard m9650f — Special Prices

Overview / Features

Model: m9650f. Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard.

Intel® Core™ i7-920 Processor

6GB DDR3 system memory

750GB 7200rpm SATA hard drive

Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit edition with Service Pack 1, SuperMulti DVD burner with LightScribe technology

NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT graphics card with 512MB dedicated video memory

Most helpful reviews

Great (3)

Ok (0)

Bad (1)

One of the best computers you can buy retail
4 of 4 find this helpful	Jun 23, 2009
There is a lot to like here. I have a slightly older HP Elite and I've found the build quality to be first rate. The specs on this machine are excellent. If you are looking for a high end computer in the $1000 range this is one of your best bets. It also comes with some nice extras like the built in media drive bay (allows you to hot swap things like external hard drives [sold by HP for a little more than you would pay for a traditional external HDD]). Here is a quick breakdown: The CPU is just about the best you can buy: Core i7. It has four cores each running two threads (think of each thread as a single cpu). Run all the programs you want at the same time. With four "physical" cpus acting like eight "logical" CPUs it can handle whatever you throw at it and thanks to the Turbo Boost feature it can shut down unused cores and crank up the MHZ when gaming or doing compute intensive tasks. It's like having the best of both worlds: it runs lots of threads when multi-tasking and cranks up the speed when you sit down to game. A brilliant solution. This CPU is also built on Intel's leading edge process (currently 45nm) which means it will run cooler than older CPUs with similar core counts and frequencies (not to mention it has the best power management features out there). The RAM and HDD are once again over the top. If you want solid future proofing this is it. The one exception would be people who want to store vast amounts of video on their computer. You are better off custom ordering a machine with multiple HDD or adding network storage (for which HP has some great offerings along with most of the major hard drive vendors ). As for the RAM - not only is it enough, but with a very high speed integrated memory controller your RAM will effectively run faster than on an older machine. It comes with Windows Vista Premium which is the best choice for most users. The bugs that marred this operating system have been fixed and it's now a safe choice that is generally easier to use than XP. Because this is using the 64 bit version of Vista you will find your older software may have trouble running on it (having been designed for a 32 bit or older O.S.). It does have a "compatibility mode" that should run older software but it's problematic. For some things it works fine, or others it's buggy. If you really need to run a lot of older software you probably want to wait until Windows 7 ships next year (it will be able to run Windows XP in the background for your older programs). Some of the HP Elites are offering the Nvidia 9600 card which is fine for most but won't really cut it on the newest games. The 9800 is a much better choice. There are HP Elites with better graphics for another few hundred dollars. If running the latest game at decent settings is good enough for you will find the 9800 is a great card that isn't too loud. If you don't mind more fan noise and you want to run games at very aggressive settings you may need to custom order your Elite or step up to a more expensive vendor (like Voodoo or BioHazard). I have a Nvidia 9800 and I've been very happy with it. For a few hundred more dollars you can get more graphics power but for most users it won't make sense (wait a year or two and $150 will buy you a better card with less fan noise when there are games that can really use the power). I should also note that some other HP Elites come with a TV tuner card. Frankly most people have a Tivo or something like it and don't need that card. If you know that you want to use your computer as a DVR this is not the machine for you. Before you buy I would suggest you check HPs site to make certain you are getting a good price here (Amazon has fair prices but some of the other vendors who sell here over charge). When I wrote this review the price was fair ($1200) but things change quickly.

Awesome desktop
0 of 0 find this helpful	Oct 14, 2009
I bought this desktop three months ago. No problems whatsoever from day one. With Windows 7 running now, it rocks. I expect that it will last me three years at the very least. You will not be disappointed with this.

Work's great if your name begins with D, =P
0 of 0 find this helpful	Aug 16, 2009
I have had this computer almost a month and very pleased with the gaming and software performance. I pushed my HP dv1515cl laptop to the limit with a lot of development software and really needed a desktop to keep up with my skill-set. I have yet to try PhysX gaming, but Novalogic Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising Multiplayer with Max'd video options runs flawless - FarCry 1 single player Max'd out also runs flawless (after some patch upgrades). I also read about some problems people are having but almost every model is going to give someone problems, and I feel bad for those who experience those persistent issues. For the price and power, it is much worth the try - it comes with six month warranty but get the two year just to be safe. I have the feeling this is going to make me really happy for a long time. This computer will keep you up with front runners for quite awhile. No problems what so ever, yet, but I will be back here if anything arises - I promise! ;)

Caveat emptor!
5 of 7 find this helpful	Aug 07, 2009
I have to respectfully disagree with the other review on this computer based on my personal experience. I was extremely excited when I first found this computer - what a great bargain for what all was included. I was sorely disappointed, though, after I unpacked it and turned it on. From day 1 I had nothing but problem after problem with this machine not working correctly. It was constantly giving me the "blue screen of death" and also freezing up for no apparent reason with leaving me the only option of doing a hard shut down. After spending 6 hours total over 2-3 days with customer service, I finally came to the realization that it was absurd to be spending so much time trying to repair a brand new computer. It should work consistently out of the box and I should not have to waste my time in trying to repair it. After finally working my way up the customer service chain (although I do have to give them credit -they tried the best they could and were very courteous), I was finally able to get them to send me a new one, thinking perhaps it was just a fluke and I happened to be the one person to recieve a faulty version of this computer. The second one that they sent, however, did the same thing if not even more so. It was so disappointing. They finally offered to custom-build an upgrade of this computer for me, which i now have an HP m9600t and so far so good outside of a few minor freezes (which haven't occured in quite some time, knock on wood!). I'm not saying that HP is a bad company by any means; I have an older HP desktop and an HP laptop that I've been extremely pleased with. I am just surprised that they continue to sell this computer in spite of significant problems with it. So learn from my mistakes... I had read a great piece of advice (after the fact, of course!) - if you are buying a new computer, go to the company's website, look for their customer/tech support FAQs pages, and surf the computer you are interested in. I found out that there were a LOT of people having the same problems with the m9650f that I was, yet HP continues to sell this computer. Maybe they are working on patches to fix these problems; I'm not sure but I do know that my experience with this particular model was dismal. Again, though, I can say that I was pleased with my experience with customer service (outside of one incident in which I was advised that I should return the product to the store and have them call HP while I'm there in the store (after I had told the manager that I had ordered this computer over the internet - I live in Georgia and it was shipped from New Jersey) - after being told this I asked "So you're telling me that I should drive almost 1000 miles to take this computer to the store from which it came so you can talk to someone there?" to which he replied "Yes" as if it were nothing - argh!). Anyway, as I mentioned before learn from my mistakes and take advantage of the tech support websites of the manufacturer you are interested in before you buy.

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