HP Promo Probook 4525S,ATHLON P340 CPU,15.6 HD Ag Led Sva, Uma, Webcam, 2GB DDR3 |
HP Promo Probook 4525S,ATHLON P340 CPU,15.6 HD Ag Led Sva, Uma, Webcam, 2GB DDR3 Product By Hewlett Packard Average customer review:  Rating: Available From 21 Sellers  |
Technical Details
- With True Enhanced Performance.
- Latest Technical Development.
Product Description
HP Smartbuy ProBook 4525s AMD Athlon II Dual-Core Processor P340 (2.2 GHz, 1 MB L2 Cache); 15.6-inch diagonal LED-backlit HD anti-glare (1366 x 768) 2MP Webcam 320 GB 7200 rpm 2.5-inch hard drive 2 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (1D) DVD RW SuperMulti DL LightScribe Drive Broadcom 4313GN 802.11b/g/n 1x1 Wi-Fi Adapter + Bluetooth 10/100/1000 NIC 56K v.92 Modem Integrated: ATI Mobility Radeon HD4250 HP 6-Cell 47 Wh Li-Ion Battery HP Protect Tools, HP SpareKey, HP Disk Sanitizer, Enhanced HP Pre-Boot Security, Drive Encryption for HP Protect Tools Genuine Windows 7 Professional 32 OS10Similar Products
Customer Reviews
HP Promo Probook 4525S the best budget laptop
If you're looking for a inexpensive laptop of this size then HP Promo Probook 4525S is a perfect choice.
Initial Impressions:
-----------------------------
I've only had the laptop for a few days, but am quite happy with it. The number pad is great, island keys look nice and feel good. The track pad has a ton of settings and options so with a little fiddling you should be able to find the settings that work for you. The display is definitely widescreen but looks great. There wasn't too much bloatware installed - mainly just a bunch of HP programs, but they were easily disabled/removed. Comes with McAffe 60 day trial which I uninstalled. Also comes with Office 2010 starter which provides Word & Excel limited versions. I love that this has a 7200 RPM harddrive as most laptops skimp with slower 5400 RPM options. Webcam works great and has a built-in light/flash. HP & Windows 7 even have face recognition for logging in, although that doesn't always work. The top has a matte finish with what I can best describe as a fine wood grain look that's somewhat grey/brown.
Update: one of the main reasons I bought HP Promo Probook 4525S was for the HDMI output so I could connect to my receiver and HD TV then play videos, Hulu, etc. from the laptop to the TV. After a little tweaking of the audio playback device both audio and video worked great over HDMI! I should note that the audio signal is not surround, but 'just' digital stereo.
Regarding Memory:
-----------------------------
I ordered another 2GB of RAM and after removing 7 screws I got to the memory location under the keyboard and the additional memory looked to be exactly the same as what I ordered. You can google to find the instructions for removing the keyboard on HP's website. However, I don't know that 4GB is absolutely necessary for this laptop. It depends on how many programs you'll have open at a time and how you plan to use it. Many people probably don't know that 4GB is the maximum amount that a 32 bit Operating System can reference.
Overall:
-----------------------------
Circuit City (owned by the same company as Tiger Direct) via Amazon had the best price for this laptop (400), even better than Newegg (420). I was surprised that shipping took only 3 days!
HP Promo Probook 4525S Best deal on a 15 inch laptop
I am not a big fan of HP having several notebooks fail on me within a year. But for what you get versus what you spend you just can't find a better deal (at 399). This is a lot of notebook for very little money. As the computer comes equipped you get Bluetooth, wireless n, a 320GB 7200 RPM hard drive, a decent dual core AMD processor, 2GB of PC3 DDR3 RAM and Windows 7 Pro in 32-bit form. I had to have Windows Ultimate in 64-bit for work so I immediately installed 8GB RAM along with a 128GB Solid State Drive with a clean install of Win 7 Ultimate 64-bit. These where things I already had so didn't add to the overall cost of the computer.
BATTERY:
Poor. 6-cell lithium ion. I am used to 6 or more hours from my other notebooks so 2 to 3 hours isn't much. It's a good thing this is primarily a desktop unit where an AC outlet is nearby.
SIZE:
Big and heavy. 5.26 lbs. Five pounds might not seem like a lot but after you have this thing in your arms for more than a few seconds you are looking for a place to set it down. This is desktop to tote bag. If you have never owned a 15.6 inch notebook you might be shocked at how big this is. It's 14.6 inches across and nearly 10 inches deep but does maintain a slim profile at just over an inch.
PORTS:
The normal connections are there plus some, 3 USB 2.0, VGA, Gigabit RJ45 Ethernet, Multi card reader, express card reader/34, mic and audio out, and HDMI. A plus for this level PC is e-SATA and HP keeps a USB awake to help charge things like cell phones thru USB when the PC is asleep or turned off. WAN is draft n and Bluetooth is 2.1 +EDR. I use the Bluetooth to connect a mouse since I don't need to tie up a USB port with an adapter for other wireless mice. This is a work computer and is connected to the intranet thru the RJ45 LAN connector so I haven't really experienced the wireless.
KEYBOARD AND TOUCH PAD:
Awesome! HP Promo Probook 4525S pushed the keyboard from edge to edge giving it full size keys with a number pad. HP says it's spill proof, I have yet to test this out but HP accomplishes this by giving a drain edge so the liquid will not puddle in the center like recessed keyboards. The touch pad can be customized and adjusted to work how you like it but again HP Promo Probook 4525S is a desktop notebook for me and I use a Bluetooth mouse so have hardly used the touch pad.
RAM/HDD:
HP Promo Probook 4525S comes loaded with 2GB DDR3 PC3-8500 (1066MHz) RAM in one slot. It has 2 slots and can take up to 8GB of PC3-10600 (1333MHz) RAM (4GB x 4GB). Keep in mind that this comes with 32-bit software which only recognizes up to 3.5GB of RAM. You need 64-bit software to utilize over 4GB of RAM. If you plan on upgrading the RAM it will require removal of the keyboard. This is not a complicated thing but does mean removing screws and keyboard ZIF ribbon connector. There are videos on the internet showing how to do this. The HDD is a 320GB 7200 RPM drive and is also buried under the palm rest and requires removal of the keyboard and palm rest cover to get at it. I had to do this in order to install my SSD and RAM.
GRAPHICS:
HP Promo Probook 4525S is a basic computer. it uses an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250 with shared VRAM. This will only get you by simple video needs. it's not an HD machine and does not do graphic games well. HP Promo Probook 4525S is designed for Office productivity and normal computing stuff. If you need to play graphic games or complicated photo editing/video editing this is not the machine for you.
WINDOWS:
Model 4525s-XT950UT comes with Win 7 Professional in 32-bit. 32-bit is pretty much an outdated form. It limits RAM usage to a maximum of 3.5GB and isn't designed to take full advantage of the AMD Dual Core processor. HP obviously loads this version as a cost measure to bring the overall price down. If you don't require more than 2-4GB RAM you should be fine. Most drivers work on 32-bit software. Also keep in mind if you buy this thinking you will simply get the Anytime Upgrade from Microsoft and convert to 64-bit software, think again. The Anytime Upgrade only unlocks features already loaded on your HP so can't change from 32-bit to 64-bit. The only way to do this is buy a full upgrade DVD which negates the low price unless, like myself, you already have a license handy. Since I did a clean install of Windows I wasn't subject to all the bloat ware and HP software but my co-worker was. It was pretty easy to uninstall the bloat ware but HP loads a lot of their proprietary software on this machine and it took me a good hour and half and some ingenuity to uninstall all of it. This is a work computer so I load work programs that supersede what HP offers. You may find you want the HP programs.
FIT AND FINISH:
HP Promo Probook 4525S designed this as a business model so it is a very clean 'slate'. Brushed aluminum in a gray-brown tint covers the outer lid and palm rest area. The speaker grill runs along the back side and houses the power button in the center. the keyboard has a high gloss bezel and I find this to be a finger print magnet and easily scratched. the aluminum palm rest, even though is brushed, is also a finger print magnet getting smudged and 'looking' dirty all the time. The bigger problem was on both my unit and my co-workers the grill cover for the speakers was not snapped all the way on and the tabs that hold it to the plastic frame were bent under and broken. This is clearly an assembly problem but only cosmetically deep and does not hinder any functionality. I also like that HP has gone 'green' and packages their laptops with the bare minimum materials. Recycled cardboard and no plastic wrap and no box in a box in a box.
UPGRADE TO NEXT MODEL: Since I had 8GB ram and an extra copy of Win 7 Ultimate 64 laying around I didn't need the extra stuff and went with this model 4525s XT950UT but my co-worker that purchased one at the same time didn't have the extras so bought the next model up, the 4525s XT951UT which includes 4GB of RAM with Win7 Pro in 64-bit. It also upgrades the processor giving you 2.4GHz and 2Mb Cache (instead of the 2.2GHz and 1Mb Cache of this 950 version). If you shop you can find the 951 for around 525$ and the 950 for 399$. The 951 is still an unbeatable value since to upgrade to that level would cost you 210$ over the 399$ (170$ for win7 pro 64-bit and 40$ for 2GB more ram), plus then you would have the headache to install the ram and upgrade the OS. HP also makes this model with an Intel i3 and i5 but the price becomes less competitive and better choices are out there.
HP Promo Probook 4525S Great laptop for the price
Bought this laptop HP Promo Probook 4525S as a Christmas gift and was pleased with the performance and features at the $399.00 I paid.
I was a little surprised by the size of the laptop HP Promo Probook 4525S. I guess I wasn't paying attention but the 15.6 inch diagonal results in a very large laptop.
I personally prefer a smaller machine (I own a 10" netbook" but the person who received HP Promo Probook 4525S loves the laptop and thinks the size is a plus. You have plenty of real-estate on the screen for viewing content. HP Promo Probook 4525S ended up with an overall Windows Experience rating of 3.2 but that was only for the Aero graphics. Otherwise it would have been 5.2. Gaming graphics scored well. The machine has plenty of power and feels quite speedy.
See more Reviews
CREDIT by Amazon.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment