Compaq Presario 725US hard drive issue(?)

Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

I've had an x1000 for 3 months. It had two hardware problems that were
covered under warranty and fixed; air expressed to CA, 3.5 days turnaround
each time--I have no complaints with HP tech service other than you have to
be patient (you gets what you give). Since then it's been rock solid, a
decent machine.

The pressure to get new products on the market is so great that HP/Compaq
rushed an essentially unfinished product to market. This machine suffered
from a dodgy BIOS. That was largely sorted out last fall and there have
been subsequent bios and driver updates since.

There is a great forum where you can find out everything you want (and
don't) to know about the x1000 and its HP counterpart:
http://www.x1000forums.com/ . I would suggest that you judge the (ample)
criticism that you'll find there by noting that alot of the frustrations
with glitches and bugs were vented by the early adopters. Many of the
perceived hardware problems were actually setup and driver problems, i.e.
software/firmware issues, including most of the keyboard complaints:
frustrating, surely, but ultimately fixable.

If accurate data was available I bet that once they got the BIOS, touchpad,
and vid drivers sorted out that the failure rate was no worse than any other
major brand. As is should be as this laptop is contract manufactured by
Compal who also design and make for several of the other major laptop
companies.

If you can wait a little, the laptops with the Dothan chip will be out in
force and the X1000 with the Banias chips should come down somewhat in
price. Or for a small premium you can get the next gerneration chip--and
all its early release problems (if the x1000 is any indication). Take your
pick: stability, reduced frustration and slightly less speed vs. new product
glitches, speed and higher price.

Good Luck.
PS



"orangedog" <wyle_e_cuyotee@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:4a6e6fe1.0406030502.3ce349f6@posting.google.com...
> Got an issue with my Presario 725US. Recently had to re-install
> XP-Home Edition after several BSOD's. That took care of the BSOD
> problem, but now it has a new quirk. Every few minutes the hard drive,
> which was normally very quiet, started doing the 'click and clack'
> noises. OK, the HD is getting old, so I can see a new one in my
> immediate future. But what it has started doing is making a 'beeeeep'
> right around the same time as the HD noises. My question, is this just
> a warning beep that the laptop normally makes when there is a hard
> disk issue present, or is it something in the motherboard or hard disk
> controller that means that this machine may soon become a door-stop?
>
> This is my 'second' Compaq/HP product...my first AND last...you can't
> upgrade the RAM beyond 256MB, the hinges on the LCD lid are
> disposable, etc. Been considering one of the new emachines with the
> wide screen LCD. Anyone have any experience with those?


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Archived from groups: comp.sys.laptops (More info?)

Gone back to Toshiba, after having a nasty experience with the Compaq 700
series, which is awful. And I know not isolated.

Mind you even with the Toshibas, you have to check carefully which model you
buy, for some are made by Toshiba, whilst others are made cheaper
manufacturers.

Got a wide screen one now, it's great, and the overall quality of the unit
if far superior to the compaq. I'm hoping this one will last me more than
the 14 months my Compaq gave me!

J

"orangedog" <wyle_e_cuyotee@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:4a6e6fe1.0406030502.3ce349f6@posting.google.com...
> Got an issue with my Presario 725US. Recently had to re-install
> XP-Home Edition after several BSOD's. That took care of the BSOD
> problem, but now it has a new quirk. Every few minutes the hard drive,
> which was normally very quiet, started doing the 'click and clack'
> noises. OK, the HD is getting old, so I can see a new one in my
> immediate future. But what it has started doing is making a 'beeeeep'
> right around the same time as the HD noises. My question, is this just
> a warning beep that the laptop normally makes when there is a hard
> disk issue present, or is it something in the motherboard or hard disk
> controller that means that this machine may soon become a door-stop?
>
> This is my 'second' Compaq/HP product...my first AND last...you can't
> upgrade the RAM beyond 256MB, the hinges on the LCD lid are
> disposable, etc. Been considering one of the new emachines with the
> wide screen LCD. Anyone have any experience with those?