HP Envy Ultrabook

I am using my new Envy Ultrabook to write this. Also using Windows Live Writer. I actually think that this is better for me to use now. I get so sick of typing passwords and WordPress doesn’t keep me logged in, and I don’t save passwords in my browsers for the most part.

The actual device I’m using is very, very nice. So thin, so light, and not so loud and hot. It’s a touchscreen version, which is the only sort of “laptop” I’d buy with Win 8 on purpose.

I used to have a touchscreen HP laptop. That little thing was nice, but not nice. Mine had Vista on it. It constantly was flickering it’s harddrive light and fans blowing like crazy and such. I got Win 7 Pro upgrade for it later. I gave it to my husband with a clean install of Win 7 Pro.

All was well for awhile, but it messed up eventually, sooner than later. It worked for a long time, though not to par. Heat shutdowns. I took it apart and did this and that. Eventually it just wasn’t worth anything and quit working. I was going to use it to make something else, but someone did something to it and one day I opened it up and there it was, lovely cracked screen.

That was a horrid computer. I truly hope this HP Envy Touchsmart Ultrabook works better. So far, yes. No optical drive so that solves many issues right off the bat. How often does one need a drive like that? Sometimes, but I will get an external blu-ray writer for that very reason.

This computer has a lighted keyboard, and built in blue-tooth. Both things that I have wanted in other computers, but they are never there in the models that are available to buy on the spot. This i5 “laptop” is the right size for me, 14”. Touchscreen. I like features in Win 8 that use that. I know how to use the touchpad for such features too, but really like the ability to use the screen for picture viewing and other things sometimes.

I have Win 8 Pro on my older Toshiba Satellite 17” i3 laptop. I upgraded it via download $39.99, I also installed with the “save nothing” option. My old system sits in a folder, so anything I want is there. Some things aren’t so great, the Synaptics touchpad driver keeps rolling back to something from 2008. What? It works for awhile and intermittently just quits working.

That is not nice at all. Win 8 with just point/click and basic scroll touchpad is horrid. Mouse and keyboard use is better. But add touchscreen to mouse and computer – Winner! Or touchscreen and touchpad gestures – Winner!

This Envy Touchsmart Ultrabook has a lovely touchpad area. Double tap the rectangle on the top left and that turns touch on/off, makes it easier to do a typing job, such as this is, writing a blog post.

There are no “mouse buttons” on the touch pad. It’s an entire object sitting in a depressed area, the bottom has a line across: press on it to the left for left-click and to the right for right-click. It feels really nice.

I’m very happy that I was able to get this ultrabook. It is very much part of what I was missing, a portable computer. Plus is so snappy, quick and responsive. My old Toshiba just wasn’t very portable. Plus it churns and churns stuff. What a mess. I thought it was the stuff I had in it setup for startup and such. Nope. When I upgraded that stuff wasn’t used. It’s just the computer. Awful. I got a new battery for it very recently. It’s important for it so that it can be unplugged here or there, but overall it’s just a HUGE thing, and it has less than 4 hours of use on a full charge. That’s not very long.

I’ll use my laptop sometimes. I’m getting all my data sorted out and I’ll have most of my stuff on a network drive, with the most recent stuff on my Ultrabook (since it’s the portable machine for me.) The laptop will be useful for using with my children for their schooling (but it’s not THEIR computer!)

One day I’ll get to build my super desktop computer. One day.