HP Pavilion dv6z Review

by Jerry Jackson

The newest 16-inch notebook from HP promises to deliver great performance at a low price and might be very popular in 2009. The HP Pavilion dv6z features the latest AMD dual-core processors, your choice of integrated or discrete graphics, and all the ports and features you need. At a starting price of just $599.99 it might just be the most competitive desktop replacement notebook on the market. Keep reading to find out if this notebook is as impressive as it sounds.

Our HP Pavilion dv6 (dv6z) has the following specifications:

• Processor: 2.1GHz AMD Athlon X2 QL-64 dual core processor
• Graphics: ATI Radeon HD 4530 512MB
• Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium with SP 1 (32-bit)
• Screen: 16.0" diagonal High Definition HP Brightview Display (1366x768) 
• Memory: 3GB DDR2 (up to 8GB configurable)
• Storage: 250GB SATA HDD (5400rpm)
• Optical Drive: Lightscibe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support
• Wireless and Communications: 802.11b/g WLAN with Bluetooth
• Battery: 6-cell Li-Ion (10.8V, 47Wh)
• Dimensions: 14.9" (W) x 10.2" (D) x 1.4" (min H)/1.7" (max H)
• Weight: 6.36lbs
• Warranty: 1-year
• Price as configured: $774.99

Build and Design
The dv6z has a glossy, modern design that is essentially a larger version of the dv4 and dv5 series notebooks. The display cover has the durable plastic "Espresso Black" Imprint finish which holds up quite well to minor abrasion without scratching. The body of the notebook is smooth with rounded edges, making it extremely comfortable in your hand while carrying it around. The screen also sports a latchless design, making it easy to open the notebook with one hand. Pressing firmly onto the back of the screen cover will produce some ripples on the screen ... but you must apply significant pressure to cause this. Overall, the design is very attractive, but the glossy plastics are very prone to collecting fingerprints.

Build quality is above average with solid plastic used throughout the notebook, which helps reduce flex and protect components. The palmrests have good support and only flex under strong pressure from your hands. Under normal activity it feels rock solid. The keyboard is the same, with just a little flex around the "F" key when heavy pressure is applied.

As mentioned above, our dv6z features the "Espresso Black" Imprint Finish which looks like a glossy black plastic with a silver bubble pattern on the lid and left palmrest. The Imprint Finish on the dv6z isn't as subtle as the pattern on the HP Pavilion dv2. I suspect many average consumers will find the bubble pattern on the lid a little too "splashy" for a workplace environment, but it still looks very attractive and I'm sure it will be popular among younger shoppers.

The bottom of the dv6z is pretty simple with several heat vents located in strategic positions to help keep the laptop cool. The two access panels on the bottom of the notebook make it easy to upgrade RAM, replace the hard disk drive, or access the wireless card. This arrangement makes it simple for the novice user to make upgrades, but more serious users will have to remove the entire base of the chassis in order to access the rest of the motherboard.

Display
The 16” display is above average in terms of overall viewing quality, but resolution is only average. Sure, the 1366x768 resolution provides more horizontal screen space than the 1280x800 resolution common to 14-inch and smaller notebooks, but we would have liked to see the option for a 1920x1080 screen. When manufacturers stick with lower resolutions on larger panels pixels become more apparent and screen real estate seems unusually limited. Overall the panel looks good with excellent color saturation and contrast levels thanks in part to the glossy surface.

Screen brightness is fine for viewing in a bright office environment ... even at lower brightness settings. Outdoor viewing wasn't as impressive, but the screen is still visible outdoors if you can find some shade. Vertical viewing angles are normal, having a narrow viewing sweet spot before color starts to wash out or invert. Horizontal viewing angles are much better and staying true even at extreme angles.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The full-size keyboard with number pad on the dv6z takes advantage of all of the space provided by the wide 16” chassis. In previous years the keyboards on 15-inch and 17-inch HP notebooks suffered from at least some flex under typing pressure. Thankfully, the keyboard on the dv6z is remarkably firm and quite comfortable to type on. The only area that suffered from flex was around the "F" key, but we had to apply significant pressure for the flex to become visible. Individual key action is smooth with a light audible click when pressed. The glossy key texture is prone to picking up fingerprint smudges (like everything else on the notebook) but it's a minor annoyance.

HP includes a moderately-sized Synaptics touchpad on the dv6z which feels very responsive with little lag. The entire touchpad surface is made of a high gloss plastic, and can sometimes be hard to use depending on how dry or oily your fingertip happens to be. The surface needs to collect some of your finger's natural oils to allow for easy movement on the touchpad. While the reflective touchpad surface looks cool HP probably would have been better off using the same type of textured touchpad surface used on the HP Pavilion tx2500 and TouchSmart tx2. The touchpad buttons are in a great location and are easy to control with your thumb. The buttons provide mild feedback with a shallow movement that gives an audible click when pressed.

Ports and Features
Port selection on the dv6z is better than average, and there seems to be a good balance of ports on the left and right sides of the notebook. Then right side includes the optical drive, two USB ports, spaces for the optional TV tuner and modem, as well as a security lock slot and the power jack. The left side of the notebook contains the VGA port, docking station connector, Ethernet, HDMI, eSATA/USB combo port, USB port, FireWire, ExpressCard, and media card reader. The remaining ports include audio jacks for headphones and a microphone on the front of the notebook next to the IR receiver for the remote control.