HP EliteBook 8760w: Color, So Dreamy
by Dustin Sklavos on August 25, 2011 2:30 AM ESTConclusion: But You'll Pay for the Privilege
So now that you've seen what a monster the HP EliteBook 8760w is, you get to experience the sad knowledge that you'll probably never afford one like the one we tested unless your job buys it for you. It's an incredibly attractive piece of kit, but $6,500 is a heck of a lot to pay for a notebook. So let's see if we can't break that down somewhat, shall we?
First of all, the major upgrades that bury the needle on the price are the NVIDIA Quadro 5010M, the DreamColor display, and the SSD. The Quadro 5010M costs a punishing $700, while the DreamColor is $650 and the SSD is $500. If you just want a solid workstation notebook, the 8760w preconfigured model at $3,499 seems a heck of a lot more reasonable, giving you a decent workstation GPU and the benefits of the DreamColor display. You sacrifice 8GB of RAM, the i7-2820QM, the SSD, the blu-ray drive, and the Quadro 5010M, but the RAM and SSD at least can be made up for down the road (though it's worth mentioning the upgrade cost on the SSD at least isn't unreasonable). The problem is Dell will sell you a Precision M6600 with roughly the same specs and performance as HP's $3,499 EliteBook 8760w for $2,624, and that's a massive difference. When you look at it that way, the premium on the DreamColor display goes up to nearly a grand.
There's another wrinkle, too. If you're willing to put up with a bit more noise, a lot more weight, and a non-IPS glossy screen, Clevo's X7201 actually supports the Quadro 5010M and some boutique vendors like AVADirect offer it (for an impressive $2,000 upgrade cost). If performance is the only metric you're interested in, the Clevo X7201 is nigh unbeatable, since you can get the Quadro 5010M and an i7-990X hex-core desktop processor.
So why buy the EliteBook 8760w? If build quality and aesthetics aren't a concern for you and you have no need for HP's helpful Performance Advisor software, it's going to come down to exclusives. HP can sell you the DreamColor IPS display and NVIDIA Quadro 5010M with 4GB of GDDR5; the best Dell can match on the screen is a high-quality TN panel (or even a touchscreen if that's what you're into), and they only go up to the Quadro 4000M at present (though we'll almost certainly see 5000M/5010M at some point).
When you're dealing with notebooks that cost as much as cars, it's a little difficult to make recommendations. That's doubly true as you start having to make compromises and trade-offs. What's most important? Battery life? Mobility? GPU performance? CPU performance? Build quality? Display quality? The HP EliteBook 8760w undoubtedly finds a niche here, offering the best mobile workstation GPU performance alongside very fast processors and a fantastic IPS display that the other vendors can't touch. Build quality is also frankly stellar, and it's not too heavy given the high performance components inside.
Oh, you'll pay for the privilege. Then again, if you need a mobile workstation and you happen to use one of those >$20K software packages these are certified to run, what's another six grand?
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prophet001 - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
lolClevo is like a laptop pressure cooker. They basically build out a desktop into a laptop and the one that you see toping the charts has Cross Fire GPUs.
Make sure you carry a generator with you if you get one.
Stuka87 - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
That no mention was made of HP exiting the PC business? Its a very nice machine (if not cheap exactly), but why buy a machine from a company that is no longer going to be in the business?mbetter - Saturday, August 27, 2011 - link
Why not?Tuffrabbit - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
Way to go HP, by going to a 16:9 aspect ratio vs. 16:10, you've just lost another customer...prophet001 - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
I don't know why 1920 x 1200 is going by the wayside. That's a phenomenal resolution. I'm not a graphic artist but I do take advantage of that resolution by being able to have 2 windows side by side as well as being able to run games at that resolution.teng029 - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
possibly cost? i remember when i was working for an OEM, we were told that LCD sizes depended largely on how much can be cut out of a single sheet of glass. something to the effect of you can get more by cutting a piece for a 17 inch panel compared to an 18 inch panel. don't know how true any of that is though.Jedi2155 - Saturday, August 27, 2011 - link
It is cheaper to manufacture just like teng029 said. You get less wasted glass, because the glass is usually circular meaning the bigger rectangle from 16:10, you'll get more wasted material and fewer panels from a single piece.jecs - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
I think, these high-end laptops are the best option only if you really need to travel or move too frequently and even a dedicated carry on would be a pain. I understand the need for this machines but they offer a reduced performance or some critical size compromises. I would go with the HP if the Dreamcolor and a decent performance are required. But the Clevo is the monster option on specific apps.A consideration I would do is having a SFF PC as it would be "easy" to transport on a carry on and it will cost you 2 or 3K less. I builded one Shuttle PC with a Quad-core and a single slot Quadro a few years ago. Today there are more options and very powerful too as the same 990x and a dual slot Quadro are real options on SFF PCs. I know the monitor needs to fit inside the carry on and in my case a Wacom tablet too. But I did it and it is a good choice if you need to move for maybe a few days or more on one location. Also I included a Mac Book Pro.
Finally, if I ever do need a laptop in this class I guess I would also consider a tablet to read the internet.
sjprg2 - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
On May 13th I ordered the 8760W with all the goodies and specified dual Intel 510 240GB SSDs installed in raid 0. (Note these are 6GB sata). Delivery estimate was approx three weeks. About 3 months later I finally get delivery (August 10 th) and on inspection I find that Instead of the Intel 510 SSDs I ordered it had obselete Micron (no longer in Microns database) 3 GB SSDs.After severel days of going round and around the support chain from the Philipines to Mexico and talking to at least 6 Managers the bottom line from HP is TOUGH. You can send it back to us and we will evaluate it or live with it. After a three month delay in shipping with new shipping dates every other day which really screwed up my client scheduling they wanted it back. They flatout refused to send me the correct drives and accept the wrong ones in return. They all quoted "policy", and not one of them would move me up the chain of command to authorise any change.
Bottom line is that while the 8760W is a beautiful piece of machinery and does Panoramics as fast as my I920 OC desktop I still feel that they did a bait and switch on the SSDs.
After the dozens of HP laptops I have recommend to my clients this is the last. NO MORE!
HMTK - Thursday, August 25, 2011 - link
Where did you buy that laptop? If our dealers deliver something wrong we just send it back and do not pay. If there is no delivery date we look somewhere else. We have several dealers and they know we have the option of switching so they do their best if something goes wrong.