HP ZE4900 Pavilion Notebook Computer

2009-10-09T06:22:00.000-07:00

The HP ZE4900 from HP is one of HP more expensive laptops when it came out. The laptop comes with a 1.5 gigahertz Celeron-M processor. This would not be best for gaming in anyway. Although if you are just using it for the internet, writing, listening to music, or light gaming. This machine will do the job pretty well after upgrading the small 512 MB of RAM that comes in the base model. The screen is a XGA type which has a pretty good response time. It comes with a DVD drive, but I bumped up to the DVD/CD-RW option so I didn’t have to carry an external drive. The weight of the machine can be a bit for some people at around 7 pounds. So having to lug around a drive would make it even worse. Since the laptop is so heavy, it eats the battery like chips if you are playing a game or using the wifi a lot. It says 2.5 hours, but I get around 2 during a normal gaming session.

The laptop comes with the standard 10/100 NIC and 802.11B/G built in for connecting to the internet or your work network. Sorry, no N support on this machine. I had a very bad issue with the poor range of the wifi card. I went downstairs and I had a god awful speed. If you do have this issue, just buy a USB wifi card, save yourself issues when troubleshooting the problem.

Speaking of USB, this thing is really lacking in that department. It only has two of them, which is normal on most laptops, thou I wish it had more. The real problem I have is, if you have wide USB plugs, it is just a pain to get them in there at the same time. For the $1,000 or so I paid for it when I first got the thing, they could have spaced them out a bit. It comes with a full keyboard, minus the number pad. The keys are pretty responsive when I used them. No issues with sticking keys or pressure issues.

The touchpad can be a little iffy if you have too many fingers around it at once. You can double click on the touchpad itself to fix the finger issues. In closing the HP ZE4900 laptop from HP is a good deal considering the features it comes with. If you overlook the poor wifi range and weight, it isn’t a bad little machine.

ZE4900 Notebook Computer Review

2009-10-08T08:57:00.001-07:00

The ze4900 is a reasonably priced notebook computer from HP that offers a good range of features considering similar priced competing models. Intended as a mid-level notebook, the ze4900 unexpectedly includes premium features like a powerful 1.5 GHz processor accompanied by 512mb of ram, and a 15 inch monitor.

We found the memory and processor combination a good match for running our video editing software simultaneously with internet browsers. The ze4900 comes with a modest onboard graphics card that delivers adequate performance for most tasks however gamers may find it a bit under powered. For a notebook computer the ze4900 is quite hefty weighing a plump seven pounds, but feels high in quality so we consider the extra weight a fair trade off. Our test model came equipped with a CD / DVD RW combo drive that made video look terrific and operated quietly. We also had the chance to back up several CD's and were impressed at the burn time for our 48x drive.

Speakers like on most notebooks or laptops are small but performed well and delivered sound quality as expected. If you demand additional sound quality we recommend the addition of larger size desktop speakers. The ze4900 also has USB ports that can accommodate a variety of peripherals. Acquiring WiFi networks was no problem with our ze4900 which connected easily and performed well on our network. The battery pack delivered a respectable 4hrs of run time allowing us to have a full day of testing without a recharge. Our test model priced in at $999 so those in the market for a mid level notebook computer we find the HP Pavilion ZE4900 to be a solid choice.

HP ZE4900 Notebook Computer

HP ZE4900 Pavilion Notebook Computer

ZE4900 Notebook Computer Review