The HP envy 6 is a great laptop in every aspect except structural integrity. I bought one at the start of the year at a great price. Everything worked well, ran exceptionally smooth with no lag and it played up to date games provided I used a laptop cooler fan. HOWEVER, the problem lies within the hinges, that connect the computer to its display. Hinges are completely week. One hinge snapped out of it's place, and I couldn't close the display without creating more damage. Once i got that side repaired, the other side decided to snap. i was about to get that side repaired, but then the repaired side snapped again. I talked to the laptop repair place i sent it to, and they said They have had HP envy 6's come in with the same exact problem and that HP offers no solution to the problem except to replace them, if under warranty. I love the laptop, but this is an issue i wish i knew about before I bought the laptop. You must be absolutely careful and gentle with the screen and perhaps you might make the hinge-life last a little longer than my 5 month run. Now I rest the laptop against a wall and use it more as a desktop... sigh

I purchased one just the other week and your review is spot on plus my first impressions are very positive. I'd like to know more about the ability to upgrade the WLAN as that was the one thing that I'd not spotted prior to buying and I guess a reason must be pricing versus the question if 2.4GHz is enough for most buyers. My preference would have been this package with dual mode capability but that's a small negative. I looked around a lot for comparable price/performance and obviously I thought it was great value for money. What totally didn't concern me was hard drive because operating a NAS I really was not prepared to pay for a larger drive.

Ultra low voltage i5 running ultra low speed, and still noise and heat problems ...

I think we as users are now in a dilemma - my self looking to purchase a back-up notebook of the problem free Sandy Bridge while still available, since this years models is not an option due to heat problems of the Ivy Bridge design + almost impossible to find one without dedicated graphics card stuffed in.

Problem is, Sandy Bridge basewd are now very expensive ( also this years notebooks are now pricey ) , almost as prices have kicked up due to increasing demand or sellers recognize the value for a Sandy bridge over an Ivy Bridge.

Many thanks to notebookcheck for focusing on glare, heat and noise - three important issues one would else have to experience live in a shop, if not for the reliable reviews - I can now order directly from a web shop.

I would like to see a list of top performers in terms of heat, noise and reflection - since so many notebooks are reviewed, but difficult to find a problem free model.