HP Pavilion dv4-1540us Review

The HP Pavilion dv4-1540us ($749.98 Staples) is proof that you don't have to sacrifice performance, features, and style, just to save a few bucks. This portable multimedia notebook not only outperforms its more expensive competitors, it comes with a generous selection of I/O ports and features HP's cool ImPrint design. Sure, a more powerful graphics engine and a high-res display would be ideal, but at $750 this is a very good deal for a 14-inch budget notebook.

Design
The dv4-1540us weighs 5.2 pounds (6 pounds with the AC adapter) and is 1.5 inches thick, which is not quite what you'd call a thin and light system but certainly manageable for long hauls. As with the HP Pavilion dv4-1430us, it sports a stylish Moonlight White finish with HP's squiggly line ImPrint pattern embedded beneath the clear, glossy protective coating. The sides (including the optical drive cover) are decked out in polished chrome, and there's an illuminated HP logo on the lid. The same patterned finish is used on the keyboard deck, with the touchpad and mouse buttons done up in the polished chrome finish. Cursor control is mostly fluid, and while there was some inexplicable jumpiness every so often, it is still smoother than that of the HP Pavilion dv7-3063cl. The keyboard has a nice tactile feel and offers a comfortable typing experience. Embedded in a glossy black panel above the keyboard are two small but loud Altec Lansing speakers, a power switch, a Wi-Fi switch, and a touch sensitive volume slider.

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The dv4-1540us's 14.1-inch screen uses HP's reflective Brightview coating, which can be a bit distracting under certain lighting conditions but provides wide viewing angles and an overall crisp image, a worthy trade-off in my opinion. The screen, framed by a piano black bezel, has a maximum resolution of 1280 by 800 pixels, which is low by today's standards. A higher res-display like the one found on the more expensive Dell Studio 14z would certainly be a welcome addition but would drive the price up as well.

Features
Although it is a budget notebook, the dv4-1540us is well equipped. Joining the DVD drive on the right side are two USB ports and a modem jack, while the left side contains VGA and HDMI video ports, an eSATA/USB combo port, a 6-in-1 memory card reader, an ExpressCard 54 slot, an Ethernet port, and an HP Expansion Port 3 connector. Dual headphone jacks and a microphone input are conveniently located on the front of the chassis, and draft n wireless is standard issue on this model.

The 320GB hard drive in loaded with Windows 7 Home Premium and HP's MediaSmart software suite as well trial versions of MS Office 2007 and Norton Internet Security and various other bloatware programs. You also get a small media player remote that can be tucked away into the ExpressCard slot when not in use.

Performance
The dv4-1540us performed admirably on our benchmark tests. Its PCMark Vantage score of 4,041 beat out the Dell Studio 14z by 191 points and bested the Editors' Choice Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch by 850 points and the HP dv4-1430us by more than 1,100 points. It's Windows Media Encoder score of 1 minute 7 seconds was only 1 second behind the Dell Studio 14z but faster than both the MacBook Pro and Lenovo IdeaPad Y450. CineBench R10 scores are similar; the dv4-1540us's score of 5,023 topped the MacBook Pro, HP dv4-1430us, and Lenovo Y450 but lagged the Dell Studio 14z by 532 points. Unlike the Studio 14z and MacBook Pro systems, which come with discrete graphics, the dv4-1540us uses integrated graphics and as such is not suited to 3D gaming. However, the dv4 is also several hundred dollars cheaper, too.

The system lasted 3 hours 46 minutes on MobileMark 2007, which is not terrible but certainly no match for the Studio 14z, which lasted a whopping 5 hours 17 minutes.

Even with its so-so battery life and integrated graphics engine, the $750 HP Pavilion dv4-1540us is a very good deal for a relatively lightweight multimedia notebook. Its productivity and multimedia performance is on a par with, and in some cases better than, its more expensive competitors, and despite its low price it offers a generous feature set and a snappy design.

BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS: Check out the test scores for the HP Pavilion dv4-1540us


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