Compaq Presario C714NR
45 Comments December 5, 2007 12415 Views
2 months ago, my old laptop a Compaq Presario 2200 started acting up. There were times when it won’t turn on and sometimes it won’t restart. Aside from that, it only had a 40 GB hard drive and 256 MB of RAM which limited me from performing some of my tasks. I couldn’t install some of the programs that I need like Adobe Photoshop. With all of those issues coming to play, it was time to replace it. I went online and looked for an affordable laptop with decent specs. I was on a tight budget so my options were little.
I knew that if I waited until Thanksgiving I would get a better deal or a better laptop with the same price but the thing is that I couldn’t wait and I needed it ASAP. I ended up buying the Compaq Presario C714NR from BestBuy which was on sale for $499. It was the best deal that I could get at that time.
Specifications:
- Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core processor T2310 with 533MHz frontside bus, 1MB L2 cache and 1.46GHz processor speed
- 1GB DDR2 memory
- Multiformat DVD±RW/CD-RW drive with double-layer support
- 15.4″ WXGA high-definition LCD widescreen display with BrightView technology and 1280 x 800 resolution
- Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 with up to 251MB shared video memory; S-video output; built-in Altec Lansing audio
- Built-in high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g); built-in 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN (with RJ-45 connector); high speed 56 Kbps modem
Additional Screenshots:
First thing I did with the laptop was to uninstall unnecessary programs and trialware that’s already installed. Then I got rid of startup programs from the system configuration. This proved to be very helpful as it cut the loading time by more than half and my laptop now loads much quicker. This is first time for me to have a computer running on Windows Vista and before that I was under the assumption that you really need atleast 2 GB of RAM but with my laptop, 1 GB of RAM seems to be enough to run Mozilla Firefox, Adobe Photoshop, Pidgin and other programs at the same time. But of course the more memory you have the better so I do plan to upgrade it to 2 GB soon. What I’ll do is buy the memory online and install it myself instead of bringing it to BestBuy and pay the GeekSquad to do it.
Overall, the Compaq C714NR is a good buy. It has a sleek design, the display is clear and bright and battery life is good. It has a dual core processor and SATA hard drive. The wireless LAN easily detects all available networks and connects without any problems.
The things that I don’t like about this laptop are: position of the USB ports because they are all in the side and near the front so it gets in the way sometimes. The sound quality is good but the problem is with the volume coz even at full volume, the sound isn’t that loud compared to other laptops. Another issue I have is that it gets a bit warm on the are where you rest your wrists. It’s not that bad but it can bother you if you’re using the laptop for long periods of time. If you have the money, you can get a cooling pad.
IMPORTANT:If you happen to have this laptop or decide to buy it, one thing you need to remember is to NEVER update the display or video/graphics driver. Doing so will bring the blue screen of death. If it happens to you, there are several ways to fix it. One way is to boot in Safe Mode and download the Mobile Intel 965/960 Express Chipset Family Video/Graphics driver from Compaq’s website. Then reboot the computer and boot again in Safe Mode, disable or uninstall the display drivers via the Device Manager and then reboot. Log back in and install the driver that you downloaded. This should work and restore the video/graphics driver. If you followed this steps and still encounter problems, leave a comment or contact me and I’ll do my best to help you fix it.
(13 votes, average: 3.62 out of 5)
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Hello and welcome to JaypeeOnline! My name is Jaypee Habaradas and I'm the author of this blog that talks about the latest blogging news, WordPress theme and plugin reviews, technology, gadgets and tips & tricks.
Sweet new rig you got.
A few more months and I could also go out and get my very first laptop PC! woot!
BTW, will you install Ubuntu on it?
@jhay - It’s not really the rig that I wanted but it was the best one I could get for the price. Unfortunately I couldn’t install Ubuntu on it coz it doesn’t have a partition. I’ll probably do it later or when I buy a new hard drive.
It’s good to know that you’ll be able to get your first laptop. You deserve it after all your hardwork.
I’ve always loved Compaq and its Presario series. They are way more durable than many laptops I’ve tried. Currently, I’m using a Presario V5000 (widescreen, AMD64) which has been a hassle-free, powerful laptop for almost 3 years now.
@Purevoid - New online nick? Hehe I didn’t know it was you until I clicked on the link to your blog.
Anyways, this is my second laptop and the first one was also a Compaq Presario. So far I like this laptop but it could have been better. I plan to upgrade the RAM to 2 Gigs. I’ll be buying it online and installing it myself. Later I also plan to get a bigger hard drive coz this one has only 120 Gigs.
Still a Desktop fan. I can’t stand laptops!
@trench - It all depends on the user’s preferences. In my case, I love laptops coz I can bring it with me anywhere I go.
I have this computer and lost my power adapter/cord set. where might I find a replacemnt set. help please if you can. Compaq Presario C714NR.
@Al - I’ve tried looking online but it seems that it’s quite hard to find. Btw, where did you buy your laptop? Maybe you can ask them if they’re selling the power cord too. I’ll let you know if I’ve found one, ok?
@Damian - Hehe, that’s an interesting idea. Btw, some people don’t like laptops because they’re not comfortable using it. Most people feel that the laptop keyboard is too cramped. As I said earlier, it depends on user’s preferences.
kewl! specs quite decent. just sold my IBM laptop and opted for a HP Pavilion Slimline PC. Due to the volume of layout/design projects i have now, i have to let go of the laptop.
@rhoen - Yeah, it’s not the best specs for a laptop but I think it’s the best deal for that price at that time.
I see. It’s all good, you can always get a new laptop anytime.
Hi Jaypee,
How’s its battery life?
Also, do you know of any Compaq Presario user group forum?
@Alfa - Hello! Thanks for dropping by. Battery life is average and I have no problems with that because I keep it plugged most of the time.
Regarding the Presario user group forum, Sorry but I don’t know of one. Based on your questions, I’m assuming that you also own a Compaq Presario right? What model is it? If you don’t mind me asking.
Seriously, only $499? Sweet! Great deal you got there.
@Ade - Yeah, it was the best deal I could find after doing a lot of canvassing and at that time it was on sale for $499. I bought it like a couple weeks before Thanksgiving and after Thanksgiving, they had it on sale for $399! I would’ve waited until Thanksgiving but I needed it ASAP. Now they’re selling it for $449.
I prefer hp 6510b 949
@Youqa - I was on a tight budget that’s why I settled for the Compaq C714NR. If not, I would have gotten a rig with double the specs or maybe a Mac.
The HP 6510b is in a different price range and is intended as a computer for small business owners.
For - Ade
499 $ it is expensive
@John - Here in the US, it’s a pretty decent price for a rig with that type of specs. If it was expensive, I wouldn’t even consider buying it.
Btw, I’m just curious. Why do you think it’s expensive?
It’s a Compaq Presario b1200.
@Alfa - Cool rig! Where’d you get it and how much?
haha.. I think we have the same rig.. hehe its a C700 series.. anyway, got mine for 2690 Riyals. 1riyal = 10 pesos yata. Anyway, its a cheap price considering na ung specs nya eh maganda naman. One thing na notice ko e yong medyo parang naririnig mo ung sa screen while scrolling.. or ung akin lang? hehe
di ko binlog kasi baka mabasa ng mga kapatid ko, hehe. medyo mabagal lang magload pagstart pero ok naman kapag tumatakbo na..
@jong - Really? If 1 Riyal is equal to 10 Pesos, then your laptop would’ve cost P26,900 right? Then it would be around $650 here.
Anyways, I think there are three different models under the C700 series. What specs does your laptop have?
What do you mean about you can hear the screen while scrolling? You have to uninstall the unnecessary programs and startup programs so that it would boot up faster. Let me know if you need help with that.
Hey Dude,
Just opened up this rig, and am loving it. Got it for $400. Was supposed to get it for $300 from BestBuy, but after the $100 off discount fiasco, had to accept a $100 gift card instead. Oh well.
Only issue I’m having is MEMORY. This one only came with 1 gig of RAM, and I’m currently in the market for a 2 gig kit. Online manuals should already have instructions and snapshots on how to do this so no worries there.
Other than that, the only other concern that probably can’t be fixed is the touchpad. The up/down scroll feature seems to be rather difficult to deal with. Other laptops I’ve handled didn’t have such a hard time scrolling up and down with the touchpad.
But ehhh….for $400, I’d say I got a bargain, and the touchpad isn’t a big issue since I’m using the VX Revo.
@Austin - $400 or do you mean $399? When did you purchase your laptop? Was it during or after Thanksgiving? Coz if I waited a couple weeks later, I would have gotten it for $399. Anyways, mine also came with 1 gig of memory and I’m planning to upgrade it to 2 gig. I’ll buy the memory online and install it myself.
Regarding the touchpad, it really is difficult to use that’s why I got myself a Logitech cordless laser mouse like you did.
Thanks for dropping by!
mine’s a c740ee. specs is just the same as yours. I removed unnecessary programs and now its booting faster. hehe
hmm, it’s a bit expensive compared to yours but we got freebies when we bought this. 1gig flash disk, a really nice headset, a laptop bag, and optical mouse but not wireless.
well, sometimes im hearing this irritating sound while scrolling a window but i cant hear it now. hehe weird.
@jong - I guess they use different model numbers for different regions. Those freebies are worth the extra amount, so it’s all good.
I’ve been reading reviews about this product and those who don’t know how to uninstall unnecessary programs or remove startup programs via msconfig complain of slow boot up times.
That’s the first time I heard about hearing sounds while scrolling a window. Are you sure it was the display and not the cpu or something?
ano ung mga apps na pwedeng tanggalin? i mean, yong mga ok lang kasi wala naman talagang gamit?
@jong - Give me a list of the installed programs and I’ll tell you which ones you can uninstall or keep.
hi i have one of the c714nr its ok but i accidentally enabled the on screen keyboard and microsoft narrator and i cant find anywhere to disable them and they are really annoying
@kay - Does the on-screen keyboard show up in the Login screen or after Windows boots up?
hey jaypee
just this morning, while browsing, the screen just went crazy. not blue screen of death but something like a rainbow screen of death (haha). after rebooting, still the screen is still not normal. I turned it off for like 30 minutes then on but its back to normal, and then a few minutes, the screen went crazy again.. hay. but now, its normal. i’ll go to jarir soo they could check whats wrong. but i think the video card is the culprit(hehe). what ya think?
@jong - Rainbow screen of death? Hehe that’s somethin new. You’re right, when it involves the display most of the time the problem is with the video card. Better have it checked right away while it’s still under warranty.
If I were you, I’d have it replaced with a new unit than have them fix the video card only. Good luck! I hope you have it fixed immediately.
it shows after windows boots up
but i think it was via that button to the bottom left of the log in screen that i activated them
@kay - I see. Btw, I’ve sent you an email with instructions on how to fix that problem. I hope it helps.
after i rebbot my compaq presario laptop, i did not get any sound at all, it’s a pentium 3 plus. how can i install the sound again. thank you.
@enrico - What specific model of Presario do you have? Are you running Windows XP? It’s hard to determine why the sound disappeared coz it can be caused by several things. First thing you need to do is check the volume controls. Maybe it was turned down or muted without you knowing it.
I have the same model and my daughter’s puppy chewed the ac wire. Found one at http://www.global-batteries.ca.
Does anyone know if I could use (and find) a docking station for this model?
Thanks
@Lynway - Thanks for sharing info on where to get the ac set!
Regarding the compatibility with a docking station, I tried looking for one and the closest I got was this docking station from Circuit City. It doesn’t say it’s compatible with the C700 series but it is compatible with the V3000/V6000 series which is almost the same as the C700 series. I’m not sure though if it would work. Let me know if you find one, ok?