HP Pavilion dv6-2005ax Notebook

The dv6-2005ax looks exactly the same as the earlier dv6-1161tx notebook from
HP. It has the same chassis and body, which is completely glossy. The lid has a
wave imprint finish on it with an illuminated HP logo.

The keypad, unlike the dv6 notebook, is not glossy and HP have updated the
keyboard with the matte finish. The 15.6 inch screen gave the designers enough
space to put in a full keyboard as well as a number pad. Above the keyboard is
the volume control touch based slider, the volume mute and Wi-Fi connectivity
touch controls.

The dv6-2005ax is powered by AMD's Turion X2 M500 dual core processor
clocking at 2.2GHz, 4GB RAM, 230GB hard drive. 15.6 inch screen with HD Ready
resolution and ATI's Mobility Radeon HD 4650 graphics which have 1GB DDR3
dedicated graphics memory. On paper, the specs look extremely good.

Our benchmarks did not disappoint and the PC Mark benchmark score of 5533
points means it is a powerhouse. With such a powerful processor, using this
notebook will not be slow or irritating. There will be absolutely no freezes
even if you open multiple browser windows, media player, a PowerPoint
presentation, an antivirus scan in the background, have a download manager
downloading files from the net and still have more than enough grunt to open a
few more applications. The Windows Experience Index score of 5.7 is also a
testament to the notebook's power and performance capability. The Altec Lansing
speakers are good enough to listen to things. But, and this is true with almost
all laptops, there will be no bass or thump. The keyboard is quite comfortable
since there is a lot of real estate around the touchpad to rest your palms while
typing. The keys are slightly depressed from the middle. There is the full
number pad available as well. The touchpad is responsive and precise, but
extremely glossy.

The dv6-2005ax comes loaded with the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 graphics
with 1GB DDR3 dedicated memory and sharing another 2GB system memory when
needed. We expect good gaming capabilities. And the 3D Mark benchmark score of
5570 proves just that. The 15.6 inch screen has a resolution of 1366x768, which
makes it fit for even connecting to a flat panel television. The screen display
is fantastic, even though it is a bit reflective.

However, battery is the biggest disappointment. The powerhouse runs out of
juice in about an hour and a half, which makes it no better than a desktop
replacement. HP assumed that someone buying a 15.6 inch notebook will not bother
carrying it around a lot and compromised on battery life.

Overall, the dv6-2005ax notebook, at this price, is an extremely good desktop
replacement. The screen size makes it comfortable to view text and images, while
the full fledged keypad is extremely comfortable to use. The only niggle is with
the battery backup, but wouldn't matter if this remains on your desk most of the
time, plugged in. Go for this machine if you are looking for a comfortable PC
for either home or office.

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