AO722 Died... upgraded to an HP DM1! need help clearing bloatware!

[Regk]

Hello!

Long story short, the AO722's HDD died after 2 weeks! returned it to Futureshop (Canada), and while waiting for customer service I saw a nice shiny DM1, with the E350 and all. seeing as how this was the machine i wanted all along, I ponied up a few extra bucks and did the upgrade!

now my burning question, I have seen cases where people sugggest wiping the machine clean, downloading win7, and doing a clean install. Well, I have nearly 70 processes running and want this thing clean!

Now what i need is for someone to outline in detailed, step by step instructions how I would go about doing this. My biggest flash drive is 4GB, I have no external CD rom drive, however I do have access to an external HDD. I also have no windows key on the bottom however I have heard it "hides" under some cover on the bottom of the machine.

Do i need to worry about getting special drivers for these fusion processors?

Please LMK!

Thanks!

Reg

 

[buzzsaw13]

If you don't want to deal with reinstalling windows you can download a program called PC decrapifier: http://www.pcdecrapifier.com/

 

[podspi]

First of all, the bottom of the DM1z is detachable (snaps on and off). The Windows CoA is under it.


Second of all, to install Win7 from a flash drive, follow these instructions: (google for lots and lots of other versions)

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/dd535816.aspx


Third of all, I'd recommend downloading all the drivers from HP's site before formatting the thing. Some of the drivers are necessary to access all the features (like setting fan speeds) and graphics acceleration, unfortunately. The bluetooth drivers are especially annoying, since they don't require HP drivers, BUT to disable/enable BT you need the HP Connection Manager driver...

Finally, after you reinstall everything (or while you are using it), if you notice the screen flickering, the laptop isn't broken, it is a new AMD power feature that attempts to decrease the screen brightness when it thinks you won't notice. I personally have found I never notice it adjusting down, but always notice it adjusting up. It can be disabled in the AMD control center.

Hope this helps!

 

[Regk]

lol, i thought i was in love with my AO722, this thing rocks! lol, i didnt think there would be that big a gap between the C60 and the E350 but boy was i wrong! the system, even with all the preinstalled software is still smoother than the C60. the only minor downsides is that i do see a little less battery life, and the fan noise is a bit more audible, but for the extra horsepower its a small tradeoff!

 

[BrandonT]

I just bought a dm1z. Don't waste your time doing a clean install. Just open HP Recovery Manager and restore the Minimized System Image. It's just Win7, all the drivers you need, and a couple required (or at least desirable) HP programs. No other HP bloatware, Norton, etc. I give HP a big thumbs up for including this option.

 

[roguerower]

lol, i thought i was in love with my AO722, this thing rocks! lol, i didnt think there would be that big a gap between the C60 and the E350 but boy was i wrong! the system, even with all the preinstalled software is still smoother than the C60. the only minor downsides is that i do see a little less battery life, and the fan noise is a bit more audible, but for the extra horsepower its a small tradeoff!

Have you tried using it with netflix?

 

[podspi]

The DM1z can handle SD netflix just fine. Unfortunately, it gets choppy once it switches to HD. Pretty sure this is because Silverlight still doesn't have hardware acceleration. You can install the beta, but unfortunately the app needs to activate it, which Netflix does not currently do (afaik).