nVidia... HP... Vista... Don't buy HP until you read this.

It has been a long time since posting on this blog. It still gets regular traffic, nothing significant to get excited about but people do seem to be getting results from the solutions I posted. Which is why I haven't deleted the blog.

Microsoft Office Error 52f gets the most Google organic results.

The runner up is Vista USB device driver issues

The reason for this post after such a long time is a warning on HP laptops.

I "owned" a HP DV3000 series Entertainment PC running Vista. It was my second Vista machine and my only vista laptop.

The laptop has died, 18 months into its life because of a nVidia graphics chip failure. You can read more about the problem at hplies.com or check this Google result page for the extent of the problem.

I am posting this as a warning to anyone with a nVidia chip affected by the problem. It's not just HP machines, but more widely spread.

HP didn't honor any warranty and I am now have a dead laptop that is only 18 months old. I expected better life from this laptop. It's a personal machine, not a workhorse, not used for games, etc. but basic email, a few documents and web surfing. I have a custom built desktop (which is why I started writing this blog) running Vista that is for heavy video and graphics work (albeit too with a nVidia graphics chipset).

If you're a victim of HP and nVidia like me and looking for a new laptop, I would suggest you look at ASUS. I am not getting paid for this suggestion. I am making it based on the simple math of warranties. ASUS offer a 2 year international warranty. Every other laptop I looked at only has 12 months unless you buy an extended warranty. Purely based on the warranty, ASUS is the way to go (and they use ATI chips not nVidia in their current models).

While it may be seen as unfair to blame HP for this fault, HP need to take responsibility and sort it out with their supplier. The video card is built onto the system board and I didn't chose the card, HP did.

Whatever you do, don't buy HP laptops. Protect yourself, buy an ASUS or another brand with a manufacturer 2 year warranty so you have some consumer protection.