Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

General discussion

ZD 8000 - Lightscribe

Apr 1, 2005 3:07AM PST

One main reason that I am leaning towards buying a HP zd8000 over the Dell 9300 is for the lightscribe CD/DVD RW drive. I think it is great technology. Does anyone have personal experience using any Lightscribe drive/media?

Also, any solid information on the likelyhood of HP putting a Pentium M in the ZD8000 series anytime soon?

Discussion is locked

- Collapse -
No solid information
Apr 1, 2005 5:16AM PST

They absolutely should put Pentium M in it, but they probably wont. They're addicted to cheap processor platforms.

As far as choosing a computer based on whether or not it can burn text onto the shiny side of a CD-R, that's like choosing to buy a Daewoo car because you really dig their hubcaps.

I mean don't get me wrong, the Lightscribe is a neat drive. I'm that technolgoy (which made its first appearance in a Yamaha drive, FYI) isn't more popular. But consider this: being an off-brand, it may not be as reliable as a Lite-On, Optorite, Samsung, or one of the big CD-R drive makers.

The hubcaps on the Daewoo might be really neat, too. Doesn't mean that everything surrounding them is worth a serious investment.

Note this is neither an endorsement of dell nor a put-down to HP. I'm just saying that a decision point probably shouldn't be something as non-critical as a label-burning CD-burner.

- Collapse -
Oh give it a break...
Apr 1, 2005 10:02AM PST

Its very clea that you are anti HP and pro dell.

The ZD8000 is a awesome notebook and I agree lightscibe is cool too. Yah the ZD would have been much better off with a more power efficient processor (Pentium M)... but there are also benifits to useing the Pentium 4 RYAN.

Not only is the Hyper Threading very usefull when multi tasking, but the processor itself is cheaper. To get a Dell Inspiron 9300 that would match the power of the ZD8000, you would need to spend a extra $400. Umm... I don't know about you but I would much rather keep my $400 and have a notebook with poor battery life.

- Collapse -
Also has 64-bit
Apr 1, 2005 10:54AM PST

which current pentium Ms do not have.
Roger

- Collapse -
Lightscribe Gone on HP zd8000
Apr 6, 2005 7:06AM PDT

Recently the lightscribe drive is not being offered as a customizable option on the HP website. I have read that a 7200rpm speed Hard Drive was also once offered but no longer is.

Why is it that these items are not just back ordered, and delay shipment- they are gone completely from customize options?

- Collapse -
HP Chooses instead to not offer
Apr 6, 2005 2:59PM PDT

In a move that I think is pretty smart, HP chooses instead of claiming to have stockouts or supply chain snafus, to not offer options that will delay shipment. This also makes it easier for them to just run straight production instead of having certain orders waiting on other parts. They pretty much have to build your computer except for the parts they're missing because imagine this situation:

You order with the lightscribe and the 7200 rpm. They have the 7200 rpm drive but not the lightscribe. So they don't start building the machine, and they continue production. Then they receive some lightscribe drives and they go to build your machine, but they've run out of 7200 rpm drives . . . delaying you again.

Instead, they just don't take orders they can't fulfill. It makes it easier for them, and it keeps them from losing business from casual buyers who are flexible about their system specs. I think it's a pretty cool way of watching their supply chain management from the outside.