Big Problems with Wireless in HP Pavilion Notebooks

by David Risley on Nov 21, 2007 | 276 comments

Several months back, I bought an HP Pavilion DV6000 and reviewed it here on PCMech. I gave it a pretty good review. I was happy with it. But, that review has garnered a LOT of traffic. So much, in fact, that it now finds itself as the ninth most popular article on the website according to the “Most Popular” list on the homepage. Now, why is that? Mainly because of all of the user comments complaining about various things failing on the unit. Most prevalent among them: wireless.

Then a reader by the name of David (not me, I promise) pointed over to the Berlind’s Testbed blog, by ZDNet. He talks about how he has seen a lot of complaints about failing wifi in the Pavilion notebooks and that the HP support forums are being flooded with such complaints. Take a look at this support thread at HP for the wifi problem on the DV6000. I caution you, the thread is PACKED with comments and may take a while to download if you are not on a fast internet connection.

The same blog from ZDNet asked HP about it and eventually got a response where HP admitted to the problem with the wifi on these Pavilion models. Apparently, HP posted a BIOS fix in the support forums to this problem, however it is said not to work very well and doesn’t solve the problem for most users. In fact, most users who have had this fixed ended up getting a motherboard replacement or a replacement system. This is a hardware problem, not something that can be fixed with a mere BIOS update.

Is HP Support Really Supportive?

There has been a lot of expressed disappointment and anger at HP over this. Not only because the problem exists in the first place, but because HP has been completely silent on the issue (up to very recently) even while their customers are flooding the support forums with this issue. The perception has been that HP does not monitor it’s own forum. And, quite frankly, recommending a BIOS update for a wireless card failure is practically laughable.

But, HP’s support is on the verge of laughable anyway. Just yesterday, I had to call HP because of a failing battery in – you guessed it – my DV6000. While the Indian guy I spoke to was quite nice, he ran me through diagnostic steps that were kind of stupid. I have also wrote in the past about my experience dealing with HP support on my laser printer. This is admittedly completely subjective on my part, but it seems as if HP technical support has a habit of grasping at straws and ignoring common sense when it comes to troubleshooting. Perhaps they need to use their heads more than the corporately written flow charts that their technicians no doubt use.

Reality Check

So, while I am writing this article based on other people’s observations, the volume of posts about this problem, both on PC Mechanic as well as on HP’s site, indicate that there is a fairly widespread issue of failing wireless cards in the HP Pavilion notebooks. I hope HP takes proper responsibility for this. If you have the problem, just make sure that you contact HP before your warranty expires. HP is really good at throwing hardware at the problem, so chances are you will get a free replacement.

The harsh truth is this: You can’t buy an all-in-one notebook computer with those kinds of specs for ~$800 and expect it to be the highest quality in the world. The attractive price tag given the specs is why so many people are buying these Pavilion notebooks. But, just buy it knowing that it will have a failure point.

Update May 30, 2010

Comments for this article have been closed. This was done because people were using as a means of getting HP support. This article is not an official HP support channel for problems that may occur with the HP products. If you would like to contact HP for support, please visit HP Customer Care at support.hp.com, thank you.

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Peter bravato
yes.i have this problem.i started to get the Hp wireless card failure thing ever since i came back from Greece in August. I though maybe i hit my computer by accident and it damaged it somehow.until i started the search the web and found out that this was going around to many dv6000.the thing i learned is that the dv6000 is REFUSING to accept the wireless card.hrmmm refusing sound like this is done on purpose.after downloading some games on dial up the wireless switch would turn blue and i would have connectivity until i shut my computer off and it would remain orange.now my warranty expired but if i send my computer to hp do you think they will fix it for free?
John
ok so if they repair it and you get it back, did it work? or is it still broken and wont the samething happen again
Marcy
Same song and dance as everyone else. Here’s an email I sent to Mark Hurd, HP CEO. I suggest everyone else follow suit: (here’s your link to do so http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/execteam/email/hurd/index.html)
I am currently the unhappy owner of a Pavilion dv6000. I, like the many others on yours and other PC forums, have a wireless issue. Why has this product not been recalled? Why do I have to shut my real estate business down for the amount of time it takes to repair an issue that HP was aware of at the time I purchased this product 11 months ago? Why is there not a local service center for repairs to minimize consumer inconvenience? I am considering initiating a class action lawsuit-there are a considerable amount of people affected by this to justify doing so. I am a member of National Association of Realtors – we have partnered with HP to promote your products. I will be going to the association about the lack of service and product quality. This quote on your Hurd’s bios is a mockery ”
“Everything we do must be for the customer. If it’s not, then we need to reconsider why we’re doing it.”
Huge reconsideration, Mr. Hurd – you’re doing very little for the customer.
At the very least, I’d like the option of having my computer fixed locally to minimize my inconvenience. Alternatively, I’d like a replacement product and ideally, I’d like a refund and will purchase a Dell, whom I should’ve remained loyal to (owned one 5 years prior to this purchase – 0 problems). It was time to upgrade – I’ve clearly made a bad choice along with 1000′s of others.
What do you intend to do about it?? – and quickly – my warranty expires 2/18/08. If I don’t hear from anyone with a better solution than ship your computer off with an average turnaround of 10 days, I will move forward with legal action. (My business is largely dependent on my ability to work on the computer – I am shut down and making no money without it).

Angela
So did you get a response back from anyone reguarding your email? YET but I don’t have much faith that I will exscape some of the problems that I have read.

bart
Wifi problems.
I had already have the problem 3 times( in one and half year).
So HP has already put two times a new mobo.
Two months ago it hapens the tirth time.
I have bought an usb dongle Wifi USRobotics.
Now I have tried this.
Start up in save mode.Devicemanager and show hidden devices and there a you see your broadcom.
Disconnect the device.
Then startup in normal mode.
The blue light is on.
Reconnect your broadcom in the devicemanager.
At this moment I send this using my repaired broadcom. unther Windows XP.
The bug is from the hardware in combination with the broadcom and the mobo, because unther linux he didn’t saw the card. Now linux sees the repaired card.
So try it and when this works lets know.
I think HP says they put a new MOBO but are doing the same.
The mobo is one of Quanta(not the best things in the world)
Sorry for my English
Mike
I had the same problem with the internal wireless card not being recognized by the laptop. After trying some of the suggestions from HP (such as reloading drivers, updating BIOS, etc) with no luck, I was told by HP to send the laptop back to be fixed. Since I did not want to do that, having sensitive info on my computer, number one, plus not trusting I would ever see the laptop again, I went out and purchased a Linksys Wireless Adapter which connects to s USB port. The wireless connection now works perfectly again. It cost $ 50.00, but I felt that was better than sending the computer back to HP.
Tim
THIS IS THE CURE FOR HP WIRELESS FAULT: Go into control panel, into add & remove programs (or just programs in vista) uninstall the HP Wireless Assistant. Hey presto! You can now connect using Windows own connection software. As a pc tech I have performed this fix on dozens of machines and it works every time!

Bill
Tim,
I tried uninstalling the wireless assistance and rebooted my computer and it still does not work. Should it automatically recognize the Windows wireless driver, or do I have to manually connect? You said that after you uninstall it, you “can now connect using Windows own connection software”. I’m not sure what that means. I’d appreciate your help.
Thanks.

gina
Ah ha.
I wondered where my wireless disappeared to. Besides the somewhat low battery life, this has been a great computer for me to run my small business from. Of course, the week that I am down to brass tacks in negotiating the sale of my business, it fails me horribly.
*sigh*
Elise
WOWHelp. I bought an HP t9700 17″ laptop. Thankfully through Costco. Opened the box Plugged it in and 3 hours later I was already on the phone thankfully with tech support of Costco.
Jumped through the hoops and the HP guy told me to press something and the screen went black with white typed stuff and my new computer was DEAD.
Hard drive problem. Screen problem and SLOW>
Mac ….Here I come
Lupo23
A friend of mine had to send his notebook back to HP two times cause of failing wireless connections… and guess what happened. EXACTLY after the guarantee expired the wireless connection stopped working again a third time.
Sell this peace of hardware crap as fast as you can and never ever buy HP notebooks again! Trust me! Thats the only way to deal with this problem.
MrZack
PROBLEM SOLVED!!!
You were right Tim(Post 31), i uninstalled the HP Wireless Assistant and after rebooting, the wireless led turned blue, new hardware was found and i can use my wireless card now.
I also installed the newest bios in my desperate many tries to fix the problem, so it may be that only uninstalling the HP Wireless Assistant is not enough.
I wish you all good luck on solving this problem.
russel
I have a dv6000 with Vista Premium, but my problem is that I can’t turn it off using the usual Start>shut down method and needs to press the power button for a few seconds after it will restart by itself! Is there another way to shut it down? Also, the battery is considerably weak with 2 hours max life.Is it because Vista is using that much batt life? Im new to vista you know.
I need to know one more thing…the package stated that the unit is refurbished but I was pushed to buy it because the store told me that it was just tagged as refurbished so that they cannot sell it at a higher price considering the specs. Is there such a thing?
Now I have second thoughts of selling it before it crashes on my hand because one of my colleagues have told me that she had a problem when her HP broke down. She had one hell of waitng time and inconvenience before it was repaired. The Spare parts needed so much tiome befors it was replaced. please help…
Michelle
Hey does anyone else get the blue screen of death when using the internet? Random shutting down with a “crash dump” thing. I got it to stop restarting automatically, but still crashes at least 5 times a week. It says its an issue with bcmwl6.sys, which is the Broadcom LAN adapter. I havn’t seen anything about this issue yet and I was wondering if it was just me.

http://www.zxq9.com zxq9
I had similar problems when I was running Vista Basic with 512mb RAM (mine came un-endowed). I upgraded to 2gb and thins improved, but only marginally. I had huge issues with Explorer for some reason as well as Office. At that point in time I was not using the wireless card so I can’t speak to this.
I switched to Ubuntu 64 and all of these issues stopped. After looking over several forums for what problems people have at different times and the fixes for them, I’m convinced that most of these issues are software, not hardware related. I have never had any wireless issues, no more system freezes, no issues at all, actually, after switching from Vista. I’m convinced that Vista was just not ready for deployment and that HP’s proprietary software did not work very well. I have heard far fewer complaints from people who switched to WinXP or Linux.
The battery problem is for real and it is a legitimate hardware issue. I strongly suspect the wireless problem to be a software issue at this point based on my own experiences and the general course of forum discussions (it is significant that this is not identified as an issue on Linux and BSD forums for this laptop). System freezes are the same and tend to be specifically Vista/HP software related.
HP seems to not have put out a bad piece of hardware (aside from the battery), but rather a mix of shakily supported new hardware on a bad OS.

http://feb28th,2008. RAJAN
i purchase a hp dv9000us in may 2007 it crash the hardware has a problem also the display went dead and has a problem…i am overseas and service is only probided inthe USA this is rediculus if you have all the service system in place why not assist the people around the world.
specialy when you know the product is defective and has somany compalins.
Matt
An alternative I’ve found today is to use a netgear USB adaptor, maybe you have one laying around the house.
There is a list of Windows Vista Compatible Drivers to download here:
http://kbserver.netgear.com/kb_web_files/n101649.asp.
If you don’t have a spare computer, maybe run down to the library with your flash drive and save the driver and come home and download it onto your computer.
Jonathan
i know your promblem, you prombley got it last year and if you did, i have the promblem today my friend told me they had a call back on since there was a wirecless card failure, and it wouldnt turn and the lights would just flicker and turn off so just contact them and get it fix
Patrick
Thank goodness I found this site. I have had my HP Pavillion for almost 2 years and I have always had slow wireles connections. For the past 9 months I have been suffering on my HP, while my work computer (a Dell Latitude D620) never has any issues or dropped wireless connections. Running both computers side-by-side I witnessed my HP drop my connection and my Dell blaze full spreed ahead. I reached a breaking point this week and did a google search on “HP wireless sucks”, that is how I found this site! When I saw all of the other HP owners who are having the same problem it made me very upset. I had to buy a USB Netgear wireless adapter today, I’d rather do this until I replace this machine than deal with HP tech support! I will not be buying an HP laptop again
Thanks for the article and the comments!
Da Kydd
I just got my laptop (DV6324US) back less than 30 min ago. I had the wireless issue plus my batt will not charge. Unfortunately, they replace the system board that fix the problem (I hope this is not a temp fix as read in post where others had the same problem and it went bad in a few months). Now I want to know why they didn’t fix the power/batt problem. I have a laptop that has to be connected to AC power all the time to operate…NOT GOOD. I’ve had this laptop for about a year and didn’t expect problems like this to happen. That’s why i read this site because I was now looking for people that may have had issues with the batt/power.
Trsh
This is my seconf HP laptop. The first one had to be repalced because it spent more time with the Geek Squad than it spent at my home. And just like many of you, I also use my computer to run a bussiness. I now have a Pavillion DV6125 Special Edition Notebook.I don’t know what made me select another HP. Not only have I lost my wireless connection, but I’m getting this freaky flickering screen with horizontal lines that jump around. I will NEVER again purchase another HP prouct. I can only thank God that I purchased a 3 year extended warranty! I knew I should have gotten a Dell.
Sam
I had my dv9000 just over a year and the wireless failed twice already. First time I had to go through the same hassle of talking to someone in India who talks to you like if you are child and half the time I couldn’t understand a word he said and I had to go through everything on his chart from how to use the mouse to system recovery and testing the hardware.
He then decided that I have to ship the notebook back to HP for repairs.
It worked fine till few days ago when I noticed the notebook was overheating and suddenly it made a strange noise and the wireless stopped working.
Guess what?? yes you guessed right, I had to go through the same crap again talking to someone in India who tried to go through the same procedure and I said no, I am not doing this again, He insisted on trying few things first and I told him that I did everything that can be possibly done to get it working again with no success. It is a motherboard problem which they have to replace.
Now I have to go through the same hassle again to ship the notebook back to HP and have it fixed.
Still waiting for the box to arrive via FedEx and will let you know when I get it back.
My next notebook will definitely be something other than Dell or HP
Rated R
dv6000z with the 7200go purchased (september 2006)
get ready for an HP nightmare if you have any of these problems. for those of you who are only experiencing the wireless adapter vanishing issue, BACKUP any important data ASAP. the wireless adapter is only the beginning of a world of problems with the DV6000. my problem started with the wireless adapter 7 months after purchase.
after 3 months of using a USB wireless adapter or hardwire for internet i got the 1 long beep 2 short beeps error code on startup. the LCD wouldn’t power on and i would get those beeps while starting up. (april of 2007) basically the display adapter is crap and is built onto the mobo so there is no real way of correcting this error without replacing the mobo. like i said that was april 2007, it was a brick and was sent in for service. after not meeting the initial estimated return date i called customer support and they extended it 7 more days. obviously 7 days passes and no laptop or word from them on what is going on. after calling them and explaining that they have missed the second estimated date of shipping me my dv6000 they escalated the case to a case manager who is supposed to call me in 48 hours(may 2007).
(may 2007) so the case manager never calls after waiting 3 business days, i call tech support and complain. they say AGAIN that a case manager will call you in 48 hours… i was patient enough to wait the 48 hours before calling tech support back. i called back and told the guy i was not getting off the phone until i spoke to a case manager, my exact words were “this call is recorded and i’m an unhappy customer, you decide if you are gonna give me a case manager” this finally worked.
(mid-late may 2007) the case manager couldn’t tell me where my computer was, if it has been worked on, or when i was gonna get it back. WTF is wrong with these people??? basically he didn’t know when i was gonna get my PC back and refused to give me a refund. after an hour of going back and fourth with him he offered me a brand new dv6000. so i took it even though i had to buy an XP license since vista is what was offered with them now. atleast i had a definite date of when i was gonna get a computer.
got my new DV6000 (july 2007) 2 months without a computer and if i didn’t pursue them like crazy it probably would’ve been another 2 months. these people really don’t know what the hell is going on with YOUR computer.
(march 2008) today..8months later my brand new replacement DV6000 has crapped out with the same 1 long beep 2 short beeps display adapter error. again no display on startup with those beeps. same exact problem. i have called tech support and didn’t waste time, first thing i said the the tech guy was that i wanted to escalate it to a case manager. the case manager won’t call in 48 hours and i will be calling tech support and yet again demand to speak to someone. wish me luck, i will update if you guys want to know how it goes this time around.
sorry for the lengthy post but i wanted to give you guys an idea of who we’re dealing with. i really left out a lot of the details and issues with talking to tech support and case managers. these people are ridiculous
i’m positive i will have this problem again in a few months after they replace my mobo. i have also noticed they don’t offer the dv6000 anymore and have replaced it with the 6700 which uses the 8400gs instead of the problematic 7200go

finally help
search for hp limited warranty service enhancement web site from hp, found it last night on their web site explains 2 year warranty for pavillions and presarios with this problem
found on yahoo search
type in search box
hp limited warranty service enhancement presario
top two listings cover the problem
web site from hp will start with
h10025.www1.hp.com/cwfrf/wc/document

finally help
just go off phone with hp have a presario v6110us
they confirmed the enhancemaent repair, tech said is a one time repair but web site states different recieved confirmation e-mail from hp they will ship and repair at no cost, web site says will only repair if having problems, mine has problems so will see when unit is returned if fixed note when calling hp with number on bulletin dont dial 1 first kept getting incomplete message
866-671-7362
Bill
Hello, I tried uninstalling the wireless assistant, like Tim recommended, but it did not fix the problem. You mentioned that you also installed the newest bios and I was wondering how to do that. I’m comfortable with installing/uninstalling stuff on my computer, but haven’t really messed with the bios before and am a little hesitant to try that on my own. If you could give me some advice/tips on what you did to fix the wireless problem, I’d appreciate it. I’ve had the computer for over a year now and it’s not under warranty…I don’t want to even try to talk to customer service. Also, if I can’t get it to work, shouldn’t I be able to just by an external/usb wireless card and connect that way instead? I appreciate your help.

finally help
hey bill just got my dv6110 back from hp repair center for no internet problem, the repair sheet states repaired or replaced system board shipped free to hp last tuesday and got it back friday, this is covered under the free enhanced 2 year warranty that hp is giving to owners with internet problems along with a few other problems, do not bother trying to fix yourself cause it will be temporary at best, if you are beyond the 2 year warranty then get a separate wireless card.
this enhanced warranty covers pavilion dv/2000/dv6000/dv9000 and presario v3000/v6000 series notebooks

Pingback: My warranty expires tomorrow. What is causing this problem? - Page 2
louis
Tim’s solution did not work for me. I have a pavilion dv6000 (dv6116eu to be exact). I uninstalled HP Wireless Assistant. Didn’t fix anything. Updated my BIOS with latest version. Didn’t fix anything either.
Hmm what next?
harpo2448
I had similar run-around experiences with HP support attempting to help me solve my months-long wireless connectivity problems last year.
This was before I began hearing about motherboard replacements as the cure.
To make a long story short, though, one day I noticed that the HP Wireless Assistant said the opposite of what it usually said when I had problems. Usually (i.e., when I typically could not get my wireless to work) the HP W.A. said my connection was OK and ON, whereas the Windows Device Manager would be showing a red “X” icon in the device list.
But that one day (which became the last time, so far) I noticed that my wireless, as usual, was not working (amber light), and the HP Wireless Assistant AGREED (confirmed a problem), and the Windows Device Manager said the device was enabled and working properly.
Huh…
I had previously updated drivers, BIOS, removed/reloaded registry entries, reset IP parameters, yada-yada — virtually everything but follow one of the HP Support’s advice to wipe the disk and reload XP MCE (which would mean I’d likely have to buy a copy since this was the pre-loaded OEM version running). I simply didn’t want to do that and have to start over with the updates, registrations, etc., for everything.
(By the way, does anyone remember “Uninstaller” originally by MicroHelp, then CyberMedia (and finally by McAfee who messed it up good then quit supporting it when no one bought it anymore), the amazing utility that could “migrate” or “transport” entire applications with all their user registration, registry entries, INI file settings, required drivers, user data folders, etc.; bundle it all into a single EXE file; then you could copy that file onto another machine and run it to re-install the application, all registered and working again?
If you do, do you happen to know of an up-to-date replacement that works equally easily and well? “PCmover” from Laplink charges per move every time you use it, so that’s not what I have in mind. It would be a godsend if another “Uninstaller” could be re-invented again…)
Anyway, when I noticed the reversed situation (when the wireless was not working as usual) I decided to simply remove/uninstall HP Wireless Assistant altogether. (I knew I could re-install the latest version downloaded from their web site which I had previously done).
Voila! It’s been dead-nuts reliable ever since that day! Maybe it’s coincidence, I don’t know?… But since last October I haven’t had one single problem of the wireless not working. (And HP support kept insisting that I check and re-check my wireless access point/router settings, firmware, etc. — ha!)
It’s something easy to try; you can always re-install the HP Wireless Assistant if there’s no difference in your case (although I don’t really see the point of adding that extra bloat when Windows own built-in utility works easily enough).
Anyone else?