MS-1039 review?

Has anyone reviewed the MS-1039 yet? While I have seen some comments I have not seen any full out impressions by anyone. How does everyone here who bought one like it?

Thanks!

 

yah i've been wondering about the same thing, i don't think its exaclty released, but you can get the WXGA version, people are waiting for the WSXGA+ version.

Also Xmeld site said <8lbs??!!!! Does that mean this laptop weighs over 7lbs?? Someone plz confirm?? also what's the thickness at the back?

Thanks,

MysticGolem

 

Please Coffee Shark, Unleaded, anyone!
We would really like a review!

 

Mine should be arriving sometime late next week. I will do a full review then

 

Here's a review for you guys (it's my first, so bear with me)

First off, system specs:

• cpu - AMD Turion 64 MT40 2.2ghz
• graphics - ATI Mobility X1600 256mb (450gpu/445.5memory clock speeds - stock)
• memory - 2 x 1gig DDR (400mhz)
• display - 15.4" WXGA glossy (1280x800 native resolution)
• card reader - 6in1 sd/mmc/xd/sm/ms/pro
• hard drive - hitachi 80gig 7200rpm
• networking - built in realtek 10/100mps ethernet lan
• wireless - 802.11g/b + bluetooth (integrated)
• i/o ports - 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port,1 x DVI-out,1 x TV-out (S-Video),4 x USB 2.0ports,1 x Firewire (1394),1 x RJ-11 Modem Port,1 x Headphone/Line-out,1 x Microphone/Line-in
• battery - lithium-ion, 48.8aH, 12.5V
• audio - realtek high definition audio (i use an audigy 2 PCMIA card)
• other junk - 4 "hot keys" (1 already controls bluetooth + wireless on/off), PCMIA slot, Express Card Slot
• dimensions - 14.09" x 10.20" x 1.06~1.30" (WxDxH)
• weight - 7lbs-ish (not sure of the actual weight, but 7lbs is pretty close)

Reason for buying

I wanted a laptop for college that could handle the latest games (counter-strike condition zero, oblivion, nfs: most wanted) but also be light enough to carry around to classes. i also like the turion processor since it will be 64-bit compatible for windows vista (if it ever comes out).

Buying Experience

i chose to go with rawpowerpc.com for my purchase since they have a superior rating on Resellerratings.com and they also have a very spazzy website. I paid around $1615 total for the notebook. since i was going out of town a week or two after i ordered the laptop, the head of the company personally emailed me that he'd updated my shipping to 2-day for no extra expense so the laptop would reach me in time.

Build Quality

the ms-1039 has a plastic chassis (with a metal frame underneath it). as a result, the screen will flex a little bit, but tapping/hitting the back doesn't produce any ripples/dots on the screen. the laptop feels sturdy and well-built. the only complaint i might have is that the plastic doesn't disperse heat very well (more on this later)

the one major flaw with the laptop i think is the location of the ports. the PCMIA slot, 2 usb ports, dvi, s-video, and charger plug are all located on the right side of the laptop. as a result the audigy 2 sound card and charger cable often get in the way of my mouse. (the rest of the ports are on the left side of the laptop)

overall the laptop is silver with a black keyboard, black bottom, black built-in camera on top of the screen, and black case badge on the cover (doesn't light up.) the power button has a ring around it that lights up blue, which matches the other "status lights" on the front right of the chassis (there are 7 of those)

Keyboard

the keyboard on the 1039 is a definite improvement over the 1029. there are no clicking sounds when you type, and there is no noticeable keyboard flexing at all. the keyboard feels solid when you type. the touchpad is located directly below the keyboard, so it will occasionally get in the way of typing (i accidentally touch it with the bottom of my right hand). the touchpad is "widescreen", which is nice to use. it also feels textured (think the skin of an orange) which i think is an improvement over smooth touchpads. there is a "scroll area" to the right side of the touchpad, and 2 buttons below it. the buttons are somewhat stiff and make a clicking noise when you push them down.

Speakers

the speakers on the 1039 are pretty good. their appearance looks pretty bad (a couple slits drilled into the chassis of the laptop underneath the screen), but they actually sound decent. unless you like a large bass response (subwoofer type stuff) they will work for listening to music and playing games. i'm a little disappointed with their maximum volume, but then again i have a 20% hearing loss so that's probably just me.

btw, what on earth is that black bar beside the speaker? anyone know?
Display

like the 1029, the 1039 sports a WXGA glossy screen with a native resolution of 1280 x 800. the screen has NO dead pixels and NO light leakage. i would rate the screen as excellent (as long as you can keep it from getting fingerprints all over it or you're using it in direct sunlight)

Battery Life

the battery life is the one big disappointment on the laptop. at MAX, i get maybe 1.5 hours of battery life. the processor will slow down to 800mhz to conserve battery, but at the slightest use of many applications it jumps back up to 2.2ghz. perhaps if you dimmed the screen or undervolted the gpu you could increase battery life. playing oblivion (full gpu, full cpu, screen at normal brightness, hdd constantly spinning) it lasts around 1hr 15min.

Heating/Cooling

the 1039 is one of the quietest laptops i've ever heard, which is pretty weird considering its high-performance specs. there's only 2 fans on the whole thing, one on the bottom sucking in and one on the back pushing out. therefore, MAKE SURE you keep that area on the bottom of the laptop free for air input (if you use it in your lap or on carpet, etc.) or it will get very hot very quickly.

to the right handrest issue. where your right hand rests feels warm when you use the laptop. it takes around 15min to get to the "warm" phase, but i wouldn't say its excessively hot or unbearable. just a little warm. i don't mind it at all. if you occasionally turn off your laptop, it only takes 10 min to "cool back down" to the same temp as the rest of the laptop.

however, if you use the 1039 more than 45min or so, the bottom of the laptop does get really hot. almost too hot to sit on your lap. again, if you occasionally turn it off, it will cool back down fairly quickly. i wish there were some temperature monitors in the BIOS to monitor the temps of that bottom (i'm using the stock cooling, i might try replacing the heat pad with AS5)

Performance

definitely the high point of the ms-1039 is its performance due to the mobility X1600 (appears on the laptop as M56). with a fresh install of windows and the ati omega drivers, it gets a 3dMark05 score of 4219. after installing all my programs, including AVG virus software, the 3dMark05 score is 4217.

Calculating Super Pi to 2 million digits takes 1min 35sec.

the 1039 can run Oblivion at native resolution and medium settings smoothly. if you turn off the grass completely, you can boost textures to the "high" setting and still maintain smooth performance.

Conclusion

i would recommend this laptop for college-bound students who don't need to use it running on the battery for more than an hour or two. the graphics card is nice, but the cooling systems could be a little better. from one to awesome i give it a super great.

 

Nice review. Also, the black thing you posted a picture above looks like an IR port.

 

Very nice review, thanks for posting. You might want to see if they want to publish here at Notebook Review, you would only have to fill in few spots.

It seems like this is a very nice notebook. Very odd about battery time. I think I heard that it came with the 4,400 mAh battery instead of the 4,800 mAh. Is that correct? Is a larger capacity battery available?

 

the battery specs come straight from 3dmark05, so i'm guessing thats the default battery.

 

Awsome. nice review. So just sitting on a table or hard surface does it even get the air it needs? does it sit on little "props" on the four corners? or is it striaght on the surface of the case? if so how does it suck in air? Im so psyched to get mine in a few days

 

theres a bunch of "plastic feet" on the bottom to prop it up. right now, i use it maybe an hour at a time and on a wooden table, so it gets the air it needs and stays relatively cool.

 

too bad the battery sucks...

hmm theres got to be a better battery or something...

how long does it last with the screen dimmed to the max?

 

In your honest opinion guys, how long do you think this 1039 is going to last before it will not be able to keep up with the latest games. I know the X1600 256MB VRAM GPU is a strong card, but how long untill it becomes a thing of the past and wont keep up?

alsowigerfoo, have you watched any DVDs on it yet? please share the quality

btw i get mine tomorrow

 

Are you kidding? Mine comes in the mail tomorrow as well! I recieved the parts for it yesterday. I can't wait!

 

Is the turion slot compatible with the turionx2 slot?

 

Nope. Turion X2 uses socket S1 and Turion uses Socket 754.

 

Bah Wish I was getting mine tomorrow.. I have to wait till Tuesday, then I get to play with it all the way home to Australia on the Plane

 

can someone post a picture of this laptop's backside? =D