MSI GX640 vs Asus G73Jh

So I bought a GX640 that is going back because it runs too hot. I like to game on my lap so I need a laptop that runs cool on the bottom. With a GX 640 I will need a laptop cooler. Has any GX640 owner been able to game on their GX640 on their lap?

The alternative is the Asus G73Jh which supposedly runs very quiet and cool even when gaming, which means I can run it without a laptop cooler.

GX640 weighs 5.9lbs WITHOUT battery. The 9-cell is over 1lb, so total weight is around 7lbs.

Asus around 8.1 lbs with 2 HDDs and 8-cell battery (confirmed this on Asus forum).

Therefore weight of GX 640 + cooler will be about the same as a Asus G73Jh without cooler. Even without a cooler the GX640 is only 1lb lighter.

Is there any reason not to get a G73Jh instead? Better graphics card, quieter and cooler, bigger screen, backlit keyboard, etc...What do you guys think?

 

My recommendation if you want to "game on your lap" would be to get a lapboard. Even a piece of nicely sanded plywood can work. You shouldn't be putting any gaming laptop directly on your lap or on other soft materials as they absorb heat and/or restrict air flow. Bad things happen after that.

I have a lapboard that is about 21" deep and 30" wide. It's perfect to fit my laptop, a nice mouse pad/mouse area, with some room left for sitting down headphones, attaching peripherals, etc...

EDIT: Also the G73 is MUCH larger in physical size too . . . so that may or may not be a considering if portability is an issue. Weight isn't everything.

 

I can guarantee you that the GX640 does not weigh 5.9lb "without a battery". I have been using an Asus G1S for almost three years to use as a comparison, so I am 100% sure that it is definitely not 7lb with a battery in.

As for using a 17" in your lap... you'll understand why that doesn't work when you get it. Especially considering the G73 is very back heavy. It's 2" thick toward the back.

 

I weighed the laptop on my postal scale. Please weigh yours and come back rather than go off your "feel". I can guarantee you that it is 5.9lb without battery.

 

Alright, I'll buy that.

Anyway, I don't think the MSI is very good for gaming on your lap either. I don't think the bottom gets too hot, but the palm rest probably would (it's aluminum...)

To be honest, I think if you want to game on your lap it's better to stay with a mid range video card. To dissipate 30-40W for a video card alone requires a large volume of air flow that, if you blocked half the air intakes on the bottom with your legs, probably won't happen.


Actually, now that I recall: the Fedex label on the box I received said the box was 8.1lb. That's kind of weird, because that means that the box (triple boxed) + adapter + padding was 1lb?

Can someone else also weigh this notebook and let us know what its weight is? I haven't got an accurate scale at home ..

 

Agreed. A midrange card or a laptop cooler is definitely a more realistic suggestion.
However, from the looks of things it does seem like the G73's intakes are arranged in a way that would make reasonable for playing games on your lap.

 

Gaming on your lap is very easy with the G73. Just go to the G73 forum and you'll see there are a lot of us. The bottom doesn't go above ambient temperatures and if your knees can't handle 8lbs then you might want to hit the gym first. You don't have to worry about air intake as the air is actually being sucked in behind the screen, so no worries on that.

I play Dirt 2 and NFS Shift casually on my lap in bed frequently. Since I'm not hardcore with wheel etc, just the keyboard.

But I would caution as the G73 is going to be larger than the GX640. Only get it if you want a 17" notebook.

 

I will post pics of the laptop on my scale when I get home, but if anyone has a scale, please confirm so I know it's not my scale that's screwed up.

I thought about mid-range card, like the ATI 5650. There are a number of 15.6" with that card and runs cool (I actually have one, the NV5925u). I would like something a little more powerful. Argh - don't think this will be possible.

 

More powerful at 15.6"? The only option would be the Clevo. But the Clevo's fans sound like jet engines, they are ridiculously loud.

 

Its not THAT loud, its audible though.

 

The 640 would be fine on your leg, dont block your intake and your all set, (Dont think palm rests get hot either, just to your hand temperature)

The g73 i think takes in from the top, but don't quote me on that,

Clevos jet engines are really on the bigger books, my understanding is the 15.6 inch is quite nice,

 

The fan noise of Clevos is totally untrue and exaggerated, it's the same if not lower noise level compared to the MSI, so if you can stand the MSI fan noise, don't see how Clevo's are any more annoying.

 

On the 3-4 fan machines, its quite audible, as for your machine, i've heard that qualifies as having great fan noise level.

 

Well, those SLI GPU and desktop CPU laptops are not really on the same level for comparison as ewll.

 

I'd disagree, they're in laptop form

If its loud its loud, what ya gna do, and ofc they are like 3 times the weight, how heavy's your saga?
And how many fans too!

 

There are a few videos of the side effects of having cooling like that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzdPwXKcNZU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgCkhAUdaqE

Ken @ GenTech playing Crysis on W860
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3YRaW9hMHc&feature=related

You can watch any game vidoe and be astonished can hear the fans over game noise.

Anandtech did a comparison between the W870CU and the G73JH. The G73JH on load is quieter than the W870CU on Idle.

 

Well, the 8690 and 8760 are not loud at all, they are recorded as on par with MSI 640/740 levels in reviews. It's really a dumb thing to see how loud a laptop is in videos, the loudness it's recorded in and played in are all variables.

 

I don't think the data required to make a proper comparison are available, but I'm willing to believe those Sagers aren't all that loud. If I could have the Sager's cooling at the GX640's price, size and weight, I'd have taken it, because I tend to use isolating headphones anyway.

 

I'm not here to argue about how awesome G73 is vs a Clevo. Performance wise they are identical, you won't find higher FPS on G73 or on Clevo.

What I do know is AnandTech has confirmed that G73 on LOAD is as quiet as Clevo on IDLE.

I do game at 800/1100, as I like the increased few framerates when playing a game like Dirt 2 on Ultra settings. All my screenshots of gaming have been around 77-81 and all on 800 core, 1100 memory. If that isn't enough for OP, then G73JH isn't for him.

OP when I game on my lap in bed, yes, it's on 800/1100 and never gets above slightly warm. That's all for me, you should have enough information about the G73JH to know if it's for you or to keep your GX640, upgrade to the GX740 or get yourself a beastly Clevo.

 

Thought he only mentioned the heat being the reason.

Anyways, I won't recommend a Clevo to him if he's planning to play on his lap, since the air intake is at the bottom. Actually, I won't recommend him playing game on his lap at all, since all those heat/electromagnetic field etc of a gaming laptop on his lap is going to be very harmful to his "vital organ" in the long term.

 

Its not the volume, its the frequency, btw the fans are hideus if they sound like that haha, but im sure they dont.

PS, whys the moron with the camera putting it next to the fan

 

Now we just left the realm of scientific analysis.

The heat is shown to elevate the temperature of the ... by as much as 3C, but has yet to prove to be significantly harmful. Electromagnetic field? That's, uhh... kind of bizarre. Considering there's no high energy collisions nor a net flow of current in one directional vector (flow of electrons through different paths in a CPU tends to cancel out, besides, designers take great pains to make sure the chips don't interfere with ONE ANOTHER never mind microwaving your organs), I'd sincerely doubt the existence of this danger.

 

I could hear my 8690(idling at min of 50C) from 4 feet away in my fairly quiet room. Got annoyed so much I returned it. I do not have any other gaming laptop to compare to but I just could not stand it.

 

The MSI used to (I say this because the 725 has great temps) idle so quiet, you could sleep with it on because it was lower then whisper sound,

I will record some video of the different states the MSI can be in, i think people really should see how good they are if you can get the temp range under the 50's, and ill show people the max fan states too! (Although you may have whitnessed them )

 

I have faith that the GX640/GX740 fan noise are considerably quieter, my impression is MSI wanted to produce a notebook that more mainstream consumers would want and mainstream consumers care A LOT about NOISE.

 

well not to burst your bubble, but the GX640 fan is kind of loud, and its on constantly.

 

I realize that, but you do know Clevo is on ALL the time with fan noise louder than my G73 on load. So like I said, I have faith in the GX640. If anyone asks me advice for a performance 15" notebook, I'll be recommending them the GX640. I don't expect any performance notebook with mid-range/high-end CPU or GPU to run silent passively. To expect that would be to ask someone to find a way to provide water cooling for notebooks.

 

The 640 fan is because the hardware is so hot,

The 725 was phenominally quiet.