**D900F (Sager 9280) Owners Lounge**

brutal, I am very interested in your take and what ever you can say about your setup, I hope you can post some things soon. This is very close to the config I would order too.

 

No probs, I'll post what I can. I dont do reviews etc. So dont expect to much. Neither do I care all that much about benching the GPU ... I will run 32Prime though, and would be curious how the SSD HD and CPU does both in Vista 64 and in my XP/LINUX VMs.

I am pretty excited about the 975 CPU and SSD HD. I am hoping to be able to run a 3 tier setup using VMware all on one notebook ... crazy stuff really.

Also since I have a D901C already (used with a notebook cooler), I am very curious if I will be able to tell a big difference in fan noise. My D901C ontop of a cool never switches to the higher fan speeds even when I am gaming ... so it will be interesting to hear the difference.

 

Hi guys,
just ordered my new 9280 this week from xoticpc.
I went with the intel i7 920 cpu and the 80 GB intel SSD.

Should be a great desktop replacement since my desktop is not even comparable to this in any way!

 

I ordered the NP 9280 in my signature on June 12th from sagernotebook.com. My order status is listed as "Processing" though they confirm that they've received payment a while back. I got an e-mail on Friday (read like a subscriber e-mail) June 26th saying that they had received enough stock to cover their current backorder catalogue (no mention of any extra machines for recent purchases). They also mentioned that they would be sending out the laptops starting this week (June 29th-July 3rd), though with the 4th of July weekend, I doubt much will happen until at least the 2nd week of July. The period between June 12th and June 26th was characterized as a 'delay' which may or may not indicate that they usually process and ship out the computers faster than that. If sagernotebook.com has indeed only got enough stock in to handle their backorders, I'd suspect that a new order would take at least 2-4 weeks from them. But there are probably an enormous number of variables to affect that (I have zero idea about how suppliers and sub-suppliers and OEM's and distributors work in the computer business in the US). I e-mailed them yesterday asking if they had a timetable for delivery and received a stock "You'll get it when we send it" reply. Good luck

 

My NP9280 from Sagernotebook.com was ordered June 6th and is suppose to ship today, they charged my credit card last night so maybe it really is shipping.

 

Ordered June 11th, just got my tracking number, and is in transit Hopefully it will arrive tomorrow, I'm so inclined to not show up at work and wait for my package

Funny, I was at phase 1 since I ordered, and jumped straight to phase 4.



Can't wait to smell new electronics.

 

First post, Hi people! The Sager NP9280 is a beast and I can't wait to get my hands on it.

I actually canceled a 9850 pre-order today and placed a 9280.

Couldn't resist the i7 Quad Extreme processor.

 

i received the ups tracking # for my np 9280 shipment yesterday but it seems like a wrong # (or they have not shipped it out yet)

 

I got my 9280 today, installed windows 7 and everything else and now i have one question for the gtx 280m users.. which driver is the best for the 280m? Im using the latest driver for windows 7 (186.03) at the moment and its not as good as the 179.xx one i had before this one.
Just want to optimize the gpu drivers before i do some real tests.. got everything else tweaked..
Oh and there is no way to oc th cpu.. not even evgaa eleet will let me do it.. it lets you up the multi on turbo boost for each core but thats not really what i want.
And the score on 3dmark06 for my rig now is 13898 with these drivers.. still 1k short on the one with the 975 in the review section.
And the hardware raid is great.. 200mb/s read.. ill post the benchies and screenies tomorrow once i get the drivers figured out.. its 1 am and im too tired to do it now..

 

Really good machine..

 

Can't wait to see those benchmarks with your specs.

 

mine finally shipped will get you guys some more intel and pics soon.

 

i just received an e-mail from xoticpc, they give me the tracking # for my np9280. It's shipped via ups and is expected to arrive on July 7th ... i ordered my laptop on May 29th.
finally i can almost smile at last

 

A question for people who have their laptop already, how long is the battery life?

 

about 1 hour 45 minutes .... to 2 hours.

with light usage (web browsing and typing).

 

Yep, the power consumption of the cpu at doing something like that is only 35W.

 

hehe... anyone writing a review? or more screenshots?

 

Yea this comp has been out longer than the M17x and I have seen nothing... no initial reviews, pics and otherwise general feedback from you!!! Step it up!

 

well it is the same frame as the np9262.

 

I should be getting mines in a few weeks *crosses fingers* and will do some benchmarks and take photos.

 

Yea + rep Ihanzo thanks for your contribution.... well future contribution

 

It's in french but you can see the results.

http://portables4gamers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=2784

Hope that will help.


I'm realy happy with mine for this price it's a really good laptop.

 

I am in the process of installing/configuring my D901F. I'll post more once its all installed etc. But for now I can say to those who are worried about fan noise, that its close to the same levels as my older D901C, either that or I can't tell the difference. I always use a notebook cooler though, so the higher speed fans never have to kick in. Time will tell, maybe once I game for long it many ... to early to say.

Overall I am impressed with the responsiveness of the SSD and the CPU, Vista for once is snappy. Anyways, more later once I have all my crap working.

 

Hi, I want know about the Intel Turbo Memory. The D900F have miniPCIe slot avaible?
This memory can be used to cache and page file of windows? The windows will be more fast with that?

Bye

 

@brutal....would you care to comment on the price you paid for your configuration?

 

got mine finally,

touchpad is nice, like the feel, slight roughness makes for easy use.
really fast
still updating windows will report more later

 

It should be around $4,300 - $4,400+/-.

Mine was $3,580.

 

Awesome stuff Took a brief look at your screens. Not too familiar with temperatures, should those be temperatures the D900F runs at under load? (first benchmark picture)

 

Thats max possible load yeah.. and i had such high temperatures with a mobile quad core in my previous M17 so the cooling is amazing.

 

Sub-Total: $4,242.00
U.S. UPS Ground (3-6 Day Delivery Service): $37.00
Total: $4,279.00
Discount Coupons:cashrebate: -$128.37

Final Total: $4,150.63

(Keep in mind I ordered no OS, I guess its easier if I just post the whole breakdown)

- 17" WUXGA "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright Glossy Screen (1920x1200)
- Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- Standard Dead Pixel Policy
- Intel Core i7 Quad Extreme (Nehalem) 975 3.33GHz 8MB Cache 130W
- nVidia GeForce GTX 280M 1,024MB PCI-Express DDR3 DX10 (User Upgradeable)
- No Video Adapter
- ~ 6,144MB DDR3 1333MHz Memory (3 SODIMMS) (w/ i7 975 CPU Only)
- Standard Finish
- ~ 2X Blue-Ray Read/8X DVDRW Super Multi Combo Drive
- ~ 160GB Intel X25-M Solid State Drive (SSD Serial-ATA II)
- ~ 500GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache)
- ~ 500GB 5400RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 8MB Cache)
- HDD Raid Settings - OFF
- No Back Up Hard Drive
- No Floppy Drive
- Internal 7-in-1 Card Reader (MS/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS Pro Duo/SD/Mini-SD/MMC/RS)
- Internal Bluetooth + EDR
- Built-in Intel® PRO/Wireless 5300 802.11 a/g/n Wi-Fi Link
- No Network Accessory
- Integrated Digital Video Camera
- No TV Tuner
- Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
- Basic Black Business Case - Included
- Smart Li-ion Battery (12 Cell)
- None Standard*
- No Dock/Hub/Adapter
- No Fingerprint Reader
- No External Keyboard or Mouse
- No Notebook Cooler
- None Standard - Drivers & Utility Software Only
- No Office Software
- No Software Bundle

 

Another review found (in German), perhaps someone will find it usefull.

Also if someone is looking Clevo D900F in Europe (Poland) in competition price. check here.

 

I am curious if anyone else with a 975/D900F found that their power brick is making a slight electronic humming sound now? Its the exact same brick as I used with my D901C. Odd thing is when its plugged into my D901C its silent, but any of my 3 bricks plugged into the D900F seem to be making this noise. Tried all of them on my D901C, and they not making any noise.

 

My brick is silent, if you put your ear to it you can hear a buzz sound.

other opinions about laptop
build quality is very good
3dmark 06 186.03 latest nvidia drivers default 1280x1024 = 13320
wprime 2.00 x64 32m = 9.238
both 3 run average, all latest vista patches installed.
ran furmark 1920x1200 for 30 minutes max gpu 76c fans on auto
really impressed with everything so far
one minor gripe is sd card slot, the cards only go have way in preventing leaving it in when put in bag, otherwise that's it.
oh and 1 more it only has 3 fans not 4 but runs wow maxed out 1920x1200 for hours without going to full speed

 

My brick also makes that sound.. i have the i7-950.. so i guess its normal.. i already asked my vendor about this and they say its becouse of the i7 power draw.. i can only hear it under heavy load.. at idle its quiet.

 

@brutal and ihanzo...thanks for the pricing info ;~)

 

I have been a lurker for a couple of months now. Mostly after I order the Sager 5797. Before it was shipped I canceled the 5797 and pre-ordered the 9280 and received it on 6/15/2009. I purchased it directly from Sager because I didn't know about the resellers at the time I first ordered the 5797. Only after I started lurking the different forums did I find out about them. The negative comments about Sager’s customer service after purchase kind of freaked me out.
I have the i7-975 and my brick is silent. I can't say that for the lappy. I have a high squeal that is barely audible but it’s at a range that it just drives me crazy and gives me a headache when it sits on my office desk. At home the TV or other things around me drown out the noise. I first thought it was a fan but I stopped those and that did not silence the maddening whine. I contacted Sager Support using the “Request a call back” option twice in a 72 hour time period and received nothing. The forum comments about poor Sager support heightening my concern. I then tried the second support option “request a service”. Within 3 hours I got a call! The support person listened and suggested that it may be a hard drive. I have two Seagate 320 gig 7200 in RAID 0. So for the next few days when I had time and at first with the support from one of the office techies (I’m a basic novice) we pulled the HD’s and ran the Sager without them. No noise. We powered the HD separately outside the Sager to see if we could hear the noise and didn’t. We put the Hd’s back into the Sager and the noise was there, without and without the battery, still the noise. I pulled the HD’s again. No noise. After a couple of emails and phone calls with Sager support to report my findings they are sending me 2 new Hd’s with no hassle. So after the initial concern about Sager’s support I can report that at least in this situation, so far, I’m satisfied. HD’s will be delivered I figured at the end of this week and will see if that takes care of my maddening noise.

 

For those who are curious, I think I get 14 sec in wprime and 12775 in 3dmark06, with the GPU at MXM 3.0 stock and QX9300 @2.93.

 

with 3dmark06 I get around 500-600 higher with the 179.79 drivers (13850-13920)
all stock clocks/voltage

 

Does 900F have hardware raid? or is it just the usual Intel software Raid?

 

it has hardware raid

 

I get 14277 stock on mine.. and it does wprime in 8,5sec.
Dont you have MXM 2.1? Im pretty sure you do since you have a np5797 in your sig..
The MXM 3.0b thats in the 9820 overclocks much better even without any overvolting.. can get the core to 645 working perfectly fine (played crysis on it for almost 2 hours)..

 

Heres the sreenshot:

 

HellCry, how did you get the power usage of cpu to show in hardware monitor?

 

Didnt do anything it was just there.

 

The power meter is a new feature in i7 I think

 

Dont know about it but i definetely welcome the additional info.

 

yup it is. i built a custom system for my friend and use the same version of hwmontier and it showed the same time. but more because he was using a desktop board. it showed the voltage etc.

but i wish it should me how much power i am using.

 

finally, my np9280 will be at my door tomorrow .

 

That's great to hear. My main reason for going back to buying a sager had been how easy they are to open and upgrade or fix yourself. I tried to open my dell notebook once ... and that was a small nightmare trying to put it together again.

 

Hellcry, can you test your 280M with Furmark 1.7.0? Just want to see what is the highest temp. Thanks.