*** Official Clevo P770ZM / Sager NP9772 and P770ZM-G / Sager NP9773 Owner's Lounge ***

I don't know if they will refund you but you are entitled by law.
So, if they don't refund you may suit them in a small claims court nearby you even if they are doing business out of state.
http://www.mass.gov/ago/consumer-resources/consumer-information/retail-rights/cancel-a-sale.html

 

I got it through Prostar Clevo. The only reason is because my card is through amazon and I dont have a physical copy currently so I had to order through amazon and they were the only seller on there. They have good reviews from what I saw on Amazon and BBB.

Thank you for that, they said when they receive the computer back they will notify Amazon within 1-3 business days, they did say they dont know how long it will take Amazon to refund it though. I expect this to be like a 2 week ordeal haha.

 

totally agree on that zach, with such machines its a bloody shame that opening it to at least do some necessary maintenance (= prolonging its life!) would void your warranty. just doesnt make sense to me! its not like were in the acer forum here or smth

 

UK or USA? I know at least one USA reseller will do a purchase through amazon. There is a slight markup though. And is your RMA through amazon or prostar directly? Usually, my RMA's through amazon are refunded next day or two after UPS scans the shipping label.

 

USA

Amazon says: "
This item isn't eligible for return.
This item can’t be returned since it requires special transportation and handling which we can’t provide. Use the Contact us button for help addressing your issue."

So I think when I refuse delivery it will just be shipped back to the seller.
When they receive it they said they will notify Amazon within 1-3 business days, and then Amazon will do whatever it does

Edit: I haven't actually started an RMA yet also, do I need to do that? The reseller didn't say anything about it, so I'm curious.

 

It's not an RMA technically but you MUST notify the cancellation of the purchase and the return of the product in writing. Sign it, take a picture of the letter/notification and send it registered (with tracking number) to the company address. Send also an email ASAP.

 

I can't get a new tracking number if I just refuse the delivery..

Edit: I will however write a note (stating I am returning the product and with my signature) take a picture and email it to the reseller.

Edit2: I love Amazon, I sent them an email less than 20 minutes ago and got a response already:
"Hello,

Thanks for writing to us.

Your shipment is expected to arrive by February 3, 2015 - Friday, February 6, 2015 When the carrier attempts to deliver your shipment, you can:
* Advise the driver you are refusing the package if it is delivered while you're at home.
* Return it using our Online Returns Center ( http://www.amazon.com/returns
) if the package is delivered while you are not at home. The package will be returned to the seller, and they'll issue a full refund when they process the return.

Your refund will be processed as soon as the carrier's tracking information shows the package was refused."

So if I refuse the package I should get my refund almost immediately!

 

So odd question. Does sager still ship drivers on a CD or since this machine has no cd drive will they send on a USB drive? Just wondering if I need to pre-download everything to an extra jump drive while I wait

 

I'm guessing CD. You can probably download them from clevo or sager beforehand though.

 

The tracking number is for the notification/letter. It's needed in case you have to prove in court that you've delivered it to the company.
You may also request a Signature Confirmation (from USPS) but that's more expensive.

 

According to the Amazon rep all I have to do is refuse the package and it will update the tracking and be sent back to the seller and process my refund immediately.. so I don't think I need to worry about anything else
I will however keep copies of the emails between the seller and I and between Amazon and myself just in case.

 

We always hope for the best. Unfortunately **** happens... a lot!
Sometimes I regret for not taking the necessary procedures needed in the worst case scenario but I don't like to be pessimist all the time.
I leave that for important events like buying something really expensive or closing a business deal.

 

I will make sure to take screen shots of the tracking when it updates and the Amazon page when it updates as well just to be safe :]

 

That's what I was thinking as well. Sagers website doesn't have the drivers listed yet but clevos website does so just going to predownload and throw on my windows 7 jump drive. Screens are still on back order till tomorrow so hoping once they get in only a few days till I get my box

 

Double post.

 

Even without tinkering it's going to be a lot faster than any apple machine lol.

 

Well guys after a ton of debate I bit the bullet and placed my order for the P770zm today. Im pretty stoked. To save money I went as bare boned as possible and plan to upgrade and re-paste myself. here is my build.
1 Sager NP9772 Gaming Laptops - $2,013.66
17.3" FULL HD (1920X1080) LED Matte LCD
nVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M 256bit w/8.0GB GDDR5
Intel® Core™ i7-4790K (4.0~4.4GHz) w/8M L3 Cache - 4 Cores - 8 Threads
Sager Thermal Compound
8GB (1x8GB) DDR3L/1600 Memory
1TB SATA III 6Gb/s 7,200 RPM Hard Drive
RAID Disabled
6-in-1 Memory Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD/Mini-SD/SDHC/SDXC)
Built-in Intel M.2 Wireless-AC 7265 + Bluetooth 4.0 (Dual Band - Max speed: 867Mbps)
Smart Li-ion Battery Pack (8 Cell)
Full Range Auto Switching AC Adapter (330W)
Sager Logo
1-Year Parts and Shipping plus Lifetime Labor and 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Support (Labor & Support paid by PNB)
NO No Dead Pixel Guarantee
NO Laser Tattoos - Personalize your Laptop - Does not delay shipping
NO M.2 PCIe/SATA Solid State Drive - Slot 1
NO M.2 PCIe/SATA Solid State Drive - Slot 2
NO Second Hard Drive Bay
NO External USB Optical Drive
NO Operating System
NO Microsoft Office Software
NO Spare AC Adapter
NO Ground Shipping Coverage for Canada Warranties
What do you guys think?
Also I do have a pretty good knowledge of building Desktops, but this will be my first time dealing with altering laptops and such. My previous laptop was an AW m17x-r4 maxed out at the time and I didn't really tinker much with it except some mild overclocking of the CPU and GPU. With this Sager I am going to really dive in and tweak it to the max. With that said bear with me guys as I may ask some stupid questions but I am trying to learn as much as I can.

 

Seems to me all you need to do yourself is add an SSD (of any type you like) and 8GB of ram and you are set stock wise. For tweaking there is intel XTU and the modified video bios for the 980m.

 

With the disclaimer above is there a revised bios available for the system? Or anything else I should know. Ive read through all the post and found A LOT of talk about the 4790K running really hot so I will watch out for that. There was also a lot of talk about what should be used to paste each part. Is there a specifit brand of thermal paste that I can use on the CPU and GPU. I also saw someone listed a type of paste for the Vram. I've never heard of the Vram being repasted is this common or advised to do? I just want to make sure I can squeeze out as much power from this baby as I can.

 

Paste for the CPU and GPU and pads on the rest is the best policy, as for paste i'd recommend IC diamond since that is what I personally use. There is also liquid ultra if you feel brave in using a liquid metal compound (read up on the risks if going down that route, not all are obvious).

 

Yes I actually plan to max out the ram. I know its not needed but ram has come down so much its not really that bad. Also I plan to wait for a M.2 PCI SSD to hit slick deals again and ill bite. I also have a copy of windows 8.1 I got a while back from a student deal that was going on. Are there any issues with the drivers being compatible with windows 8? Should I look for a cheap copy of windows 7 instead?

 

IV diamond is what I have used in the past for my desktops. I also remember reading somewhere in this thread that there is a "proper technique" to applying the thermal paste think you could explain it to me. In the past i simply put a thin X across the top of the CPU or GPU and called it quits. After the old paste was removed and the chip was prepped of course. It seemed to work fine but now im second guessing my technique and it seems very important to achieve good speeds with limited/no throttle on the CPU

Edit: is 24 carat better than 7 carat IC thermal or does it really make a difference?

 

It's the same. the numbers are size quantity.

 

Still trying to decide whether to pick up the 4790k or the 4790 "sans suffix": I'm a bit worried about temps, but checking the specs I see that the 4790 is 84W and the 4790k is 88W, therefore there shouldn't be so much difference (right? never had to worry about temperature in a laptop before ), and the k gives a slight performance capability (plus OC stuff to tink about in the future ).

 

4790K all the way. If u cant handle the temps, ull still have the freedom to tweak the clocks / voltages / everything its a no brainer, really!

 

Don't expect to OC the processor, it'll heat up things enough when stressed to the max
If you're going to do rendering etc, you'll might even want to downclock the 4790k or disable the turbo boost, most owners who have it undervolt it as much as they can in order to keep it on turbo and not throttling.

I don't really need the power and am not experienced with overclocking, so I'll probably play it safe and take a 4790s, call it a day.

 

Please lets not,

as stated above if there was a critical flaw of this model's design we would see loads of people here complaining about massive overheating. We would see endless reviews of this unit and the 15" version showing the same heat issues... and we don't.

There are only 3 logical solutions to this
1: repaste... super easy... bad paste job happens all the time on many various laptop versions. you can find many many many discussions about re-pasting on nearly EVERY higher performance laptop thread made by any vendor. in fact If you think your going to use a system like this for more than 2 years without re-pasting/fan cleaning... you're in for a surprise

2: you have a faulty warped heat sink assembly as already shown by a 15" version owner who has pasted his findings in this forum along with a resolution from his reseller. (turns out to be a faulty heat sink assembly - CEG sent him a new one)

3: RETURN IT FOR REFUND OR REPLACEMENT
if the unit is not performing up to your justified and well placed expectations you need to return it immediately. Dont get stuck with a lemon send it back asap. If they are unwilling to help you now what hopes do you have with future problems down the line past the return period. in all honesty from the resistance they have been giving you I would just LOLevacABORTreturn it and go with some one who shows a bit more concern with your satisfaction with their product. The guy with the 15" and overheating problems got his from CEG and they publicly replied to him on this forum and they seem to have gotten all the issues fixed. I'm not trying to say go buy from them. I'm just saying that's the kind of response you want from a company you just paid 2k+ for a product.


also to suggest a voiding of warranty would occur from doing said re-pasting is laughable. never the less if you do find that the warranty included on a system like this prohibits opening the machine and working on it your self... find another vendor.

 

Not sure if you have done this already. but....

could you do sort of a mini writeup of your impressions of the 15" Batman here(or link to it) maybe include some temperatures you experience under load(games/benches/rendering) at various fan speeds? your thoughts on fan noise at said levels or a recording?

We have nearly 20k views on this thread. I'm sure we have alot of people who are lurking in this thread looking for some impressions about this unit. I'm sure a fellow forum user's experience with the smaller yet just as powerful version of this laptop will help set expectations and establish an understanding of what exactly this unit might be about.

 

already on it, just keep some tabs on the batcave / 15inch owner´s lounge

received my unit yesterday and just managed to intall windows thus far. today ill transfer all my stuff and take care of the windows updates. ill only have serious time to start testing / tweaking this thursday, life / work / sports / household gets in the way all the time *lol*

already opened up a temp tuning section in the batcave OP, planning to do extensive temp testing starting off with the preinstalled i5-4460S to see what kinda tweak would get me the most temp savings (including delidding). afterwards ill swap in the 4790K and do the same tweaks, see what i can get out of it

ive already posted some initial impressions on my machine in the batcave, just read up on the past 2 pages or so. overall first impression is definitely: wow

 

Once I receive mine if nobody has done it yet I'll post a write up from the perspective of someone new to sager and new to laptop fiddling. I think a review by someone who doesn't know/use all the fancy lingo can really help some buyers be persuaded one way or the other

Edit: Apparently I cannot spell this morning.

 

The reseller I'm dealing with now only offers the 4790 and 4790k. For what I've seen, it is only 4 W difference, a few degrees as per reviews I've read. So, I prefer the little extra punch of the K and the possibility of tweaking it in a few years time

If I had the option most probably I'd go with the 4790S too, just in case.

 

That would be definitely most welcome superkyle, looking forward to it!

 

Not sure about the shipping snafu and I wish you luck ZachZombify...

As to temps - THEY SUCK!

@CHRiTTeR - idle at 55, mid-90s under intel stress test within XTU. The thermal throttling on that test never dropped below 4.15GHz though. I am still doing some tweaking to it though.

Vietnam chip - X437B333

The video was in line with your temps. Raised above 70 when something kicked the cpu higher while running in the background.

Furmark 1080 burn-in benchmark - peak 75 (see above); 40 FPS

 

Im not sure where you are located but I went through several different resellers and ended up going with powernotebooks.com. I spoke with a guy named Donald Stratton. He couldn't of been more helpful in helping me with the purchase. Seemed to be an awesome guy very knowledgeable and actually had a personality outside of trying to push a laptop on you haha. If i ever have an issue with anything I think it will be a pleasure to work with him and his team. I have never purchased from them before but I have to say when you call and an English speaking person picks up and is actually very knowledgeable about the products they offer it is nice. That is a huge plus for me and I couldn't be happier with where I purchased. If you are in the US then I highly recommend at least giving them a ring and see if they can help you out.

 

i repeat:
desktop cpu in a laptop form factor sticking to 4.15 Ghz out of the MAXIMUM possible 4.2 ghz on all cores under xtu stress testing, thats 98.8% of maximum turbo boost and stable at mid 90s. u call that sucky temps? *lol* what exactly did u expect? strongest DESKTOP LGA1150 CPU in a laptop providing temps around 60C when stress with xtu?

anyways, what kinda ambient temp? which paste? auto or max fans? back of laptop propped up?

 

To be fair, I was hoping for low 90s... Picky, I know LOL! It's stock TIM too, no upgrade on that yet so I actually have a **** ton of room to go up...

Please don't misunderstand, I am loving it! I am comparing it in my mind to where I am going to take it with my tweaking (delidding, better pastes and pads, voltage tweaking, etc.). Don't take this as an indictment because it is solid performance (slightly less than the reviewer got in that one article).

After work, going to switch from stock to some mx-4 I have laying around (ran out of ICD and haven't had the cash to order CLU, GC-03, and Fujipoly pads yet).

"You gotta admit it's getting better. Getting better all the time."

 

thatta boy! getting a baseline to improve upon via tweaking is exactly what machines like this one need looking forward to your results

 

To answer questions:

Ambient - 20.5 deg.
Stock Paste
Auto fans
Laptop flat on wood table

 

Honestly its not that bad... looking at other high end laptops like this. Even the mobile i7 versions of alienwares and similar caliber laptops which are (over)clocked to 4.0+ are hitting 90c or more on stress tests. I think we need to focus less on stress tests and more at real world results IE mid gaming and using handbreak/video editor

 

i see loooooots of room for improvement there

@Daedalus: while i agree with u, im pretty certain that real-world scenarios wont make the 4790K break a sweat at all. thus its good to do temp testing in unrealistic super-stress scenarios such as intel xtu or prime95 to make sure that "regular" workload really wont reach critical temp regions

 

Are you guys bothering with repasting the Vram? Im considering getting some pads for Vram and IC thermal for GPU and CPU. Is there anything I'm missing that can be repasted? I only ask cause I actually didn't know you could repaste the Vram so that's a new on for me. . As for pasting the Vram does anyone know if the 980m uses 0.5 or 1mm pads?

 

well in total there are four possibilities to take care of the vRAM:

thermal pads (problem up until recently: no high-performance thermal pads available, but thats changed!)
thermal paste (problem: pretty large gap to fill up between vRAM chips and heatsink, thus needs a lot of paste, hindering thermal conductivity)
copper shims (problem: hard material, thus perfect coverage of / connection to vRAM chips is not guaranteed)
copper shims and thermal paste (problem: makes up for the bad contact using only copper shims, but also takes away the advantage of the high copper thermal conductivity)

out of these id recommend sticking to the standard method of using thermal pads i can highly recommend phobya xt pads with a thermal conductivity of 7 W/mK and if u wanna go all-out, get urself some fujipoly ultra extreme pads rated at a whopping 17 W/mK

 

Thanks for the info. I looked them up and depending on the amount I need and thickness I may get the ultra extreme. Any idea of the thickness/size needed to do the job? Am i missing anything that might need to be repasted? Just the CPU GPU and Vram right? I want to make sure I do what I can I plan to play around a lot and I would like to make sure i protect it as much as possible

 

I'm very curious what sort of FPS you get on your 3k screen without any AA. I can only really find people showing the 980m at 3k with AA maxed out. I dont like the blurring AA induces on objects in the distance so I always play with it off.

 

It's interesting. The main pads seem to be 1mm, with a couple spots that had .5mm and a couple places that seemed to be padding and thermal pad being like 2.5mm (eying it. I am going to measure when I order what I need).

Analogy time: ( @jaybee83 )

Ra's Al-Ghul Journal Entry:

Last night, this young, rich man showed up in a village nearby and was arrested after taking out 6 individuals by himself. Bruce Wayne is quite capable and I have great plans for him. Now is the time to recruit him (purchase laptop), and after his training is complete (cooling modifications made), he shall lead the army of the League of Shadows!!!"

 

Please let me know what you figure out. I tried searching around for other repasting the 980m but couldn't find any information on Vram just a bunch of info on the GPU itself. It looks like 100X15 should be enough to do the job but it looks like it only comes in 1mm thickness.

 

i generally just stick to 1 mm pads and stack them up whenever needed. its true that one sometimes needs 0.5 mm pads ideally, but u can still squeeze in 1mm pads in those spots (= more pressure, better thermal conductivity)

generally, u can expect about 50% performance loss on a 3k display when comparing identical hardware and software configs at FHD resolution hope this helps!

very nice! +rep for that

 

Since Im new to repasting the Vram I think its prob best for me to wait for someone to figure out exactly what is needed. That and I need to watch some videos to makes sure I know what I am doing. Is this really even needed? I mean the card is 8GB V ram and will only use maybe 3GB most all of the time so it seems to me that this really isn't needed unless something changes with games.

 

its only needed when u plan to overclock the vRAM if ure not planning to do that u can just stick to the stock thermal pads. also, thermal pads dont really need to be renewed such as thermal pastes. as long as u dont accidentally rip or crack them, u can reuse them indefinitely

 

@DEagleson - You asked if you should get this as an upgrade and get it with the 4790S or Broadwell... I answer that this is an awesome upgrade from that laptop!!! If you want something in the 65W TDP, and don't need to upgrade yet, I'd say wait until they have the 65W Broadwell processors that are OC in Q2 or Q3. It most likely will have the power of the 4790K, but all use of the die shrink went into heat reduction (since they are releasing skylake-k on the higher TDP). Otherwise, dive in and enjoy!!!! The Broadwell Refresh has yet to be seen on ETA to market, but that is a much longer wait (and my next upgrade)! (Thanks jaybee83 for posting Intel timeline in P750ZM Owner's Lounge)