*** Official Sager NP8170/Clevo P170HM Owners Lounge ***

That thing is going to be huge...an 18 inch laptop versus a mere 17 inch NP8170.

 

I was going to go with the Toshiba before I ordered the Sager too. Everyone I know that owns a Toshiba tells me they will never buy another machine because of their dependability and quality. There are some disadvantages though that made me go with Sager.

The large notebook hard drives (1 TB and probably bigger in the future) are 12mm high and some people reported having problems fitting them in these Toshiba laptops. I don't think Sager will have a problem with them.

Toshiba is max 8 GB of RAM. I don't think I will need more than 8 now, but I feel better knowing that I can add more if i want.

Only available with the GTX 460M.

There were many reviews on Newegg for the SB Qosmio's before they were recalled that stated resolution was only 1680x945 even though Toshiba advertised them as being full 1920x1080. Newegg changed the specs on their website, Toshiba still claims 1080p.

There are more, but this is what sold me on the Sager.

 

Wasn't the 485m supossed to be more powerfull than the ati 6970? Not that i'm complaining, since the ati card is cheaper.

Also, I expected a lot more fps in crisis. Since the 485m is more powerfull than a sli config with 460m cards (or by the very least just as powerfull,and you have no microstutter).

 

All of the talk about the 6970M being slower is greatly exaggerated. It's a downclocked 6850, and will perform like one.

Not sure what you expected, as this is Very High Crysis (not Warhead). Also, like I noted, those numbers are with 4xAA which is likely chopping off 8-10fps or more.

 

Yeah, I thought I was the only one who saw that the FPS in that graph were greater for the 6970M...I don't know the validity, but if that is true, then I'm glad I will be getting THAT one.

I trust Kevin_Jack on the matter. I really want to know when I can upgrade to it, I'm getting tired of this 470M

 

Some games may run better with AMD. There are quite a few games that don't run as well with AMD cards compared to Nvidia. Just depends how its optimized. Both are fantastic cards though.

 

Crysis is always a mixed bag, especially with DirectX 10. The performance is horrible compared with DirectX 9. To be honest I see little difference between DirectX 9 and 10 in Crysis unless you sit there an try to pick out the differences. But 6970 is definitely a good card and would opt for that if I were buying one of these laptops now over the GTX 485m, primarily because of cheaper cost with comparable performance.

 

I just found a new review of the AMD6970m "clevo p150hm" looks like the 6970 has a TPD of 100w.
In general, there is little difference in performance between the 6970m and GTX485M.
what I find strange in this review is that the 6970m GPU runs hotter than the 485m, but the overall notebook temp is lower in the 6970m combo

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Eurocom-Racer-Gaming-Notebook-2720QM-HD-6970M.49198.0.html


just bought a Clevo p170hm with GTX485m, I hope I do not regret my 485m purchase ............should I cancel my order?

 

Depends on what how much you want to do something else, with the ~$300 difference.

Also, we don't even have a 6970M release date yet, which is infuriating.

I'm definitely not going to wait past the month of April.

 

I would sure hope Sager / Clevo would be offering 6970m before end of April considering Dell already offers it in the M17x R3. If you still have the chance to change your order from 485m to 6970m IMHO I would do it. But like Kevin Jack2.0 states, there's no definite release date yet, so you'd be in limbo indefinitely until it becomes available. So if you really need / want the laptop now, stick with the 485m, otherwise wait it out.

 

A new dilemma has arisen for me... I have my 8170 on order, paid for and everything. It will likely ship next week. It has the GTX485. $2000.

Well, I just discovered I could get the AW M17X R3 with the 6970M and otherwise similar specs to my 8170 for $1700 or even less through AAFES.

This means:
Similar performance
Backlit keyboard, better keyboard layout
Better display (from what I have gathered so far)
HDMI in
Much better battery life (if the 6970 offers switchable graphics)

All for $300 less! (But wouldn't the 8170 with the 6970m possibly also be $300 less?)

I can cope with the goofy appearance of AW, although I prefer the look of the 8170. Would anyone care to help advise me? Am I missing some critical details? The added features and lower price are very appealing...

 

In all honesty, the only reason the price is cheaper is because of the 6970M. If it weren't for the price of the 485M, the cost of both laptops would be a lot closer.

As for switchable graphics, it more of a change graphics manually (not seamless as on a macbook pro or Optimus), but it does offer a fantastic battery life. If you can put up with the looks of the AW, then go for it.

Also, I've the 6970M for the Sager/Clevo won't be out for another couple of weeks. Keep that in mind with your decision.

 

Having switchable graphics would be so nice... but I digress. Yeah, if you can configure same price and like the looks of the AW, go for it. I configured one same as what I have and it ended up same price with 6970m, no savings, so I think I got the better deal.

 

The biggest problem with Dell/Alienware is dealing with Customer service and tech support. If you need help with anything remotely related to software they will tell you to bugger off. That is why I am looking at Sager. My wife thinks 100% we should get Alienware because of the warranty. The problem is getting them to actually honor that warranty. I've not spoken to any of the Sager reseller techs but I have spoken to Dell techs over the many years I've owned them. I can build a really nice Alienware right now for a very good price. Plus I do not have to mail my PC anywhere if it breaks down (supposedly) but Reseller ratings doesn't have much good to say about Dell or Alienware and almost all of the complaints are dealing with tech support or customer service.

So my wife wants Alienware and I am leaning towards Sager and have to order Monday. The $60 for the dead pixel warranty on a installed $190 screen is throwing me off. I think if they hand install it it should have no dead pixels.

Also Alienware will ship in a few weeks, Sager is at least a month.
Glossy versus Matte screen issues as well. I have always used matte screens.

 

Your wife knows enough about gaming laptops to have an opinion? She sounds awesome!

But don't they both have the same warranty? 1 year parts, yes? To me the 3 years service is negligible.

I have had to send a Dell in for warranty work before and it was rather painless and pretty fast.

As for my dilemma, I am considering just buying both laptops and pitting them against each other in relentless competition. The loser will either be returned, or sold on Craigslist. Is that insane? Are Sager/Clevo warranties transferable?

How inexpensively can I send a 10 lb laptop in for returns?

 

Also a plus with the Sager vs AW is that your Sager is very unlikely to get stolen if you're a very mobile person since it fits in with everyone.

My G53 was stolen last year because it was a "head turner" that attracted alot of attention. The GX660R/M17X-R3 would attract much more "head turning" because of the colours/flashy lights.

Flashy lights/colours are only good if you keep it in your home or else it becomes a painted target imo.

 

Completely agree with the above. I showed my friends my laptop and they had no idea the power that it had. Pretty sure they thought it was some bargin bin machine, but that just makes it better for me. Hell, the only thing on the machine is "Sager" and nothing else. Who would steal that?

 

That is a very valid point Voodooi! Sager just looks like a slick, elegant laptop that doesn't seem like it has much power under the hood. People in a coffee shop might just think you're feverishly attacking a huge spreadsheet when you're really blasting away online. lol

 

I think the Sager design is sexier than any other gaming laptop out there. Not into the Sager logo itself so much but i kept looking for a gaming laptop that was just a solid black and simplistic, i hate fins, lights, and firy hot colors.

Just give me something slick and black to match my other electronics.

 

Yeah, my wife is pretty awesome. She is an IT major and starting college again for a better paying job. She's into RallyX, AutoX, plus she's into all kinds of stuff that would geek most women out. Tonight she was watching DBZ Kai. She was born in another country so she was brought up differently. She's not into gaming tho. but neither am I so it's cool.

Dell and Alienware have such awful and painful reviews that I just couldn't take the chance even tho I've only owned Dells since like 1995!

I would not buy 2 PC's as returning them might not work out and you'd be stuck with 2 laptops.

 

Not sure if you knew this or not, but you can request the Sagers with no logos.

Well, I really can make my peace with the keyboard not being backlit, but I really would love to know how the displays between the AW and the 8170 compare... Does anyone have a good answer on that one?

 

Hmmm that's interesting, i wonder if xotic pc does that...well i could prolly still request it but i think i'll just got with the logo so people know what brand it is.

 

I think I will keep the logo as well. I haven't ran in to anyone that has ever even heard of sager.

 

I don't think you can request it without logo, but I know actual Clevo machines don't come with any logo at all.

 

You can definitely request a barebones machine, sans logo, from certain sellers.

Some charge a few dollars to get it done.

 

I still don't get whay you would want to remove the Sager logo? If you are worried about stealing just put a Best Buy sticker over the Logo.

 

Ahh well i'll proudly display their logo as long as this laptop is as awesome as i think it will be.

 

Most snatchers will grab anything, they really don't care about brands. If it's a well known brand when they go to pawn it, then they hit the lottery.
When I lived overseas they'd work in teams. My wife lost everything to a snatcher, it was all in one bag.

 

I'm not worried about mine being stolen, since it's mostly gonna be a desktop replacement in my apartment from room to room. Won't take it out too much.

 

I'm not in school, so theft doesn't worry me. I just don't like how the logos look on these sleek machines.

A barebone, tagless Clevo is one sexy piece of kit.

 

hey guys,sorry to digress but im planning to hook a 22 inch monitor to the 8170 most of the time, does it in anyway affect the performance of the gfx card whilst gaming?

 

You can definitely request for no logo if that is how you want it. I requested that for my 8150 after I saw Meraki1990's pics for it. Like Kevin Jack2.0, I prefer the slick and solid look without a logo.

Wasn't charged extra through LPC. I believe Xotic also mentioned around here that they can accommodate the same request.

Edit: You do not have to order a barebones.

 

Resolution is all that matters, so no, unless it's running a higher resolution than 1080p.

1200p will be a minimal hit, 2560x1600 will be significant.

 

No, the performance will be the same.

EDIT: Darn, beaten to it

 

i think this dell monitor only supports resolutions up to 1680x1050 lol. does this mean the laptop lcd is actually better? since its native is at 1920x1080.
1680x1050 is up to 720p yes? sorry if this sounds newbish =p

 

1680x1050 is much larger than 1280x720. You just do the math, to figure it out.

The GTX 485M will destroy 1680x1050, and I mean that in the best way possible. Max settings on everything, and you can afford to add a good amount of anti-aliasing.

 

Yeah, it's astonishing to know that I would be within 10% or less (with OC'ing) of the 485M for $300 less.

 

How well do you guys think this laptop will run Shogun 2 total war? My NP8170 has the 2620qm with the 470 GTX

I double-checked the recommended specs and it seems like this laptop should do fine.

 

Run at lower detail a bit. I ran the demo, and at highest detail @ 1080p in hairy battles the FPS would dip to low 20's even teens at times. Otherwise it would run in the 30's or more.

 

I just want to address the theft issue brought up in previous posts. Thieves go after easy targets. They don't know if they are stealing a basic Dell or a high end AW or Sager. It doesn't matter as long as its easy. Once they steal it, if it turns out to be a cheapy piece of crap then they simply throw in the nearest dumpster. To them it's nothing ventured, nothing gained. If its a high end laptop, well then they hit the jackpot.

I'm retired now, but I was the Director of Loss Prevention for a Fortune 100 company. We used a variety on methods to protect against theft, and if a theft occurred, a variety of methods to deny use and to detect where the laptop was (a kind of LoJack for laptops).

My most embarrassing moment was when my wife had her laptop stolen from the back seat of her car. After I had drummed into her thick head to always put it in the trunk! Arrrrgh!

 

3 Year Labor* 1 Year Parts Warranty Lifetime -24/7 DOMESTIC Based- Toll Free Telephone Tech Support (Labor Warranty through Xotic PC)
Includes FREE Shipping Both Ways for Warranty Repairs

Thats the base warranty from xotic, other places are going to be the same.

You can always upgrade the warranty. Dell support sucks. I can't stand dell whatsoever.

There are a few good things about the AW lappys. It does have a backlit keyboard. Although for me that doesn't matter much. I think the sagers are built better than AW though.

I got the 90% gamut screen on mine, but ill let you know how the glossy one is once i get mine. My current screen is glossy, but it doesn't bother me at all. Theres not like a huge glare or anything. You may see some of those screens at the store though and some of those are pretty bad. Once i get my laptop, hopefully by friday or early next week, i can let you know if the glossy screen is easy to deal with.

The pixel thing is kind of a turn off, i agree. Here is there warranty on dead pixels. What Is the Dead Pixel Policy For Alienware M17 Laptops? - KB Article - 352383 | Dell which seems similar to sagers.

But then again, you can always return the laptop within 30 days.

 

Good to know- I was thinking that the demo was simply a little less optimized than the final product. I guess we will see soon enough!

 

Being a console gamer, playing games at 720p on my 32 inch sony bravia, as long as the games are native 720p with 2-4x AA i think they look smooth and jaggy free enough. It's when console games start using sub HD native resolutions with no AA is when i start to notice the flaws (Such as Alan Wake, CoD, and Splinter Cell Conviction)

I can't wait to be running PC games at high framerates on that tv at native 720p and possibly some AA. Because i would definitely prefer high fps over higher resolutions.

 

Woohoo! My Malibal-branded P170HM is on the way and should be here tomorrow! Just had to share. I placed my order on Jan 22.

 

Definitely share all you can about it once you get it! I'm dying here!

 

Can you post your specs?

 

Here's what I picked up guys:

PRODUCT Satori P170HM
Display: 17.3" 1920 x 1080 FHD LED Backlit
GlassView Display
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-2720QM, 6MB L3 Cache, $160.00
2.2-3.3GHz
Memory: (8GB) 8192MB, PC3-10660/1333MHz DDR3 - 2 $90.00
SO-DIMM
Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 485M 2GB GDDR5 $495.00
Hard Drive: 320GB 7200rpm 2.5" SATA-300
Hard Drive 2: 750GB 7200rpm 2.5" SATA 300 $125.00
Optical Bay: 8X Multi DVD+/-R/RW RAM Dual-Layer
Drive
Operating System: Microsoft® Windows® 7 $150.00
Professional; 64-bit
Wireless: Internal 802.11B/G/N LAN and Bluetooth
Card
Cooling: IC Diamond 7 Thermal Compound, CPU & GPU $40.00
Warranty: 3 Year Ltd. Labor and 1 Year Parts
Warranty with 24/7 USA-Based Support
PRICE $1,364.00 $1,364.00
PRODUCT SUBTOTAL: $2,424.00

 

Thanks for the updates from those that are getting to the front of the queue -- it's nice to see the order dates moving forward.

 

Nice! I hope you enjoy your new machine!

 

I wonder when they will start shipping orders made on 28th Jan. Can't hardly wait ;(