Sager NP8170 (Clevo P170HM) Review by HTWingNut (resident goldfish - blub)

As 'HT' alluded to early on, this system will make many games seem like they're brand new and being played for the first time!

 

Ok, finally got around to (trying) to watch a Blu-Ray movie. I bought the first three Terminator movies from Target for cheap a while back (something like $8 each), and was in the mood to watch. Well installed the included software, PowerDVD 8 and get a "Disk in Drive X: is unsupported" I got this message with a half dozen blu-rays I tried.

The software gives you a special offer to upgrade to PowerDVD 10 Ultra for $45 but I'll be damned if I'm going to have to shell out to watch my Blu-Rays when what is provided should work. In either case I will probably download the Power DVD 10 Ultra trial and see how it goes. Too late now, probably tomorrow or sometime this weekend.

 

Ok, so I stayed up later than I should have but found the culprit. PowerDVD does not like Daemon Tools Lite even installed on the machine. Uninstalled and now it works like a charm. I've been using Daemon Tools for years now to find a replacement for it I guess. I did find Virtual Clone Drive by SlySoft, and BD movies played fine with it installed so I guess I'll live with that for now.

 

That is very weird, Power DVD8 works fine with me. I played 3 movies so far.

Edit: Sorry I don't know how I missed the post under the one I quoted. Glad you found the culprit and fixes the issue. No point in having a BR Drive and not be able to watch movies on it right? lol

 

Why not just use VLC or something?

 

SlySoft Virtual Clone Drive is great. I've been using it for years since way back when Daemon tools wasn't compatible (yet) with Win7 or Vista. I haven't liked the bloat and ads they try to tack on to Daemon tools anyway, and it feels only like a step above malware. I got used to VCD and I've loved it since. It's very non-intrusive and works as I'd expect it to.

 

As far as I know VLC cannot play blu-ray movies from the disc. I have the latest version and its not able to play the movie.

 

You can't play blu-ray's using any kind of freeware. You need to buy the software with the licensed library or codec or whatever to allow you to play blu-ray movies.

 

Wow, that's really lame... I thought VLC could do anything. I guess the codec for Blu-rays is tightly guarded or too complex to decode yet...

Strengthens my resolve in waiting to migrate to Blu-ray.

 

It's been cracked, just not legally. Any freeware that plays BD's would be shut down. In fact I think there were tee shirts with the algorithm or the hash keys for sale on the net. More as a joke than actually something useful.

Edit: I just wanted to add that I've been playing DVD's and BD's from my HTPC for years, and there are some disks that just don't work.

 

Hence, why I really can't be bothered to shell out any money for a BD drive (for now).

 

Well usually with laptops atleast they come with the software to play the movies for free.

 

Right. Considering the cheapest blu-ray software is $50, getting a blu-ray player with a machine is a decent deal.

It has been cracked, by SlySoft but the AnyDVD HD costs $60, lol. You have to shell out decent bucks for any package you get. At least with AnyDVD you can play blu-rays with pretty much any media player you desire.

 

Yeh, I know. But, I just don't like only being able to use "approved" software to play BD. It's almost like buying music from itunes...

 

Yeah I know what you mean. Even though power dvd is there I really wish I could just use VLC.

 

Well the only way to be able to play Blu-ray movies on any player is to get the SlySoft AnyDVD HD, and that costs $79 Euro (whatever that is in USD I dunno offhand) for two years. Otherwise you buy a player and have to live with it.

 

How is the performance on the 470M? I cant afford the 485 but was thinking about doing the 2720 and the 470M. I need this to game for a good long time.

 

Hold out for the AMD HD 6970m then. It's performance will be closer to the 485m and probably similarly priced to the 470m. Expect maybe a month or so before it is available. Maybe sooner.

The nice thing about these machines is that the GPU is easily replaceable so even in a year or two if you want something more powerful, there should be something available.

 

Just so you guys know I'm downloading Shogun 2 and Dragon Age 2 demos. Will report back on performance.

 

My thing is it is doubtful I can spring the money down the road to do the upgrades so for me I need to get the most that I can for under 1900. I posted in the other thread what I was going to get. 2630, 6GB RAM and the 485..I would hope it would allow me to play for a couple years.

 

Excellent setup. Should suit you fine for two years. I'm hoping to get two out of mine before I have to update cpu/gpu to get another year or so out of it.

 

Based on the setup I have now I can adapt and hopefully keep it going a while over the 2 years. I still play on an xps410 w/ a dc 2.4 and a 9800GT video card.I bought this thing back in 2006

 

Yeah, I wouldn't worry too much, Nibert. That machine with the 485 with last you a good bit.

 

Still better than me. I've got a Dell XPS m1530 laptop with a 2.4ghz Core 2 Duo, 4Gb RAM, and an 8600m GT graphics card. It struggles on most modern games and I got it back in '07 for college.

My desktops have always been cutting edge, within the last year or two of tech, but laptops are rare because of the price to performance ratio being so poor most of the time. It was just that time for an upgrade now.

HTwingnut: any regrets getting the 485m instead of waiting for the 6970? I feel like I'll still be staying with it after the 6970 is released because of my 3D vision setup and love for Nvidia.

 

No, no regrets. I bought the 485m knowing full well that the 6970m was going to be out shortly and come close to 485m performance but cheaper. But my last laptop has some issues and just didn't want to wait two, three, four or more months. If my laptop didn't ship due to the SATA controller issue, then I would have reconsidered. Sounds like it may be available within the month. That would be a different story. But I'm used to tech changing so quickly. I already was waiting a good six months for SB laptops and had the cash ready, so was ready to buy. Granted I didn't plan on buying the 485m initially but after weighing the performance to cost, I went with it. Tired of always compromising.

Now if the 6970m ended up outperforming the 485m by a good margin and cost $200-$250 cheaper then I'd be a little irritated. But it's nearly on par with the 485m and still not available and pricing still hasn't been confirmed.

 

That's a fair point. You spend more for the 485, but it's still a faster GPU in the end (even if only a bit). That and CUDA/physX/3D vision make me pretty much willing to pay that much.

Everyone is rumoring that the 6970m will be $200 cheaper, but no one knows for sure. They could price it only $100 cheaper if they wanted to, because the only competition is the 485m. Who knows? Time will tell there.

 

I'd say that a 485m in the hand is worth more than the "coming release" of a 6970m. I mean, ask yourself: Even if the price difference is $200, would you pay that gladly to have your machine sometime in March, instead of sometime in April? Over time, $200 loses some meaning.

Especially in cases like htwingnut's. Was it worth a *possible* $200 difference to have his machine a coupe weeks ago, rather than months out? I'd say so.

 

Looking forward to hearing how Shogun 2 played on your rig.

 

Well, I just did a battery test of sorts. I was actually doing a lot of wireless activity (downloading torrents, transfers to/from my home server), surfing NBR, screen at 3/7 clicks on the OSD, some disk activity, and got close to two hours before it yelled at me to shut down (5% battery). I'm sure with light web surfing activity and dim the display a bit more you could easily exceed two hours.

 

I just spent a little bit of time with Shogun 2 and Dragon Age 2.

Shogun 2 at max settings, 2xAA, 16xAniso, 1080p, when above the action would run 50-60fps. But with a lot of action and up close, it would drag into the low 20's, but overall very playable. I only did the first mission (no tutorial) and just had my units slaughtered but it game me a good idea nevertheless.

Dragon Age 2 at max detail (only can do high, not very high) 1080p 2xAA, 16xAniso with DirectX 9 frames were in the upper 90's to over 100. DirectX 11 at same settings ran in the 60's to 90's fps. If I ran "very high" detail though the thing crawled. I also noticed some textures were missing or odd, so not sure if something is wrong with the demo or if "very high" was just too much. Not sure what "very high" adds, but the game looks spectacular at high as it is not to mention very fluid.

 

hello htwingnut

Nice review....
You mention about this, and i didn't understand... did you had any problems with your Sager NP8170??

How long are you , using it? Do you have the new Intel sandy bridge processor along with the problem known? or you have the good version?

thank you!

"No cooling pad, don't like them, nor have a spot for it really. My machine sits on my kitchen counter 90% of the time (I have a big kitchen).

I did request for ICD refund but Sager denied it but XoticPC wanted to make good with it, but since my machine has to go for repair anyhow, I'm going to just let them put ICD on it the second time around and see how it fares."

 

I have the Sandy Bridge machine with the known SATA flaw. I've watched a couple Blu-ray movies and actually did some transfers over my eSATA so far with zero issues. Both of these ports are supposed to be affected by the flaw. No other issues with the laptop either. I am limiting my use of the eSATA port though until it's fixed.

I paid for the IC Diamond thermal paste and the resultant CPU temperatures were poor. When I repasted it myself, they were good.

 

thank you for the info

 

Regarding your review, I was wondering if you has seen the review that was posted on the Sager 8150?
He says it has a fair amount of keyboard flex, the track pad is way too grippy and the entire thing is a huge dust magnet and the screen is pretty darn glossy.
The 8170 is different but I like the fact that he covered his gripes in his review.

So what gripes do you have with your 8170? What would you like to see that's different. I have a week to decide between the 2 and the 8150 being a dust magnet kinda bites and a grppy track pad bites as well.
I have read a lot about the postive comments, they are decent machines but I really want to know about the complaints owners have, makes it easier for me to decide.
Thanks

 

To be fair, Meraki1990 had mentioned that the gloss on the 8150 isn't really that bad, unless you always have a light directed right at the screen, which is quite unlikely.

 

Well, the 8150 has the rubberized finish, and so does the trackpad. The 8170 does not have the rubberized finish, it's metal and plastic, and the trackpad on the 8170 is brushed metal. I don't use the trackpad much though because I use a mouse usually, but the surface is slick and easy to track your finger over it.

I was pleasantly surprised by the screen to be honest. It's not that glossy for a glossy screen, and is quite bright and uniform. However, the vertical viewing angles suck. I'd gladly pay $150 for a screen with a much better vertical viewing angle.

Also, as noted in my review, the keyboard is nice, has little to no flex, but it bothers me that they didn't take advantage of the wider form of the laptop for better spacing of the number pad and special keys.

Those are really my two biggest gripes. The keyboard isn't that bad though, just a desire, not something that irritates me.

 

Thanks, it seems the 8150 has more trouble due to the rubberized finish than anything else. I'm not worried about the screen because I'm going to get an external display monitor for home anyway.
I dislike gloss screens and I don't see many external ones with gloss.
I have 10 days to decide as i'm ordering when the start shipping the fixed units.
My Dell keyboard is great but that's about the only good thing about it.

 

Why would you wait to order at this point when they are starting to ship next week? That doesn't gain you any time value of money realistically unless you have a fat tip that you know will make you a good return next week...

Ordering now you get it in 2 weeks, ordering next week you might not get it for 3-4 if you have to wait for another shipment...

 

Because I want to make certain that the problems are fixed. I do not want to send the unit back to be repaired. I can't afford the downtime. In short I gain quite a bit by waiting. I have learned that waiting til it's right works out pretty well most of the time.
Maybe if I was in HS or college, it would be different.
I can wait a few weeks versus getting it early and then having to send it back for repair.

 

True enough to an extent I just think that unless your willing to wait a month or two for a large enough population to have theirs it's not goin to help.

As for worrying, I guess I'm comfortable with my xps for work and school...

It's actually better for work with the Wuxga screen.

 

Yeah I think after waiting 7 years I can wait a month or two more for a unit that works as it should.
I also have a Dell with a matte screen but no way do I want to pay big $$$ for a matte screen. The random freezes people are experiencing is a concern as well. For most travelling I have no need for more than a long battery life netbook just to snag email and the like and for longer trips lasting weeks I am willing to lug a bigger laptop, since it will be used mostly in hotels or onsite.

Getting a big laptop and all my video gear onto the plane as a carryon is a potential problem tho due to weight.

Do you know if the 8170 has had any random freezing issues or is that just the 8150?

Thanks

 

The 8170 does experience the random freezes as well, just like the 8130/50.

 

Thanks

 

According to the other forums though, it seems not just limited to Clevo...

 

i also think that the freeze issues have been rectified by many users with a driver update.

 

Well I'm not going to order one until the problem is fully rectified. I did my time in years past beta testing, no more for me thanks.

 

Holy Cow, lol. I did a Google image search for " NP8170" and my images are the first to show up. Wow.

 

I think that means you are now well on your way to meme-ville

 

Two noob questions (yay):

1) On CPUz- what RAM slot #'s would be considered the ones that are located underneath the keyboard.

2) Where exactly are the other RAM slots located, I see two hard drive enclosures and one large CPU/GPU enclosure.

 

Under the keyboard are RAM slots 1, and the bottom plate has slots 0. It is apparently not recommended to use the under keyboard ones first, Mythlogic told me that and I told him he could put the 2 dimms hes installing for me under the bottom plate, I can do the keyboard myself if I upgrade.