P-16831fx gateway 8800m gts

Hi all,

As many others, I joined NBR just to watch this thread. After reading the entire thread I picked up one of these last night. Created RD, and clean installed vista. This is my 2nd vista experience. My last was last year when I bought my Alienware M5750, Used vista for about two weeks, then put XP back on it. Looking forward to the completion of bwhxeon's XP guide and for all the bug to get worked out. Not a "vista sucks" kinda guy, but I prefer what I know and trust and at this point in time I don't really have time to learn all the new tweaks for a new OS and find new apps etc. Gotta give everyone who posted up the great information in this thread. And to all you who keep posting the same questions over and over and over, please take and hour to read the thread, which is what it took me. As a matter of fact, if the same questions hadn't been beaten to death it probably would have only taken my 40mins...

Anyway nice work bwhxeon and everyone else. And Gateway as well!

 

Well this laptop plays COD4 beatifully, yet TF2 was not that great at all, well at least not what i was expecting. In a 32 man server i was getting 15fps on the bridge. Not maxed setting and no AA or AF. What gives? Slow CPU or some other error? I wouldn't think that CPU would be so slow to slow it down to 15fps.

 

I didnt seem to have any trouble with TF2, havent extensively tested it, but what I played was smooth, aside from a bit of internet lag

 

Very nice. Looks like it is under control panel -> administrative tools -> Reliability and Performance Monitor then click on Disk

 

I really don't like being the one bringing the bad news since I wanted to get one also but was too late. But...

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=7&id=1195599780039#productdetail

There's the link to the laptop everybody is talking about. Unfortunately the price went up to 1699. =\

Edit: Gateway's website still lists 1349.99, so I'm guessing Best Buy is being greedy and jacking the price up for their own profits. I'll have to go visit the store or give them a call to confirm the price raise.

 

Would make sense for Best Buy to jack the price. They have something that they can't keep in stock.. So, sufficient demand. Of course they'd be greedy and milk it for all it's worth! It's certainly unfortunate if that's the effective new price though.

edit: even if it is listed cheaper on Gateway's site, isn't this a "Best Buy ONLY" system? I suppose when you think about it, if that is true, those people who paid $1250 for the system are extremely lucky.

Think about it, how often do you buy a piece of technology that appreciates in value?!

 

Well the laptop was on sale this week, maybe when they reset the price back to regular they goofed up

 

Just a heads up for all you XP installers.

You can bypass the need to slipstream or pressing "6" during install by going to you bios and changing the SATA setting to "compatible". This will allow the XP installer to recognize your HD. Then, when you get XP installed you can install the proper SATA drivers provided online and then change your SATA setting in the bios back...if you really want to.

Hope this helps.

and thanks to bwhxeon for his hard work in getting XP drivers.

 

Well, let us hope they did goof up and set the price incorrectly. At 1699 it's priced higher than the p171x fx that some people managed to get for 1599 after they talked to a rep on the phone.

Cross your fingers and hope that the price drops!

 

Wow, I was going to wait for my tax return to buy this, but something told me I should bite the bullet and put this sucker on the ol' BB Credit Card.

Bought it just a couple hours ago @$1249.99. Talk about lucking out!



The Gateway website lists this laptop at $1349.00, so hopefully Best Buy will bring the price back down. At $1699.00, it's better to just wait for the P-171S FX, which comes out March 7.

/pat myself on the back for smart shopping!

 

Just a few hours ago eh? Talk about the laptop being made just for you!

 

Here's a Laugh!

<quote>
"Overall you cant do any better for this price point. It is impossible to find the same feature set for this price point. Gateway could easily charge another 300.00 for this machine and people would be more then happy to buy it. There is alot of good press on this laptop and it won some decent allocades at the CES show so get it fast before its to late and its either out of stock or Gateway came to it senses and realised that it could make 300.00 more per unit."
</quote>

That was taken from the Best Buy website, customer review by "binro" on 1/30/2008.

It looks like Best Buy took this a little seriously about a $300 price jump



Link Again: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=7&id=1195599780039#productdetail

 

Bah! That's like one of those people who'd watch a movie, and as he/she walks out next to the waiting line for the next showing, start spouting all the spoilers.

 

Is there any where to purchase one of these laptops at "RETAIL" (1349.00 or less) price. screw best buy!

 

Yeah, I don't get it. If retail is $1349 why did they bump the price $350? I thought the $1349 price was marginal because of the other specs.

If an 8800 GTX comes out at that price with a faster CPU and matte screen, then I'd probably bite. edit: looks like that T-721s fx will fit the bill! Wonder what Best Buy will do once that is released considering the 721s will have the 2GHz CPU over the 1.6GHz.

Wonder if Dell is going to follow suit with a similar build?

 

Wow what a scam at bb, they bumped the price up 350 bucks!..in canada its still at its normal price at 1350.

 

Like many of you, I am also dumbfounded at this insane price range. I mean, this laptop was a really great deal for the 1350, but not at the 1699. At this price, there are better laptops; or if nothing else, the saving for a processor upgrade are gone. Yeah, i hope BB fixes the price ASAP..

EDIT: Darn, I also checked the BestBuy for Business site, and they too have it at the inflated 1699.. may not be a price mistake at all..

 

Man! Talk about being too savy in the supply/demand curve and realizing value in product. I feel bad now for being a bit like Nostrodomus in predicting the price jump

 

Ok, that's it..
Everybody... GET HIM!!!!!!!


(kidding!)
It is funny though, I wonder if the price change was going to happen all along after the big sale week or if by some crazy chance the marketing people @ Gateway / Best Buy were bored and decided to read reviews. Either way, it doesn't look like a typo, it looks like a genuine price increase. It does certainly make the laptop less of a "deal". It's no less of a good system, but now that shoddy processor really stands out at that price point.

 

I'm willing to be 1350 and 1250 were into prices to get units in the hands and build the buzz among enthusiasts (and looking around here it sure worked) and now the regular price of $1700 is pretty much here to stay.

Either way, I'm glad I got it for $1250 + a game.

 

Yeah I think the 1699.00 price point is too high given the P171FX direct from Gateway. I would think a price of 1499.00 is more realistic if they feel the need to sell higher than the original 1349.00.

The benefits of purchasing through BB to me at least are instant gratification (no waiting for the system to be built) and the ability to purchase BB's 3 year warranty which I did. The ability to deal with a local store is so much easier than dealing with the OEM in my mind.

Either way, I hope they bring the price back down a bit. This model at it's original price was/is key to getting the Gateway name back in to the mainstream and gaming markets. Even at 1699.00 is brings a lot of value, time will tell I guess.

 

Anyway to price match to the original sale price of $1250?

 

Yeah this is ridiculous; Gateway's MSRP is still 1350...

 

Hey, just an FYI to everyone if you are still considering this laptop. Get it from gateway directly, call the sales rep or click on the talk to gateway sales rep through their website. They can usually drop the price listed 15-20% Most I heard though was 15%. So if BB wants to do this take your money else where and get a discount from Gateway. I'm not sponsering/supporting anybody sales practice but just want to get the info out. Hopefully this can help some people out, I was lucky enough to get at the 1249 price at BB. I would never have gotten this laptop if it was priced any higher. The Gateway direct laptop has a better proc, slot loaded dvd drive, and finger print reader. The higher end model has the same with a higher res screen. One last thing make sure you realize they say they won't ship until March 7 at this point that may change to be sooner/later. Hope this helps.

 

Yes, I realize that benchmarks can be deceiving and that real-world results must be considered as well. But benchmarks do have a place and can contribute to the evaluation of any computer.

I'm not making my decision only based on the 3dMark scores of both laptops. My interest was in getting an idea of the relative performance of both the x205-SLi1 and the P-16831FXI when they have both been upgraded to a T9300 processor. Information in that area is just starting to appear and comparing 3dmark scores does tell part of the story. At least until more reports come in.

At any rate, I'm pretty sure I'm keeping the Gateway. Since my last post, I've finally had a chance to spend some time with it (not much, but some) and I can already tell that even in it's stock form, it runs like a champ. Can't wait to plug that T9300 in! The speakers are awful compared to the Toshiba, but I will have to just live with it (or use headphones)...can't have it all.

 

15% you sure? If so I might do that. BTW I talked to the sales guys at gateway and they said you cant get the P-6831FX directly from them, only though best buy.

 

IMO the only reason to buy this laptop now at BB is if you absolutely need instant gratification. The reason I say this is I just purchased the P-171X direct through a rep at Gateway on Friday and dickered him down from $1,999.99 to $1,699.99 plus free shipping. Keep in mind the 171X has a better CPU, better screen resolution, fingerprint reader, etc. The only caveat is they don't ship till March. I don't know what BB is thinking increasing the price that much when everyone can get the better version for that price if they simply call Gateway - Dicker and wait. My rep told me he'de do the same for others...PM me if you want his information. Good luck...

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=213321

Hope this helps.

 

I checked with Gateway and you can ad an additional two years to the warranty for $129.99. Although he did say replacing any component (including RAM, HDD) voided the warranty?!?!

 

I would probably keep the Gateway, being totally honest, if I was you.... I do ABSOLUTELY LOVE the X205's speakers, truly amazing, and use it for music and movies (also love the HDDVD drive) a lot of the time, way more than I normally would with any normal laptop speakers, but, for $1250 that Gateway is a steal if you got it for that, and from what I hear it's pretty easy to upgrade the CPU, which I will say, is NOT easy to do in the X205's.... totally doable, don't get me wrong, but sure not easy.

I'm totally happy with my SLi1's performance with the T9300, and I'd dare say it'll be dang near identical to the Gateway in most games (just about everything I run, which is about everything ha, does support SLI well) when you upgrade the Gateway's CPU as well.... I'd be a bit tempted myself to swap over if it had the 8800GTX, but it seems the GTS and a SLI 8700/8600 with a bit of overclock are running about the same. I'm getting FPS in the 40's at 1440x900 at medium in Crysis, which to me is very acceptable, and did i mention the speakers that shout out every bullet? ha

Enjoy your machine, which ever you keep, but like I said, for my money if i was in your shoes I'd keep the Gateway, but I love my SLi1 as well, so can't go wrong.

As a side note, did play with the Gateway in Best Buy a bit, nice machine it felt like, good to see it had a eSATA port, wished it had more USB ports, was dissapointed with the keyboard, but overall would definately probably buy one if I didn't already have a T9300 equipped SLi1

 

may i ask u why ur disappointed with the keyboard?? thanks..

 

3gb and 250gb... wheres the need to upgrade?

Well the CPU maybe... but who would want to swap out that amazing 1.66ghz C2D ...

I just got back from BB... I bought a Hitachi 5K250 (havent heard a peep, installing vista wayyy faster right now)

And of course... all salesmen denied that the price was $1300's yesterday or so... even though the guy had the flippin price tag right there in the effing bin!!!

And in addition to that he said that that price would be amazing and impossible... and he kept on rambling how I could play Crysis on very high since it can do DX10...
(any DX10 mobile card out there want to prove him right )
the guy...grrr I would of killed him...

 

I got my p-6831fx friday from BB(lucky me,now it's 1699?), it's a great laptop.
I get around 4.5 vista score w/ 7011 to 6958 3DMark06 score out of the box.

My only concern is my dvd-rom player, it makes a loud noise and some vibrations when it 1st try to attempt reading, sound gets lower as it progress. I know it's a normal for a dvd(cd)-rom to make a noise but it seems much louder then my older HP laptop . COuld it be a location of the dvd-rom ? or is it just me ? . Is there anyway I could make sure it's not damaged ?.

PS: Could we change dvd-rom on p-6831fx ourself ? .

Thanks. plz excuse my grammar.

 

You might be able to change the DVD player yourself. A person stated somewhere in this therad or in one of the other threads about this machine that it is being held in by only one screw.

As for the noise, I get the regular sounds from a DVD player. You might want to take it back for a new one. Be happy with your purchase and take advantage of buying from a retail chain. Return and get a new one immediatly if not 100% satisfied.

 

Mine is in transit now.
I saw the ad in the sale paper, and thought it was a typo. Then i looked online, and still thought it was a typo. So I looked at reviews, and found this place, and did a ton of reading and researching.

Only to get to Best Buy and be told they were out, and would not get any more in. And, of course, i was shown other options that cost more, and all that jazz. So I waited until the GeekSquad guy went back to his spot, and a blueshirt asked if he could help. I asked him to go find my laptop. Three minutes later, he had it ordered, to be shipped to my house all nice and neat. This was friday. Ordered it shipped because no BB within 250 miles had any available. Now, I get to wait until possibly friday for my new laptop... but I did get the 1250 price tag.

Some folks watch a clock... I'm camping my calender.

Anyway, Thanks to everybody here who gave so much good info. I'm not a genius with computer stuff, but what I don't know, you guys helped a lot on. And I imagine I'll be thanking you guys again when it comes time to tweak it and squeeze the power out of my new baby.

 

Does anybody know a good laptop bag for this? Also does anybody have the 9-cell battery, if so does it stick out of the laptop?

 

Yes it sticks out, but in power saver mode at 89% it lasts around 3 hours.
Give or take a few.

Which isnt bad at all IMO.

 

I got a Targus clamshell platinum 17" bag for $39(sale at BB).

 

Ok well this may good news heres a pic of the motherboard off the gateway website.

http://support.gateway.com/s/Mobile/2008/GodzillaFX/4006258R/4006258Rmv.shtml
I may be wrong but see the "sqaure thing" with 4 screws around it on right top hand corner?

I think thats where the graphics card goes.

If so its not soldered to the board from what I can see.

Could be completely wrong though, but this may interest a few.

 

i'm a bit late - was there a post about the XP drivers list?

 

Thanks I'll have to see if I really want it. Now atleast I'm not dying to find it. Need to find one so I can get a slim fit over this laptop.

Thanks I'll take a look at this one, how do you like it so far? Does the battery sticking out get in the way of the bag?

 

Thanks I'll take a look at this one, how do you like it so far? Does the battery sticking out get in the way of the bag?
__________________

nope, nice fit but price when up sunday .

 

From the picture, unfortunately the 8800 is soldered on the board.

Look at the big white square solder point, and 4 memory chip solder point around it.

There's also no slot/connection for the 8800 IF it's a card not soldered on the board.

 

aahhh I guess your right lol sorry

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=214385

 

Ran some benchmarks for World in Conflict, 1440x900 DX9 High settings, The first run was with a T9300 no Tweaks and 3DMark06 score of 8578 = Avg. fps 36, lowest 14 fps, highest fps 77. T9300 Tweaked 3DMark score of 9810 = Avg. fps 40, lowest 14 fps, highest fps 92. The on screen difference was huge the explosions were very intense, and the battles were very realistic. GPU never topped 67c, and CPU topped out at 45c, it idles at 31c.

 

Thanks! BTW, what drivers are you running?

 

I work for Best Buy as a Geek Squad agent, and I've worked on quite a few of these laptops. The build quality is quite good, and I haven't had a single one show up DOA. DOA laptops happen. I would also like to note that the people getting 5k 3dmark scores are likely running on balanced power mode and as such the GPU is only running at 3/4 of it's normal speed. (clocks are viewable with rivatuner if you edit the .cfg)

I am not an authorized representative to speak about policy or cost of the laptop, but I will say that the price currently is more in line with what the laptop SHOULD cost. All retail stores, Best Buy included, make little to no margin on laptops. Frequently retail stores LOSE money on laptops.

I've had people drive ~200 miles to buy this laptop from my store. It's selling out all over the place for a very obvious reason. The current price or $1699 is unfortunate, but I would advise people interested in this laptop to keep an eye on the price, as it may fluctuate in the 30 days.

 

The machine is backordered.. and a BestBuy Employee posts with the 6831FX in his sig... this amuses me.

Mine has shipped, but isn't due in til thursday. My fingertips itch in anticipation.

 

WOuld BB exchange my p6831fx just because DVD-ROM is making a noise(louder then my HP laptop) but has no probelm reading(it seem slower on reading side but..) or writing yet ? .
Or should I just wait to break and replace the DVD -ROM myself later w/ HD dvd?

Thanks for reply.