Voodoo PC new notebook lineup coming out in JUNE!

I heard all the rave about Voodoo PC and their customer service and systems, but the only problem is that their resources all went to the Blackbird joint project. But I called up today and asked a bunch of questions about the company and systems and they were really knowledgable and nice. I asked when they are releasing their new notebooks and he told me their NEW LINEUP is coming in 4-6 weeks!. So I'm guessing they are going to release it with the new montevina platform. I also heard they are going to make their own chasis now, so this should be an exciting summer, if Voodoo does make their own chasis and some special featires like how AW did with smart bay, then I might go with Voodoo. Remember now Voodoo is the company who invented the Liquid Cooling system, so we can hopefully expect something awesome in 4-6 weeks!

 

Voodoo is way overpriced, I'll pass.

 

It is overpriced, but you get a custom paintjob, plus from what I experianced so far, awesome customer service. Heard a lot of horror stories about when things go wrong and from my own experiances from dell, alienware and gawd gateway. But my main focus is that I need customer service and I guess I would feel different from everyone else with a voodoo, especially if they come out with their own chasis and special design. HP did buy Voodoo so it makes sense that they are going to make themselves different from all the other rebranding companies by doing what alienware did with their own featuers, chasis.

Also from the resellerratings.com Voodoo has the highest customer service rating at 9.52 compared to 7.19 of alienware and 7.8 from falcon northwest. So I might cancel my M15x order for now, I got a $6000 budget and I can't spend more than that, so maybe Voodoo's new lineup will not be rebranded!

K-Tron you got any additional news?

 

Both HP and Voodoo should have some surprises in June. You can see the interview with Raul Sood as a bit of a tease for what's to come:

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4294

 

Andrew do you know if any of the rumors is true that they are making their own chasis and adding other features exclusive to their new lineupof notebooks like alienware did? And does the 6 week date sound realistic?

 

I know that Voodoo will be manufacturing their high end laptop gaming systems still with the Clevo chassis, but they will be intoducing three new envy laptops, which will be using a hybrid hp/voodooized chassis. When they say 6 weeks, it more like 6 months, but dont take me on word for that. I would expect the new line of systems to come in about 10-12 weeks.
The only problem I see with the new laptop line is that they will be branded "Voodoo, division of Hp", rather than "Voodoo"
That to me destroys the whole point of the system. It will have a low resale value, whereas you can sell an old voodoo laptop and get quite a lot for it.
The new systems should also be marked up for less, because of the hp acquisition. The featherweight and middleweight systems will be cheaper, but do not expect any lower prices on their gaming laptops. They will still be very expensive cause they will continue to use the premier line of clevo desktop replacement chassis.

K-TRON

 

Are you sure K-Tron? Damn thats sad news then.. reading what Sood said in his interview with ntoebookreview.com made it sound like they were going to do what Alienware was doing and making their own chasis with special features (like how AW made smartbay) of their own. Now you are saying the systems will be branded Voodoo/Hp or even worst Hp/Voodoo DNA inside?

So from what you are saying K-Tron they will just be using a hybrid of HP chasis's with a few upgrades here and their? It wont be a totally new look like how AW made the M15x? Do you know if they will have any new breakthrough features for these systems?

And you said 6 months or rather 12 weeks maxed? It rust you because I went in the voodoo forums and the voodoo forums here and you seem to be an active voodoo pc fan. I got excited because I thought they would give AW run for their money but just the word HP mixed in with that just makes it more depressing for me.

I was thinking of this new slick shiney design of 15.4" with an 8800 gtx with a montevina chipset and this 17" powerhouse also with a montevina chipset. K-Tron do you know if:

1. They will put the HP name along with the Voodoo logo on the systems?

2. OMG will it be sold in the HP webpage?

3. Will they have montevina chipset?

4. Talked to AB yesterday and he said 6-8 weeks, you got a more accurate date?

5. Will they rebrand the new clevo 15.4" notebook with the 8800 gtx?

6. Will the new line of laptops look as badass and high-tech as the M15x?


Thanks K-Tron, got really interested and reseached Voodoo a bit because I heard about the excellent Customer service. I have a $6000 budget and hopefully I will buy the right thing. AW is awesome minus the customer service and their lack of knowledge even with the roswell group. When I talked to AB and other CSR's they were knowledgeable and very friendly and I could understand their english!!

Would appreciate if you could answer my questions K-Tron or anyone, willg ive rep TY

 

Am I sure, no.
Voodoo has been making a lot of promises lately with bios revisions, product releases, and new forums, and none of them have been finished by their specified release date. This is why I come to believe and state that the product will be released in more than 4-6 weeks. It is very hard for them to release new products, cause they have to perfect everything, train their staff on construction and everything, and then they have to create new portfolios in the server. If you have not noticed, the Voodoo website does not actually update as frequent as it used to. It pretty much updates every month or so.

When I said that the laptops are going to be Hp/Voodoo, I did not mean hybrid. They are going to be a chassis, much like the blackbird is, a streamlined chassis for gaming and portability, with high end upgradeable parts.
Hp/Voodoo laptops will only be sold on Voodoo's website. Hp makes generic people's computers, and it is going to stay that way. The Voodoo/Hp, is basically the high end of Hp, at Voodoo's incredible standards.

As it has been mentioned, but not yet confirmed, one of their new laptops will have the monteveina line of chipsets, and the other two are going to be amd based systems. One will be on the turion x2 platform, and the other will be on the pending griffin core.
The Voodoo laptops will look more stylish and beautiful than any Alienware would, so you do not have to worry about that.
As far as teh branding goes, it has come up on the forums that the new badge, will be changed from Voodoo ENVY on the front cover, to Voodoo (then underneath in smaller text - a division of HP Gaming)
I do not know if they are going to change the badge or not, it has not come up in a while on the forums.

As there was a question in another thread, some of the new Voodoo line will have 8800mGtx card's, so that they will be on the bleeding edge of combat in gaming.

K-TRON

 

Ah sounds good that they will make it look really sexy. On the other hand K-Tron, why didn't they update even their D901c 17" gaming notebook to carry the 8800 gtx card? It's quite a easy upgrade and everyone including falcon northwest has done it. Was just wondering why they wouldn't offer it as it would show they are still super competitive.

So back to the question K-Tron, so they are making their own chassis? Like how alienware made a contract with quanta, designed the m15x with smartbay and no one else will be able to use that design unlike the rebranded clevos.

Thanks K-Tron as you can see I am really hoing to get a Voodoo because I heard so much good things about them, but if I'm going to spend $6000 on a system I want it to have the most updated parts at the time of purchase. If AW's customer services wasn't so horrible, then I would have more faith in them. But as I said agian and again, I like that we will have more choices and the competition is good.

btw if they do make their own chassis is it going to be thinner than te 9262, m17x, 1730 ? and also for their 15.4" models?

 

And you don't believe what AB said about 6 week release date? I heard this guyw as the best customer service rep for voodoo and was reliable? And one last thing, is Voodoo good with keeping up with current drivers? Alienware still has the same driver from back in january and every other driver you download thats not from AW downclocks the GPU.

EDIT: and btw what is Voodoopalooza? and why haven't I heard too much commotion on the announcement of Voodoo and their new line of laptops? The m17x was talked about since november till it was out last week...

can you read the post before this also, thanks K-Tron

 

Voodoo has been having problems certifiying the 8800mGtx for their H171, or the D901C. The 8800mGtx has SLI scaling problems, which are known on the Clevo D901C, where most of the second Gpu hardly does anything to help out the first card. Voodoo has been working on making a more efficient hardware SLI bridge between the cards, but the progress has not been too successful. SLI also causes many bsod's and software issues, which does not pass Voodoo's quality and performance requirements.
Voodoo will be using Hp's machines at their factories to make their own cases. This means that Voodoo's mainstream laptops will be made out of a custom chassis, which is designed by both Voodoo and HP, at Hp's shell manufacturing plant. This means the featherweight and middleweight lines will not be clevo rebrands.
When you say Alienware invented smartbay, well they didnt. Dell actually invented smart bay with their Inspiron 8500 back in 2001. I have this notebook, and I know for a fact that its drive bays are identical to the drive bays used in the m15x. Alienware has terrible tech support and lies about many things.
About the 6 week release. I dont believe it, but time can only tell. I said that it will take longer, becuase many of the other new things which Voodoo was supposed to release, have not been released by their promised release date.

For drivers, well there used to be a driver section on the boards, but Team India nuked that about a year and a half ago. When you login, you can click on "My Voodoo" and it will log you into the Voodoo server, and you can download and view the drivers for your laptop/desktop. Team India has been trying to fix the boards, and nuked that part of the server, as well as the first 5 years of data on the Voodoo mutthaboards/forums.
As of now, the only drivers you get are the ones which come on the Voodoo disks, in the koeshkin binder. However, you can download and install new drivers whenever you want to. You can download new drivers from laptopvideo2go's website.

As far as hardware goes, it is kinda hard to get the newest hardware in Canada. Basically once Eurocom gets hardware, Voodoo gets it. Eurocom is the supplier of Voodoo for Clevo and other desktop related parts in Canada.

Voodoopalloza is an event, which occurred the first week in May last year. Basically every Voodoo owner gets an invite to come take a tour of the factory, and meet the staff, have a party, game with the Voodoo techs, meet Rahul the owner, drink, have a barbeque, and play all sorts of video games, computer games, rockband and just about everything. Usually the whole thing is set up by the Bastage family, who live in pennsyvania. The event takes place in Calgary, and it is a multiple day event, where you have to fly up or drive, and then book a hotel room and such. It is a great event, but i couldnt go last year becuase of AP exams. At the Voodoopalloza event, you get a new mousepad/shirt and some new gadgets and games. Personally, playing Rahul in a game, on tricked out Omen's and such in a Lan party is just the most awesome thing ever.
However, this will not happen again because of Hp. Hp does not like fun, which is why new Voodoo buyers do not get game fuel, tattoo's or shirts with their purchases.

K-TRON

 

Will give you rep K-Tron thanks.

So the new line of notebooks that will be out in a couple of weeks will be clevo rebrand for the high powered systems? So voodoo is going to rebrand clevos 15.4" montevina system instead of what alienware did with the m15x?

Sad to hear about them stopping the tattoo option for the ntoebooks, I was really looking foward to that myself for my first voodoo It seems your not very happy with the direction voodoo ist aking. You think I should look else where for a new notebook? I had the impression that Voodoo was going to compete with alienware in the same level of making their own chasis for their TOP high powered systems. But from what you tell me, their lower systems will have a new chasis and the high powered system will be rebranded clevos

Voodoopalooza sounds fun btw

 

Also what is the average life span of a brand new voodoo PC? I am planning on getting the 3 year warrenty, and also whats voodootique?

 

firstn20,

i can only tell you of my personal experience with voodoo...
it has been great...
but then again... i have this barber that knows me and i know him... he's great... but others dont... so it's a personal thing...

if you are looking for a strictly economical solution... then i suggest you do your research well... but it looks as if it is not the only, nor the most important criteria in your selection.

as for what voodoo has in the works, well, with any new products, i prefer not being the guinea pig... but i am very anxious to see... tho the m17x and the dell m1730 is very tempting... the m9750 was amazingly tempting... being that it had a very good and proven reputation.

i firmly support the 3 year policy on a laptop... i travel a lot and i like the added security of the warranty.

well, get on the forums... requires some patience... still see some tech issues handled there... see how you like it.

it is a fun and quirky community... that i am glad to be a member of...

 

I should have specified a little more. There are two Tattoo's, which you can choose to get. The ones which are painted on your system, and the ones which come in the package with your machine. They are temporary tattoos, which you can put on your tongue, or arm or whatever, and they last as long as you do not wash them off. These are the tattoos I am talking about. Gosh, I shouldnt tell whats in the package.
You will still be able to get the Voodoo tattoo's painted on your laptops, they may come out with new designs for the new laptops, but I am unaware of this minor detail.

The Vootique, was basically a store which was only open to Voodoo owners. Voodoo owners are significed by having a "greened" name on the forums. For example, "K-TRON" above my avatar is in green text, which means I own a Voodoo. Every post you make, you get rep points for. It used to be the number of points made = the number of legitimate words in your post. But last year, Team India nuked that and now gives 1-10 points per post depending on length. These points were different than nbr points, in which we could use them to buy voodoo branded stuff in the online store. It was basically a way to keep the forums active. It was a bit of motivation. However, most of the items were 100,000 points or higher, so we had to save up for quite some time to be able to afford certain items. A pen was like 5000 points, a book was like 12,000 points, a mousepad was like 30,000 points and so forth.
The only problem was, the Vootique was shut down in June of last year, two months or so after I started gaining points, so I obviously could not afford to buy anything.
Now the point system is pretty useless, it doesnt do anything anymore, cause the Vootique may not be coming back.

The average life of a Voodoo PC is 1 day to about 20 years depending on how you take care of it. Obviously if you want it to last, you take care of it, but many have gotten machines, which have either come broken cause of shipping, or they mistreat their systems. I am planning to keep mine forever, and I think so will you.
I would go for the 3 year warranty, cause in my experience, parts start failing after the second year, and having the third year, really is a lifesaver.

K-TRON

 

Okay, I have new news on whats going down.
*removed*

K-TRON

 

lol... i thought it was hush hush info for some of the mutthaboard members...

 

We'll I guess we will just have to wait to see what they are releasing, hopefully in 6-8 weeks as I was informed by their customer service reps

 

you say that AW invented smartbay but i saw a rockdirect branded laptop that offered this feature already before the m15x's release

 

wow K-tron, i would be annoyed with firstn20 by now. You might aswell lend your brain to him for a while untill he is able to absorb every piece of knowledge you have.

 

Hey, I dont mind, he is a good guy. He just wants to know what surprises he is in for. When spending a lot of money on a computer, a lot of things go through your mind, and all kinds of questions arise.

K-TRON

 

So yeah ended up not buying a notebook but this news makes me excited!! damn gotta earn more money!

I never really liked the Clevo chassis but with a highquality HP chassis, man that would be awesome!

 

The Bastage family? Do you mean Mr B, as in Greg and Wendy? I hope not, K-Tron, because Bastage is not a family name. LOL

 

You know what I mean rob, its not like he is going to ask them on the forums by name. Too bad Voodoopalloza may not even happen this year. They want to have it in the Winter time, as Ryan needs time to prep the shop for the hooligans, and he needs to get this by Hp, while they are off guard.

K-TRON

 

eh, who knows what will or will not happen...

but this is something different form other boutiques...

wanted to go to last year's palooza... perhaps this year?...

 

Anyone know if there will be any possibility to get a voodoopc over the pond (UK) as HP can in theory sell some through their network.. What's normally the build time? As I can order one to my hotel next time, I don't want to miss the delivery then....

 

Yes, Voodoo does ship worldwide. Kaiserpheonix lives over the pond, and he has a Omen. Unfortunately their is some ridiculous tax which has to be paid, I am not sure if its is the VAT, you should probably ask him.
The build time is about 3 months for notebooks, and about 1.5 months for desktops. I think that the build times are faster now that Hp is involved.

K-TRON

 

ye it's the tax issue that keeps me away from ordering, it's VAT 17.5 % and toll taxes, the queen wants here share as well...

 

the hell with the tax... grab some bags and go for a vacation and hand carry that thing back to the UK...

 

that's why I asked for delivery time, I can pick up an HP in bestbuy however that's not a woodoopc..

 

Voodoo has some high end computers on ebay, if you so desire to purchase. They have already been assembled, basically there show rigs, and they are now up for sale:
http://stores.ebay.com/hewlettpackardvoodoobu

K-TRON

 

i miss gaming

 

maceto, yeah tax is a big problem, had to pay like 700Quid on my voodoo omen!!!!!

 

Kaiser, how come you dont put Voodoo Omen in your signature?
You paid for it, might as well show it off.

K-TRON

 

Man i wnder what the new voodoo laptops will look like!

 

can we get some pictures at least.. so I can dream.... hint to voodoopc ppl that might peek in here now and then

 

Still expensive, but then again so is apple but I still give in. The customer service is top notch anyway.

 

But then again, Apple can charge higher as its laptops are DIFFERENT and made of aluminium etc and most of all, it has a monopoly in that it runs OSX.

Having said that, the macbooks arnt all that expensive i think

 

10th I heard...

 

yah the voodoo site is down in a way, or on fire if you get technical, and on the voodoo forums it says look at the 10th for more news so who knows what's coming

 

voodoopalooza is an annual party that voodoo holds for any and all voodoo customers. I dont think they have them anymore though as HP dont like to have FUN

 

Their site has a new layout now.

 

Yea I just noticed that too. Can't wait to see the new lineup...