Novatech X50 MV Pro User Review

Novatech X50 MV Pro Review

by Henry Butt

Please Note: This review is a work in progress and has more to benchmarks to come! If you have any questions please don't hesitate as I only have the X50 for a couple of weeks.

The X50 is the latest 15.4” notebook offering from the British PC manufacturer Novatech who have been well established in the notebook market for over ten years. The X50 combines the newest generation of technologies from Intel and nVidia with a sleek and eye catching design to produce one of the most good loking, powerful mainstream systems money can buy.



Specifications:

• Screen: 15.4” WSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 (X-Glass)
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 (2.53GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 6MB Cache)
• Memory: 4GB DDR2 Ram 800MHz
• Storage: Western Digital 250GB HDD (5400rpm)
• Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW
• Wireless: Intel 5100 AGN + Bluetooth 2.0
• Graphics: nVidia 9600M GT GDDR3 512mb
• 2GB Intel Turbo Memory
• 1.3Mega Pixel Web Camera
• Battery: 6 Cell
• Dimensions: 367mm x 280mm x 34mm
• Weight: 3.0Kg with 6-Cell Battery
• Windows Vista Home Premium
• Retail Price: £1009.33

Build and Design

The X50 has a very sleek and attractive design with sleek lines and curves in a slim chassis. . Unlike most other laptops nowadays, the X50 isn’t wedge shaped and is pretty much the same thickness throughout. One of the most appealing features of the design is the exclusive 3D paint design which is a very dark glittery blue with a glossy finish, although unlike most laptops with a glossy finish, it doesn’t readily attract fingerprints. Even though this laptop is in a 15.4” form factor, it is very large – it is as deep and also as only about 1” narrower than a Clevo M570TU The build quality isn’t quite on a Clevo level however it is still quite reasonable. Overall, I am quite impressed with the build quality, even though it does lack substance in some areas such as the power button which doesn’t seem to be attached properly and the left touchpad button which seems to be warped a little. However, applying pressure to the back of the screen didn’t produce any rippling whatsoever and the hinges do not wobble at all.



Screen:

The screen is one of the best parts of this laptop. It boosts 15.4” in size organized in the now standardized 16:10 widescreen and aspect ratio with a glossy coating which really improves the contrast and image clarity. The screen also has a thick plastic covering which is both an aesthetic feature and a practical one as it protects the screen from damage. It does however make the blacks look slightly grey and tends to reflect more light than an average X-Glass display, however there does not appear to be any light leakage and the backlight is pretty even throughout.

Edit: I have just found a Dead Pixel (or at least I think I have) however it is hardly noticable at all because the pixels are so small!



Speakers:

The speakers are one of the major drawbacks of this laptop. They seem to lack bass even though there is a subwoofer and also lack volume which is not helped by their location on the underside of the laptop. They are just about sufficient to watch a movie without background noise, however external speakers. They are definitely below average for a laptop of this class. Also, when using headphones, anything above half volume is unbearably loud which can be slightly annoying if unexpected.

Processor and Performance:

The X50 MV Pro features the new Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 Processor which runs at 2.53gHz. It runs vista like a breeze and doesn’t seem to lag at all during regular tasts. The review model I have doesn’t come with the stock 200GB 7200rpm hard drive, but with a 250GB 5400rpm one. This means the performance isn’t quite as good even though there is a little more storage space. It is also makes quite a loud clicking noise which can be quite intrusive in a quiet environment. Booting to desktop from cold takes around 1 minute which isn’t too shabby but should be quicker with the stock 7200rpm hard drive.



As for gaming, the 9600M GT boosting 512mb of DDR3 memory is sufficient to play most of the current generation of games at decent settings, however may struggle with more demanding games such as Crysis. It may have been better to include a WXGA screen to run games at native resolution but it just about manages with the WSXGA.

Benchmarks:

Super Pi @ 2M: 0m 45s
3DMark06: 10761 3D Marks (on AC power)
3DMark06: 5005 3DMarks (on AC power)
PCMark05: 6636 PCMarks (on AC power)

(More benchmarks to follow)

Heat and Noise:

Both the CPU and the GPU are cooled by one single fan. It seems to do the job well with the top of the laptop barely even getting warm, however the bottom of the laptop does get a little warm under the left hand side where the GPU is situated. The fan is however quite loud when on. Under normal use, it does come on quite a lot of the time, and there only seems to be one fan speed which is quite loud. Under Intensive use the fan remains on constantly but during gaming, it isn’t noticeable over game noise.



Keyboard and Touchpad:

The keyboard of the X50 is well laid out except for the common error of the CTRL and Fn buttons being the wrong way round. It seems very well attached and doesn’t suffer from any flex whatsoever. Unlike some similar notebooks from the same ODM, the X50 doesn’t seem to miss any key presses at all, however it is quite easy to accidently touch the touchpad while typing and it might be better with a touchpad off button. The touchpad is above average for a 15.4” notebook and is very well sized. It is not too big, but it is not too small like many notebooks. It also has a good texture and is not glossy. The slight problem with it is the distance of the buttons from the actual touchpad area which seems to be a bit too far for comfort. Even though there are some touch buttons included for internet explorer, volume and e-mail, sadly the only media control buttons are as Fn + buttons on the keyboard. It would have been nice to have had dedicated media control buttons like most laptops of today.



Input and Output Ports:

The X50 is actually quite lacking when it comes to ports. Sadly Novatech didn’t opt for the HDMI, S-Video and TV-tuner ports which are available from the ODM on this model. Also missing is an E-Sata port although this isn’t a major dealbreaker.

All descriptions are from left to right



1. Kensington Lock Slot
2. VGA Port
3. RJ-11 Modem Port
4. RJ-45 Gigabit LAN Port
5. USB 2.0 Port
6. Mini 1394 Firewire Port
7. Expresscard 34 Slot
8. 5 in 1 Card Reader



1. 3.5mm Mic in Jack
2. 3.5mm Headphone out Jack
3. USB 2.0 Port
4. DVD +/- RW Drive
5. DC In Jack
6. 2x USB 2.0 Port

Wireless:

The X50 makes use of the new Wifi-Link 5100 AGN card from Intel which seems to work very well. It has a good range and runs at good speeds, even though a G connection. The laptop also features Bluetooth, but sadly the infra-red is only enabled with a built in TV-Tuner.



Battery:

The battery life leaves a lot to be desired. You would get around two hours on power saving settings, and you probably wouldn’t be able to watch a whole movie without it running out. It would have been nice to see a Binary graphics option or a larger capacity battery available with this laptop.

(More in-depth battery testing to follow)

Operating System and Software

My review model of the X50 had Vista Home Premium 32bit installed, however it is available with most flavours of Vista and XP or without an operating system at all. Sadly there was no operating system disk included, although they are available from Novatech upon request The only pre-installed software that the X50 ships with is a 60 day trial of Microsoft Office and the only disk which comes with it is a Driver disk which also contains a .PDF version of the user manual.

Customer Support:

I have not personally used customer service, however I did experience it first hand when I visited Novatech a few weeks ago. The level of testing and quality control that Novatech implement before releasing a product, and before each product is shipped is quite formidable to make sure that the return rate of products is almost zero. Novatech have both phone support and a live chat which I have tried out and both seem to be very helpful. I have to say their live chat is on a whole different level to that of Dell. As standard, all Novatech laptops come with a 12 month return to base warranty, however for the cost of around £40, this can be upgraded to a 2 year C & R warranty which I think is a must have.

Windows Sideshow:

The X50 is quite unique in the fact that it features Windows Sideshow. This is often seen as a bit of a gimmick but can see how it might be useful for some people. It does however set the X50 apart from the competition a bit, enabling the user to control media and check their email without actually turning the laptop on fully, and conserving the poor battery life as much as possible.



Conclusion:

The Novatech X50 is one of the only 15.4” laptops to feature a 9600M GT with GDDR3 memory, giving it that extra boost in games without being a true gaming laptop. It chisels itself a little niche in between those who want the ultimate performance from their machine, and those who’s most demanding tasks are no more demanding than general multimedia. The main downsides to this laptop are the poor battery life and the slightly inflated price, considering notebooks with a similar specification such as the HP Pavillion DV5 can be found for around £200 cheaper. There are upsides however, such as the decent screen, Windows Sideshow and decent discrete graphics. Altogether this is a pretty solid notebook and is well worth consideration for those looking for a laptop with a bit of flare and decent performance without going all out on a boutique gaming notebook.



Pros:

• Sleek Design
• Performance Graphics (with DDR3 memory)
• Good touchpad and keyboard
• Available with a variety of operating systems
• Windows Sideshow

Cons:

• Poor battery life
• Lack of HDMI and E-Sata ports
• Large Size for form factor
• Average Build Quality
• Warranty only extendable to 2 years

A big thanks to KP and James @ Novatech for organizing this review model for me.

Review written for www.techpond.co.uk, the place to discuss laptops, fish and cake - by Henry Butt

 

Bravo. Concise, well-written, fair and informative. I'm seeing a lot of reviews praising the idea of the Slideshow, which is doing good for turning the whole gimmick notion around. One small question about the build quality I had was how noisy the screen was to lever back and forth?

Anyway, you deserve your brownie points, not just for the review but for going the extra length for setting up the review in the first place.

 

Thanks for the compliments You could always add to my rep.... lol

The screen doesn't make any noticable noise at all when you move it back and forth

 

Excellent review, is it possible for some packaging shots? But I think I am sold and going to get myself one.

Daniel.

P.S

Rep given.

 

I already did you cheeky s..

Thanks for the screen info.

 

Lol... Thanks

I have some packaging shots and ill upload them now

 

Not brilliant photos but they should give you the idea



Novatech Box Front... Rock M570U Box Back









Accesseries Box

 

Ooh, extra photos. So how long are they letting you keep ahold of the machine?

 

I have to send it back before the 18th of September

 

Thanks for the extra photos - and I hope you appreciate the rep, and maybe giving in return would be warmly welcomed!

What would happen if you didn't send it back?

 

Thanks for the rep... I accidently pressed that little button below your username between the other two

Errr... not sure what would happen... but im not going to do that because I can't be bothered with the hassle, they would probably try and make me pay for it, and most important of all, Novatech have been good to me, lent me a laptop and given me a tour of their factory so I don't want to do them a bad turn

 

...Besides, they have your address - they know where you live. No escaping the Novatech Mafia.

 

For anyone that is considering buying the X50, I would wait for a little bit because apparantly, the next batch is going to have HDMI whereas this batch doesn't.

 

just got mine delivered today a truely awesome laptop well pleased with mine