(Clevo M570RU - Sager 5790) -- do you NEED a notebook cooler?

The quick: I dont' want to use a notebook cooler if I can avoid it -- just adds more clunk, since I use the notebook _on my lap_ on a couch. Not at a desk or the like. My wife is usually sitting 5 feet away, so quiet is good.

The long:

I've not had the time (cry!) to make heavy use of my new Crazy Notebook, but I did make sure to test it the day I got it for some games and she performed better than I expected. (So far I'm running Oblivion, HL2 Lost Coast, Supreme Commander, and so forth on 1900x1200 _max_ at still full speed IMHO; HL2:LostCoast test-mode runs at 80fps!)

It actually seemed quieter and cooler than expected; while playing some WoW (as I did on my previous machine in the past) it was actually cooler by far. This all surprised me after the reports of people using a 7950 burning their laps (I've got the 8700M installed in my machine.)

So it doesn't seem to me I need a notebook cooler; I've not tried Bioshock (Securom scares me away) or heavy heavy games yet. Perhaps the 8700M is just very heat efficient?

I use the machine _on my lap_ while watching TV with my wife, so I want it cool and quiet and comfortable; its a big machine, so adding more clunk is really not something I wish to do. Having to use a mouse is bad enough (I really miss 'the nipple' from Thinkpads)

jeff

 

That's why I went bluetooth with mouse and headphones . I hate clunk.

 

Well since you use it on your lap, you run the chance of covering up the air vents leading to overheating your laptop, not to mention other body parts..lol

So my good man, you need a cooler that will do a good job without fans and clutter. Here is a link to a cooler that got high ratings by independent reviewers. http://www.xpad4laptop.com/ ($24.95). Your laptop, your body parts and your wife will thank you.. Don’t forget to check the specs on it to make sure it fits your laptop.

Now I don’t have a cooler since I use my laptop on a desk. Never felt comfortable using a laptop on my lap and never got the hang of using the touchpad.. Come to think of it this is the first laptop I have ever owned, and it being a 9260, too heavy anyway..

If you decide to order it, would you be kind enough to let us know how it works out? The reviewers claim that it cooled better than the coolers with fans.. hmm

 

I love to sit on the couch and use my laptop. Our couch is the most comfortable place to sit, and it gets a nice breeze since it's right next to our sliding glass door. Having a laptop has allowed me to be the ultimate couch potato.

My laptop generates heat but I've discovered I've got other problems too. I need a place for my mouse, just using the couch ends up hurting my wrist. Something about the angle. My laptop also doesn't lend itself well to stable "lap" computing. It's fairly easy to tip over when it's just on my lap (add my two cats into mix and you can see a disaster waiting to happen).

I recently orded Laptop Desk 2.0 w/ mouse pad from Lapworks in hopes of resolving my three issues. It also doesn't look too clunky either. I haven't gotten it yet as it takes forever for anything to reach me here in the boonies of Japan (arg, slow APO!). But if you'd like, I can tell you how well it works once I get it.

However, you could also Do It Yourself and make a lap desk. I found a nifty website that shows you some DIY lap desks. Just click here.

I'm thinking I need to start using my Bluetooth. I've not seriously consider before now since Bluetooth devices tend to be so much more expensive. I just broke my 2nd wireless mouse though. The USB connector keeps getting smashed, squished, and generally abused. That's a combined 40$ I'm out of for no good reason. Maybe I'll have better luck with bluetooth.

 

Sorry to be off topic a bit, but did the man just say he had a 8700m (512mb VRam?) in his 570RU. I know there have been severe delays on this card all over the globe and that some people at the ROCK (UK) forum have just received theirs (X770 with 8700m with 512mb), but I can't find any benchmarks for this card (512mb) anywhere still. What gives?? Does anyone one know where a proper review of a machine containing it can be found? It's time to resurrect the 8700m GT Vs 7950GTX debate and see which camp was right. Bring it on!

 

you mean you can run all of those games on WUXGA res on high settings? what is your definition of high settings? like everything to max or just higher settings?

 

I don't use a cooler with my 5790, I also have the 8700 card. I almost always use the laptop in the recliner (we fulltime in an RV) with this lapdesk from Levengers.


My laptop runs cool even when gaming, and this has plenty of room for my mouse too.

 

Hi Jeff,

Can you help check your Clevo's 8700M GT stock Memory clock speed?

I Just found out that it seems the 8700M GT in Toshiba's X205 has a stock gpu clock of 625MHz,
But a stock Memory clock of only 700MHz.
(As reported by running nTune http://www.nvidia.com/object/ntune_5.05.47.00.html)

Rather than 800MHz, based on the official 8700M GT specs from nVidia
See http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_8700m.html

...seems we are short-changed of 100Mhz by Toshiba in our X205 ??!!!

 

I haven't had time to look up how to activate and operate the console in Oblivion, so I cannot say the raw FPS inside or outside or specific locations like the real pro reviewers here would prefer. Real life is busy right now I can look into it down the road if needed.

But I can say that so far, my experience has a player has been awesome; I don't know what my threshold for FPS is, but I'm relatively picky.

One concrete data point .. HL2: Lost Coast (the HDR test that you can get after installing HL2), in test mode at 1900x1200 on the 8700M in my notebook reports an average of 80fps, for 3what thats worth. Thats stock drivers too .. I've not updated any syustem software yet, as its stable and good so far. (Didnt' try Bioshock, which I hear blows up the older drivers.) I did add the multicore CPU hotfix mind you.

HL2 is a couple years old so to be expected, but it runs super crisp on 1900x1200, with high everything.

Oblivion runs very nice, no chuggyness yet in my limited play (ran through the opening dungeon to get outside, ran around the imperial city, and did some arena hand to hand combat in heavy shiny armour. The grass sways nicely outside and the tree leaves ... ahhh I can't say if its 55fps versus 60fps or more, but it runs good enough for me not to notice anything. I really need to look up how to find, since maybe my FPS threshold is low, or maybe the 8700M runs Oblivion really well at 70fps or something.

Supreme Commander runs very nicely, though I didn't push it up to thousands of units; I had about 100 onscreen and no problem zoomed in or out. The dual core is really shining there, as I understand it.

WoW is not a heavy graphics game; LotRO either.

So overall, I'm very impressed, but you'll note all these games are not cutting edge.

We'll see when Crysis comes out.

I'm tempted to install Bioshock from Steam, but it still includes Securom, so screw it I guess :/

jeff

 

That xpad4laptop looks intriguing (no fans?), but it sounds small; sure, they say a 13" unit works fine for 17" notebooks, but thats still a couple inches either side. I'd have to measure the feet to see if it'd fit right, but sounds fidgety, like the notebook would flop around on top of it with such a size difference.

Research time..

jeff

 

Anyone tried the Thermeltek fanless cooler pad?

The concept is intriguing, but I worry about the thign just blocking the airvent; the reviews suggest the shape/dimples in the fabric surface keep the airflow open, but I worry about the shape of the lap pressing into the intake vents anyway..

Still, the concept of a roll-up pad that uses the chemical state change to dissipate heat.. neat. But does it work?

jeff

 

I will always recommend using a notebook cooler or stand for these kinds of performance notebooks.

It will guarantee that you are using it on a flat and cool surface... as well as guarantee that you are not blocking the fan vents.

If you like to use it on your lap, then I would recommend to get a "Lap Desk"

 

The 8700M GT used on my M570RU have 675Mhz on the core, shader 1350Mhz and 800Mhz on the mems.

 

Make sure that you set the PowerMizer (in Nvidia Control Panel) to Max Performance