6970m on Sager anytime soon? & other questions

Hey fellas.

I'm on the verge of purchasing a Sager notebook between the NP8150 or the NP5160. I understand that the 8150 can be configured with the Nvidia 485m or 460m while the 5160 is limited to the 540m.

Thing is, i'm gonna be using this laptop to game quite a bit (SC2, WoW, Black Ops, hopefully BF3) and i was wondering which is the better GPU, 460m or 540m? although 485m is the clear winner amongst the 2.

Apart from that, alienware is releasing their m17x R3 with the radeon 6970m. i was wondering if anyone had news whether sager will implement that gpu as well.

And last but not least is the portability. Like is there any difference in dimension between the 8130 and the 8150. and in the case that i stick with 540m, is the difference in size between NP5160 and the 8150 a lot?

I'm currently in Vancouver so i was wondering if anyone had experience with purchasing from reflexnotebook.ca? thing is, i may be moving to singapore or australia this May so warranty wise is down the drain. i most likely wont be using the warranty at all and probably will need to depend on 3rd party servicers out there.

Therefore, do u guys think its cheaper to ship it from the US (most likely gentechpc) or just buy directly from reflexnotebook.ca?

Thanks for reading and i apologize if i may sound rant'ish cause i havent slept for 2 days.

Hope to hear ur comments! and thanks in advance!

 

The 460M will provide much better performance compared to the 540M. For a good chart to gauge different GPU's such as the 540M, 460M, 485M or 6970M take a look at Notebook Check's Benchmark List here

 

You'll be paying to ship from the U.S. even if you use Reflexnotebook. The U.S. shipping and brokerage fee is included in their price (not the initial price but you'll see if after you configure the machine). I think you wind up paying about the same with those fees no matter who you go through.

The big advantage of Reflexnotebook for Canadians is their hassle-free warranty. If something goes wrong under warranty, Reflex deals with Sager and the shipping fees, which can get expensive if you're dealing with Sager from Canada. Since it sounds like you won't be in Canada for long though that may not really matter to you.

 

Nah, Clevo loves their NVIDIA.

 

6970m is showing on the Clevo product page now.

 

Hi Tin2,

First off. The 460 is the much better GPU for gaming over the 540m.

Second, anything you need to know about the shipping fees to Canada can be found here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/548445-guide-buying-sager-canada.html#post7064489

Third, I apologize for not posting earlier, I guess I didn't see this thread.

Fourth, If you order from the U.S. via Sager or another retailer you'll be paying brokerage when they ship it to you. The only way you can get passed it is have it shipped to an American address and go and pick it up. Do you know anyone who lives in Seattle that you trust enough to have it shipped to?

 

Difference between the 460M and 540M:

 

Woot! This has gotta mean somethin good right? possibly lifting of any NDA's from our lovely resellers? My order is due to be sent out the end of next week/ early the week after that. Love to get the 485 switched out!

 

how about gtx500 series?
gtx570m should beat hd6970m
gtx580m should beat hd6990m

从一业内产品研发人员得来的消息，消息可靠度请自行判断

1、485M/480M/470M，由于是第一代fermi GF10X核心，40nm工艺不够完善，以致芯片漏电性较大，导致GF10X核心功耗居高不下，这三款都基本上确定是过渡产品了，不会大规模出货，而是由5系移动版接替

2、重头戏来了，GTX580M/GTX570M/GTX560M会采用工艺改善的第二代fermi，GF11X核心，漏电性能控制较好，功耗、稳定都有所降低
GTX580M 采用完整版GF114核心：384 CUDA、256 bit 3600MHz DDR5显存，核心的主频据说在625~675之间。据说性能与Mobility Radeon HD 5870 Crossfire同水平
GTX570M 阉割版GF114核心：336 CUDA、DDR5显存，256BIT或192BIT内存位宽，核心频率未知。性能与HD 6970M 不分伯仲
GTX560M 完整版GF116核心：192 CUDA、192 bit DDR5显存，核心频率尚不清楚。性能与HD6950M同档次

预计在2011 Q2发布

and hope that time
gtx485m flash vbios>>>580m
gtx470m flash vbios>>>570m
gtx460m flash vbios>>>560m

 

^^ I have no idea what that means lol except, I see the Q2 2011.. Idk if I believe that. It took forever for us to get the 485 and 6970's available. Plus, even if they're released then, they have to go through Sager's testing/configuring..

And I'm sure they beat both the 485 and 6970, but, that's the nature of the beast I guess.. Get somethin top of the line and somethin better comes out a month later. Hopefully I can get the 6970, then I'll be able to use the money I saved towards another gpu in the future. This one should do me well for the next two+ years or so

 

^^ True. Q2 can definitely become a late Q3 and with the testing period we may see it in Clevo's as late as Q4.

 

Is the GTX 570M coming with two flavors of memory bus? 256bit or 192bit...

Multiple versions of the same GPU model might help to explain why a 128bit GT555M was seen in the MSI GT780, and a 128bit GTX 560M showed up in the MSI G74.

Not only would a consumer have to worry if the video card they want to buy has GDDR3 and GDDR5 versions of the model, they'd also have to check if the model uses the suck bus width or not.

 

1,485 M/480M/470M, because it is the first generation of fermi GF10X core, 40nm process is not perfect, resulting in leakage of the larger chip, leading to high power consumption GF10X core, which is a transitional three products are basically OK, do not a large scale ship, but replaced by the 5-Series Mobile

2, the main event here, GTX580M/GTX570M/GTX560M will use technology to improve the second generation of fermi, GF11X core, better leakage performance control, power, stability, reducing both the
GTX580M using the full version GF114 Core: 384 CUDA, 256 bit 3600MHz DDR5 graphics memory, the core frequency is said that between 625 ~ 675. It is said that performance and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 Crossfire with the level of
GTX570M castrated version of GF114 Core: 336 CUDA, DDR5 graphics memory, 256BIT or 192BIT memory bits wide, the core frequency is unknown. Performance and HD 6970M no clear winner
GTX560M full GF116 Core: 192 CUDA, 192 bit DDR5 graphics memory, the core frequency is not clear. With the level of performance and HD6950M

Is expected to release in 2011 Q2

a seller in china have the es gtx580m, they say nda is about june
i guess it will be in x7200 sandy bridge e version, since 480m released at june but until september we get the machine with it

 

Very interesting DGDXGDG.. You tend to have very interesting information For us boring North America people +rep for your contributions (and making us jealous lol)

@Aikimox have any info on the 6970 in the 15.6" for us?

Or any other resellers for that matter?

 

No info yet on a confirmed date of release for the 6970 in other models other then the 7280/X7200.

 

Yup, no ETA for other models except the 7280 (already available).

 

570M, 580M, 6990M..... what do do?

I'm almost convinced to wait.

 

By the time those come out, there will be something else in the works..

 

They'll be the last high-end refresh, before the 28nm chips hit in Q1 of 2012.

 

true.. maybe they''ll drop in price though once the 28nm ones hit.. unless the 28nm use the same socket?

@kevin what part of ohio are you in.. i just got home from visiting family out there

 

@Kevin,

What specs do you require to jump on a new platform right now?

 

Honestly, the 2630QM + 6970M is all I need, today. So it comes down to how soon that GPU is announced. April is already getting into Q2, so if GTX 500M is really coming in Q2, I'd be willing to wait long enough to at least see what Clevo has to say.

The other factor, is how long it takes for the order queues to get caught up. I'm not ordering until then, so my wait could very well could be in to May anyway. So why not wait for the new Nvidia chips, assuming Q2 is accurate?

I tend to buy one notebook every 2 to 3 years, so waiting a few extra months to get the best GPU possible is my best bet.

edit: I'm from Akron

 

Why are you asking about Seattle? Are you able to ship from Seattle to Canada without fees?

 

He's saying that if you know someone who lives near the border, you could have it shipped to them, so you could go pick it up while avoiding the fees.

 

Oh alright, because I know someone in Seattle, but I live in Ontario lol....I thought maybe he knew of a way to ship from Seattle to Canada without paying hundreds of dollars on shipping.

 

well the gtx580m performance is easy to predict
just find someone who have gtx560ti and down clock it to 675/900 then run benchmarks/games......

 

If you're still on the fence about the company to go with, it might interest you to know that Dell's warranty (and consequently Alienware's) is international, so even if you do move, you're still covered for the duration of the warranty.

 

Dell does have the advantage of an international warranty.

Of course they also don't offer the 6970 on the M17s in Canada yet and the reps don't know when they will.

 

I think he means get it shipped to a warehouse in niagra falls etc and go pick it up.

 

Shipping anywhere to Canada will cost the same. You said you were in Vancouver so we could have shipped it there and you picked it up from a friend's place.

 

If I get any info/remote ETA you'll be notified, but at this point there are no rumors it seems.
Q2 may very well mean June (announcement) and August (availability in Clevo's).

I assume it's gonna be available shortly, Dell has a decent sync between the US and Canada.

 

I already ordered my m17x with the 6970M. Just tell them "another rep was able to add it for me manually" on the phone, and they'll do it. The 6970M is available despite not showing up on the Canadian website.

 

BTW, As of today, we have the 6970M available (US$520+shipping). This offer is valid while the supplies last. PM/email for details.
Thanks

 

Aikimox,
Are you saying you have 6970m's available for order on the 8150's or just the 7200 series as listed on your website. If you have them available on the 8150's that's the first I've seen from any reseller.

 

We have both: the Clevo version of the cards (only available for the7280 at this time) and the AMD version (can only be purchased separately).

 

Can you at this time confirm, whether the Clevo 6970M 'is plug an play' with the NP8170?

 

I believe there are several other websites/resellers also offering 6970m by itself, but I don't believe that the heatsink is tailored for the new Clevo's yet. It may also require updates to the system BIOS to be compatible. I think one of the standalone 6970m's bought by a member of this forum actually ended up showing the stats for a 6990m with a verified 20% performance boost while GPU-Z was still showing a 6970m vBIOS. There is some weird things going on with this card, it might just be best to wait until these things are for real available for the NP8130/50/70.

 

It was an engineering sample, that inadvertently unlocked after a BIOS update. Others have tried with 6970Ms, and weren't so lucky as to have a 6990M (which itself is still technically a rumor).