Brand new laptop--what should I do first?

I'm posting here because none of the other forums seemed quite appropriate.

I just put in an order for a Malibal Lotus. This is the same as the Sager NP-8690 and the Clevo... something or other... as I understand it.

I was attracted to Malibal's slightly lower price and the lack of the Sager label on the hood.

Once I get it, what kinds of stuff should I do? I want advice from you experts. This is by far the fanciest PC I've ever purchased. Normally, about all I do is remove bloatware, install Avast, SpyBot, FireFox... And pretty much let Windows take care of the drivers for the most part (maybe update video drivers if Windows doesn't beat me to it). Usually grab CCleaner and a few other assorted programs.

What other kinds of stuff do you guys do? What should I do? What kinds of tests can I run to make sure everything is working the way it should (including the fans)?

(I suppose I'll also want to open it up and remove that plastic sticker thing over the air vent.)

Thanks, you guys. I'm really grateful for the internet and this forum. It wasn't all that long ago that, even in the computing world, a fella was pretty much all alone. (I learned about computers when I was a kid by screwing them up over and over!)

 

Congrats on your purchase! I hope you have a good experience with Malibal, everyone here seems to have had a great experience with them. As far as the actual hardware is conerned, Malibal Lotus = Clevo W860CU = Sager NP8690.

Assuming you ordered it with Windows 7, you won't find much bloatware. The only thing that I'd remove is the CD/DVD burning package that comes installed. I install AV (I use McAffee VS Enterprise) and then rest of my apps. As long as everything is functioning well, I leave the drivers alone unless I'm specifically changing them for a reason.

Not sure what CCleaner does..

As far as testing the system, I'll run 3DMark '06 and Furmark (2-3 times each), and watch the temps, specifically under Furmark. You want GPU-Z installed and running when you do that..

My first Lotus had hardware problems, and would only complete 3DMark '06 maybe once out of every 3-4 runs, but it was also blue screening like crazy too, so it was pretty easy to see something was wrong. Malibal was great in getting me a replacement, they actually sent it overnight.

Good luck getting through the waiting period while the order processes and ships, that's the hardest part.

 

Thanks, Brandon! I actually just read your review tonight, and it was part of what made me finally take the plunge.

CCleaner stands for Crap Cleaner. It can edit the system registry to remove junk and does the same for hard drive space. Very handy, or at least it's been handy on my Vista rig.

I'll have to make sure to test the heck out of it. But then again, like you said, it'll probably be pretty apparent if something is wrong.

 

Cool! I'd be surprised if CCleaner finds much of anything, it really is just a base install of Windows 7 with the drivers (and the biometric/webcam/dvd software). Definitely not anything like what would come pre-installed with Dell/HP/Sony etc..

Glad my review helped! Thanks for reading it!

 

Yup, CCleaner is really more useful for all the junk that builds up after a while. Again, at least in Vista. And I've always had cheapie computers, too, from Acer and whomever, and they tend to be loaded with junk. :s

This is my first really nice computer! Pretty cool to think about not having to mess around with a bunch of junk. That's new for me.

 

radtech

Love these cloth especially when I travel and pull it out, gives me a sense of security. (btw it does go between the LCD and Keyboard.....)