Clevo p151EM Final considerations

hello people,

I'm ordering a clevo p151em laptop with a nvidia gtx 660m.

My doubt is on the CPU: intel i7 3610QM or 3720QM?

The 3720 is 120 € more expensive than the 3610. Should I take the plunge?

I'm studying computer science and engineering, I don't edit videos, I just code, a whole lot, in c++.

This computer should be able to endure the 4 years ahead of me, as I already have a gaming desktop.

Should I invest the money on the cpu or on a SSD for example?

Original price: 1200 €
Price with the i7 3720: 1330€

I would appreciate all the feedback you can give, have a nice weekend.

 

I don't know how cpu consuming c++ compiling is...

Here are some benchmarks:
Review Intel Ivy Bridge Quad-Core Processors - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

I personally wouldn't pay 120€ more... but thats also a matter of taste I guess.

 

Since I run a lot of simulations that's CPU intensive and consumes a lot of RAM, yes I would definitely invest in 3720QM and SSD.

Will your programing be CPU intensive?

 

I'm still on the first year, but I want to have something as future proof as possible.

As of right now, my activities are no cpu intensive. But that may very well change in the future.

EDIT:

I suspect that p151em surface may be similar to your model, despite being older.

How's the surface of the laptop? Is yours durable?

 

Then for the sake of being future proof, I would definitely get the better CPU. I also didn't think I would need the better CPU so I chose the
i7 2630QM, kind of regret it now.

You could upgrade your hdd/sdd and RAM yourself down the road if the situation calls for it. I did.

Yes, I've had the experience of both rubber (from the Acer Ferrari 4005WLMi) and plastic. I prefer the plastic cause it's much more smooth when you run your hand over it and doesn't collect dust like the rubber chassis. Dirt just falls off for my P151HM1 and doesn't cling to the material like rubber.

Is it durable? For my purposes, yes. I would lift the laptop from the left side when facing the screen or hold it from the center when closed.

 

Ok, I'll pull the plug and get the 3720, I believe I'll forget the 130€ as time goes on.

Thanks for the input, I don't plan on mistreating the computer, but I'll using it at University and I'll transport it rather frequently, so durability is a concern.

 

If your coding C++, Java etc etc, there won't be a need for 3720QM at all, especially not in a school waste of money IMHO. A slightly better clock, that's almost it..

 

That's the only difference between the i7 3720 and the 3610?

Ohhh..



I'm lost now.

Can I overclock the i7 3610?

 

Unless you are compiling massive programs, you won't see a difference between them. You won't be able to overclock the CPU unfortunately. But really, the 3610 should be plenty.

 

No. Only "xm" cpus (e.g. i7-3920xm) have unlocked multipliers. So for the current mobile Ivy Bridge cpus you can only (meaningfully) overclock the i7-3920xm and not anything else.

 

Ok, thanks for the input guys.

I'll settle for the 3610QM CPU, and I'll save it for a SSD upgrade down the road.

 

and XM is not supported on that model

 

if the choice is between a slightly faster CPU or a massively faster SSD, def go with SSD

 

yes a SSD would yield more visible benefits than a slightly faster CPU

 

Here's my final configuration:

intel i7 3610QM
60 Gb SSD
500 Gb Hybrid HDD
nvidia gtx 660M
8Gb of Ram

I'll buy a external DVD burner for 20 euros just in case. Also, I won't invest on another 8Gb of ram, I'll upgrade when I feel like I need it.

Thanks a lot for your feedback, I believe I'm making the right decision.

Any thoughts about the build?

As the HDD is for storage only, do you think that the hybrid version will be useful? Or should I just get a normal HDD with 750Gb?

 

These days the sweet spot for SSD is at the 120-128GB range: performance-per-cost and cost-per-GB. Higher performance starts to level at around 120GB - 180GB at least in the case of Intel 520.

 

Hey SynapseR and GL with your buy!

I have done a lot of research about this laptop aswell. Since i game i lot, i want 7970M and i7 3720QM in it. All the rest is not important to me. So im getting the least expensive solution on HDD,DDR3 etc. I can upgrade those by myself any day, plus i have SSD waiting.
The question for me is from who to buy? I live in EU, so US, Asia is not an option to me. It will just cost too much.
From EU i found mysn.de and couple of others. However no one of them has i7-3 + 7970M available to order yet. So i must wait...

If anyone knows where to get this amazing laptop the cheapest, please inform me too.

Thank you!

 

I bought mine in a Portuguese rataler: WSI

Home | WSI Bytes & Gadgets - Portáteis à sua medida - Loja Online - Asus, Clevo, Sony, Toshiba, Dell, HP, Samsung, Compal, Apple

I don't know where do you specifically live though.

Also, does the p151em support two HDD's without sacrificing the optical drive?

 

Nope, you get mSATA + 1 HDD + optical bay. You'd have to lose the optical bay if you wanted another full size HDD.

 

How about a HDD + SSD?

I have an eye on the samsung 830 120 Gb.

 

Sure, but you'd still have to sacrifice the optical drive and replace it with a caddy instead. The SSD will give the best speeds in the primary bay (SATA 3) with the mechanical HDD in the optical caddy.

 

Thanks for the input.

 

Google "Compare i7-3610QM, i7-3720QM site:intel.com" > Intel Compare i7-3610QM, i7-3720QM > Ctrl+F "VT-d" shows why some choose the i7-3720QM: VT-d (Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O) should improve performance and reliability of virtualization; and with such a machine (Clevo p151em1), particularly if coding (hence opening a lot of various sites if you are careful), you will sure open one or more VMs and need they run fast and reliably.

Also see All Intel VT-d processors.

Versailles, Sat 07 Jul 2012 10:14:00 +0200