Clevo's P150HM vs P170HM

Hello, everyone.

I have Clevo M860ETU for last ~2,5 years, and it's time to pass it to a three with monkeys, cos I'm not able to play in modern games anymore with it.
Now, when there is hype over ATi 6990M I'm thinking to buy a new Clevo.

As fas as I see there is only two modern candidates P150HM and P170HM.
What is bothering me with mine 15.6" it's superhot. I mean it. Playing Witcher2/GTA4 makes VC/CPU to be 94-103C (~30C in room; When its cold 16-20 in room then temps are 88-92C in NB). Really hard to play in this condition. It's super hot and it's throttling like a hell.
I know that cooling system is total crap in M86, but have they really fixed in 15" format for P150HM?

So I've said to myself that 17" is not so big difference from 15" if the cooling is much more better.

I'm wonder what are temps for 150 and 170 with ATi 6990M (or same from nVidia's level) and let's say CPU 2720QM (is it okay chose or there is better solution regards CPU/Price?).

What else is wondering me.
When these "new" models are gonna to die? Cos I remember when I've bought mine one, which was just released (M860TU was before) after next 6 month they released some new W model, and little bit later these P1XXHM series. And with it all I can't do any normal update of my VC cos it's MXM 2 crap. So, it was a pretty dead notebook on release date, which is my mistake that I didn't complete my research about M860ETU.
I don't want the same story to happen again. As in result, in new models there is MXM 3. Any news about MXM4? I'm wounder will I suck in January 2012, when Clevo (Ati/Nvidia) will release something better with no possibility for me to upgrade to this better.

Many thanks in advance.

 

Temps you don't need to worry about, as the M860ETU you have was only able to take lower wattage video cards, same with my W860, it can only handle the 75W cards. the 6990M is still somewhat elusive when it comes to Clevo models, we don't have much information yet about temps, only with the Alienware models. Our Mythlogic rep said he was seeing around 90C with the 6990M in the 8150/P150HM, which would be a tad hot, but not a deal breaker. You can consult that thread, and I will link it here for you. http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/592906-ati-hd-6990m-49.html He did not however state in that post what the model was, but I'm pretty sure it's the P150

The new models came out right when sandybridge CPU lineup came out, and Clevo usually launches new models right along Intel's CPU launches. So whenever Ivy bridge comes around, your new models should hit the market. And so far it looks like early to mid 2012 for that. I do know of one right now called the P270WM, which will be the X7200's predecessor and will have SLI/Xfire along with LGA 2011 socket CPU I7 3800 series. Supposedly 17% more performance per clock above the current i7 9xx series. As for MXM upgrades, that is not known yet, word is clevo is prepping a board with a 130w PCI-E slot, but I'm not sure if that was MXM3.0b or not. The 6990M is a beast, and so is the 580M, even if they released new models, you're way ahead compared to when they were doing those baby steps from the 9800M GTX to the GTX 260M and GTX 280M.

The P150 and the P170 are very similar, really the only difference between the two is the screen size and the finish. That comes down to personal taste and what you're going to use the laptop for other than gaming. The 150 honestly is way more popular, and I would steer you towards it more than the 170. It's also the first 15inch Clevo that I know of to be able to run the highest end GPU's like the 17 inch laptops can, I think it's due to some new cooling engineering, and the slight change in dimensions to the laptop because of the 16:9 ratio.

Also check this out for numbers on the 580M and the 6990M http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/598992-580m-vs-6990-benchmarks.html

 

I originally chose the P150HM but then changed it to the P170HM for a few reasons:

-It's been reported the P170HM runs a bit cooler than the P150HM which is to be expected with a larger machine.
-P170HM has 5 speakers+subwoofer compared to 2 speakers+subwoofer in P150HM.
-Don't have to choose between a second hard drive or optical drive. I understand many people choose to go with a hard drive caddy in P150HM and go for a USB optical but doesn't that defeat the purpose of portability? With the P170HM I don't have to sacrifice anything: 2 HDD bays + optical.
-Bigger screen size.
-Brushed finishes on P170HM versus rubberized P150HM. I hate rubberized surfaces. On a smartphone it's fine but on a laptop it feels icky.
-Laptop never leaves the house.

If you can hold out until the next Clevo refresh, you may get MXM3 and backlight keyboard but at this point it's pure speculation. It could end up being 2 years from now.

 

Except I'd get a caddy anyways and have THREE HARDDRIVES.

 

I loved my P170HM while i had it.

 

@ Chappa'ai.....What do you mean.... "I loved my P170HM while i had it?"''

Did it die?

I am also considering between the P170HM vs the P150HM. Recently, I have seen several members with P170HM's posting some technical issues which have me concerned. Won't post the threads but I am sure you can search the forum pretty fast to see those posts.

Given the limited Testing factor yet for the new 6990m in either of these machines... I am a bit reluctant to make a decision...sigh.... I am hopeful some of the members can get back to us ASAP in regards to their results.

Mytholigic's thread regarding this card and the temps raises my eyebrow a bit. He indicated 93.5+c with thermal compound... Wonder how a p150p170 would handle that for any length of time.

Anyone have any Temps regarding the Nvidia GTX 485 or 580M for prolonged times in either machine>?

Any info would be most helpful to those itching to buy a new machine - "nudge Mythlogic, Malabal, and XoticPC for more info please!

thx

 

From everything I have read, these laptops appear to have excellent cooling. Yes, if you load them up with Crysis 2 running at max settings and play for extended periods, you'll be seeing 90c, but that's fairly normal from my understanding?

If you laptop is rarely ever going to move from your desk, I'd probably go the P170, but if you're planning on using it at work, or travelling with it quite frequently, I'd go with the P150.

Of course user temp reviews with the 6990 are still to come!

 

Temps with the 485m are somewhere around 40C idle and 70C-80C under load. Temps over 90C would be getting worrying, and over 95C would be worthy of an RMA. The 580m is right around the same. (this is all dependent on room ambient temps though)

 

Thank you very much Malibal #2 for that information. I guess given the temps with the 6990m @ 93.x+C and now you say Nvidia 580m @ 90+c it just makes me wonder what the upcoming games might be running such as BF3, COD, Diablo III and Skyrim.

Does the P170MH have "Better" cooling that the P150HM? Might make me chose the 170 if I go with a "hotter" vid card..

Again thanks for any more info on this

 

the main thing that made me pick the 150 over the 170 was the Resolution.

both run at 1920x1080 .. which means whatever games you have running are going to look nicer on the 15".

speaker difference i noticed .. but do you plan on using headphones ?

hard drive made no difference to me, usb optical is fine and easily portable in the case that came with the laptop.

i started my order with an 8170 then swapped over to an 8150 with matte 95% gamut and i've got to say i am SO glad that i did. the screen quality is amazing.

 

I'm sorry, but for me 1920x1080 in 15" sounds terrible.

I have 15" now and it's 1680x1050 - it's just not worth it. Extremely small window for such high resolution. Non sense.

 

IMO, the 15" isn't that small. I've seen comparison pictures, it's only a bit smaller than the 17". Why would higher resolution be bad? Higher resolutions should look good on any size of screen, no?

 

It's mean everything is so small that you forced to use Large Icons and Large Text... And this feature is not really supported by 3-rd party program and tool widely, as in result it's cutting text and buttons.

Plus, Higher resolution on such small screen means that you need to play with this resolution in games. and 1920x1080 is really hard resolution for mobile platform. No point in using it. And if you will try to downgrade your resolution it will not be the same as monitor's, and as in result picture will be blurred. Everything like in soap. Meh.
For example, I can't play Crysis1, GTA4, Witcher2 on 1680x1050 - it's just not possible due extremely low fps. I'm forced to use 1280x800 or 1360x850 to play game with something like near to normal fps. And the picture is really soapy because of not the the same resolution.

 

This topic concerns the P150HM, which can play all of those games at 1680x1050 easily (so long as it's equipped with one of the last two 'generations' of video cards, as it's likely any new purchase would be.)

I've owned both 15" and 17", and I prefer the 15", even if I travel rarely with the laptop, because when I do, the 15" is just much easier to manage. The temps quoted between the two machines seem fairly comparable. The screen on the P150HM is better. I hemmed and hawed over this very issue, and decided to go with the P150HM. I don't regret my decision in the least.

 

Do they even make native screens under 1080p anymore for these laptops? If you don't use native you'll have blurry text, so you're not really gaining much there changing that resolution. Also I have 1080p on my 15.6'' and I never change the DPI, I do however use Control+ on web pages to zoom in text, and it always saves my settings on websites I have visited so I don't have to keep zooming in. Games wise the smaller the screen with such a high resolution gives a much more crisp image since the pixels are so bunched together, compared to my 42 inch plasma my laptop's 1080p is amazingly crisp. Either way you're looking at native 1080p for either the 17 or the 15 inch laptop, and text is still going to be small on either one, it's a laptop.

 

You are absolutely wrong here. The M86 has an amazing cooling solution. At stock clocks, my 260M never goes over 80C.

It sounds like you never clean yours out, or replace the thermal paste.

 

15.6"

More portability(you can go to work/school/travel/anywhere)and belive me, you´ll want it more than you think.

More battery(not such a difference for me, but it matters for some)

Better Screen Quality but smaller(not a difference when you plug it with a HDMI cable in your 32"+ TV)

Same performance(Another HD bay wont make your fps thumbs up, and actually since 150 is cheaper, you can have a better performance for the same price)

That´s were all the things that made me decided to go with the 150 instead of a 170.

 

i'll gladly lug my 17 incher around as lug as its sturdy enough to withstand a deployment and getting tossed around in my assault pack......

speaking of durability, how are they as far as resistant to twisting and being in a non laptop back pack? army life is hard on laptops........

 

170 is heavier, which is really what makes things weak - in the event that it were to fall from say 4 feet in your bag.
I find that while sometimes 17" laptops are built a little stronger to compensate, it still doesn't make up for the fact that its bigger and heavier and have more places to break.

At least on the w870cu, the lid strength is pretty bad. It compensates by bulging outward more which is still ineffective if put under enough pressure.
A smaller size like 15.6 is much stronger.
Of course, modern LED LCDs are meant to flex I guess...

Yes, the cooling is pretty spectacular on the m860tu. You're the one who put a qx9300 in a 15.4". Back then quads were not so standard.

And thats right, its a 15.4 not a 15.6 like the p150. Now all the good clevos seem to have 2 fans, this simply wasnt very possible on 15.4. This makes the cooling really not that different on the p150 as opposed to the p170, in fact, the GPU heatsinks are exactly the same. Yes, the m570tu had MUCH better cooling than the m860tu, because the heatsinks are built entirely differently.

15.6 laptops have a bigger screen. If you've seen 1920x1200 on a 15.4, yes thats pretty small. Now instead we have a fair amount less pixels, 1080 vertical, on a bigger 15.6 diagonal.

 

My roommate just bought a 17" G73. The thing is enormous! I can only see myself using it if I had no need to ever move it from my desk. He even had to buy a new bag just to transport it from work.

 

Well, it would be true if you have <20C in room and P-series CPU or Q9000.
But with QX93 (which gives 77-88C) which is sharing cooling system with VC it never gives me anything lower then 80C for VC in playing mode.
As for cleaning/replacing. Well. No, you wrong on my account here, sorry. Notepal U3 cooling pad works on MAX.

Well, based on RJTECH prices (I've bought M860ETU from'em) difference is only 30$, which is nothing in this case.

---

Anyway, regards information that screen is better on 15". With this info I'll go for 15" then, thnx.

 

+1
Unless you have eyes like a hawk, I see no point to it..

 

If I could get the old 1920 x 1200 resolution on 170 and 90% gamut I'd go with that, but as it is I went with 150HM. It's the same resolution and 150 seems to have better quality screen options.

 

They don't make 16:10 monitors. As far as I know

 

That's not going to be a totally accurate representation of 17.3" laptops. The ASUS G-series is just HUGE relative to other laptops. Heck, their 15.6" G53 is already deeper in dimension than nearly ALL 17.3" laptops. The width will be comparable, but the ASUS G-series is just super-deep in dimension.

 

Indeed, the back end of the machine is enormous, not to talk about the mass and height of that thing.
The P170HM doesn't even compare in that size range although it's way stronger if configured correctly

 

The reason why i went with the P150HM is the size, weight and portability and the fact it has basically everything (dont care about speakers and yes it has 1 HDD bay less, but personally i dont need more, ive got the caddy if ill need to replace the OD with a second HD) the big ones have including a numpad on the keyboard which is really rare on a 15" laptop.
I expected things would be too small with 1080p on a 15" screen (i wanted to get 900p) but i have to say it looks just beautiful.
The cooling is just superb, nice separate heatsinks with good fans that keep the internals cool.

 

What are yours highest temps?

 

I havent seen them go over 76C yet on either the GPU or CPU.