Dell 1730 or Sager 9262?

Hello all,

I've been reading these forums for about a month now since I decided to get myself a new laptop. I had been leaning towards a Sager after reading these forums and others, and all of the positive reviews for them. However, it seems that the Dell is now of comparable price and performance.

I'm looking for a laptop that will play graphics intensive games, and that will hopefully be future proof to the extent that it's possible. Since I am in Canada, one of the factors I am considering is the warranty, and how easy/quick it is to get it serviced.

I have two configurations, and to my surprise, the Dell is about $190 more expensive, but has a better warranty, larer hard drive. The only difference is the CPU, desktop vs mobile.

Dell 1730
CPU: Intel Core 2 Extreme X7900 (2.8ghz, 4mb cache, 800 FSB)
4 GB RAM
Nvidia 8800gtx in SLI
400GB HD (2x200 GB HD 7200rpm) in Raid 0
Warranty: 3 year, next business day, on site care, complete care
$4329 CAD

Sager 9262
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 (3.0ghz, 4mb cache, 1333 FSB)
4 GB RAm
Nvidia 8800gtx in SLI
200 GB HD (2x100 GB HD 7200rpm) in Raid 0
Warranty: 3 year, return to depot service +30 day no dead pixel warranty
$4144 CAD

So, in the end, I am left questioning whether the higher clocked desktop CPU with a greater FSB is worth it, considering that the extreme version in Dell should be overclockable anyway (I've read it getting to 3.2ghz with no problems)

Isn't the GPU the bottleneck anyway for most laptops nowadays, so I'm left wondering whethere there will even come a time when my CPU is what is limiting me.

I could go with the quad core in the 9262 for more future proofing, but this makes it slightly more expenive than the dell.

I could also go with the penrynn chip in the dell (2.5ghz, 6mb cache) and save around $600 CAD as well.

I am just looking for advice as to whether there is something I am missing here.

I've posted this in the Sager forums because I would like some input from Sager owners.

Thank you.

 

What do you intend/reasonably expect to be doing with the notebook? That, more than anything else (other than subjective taste) is probably the most useful item of information for evaluating your options.

 

I would be using the rig to play MMRPGs and RTS mainly. For example, I am looking forward to Age of Conan, I would also want to play Supreme Commander.

 

I hate Dell ..my girl has a work contract with Dell and we get them for free and i have had nothing but BS with all the dells we get...Go Sager or Gateway FX.

 

Past say a t2600 in terms of Real World... you don't need anything better to play games at their FULLEST!

having a quad core or these new super proc's just inflate your 3dmark score or calculate super pi faster...

yes you can encode a movie in 2 hours.. yay!

But for GAMING. you dont need more than say a t2600/t7200.... dual core.

anything more and you are hitting a ceiling.

 

I'd personally recommend the Sager. The Dell has little or no edge over it. And check out www.xoticpc.com for good deals on it

 

except SLI. I would call that an big edge.

 

What are you talking about ?!? The Sager NP9262 has SLi support with it's own dual 8800M GTX.

Atleast read the OP's own post (the first one) ...

 

um... everyone should know that the Clevo D900C (aka Sager 926x) was the first high-end DX10 SLI notebook.. with MXM-IV.

It still retains its crown as the world's fastest notebook, with the 8800M GTX in SLI (when Nvidia finalizes the working drivers/config) it will be even faster.

 

Yup Not to mention the Sager Np9262 supports Quad Core CPUs. Take that Dell !!

 

Asking opinions on a Sager biased forum is not really the best place to go for good advice........

Speaking as one who has ordered the Sager 9262 experience has taught me never to repeat this action...........contrary to those on here who hate Dell for no apparent reason!

For starters they bang on about Dell using proprietary technology - well, yes this is true for their desktops - and quite frankly - to take a 20-pin ATX connector on a power supply and reverse wire it to force you to either - jerry-rig or purchase a new dell PSU is absolutely bang out of order.

But face it - this is the only real area where Dell has caused affray - everywhere else where you see proprietary 'Dell' technology is in places where it is completely unimportant - for example - it's not like Dell changed the connector on a hard drive so that only 'Dell approved' hard drives work is it?

Oh I hear some mention proprietary power sockets - well, you can't count Clevo out of that one there - I own a D900T and getting a 'compatible' power supply for it will be an absolute 'B*tch!' and why - because they are not that popular! - then you learn what it's like at the other side of the blade - knowing that your laptop is not popular enough to merit 'general' upgrades!

Most people who use a laptop heavily damage either - the laptop power socket, or the power supply itself - so these should be items that you should be able to buy from a local store - but because it's a Clevo you've got no chance! (I ordered my PSU for my D900T from Germany at a cost of nearly $200)

I own a Clevo (D900T) but I see things as they are, not how I want them to be - Dell have got there with the XPS - even owners of older XPS with 8700's can upgrade to 8800 without a motherboard replacement!

The so called 'non-proprietary' Clevo requires a new motherboard to accomplish such a task! - Dell 1 - Clevo 0

If you want my advice - the m17x from Alienware will be out soon, and does run non-proprietary technology - maybe then you can have the best of both worlds.

Because - in theory the 9262 is the world's fastest laptop - but is also he world's slowest laptop to be released with 8800 SLi therefore by the time it comes out - no doubt the Dell or Alienware will be there to steal it's thunder once again.

Food for thought from a non-biased Clevo owner

 

Regarding the Clevo MXM "issue" please see my recent post here (I really don't feel like retyping the whole thing again ).

EDIT: By-the-by, just in case anyone wants confirmation of the "wonders" of Dell's so-called customer "service," one might want to check out this post. Will wonders never cease? On the other hand, as I seem to recall, the posts on this forum regarding the willingness of Clevo/Sager resellers, such as xoticpc.com and powernotebooks.com, to replace and/or upgrade components on the fly are legion.

I'll leave it to others to decide whether this factor weighs in favor of Clevo/Sager or D"h"ell.

 

currently the 8800 doesn't have SLI on the 9262

duh.

it's not supported nor available yet.

 

note that it really does not matter, because unitil nvidia releases the drivers, Full Sli power will not be there....

Anyways, dear andy, do you own an XPS? I for one often use my dads Dell Precision M90, which the XPS m17x0 is based off upon. If i compare both, the Sager that i owns wins in everything except build quality, for it is a buis class nb. Furhtermore, to the OP, look at it this way. The Dell is 10.5 pounds. The sager is 11. For 0.5 pounds more, you are getting QC, better design and better service. Also, if i do remember correctly, there was a thread posted here not to long ago doinga direct comparsion of the two, ill post it if i find it.

 

amen, that's right Dell didn't make their folks upgrade their mobo.

they wouldn't get away with that.

but ur right. this is the clevo forum. and 99.9999% of people will be biased.

dell has wicked service for XPS people.

of course there is the odd person with a horror story, it goes the same for clevo.

XPS has the highest level of service.

there's people with gen2 xps with CC and they died and got a new decked out XPS m1730 replacement.

with CC you can crap on your laptop and they will replace.

sager. clevo. i think not.

service is top notch with dell.

and if I wasn't a cheap basstarde I would buy a m1730 in a heartbeat.

but I am a cheapo cheap cheap cheap.

that's why I will get a d901c.

and will enjoy it too.

but...

 

Beleive me, dell does not have great service compared to people like Xoticpc

 

Someone I know dropped their xps m1710 in the bathtub.
he had 7900gs 120gb hdd 2gb ram

they gave him a m1730 dual 8800gtx 4gb ram raid 500 etc.

no reseller would do that.

never.

he not only got a next gen way way better notebook. he got all the parts way better than he had before.

no reseller would give you a new laptop for your mistake.

Dells CC warranty would every single time.

XPS with Complete Care trumps all.

anyways.

I'm getting a clevo.

because it's pretty awesome. and even probably more powerfull than Dell.

but it's affordable.

that's the only reason i'm getting one.

 

they gave it to him for free? no way...

 

Talk about oxymorons

 

yes, but beleive me i know dell and they would not do that for free

 

That was aimed at Dexgo.

But yes, Dell would not give away new gen laptops just because you broke your last one. They would replace it with stock or parts similar in price.

 

Thank you all for your feedback. I posted on the sager forum because I am a bit biased as well, but I figured that it might be the best place to get people who know Sager well.

I think the more I read it comes down to the "best" can be a very subjective thing!

 

There is so many pros and cons between these to. Now when the price is almost the same, as you wrote, it seems almost impossible to choose based on performance, warranty and spec.

I would go for the one you think looks best. That's one thing that really seperate these two. And you're the only one who knows what you will like.. You wont notice 100 points difference in 3dmark. The design is something that you will see every day. Good Luck

 

umm you are soo wrong dude.

read some threads over @ notebookforums in the dell forum.

it is happening all the time.

they don't have m1710's anymore

and there is a whole thread about how dell is upgrading equal or better parts.

i am serious.
here's proof

http://www.notebookforums.com/thread212693.html

http://www.notebookforums.com/thread212310.html

http://www.notebookforums.com/thread211069.html

http://www.notebookforums.com/thread210000.html
there is many many more

and those range from gen2 xps the m170, e1705 and m1710 all replaced with DELL Warranties./ CC

open-your-minds. that's some wicked service right there.

 

I heard of their replacement program, I just never thought they`d actually replace it with their newest stuff.

Tip my hat to dell for that, although I don`t think it can work more than to an extent...

 

agreed. i just think that dell is too expensive and for the price... it isn't worth it.

Clevo are way better and it's funny but the price you pay for dell... dell isn't worth that price but you think clevo would be..

i'm glad clevo costs less.

 

Gah this is a tough one!

The clevo is technically cheaper if you don't get the quad core.

Now I'm wondering whether getting the clevo with the quad core will better future proof my machine for new games down the road, or whether it is best to get a higher clocked dual core.

I've heard that now, with the advent of multiple cores, it will matter less and less what clock speed they are at rather than the amount of processors. 2.6ghz for the current quad core seems fast enough for most single thread games, so when the multithread games come out, will it still be better than a 3.2ghz dual core?

I guess at some point either the GPU will be the bottleneck or the CPU. I'm just wondering whether getting a quad core will extend that time or not.

 

Getting a quad-core would be optimal... because new and future games/apps are all multi-threaded (to fully utilize all cores in a CPU)... as compared to older apps/games that were mainly single-threaded (or unoptimized multi-threading).

 

I wouldn't exactly say it isn't worth it - if Dell replace faulty laptops with newer, better models as part of their warranty - That for me is the reason why Dell is the best! - despite being a lower spec machine.

for a few years I always had iiyama monitors - although they have/had a reputation for high specification - I personally could not say the same for the build quality - BUT their warranty was fantastic!

I had a Vision Master Pro 450 (20" Diamontron) - which had the lower third of the picture slightly out of focus. Rang iiyama and 48 hours later a replacement Vision Master Pro 450 arrived, which actually was worse than the one I had, so I phoned iiyama - and their response - a brand new Vision Master Pro 451 (Diamontron NF)

After I sold the Vision Master Pro 451 - I bought a 2nd hand Vision Master Pro 452 - after approx 6 months it burnt out - and iiyama tried to pawn me off with an older monitor with a blurred picture - which I phoned them up immediately - and 48 hours later they sent me a Brand new Visionmaster Pro 452.

All of this was free of charge - they send the courier with the replacement and they collect the old one. now that's what I call service.

Dell does match that service - this I know first hand and second hand.

You say Clevo are way better...........please describe in which way?

Is it the performance? - there's not that much difference between the 3 to be honest - but yes, the Clevo wins by a bigger margin than the AW would over the Dell.

Is it build quality? - if my D900T is anything to go by - despite it's motherboard failure I think the build quality is on a par with the Dell.

The looks perhaps - now that's kudo's to the Dell

in hindsight I'd still probably go with the Dell, as the good deal I get with the Sager isn't quite as good as you think, when you take into account that Dell will replace old for new with their warranties.

 

dell and warranty is the reason why I got a dell. i just can't afford one with 8800 now. but I can afford a barebone clevo with 8800.

like i said before If I had 4000.000 I would get sli 8800 in the m1730.

but I only have like 2.5k so...

clevo is cheaper. I get barebone for 2400 shipped with tax. with single 8800.

throw in a 250.00 q6600. and I allready have the blu ray drive/ram and 320gb hdd + a couple 100 72k's...

then I get a pretty good PC for cheap.

I am a cheap bastard.

If I had the cash I would get the dell in a heartbeat and I've said this before.

 

Lets stay on the subject. Dell vs Sager

I have just checked dell.com just to refresh my memory on that 1730

First I would strongly recoment on quad if you worry about future.
Something that Dell wont offer yet. And Second Dell still uses old
slower ram.

Not to mention that Sager has for 5793 x9000 and not that old x7800

And as for customer service you wont have to speak with some guy in
the India with Sager unlike Dell. I have a friend with xps and he was not
happy with customer service cause guy in the India had no clue what
he was doing.

Also Dell does NOT offer desktop cpu like x6800

If you worry about performance then Sager is your choice.
IF you want brand name that you can trust then Dell would be yours.

 

hmm, maybye i should pull one of those off and see for myself...

 

I don't know why there is all the Dell hate on the sager boards. I own and operate an IT consulting firm and have worked with Dell for my clients for years. Just earlier this year I had them replace a server for a client that had multiple service calls and was pissing me off. They replaced a 2.5 year old server with a new one that was 3x as good or more than the old one.

Sure I've had to work my way up to supervisors but I have NEVER had dell fail to give me pretty much anything I wanted support wise.

Plus Dell sends out parts over night, and if you want they send a technician to your house to install them. It's hard to find service like that on anything.

Like I said I just don't understand where all the Dell hate comes from. All that said in a month or so I'll probably be buying a Clevo because right now Dell doesn't have anything in the same class as the M570.

 

its not hate...
its just facts. Dell is overpriced.

 

I would say overpriced for XPS systems and upgrade options... but the Dell basic configs (for most of their systems) are quite well-priced... as long as you do not do the upgrades through them.

 

And I hate the fact that they only offer DUAL GPUs on their configurator and not single! I know you can call them and crap! But who wants to !?

 

^thats kinda dumb.

dual is better than single. and it's the opposite for Clevo right NOW.

they only offer single.

and you can get single 8700's from dell. just not 8800's.

you hate them for that?

hmm..

each their own.

and This is 9260 vs m1730. and essentially SLI vs SLI.

that's one of the #1 reasons people want these notebooks. and arguably the only reason. and yes they have 3hdd's and desktop proc's. but SLI is the Win.

most peeps and if not all peeps. would have gotten or did get SLI right from the getgo..

and the Only reason they got SINGLE. is because thats the only fricken option clevo is offering people right now.

also. the 8800's in Dell's situation are essentially 1 card dude. so atleast they did release a "working" SLI to it's people... MOBO upgrade notwithstanding.

 

What the hell!?! Not everyone wants SLi! I WANT only a single GPU even with the Sager 5793... And Dell doesn't offer that.

 

did you take a wrong turn?

look at the sign.

9262 ----m1730.

this thread is about d901c SLI and m1730 SLI.


not 5793... :S

SLI vs SLI solutions.

you can get a single 8700 in the m1730 btw.

atleast they are trying to offer options.

but the m1730 and d901c are powerhouses.

and are made for SLI. and SLI only.

 

Yeah so ?
Gophn posted about Dell being overpriced. I mentioned another downside and that's it! I know what this thread is about

 

Dell aren't overpriced - not when you consider that, the overpriced prices of their systems come complete with the famous Dell warranty that means that you will get the same if not better system should yours break down the line.

If you remove that Dell warranty - you are then entering Sager/Clevo territory, where you buy a laptop and hope it doesn't break, and when it does, all you Dell owners will get a shiny new unit while us Clevo owners will have to make do with the same - outdated notebooks.

Believe me, I have seen the light - just maybe too late in the day to do anything about.

Xotic would prefer Paypal to do a refund - unfortunately I can't have paypal, as someone purchased an item from me on ebay, and used a stolen credit card to pay for it - in those instances - Paypal always rule against the seller, so no, I can't accept Paypal for a refund, just a wire transfer back to my bank, and the risks are too high that the money might end up elsewhere other than my account - so yes, unfortunately, I've got to see this through by the looks of things.

 

There are hardly any games today that use dual core. By the time quad-core optimized games are released, all our current notebooks will be obsolete.

Quad-core are currently of no use for gaming; they are useful for certain tasks, such as multimedia creation or video processing.

 

I have a XPS170 and D109C (will do upgrade once SLi 8800M is out). I really got screwed over on the Dell XPS170 and never going back to Dell. The Clevo (in my sig) is not perfect ... placement of some ports like USB port aren't great for example. But it's damn fast as notebooks go, has desktop CPUs and I have RAID-5. Ah, had to get a rolly bag for the airport hiking as its not a light notebook by any stretch of the imagination. Overall I have been very happy with my Clevo, and service at Xpotic PC where I bought mine is great. About the only thing I was not happy with so far was the whole mobo upgrade thing ... but in the end the pricing on that is not all bad, its more the pain of not having my notebook for a couple days that makes me unhappy. But is seems Sager is looking after there customers with the mobo discounts ... so still happy here.

 

Very good to hear!

 

I think taht a small amount of pop are given new nb, for dell to become more popular, otherwise, smarta$$es like me would have gotten 2 XPS's by now

 

wow, so the best thing about Dell, is the fact that you can take advantage of the replacement policy?

Also the fact that you can COUNT on it breaking and having to warranty it?

They are not overpriced BECAUSE you can have it replaced for free if it breaks? That means that you are paying IN ADVANCE for your replacement laptop, IF it breaks. That is a quite a premium for insurance.

Time to arrange for my laptop to break every 2 years so I can get a new free one from Dell. I own a few dells and now a new Sager.

This reminds me of that scene in Tommy Boy where Tommy is trying to sell brake pads and the guy will not buy his brake pads unless he has a guarantee on it.

"Why do they put a guarantee on the box then?

'Cause they know all they sold you was a guaranteed piece of ****. That's all it is, isn't it? Hey, if you want me to take a dump in a box and mark it guaranteed I will, I got spare time....but for now, for your customer's sake, for your daughter's sake, you might wanna think about buying a quality product from me."

I'm not poo-pooing Dell, I have been a Dell supporter for many years. I have had Dell laptops fail and I have had warranty service done on them.

If you want to compare service between companies, that is one thing.

Leave that separate when comparing the qualities of actual laptops.

 

no dude,

it's very good and is apart of service of DELL.

If my laptop breaks by my own crap. and I paid for COMPLETE CARE.

I get a new or better quality laptop.

that's service right there.

don't twist it.

theres no loopholes.

Dell Created this service and policy and have been doing it for years and years.

CC isn't that expensive. maybe like 400. but it's well worth it.

Dell can afford to do it. as a good service for it's customers.

People like to know if they drop their own laptop in the bath by accident.

they will get a new one.

I think it's a unique and awesome service. No other Company can do. no matter how little and mom & pop like or boutique...

they stand out for it.

and yes, there is people that will take advantage of it. but such is life.

get over it.

Dell has it. nobody else does or can or probably ever will.

 

One thing that can also be noted is the kind of personal service you get with Sager or its resellers. You are not transferred to some other country for support and the level of personal attention you get can not be matched. Dell does offer some additional service options. However when relying on phone support you likely have to go through menu after menu to finally get to a representative where when you call for support on a Sager machine you will likely get a live support representative immediately after the phone is picked up. (This is support you dont pay extra for)

 

Very true indeed! Justin himself has been extremely friendly in the past and I cannot thank him enough for that! Where else are you going to get such a customer-seller relationship ? At Dell "customer care" ? I don't think so!
I myself am new to the laptop world (and therefore am no biased fanboi, just a realist)... and am amazed by how this tiny yet growing Sager community looks out for it's members very carefully and lovingly. Not only are the sagers VERY reasonably priced, there's a touch of personal concern exerted from the resellers, and that's what makes it so much better than large corporations like Dell, to whom you're "just another customer", but to a Sager reseller, you're family!

 

Yes, it is a good service. It does not mean Dell produces quality laptops though, that is my point.

And as people are saying in this thread. You do not buy Dell because they have good laptops, you buy Dell because your Dell laptop will break and Dell has excellent replacement policies and you have no problems paying for that.