Did Eurocom mislead me/ GPU Question

I just received my laptop and despite the specs indicating I would receive a Nvidia GTX 280M GPU, the NVidia panel reports that I have a GeForce 9800M GTX installed in my notebook. Are they the same? If not, which is better and why?

 

I just received my laptop (Clevo M570) from Eurocom and despite the specs indicating I would receive a Nvidia GTX 280M GPU, the NVidia panel reports that I have a GeForce 9800M GTX installed in my notebook. Are they the same? If not, which is better and why?

 

The GTX 280M is newer and better in pretty much every way. If you ordered one but got a 9800M GTX, you're getting ripped off.

 

They are not the same. The GTX 280M is better. I would suggest contacting them and asking for a GTX 280M.

 

Download GPU-Z to verify your card. It could be older drivers reporting the information incorrectly. If they sent you a model with a 9800M GTX, send it back, as the 280M is a better card via more shaders (+16), and die shrink.

 

they are not the same. the 9800m gtx has 112 shaders (same as gtx 260m) while the gtx 280m has 128 shaders. i think you got the wrong card man.

 

But do what electrosoft says before going berserk on Eurocom

 

The GTX 260M is a die shrunk, overclocked 9800M GTX. The GTX 280M is a die shrunk, overclocked consumer version FX 3700M. The main differences are 16 shaders more (128 vs. 112), lower process (55nm vs. 65nm), and clock speeds (GTX 280M > GTX 260M > FX 3700M > 9800M GTX).

 

Thanks everyone. Downloaded GPU-Z and yup, they screwed me by sticking in there an older card. The interesting thing is that when we were price matching, after having agreed to price match in CAD $, they said I would have to add the exchange rate or else they would downgrade the system (and one of the changes mentioned was exactly this card.) Also, I told the salesperson (also the president of Eurocom) to make sure I got everything EXACTLY as outlined in the specs.... Wow, Im gonna write a very transparent review about Eurocom's sneaky ways...stay tuned. In the meantime, I've emailed him and told him about this and that it should not be at my expense to get this fixed (they are located in a different city). We'll see what happens...

 

To be honest with you, I look forward to seeing your review on Eurocom. Those sneaky Canadians think they can get away with slipping a 9800M GTX into your well invested M570TU.

 

It could just be an honest mistake.

 

Wow that sucks, ask for the change and even compensation!

 

the proverbial " we told you so" I tried my best to steer you clear! but on the plus side, a lesson learned by one is learned by us all; that, and at least you're close enough to visit in person should things get "ugly".

 

Well, the GTX280M is based on the 9800GTX+, still a nice chip. Everything seems to be okay in your case

 

I will ask that they rectify this. Lets see how good their customer service is ...

 

good luck. another day another story about them.

 

Ask for a discount. I got one, when they ran out of the 9600M GT's that I requested to be installed in my M860TU.

 

I had a lot of problems with Eurocom, same GPU problem where I ordered one card but got another, and the hassle they gave me about fixing their error, as well as a problem where they lied to me about a screen replacement they had to do because it was defective. I had to send it back to them twice before they actually replaced the damn thing. lol The first time I sent it they told me they replaced it, even made out a receipt saying it was replaced, but in fact sent me back the exact one I sent in, hoping I wouldn't notice. There were some distinguishing marks on the screen that I never mentioned to them that mysteriously happened to be in the exact same spots on the replacement screen, there was no doubt it was the exact same screen...

I urge you to get a refund if you can, and buy from someone else. I personally will never buy from them ever again, they are a BS company with no customer service skills, and I recommend that everyone avoid them, seriously, they are the absolute worst company I have ever dealt with, they are sneaky and devious, and they do not care about the customer, or their reputation..

If you want a Clevo I highly recommend Powernotebooks.com, or even XoticPC. They have some of the best prices around, and great customer service with reps who frequent the forums here, and can help you out when you need it, the next Clevo I buy will be from one of them.

 

Don't forget GenTech, or if you like unbranded barebones, RJTech.

 

I agree sounds like you got boned for the card

I would be going balistic

 

That really blows when you look forward to your machine arriving and then find out what's in it isn't what you ordered. Good luck!

 

I don't see how this can be an intentional mistake, since Eurocom charges more for the 9800M GTX than the GTX 280M. Unless they were out of 280s and just gave you a 9800M GTX lol. Or again they are very very mean and gave you a lower card at their expense just to tick you off

 

Good point, the 9800M GTX was the pinnacle of laptop GPU's pricewise.

 

Here is the reply I got from the salesperson (also the company President):

Please bring notebook back to our location today
In fact 9800gtx is better specs than Gtx 280 and its more expensive
Your order was with 280 and this is our production error

Im confused now....is the 9800M GTX better than the GTX 280M???? Or is the GTX 280M better yet less expensive????????

Does anyone have links to comparison charts or benchmarks? If the 9800M GTX is more expensive, then I would guess it is better...and therefore, I will just stick to that one...

 

I think that's just them being sneaky man. The GTX 280M is most definitely a better card.
Figure, if they make a lesser card more expensive, uneducated people will still pay extra for it thinking it's the best.
Then, when they pull stuff like they did on you, they can convince you that their error benefits you.
But it doesn't. Don't get me wrong, the 9800M GTX is a great card. But the GTX 280M is nVidia's best mobile card right now.

 

I can't believe it

Do not stay with the 9800M GTX, the GTX 280M is the direct upgrade from the 9800M GTX. The GTX 280M is the most powerful nvidia gpu on the market right now (geForce family). You can look up the processor cores on nvidia's page and also the ranking of each : http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_m_series.html

If you want benchmarks, I am sure someone can do it on his M570TU, but until then I can give you notebookcheck's gpu benchmark, although it isn't 100% accurate : http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html

Hell, I'm pretty sure my GTX 260M is better than the 9800M GTX.

 

Whoever replied to you, must have just looked at the price and assumed it was better. The 9800M GTX is not better than the GTX 280M, it has less shaders, lower clocks, and a less-efficient die size.

 

My guess is the sales person saw the higher price and assumed it was better. More than likely a supply/demand issue with the price.

 

the 9800m GTX is more expensive because it actually cost more to make then the 280 m because of the production process

 

lol you could tell them to go f**** themselves, sell the 9800m gtx here and get a cheaper 280 m online That way they lose out on the transaction and you even gain some money back. However thatll probably give you trouble in a warranty case and you'd be without a graphics card till you find a 280 m

The best thing to do is to go there, raise hell because you got a worse graphics card, make them give you a 280m and maybe a 30gb ssd or something to make up for it.

 

Street prices for the 9800M GTX are lower than the GTX 280M. It would be better for the OP to let Eurocom fix their mistake and reimburse him round trip shipping at minimum.

 

I have no idea how this moron is actually a company president, next he'll tell you a 1.66ghz atom processor is better than the 1.6ghz mobile core i7s being released soon.

The GTX 280m is the updated version of the 9800gtx, it is better in every way, and for the moment, the most powerful card on the market (real gddr5 4870's still not showing themselves) - so either Eurocom were staffed by incompetent fools, or they were purposefully trying to screw you over and hope you wouldn't notice.

I'd call them about this and don't let some d*^b!ss salesperson try to convince you that you got the better end of the deal - they should either compensate you for giving you a worse gpu, pay for the proper upgrade to gtx 280m (including shipping - and not take months while they are at it) or pay for you to return it and give a full refund.

 

Not quite. The 280M is based on the G92 b, a direct translation of the desktop scene's 9800GTX+, a claim which the FX 3700M cannot make. The two cards are related, but the GTX 280M does not spring directly from the Quadro chip.

The 4870 GDDR3 is reportedly its superior.

 

Thanks for all your replies....I will be going in person to Eurocom next month because I need to travel to that city anyway to see family. I will keep being polite until the proper GPU has been put in (and I will verify!).

But then, watch out... I will be filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, as well as writing a full review of my experience with them here so that nobody gets screwed by them. Although they are not a member of BBB, they still have a rating of A with them and considering all the negative comments left here about how they do things, I would invite anyone else to file a complaint with the BBB.

 

so whats the prob, a production error

things happen and happen to all companies

they said it would be corrected

sounds like your mind has been made up

 

Really... onebyside said pretty much everything.... sure there are a lot of bad comments here about them.... but it seems a lot because only the customers who had problems wrote... this could represent a very small amount of their total customers... and as he said, no one is perfect... humans make mistake... but they said they would fix it.... so now, before getting even more angry, wait after the replacement...

 

Do not leave without making sure they installed the right GPU...
I don't know why companies do these sort of things without contacting the person
OK they might have made a mistake on installation but to blatantly lie by saying the 9800M GTX is a better card is crazy.( Before all you 9800 M GTX owners kill me it is a great card but not as good as the 280M GTX)
I would never ever buy a laptop from EUROCOM because I have heard way to many similar stories.

 

lol This is more than a mistake, in my situation and how they handled it, it became clear this sort of thing is the norm for them. I honestly believe putting in the wrong video card was NOT a mistake, it was done deliberately, that's just how Eurocom rolls, they did it to me, and now they are doing it to him, it's seems to be their strategy for moving old stock.

I will never buy from Eurocom again, and I strongly urge all others who read this and have not ordered from Eurocom yet to STAY AWAY from them, and if you are within your 30 day period, send it back and get a refund, then buy from a reputable dealer like Powernotebooks, Xotic, RJ Tech, etc..

 

You're marginalizing (and given your recent purchase, it's no mystery why); disfavourable reviews have cropped up an inconspicuous number of times for Eurocom. Even if only the bad reports made it to these forums (and I assure you that is not the case given their BBB rating), surely you realize there is a disproportionate number of bad reports compared to most other resellers (how many bad reports can you find from XoticPC on here?)

Now I know you've recently purchased from Eurocom, and it's not to say they'll attempt the same chicanery on you, but suffice to say, I've implored you many times in the past to reconsider, and despite obvious personal investment in seeing metro's plight resolved, I think it's better you face facts and stop marginalizing despicable behaviour.

 

Benefit of the doubt went out the window with the despicable attempt at convincing him that the 9800 is superior to the card he payed for. It really, really bothers me that the 2nd largest Clevo reseller in North America would stoop to such blatant lies.

I wonder how many people have fallen for that shenanigan. It's kinda scary.

The company President ffs!

 

I buy mine from them.
They price match the competitor, even gave me free upgrade to 500 gig for my 2 h-d. Pay $200 CDN extra for my blu-ray burner UJ-230A while back then ebay was selling them $300 US. I got no problem with that laptop since I receive it. I got everything I order. That doesn't in general they going to screw everyone. They just gave you a wrong info and wrong gpu by people who did not pay attention to your order. Error happen.

 

I don't say this because I bought from them... I just try to stay impartial... So far they've been really nice with me, I got a price that was affordable for me, which I couldn't get from any US resellers due to the high shipping fees...

 

Oh come on, it has been stated like 5 times that the OP has been lied to about the 9800M GTX being more powerful than the GTX 280M. You can share your good experience, but be advise people here aren't criticizing Eurocom for a human error, but for a blatant lie to fool the customer.

 

Well, hang on fellas because that's not all.... I was keeping this for my review but if I really must spill the beans.... here's an email I got from Eurocom's president (M.B.) giving me my final price before I went ahead and made the payment...

price is $1936.34 CAD + $36 shipping + taxes
payment in CAD $

I went and made the deposit into their bank account and a few days later, M.B. emailed me saying that I still owed $200 in exchange rate because apparently the amount quoted in the email above was in US$ (I think its pretty clear that the quote is in Canadian dollars).. Otherwise, he said he could offer me a system with different specs..here's the abridged email that followed:

Since you are short of exchange rate (approx $200 CAD) for price match - I can offer you the following configuration:
M571TU Silver Trim
2M Webcam
nVidia 9800GTS
Q9000 CPU
320GB HDD w/ G-Force
4GB DDR3-1066
DVD Burner
Intel WLAN N 5300

How interesting that the nVidia 9800 card found its way back into my system. I dont think it was a mistake.

Here's the last email I got from him after I got him to finally honor his quote in Canadian dollars for the specs I had originally requested and to which he had agreed (with the GTX 280M). I quote:

I will do super favour to you and allow you to buy this system as per your understanding - with over $200 loss to Eurocom due to currency exchange rate difference.

He was obviously bitter about his "$200 loss" so I think thats why the alternate GPU was dropped in my system....but who knows... I guess its just a theory I have. I like to give people benefit of the doubt but honestly, I perceived very intentional dishonesty and attempts at screwing me many times during our negotiations (saying or writing one thing and then coming back on his word and trying to dupe me). So Eurocom got me a good price, but the owner - VERY dishonest, in my very honest personal opinion.

 

At least they honor the quote unlike pctoque which did the same mistake to me on there system price and refuse to honor it and got the ball to send an email 3 month later after I told them to cancel my order saying my laptop is ready and if they can ship it.

 

When the President of the company is directly involved in such shady dealings, you can't trust any part of it.

 

The 9800M GTS is less powerful than the 9800M GTX, it isn't the same card. But it is understandable from them to give you this one to lower price. But I've dealt with Eurocom and I can tell you they really don't look organized at all. So it is possible they mixed the currency, or that their system gave the wrong currency. But yeah, it could be intentional too. If it were me, I would of asked a refund and go to xoticpc lol Just imagine something like that when sending in your unit for repairs..

 

Is there a way to check whether the Hard Drive installed has GeForce protection? I ordered that feature but I'd like to check to see if they indeed put that in my system....

 

Check the name in Device Manager or HDTune; I believe you'll see a G at the end of its name.

 

Thanks...I think its right. Ends with G. Whew!