How reliable are Sager laptops?

Hello.

I bought an Asus G53 a year and a half ago. The computer went to the shop at least 5 times because of the power pin breaking off, graphics card malfunctioning, and also not working out of the box when it came back from the shop. The computer could not last more than a month without being sent in.

Asus sent me a G54 as a replacement, which lasted 2 months this time, and now the power pin is getting loose/breaking (I only unplug the computer from the charger when I put it in my backpack) and the RAM is fried and can't boot up. To say the least, I'm sick of having a non-reliable computer.

I'm looking to buy a Sager, most likely the NP9150, and I was wondering if I would have unnecessary problems like these. I want to trust other companies, but after this whole deal with Asus, I'm a bit paranoid. Are Sager laptops reliable, durable, and have good longevity?

Thank you so much!

 

As far as GPUs are concerned, you needn't worry since Clevo machines usually come with very good build quality and considerably good cooling systems. They are indeed durable, and like any other laptop have good longevity if used with care. You might concern yourself with the warning in my signature, however..

 

I have a P150HM (equivalent of a Sager NP8150, the precedessor of the 9150) and i can say its the best machine ive ever had. the built quality is outstanding, i havent had any issues so far (except for two faulty RAM modules, but that was actually Corsair´s fault installed those as aftermarket upgrades) and aside from the usual wear of the keyboard keys its still looks and feels like a new laptop after approx. 14 months of usage

only potential problem: gpu upgradeability! *ugh* check my sig for more info @petition

cheers!

 

If your computer is breaking so often, you might want to check that you are handling it properly. I am, in NO WAY, doubting or blaming you for the faults. It could be that you got unlucky and were sent a bad replacement and then a bad G54 or ASUS simply sucked at the time. However, just make sure that you are not stuffing the power brick and cable into your backpack into wherever you find room and you are not using the laptop without a cooling pad at a very high ambient room temp, because this problem would then repeat with the Sagers as well.

 

Thank you all for the replies.

Honestly, I rarely move the laptop around. Whenever I unplug it I take the charger out of the wall, not the charger out of the laptop. I put it on my bed during the day and only really move it around to go downstairs (I rarely take it downstairs, and unplug everything when I do) or to put it back on the ground when I don't use it. It only goes in my backpack when I travel, and I turn it off when I do. The computer stays still most of the time, though. Every problem I've had with the computer breaking was a problem I've never had on any previous laptop.

I'll take the whole GPU not being upgradable into consideration. I appreciate the warning.

 

Considering you are coming from ASUS, Clevo will still be quite an advance when GPU upgradability is regarded, since ASUS notebooks GPUs can't be upgraded AT ALL, because they can't even be removed from the notebook, whereas in the Clevo notebooks you can still upgrade it, till certain point.

Limitations to GPU upgrade may appear when a new Clevo model replaces the model you bought, and a new generation of GPUs are released, because Clevo stops releasing BIOS updates for your model as soon as their new line of notebooks is released, so there is no assurance that the new GPUs will work with the BIOS you have.

 

I was using a G73JW from ASUS which has a GTX460M, now the new Clevo I bought is only GTX675M but I've got a taste of what a powerful gaming laptop should have been. I really should have gone for Clevo or AW at first thought rather than getting the ASUS laptop .

 

Sager/Clevo's are HORRIBLE!!!!

That's why they have such a CULT following!!!!

/sarcasm

 

i have the np8130 and the touchpad is disintegrating the coating, it looks bad.
It's a common problem. Other than that, the build quality is fairly good.

 

Asus G53 G73's are reputed to have the powerpin break off, it's scary thin too even a slight nudge would kill it. A lot of owners whined about the adapers not being angled (L shaped) and Asus and third market guys actually sold quite a few L adapters, it didn't make up for the faulty design though. G74 still has this pin in there but it's a bit sturdier. I have a G74sx machine, and the real pain in the neck with it is that clumsy numpad that is just a copy of the top row numbers who in their right minds would make a gaming laptop that copy pastes the top row number????

 

Sagers are fairly reliable

A word of advice: All those threads you see about owners with 'issues' with their laptops....keep in mind that yes, their problems are legitimate, but a far greater number of people do not post on any forums because their machines are working perfectly.

Mr. Mysterious

 

They pretty much are too busy gaming, lol. As long as you take care of it, like not spilling liquids or dropping it, then you should be good.

Might wanna look at this thread too if you are buying a Clevo/Sager laptop: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sag...ition-bios-updates-clevo-hm-model-series.html

 

I've been using the Targus one instead only just because it's angled

 

Thank you. I think an L adapter would be better, but the ones I see have those interchangeable heads. I had one of those earlier and it sparked and fried my laptop, which tech support said is quite common. How do I deal with that?

And while we're at it, Sager laptops don't normally have that issue of power pins breaking off, right? It's happened to me 3 times so far, I really don't feel like dealing with that again.

 

Sager laptops (HM to EM series) have a beefed up 4 prong adapter head, that is not only sturdy but is strong enough to follow you (laptopand all) if you were to trip on the cable. The Asus power pin will freak out and cut way before you're leg gets to the cable.

compared to the Asus this Sager one is miles ahead in terms of design and toughness, trust me you'll not have problems with it. The real problem now is waiting for a bios update from Clevo

 

the four pin variety only goes for 17"+ sager/clevos

 

yea that's why I only said HM an EM series but not the model, still a single pin version is tougher than what Asus has to offer. I don't know if that Lamborghini model of theirs still have that flaw or not

 

Thank you. So how durable are the pins for the 15" laptops? And is it a huge difference between an L and regular charger?

 

very durable indeed, havent had any problems whatsoever yet they use a thick one pin solution

cheers

 

How long has your Sager lasted for everyone who has had one? I don't upgrade my laptop very often and I'm hoping to use whatever laptop I get for 3+ years.

Currently got a Dell Studio 15 which has lasted me 2+ years. Before that, I used my Dell Inspiron 6000 which lasted me 5 years. I mainly used my laptops for work but I'm thinking about starting to game more which is why I'm looking at Sager. Just a little worried about gaming laptops not lasting as long. (Worried about the heat affecting the durability)

 

I'd say however long their longest warranty offer is; before things may start to go loopy, just based on wear n tear. Just like a vehicle from a dealership I'm sure 3-5 years will be just fine.

 

Thank you all for the input.

I did a bit more research, and it sounds like the NP9150 has a ghosting problem with W+E+Space. I'm really not sure what to think about this, as I play a lot of WoW/LoL/Diablo, so this may be a deal breaker for me.

If this is true, I may look into the NP9130, but having a GTX 670M instead of a Radeon 7970 worries me. Thoughts?

 

Actually, we found that same ghosting problem with that key combination with the NP9170 and the MSI with the SteelSeries keyboard as well.

Even the Alienware and Asus laptops had some ghosting issues, but it did not appear it was tied to the specific W+E+Space issues but we did try several key combinations just as a test and ghosting was still present in those laptops as well.

 

Ghosting problem ??

 

It's really a minor issue and only a few people have noticed it at all. It just depends on how they use the laptop and what keys they bind for gaming.

You can test it out for yourself here.
Microsoft Applied Sciences Group

It can be bypassed if anyone wishes to use a gaming pad such as the Razer Nostromo or the Logitech G13 I'm sure. That or change the key bindings.

 

Wow. You learn something new everyday... Seems I've no ghosting problem!

 

Thank you. So does this mean not all laptops have the problem, or just not all people notice it? I would be using a game controller for most games, but I would be using whatever keyboard comes with the laptop for shooters and RPGs. Do you think it's worth getting the NP9150 over the 9130, even if that problem is still there?

 

All the laptops are the same but not all people will notice it. For example if you push space bar, alt, and e all at the same time it wont do anything. Some people have their games set so that combination will do something.

 

Everybody has the same problem since it is the same keyboard.

It is just that either people don't play games that need so many keys pressed at the same time, or play it but never use so many keys at the same time (if it is possible), or change the key bindings to avoid the combinations which lead to ghosting, or have an external keyboard with no ghosting issues to play games, or don't realize the existence of the problem at all...

 

Is it confirmed that the keyboard of the NP9130 doesn't have ghosting problems?

 

I think you'll be hard pressed to find a single keyboard that has absolutely NO ghosting problems. The reason people are up in arms about the clevo/SS keyboard is because a lot of games default configurations use W E and space for movement, such as in WoW where w is forward, e is sideways strafe and space is jump, so if you want to run at a diagonal and jump, you wouldn't be able to. Of course these keys are all rebindable, but whatever you bind to it, still wouldn't be able to work with the other keys being pressed.

 

All I can say is I had a np9170 for 30 days and absolutely loved it (waiting for a new one with a 7970 now of course). VERY solid build and great looking too. As far as how long it would last, I guess I don't have enough experience...but I looove Sager already.

 

We haven't had one pass through our shop yet to test it out, but it is a good possibility that it will have some sort of issues just like the other keyboards. It really isn't something that is noticed by a whole lot of users, as they have stated.

 

Any update on the NP9130 keyboard ghosting? Specifically with Q+W and D or Q+W and Space Bar or W+E and Space Bar?

Thanks

 

what ghosting problem? i have had my 150em for 2 and half month, 0 problems

 

Ghosting problem is when you press 3 keys simultaneously and the 3rd key does not work.

For example in counter-strike, you have W key as forward E as right movement or right strafe then spacebar as jump or duck, when you press all 3, the 3rd one don't respond and that is a big issue. You won't notice the problem if you only play RTS games or you only press 1 or 2 keys at a time.

 

Yep, visit here and check for ghosting:

Microsoft Applied Sciences Group

Specifically those indicated above.

 

Or you rebind your key. Strafe A and D and turn right/left with your mouse, nobody use A or D to turn.

 

To be honest, there are a lot of factors in terms of longevity in a laptop (not just sager), I have an HP that was supposed to have bad cooling and overheating problems that's lasted 4 years already and still working.
now for Sagers, mine has been running 24/7 since I've bought it, only gets a shutdown or restart when I'm traveling or the occasional times I need to bring it to work.

at the end of the day it's all about luck as well, perhaps a faulty card that doesn't show problems 2-3 months down the road, now the good thing about sagers is that the resellers/builders here could stress test the machine for you in case of problems prior to shipping, this for me (since I live overseas) is very important, minimizing issues before getting the laptop.

aside from this is how the laptop was designed where you could pretty much replace every part and easily buy an original part from a reseller to replace a broken part and there are no issues buying from other resellers, ex. since my laptop was running 24/7 I had overheating issues a couple of months ago, so i ordered just the gpu cooling fan and a new heatsink (since it was cheaper than shipping my laptop and claim warranty and maybe lose 2 months waiting for it), replaced the part, repasted and now it's working as it should be.

can't even do that with an hp laptop (sure you could buy parts from ebay, but who knows if those are original, brand new etc....)

 

That's not the point sir. But since we are here now, do you have a ghosting issue on your np9150?

 

Well it's exactly the point sir. You said "You won't notice the problem if you only play RTS games or you only press 1 or 2 keys at a time." And i show you some exemple that it's not the case.

My old asus have the same ghosting issue ( W+E+Spacebar ) for 4 years I had played a lots of FPS and MMORPG without even noticing this "issue" The first time I know for this issue is on this forum when someone posted this link Microsoft Applied Sciences Group.

And since you ask, yes some rare 3-keys combination don't work, but most 5-keys combination work fine. This "issue" can't be fixed, it's just the way most keybord work.

 

I understand what you are saying. But you're way of fixing it is to ignore it and use other keys or deal with it type of mentality. So basically bottom line is, it has a ghosting issue and that's all I need to know.

 

I never say the ghosting issue don't exist. I was just trying to fix your
"You won't notice the problem if you only play RTS games or you only press 1 or 2 keys at a time."

in

"You won't notice the problem if you only play games.."

I don't want to make a drama out of this. Just the way you saying it, sound like i can only play RTS without being crippled by this ghosting "issue". I don't fix or ignore it, far from that. It's just the way most games are by default and in my opinion the best way to bind your keys, ghosting "issue" or not. But maybe you can find some examples where this ghosting "issue" really can be a "issue", this will help me to better understand your point.

Again, I'm sorry if I misunderstood your post.