NP8130 build quality

Hi guys,

I'm about to order the sager np8130 this week, but I want to make sure the laptop isn't really as "fragile" as most people seem to be saying it is. As someone coming from a Dell Latitude D630, would the sager np8130 feel just as sturdy or probably even more sturdy? Or how about a regular white 14" mac book? Is the sager just as sturdy as a mac book (which I think aren't that sturdy at all--but it's been used for many years now and it's still fine)? Also: to those who have the laptop (and had a dell before): do you feel that the laptop is just as hard/tough as those dells you had before?

Thanks

 

I have the NP8130 and its pretty sturdy. It doesn't feel as hardy as a Dell Studio XPS 1640, but its by no means fragile. This may be in part due to the matte finish's feel--it feels a little hollow when you're typing and the bounce of the keys vibrate through the palm rest. But if you're trying to carry it around and move it, you'll quickly realize this thing is built to last.

 

In general clevo's quality is just normal.

 

Better than the W870CU, but the keyboard is still pretty bad.

 

I don't agree that it's bad; like it myself. It's way better than some that have the keys too close. If you're going to write your doctoral thesis on it, I would get an external keyboard. But have never like -any- notebook keyboards for extended usage such as 8-hour type-a-thons.

 

Personally, I like the build quality of the NP8130. I talk about it more in my review (in the sig) but I have had no problems or complaints so far.

Then again, I take extraordinarily good care of all of my machines, with an eye towards longevity.

Mr. Mysterious

 

We actually haven't had a lot of complaints about the sturdiness on that machine. From our experience, this unit has been built pretty solidly. Sager/Clevo usually have a pretty solid build anyway.

 

definitely liked the feel of the keyboard on my old inspiron 1545 better than the 8150 (basically the same as 8130)

 

I liked my keyboard on my XPS m1530 more than my current one but that was one of the best laptop keyboards I've seen...

The only part about my laptop I'd say isn't sturdy actually 2 parts, the dvd drive, which is a bit flimsy and also the bottom of the machine as a whole.
What I mean about the bottom is that (since I move it around every day), the machine when you grab it gives a bit on most of the bottom plate since it is so full of holes for ventilation. These make the bottom have more give than I'm totally comfortable with. However all of the feet are sturdy so when your using it it never feels not sturdy.

 

I'm spoiled with Thinkpad and Toshiba keyboards.

Both are a tad bit small for my hands (not their fault) but feel very very very sturdy. I've done some terrible things to my thinkpad...my IBM thinkpad, that's how old it is.

That said, a lot of the keyboards I've hated, I've grown used to. I'm sure using the same product each day you become very accustomed to all it's idiosyncrasies.

 

My 8130 build quality is better than the 5135 I had.

On par with the old HP HDX16T.

 

Hi,

I have had my 8130 for over a month now. It's well built, doesn't feel fragile at all. I'd say it's on par with most business class laptops (higher end, like HP Elitebooks). Feels more sturdy than the Dell latitude I once had, and better than white Macbooks as well. But not quite as sturdy as an Aluminium Macbook Pro.

 

I recently got my 8130 and I'm satisfied but not blown away with the build quality. I was actually happier with the build quality of my XPS1530 - it just seems more refined. The touchpad buttons require less force and have a longer throw than the 8130 touchpad buttons, and the sager looks to have an all-plastic shell, where the XPS1530 had some metal pieces.

If you followed the thread about flex, I can definitely see what the OP was getting at. Again, its NOT of poor quality, merely average when compared to the 1530 or an HP Elitebook (which is better than the 1530).

The thing that bothers me the most is that the corner where the surface containing the keyboard and touchpad meets the front of the laptop is very sharp. I tend to rest my palm on the corner and it is irritatingly sharp. At some point I might hit it with some fine sandpaper to break the corner, but haven't done it yet.

Cooling and performance are both excellent and when calibrated the stock monitor is much nicer than I was expecting. For the price, it can't be beat.