PCMW 9262 w/ Q9450 for great $$

PCMW is one of the few guys offering the 9262 with the Q9450. They have really dropped their prices recently. I can get their Q9450 machine for almost the same prices as PCNB or XOTIC carry the Q6700. Any reason one should be cautious about dealing with one of these resellers vs the others?
Major specs follow:
Components:
Quad Q9450 (2.66GHz/45nm/1333MHz/12MB)
4096MB Ultra Speed DDR2 800MHz Extreme Performance Memory + Heat-Spreaders
200GB @ 14,400RPM SATA150 Storage RAID 0 (2 x 100GB 7200RPM)
Standard 8X High Speed DVD-RW / CD-RW DL Burner
nVIDIA Geforce 8800M GTX 512MB DDR3 EXTREME GPU
17" HD WUXGA+ 1920x1200

 

Well there is a reason why sager is not offering q9450.... it might need a BIOS update, even thou it might seem to be stable why its running.

 

There are still some issues, but PCMW has not been a problematic company, and I`m fully confident the Q9450 works for the D901C, or will work,even if it will require a BIOS update.
They are a very good company and they provide nice upgrade prices for those with the upgrade - warranty system thing(diamond plus was it?).

 

hell yeah....

 

Im VERY tempted to purchase from them this weekend. It lists the Q9550 at 5/16 (today) .... is this for real or one of these things that updates to the current day and it isn't ready yet?

I can get a Q9550 loaded with SLI for less than a Q6700 with SLI at Xotic right now... hmm...

My only concern is that I can't find many reviews on the system (what I have found has been good away from a few shipping issues) ... im also up in the air on that warranty program. If it doesn't offer upgrades for Video card/processor stuff it's a waste of money for me..

Also when Sager releases a new BIOS for the new chips will it work on this lappy? Im a little concerned about stability considering it's out before the others..

 

The D901C already supports it, Sager just wants to make sure ALL the bugs are taken care of.

 

PCMW seems to me, always to be one step ahead of everyone else in NA. I ordered my m57ru with Extreme Proc., at that time everyone was saying that it didnt support it and so on, but it worked perfectly. Heck, I can even OC now.

They have EXCELLENT customer service and they know what they are doing. I am trying to get a rep of them on NBR soon....

 

All the bugs have been taken care of (17 BIOS) so expect to see Sager release them in the next few weeks. They may well be waiting for better stock of Q9450/9550's since it's so bad.

 

I can get everything I want:

Parts:
Intel® Core2 Quad Q9550 (2.83GHz/45nm/1333MHz/12MB) ETA 5/16
**SALE** 4096MB Ultra Speed DDR2 800MHz Extreme Performance Memory + Heat-Spreaders
400GB @ 14,400RPM SATA300 Storage RAID 0 (2 x 200GB 7200RPM)
No External Storage
Standard 8X High Speed DVD-RW / CD-RW DL Burner
SLI Dual nVIDIA Geforce 8800M GTX 1GB DDR3 X-TREME GPU
17" HD WUXGA+ 1920x1200 Ultra Resolution GlassVision Wide Screen Cinema Display
8 Channel Advanced SRS WOW Surround Sound System
High Speed 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Networking Adapter
Internal High Speed V90k Dial Up Modem
**SALE** Built In 802.11AGN 300mbps Ultra Speed Wireless Adapter
Integrated Advanced Bluetooth v2.0 Wireless Adapter
No EVDO (Evolution Data Only) High Speed Internet Connection
No GPS Location Device
No TV Tuner
No Floppy Drive
No Extra Mouse
No Controller
No Biometrics
Microsoft® Windows Vista Home Premium Edition 64 Bit **NEW**
No Office Productivity Package
No Virus or Spyware Protection
No Burning or DVD Software
No Extra Battery
No Extra AC Adapter
No Car Power Adapter
No Notebook Carrying Bag
No Notebook Security
No Laptop Cooler
Standard Limited 1 Year Warranty Coverage
Dead Pixel Protection Not Included


All of that for $3903 shipped

Now it comes down to if I should go ahead and order from PCMW or wait a few weeks for Xotic and the rest to get release. If I knew for sure PCMW had the 9550 in stock (site says ETA 5/16) I would order today but support isn't open until Monday and by then the sale is over...

I wonder if in a few weeks Xotic will be able to beat $3903 shipped. I have already budgeted $4300 for the purchase but saving $400 would give me some spare change to put towards upgrading my desktop processor or new video card... hmm....

Also what's up with the SRS surround? Does the 9262 have surround sound speakers or is this something PCMW did themselves?

 

Buy it with confidence

 

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

 

I'm doing the same thing, it might just be time, they're giving a guarantee of 3 months that you won't find a cheaper price

and with those q9450/9550... can't really beat that anywhere

 

SRS is a trademark. It`s something that makes the sound appear more crisp and louder.
In my case, with SRS turned on, the sound appears to come from around, whereas without it, the sound appears to come from inside the laptop.

 

So im guessing that the PCMW lappy is using the same internal speakers as the 9262 right? It appears the PCMW is the 9262 with the aluminum top.

Am I right in assuming that any Bios/drivers released for the 9262 would work with the PCMW lappy as well?

 

do you just mean understocked?

I will be purchasing this either today or sunday, I had a question on the difference between the q9450 and q9550
the passmark bench's mark:
q9450 - 3475,
q9550 - 4383,

is that a big difference? this is from http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Core2+Duo+E8400+%40+3.00GHz

power consumption/heat?

-

also one more question on hard drive configs,
the difference in raid 0 vs raid 5? I'm leaning towards 960gb - 3x 320gb at 5400rpm, good/bad choice?

 

Sorry no.. Intel aren't shipping enough so there's a shortage in the market.

 

The Blackhawk is the same rebranded D901C as the one used in the Sager 9262. Identical machines, different OEMs..(original equipment manufacturer).

 

Does Xotic still do the price match? Can you get a quote from PCMW then ask Xotic to do the price match for that?

 

Yes they do. But they only price match Sager resellers, don't they ?

 

When I initially talked with them before buying my Sager, they said they price match anyone.
And they gave me a better offer than PowerNotebooks,and it`s why they had my choice.
Both Donald and Justin are awesome, but in the end,the best deal won.

 

Im interested in knowing this too. That is a pretty big jump. The heat/power should be about the same I think since both are 45nm chips. Im leaning towards getting the 9550 myself. Keep me updated if you order yours and I will keep everyone updated on how my order goes as well.

 

I ordered one with the Q9450 last week, I'll write a short review when it arrives. They had a great deal over mother's day. Also some of you might want to know that when I was talking to the rep he said that this laptop will be fully compatible with the new 9800 cards without any motherboard or bios change. They were very friendly and helpful, nice to deal with.

 

They are very bold to say that out-front, since Sager said nothing about this, neither did Eurocom and they are much bigger as companies.
We`ll just have to wait and see. I for one would love it if the 9800M GTXs are fully compatible with 8800M GTX supporting hardware.

 

That's excellent news! Although with not many graphic intensive games due out until mid-09 it's debatable how much 9800's will be needed with the power of two 8800's already. Im not going to be getting the extended warranty so is it fairly easy to swap out the video cards in SLI yourself and replace with the 9800's without help from the place?

 

Yes, provided you have some patience, a bit of experience opening computers up, and the ability to actually read, and follow, instructions.

 

Justin provided a GPU replacing tutorial : http://www.xoticpc.com/8800m-installation-guide-sager-notebook-np579x-8800m-a-41.html
The 9800M GTX should be replaceable in the same way, if support is a true deal.

 

If you order from them you might want to consider their 3 year diamond plan. I didn't order it with that but I have 30 days to change my mind. He explained that with that plan all parts including the new 9800 cards will be sold a discount price plus they give you a trade in credit for the 8800m gtx. Sounded like a good deal to me, I'm still thinking about it.

 

Any insight on if it will be easily upgradeable to the quadro fx 3600m? since the 3600m and the 8800 gts are nearly identical and it current supports the quadro 1600m?

 

Im thinking about that but I usually don't get warranties and I kinda wanna use this money im saving to upgrade my desktop hardware (Q6600 from FX-60 and new MB) .... I should be able to just sell the 8800's on Ebay .... they are just normal 8800 cards and would work in most laptops/desktops right? Or are they totally different?

 

I believe these 8800 cards are completely different from the desktop cards and will only work with a few laptops. I'm sure you could sell it on ebay though.

 

Has anyone from Australia, or elsewhere outside North America, purchased from PCMicroworks ?

How is their service for international customers ?


I have been waiting for the Q9450 for some time, and not only do PCMW have it available, but their pricing is excellent at the moment.

I am just about ready to pull the trigger, but interested to hear any feedback from their international customers.

 

hey zelig96, im from Oz too mate.. i didnt purchase from pcmicro works though got mine off xotic pc.. see sig below for my beast... basicaly all i can say service from xotic was top notch.. justin is very helpful. laptop came within a week from the US by UPS. unfortunately though UPS stuffed me around which took an extra 4 days to get to my house... but on the whole yep pretty good.

 

Well, at least ya didn't choose to have it (mis)delivered by USPS - you'd've been short a lot more than just 4 days in all probability.

 

^^ yep mate could have ended up in Austria!! that i would be majorly stuffed!!

 

Oy, Austria ... Australia - what's the diff, just a "al" right?
And youze guyz thought ya had trouble with kiwis!

 

Hi dazzyd, good to see I am not the only Aussie looking to by-pass the very expensive Australian Clevo re-sellers and importing one from US.

What taxes/duties/GST did you have to pay to clear your laptop through customs ? I assume you had to pay UPS for the taxes before they delivered. Any tips or advice for that part of the process?

 

hey zelig, yeh mate i was gonna buy the clevo d901C from pioneer notebook but i saw the final price and nearly had a heart attack. i basically saved over a 1.5K by buying it from the US and that included all the taxes and delivery.

right with customs, UPS payed it initially then backcharged me.. all up that cost me 562 AUD. be warned tho they wanted cash on delivery for the package.. that just threw me off a bit.. so i had to tell em to come back again as i didnt have that much of cash on me. hence the delay in getting my package.

i reckon u could get away with that if you specfically tell either PCMW or justin from xotic to label the box as a repair job. and do not display the invoice on the box itself. who knows u might get lucky.

 

I have purchased from PCMW and have a few comments.

First off, the price, quality and performance of my system is excellent. My system was priced much lower than other 9262 resellers (xoticpc, powernotebooks... etc) and worked perfectly right out of the box.

Now for my issue with PCMW. They have the tendency to announce cutting edge systems well before they even have an idea of when they can actually SHIP the system.

I ordered the 9262 in my sig on 21NOV07. The shipment arrived in early Feb08, but was missing the second 8800 which did not arrive until late Mar08. The money for the system was taken in Nov07. So they had over $4000 of my money while I sat around for about 4 months before the complete system was shipped.

In retrospect, I would now wait until they have all the parts and are actually shipping systems and then order. Saves you money (lost interest on $4000) and the pain involved with waiting for months for a new toy.

Just my 2cents.

 

I got mine 3 weeks ago no problem yet.

Pl

 

Thanks for your feedback NavyDad6.

Their website says "NOW SHIPPING" for the Q9450 (whilst the Q9550 still has an ETA) so hopefully I won't encounter any sort of delay like you did if and when I finally take the plunge.

 

I'm in Sweden. PCMW is highly recommended. They've been extremely helpfull.

 

Nice rig Deodot and thanks for the feedback on PCMW.

 

or maybe sager can not get the new quad in stock...

 

okay I just configured a the same laptop I got from xotic PC...whoah its so much cheaper, plus you get 4gigs of RAM free.

OH well...

 

Last week I ordered from PCMW with the following config:
Q9550
4GB RAM
3 200GB 7200RPM drives. 2 in Raid 0, 1 as a secondary
2 8800s in SLI

I have been waiting since January for SLI to become available and the Q9X CPUs. I will post a review after I receive the system.

 

I don't like the sound of that. I really dislike paying (I would be paying by check) and not knowing when the item will ship. If they were open this weekend I would give them a call and would even order if I knew the Q9550 was in stock but I think for now I will hold off until XoticPC gets the new chips in. It sounds like we should be seeing them in the fairly near future.

 

DUDE, that is one AWESOME rig ya got ther

 

Thanks, I cost a boatload ~4800 with 3year Diamond Platinum protection but at least I can write it off as a business expense and you have to love the American Express rewards points.

I have a Sager 9750 for 2.5 years now and the 7800 card just is not cutting it anymore. The 9750 still runs great but I am ready for a new machine.

I will give you guys a review after I receive the system (not shipped yet).

 

anything yet? I haven't time to look through the whole post b/c I'm at work, was their an ETA?

I am also in the market for a xr5 through PCMW

I'm a bit skeptical , I really need the quadro fx 3600m and they finally have it as an option, but with a ETA of 7/31. I need it by 8/7 at the latest... it's a very big risk,

I'm also looking at the q9550 as a processor, let me know your thoughts

 

Im still waiting for the Q9550 at Xotic and im ready to order. The Q9450 arrived a couple weeks ago but no sign of the Q9550. The Q9550 is running short all over the place and isn't in stock anywhere so that likely explains it..