Please help me decide what's best for me (P150SM, W650SR, GS70 Stealth, P35k)

You guys are the experts and since I have never owned a clevo I am hoping you can give me some guidance. I need a laptop by the end of August as I am starting grad school. Right now I have a clunky as hell Acer Aspire v3-771g that weighs 7.05 pounds and has dimensions of 16.33" x 10.83" x 1.22"-1.36". I need something smaller and sleeker AND more powerful. I was dead set on waiting for the Gigabyte P35K since it has just about everything that I want, but now it doesn't look like it will be out in time. My main factor when deciding is going to be sleekness. I have never seen a Clevo up close and personal but I am conflicted because in some pictures they look very thick and in others they look relatively sleek (talking about the ones in the thread title).

I have a huge music and movie library that is about 5TB and one of the huge benefits of the Clevo's is I could fit most of it in the machine and not have to use external drives like I do now. My main use will be taking it to class everyday so it has to be portable but I also want either a IPS display or a 95% gamut display to watch my movies, tv shows, and play sc2/LoL/dota2 every now and then. I know the 765m is much more powerful than the 750m but I am not sure I need it so I'd like some input on that. Also, I love the P150SM because of the backlit keyboard. If I go with a Clevo I will definitely be going all out on the options: i7-4900mq, 95% gamut or IPS display, a/b/g/n + bluetooth net card (intel or killer better?), as many 1TB HDD's as I can fit with a 240 intel msata, 16gb or 32gb ram, ic diamond paste etc.

If any of you have the P150SM or the other Clevo model please give me your feedback relating to my concerns. Portability, sleekness, and weight are all game changers for me. Also noise levels are important since I dont want my laptop sounding like a wind tunnel while idling in class. If you have any recommendations outside of the models I listed, that would be much appreciated. Here are some absolute necessities: 1080p, 15.6 or 14 inch display, 95% gamut or IPS, capable graphics, ample storage, new i7, sleek and portable. Backlit keyboard is very important but I would consider a notebook without it if it is stellar in everything else that I need.

Thanks so much for any advice.

 

I would highly advise reconsidering the i7-4900mq unless you know exactly what you need it for. The stock processor is already very powerful and does >95% of people fine. The processor is not typically the bottleneck in gaming anymore and the value for your dollar is really bad with processor upgrades.

The P150SM sounds like a good choice, it fits most of your needs with the following exceptions:
- It is not sleek and portable. It does not weigh much less than your current computer (6.83 lbs vs 7.05 lbs). It's a good size relative to other gaming computers, but is bulky relative to mainstream computers.
- It doesn't sound like a wind tunnel, but it isn't gracefully silent either. Be careful with how it is used in class. For example, Steam starts up automatically on many people's computers and that program can be intensive enough (for some reason) to get the fans whirring.

Otherwise, it is very powerful, can hold quite a bit of data, has a good quality screen, and has a backlit keyboard.

In comparison to the Gigabyte P35K:
- The P35K weighs around 30-40% less than the P150SM, making it much more portable.
- Comes with 765M stock, same as P150SM (but you can upgrade the GPU on the P150SM to much more powerful cards)
- We can't say anything about how loud it will be.

In comparison to the W650SR:
- The W650SR weighs about a pound less than the P150SM, or about 13%, making it slightly more portable.
- Comes with the 750M, quite a bit weaker than the default 765M on the P150SM, especially at 1080p. Is gaming a big priority for you? For what its worth, the games you listed are not very intensive and the 750M would play those fine for now.

In comparison to GS70 Stealth:
- The GS70 Stealth is by far the least portable machine here, despite being slim for its size. 17" and over 8 lbs.
- Comes with the 765M stock, same as the P150SM.
- We don't know how loud it will be.

Unfortunately, real laptops are always one or two specs away from our perfect ideals. The W230ST is coming out soon, which should be reasonably powerful and very portable, but it lacks the storage options you require.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself, so I won't!

I think you'll be happy with the 8250. As far as gaming laptops go it's not huge, and has a mid-heavy weight depending on the person carrying it, but due to the dimensions you don't really notice that way as much as you would with a bulkier laptop. Take a look at the previous 9150 models video reviews, I know on ours we have it running during benchmarks which will give you an idea on noise. These 8250 models are generally going to spin up less but be about the same loudness as the previous were when they do. When you look at the big picture, the thing is a powerhouse in a thinner than most chassis, delivers the performance you want, and the only drawback really is going to be the weight not being much different than the current.

Definitely tone back on the CPU though, doesn't sound like you need it at all.

 

I have to echo a few things that WCFire stated. I just received a Sager P8250 (Clevo 157SM). For reference I have a 2011 Macbook Pro 15" which I use for my normal non gaming stuff including work.

1. The 15" sager/clevo compared to other modern day laptops is not sleek nor light. It is not overly bulky or heavy either. If you plan on using it as a true portable, battery power will become an issue - 4 -5 hrs on average. You have to also consider the power pack. I was duley impressed with the size of the power pack plus cording. For my uses I utilize the sager as my couch gaming computer and the macbook for portability.

2. The fan noise on full blast is not loud to me, but my wife mentioned it was loud to her. More so, she said, than my macbook when it's fans were full bore. I thought about it and realized the sager/clevo discharges in the back so the sound is more muted to the user due to the screen deflecting the sound. Anyone else with direct line of sight to the fans though will hear the fans quiet clearly. Idle it is fairly quiet. I imagine in a quiet environment one could hear the idle fans but I couldn't tell as my household by its nature is loud.

3. The back-lit keyboard is nice but for normal typing and office work it feels cramped. With the touch pad directly centered on the laptop, I feel it interferes with wrist placement when aligning for "home" position when getting ready to type. This is due to the fact that it does have a number pad on it. If they had moved the trackpad about 2 inches to the left it would have made a difference. The responsiveness and feel of the keys are good but I again, I have unintentionally avoided any heavy typing on it.

4. The screen is awesome. Very bright colors, great angles and sharp. Unfortunately the screen chassis could use some stiffening to it. It's a bit flimsy for my tastes but again I am spoiled by the solid build of the macbook.

5. The touchpad is ok. I can't quite place my finger on it of what is bothering me (pun not intended). Well for one thing it gets in the way of serious typing as again its off center from the home position on the keyboard so your right hand can set if off.

Overall I purchased the Sager for gaming. For its one function it is excellent at. I tossed in 736gbs of SSD and it runs extremely fast. You may in the future with the advances of harddrive space be able to fit 5TBs in there but right now I personnally don't see how you can do it - I am sure someone here will be able to correct me on that.

As I typed this out, one analogy popped in my head - It's like I went out shopping for a new car. I have a great "normal" car that does what I need it to and it looks/feels nice and comfortable for everyday use but I wanted a no frills sports car...so I bought a Dodge Viper stripped down - not something I would drive to the grocery store but sure as heck would drive it hard for fun or on the track.

 

Would you happen to know why they would spin up less? And if that also applies to the P151SM1?

 

Sure does apply to both, it's just due to a slight revamp in the cooling fixing a heatsink gap issue as well as the components themselves running cooler.

 

I think 5TB might be possible right now in the Clevo P157SM. From a Clevo builder not Sager reseller. Builders have 2 mSATA slots while Sager still has one. Or is that problem resolved? Two 512 mSATA, 1TB in 9.5mm bay, 1TB in 7mm bay, and a 2TB 12.5mm in the 12.7mm ODD bay. Might work?

Also if you don't like the LEDs on the P157SM you can have them turned off. The dimensions and weight are a little different than the P150SM so it might not meet your sleekness desires. From Clevo site:

P150SM Dimension
376 (W)x256 (D)x35~43 (H)mm
3.1Kg, including ODD and 76.96WH Battery

P157SM Dimension
375 (W) x 268 (D) x 22~45 (H)mm
3.3Kg, including ODD and 76.96WH Battery

Edit: the 2TB drive may not be 12.5mm but 15mm,

 

The 157SM chassis are all the same no matter who they're bought from, it's an issue from Clevo that the Msata slot being unused currently from Sager causes system crashes so for the time being it's listed as one until the problem is resolved.

 

Looking at HTWingNut's photos of the 8250 (P157SM), shows that the second mSATA slot is not available, Void Warranty stickers, visible. But that isn't the case for a Mythlogic Pollux 1613 (P157SM) They have 2 mSATA slots. From an earlier online chat, not specific to the P157SM, they report no issues. I haven't looked at other international sellers' configurators to know what they offer.

As a prospective buyer, this "mSATA Gate" has me holding off for the time being.

 

When's the last time you listened to "Void Warranty" Stickers?

Just there to signify that the slot will not work for the time being until Clevo issues a fix. Won't void anything to break the sticker, just don't expect it to work. Causes random instability.

 

Thanks for the help everyone. I am leaning towards just waiting for the P35K. I'll be taking this to class with me everyday for 3 years so it needs to be portable. It sounds like I don't need the power that clevo's offer. I'll probably have to just stick to externals, although if I could get 2x1TB hdd in the P35K that would make me happy.