Prospective 8130 customer. A few questions before pulling the trigger.

So my ThinkPad T61p of four years with the infamous 8 Series NVIDIA GPU finally died out of warranty - a moment of silence - and after briefly considering building a desktop rig (which I quickly dismissed due to the amount of time I spend away from my home office), I came back to NBR for some friendly advice on mid-range desktop replacements. Initially my budget was below $1000 - which had me looking at the HP dv6tqe - but I figured I might as well spend a bit more to get something with more horsepower, better build quality and the option to upgrade in the future when prices for parts go down. And so here I am.

Now questions -

1) As far as hardware differences between the 8130 and 8150, is the only major difference that the 8150 can utilize Core i7 Extreme CPUs? From what I understand, hardware-wise, the 8130 can be brought up to spec with the 8150 given the purchase of a more powerful PSU and graphics card.

2) When buying through resellers (at least the ones who actively participate on the boards), is the warranty process - three years for most of them - always run through the reseller? Will I ever have to deal with Sager or Clevo, because from reading around it looks like it'd be best to avoid direct contact with them regarding any warranty issues?

3) Specifically about resellers, is the only real difference between the ones who resell Sager-branded machines and those who brand their own Clevo machines, that the former uses Sager BIOS and the latter uses Clevo BIOS? Everything else - besides the badge - is identical?

4) I'm not willing to spend the $100 on the 95% Gamut Matte screen, but would it be recommended to take the 95% Gamut Glossy over the 60% Gamut Matte screen? I've never owned a notebook with a glossy screen, but I do know how annoying the glare can be. How bad is it on these screens and does the 95% Gamut trump that downside?

5) 30-day pixel warranty basically just means I wouldn't have to pay for shipping back to the reseller if my machine came with dead pixels? Otherwise it would just be a matter of telling the reseller I'm not satisfied with my product, paying for the shipping back, and them sending me another machine? Are most of the resellers here quite good about honoring some sort of satisfaction guarantee even if the customer finds dead pixels?

6) Is the IC Diamond compound worth it? This process would be done by the reseller and not Sager/Clevo, correct?

7) Just for reference because I forgot to ask earlier, is the maximum amount of 1333MHz and 1600MHz RAM the same?

8) About an extra HDD in place of the optical drive: Would I need to purchase a caddy to accommodate the drive or does it just slide right in?

9) Is the $25 upgrade to the Intel 6230 wireless card recommended over the stock card? Better speeds? More consistent connections?

10) Quality of on-board sound? Does the THX stuff come with it, meaning I don't need to get the Sound Blaster to use the THX software?

11) I won't be needing an OS from the reseller. Are the Driver and Utility software discs up-to-date? Same thing with the BIOS? Do most of the resellers have a web page with up-to-date drivers I can check periodically? Or is there a Sager/Clevo website?


Anyway, apologies for being excessively thorough, but I tend to be really OCD-ish when laying down serious cash on a long-term purchase.

I hope to join the Sager/Clevo family with you fine folks soon. Thanks.

 

Most of your questions can be answered here:

FAQ

I'll try to address the rest...

The 8150 cannot use the extreme CPUs because they use the HM65 Chipset.
Yes, the warranty will always run through the reseller. They'll cover most of the components, but you'll deal with Clevo/Sager occasionally. Don't worry about that, you're all set.

Everyone uses Clevo BIOSes. The ones that put their own "badge" on the machine tests the machine out themselves and put it together themselves as well. (I'm thinking Malibal and Mythlogic).

The glare is not as bad as you think. It's all about the image quality, and for that, Sagers are some of the best.

Answered in the FAQ.

Answered in the FAQ.

Answered in the FAQ.

You'd need a caddy.

Depends on what you're going to do.

It's up to you. How much of an audiophile are you?

Yes they are. Yep. There's a thread for that here.

Mr. Mysterious

 

1) Yes, the P151HM1 / 8130 and P150HM / 8150 are the same notebook with the exception of the finish on the casing, the stock screen, and power supply. The P151HM1 has a plastic finish, while the P150HM has a rubberized finish. The stock screen on the P151HM1 is matte, while the P150HM is glossy. The P151HM1 comes with a 120W PSU, while the P150HM has a 180W PSU. Note: If you get a 180W power supply for the P151HM1, then it can support the same GPUs and CPUs as the P150HM.

2) Anyone who purchases a Clevo notebook from us, will only deal with our company for any and all warranty work. Our customers are never referred to another company.

3) Yes, essentially all of the resellers are selling the exact same notebook with the only real difference being the branding, support, warranty, pricing etc.

4) I don't think the 95% upgrade is necessary for most users. The stock screen is very nice. In terms of the Glare Vs. Matte, that always comes down to preference - so it's hard to give you advice on that - but, you can't go wrong with the stock matte screen on the P151HM1 / 8130.

5) Yes, the 30 Day No Dead Pixel Guarantee that some resellers offer covers any and all shipping charges to replace the screen if you have any stuck or dead pixels in the first 30 days. Most resellers offer a 30 Day 100% Money Back Guarantee as well, so you can also use that to exchange a notebook if you have any bad pixels. You would just pay the shipping charges for the replacement notebook.

6) If you plan to do a lot of gaming, it's a good upgrade - however, if you know how to apply it, you can save yourself about $30 by purchasing it separately and doing it yourself.

7) Yes, up to 16GB.

8) You would need to buy an HDD caddy. However, if you select a hard drive in the optical drive bay on the P151HM1 / 8130 configuration page - it will include the HDD caddy.

9) I think for most people the 6230 is the best option. It has better range, speed and is dual band - plus it has Bluetooth.

10) Yes, it comes with THX TruStudio Pro.

11) Yes, for the most part the drivers are up to date, with the exception of things like the the graphics driver - but you can always find those on a resellers' website or the forum.

I hope that helps some.

 

I believe Mailbal answered everything correctly but my only concern is his answer to question #8. I just received my 8130 today from Xoticpc and had a Intel 510 series SSD installed in the main bay and a 320gb 7200 rpm installed in the optical bay. I did not have to buy the caddy. I am guessing that it was included in the price automatically when I selected it for the optical bay. I did however have to spend $48 for an external optical drive.

 

Thanks! You guys are fast. I'll be contacting a few resellers tomorrow with questions regarding the purchase process. Is that best done through PM on the boards or email?

 

Yes, on the configuration pages - if you select a hard drive in the optical drive bay - it will include the caddy.

 

Yeah I figured as much Mailibal I just didn't want him to think he needed to add another caddy after selecting the drive. Thank you for clarifying that.

 

7). the core i7 2720qm and up will support up to 8gb of 1600mhz memory, using 2 4gb sticks. this is a common misconception, and my source is intel's website. i have also heard that it is possible to alter settings in the bios to allow for the 2630qm to use the 1600mhz. this was done on an m14x so no guarantees that it will work on the 8130. in a nutshell its not worth the upgrade, your better off spending the money on an ssd.

 

If you have specific questions for each reseller, it's best to contact them by PM, email, live chat or phone.

 

The other posts in this thread have addressed your previous questions, but I wanted to add some clarification here. The drivers included on the disk will be fully compatible with your machine, but 98% of the time, they will be out of date. Sager and Clevo (the company that makes the shells for Sager) have drivers on their respective web sites that might or might not be newer than what you get on the disk.

The best source for the most up-to-date drivers can be found on this very forum right here.

As far as your operating system goes, Mythlogic offers a service where they will install whatever version of Windows 7 you own with your CD key. They will install all the drivers and so forth so when you receive the system, all you need do is power it on, install your programs and games, and away you go. I'm not sure if other sellers offer such a service, but it's something I would ask. By the way, I do not work for nor am I affiliated in any way with Mythlogic.

 

I think I've made my choice, so I'll probably be ordering within the next couple of days.

I'm intrigued by the 500GB 7200rpm 2.5" SATA 300 Hybrid w/ 4GB NAND Flash. I haven't really kept up with this technology, but from just watching a couple of YouTube videos, it does seem to speed up boot times and application launching to near-SSD speeds. Is the $65 investment over the standard 500GB HDD worth it and are there any software or hardware concerns with this drive in the way it caches data, i.e. corrupted data, drive failing completely?

Thanks. I can't wait to order and receive this awesome machine.

 

6) If you plan to do a lot of gaming, it's a good upgrade - however, if you know how to apply it, you can save yourself about $30 by purchasing it separately and doing it yourself.

@ Malibal

Would that void the warranty, and is it hard to do? Easier or harder than doing that for a gaming desktop?

Also how much easier or harder or about the same to upgrade a laptop versus building your own gaming desktop?

For me, building a desktop is a piece of cake but I have never deal with a gaming laptop before so I don't know if it hard or easy.

I probably would have to do some extensive research as well.

Thanks

 

No, and no. Easier, most likely...

Depends on the laptop. For Sagers, its a piece of cake.

Mr. Mysterious

 

Any links, sites, or video to show me how? And link to the IC Diamond would be much appreciated as well and rep

I take it you never build a gaming pc?

Thanks

 

How to what? Replace the Hard Drive? It's really, really easy. You unscrew the outer black covering of the laptop...and simply slide the hard drive out. Slide the new one back in and re-screw the black outer cover. Simple.

No, I've never built a gaming PC before....been wanting to for a long time, actually.

A link to the IC Diamond? You want a link to the product or a how-to or...??

Mr. Mysterious

 

The better investment would be to go with a 750 GB 7200 RPM drive. The hybrid flash/hard drive is good if you use the same programs all the time. These drives operate on the premise of "learning" your usage pattern and storing the most frequently accessed files in the NAND memory for faster retrieval. If you're doing the same thing all the time, it's great. If you do a variety of different things, though, the drive is constantly having to "re-learn" your usage, thereby defeating its purpose. It can even cause problems. I used one of these drives for a while, and I was experiencing very bad stuttering in Source-engine games. Swapping out the hybrid drive for a standard one fixed it.

 

How to.

It quite an accomplishment once you build your first gaming PC. Due warn that it take a lot of figuring out and lot of mistakes and some much frustration but after my second time, it was a piece of cake. Also if you screw up with the CPU and the fan intake you pretty much damage your most important hardware.

 

Here's a link to the IC Diamond application How To on their website

Application

It's pretty simple, place a pea sized amount on processor/GPU, push heatsink in place, screw it all back down.

 

I actually thought it was a cooler not a thermal paste

Then what cooler is in the NP8150. I guess by cooler I mean fans?

I thought it was like a build in notebook cooler which I guess are fans as well. Don't they have a personal AC in a notebook?

 

There's a built in heatsink/heatpipe/fan combo built in that goes over the CPU and GPU (two separate ones). You have to unscrew them and pull them out to access the parts, but it's pretty straightforward. Clean off the old thermal compound (rubbing alcohol and microfiber cloth work well), then apply the new thermal paste and do everything in reverse.

So yeah, there is still a cooler in there, but there aren't many/any mods you can do to it other than changing out the paste.

 

why haven't they made any pcs with active cooling, like they use for air conditioners and freezers?

 

Explain what exactly you mean by "active cooling". Is it cooling that starts up when necessary?

 

Are you talking with freon and pumps and the like (Aka, making the inside of the case a refrigerator?). If that's the case, it's most likely due to cost, size, and power consumption. There's a reason people are hesitant to crank the AC in the summer- it's a big power drain. The benefit of that kind of cooling is moot when water cooling (at the most extreme) keeps the parts plenty cool. And besides, most people already have AC in the house anyway

PC cases would have to be massive to fit in a condenser, pump, radiator, and piping to work like a fridge/AC unit.

 

not for laptops for desktops.

 

I know, that's what I assumed. Such a thing in laptops would never happen. For comparison, look at your desktop. Then go look at a window air conditioner and a fridge. Now imagine one of the latter two jammed on to your desktop. You're not going to be left with anything compact, and it's still not going to cool any better than regular air cooling or water cooling would in a relatively stable environment. It's just not cost effective in terms of power, size, and overall performance.

Water cooling does what you're looking for, it siphons heat away from components and exhausts it out the back of the case. Refrigerating a case wouldn't work because you'd still need air cooling within the case itself to move heat away from the components. It basically means you'd have dual cooling systems. And since most people live in homes with a pretty stable temperature, not to mention central air, it'd be unnecessary duplication of cooling. Most people wouldn't want a desktop the size of a mini-fridge with only a teeny bump in cooling, but with 4x more power usage.

 

actually some cooling systems for fridges can be very small and they could be mounted directly on the cpu/gpu. i had seen this instructable a while ago, and the first thing that came to mind was cooling for computers. $5 Mini USB Fridge!

 

Google "phase change cooling."

 

I just wanted to update anyone interested that I have placed my order for the Lotus P151HM1 from MALIBAL. I would like to thank both the representatives from MALIBAL and XOTICPC for being very patient with my questions. I think either reseller would be a fine choice for anyone looking at Sager/Clevo notebooks. What pushed me in the direction of MALIBAL was their proximity to me (California), free shipping, no tax and the RAM promotion. Anyway here's what I ordered. Maybe I'll make a new thread with pictures and thoughts when I receive the machine. Thanks to everyone for their help.

Display: 15.6" 1920 x 1080 FHD LED Backlit Matte Display


Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-2630QM, 6MB L3 Cache, 2.0-2.9GHz


Memory: (8GB) 8192MB, PC3-10660/1333MHz DDR3 - 2 SO-DIMM


Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 560M 1.5GB GDDR5


Hard Drive: 750GB 7200rpm 2.5" SATA 300


$45.00

Optical Drive Bay: 8X Multi DVD+/-R/RW RAM Dual-Layer Drive


Wireless: Intel® 6230 Advanced-N 802.11A/B/G/N LAN and Bluetooth Card


$25.00

Cooling: IC Diamond 7 Thermal Compound, CPU & GPU


$40.00

Warranty: 3 Year Ltd. Labor and 1 Year Parts Warranty with 24/7 USA-Based Support


Extras: Integrated 2.0 Megapixel Web Camera


Extras: PowerDVD & Bison Cam Software Package


Extras: Integrated 9 in 1 Card Reader


Extras: Integrated Fingerprint Reader


Extras: MALIBAL Software & Drivers Disc




Product Subtotal:


$1,304.00



Subtotal:


$1,304.00



Certificate/Discount Code: NBR Free Shipping


-$37.37



Certificate/Discount Code: RAM Promotion


-$35.00



Shipping: UPS Ground


$37.37



Tax:


$0.00



Total:


$1,269.00

 

No, it's impossible.

You are confusing different types of cooling. You cannot have phase change cooling (air conditioners/freezers) which requires a tremendous amount of energy and space (condenser, compressor, pump, etc.) and is incredibly loud as well. It will never work on a laptop.

The other type which is the type (the kind in the $5 USB portable fridge) is Peltier or Thermoelectric (TEC) cooling system. When you apply voltage to a thermocouple, it creates a temperature differential between two sides. One side becomes incredibly hot and the other incredibly cool when you apply power to the peltier. You still need a separate cooling system to cool the hot side. The amount of heat generated and the power draw of actively powering the peltier unit would drain your laptop battery in minutes. To actively transfer the amount heat generated by a laptop GPU with a peltier, you could not have a passive heatsink. The peltier would need it's own active cooling system to cool the other side (mostly water cooling).

The reason why peltiers and phase change coolers are used is to be able to drop the temperature below ambient which water cooling and heatpipe (a very mild form of phase change) cooling cannot. However, those systems need to be powered and cooled as well.

All forms of active cooling are incredibly energy inefficient, not to mention heavy and will never work on laptops if people still want them to be portable at all. If you want to use phase change or TEC cooling, get a desktop.

 

@irfrausto Welcome to the MALIBAL family! Glad we could help out - please PM us if you ever need anything!

 

You guys were very quick with the verification process. Glad I could get that done before the start of the weekend.

 

No problem, we try to make it quick and easy!