Prostar VS HIDevolution

Who had the better deals on the highest end Clevo? the PHOENIX I think it is called.

 

HIDevolution.

Because they offer you to have the CPU delidded for lower temps without voiding the warranty

Because they offer silicon lottery hand picked CPUs that are guaranteed to overclock should you want to pay a bit more to ensure you get a good CPU as the 6700Ks are a hit or miss, some run well, and others overheat like no tomorrow

Because they offer the fastest RAM options up to 3000 MHz. RAM kits

Because they are a Prema partner and give you the Prema BIOS/VBIOS for free

Because their customer service is exceptional.

Also, if you contact them telling them you are an NBR forum member, you will get a discount

See:

HIDevolution - The Best Company I ever dealt with

HIDevolution's Warranty!

Amazing Experience dealing with HIDEvolution

I also highly recommend LPC Digital for their superior customer service and competitive prices.

See:
Superb customer service from LPC Digital!

 

please stop trolling HIDEvolutions lol geez, do you get a commission?

 

He's objectively correct. He is a big fan... But he's also right. They usually charge more money than other places, but they give you much better service.

So on the one hand HIDEvolution does usually cost more. But HIDEvolution throws in a ton more stuff if you buy the same machine.

Ironically, if you spec out the Clevo P870DM-G with a normal 6700k and not the silicon lottery one, HIDEvolution is also just straight up cheaper than LPC Digital and Prostar. So again he's right.

I think people would call him out if he was wrong (I would) but he isn't.

 

HIDEvolution isn't the only company he talks about. He makes some valid points about the differences between HIDEvolution and Prostar which was what the thread asked for. I'm not very familiar with either personally and I know Prostar has NBR discounts but I've never heard about them offering the other services that HIDEvolution does and I know they aren't a Prema partner for example. He was answering the OP's question and he even recommended LPC Digital as well which would definitely not be the case if he was a shill for HIDEvolution.

 

What do you mean delidded? Do I have to ask for that if I order? How much more is it for silicon lottery?

Not much of an interest in faster ram, can't afford that extra upgrade.

What's so great about prema? How else is a prema partner also?

How much is the discount usually?

Who's cheaper?

 

Sorry maybe I have just seen only his posts promoting HIDEvolution many many times maybe he resently realized what it looked like so decided he might have to throw in another companys name then going back to the point of how much better HIDEvolution is...anyways I am done and I am sorry for my mistake

 

CPU Delidding =

In short it means removing the lid of the CPU to get access to the actual core of the CPU then putting Liquid Ultra Thermal Compound between the actual CPU die and the metal cover which was on it. This will greatly improve the heat dissipation and this lower your temps by up to 10C.

For even better results, you can opt for a Silicon Lottery binned (AKA hand picked) CPU that already has lower operating temps then top it off with the CPU Delidding service so you get the best of both, a lower temp CPU by default further enhanced with the CPU De-Lidding.

If you Delid the CPU yourself the warranty is void but if you have HIDevolution. Do it for you it remains under warranty. No other reseller offers that kind and of service or are even willing to take the risk of de-lidding a CPU let alone covering it under warranty.

With regards to the RAM upgrade don't worry, I bought my system with a stock CPU and stock RAM then upgraded everything slowly to what you see in my sig. I have a Silicon Lottery CPU that can run at 4.6 GHz on all cores with a max temp of 85C

Regarding the Prema BIOS, well the stock BIOS is locked down and allows you to change nothing but the time.

The Prema BIOS is an unlocked BIOS that allows you to tweak every thing you can imagine ranging from over clocking, disabling C-States, enabling Intel Speed Shift technology which allows the CPU to switch from non turbo to turbo speeds much faster than your traditional Turbo Boost, etc

This laptop without he Prema BIOS is like a Ferrari with no driver.

For the VBIOS it unlocks the GPU voltage sliders to give you more over clocking headroom should you wish to overclock and disables GPU throttling.

For the prices please ask them I don't know because it's been 5 months since I bought mine.

*posted via my iToy SE*

See ya

 

Ok I checked their site. 450 dollars for delidding, no thanks. I guess it's nice to know it's under warranty if I screw up doing it myself. So, with this prema bios stuff, why can't I just install it myself? Why do they have to? Who else sells it?

 

Prema only offers his BIOS's through specific seller partners, and the BIOS isn't typically available for free download (I believe?). Using a custom BIOS not supported by the computer's seller may not be allowed under warranty.

 

How about through XoticPc? Is it under warranty? Do you guys sell them?

 

It isn't in the warranty and as far as I'm aware, no Sager reseller is a Prema partner because Sager provides the BIOS and does all the warranty repairs for their resellers. I wouldn't expect Prema to be releasing his mod for machines not purchased through a partner anymore although anything can happen but the only way to not risk your warranty either way is to get your machine from a Prema partner shop. Bricking a motherboard with a BIOS flash can cost you a good 400 or so to replace so the risk is up to you.

 

What is bricking a motherboard mean? And Bios flash?

 

The BIOS is what runs when you turn on your computer and initializes all the hardware before handing it off to the operating system. It's the thin layer between the operating system and the hardware that ensures everything functions properly. Bricking a motherboard is what happens when you try to flash a modded BIOS to get access to more features and the flash fails for some reason. There is no way to recover from certain types of failure and it would require replacing the entire motherboard. A failed BIOS flasg

If you are asking these questions, my suggestion is to go for whatever system has the best warranty and configuration for your needs and not worry about the BIOS it comes with as outside of the BIOS and some premium hardware upgrades (which are not always that beneficial to your average consumer), the systems are all Clevo bases and thus have the same basic features.

 

Here a list:

https://biosmods.wordpress.com/partner/

If you are not interested in advanced (v)BIOS then make sure to check out LPCDigitial, they are fantastic, too!

 

We aren't a Prema partner unfortunately.

 

You are welcome to join!
I am not saying no to shops with a good reputation, such as Xotic's!

 

That was really rude, man. @Phoenix goes out of his way to be helpful all of the time. I see you apologized, but I don't really understand why that would set you off... really puzzled by that. Why wouldn't happy customers recommend a company that did them right when someone asks for advice, and he offered some very solid rationale for recommending them. The stock firmware sucks and that alone is reason enough to buy from a @Prema partner, and how is that trolling? HIDevolution is a really good company to deal with. I have dealt with them several times and very pleased with every aspect of dealing with them.

 

Thank you sir. And just to clarify, I don't get commission from anyone nor do I need commission or anyone's charity. My commission comes from God. I simply state my experience, time after time after time again. I don't know why some people get offended by that like that user calling me a troll. LOL

 

The P870DM is a beast machine no matter where you buy one, but with stock firmware it is seriously crippled. And, I'm not talking about just overclocking. The stock BIOS is literally worthless. There are hardly any adjustments for anything. You can choose RAID or AHCI and a couple of extremely basic functionality options and that's it... nada, kaput, basura, caca BIOS. Sager really should change their policy and/or Clevo needs to hire @Prema to do things the right way for all Clevo owners everywhere.

And, it's not just Clevo. A crappy locked-down BIOS is one of the things (before the BGA junk was released) that abruptly ended my long-term appreciation for Alienware products. The OEMs and ODMs need to get it through their thick skulls that the hardcore enthusiasts that are willing to spend the most for something amazing are not going to knowingly buy crippled trash. They'll buy nothing and move to desktops because there's zero tolerance for crippling. It's like they have some kind of god complex where they think they have a right to dictate what can and can't be done and that's unacceptable.

My exposure to the stock BIOS on the Eurocom review unit and my own P870DM that I purchased from @tanzmeister was such that without the @Prema BIOS I never would have purchased one. It would have been out of the question for me. I don't play crippled firmware games. I would have just built a desktop instead and washed my hands of high performance laptops completely. In a world of fancy machines, this lone ranger with an unlocked BIOS was the only option in the universe that was acceptable to me in a notebook. It's not perfect, but compared to the other options available for sale, this model created a real monopoly for Clevo among enthusiasts. The benefit of having the modded firmware so you can have full control of your own private property far and away eclipses the value of any warranty.

 

Same here, I don't earn from the sales a Prema Partner makes. If they sell nothing or a million units won't make a difference to me...

 

Dont worry about that. I am sure that was just an honest mistake.
Me and people like me who have been here with you will vouch for you. You have learned alot and have also contributed to the community immensely.

P.S: I remember your initial post when you pissed off some people because you flooded the forums with questions. You have come a long way since then my friend. Kudos to you.

 

I was skeptical of @Phoenix's repping of HIDevolution as well. Read about my experience with HIDevolution - EVOC P750DM-G. I've dealt with other resellers (XoticPC, Mythlogic, Prostar). I would suggest actually calling each reseller and talking to the reps; buy into the reseller rather than the laptop (they all offer the same Clevo models, after all).

 

People think that anyone who says good things about company is a shill, people aren't even allowed to be fanboys anymore. I will proudly admit that I'm a fanboy of Eurocom, Sennheiser, Noctua, etc (I have premium tastes, it's in my blood) but these days I'm also a little bit bothered by the fact that if I say good things about a company, I'll be called a shill. It's happened before.

 

It's always a good idea to talk with a rep before purchasing, so you can get an idea for who you are working with and get questions to any answers you might have.

 

I hear you. It's true, unfortunately.

I just purchased an EVOC P870DM-G from @Ted@HIDevolution this evening for a nephew... great transaction, great guy, and it will have great @Prema firmware before it ships... and I ordered a replacement heat sink for my P750ZM at the same time to replace my defective original heat sink. Guess where Ted is getting the heat sink... @Prostar Computer... small world and plenty of fish in this pond. Wherever a person decides to buy from, as @pat@XOTICPC suggested, talk to them, get comfortable, build a relationship with them. When they do good, praise them openly for doing good and tell others. Our world is full of people that never acknowledge when people do good, but are quick to piss and moan when they don't like something. Everyone makes mistakes. You have to give forgiveness if you want to receive it. If they don't treat you right, give them a second chance to make it right. If they still don't, then give 'em hell because they deserve it for not making things right, not because they made a mistake.

 

Well put.

 

It will turn out better than you'd expect, their quality control is top notch. I am just ticked off that I had to pay $200 USD to Eurocom for my Prema BIOS and now HIDevolution ships it for free with a warranty that covers the BIOS and CPU Delidding if ordered through them in addition to Silicon Lottery CPUs still covered under their in-house warranty.

Oh well, my next laptop will be from them I heard the 1080 GTX which is on the P870DM refresh should be out soon.

 

Yeah, there's $200 you'll never get back. In 20/20 hindsight it would have been better to give @Prema a $200 donation rather than Eurocom. But, to be fair, this was before HIDevolution became a Prema partner and Eurocom's basis for charging extra is to cover potential damage caused by overclocking. Personally, I have never encountered damage caused by overclocking in spite of the fact that I have been doing it a lot for a long time. I think it is the idiots that do stupid things that represent the wildcards that they are worried about. There's no reason to burn any calories worrying about the people that know what they're doing. It's unfortunate that they need to "socialize" overclocking and make the experienced pay a tax for the ineptness of the inexperienced. I don't approve of that approach for healthcare, social services or anything else.

It would be better to just deny warranty for any damages that can be associated with overclocking and refuse to cover bricked mobos and GPUs in the event of failed firmware flashes. All they need to do is pull the EEPROM and dump the firmware to tell how it got bricked. That only takes a few minutes, then the customer is on the hook for the entire cost of repair, including the cost of diagnostics and shipping. Plus, there's no reason to replace the GPU or mobo, just flash the chip and put it back... easy, peasy. If there is an actual hardware failure then it's probably a factory defect that should be covered under warranty regardless of the firmware installed. The problem is most of them don't understand that firmware is software and software doesn't damage hardware. Poor quality control, human error and stupid people cause hardware failures. End user error and stupidity should not be covered under warranty.

They (all of the Clevo sellers) need to be more worried about crappy NVIDIA GPUs failing due to poor manufacturing quality and sloppy fitting heat sinks. Those two issues are more likely to cause problems and cost money than us crazy overclockers enjoying unlocked firmware goodness.

 

indeed, the dangers of the latest nVIDIA drivers are far more alarming than a BIOS upgrade to an unlocked BIOS. What ticks me off is I paid the $200 USD not for the Prema BIOS itself, but for the warranty to be covering my system with the Prema BIOS on. Now HIDevolution honor that warranty still with the Prema BIOS without charging extra just to lure more customers. Oh well, this is the last system I will buy from Eurocom, if you're interested to know why, feel free to PM me. Eurocom's customer service is an absolute joke.