Questions about Sager NP8268(S) aka P150SM-A

Hello all, I'm new to clevo and I'm very interested in the Sager NP8268, it looks nice and is very affordable, but I saw some mentions about the PCH temperature issue with this model (and a lot of other clevo barebones) that the PCH stay at a very high temperature causing the fans to spin up randomly, does this happen to you guys too?

Also I'd like to know the difference between NP8268 and NP8268-S, is the difference only about different graphics card configurations?

Thanks in advance and waiting for your response.

Sent from my SCH-I959 using Tapatalk

 

The only difference in the models is the stock configuration and the price. If you took a NP8268 and put the same specs as the S version has you'd have identical computers but the S would cost less.

 

I'm also looking at buying this laptop because of its incredible price to performance ratio. Was initially put off by the loud fans at max load, but then i'd rather have the noise rather than have temperatures off the charts. Coupled with a dual-fan setup and an IC Diamond repaste, i wager the 8268s would be relatively easier to maintain than my original choice, the np7338 with its single fan.

This would be my first ever true gaming laptop. My first rig is a desktop with a phenom II x3 with a radeon hd4670, which croaked last Christmas. So basically the np8268s would be a desktop replacement for me.

One thing i'm curious about is how the power brick - a 180W i think - will manage a cpu (an i7-8210mq) and a gpu that is rated for 100W max each, and thats not counting the other components like the two fans, the ssd, etc. Is this brick up to the job? Sorry for the nooby question, but i'm really curious how this works out for this laptop.

 

The CPU is rated for 45W, the GPU for 100-110W, the power brick is fine for stock operation.

 

About the PCH, yes it's always at high temperatures , but it's not responsible for fan full throttle, and the temperatures are always in safe area

Elipsus

 

I see...seems like i got the cpu tdp wrong.

It's not so bad then. With dual fans and the repaste (and no overclocking, Lol - paint me "noob") i guess temp management on the np8268 would be easier than i thought.

For those experienced owners out here, whats the longest gaming session you have had with this powerful machine? I can imagine this laptop is a quantum leap over my old deskbound rig, which i usually game on for 5 or 6 hours at a time.

Not that i have the luxury nowadays of five-hour stretches of pleasurable idle time to waste on my soon-to-be owned sager (2-3 hours max on weekdays if i'm lucky).

 

I have the 8258-S, which is mostly the same system.

12 hour gaming session, Borderland 2, everything maxed.

Ambient Temperature 22.5c
GPU Thermals: 82c
CPU Thermals: 78c

Cheers.

 

**whistles** that's what i call a 'gaming marathon'!

Might try doing one myself in future (on days off work, of course)

I see your ambient temperature is about 5-9c lower than the usual in my area. Is this a significant enough factor to push my component temps past your numbers?

 

I went to a friends that had about 84f ambient temps.

And without a laptop cooler, nor without the back elevated (which people always recommend), these were the thermals after 7 hours playing Borderland 2.

GPU: 92c max spike (avg 86c)
CPU: 83c max spike (avg 80c)

Ran a bit higher, but still well within the tolerance limits.

 

Hmm...sounds great. That 84f sounds right up my alley. Don't know if i should invest in a laptop cooler, though, those things are debatable at best based on what i've heard.

Maybe an electric fan to direct some air towards the keyboard? Isn't there an air intake in this part somewhere?

Oh, and i surmise internal fans are whirring at max by this time? There's this video i watched showing the np8268 playing skyrim with an incredibly silky-smooth performance at max settings -- but you can hear them fans spinning like mad in the background. It's like sitting in an airliner too close to where the engines are...tolerable?

Just curious, noise is not really that much of an issue for me. My experience with my old desktop is about the same; in fact, it's much worse because the fans in the desktop start "takeoff" right off boot and settle into "cruise" during light work loads like browsing stuff or ms office.

 

I'm also wondering whether i should take out the battery while gaming plugged into A/C outlet; a couple of friends of mine use their mainstream laptops without the battery when plugged in. Reason: to ensure battery longevity. Is this fact or myth?

Was leaning to believe this practice isn't really necessary, given that a lot of laptops today (even some gaming ones) have their batteries located internally. You have to access the rear or bottom cover via unscrewing the panels to take them out. With this design isn't it implied that you can use the machine while charging the battery pack at the same time?

 

Well, the answer is. It depends. I have the coolmaster u3 laptop cooler. It has positional fans which are great since you can place them at all the hot spots. I shave 2-12c (depending on what's running) at any given time.

Yup, the intakes are on the bottom of the laptop. It has two fans. One for the GPU and one for the CPU. The fact the intakes are on the bottom make laptop coolers that much more effective. It doesn't help with 'cooling' or much on airflow, but it does increase radically the air pressure which allows an even and distributed air flow. That's the good point of the laptop coolers.

Believe it or not, the fans still never really spun up max except for maybe one or two bursts during heavy gaming areas with lots of combat. The video I saw as well, it was with the 8255. I don't know what's up, but the fan sound on the 8258 is negligible at best. Most of the time the fans were at high-medium (not high high) in that room, and while the whir was noticeable, there was no high/low pitch, hum, or anything distracting. Definitely nothing that would drown out conversation or game play. No worries there.

Case in point, at the friends place, my wife was having a tabletop gaming session at the same desk I had my laptop at. They were able to communicate fine and the laptop was not distracting at all.

Oh no problem at all. It's a valid question and has been always a concern with Clevo laptops in the past. I just know the current generation of high-end systems seem to have much better fan profiles and tend to have better sounding fans all around where the sound isn't as labored.

But yes, if you hit FN-1 to turn fans on max, you do hear them. Not distracting, but you hear them

For normal browsing, I doubt you'll even have the fans spin up at all. Absolutely quiet.

My Asus G51 laptop was generally louder with the fans than my Sager currently is.

I've heard mixed bags on this. It isn't as much a problem with new battery technology as it was in the past, but as general principle, I tend to let the battery discharge down to like 10% before charging it once a month.

I honestly have not seen a 'rule of thumb' on this and maybe someone who has more experience can speak up. Sorry, that's one I don't know much about to answer fully.

 

It's cool, man, I've gotten lots of valuable pointers from you already. You're the best. :thumbsup:

Up to 12c decrease in temp is phenomenal! Maybe i would check those coolers out after i get a feel for how my future machine will do its thing. Maybe a cooler would help me hit the sweet spot between heat and fan noise, or even prolong my system's life.

The thing about the battery is that i pretty much do it that way, too: run on battery until it's down to 10% - at this point you'll get a notice that i need to plug in - then charge it all the way up to 100%. This is what i do on my mainstream laptop. Would have taken the battery out when it's full while i run off the mains, but my toshiba 14 inch has it's battery inside.

So yeah, anybody who has any battery related "best practices" that i should know of? Appreciate it if you can give me some pointers.

 

Rule of thumb on battery storage is 60% out of the machine in a cool dark place or just leave it as it wont make a difference, intentionally cycling it just eats into the final countdown of cycles until it is worn out.