Sager NP8150 (Clevo P150HM) Questions

Before anyone jumps on me, I have read both the guides (including the owners' lounge one) and have done plenty of searching on here (and notebookcheck) for answers. These are my only remaining questions after spending a good couple of weeks researching this:

1. Graphics Card - RESOLVED -
Has anyone got a reasonable estimate on when notebookcheck (or another reliable source) will be comparing the efficiency between the GTX 580m and GTX 485m? I know we're all a bit impatient for it, but I'm trying to decide how long to hold-off my purchase for if it'll be released soon.

2. Integrated Graphics (processor) - RESOLVED -
Sager has disabled the integrated graphics on the Intel i7-2720QM (and greater) processors in their machines. Is there a way that the users (a.k.a. us) can re-enable it, so as to conserve battery life?

3. Processor - RESOLVED -
Has anyone got any insight on how much more of a power drain can be expected from the i7-2820QM and i7-2920XM, compared to the i7-2720QM? I'd value a battery that lasts 10% longer over a processor that performs 10% faster.

4. Undervolting
Has anyone actually ATTEMPTED this on these machines yet with appreciable increased battery life?

5. XoticPC (Reseller)
A. "Redline overclocking." Has anyone used their services on this? The owners' lounge manual states that overclocking the processor isn't possible, but that the GPUs are overclockable. Is the service good enough to warrant the price?
B. "Exterior finish." I was considering having work done on the lid, but have been reflecting on that decision in light of it's more "professional" appearance. Any opinions from those who OWN the device already? I obviously don't mind standing out (or risking theft) for appearances sake, but I wish I could see/feel one of these unpainted devices in-person (not just photos) to decide.
C. "Price Matching." I took a look at Malibal and found I could configure the same machine for about $70 less. That being said, XoticPC offered better warranties and a dead-pixel guarantee. Any idea if "price matching" still applies in this situation, when I would want to request those cost-adding features? After all, their hardware is $70 more expensive before the rest. - RESOLVED -

6. Resellers (general)
I'm a graduate student purchasing a laptop, so I know some resellers should offer discounts. Back when I was more active on this site XoticPC and PowerNotebooks were the forum favorites. Are there any "great services" or words of wisdom to share about these and the other resellers (e.g. Malibal)?

Thanks everyone!

 

The general consensus seems to be that the extra cost of the 580M versus the 485M is not worth it. As long as you can get the 485, that's the way to go. The performance differential isn't very high between the two, and it would probably be a better idea to either save the extra $200 you'd spend on the 580 and put it towards an SSD.

Nope. Alienware is the only manufacturer at the moment that is doing switchable graphics on systems with high-end GPUs.

I don't have an answer for questions 3-4, but I would tell you that the 2720QM is plenty fast for just about every task you can throw at it. The money you invest in a 2820 or 2920 you're not going to get back at resale time.

Only the Clevo X7200 and P170HM have the ability to overclock the CPU, so you wouldn't be able to do this even with an EE processor in the P150. The GPU is easy to overclock yourself using MSI Afterburner.

Price matching is tricky with these machines because the resellers leave plenty of loopholes in order to get themselves out of having to do it. The systems have to be absolutely identical in every way, shape, and form, even right down to the level of technical support. You can ask for a price match, but there's no guarantee you'd get it.

I went back and forth among all the resellers before ultimately going with Mythlogic. Like Malibal, they are a Clevo reseller, so they get the shells from Clevo and assemble them in-house. Mythlogic handles all warranty work and tech support in-house. With Sager-branded machines (Xotic, Powernotebooks, etc), you can get tech support from the reseller, but all repairs are done by Sager.

Mythlogic's prices start a bit higher than most of the other Sager/Clevo builders, but depending on the configuration you want, the price difference shrinks quite a bit. Let's take this system:

Sager NP8150 (Clevo P150HM)
1920x1080 matte screen w/95% NTSC Color Gamut
Core i7 2720QM
8 GB DDR3-1600 RAM
IC Diamond Thermal Compound
GeForce GTX 485M
500 GB 7200 RPM Hard Drive
DVD-RW Optical Drive
Intel Centrino 6230 Wireless-N+Bluetooth
Windows 7 Home Premium

The system is $2,154.25 from Myth and $2,124.00 from Xotic. Both resellers offer a 3% cash discount. Myth offers a couple standard features Xotic does not, including display calibration and a 4-year labor warranty (Xotic/Sager's is 3 years). Also part of the Myth ownership experience is their Phoenix upgrade plan, the details of which can be found here.

I received absolutely top-notch customer service from Mythlogic. My machine was built with great care and torture tested for days to ensure quality.

Honestly, though, you won't go wrong with any of the resellers who frequent this forum. If you flipped a coin to decide between sellers, I think you'd be very happy regardless of the outcome.

Good luck.

 

That was a very in-depth answer, thank you Saturnotaku! I hope others don't shy away from pitching in their answers after reading yours though, as some questions still remain. In regards to your mythlogic suggestion though I had three thoughts:

1. The 4-year labor warranty is nice (although the part's warranty doesn't exceed 3 years). With my American Express I should be able to tack-on an additional year to both, too (regardless of OEM).
2. The pohenix upgrade plan and other perks look awesome, but one of the appealing things about this machine is how easily user-upgradable it is already. Still, with cleaning, recovery, and so forth it's deffinitely a deal to admire. The only thing they don't seem to offer (which XoticPC does) is 24/7/365 phone tech support (I'm rather surprised they don't, honestly).
3. I'm confused. It say's on their website that they DO offer integrated graphics and optimus technology on these laptops! Really? I, too, thought only Alienware was keeping that feature enabled at this time.

 

On whose site? I don't see any reference to Optimus on this notebook on Sager, Xotic, or Mythlogic.

 

Hi, there are certain models like the 5165/5160/3250 that do offer Optimus Technology... but only with GT 555M, 540M or 520M Graphics.

 

Hence why I said Alienware is the only manufacturer doing switchable graphics on high-end GPUs.

 

Yea, I should have used a quote - because that was in reply to his 3. About seeing Optimus advertised on Clevo notebooks... I was trying to say - if you saw that - it was referring to these other models and not the ones that carry the 560M and up.

 

I re-read it and you guys were right, sorry about the confusion (I was skeptical myself). In my defense though, if you read what they wrote at MYTHLOGIC :: Mobile, it is a tad misleading when not over-analyzing the wording.

Any feedback on my other questions (e.g. further research on my end shows the 2720QM and 2820QM have identical electrical needs [but that's probably debatable if/when I attempt undervolting], but the difference probably is insignifficant. Unlike the 2920XM, which is approximately 20% more power demanding)?

 

You may not even want to try undervolting the CPU. Intel speedstep + turbo do a pretty decent job of that now. While they may be rated for 45w, you'll rarely if ever run that high. I see mine idling at less than half that most of the time. Unless you're seeking to get every minute of run time out of the laptop, the built in power settings do a darn good job of keeping it undervolted/downclocked when not needed.

 

1. the gtx 580 is around 5-15% better than the grx 485, estimates from nvidia so take it with a grain of salt.
2.higher end sagers dont offer igpu.
4. undervolting your gpu should lower temps and may improve batterylife
5. redline would be good if you want your gpu overclocked without voiding warranty, but check with resellers to make sure overclocking doesnt void warranty.
6. there are small differences between the resellers, mostly dealing with specaials and free upgrades. but the key is to ask as many questions a possible. u cant really go wrong if u order from a company whos rep is active in the forums... myth, malibal, xotic, lpc.......

 

How would you about undervolting or increasing voltage on the gpu?

 

That's very true. Thank you. I guess that just leaves the GPU in question.

There is software that can be used. If you check my guide (see signature), I briefly touch upon undervolting. Note: My guide is really old and not entirely applicable anymore, but it should get you on the right road to learning more about it.

 

1. Yes, I don't consider Nvidia a reliable resource here, for the reason you stated. So, do you have a more reliable source? Note: I've found that notebookcheck HAS released a comparitive report already (it's ill-done though, in my opinnion). Still, it was sufficient for me to remove this question. Should you find a reliable article though, then please do post it and I'll give it a looking over.

2. Yes, SAGER doesn't. But the ability to buy more directly through CLEVO is possible. I'm trying to ascertain if there is a way to re-enable the feature, as they're the same chips in both machines.

4. Yes, that's why I asked the question of whether anyone HAS done it (the machines might be calibrated so well already to as not need to bother).

5. Yes, but I was trying to ascertain how good of a job RedLine Boost does to warrant the payment. I'm confident I could overclock the hardware myself (and of course would check the warranties with reseller's first).

6. Yes, I feel safe with all the resellers that are popular around here (had already investigated XoticPC, PN, and Malibal extensively in the past. Now considering Mythlogic, too).

...
Anyone else got any input on the original questions (I've marked the questions that have been resolved to my satisfaction in the OP)?

 

What I can tell you about #2 is that with the P and X series laptops no matter what you do, you aren't going to get that iGPU to kick back on. Its just not going to happen. Its the way the motherboards are built, the iGPU is physically disconnected from the rest of the laptop. So you will never ever get any output from it. Thats the way Clevo built the motherboards =)

 

Not just the same chips, but the same machines all together. Aside from the BIOS splash screen and a badge on the lid, Sager and Clevo systems are identical.

 

So that's why I haven't seen this question addressed before. It was confusing me how there couldn't be something the user could do when the chips are the same in the machines. Thanks a lot mythlogic (and I might be sending you a PM later with more inquiries about your company and warranty, too)!

 

For the motherboard, keyboard and chassis yes. But thats where the similarities end

 

OK, now you have me curious. Care to expand on this?

 

Remember Clevo only makes shells, they don't make laptops.

So Sager uses their parts and does their own testing. All the resllers obviously for the most part don't touch the final product.

The builders, we use our own parts and testing for the internals. So while the end product is still a Laptop, its not quite the same thing

 

Was there any reason why you guys wanted to be a builder instead of a sager reseller?

 

The only possible differences between Clevo notebooks will be which brands of RAM, HDD etc. and CPU, Screen options are offered... any other claim alluding to special or exclusive features on a Clevo notebook is simply marketing rhetoric.

 

Yea we are system builders, that's what we do. I would much rather sell 5 of my own product than 50 of someone else's, because its ours, we built it for you the customer. We are proud of our work, and we stand by our work.

*Please note not trying to start a flame war or anything like that, he asked for the reason, he got our answer.

Of course, never claimed to do anything to the shells themselves, that would just be silly =0)

 

Is this model truly under 6 pounds. If so, how monstrous is the power brick?

 

The laptop itself is 6.83lbs, and the power brick is quite large (rough estimate without a tape measure is 4"x8"x2" and about 2lbs on its own)

 

Hi, this model is around 6.83lbs with the battery.

4 x 8 x 16.5 (cm) 1.86lbs

 

Just jumping in to say that I'd recommend buying from Mythlogic as well. Their service is top-notch and unbeatable. They answer emails even on weekends, and sometimes even at late hours/early hours. As to your question about the power brick, its large for power brick, but in general not too bad.

 

Ouch. Thanks.

Looks like 555m here I come. I realize models are way slower but at nearly 8 lbs v. Closer to 5.63 pounds it's also nearly 30% heavier. Still holding my breath for sub 5 pound machine with chops (not made by lg p330... Great washing machines but seriously? lol)