Sager NP9262 components

Looking at the difference between spec'ing out a Sager NP9262 and the NP5792, it looks like the components in the NP9262 are desktop components while the components in the NP5792 are laptop components. I'm mostly basing this on the available CPU's and the stated front side bus.

Is the CPU offered in the NP9262 a desktop CPU? If so, I'm assuming that you lose any ability for the laptop to scale down the CPU speed when the extra CPU power isn't needed (which will result in worse battery life).

Anyone know if this is the case?

 

Yes, the NP9262 uses desktop processors.

 

i don't think the 9262 is the laptop you want to buy if you are planning on using battery power.

 

true statement. I would only get the 9262 if you plan on being plugged in all the time.

the only desktop piece is the CPU, all other pieces, IE video card, are mobile versions.

 

the np9269 is a desktop replacement...

 

About what could I expect for battery life for the NP9269 with a single 8800m and a 3ghz CPU? 30 minutes? 45 minutes?

Well I am currently using a Dell Inspiron 9300 which doesn't have the best battery life, but it does let me run for 1:30-2:00 (at least it did with a new battery...it's probably now down to around an hour).

I mostly haul my laptop to work where it sits for most of the day plugged in, then it goes back to the backpack, gets hauled home. On nights when I game I toss it on my lap in my lazyboy and play.

The main reasons I'm looking at the NP9262 instead of the NP5792 is that I'm planning on having this laptop for a few years and want to be able to game with it for that time...the 3Ghz CPU vs. the 2.4Ghz CPU and the ability to toss in another 8800m in SLI at a later date when games start requiring it (if Crysis doesn't already).

And will this thing burn holes in my legs?

 

Yes, even though it is a desktop processor it does still have speedstep technology. It will throttle the CPU down if it is not plugged in. (depending on how you have your power options set)

I get around 45 min at full throttle with my system before it starts beeping at me. I think thats the 10% mark for battery. The D901C is a very cool running laptop.

No laptop should be used on your lap. They should all be place on a level horizontal surface. All laptops have fans and most suck air from the bottom, i.e. the D901C does. You should not be obstructing the air flow.

Hope that helps. And depending on what you want to do with it. The D901C also comes in Quad flavors to the tune of 2.66Ghz. That coupled with a future SLI 8800M GTX setup should game fairly well for some time.

 

Battery life is about 1.5 hours for normal computing...about half that for gaming.

Wu Jen is correct, you should use a lap tray of some sort to allow for the free flow of air. A simple food tray will work, and there are also laptop trays out there that are padded on the underside for comfort on your lap with the hard surface on top. You can Google for them and find several options.

 

Here is a website that has some trays to use in bed or a lazyboy.

 

A good way to think of the battery in the NP9262 is that it is an integrated UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply). It gives you plenty of time to wrap up whatever you're doing on your desktop replacement if the power goes out, but it definitely isn't designed to be run off the battery for hours on end .

 

Hehe...45 minutes is more than just a standard UPS (at least more than the typical UPS's in my house...most of those only go for 10-15 minutes).

BAH! Still can't decide whether I want the NP9262 or the NP5792!!! BAH BAH BAH!!!

 

Yeah, it lasts longer than your average UPS, but it lasts less than your average notebook computer. As a desktop replacement, it falls somewhere in the middle of the portable vs. stationary argument

 

If you got the money to burn and are willing to sacrifice portability for performance (we're talking 14 and odd pounds for the laptop+power adapter), then go with the 9262, or if you want a mobile, 17 inch beast (8 pounds laptop) with less power, but more portability, then go with the 5792.

 

As stated before it is a desktop cpu but with speedstep. I can't tell you what settings yours would use since I don't know what cpu you will get. I can tell you that my E6700 2.66gz cpu came from the either the reseller or Clevo preset in bios (which you cannot get to or change which is why I think it was probably Clevo) for each core of the dual core to run at 1.5gz under no load and steps up to 2.66gz or something in between on demand. I was REALLY miffed about this at first but some testing demonstrated that I was getting the full 2.66 gz when I needed it. In games etc for example it pegs and doesn't step back down because of the constant demand. So I felt a lot better about it after that and quit pursuing overriding it in software.

Battery life depends on your hardware as well as how you use it.
I have dual 7950gtxs in sli and 2 20gb 7200rpm satas so I barely get 45 min when doing nothing but web browsing or such. It probably wouldn't last 20 min in an fps game but I've never tried it since the chaos of the game masks the battery low warnings... basically I rarely ever use it without the ac.

The thing weighs ~20lbs not including any extra stuff you might want to take such as cables etc. (you may be looking at 25-30lbs! Factor that in when taking it back and forth to work and it is very large for a notebook. On this subject I'm planning on getting one of those small travel carry on bags with the hidden handle you can pop up and roll away for a case instead of a normal notebook case just because of this.

{EDIT 12/31/2007} OK I got that 20lb weight from a couple old and early reviews on the 9260 and just guessed on the 25-30lbs based on how I use the thing but I need to retract that statement. In fact it weighs 11.5-12 lbs for the unit and 2.5-3 lbs for the brick and power cord bringing the total to 14-15 lbs. Then if you throw in the bag a few misc cables, cd case and other misc accessories you may reach ~18-20 lbs. A long way from the 25-30 lbs I stated. My greater point though is that it is very bulky and heavy for a notebook but it is portable which is all I was looking for. In my case I, when gaming I always use an external keyboard and gaming or not I always use a REAL mouse. Throw in some steelsound 5hv2 headphones and an S&S steelpad mouse pad, extention cord etc and you have alot to drag around. {end of edit}

Actually the nvidia recommended settings for Crysis are NO SLI (single GPU).
I HAD to turn it on/modify the nvidia sli config anyhow with Alternate screen rendering 1 because otherwise some sections of the game become almost unplayable on one 7950gtx even with everything set to meduim. That jumped the fps about 15-30+ in those sections. I just finish the single player tonight. Oh and sli split screen is worse than one card and alternate screen 2 is better than one card but worse than render 1. Google crysis tweaking for good tips on this. I'm running laptopvideo2go drivers 169.28 for what it's worth.

 

Well it does need to be "portable" (for certain definitions of portable) as I haul it between home and work every day...but I'm already hauling a relatively large Inspiron 9300, so having it be a bit more bulky/heavy won't bother me that much (I dont' think).

 

Where did you get those weights?

Certainly not on a digital scale.

It does not weigh even close to 20 pounds, even if you include the weight of the AC Adapter. The laptop alone would be a little over 12 pounds with dual video cards and hard drives.

 

At the end its always a question of money...wanna spend an extra 1000$ for an SLI card? I dont want to be harsh but... SLI isnt that powerfull, at least the difference doesnt worth 1000$

SLI problem is the driver... and games patch... just look at crisis, SLI make the game slower.

Save that money and in 3years buy another laptop

 

Ya...I am not planning on getting SLI now (wasn't even planning on it before it because end of Feb to get it). The main thing pulling me to the bigger laptop is the CPU. I'm going to be using this for a few years...an extra 25% speed boost (plus extra for the bus) for the 3ghz C2D over the 2.4ghz is what is really drawing me.

The ability to throw an extra video card in later to extend the video power is just an extra benefit.

And the money difference (without SLI) isn't that drastic...and I end up with a faster CPU.

 

Take a couple deeeeep breathes, relax, then go read the edit I placed in my original post. The comment I made about the weight was excessive as regards to 25-30 lbs but 20 lbs is pretty easy to reach. Read the post edit for the rest...

PS. Had I remembered reading post #13 I wouldn't have even mentioned this. That's what I get for coming to these forums at 2am

 

Thanks for the edit jd91651 ... that is more accurate

 

Which implies that you will be using it for work - if so, the type of work you'll be typically using it for may be an important factor to consider; e.g., as has been routinely pointed out by my better-educated confreres on this forum, if your work involves a lot of video editing that might tend to favor the 9262 with a quad-core over the 5792.