Sager NP9850

Hi. I'm new to all this but really getting into it and I am buying a Sager NP9850 and this is how I will have it set up. What I'm wondering about is the CPU. For now I plan to do some gaming like COD: MW2. Possibly more games later on. I have it set up with the Q9000 and was wondering if I can overclock it or should I go with the T9600 or P9700? but here is the setup so far. Any recommendations and constructive criticism is appreciated. Thanks!!

Sager NP9850 (Built on Clevo M980NU) Gaming Laptop

- 18.4" FHD WUXGA Super Clear Ultra Bright Glossy Dual Lamp Screen (1920x1080)
- ~Intel® Q9000 45nm "Montevina" Core™2 Quad 2.0GHz w/6MB L2 On-die cache - 1066MHz FSB
- - IC Diamond Thermal Compound - CPU + GPU
- SLi ENABLED DUAL (2) 1024MB PCI-Express nVIDIA GTX 280M's (2048MB Total) w/GDDR3 DX10 Video Cards (User Upgradeable)
- ~ 4,096MB DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS)
- ~Combo 8x8x6x4x Dual Layer DVD +/-R/RW 5x DVD-RAM 24x CD-R/RW Drive w/Softwares
- ~ 320GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache)
- ~ 320GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache)~
- Raid 0 Stripe Enabled (Requires 2 or 3 Hard Drives. Combines Hard Drives for performance)
- Stock OEM Thermal Compound ( this was for the floppy drive option but i have the ice diamond thermal compound so i wasnt sure to pick this or the no floppy drive option????)
- Internal 7-in-1 Card Reader (MS/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS Pro Duo/SD/Mini-SD/MMC/RS)
- Internal Bluetooth + EDR
- Built-in Intel® PRO/Wireless 5300 802.11 a/g/n Wi-Fi Link
- Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
- Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
- Basic Black Business Case - Included
- Smart Li-ion Battery (12 Cell)
- Integrated Fingerprint Reader
- ~Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Installed (64&32-Bit CD Included) w/ Drivers & Utilities CD's

 

My suggestion is that if you are running short on money, just go for the lowest-priced CPU (p8700, I think) and then upgrade later to something like a q9100 or a qx9300 (or qx9200, although only engineering samples are available for those) when you need it. Also keep in mind that a refresh is coming soon for the Clevo M980NU, which will support Core i7 and gtx 285 videocards, which should most likely be available by March... but if you need the computer now, go for it.

 

Do you need the laptop now, or can you wait for the X8100? The X8100 will have dual GTX 285M's and will support Core i7.

As for your predicament for quad vs dual, it depends on what you are using it for. Gaming is a bit touch and go though, because a P9700 will be equivalent to a Q9000, or so the benchmark thread tells us.

Heavy multitasking will most likely benefit from the Q9000, and will certainly perform better with programs like GTA IV and other multithreaded applications, and the dual will be better for applications that don't support more than two cores, of which many programs are like today still.

 

When I bought my 9850 I was torn for weeks about which processor to go with.

I opted for the Q9000.

I was worried because I never quite knew how system requirements like P4 3.0Ghz or C2D 2.8Ghz or better would translate to a quad core. I fully expected issues with games. I play a lot of games.

To my surprise I havent had any issues at all. Evertything from World in Conflict to Crysis, MW2, Section 8, etc... and back to FFVII and Red Faction all run fine at their highest settings.

I was getting strange stutters and jumps in Crysis but the latest drivers for the video cards took care of those issues.

The Q9000 will run everything you'd want to run perfectly fine.

 

So will the P9700 ... with just 25W.

 

If I went with the p9700 dual core could I upgrade to a quad core or core i7 later on or would I have to buy a whole new laptop? I'm not too short on money but trying to keep it less it than 3000 or right at it for now and I basically need it before march so that's kind of a bust. And what about overclocking the q9000 or p9700? Because I'm sure once I start playing MW2 on it I'm gonna want to play some more games. Also I've heard that there's very little difference between the t9600 and p700? And of course I can uprade to GTX 285 cards later on right?

 

You will be able to upgrade all the way up to the QX9300. But you won't be able to upgrade to the i7 CPUs unless you will replace your motherboard.

The difference between the T9600 and the P9700 is the power consumption, the T uses 35W the P 28W. Performance wise they are identical.

Yes, you will be able to upgrade to the 285. But keep in mind that one card alone will probably cost 500 USD.

 

I bet the if I waited for the x8100 with the i7 and dual gtx285'a and added the options I wanted it would most likely put me over the $3000 limit though wouldn't it?

 

I think it will be roughly the same price as it is now.

 

OK because with the set up I have it at right now its just under 2700 bucks on xoticpc. They have it on the deviltech german site with the i7 but still with dual 280m's but I have no idea how to convert german dollars to US dollars even with the currency converter cuz it's like 2.204,00 €

 

Well, the price in Germany includes VAT, which does not apply for US.

To get the US price from Deviltech you need to take the final price from their website, divide it by 1.19 and then multiply it by 1.41 -> this will give you the US price in dollars.

 

This might be a dumb question but what is the difference really between quad core and i7 when most games are still only utilizing 2 cores but going to quad?

 

thanks for the price issue

 

With i7 you don't need to worry about whether a game is Dual or Quad Core optimised since the CPU will cater for both, even a single Core can be used.

Without going into too much detail, the i7 will use 2 Cores at a slightlyhigher clock rate if an application needs it or it will use all 4 Cores at a slightly lower clock rate if need be. The i7 is the answer to the ongoing Quad Vs Dual Core debate.

With a standard Quad Core, any unused Cores will be mostly sitting idle and none of their unused potential can be utilised aside from OS task use.

 

So instead do you think it would be better to just go with either a p9700 or t9600 then for now? I don't know if I can wait until march for the X8100 to come out, and I'm afraid I'll go over the 3000 dollar mark with upgrades :/

 

I still can't decide between the Q9000, T9600, or the P9700???? HELP PLEASE!! I wanna at least play COD:MW2 for now and do homework and what not and then maybe play some more games later. and I can't afford the QX9300, lol
If I get the Q9000 to future proof it can I overclock it?

 

If you buy now, in a few months when the SLI / i7 update comes out at around the same price range you will really wish that you waited.

I waited a few months when I knew an upgraded model would be out on my first laptop purchase and it cost about the same.

If you buy now, the P9700 will be good enough and in the future you can upgrade to a 3.0 Ghz Core2Duo or a 2.5 Ghz QX9300. If you want to save some money you could always use an Engineering Sample.

However, if you wait, you will get a true Quad Core CPU that will deal with single, Dual and Quad Core games really well with no problem.

 

Yeah it just sucks because in another thread I seen someone post that it would probably be around May for the X8100 to start shipping out