Thrifty Shopping :D

Aight, so I'm convinced I want an NP5160 for my everyday school/occassional gaming laptop. So how do I get myself the best deal without feeling like I cheated/ripped my way out of it from a great reputable company? This is the rig I'm looking at:

-FHD 1080p Matte screen
-i7 2630QM
-Everything else standard

I'm also looking into maybe an external sound card so I can hook up my Z-5500s to it. Also dabbling with the idea of moving the Optical Drive to a caddy and placing in a spare HDD I have lying around.

So how should I go about getting my best deal without getting ripped off. For the most part, the prices I see around have been reasonable sounding. How much did you guys spend on your rigs and what should I be aiming at?

 

Can't comment on your specific model, but basically it comes to shopping around. Talk to each reseller individually. See what they can do for you off the bat and see what you think each will be like if you need help in the future. That's why I ended up with myth. The weren't the cheapest I could have gotten, but if found Josh to be very trustworthy, efficient, knowledgable, and very friendly.

If you find a place you like, but someone else has it cheaper, ask for a price match. They'll want actual evidence though so be prepared to give a copy of other reseller's quotes. After that, got through with your reseller rep and ask where they can come down. Ask for X amount off the top. Be resonable though lol. We all know they mark up on things like the HD and Ram..

 

Exactly, hizzaah. With the HD and RAM, you can request that they not include those, then order those yourself. I personally went with the WD Scorpio Black, as it is the hottest HDD performer nowadays. As for RAM, you can't go wrong with HyperX.

 

As far as I recall, you don't need an external sound card to hook up your Z-5500. Find out if the 5160 has a SPDIF port, then you just need an optical cable, to your Z-5500's receiver.

 

A piece of advice, wait few weeks. GT 555M will be available on NP5160 like model.

 

I thought the GT 555M doesn't have an estimated ETA yet. Plus, we don't even know if it'll be priced similarly.

 

Its most likely that it will not be priced similarly...probably a $100 more.

Mr. Mysterious

 

is xotic pc available if I want to order an NP5160 with no RAM and HDD? I want to order on my own through new egg so I could save some money.

 

Yep, just send them a message, or chat up someone. It's $40 off for the ram, and $40 off for the HDD.

 

You can get Sager laptops w/o ram/hdd from almost any reseller.

As for GT 555M, I read somewhere that it is about a month away. And, I hope they don't make it any costlier. If they raise the price, I am not getting it. I hope it replaces GT 540M model with SAME price tag.

 

Hmmm what would be a good cheaper alternative to RAM if I decide to buy my NP5160 without it. I'll probably take out the HDD too cause I have a 500gb 7200RPM in my dell right now. Also might consider 8GB of RAM if it is cheap enough.

 

I'm sure you can find some RAM at a good price at Newegg or NCIX (They have a Canadian and American site for your convenience). They have sales and rebates all the time. Plus they're extremely reliable if you've never shopped there before.

 

hrmmm...also been reading about how the np5160 has some heating issues when under load. would the $20 IC Diamond be worth it or would I get better or similar results if I repasted it myself with Arctic Silver?

 

That would be all up to you. There's a small debate that's been going on here http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/565695-ic-diamond-compound-worth.html.

I personally use AS5 on my desktop but don't want to risk messing something up inside the laptop while repasting. I however would consider AS5 when I think I'm due for a repaste.

 

You can get a barebones system to save money if you wish.

You shouldn't get ripped off if you stick with reputable companies. Most of us are here on a daily basis and ripping off clients is a) unethical b) very bad for business, bad news travels very fast.