Want to buy a Sager NP8662. Few questions regd it.

Hi,

I am new to this forum but this forum is like a wikipedia to me with respect to laptops.

I made a choice of buying Sager NP8662 a month ago as the reviews are great and am just waiting for the money. So, here's what I would like to know before I buy it.

1) I heard a lot of HDD heat issues and what I understood from the other topics is that, it is mainly because of some error during assembling.

2) Do I have to buy the notebook cooler as well?

3) One thing I till didnt check is Windows 7 compatibility. How is it with Windows 7?

Please help me with it. TIA.

 

1: there are slightly high hardrive temps but after i installed the matrix intel drivers it made a huge difference and only get 60degrees these days when benchmarking etc.
2: i use a notebook cooler and always have when using a notebook for gaming if you can afford it id recommend it.
3:i personally dont use windows7 but a number of people are are there dont seem to be any conflicts to speak off....
Its a great machine i am really happy with the performance and build quality of the notebook.
Enjoy it.

 

1. The HD do get hot occasionally, but there are some ways to bring down the temp. One way stated above, or you can even put a thin copper plate for more heat dissipation.

2. You dont 'have' to, but it can bring down temps around 5-10C, so if your comp does seem to get very hot, it would be nice to have it.

3. I have Windows 7 and its nice. I suggest you get the full version instead of an upgrade if you can. I had some problems with the upgrade version.

 

1. The HD temps largely depend on ambiant temperature. My seagate runs at 49c idle with 22c ambiant temperature and 55c with 27c ambiant temp. It also depends on the harddrive you choose. The WD scorpio has better performance but runs a little hotter than seagates. And matrix storage manager helps lowering temps by a couple degrees too. I would suggest trying to get the laptop with a seagate 7200.4 if you can (unless you really want a 5400rpm).

2. I've never used a notebook cooler. I move my laptop too much. I never had any overheating issues, gpu doesn't even reach 80c. But it isn't a bad thing to have, it will lower your temps.

3. Haven't tried it yet. Can't help you there

 

I have been using Windows 7 RC 7100 X64 as well as the 32 bit version and it makes the laptop run so much better, everything is fast, smooth, stable and gaming is great. I have been a fan of XP for ages and for the first time I have found an OS that is not only as good, fast and stable but it a lot better.

You don't need a cooler but I recommend one and I wouldn't worry about the HDD temps, at the moment mine is 52C and I am playing GTA IV, it idles at 40-45C and it is a 7200 RPM.

The update to NP8662 looks to have some kind of HDD heatsink though which may bring down those temps.

 

I doubt they'll be room for a heatsink on the W860 as the battery will go over the top of the HD by the looks of things (as silly as it sounds).

And for the millionth time this week, the HDD temps don't cause any real physical issues, just issues of paranoia brought on by lots of silly M860 owners. Hot palms aside, no damage has been done by this. It's been blown out of proportion too - many owners don't even have this issue, myself included.

 

Thanks a lot guys.

I initially wanted to buy 5400 rpm HDD because of heat issues. If feasible, i'll try to buy 7200 rpm.

I am not going to buy notebook cooler initially as I stay in NJ and its cool most of the time.

I definitely don't want to install Vista and I never did. I am going straight to Windows 7 from Windows XP

I am planning to buy in xoticpc after accumulating some money (may be 1-2 months). Any more suggestions than I need to know? For now, I am planning to buy the following config. This may change if there are any upgrades available. I am not taking OS because I am planning to install Windows 7 on it and I can get an original version later from my college.

- 15.4" WSXGA+ "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright Glossy Screen (1680x1050) - 8662
- ~Intel® P8700 45nm "Montevina" Core™2 Duo 2.53GHz w/3MB L2 On-die cache - 1066MHz FSB 25 watt
- Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- nVidia GeForce GTX 260M 1,024MB PCI-Express DDR3 DX10 (User Upgradeable)
- ~ 4,096MB DDR3 1066MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS)
- ~Combo 8x8x6x4x Dual Layer DVD +/-R/RW 5x DVD-RAM 24x CD-R/RW Drive w/Softwares
- ~ 250GB 5400RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 8MB Cache)
- Internal 7-in-1 Card Reader
- 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
- No Operating System Standard - Drivers & Utility Software Only
- No Office Software

 

No. No.

The only HDD you want is a Seagate Momentus 7200.4, and I recommend the 250GB 7200.4, because it's hands down the coolest HDD in this chassis. Mine idles in the 40s, maxes at 56.

Listen to me.

 

Funny, sounds kinda like the of temps my Western Digital (WD5000BEVT) gets (non-coolered too)

 

My 500GB Seagate Momentus 7200.4 also idles around those temps and maxes out at 55. With hotter ambient temps it maxes out at 60C.

 

If you look at the pic of the internals here http://tinyurl.com/kphxmj the HDD has some kind of case as opposed to nothing like it does in the current model. This makes me wonder if they have done anything underneath or around to better dissipate the heat.

 

that is just a sheet of metal used to attach to the hdd and case, like in the M570 series.

 

Or you can get a SSD.
Got a OCZ VERTEX 120 GB.Even if there is NO way to monitor the temps using HWmonitor I can tell just by feel it runs much cooler.
Oh yeah it's performance is breathtaking, to put it simply it's extremely fast.
If any body knows a program that shows temps for SSD let me know.

 

have you checked the raw smart data? if it's not reported there, it's probably not got a temp sensor.