sager np8690 vs alienware m15x

Hey,
just joined the forums.
The main reason i am stuck between these two is the fact that they are the only powerful gaming laptops that have the option to increase the battery life,by means of the smart bay battey pack in the case of the m15x and the additional battery pack in the case of the np8690.I wanted to know how much battery life each would give with the extra battery pack, when not gaming...but when browsing the internet,programming or playing music and videos.I think the battery life of each will be about 2 to 2 and a half hours without the additional battery pack(when not gaming).
I have read about the stealth mode, which helps reduce the battery consumption in the case of the m15x, and was wondering if there was something like that for the sager.If there isnt such a mode, are there other ways of achieving the same results as the stealth mode.
I thought that paying about 1900 usd for the new m15x(one with the 260m ) would mean good quality for the extra price...but i have been hearing about things like bad material used for the hinge, and heating issues with the m15x....and this makes me wonder if the sager np8690 has similar issues.
Bottom line is that i want about 4 to 5 hours of battery life, when not gaming...and is it possible with the extra battery pack in the case of the above laptops.Any information regarding the build and qualtiy of the new m15x and the sager notebooks are welcome.....thanks(sorry about the long message.....oh man! has the np8690 comeout? ) and if it hasnt well, compare the m15x with the np8662.....

 

I don't think the M15x has a smart bay.

 

I don't think the Sager has a "stealth mode", which relies on a secondary integrated graphics processor. However you seem to have conflicting interests. Do you want a gaming machine or a web browser with battery life? It's gonna be tough to get the best of both worlds.

For gaming, I'd go with the Sager as it has the better gpu.

 

garudadriarun, the M860CU (NP8690) was just announced this past week and is available for pre-order and will ship sometime in October.

I can't speak for the M15X, but the M860TU (NP8662) can get over two hours battery life depending on your specifications and how you use it.

Having an extra battery is just having an extra battery. The simple answer is that you will have twice the battery life with two batteries. The complex answer is here. Remember that without the charger connected, you will still have to shut down the laptop to replace the battery.

Either way, just remember these laptops with high end graphics cards and quads are not designed for battery life. I believe Clevo aims for about two hours give or take. Shoving in a larger battery means less room for everything else and probably compromises the thermal design.

 

Stealth mode doesn't rely on a second gpu. The M15x only has one gpu.

I would expect the battery life to be around 2hrs. But like you probably already know, no one knows much about these two laptops. There aren't any full reviews yet. I would wait for some reviews to see the real battery life of both.

An extra battery pack is not the best way to get more battery life, since you need to carry an extra battery and shut down the laptop when you switch them. (plus some may find an extra battery is expensive, considering both will die at the same time). But it does give 2x the battery life

The Sager NP8662 has a silent mode, but it doesn't really improve battery life. I just undervolt the cpu and put power saver mode. I don't know about the NP8690.

 

I believe the M15x WILL get better battery life for sure, considering that it has a bigger battery option (9 cell) and weaker videocard. But I do agree that full reviews will probably give us the best estimate on which laptop is better.

 

I am just worried about the 9lb+ chassis of the M15x and the ~2" thickness. That is a chunky square butt package right there.

 

Once Sandy Bridge comes around, battery life will see a considerable boost. It has a GPU packaged right on the die with the CPU. But that's early 2011... for now, the only option for better battery life is the hybrid setup. I'm surprised the M15x didn't have a 9400M, but I guess I shouldn't be since the mobile i7 chipset is very new.

The Sager is obviously the better choice here. It's cheaper, it weighs considerably less, it has the 280M as standard, and we know it has dedicated CPU and GPU cooling. I would assume the M15x does as well given the size of thing, but there's no excuse for not offering the 280M standard. That is unless it really does have a power limited MXM 3.0 slot, which just means even more trouble for AW.

 

first of all......thanks a lot every one, for the informative replies.
I will wait till both of them get reviews, as i will buy the laptop in early 2010(jan) or december this year(25th dec's my birthday )
I am kind of stuck between both worlds...i will be using this machine for university..and for gaming during the vacation.I read about a few minutes ago that the m15x does give about 5hrs of battery life(the old one with the 8800gtx)...but the more powerful card would probably mean lower battery life...right?(or has technology gotten battery...with better batteries.)
I didn't know that the extra battery in the case of the sager..was going to be an external one....
So is there a way to know if i can get about 4hrs(not gaming) form either one of these..or will i have to wait for the reviews....
thanks again....amazing response here.... best forum ever !

 

I'll tell you now, Li-Ion batteries (used in the M15x) are not as good as the Li-Polymer batteries used in the 8690. Also, you aren't ever going to get 5 hours of battery life on either of those machines. Secondly, the Sager nets you more for less money. Literally. I've built up both as much as I wanted and just like with the NP9850 vs M17x, the Sager came out cheaper while offering more features/hardware. If Alienware floats your boat, then go for it, nobody will fault you. But in my opinion, the Sager rules. And I love my Sager. So much.

 

Your best bet is to get an extra battery because I don't see either laptop lasting over 4 hours even under the best of conditions.
These laptops are built for gaming and are not lite weights when it comes to sipping energy.
Now I may be wrong( I hope I am) but I just don't see it, not with all the high performance parts running at the same time.

 

quite smart actually

the new 5 series is under the 65 w specs and i presume NV will be as well which one could only assume means they were prepareing and talking with ati in this matter


seems dell is now in a huge love fest with ATI and i can easily see AW getting the 5 series before any one else



o yea get the Clevo

 

thats the kind of reply i was looking for.This gives me confidence...i have seen that all the in the setup combinations that ive tried, sager does give me more for a cheaper price....so yea it looks like its gonna be sager.....but i will wait for the reviews...thanks a lot...every one ....

 

Me drool for 8690

 

Glad to help, and don't be shy! We won't bite off your head... unless you disregarded both machines and bought an HP =)

 

thanks a lot
oh yeah i wont buy an hp..lol

 

Just an FYI (not trying to cause an argument) Dell will match the price if you ask them to and with all the Dell coupons and other %%% off most of the time you don't need to even ask. I placed an order for my second M17x yesterday and received $600 off. If you were comparing what's just on the websites then yes the Clevo is cheaper with the 280. My point being price shouldn't be a deciding factor.

 

i waited for reviews on the m15x when it first came out and imo got duped into buying a pile of s***
after my 19 day nightmare ended and i got a refund i found clevo and after a year have not looked back.

 

I've avoided AW myself. Too many nightmare stories even if all you normally here is the bad over the good. When Dell released the M17x I jumped in right away. I'm also an ex I9300, M1710 and M1730 owner so I've developed that trust with Dell.

 

But for many it is.
Overall the SAGER just offers better performance at a better price, don't me wrong the AW M15x is a excellent machine but in my opinion just a little too big and heavy for my tastes.
Looks are subjective but I'll give you this the AW has a lot more style with cool features( glowing lights, backlit keyboard, design) but the SAGER still looks great in a understated way.Not having all the extras AW does probably keeps the price lower and a lot of people will sacrifice some extra trim for more performance any day.
Right now the SAGER is a better buy performance wise but I do think that AW will have a GPU upgrade before the SAGER does.
MAN!!!
I just wish the AW was a little smaller and lighter.
Both are great laptops and can't go wrong either way.

 

I still want an i7 system myself but I think I'm going to hold back some until some forum members start getting them. The difference between a single 260 and a single 280 isn't noticeable (at least not in the M17x) but there are some forum members around here that plan on testing a ATI 4870 and a GTX 280M in the M15x. I'll be waiting for those results.

 

Now that would be cool.
I guess it's nice to have a wallet that always spits money at you
Those mods will not be cheap unless they are "borrowing" them from other machines.
Still cool and I would be interested in the results.

 

thats a test i would definitely like to see go through.If i went with the aw pc's that use ati cards, the price comes down, by a huge amount.......but i always thought because of things like physx technology and better cooling made nvidia the better choice...but if i could be wrong ...so that could be something.

 

I'm guessing a single 4870 will cost you $400-$500 from Dell. We'll see.

 

People take things as an argument too often, but I understand your point. I am wary of Dell's rate of failure for machine parts however, and I don't like it. I've heard that as of the M17x the rate has gone down, but I dunno. Even if dell matches the price, they can't add in the fingerprint reader and the video card under a price match if you know what I mean. Even if the system is moddable after sale, it'd void your warranty, whereas the Sager won't be voided. On *paper*, the SAGER is better. In looks, I'll always give it up to the sexiness of the alienware machines. But that's just me.

 

This is nothing like the origional


And why does it always have to be aw sucks .... ? Or aw vs clevo ?

Just keep an open mind and forget the past Alienware is not the same anymore.

I would say this to any oem and odm .... It's just crazy.... I know lots of people who switched from clevo to aw and refuse to go back but I don't go posting it. He'll I reccomend the 860 over m15x now

 

hey i had another question.....the new m15x(one with the new design).....does it look similar to the m17x ?

 

Yes alot alike


In regaurds to theprevious statement .... I know every one has opinions

 

I wouldn't recommend either at this point. If you received a deal you couldn't refuse that would be different. For now I'm hoping lenovo releases a 15" i7 system with better screen option than they have now.

 

screens do not matter to me ....

@ this point i recommend the Sager due to price and the fact that Clevo has resellers which deal with you on a more personal level

you are pretty much garunteed a 3xx series GPU because of Clevo love affair with Nvidia

 

oh...and ill be in melbourne for the next 4 to 6 years....so is there good customer support from clevo and alienware in melbourne?

 

I don't fault people for going with AW at all, but where I'm from I pay a LOT more for systems and customer service is a MUST if anything happens to go wrong at all. I'm a price point person because of this, and even so much as $100 less in price is over $600 less for me, so it's just more pressing that i push the lower priced one. I would not mind owning an alienware one bit, but I have not had any dealings with them so I cannot comment at all.

And it's AW vs Clevo because AW is the only actual competition for Clevo in my opinion. ASUS is nice, and I'd say my third choice in good machines, but I don't like the choices in some of their systems. But I don't say AW sucks, I just think I get more for less in the Sagers, which is what really matters to me at this point, being a broke student having to get machines off my parents

 

Would you buy the M15x if it were $300USD cheaper?

 

AW is now handled by Dell

Their warranty is better then any i have ever had and the next day service even beats Clevo

 

Even if the price was the same, the advantages of the Clevo outweigh the, ahem, style of the M15x. We've already gone over this, but advantages being considerably less weight, slimmer package, 280M as standard, li-poly battery, no MXM power limitations, etc.

 

If you mean cheaper than the Sager, then most likely I would. That's a clear cut $2000 (or more) less to me, and I'd be getting almost as much as the sager, I'd find this the better buy for me and I would more than likely recommend it here due to the lower price point, especially to people in my country

 

anothergeek, I'm curious about the MXM power limitations; what does this entail exactly? Thanks!

 

the M15x MXM power limitation is 65 W which means a 280 or 9800m GTX does not work


but the GT 300 series and ATI 5000 series will work

 

well im kinda on the lower end when it comes to funds(2000 usd tops).I recently bought an 80gb ps3 during its release...but i cant take it to uni...seeing as how im from India and uni is in melbourne...
So about he customer service and help with sager notebooks in melbourne?How good is it? and what about the aw? will i have to get in contact with dell or aw itself?

 

Just to clarify: is this a different issue from the M860TU, where users who have installed the GTX280M have suggested that their system seems about at the limit for power consumption (but the card still works)?

 

the MXM in the Clevo is different



but i am not entirely familar with the 860tu

 

you forgot the biometrics. a useless feature unless you require two factor authentication.

my point about the price was unless you are outside the US the M15x will be cheaper for some. It's very easy to get Dell discounts.

 

could anyone answer ..
well im kinda on the lower end when it comes to funds(2000 usd tops).I recently bought an 80gb ps3 during its release...but i cant take it to uni...seeing as how im from India and uni is in melbourne...
So about he customer service and help with sager notebooks in melbourne?How good is it? and what about the aw? will i have to get in contact with dell or aw itself?

 

For the Clevo the support will come from whatever reseller you buy it from. Find one then you can ask for references. For the M17x/15x support is from Dell Australia.

 

thanks ill look some up...ill hit u back when im done

 

gould you gimme a hint that how to get discount?

 

There are a few threads on this in the AW section of the forums. evalue codes, dpa % off and epp % off is a start....after that it's finding good coupons.

 

Just pure appearance here, but when will there be a sexy looking sager like the M15X?

 

My guess never, Clevo (Sager) sets their own trend, their own sexiness .

 

I can care less about looks. Give me a black boxy notebook that can book and I'm good for life.