*** Official Clevo P170EM / Sager NP9170 Owner's Lounge ***

Ahhh, never heard of them before! I had absolutely no idea there were any Clevo system builders in Hong Kong or Shenzhen (or anywhere in China)! Do U have links or contact info for them? That would be surely much easier since Im here! Thanks a lot!!

 

In Shenzhen:

华强北宝华大厦B座3楼H3C15(赛格旁边就是）不熟悉华强北路线的可以致电13798522742 小成

商城地址： http://maopengsm.tmall.com/shop/view_shop.htm?prt=1319430882845&prc=1
淘宝店地址： http://thinkworld.taobao.com/

In Beijing:

10号线 呼家楼站东走500米 ，北京市朝阳区朝阳北路199号 摩码大厦 622室 （ 京东团结湖提货点楼上 ） 电子猴 13681250095 小何

淘宝店地址： http://icmonkey.taobao.com/

To follow the Forum rules: The above are just addresses and contact names etc.!


As far as I am aware every Clevo in China Mainland is sold under the brand of Terrans Force, this is their website:

Terrans Force Notebook - No.1 in Custom-Built High-Performance Gaming notebooks

 

Thanks a lot!! Yeah I do.. had to learn, no choice

 

I'm a big fan of matte displays, but I can't find much info about the matte display option I see on most reseller sites. Is the display model something fixed by Sager/Clevo, or do the resellers offer different matte models based on what they stock individually?

I saw on Malibal's website that they offer:

FHD LED Chimei N173HGE-L11 72% NTSC Matte Display

Kudos to them for providing that level of information, but as someone else pointed out on this thread, there are a lot of folks who are unhappy with that display as used in other laptop brands. I'm just hoping there are other options out there that I can consider.

Thanks!

 

I prefer matte screens also! Whats wrong w/the Malibal's matte display many users are not happy about? I was thinking on ordering my system w/matte screen! I cant stand glossy displays & never understood why the stupid fashion & trend strated years ago.. TVs, monitors, laptops.. all glossy like mirrors.. its unbearable..

 

That is my mind completely weird. Taking in mind how customization-open these laptops are I would assume we would have the ability to control our own OC. My god, I cannot understand why they chose to lock it down..

 

I don't know more about the Chimei displays than what was mentioned on page #4 and #5 of this thread. Hopefully, some reviews will put the issue to rest.

 

A few people were saying that they are very grainy. However, that's a characteristic of a matte display. I have a slight feeling that a few of these reviews of the matte screen came from glossy and are used to the crystal clear screen (and looking at themselves in the glare ) But then again, they could be overly grainy from their coating. Don't quite know and I hate that there isn't a thorough review on this screen anywhere.

I ordered my P170EM last monday through Malibal with the Chi Mei matte screen. Hopefully they are on time with production and I can get a good review up for every one. I can't believe there aren't reviews up as of yet.
What I do know is that Malibal is a good reputable company. I'm quite confident that they wouldn't supply crap screens. Especially at a $149 upgrade.

Hopefully, I will get my comp this week. Once I get it, I will review and clarify on the Chi Mei Matte screen for sure. It's a topic that continuously gets brought up.

 

Jesus people, did anyone see the size of THAT POWER BRICK??? It's the size of my iPad !

 

That I know of, its not Chimei screen (havent heard much good about them, than again barely at all anyway) but XoticPC offers a 72% gamut matte display upgrade.

 

This is great, thanks a lot! I look forward to your review and hands-on impressions on the display.

On a pending side note, anyone can comment on when the possible availability of the newer i7-3920XM CPU? Yes, its a mere 200MHz base speed bump compared to the current i7-2960XM, but speed is speed and when ordering a new machine I hope to last me a year or two and would like a head start with the latest available components.. granted that all technology purchased at any given moment is already always outdated anyway

 

Does anyone know, with Intel SRT, if you put in the mSata drive and set it up for it, if you can only set it up for read caching? The main reason I strayed away from it is because a lot of reviews put how the Intel 310 can bottleneck writes to ~35MB/s, so Im wondering if theres a way to set it up so that it can be a cache for when the laptop reads data off, but when it writes, to writes directly to the hdd. Thanks in advance.

 

The Intel 310 mSATA comes in two speeds. The 40GB version is limited to 35Mb/s write, but the 80GB model can do 70Mb/s.

As for SRT, I don't think you have the level of granularity you're looking for.

 

Thanks, that was my impression. Raid 0 7200rpm drives should be fine anyway =).

 

Hi - I am soon to be ordering my sager 9170 (in may) and have a question -

Does getting the 90% gamut screen effect the pixel life?
(Aka do they last as long as a regular screen?)

This is my first gaming laptop ever so I am watching this board like a hawk to get as much information as I can...

 

I've never heard of gamut effecting screen life, but I'm no expert. You might want to search the web for "mtbf lcd screen". "mtbf" is the manufacturing term for "Mean Time Between Failure". From my quick search, the mtbf for lcd panels are from 25,000 hours to 50,000 hours. I didn't see any mention of color gamut, but I didn't expect to. Improving color gamut doesn't add any moving parts or anything (that I know of) that deteriorates the life of the product. At 25k, you can use your laptop 8 hours a day for over 8 years before you hit the mean failure point. It might be the last thing working on your laptop if you use it 8 hours a day every day for 8 years.

As most folks say, unless you are doing photo/video editing, the 90% screen might be overkill for you. I would consider the matte option instead. If you've never used a matte screen, here's what I recommend for comparison. Find an Apple store. Look for the 17" notebooks. Look for one with a black border around the screen(glossy model) and one with a gray border around the screen(matte model). You should instantly see the difference and have a preference. If a blue-shirtted-dude is nearby ask them to bring up iPhoto on both systems and show you the same pictures side by side. Since both notebooks are equivalent(other than the display) and the pictures exactly the same, this is a great comparison of matte vs glossy. I believe the Apple screens are in the low 70s on color gamut.

Good luck!

 

Blue diods on all displays are the ones that fade first. Gamut has nothing to do with anything but all LCDs as they age get progressively more yellow as well as dimmer, bottom line. Mileage varies, Ive see 3 year old panels w/heavy use hold well & seen just months old displays yellow and faded..

 

Interesting! I've always noticed when I get a new laptop that suddenly on my old one, whites don't look as bright and have a yellowish tint. Now I know why!

 

I got word from Malibal that my comp will be shipped out tomorrow. Really looking forward to it! I should get it by Saturday or Monday. It's being shipped ground but since I live in Los Angeles it shouldn't take but a day or two.

I'm still shocked that no one has posted a review! If someone has read one, can you post the link?

thanks.

 

Good news from my end as well, Xotic expects mine to ship out in the next day. Besides that, shipping from Cali to Nebraska, then screen upgrade and w/e else Xotic does besides whats done at the sager facility, then a short trip to Colorado and Ill have something up.

Is there a defacto way to do reviews on this site? Like a dedicated single post or similar?

 

You can create a new post in the owner's lounge (where this thread is), or you can always add your review to this thread.

 

What about posting in both locations?

Also, I am curious why more of the resellers haven't posted a review already? I've seen two videos on YouTube by a company named Prostar and LCPDigital, but that is it..

From a business stand point, I think it would be beneficial to do an in-depth review to better inform the potential customers. Plus not to mention also create some excitement for the new product.

Seeing customers step up to the plate for creating a review BEFORE the resellers are willing to step up says a lot about the resellers, imo.

 

In the "LPCDigitalvideo" video of the laptop, I'm interested in what the "TV TUNER CARD" is there for...?
Is it nothing or is it a small internal antenna, would be cool.

 

Many of the dealers and resellers are only posting the USB ATSC/NTSC/Clear QAM HDTV TUNER. So yes this is an external one.

_

 

Ugh I misposted. How do I delete this? ><

 

Well here it is. Came this morning.



Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5

 

Congrats man waiting for your impressions

 

Ordered mine today! REAL EXCITED!!!!!

1 x Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM () = $1,593.00
Display 17.3" FHD 16:9 "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen (1920x1080) (SKU - S1R506)
Processor Sager - 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-2670QM, 2.2-3.1GHz, (32nm, 6MB L3 cache) (Supports 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ Processors) (SKU – S2R174)
Thermal Compound - IC Diamond Thermal Compound - CPU + GPU
Graphics Video Card nVidia GeForce GTX 675M 2,048MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11 with Optimus™ Technology [User Upgradeable] (SKU – S3R518)
Ram 8GB - DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS) - SPECIAL! (SKU - S4P369)
Primary Hard Drive 500GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache) - Default (SKU - S5R207)
Optical Drive Bay Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti DVDRW/CDRW Drive w/
Wireless Network Sager - Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 (3x3)
Camera Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
Sound Card Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
Case Basic Black Business Case - Included
Battery Smart Li-ion Battery (8-Cell)
Warranty Sager 2 Year Parts & LIFETIME Ltd Labor Warranty w/ Lifetime 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Customer Support

 

Its a beast. Wiping the HD for a fresh windows install.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5

 

Im actually real surprised by the number of people buying now as opposed to waiting another few weeks for Ivy Bridge. Love to see some pics of the laptop from some of the users here. Just regular pics not pro pics like ive seen online to make it look nicer.

 

I'll never even use all the processing power of the current i7 that i got, and I'm going to be playing 100% of the time with it plugged in so ivy really isn't that important to me.

And i want this for diablo 3, and there is no guarantee when the new AMD/Nvidia chips will be out. 675m is more than enough for me.

I may do an unboxing video and take some pics. Not sure yet.

 

29th of April according to an email I got from Hutsady on Xotic.

 

When did you receive this email from Hutsady? Just curious.

 

Because my laptop died last year and I've been dragging my work laptop back and fourth. I ordered and older model in march but production stopped, so I waited another 5 weeks for this one. I'll probably never use this laptop to its full potential. So I guess I am a poser.


Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5

 

I also ordered the NP9170 from XoticPC. It's still being built currently, didn't cost a whole lot considering the power it has. $1888.01 (with shipping), configuring a MSI at roughly the same specs was 300 dollars more.

 

Sorry forgot to post the specs of the NP9170 I ordered:

Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM
- Display: 17.3″ FHD 16:9 “Glare Type” Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen (1920×1080)
- Processor: Sager – 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-2670QM, 2.2-3.1GHz, (32nm, 6MB L3 cache) (Supports 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ Processors)
- Thermal Compound: – IC Diamond Thermal Compound – CPU + GPU
- Graphics Video Card: nVidia GeForce GTX 675M 2,048MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11 with Optimus™ Technology
- 16GB – DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (4 SODIMMS)
- Primary Hard Drive: 750GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 – 16MB Cache)
- Second Hard Drive: 750GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 – 16MB Cache)
- Raid: Raid 0 Stripe Enabled
- Optical Drive Bay: Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti DVDRW/CDRW Drive w/ Software
- Memory Card Reader: Internal 9-in-1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD/Mini SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS/MS Pro/MS Duo)
- Wireless Network: Sager – Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 (3×3)
- Camera: Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio
- Case: Basic Black Business Case – Included
- Battery: Smart Li-ion Battery (8-Cell)
- Fingerprint Reader: Integrated Fingerprint Reader
- Operating System: ~Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Installed (64&32-Bit CD Included) w/ Drivers & Utilities CD’s + Microsoft Office Starter 2010

Sub-Total: $1,859.01
APO/FPO Military Shipping Options (15 lbs) (USPS Priority Mail): $64.00
Military Discount: -$35.00
Total: $1,888.01

Ordered from XoticPC on the 13th, already verified and paid for, and 4 days into being built.
I'm thinking I might actually see this thing sometime next month. =)

 

Just like 2 days ago.

 

Wow.... I was really hoping to be getting mine faster than 1 month from when i bought it. I just put in my order for mine on the 18th. It's in Phase 2 right now at Xoticpc. They only say it takes 3-10 days. I really hope I get this thing before D3 comes out or I'm going to be furious. Anyone else know how long it generally takes for the guys at Xotic when there are no back orders and no major customizations?

*edit* Man I love the support over at XoticPC. The live chat is just awesome. Very fast and very responsive. I asked them about the progress and they said that it is well under way and I shouldn't have to worry about getting it before May 15th. I'm assuming I'll see my shipping information Monday or Tuesday *Crossing fingers*

 

My P170EM is out for delivery and should be in my hands in the next few hours. I will not do an unboxing as I'm pretty sure everyone knows what is inside (SPOILER ALERT:... there's a computer in the box!). I will however review the packaging.

Once I have a few benchmarks I will start my review over the weekend. I will post piece by piece and update as I go along.

For all wondering about the Chi Mei screen, I ordered it and will clear the air in regards.

Thanks,

Nevertree

 

Did you order it with the stock network card? I am curious if I'll have any problems with the standard Sager wireless since I will be gaming. I didn't go for the, what seemed to me, unnecessary upgrade to the Bigfoot wireless.

I'd be curious to know if anyone here is using the stock wireless and how it's performing? Or maybe if anyone knows how they performed on previous models that could be a good indicator?

If I do want to change wireless cards later, is it fairly easy or tough? I am tech savvy and a hardware specialist so I can do dissassembly if needed. Just don't like having to solder stuff.

 

Mmm I'm in the Military, and just picked standard production from Xoticpc instead of the 49 bucks for "rushed". 6-12 "Business Days" are what I was told it would take to build. Seeing as how Business days are Monday - Friday, 0900 - 1700 I expect mine to be shipped at the later end of the 10 -12 day mark. I also got to wait for it to be shipped to Afghanistan another 2 week process. =)
I also bought mine for D3, and the Witcher 2. =)

 

Ouuu, do tell what the performance is like with the duel SSD in raid 0, I'm curious. =) The Windows index score on them would also be nice.
Cheers.

 

I went with the bigfoot! When I do my review I will post my full spec.

 

Can anyone comment on overclocking this laptop? I saw a video of the bios and there are no options to overlock in there, for user protection mostly.

Two options I've heard:
1. Some kind of software interface you can download to overclock the CPU.
2. The i7 chips come with that turbo boost or whatever, is that available on this laptop to use? I assume it's some software that you just click a button to boost it up? Are there down sides to using the boost?

 

I'm not the most well-informed person, I haven't overclocked a CPU myself since my old desktop that had a Core 2 Duo E8400 (had it at 3.91GHz IIRC). However, I believe Turbo Boost is more of an automatic thing, there is no button to press. It automatically boosts your processor speed when doing more intensive applications, and keeps it low (for lower power usage and longer battery life) when you're not doing much.

 

1. Overclocking would require software like throttlestop. However, you cannot overclock any Sandy Bridge processors unless it's an XM (unlocked multiplier) model. The QM models are unchangeable. Even then, you're adjusting the multiplier and not the FSB frequency.

2. Turbo boost is automatic and is a function already built in to the chip. It can turbo up to a pre-determined speed based on the number of threads in use and will stay there as long as the temperatures stay within a certain threshold.

 

I'm currently looking at the p170em, but i'm gonna wait for the IB cpus. But my setup will contain the GTX670M, i'm just wondering if it will be possible at a later time to upgrade the GPU to the new kepler(GTX680M) with relative ease?

 

Turbo boost is automatically implemented. It looks at what the computer is working on, and rather it benefits more from a fast single core (like a 3.0ghz single core vs 2.0ghz quad core) or if its better with multiple cores. For example, video transcoding works better with more cores, whereas some programs or math things are better with a faster single core because more cores doesnt do anything for it. Turbo boost adjusts accordingly, so take a 2670qm for example. It can be a 2.2ghz quad core, a 3.1ghz single core, or a similar 2/3 core in between. IT adjusts it based on workload and temperature, so theres no user intervention at all.

The only current way (that I know of) to overclock this laptop is with an XM cpu, like the 2960xm, because it has an unlocked multiplier. The reference bus * multiplier = cpu speed, for example the 2670qm is 22 x 100mhz so 2.2ghz, iirc. All the i7's except the 2960xm have locked multipliers.

The way to adjust it is first the bios needs to be enabled for XTU, which is per implementer, not necessarily per computer. Afaik, the P170EM has it enabled, where the P150EM does not. The other part is Intel XTU software (Xtreme Tuning Utility) that runs in windows to adjust the multiplier. Nothing is done in bios, the bios only need be enabled for xtu.

Someone please correct me if Im off anywhere though.

P.S. Edit: Between not many 2960xm overclock benchmarks being easily found out there (afaik) and me being the overclock enthusiast I am, Ill be sure to do a fair share of benchmarks on it, both synthetic and real world. Theres a lot of stuff I do anyways that could easily benefit a lot from an overclock (video transcoding, photoshop filters and maya rendering in particular)

 

I think we all can look forward to seeing what you can do with some overclocking, Networkgamer.

Be sure to keep us all here in the forums updated when you do get it.

 

Hey all,

Finally got my P170EM from malibal, so I'll have to write my review once I stop playing with the damn thing.

Initial Impressions:

-Quiet and fast
-When you turn everything down for Power Save, you get plenty of battery ( will write more later)
- Make sure you guys buy SSD for any laptop. Its amazing how much better everything is(quieter, faster, etc.)
-I havn't gamed on it yet, but will tonight so I can give more input on performance/heat/fan noise/etc.
-Totally worth the money
-Also the matte screen for the laptop is fine. I dont have any issues with it being too "grainy". Its a really nice screen.
-I really enjoy the keyboard also.

More to come soon.