New Samsung Series 7 NP700Z7C-S01US Laptop i7 3615QM 650m Review!

is anyone else using the 1980x1080p resolution and finding that text is too small to read?

 

Interesting. I don't own a display port cable. I'll buy one, try it out and report back. May be early next week (because I'll order the cable from Newegg). Thanks for reporting back.

 

I was going to order this from Amazon last night for $1399 and they raised their price to $1499. Grrrr..... I wanted to order from Amazon because they have the cheapest price on the SquareTrade 3yr warranty.

 

Anyone know a store that sells this laptop and ships internationally?

 

That is an easy fix. You can change both the font & icon size. Right click on desktop and choose view and then large icons. To change font size do this:

Click to open Display.

Choose one of the following:

Smaller - 100% (default). This keeps text and other items at normal size.

Medium - 125%. This sets text and other items to 125% of normal size.

Larger - 150%. This sets text and other items to 150% of normal size. This option appears only if your monitor supports a resolution of at least 1200 x 900 pixels.

Click Apply.

To see the change, close all of your programs and then log off of Windows. This change will take effect the next time you log on.

You can also make text appear larger or smaller by changing your screen resolution, but if you're using an LCD monitor or laptop, we recommend that you set your screen to its native resolution to avoid blurry text. This is the optimal resolution an LCD monitor or laptop screen was designed to display based on its size. For more information, see Change your screen resolution.

 

Does anyone have a 15" laptop that they could take some comparison pictures of it and this Samsung? Just trying to get a feel for overall size, BB in my area doesn't have this model. I know it's big, it's a 17". Just trying to see how much bigger it is than a 15".

 

I went to see one yesterday for this same reason. It is definitely a lot bigger than a 15". Think 15" vs. 17" MacBook.

I'm looking elsewhere as a result.



Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2

 

Hi guys,

is your keyboard backlight also partially blue instead of white? When I look at by Chronos keyboard at night, the letters "P" "O" and "H" shine more blue then white like there is a blue LED beyond. (And no, I'm not talking about the lockable keys with the little blue circle!)

I'm asking because every other letter is backlit white. Maybe there is a malfunction...I hope not

Would you guys please check your keyboard with backlight! Thanks a lot!

Best regards and sorry for my english!
Dominik (Munich, Germany)

 

Is the screen of the 17" one the same quality as the 15" one?

 

This has been answered several tikes. No, the screen is different from 15inch monitor. It is much nicer.

For the display port to dvi adapter, someone mentioned that it needs to be an active mini display port to dvi and not passive. The cables I just received are passive! But it looks like you can only have one monitor plus the laptop display at a time. Can't even get to external displays working and turn the laptop display off.

- Garrett

 

Just to be clear - have you tried using the VGA and HDMI ports, and not the DisplayPort when trying to hook-up two external monitors at once?

 

For people asking on if they can connect multiple displays:

 

So just picked mine up a while ago and I have to say I LOVE it! Thanks to everyone who posted reviews and pictures and guided my decision. Now it's my turn to give back. I've let it sit idle for an hour and then played a youtube video for an hour. Cores ranged from ~47 °C while idle to ~55°C when playing the video for an hour. Temperatures on the surface of the laptop are as follows:
Photo Album - Imgur
1 hour idle (top of laptop)
1 hour idle (bottom of laptop)
1 hour video (top)
1 hour video (bottom)

*All tests were done in an environment of ~74 degrees F

Sorry for the crude images, just made them up in paint

I'll run some more tests, reinstall windows, and post more info soon!

 

Interesting, thanks for your input. Do you have issues with the keyboard getting hot as others reported ?
What about temps after playing a demanding game over a prolonged time ?

 

Hey thank you, that's helpful. Doesn't look like it's as bad as I feared. I'm glad, because I pulled the trigger and ordered one last night.

 

Whatever warmth it gives off will come in handy during the winter for gamers.
Might not need to turn on the heater then as it will warm your hand nicely
Which might save you some bucks on your electricity bill haha.

 

The keyboard gets warm with just watching videos or downloading from the internet, but it's not hot as some other people have said. Nonetheless, I still haven't done any gaming on it, but ran a furmark and prime95 test at the same time and I felt it get moderately warm (not scorching, but enough to use as a decent hand warmer). I'm currently doing a clean install of Windows 7 Professional, but I'll pop in Crysis (the original) tomorrow and post more temps.

BTW, is anyone having an issue with the spacebar not registering in the very corners? I've already adjusted to it a bit, but it may be of concern for others.

 

How come everytime i restart the comp the wifi settings tuna back to off?
I would have to go back to easy settings and turn it on whenever i start the laptop

 

A quick fix might be to just uninstall and reinstall your wireless driver.

 

Just uploaded a photo of the backlight. Do you have the same blue letters, especially the blue "P" letter?

 

thats weird.. but no my lights are all white

 

Oh no I was expecting that...

Should I call the support or just leave it like that...hm *thinking*

I'm waiting for the first one to say: "It's not a bug, it's a feature"

 

i've tried this several times already, however each time i reboot windows it shows my wifi adapter is missing and then I would have to go back to easy settings to turn the wifi settings back on. Is it some conflict with the 'easy settings software'?


nevermind it was a conflict with the eco-mode which turns off wifi

 

well if i choose medium 125% the font still appears too small, and if I choose large 150% the font becomes too big and blurry using native 1920x1080.

what settings are you using?

 

yea try calling support, unless you like the random blue-lit keys haha

 

I'm using 125% and that's fine for me.

 

Congrats on getting hold of the most unique Series 7 keyboard yet! The workers obviously soldered the blue LEDs accidentally, but it's very nice. Much better than all white. I'd say keep it.

Not meant to be sarcastic in any way.

 

I use the naive resolution at 1080p with 125% zoom. I still need some time to get used to it as my old laptop was running at 1366x768, but I feel that I can read the text just fine. And I have no problem with 150% either as there is no fuzziness for me that you described.

And also, just some more information. I did a fresh install and am running at 1.5GB memory used. I've transferred all my old documents (~180GB) and installed most of my programs (Adobe Suite, games, iTunes, other junk) while on battery and that took about 3.5 hours. I was using the Samsung Optimized setting and it's still showing 2 hours left. By comparison, BatteryEater ran the laptop down in about 3 hours, so expect that as an absolute minimum.

 

This also may be a stupid question, but does anyone know how to get the keyboard and ambient light sensor to work with other power profiles? I can't seem to have it work with power saver or performance mode.

 

That image is confusing, it says nothing about the laptop's ability to provide "video out" to TWO monitors. It neither confirms nor denies. It says it can't support ALL THREE.

I just got home and realized that my (cheap) Samsung LCD TV's (at home) don't have VGA input (only HDMI).

Can somebody please try hooking this up to two screens using the VGA and HDMI out.

 

Does not work. You can only have one or the other when I tested it. Both VGA, HDMI and mini displayport.

- Garrett

 

Picked up mine last night from Best Buy and already thought it was a keeper that night. Played a little Diablo3 and thought the Sammy held up well. Didn't get hot very much at all. Much cool than my Envy 17. Though I do agree the HD is big drag. Already gonna pick up a Samsung 830.

Would have liked it to have blu ray but I use blu ray so infrequently I dont think its gonna be a big deal.

I did change the text DPI down to normal. Thought 125% was too big.

 

Man, what a disappointment. Thanks for checking on that. Bummer, time to get the reciept for a return!! :-(

 

I did not try with the function key posted earlier. So not sure of that will make a difference. In windows it would only allow me to select one of the two monitors connected. I was thinking of returning the laptop too as this is a big deal breaker for me. I use multiple monitors heavily for development work. However looking at the other options, it looks like they will run into similar issues. Since I do not game, I may look into the new displaylink USB 3.0 setup.

- Garrett

 

Mods: please resize that blue LED image. Its killing the formatting of the rest of the page.

 

Ahhh, I feel better about buying this laptop now...got it to WORK.

I just left Best Buy with a VGA and HDMI cable, went home and tested it out.

You've got to plug everything in, and instead of using the Function > F4 key, or the Samsung "software," you've got to right click the Desktop, click "Screen Resolution." It should identify "two" displays. One display will be the Samsung Laptop AND whatever device you have connected using HDMI, represented by a "1|2" and the second display (being the VGA display) should be represented with the number "3." Click on display 3, and then you'll have to change the default connection from "Disconnect..." to "Extend..." --- Then it should work! Best of luck, let me know if you get it to work for you.

This effectively turns the laptop monitor OFF (even with the lid open), and makes use of the two external displays in an extended setup (where the HDMI connected device is the left display, and the VGA the right display).

 

Using 3 displays have never worked on ANY laptop that I know of. Even Envy had 2 DPs and 1 HDMI but it was to drive 2 external displays, which automatically turned off the laptop's LVDS display.

 

It worked on my Alienware M17x.

 

I have for a long time been looking for a laptop that has a balance between Looks & Performance and not a Mac Book Pro Price range. Hence I am not a MBP lover Either. Mac's are reliable, but too overrated in my opinion!.

But I am here to Talk about this beastly Computer

I First saw this computer at Newegg at $1399+, and since I live in California another $100+ dollars would be added into the price for tax and recycle costs.

I decided to go over at amazon and buy it there, Sadly i ordered it and found out that it would take for around half a month just to get it!

I went back to newegg and i have a sure bet that someone on this forum bought the very last one from newegg. they where gone! No more Samsung's 17.3 in on newegg anymore.

SO went to best buy and bought it there. took around 3 to 4 days Shipping and they added in a Webroot 1 year simple personal Anti-Virus.

I have seen the reviews of other sites and have noticed that most people say that they would rather have a fast SSD instead of a slow HDD, but in my case , Even though a fast SSD would be nice in this laptop, I need the space, And this laptop throws in a Wopping 1TB HDD for all your spacious needs.

The Screen on this laptop is Brilliantly Gorgeous for a Matte Type Screen. Glossy screens may have nicer saturation but i don't want a mirror either while playing in the nice pastures outside the college.

Thank You Newman for uploading great Screen Comparison

I for my self am a freshman in college and i need something reliable. I need to do lots of writing, meaning i need a good keyboard, and the keyboard on this thing is spacious, good looking and last but not least , its a back lit key board.
Great for those nights while Chatting with friends on your bed at night.

I am too a gamer and love playing Recent franchises Like Battlefield 3 and Skyrim. I very well know how it feels to play these games in a high end Desktop.

Thanks to Great Caligula He takes his time to Upload what he calls " NOT a Very INDEPTH report" which most people just post an average FPS of one game.

I Have only played Battlefield 3 on this laptop, and very well matches the above's stats. But in my opinion, i would rather play at a lower resolution than too high because i feel like i am looking through a tube with too high of a resolution while playing at a 1600X900 resolution i not only get a bit of more FPS but i feel closer to my gun than holding it a mile away. I hope you understand what i mean. If not, you would have to try battlefield yourself.

There is one issue though that is Battery life. I would not recommend this laptop for pure gaming purposes. If gaming is all you going to do with this laptop, It will perform good at Regular Settings every game out there, but Battery Life (45 Minutes of Lifetime Playing Battlefield 3) its OK, but i feel its a bit of a Strain on you with the heat. Its A Powerful laptop built into a very thin frame. heat output will be noticeable but not Frying pan like cooking at your face. But its great if you are at college with nothing to do, and would like to do some mild range gaming for a bit while getting a very greedy eye of Mac Book pro users around you. ( I m sorry but i dislike Macs)

I Installed Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit and installed through a USB Pen Drive the Wifi Drivers.

The Wifi on this laptop feels a bit sloppy, I mean its very unstable after 3 Plastered wooden walls and 10 feet away from it, but maybe that's my Routers problem and not the laptops.

After that I Install Flash Player and UN-Default IE and put on Google Chrome to download Software manager from Samsung's Website

Click Here For Drivers and Software


* Download Easy Software Manager from the Software Section and Use this program to install all the needed drivers and Driver updates. its What I Recommend.

**Please Note: If you are going to use WIDI You need to install the My Wifi Technology when you install the Wifi Drivers!

And Do not Install the WIDI software from the Software manager since its very glitchy and not Up to date. Download it from Intels WIDI Webpage Here

Last but not least i bough THIS cooler for the laptop

It Works but i don't use the fan since it pushes up and the laptop pushes out down. as said by Paul nelson in one of his previous posts.

Here are some pictures









Its a Very Thin Laptop. its Very Nice over all.

Are you a future aspiring Engineer looking for a cool looking machine with no trace of a Powerhouse monster in a small but wide 1 inch thick frame well THis is the laptop for you!

 

I'm driving 3 displays on my HP Envy 17. One via HDMI, one via mini Displayport, and the laptop's LCD. I was hoping to be able to do the same with this Samsung, although using a USB adapter is an option.

 

If anyone is looking to play Diablo 3 with Max shadows at 60fps, drop the res to 1366x768 or 1360x768. For some reason this res has the least amount of scaling blur.

 

Envy 17 does not have a mini displayport. It has 2 display ports.

 

is anyone else experiencing extreme heat where the speakers/bottom of screen is when gaming under load?

 

That is where the vents ares, so hot air is coming out right there, making it hot.

 

Did anyone change the CPU cooling paste yet with Arctic? I thought I read someone was going to do that.

 

Paul was going to do it, but I remember he said he has been busy or something, so that is probably the delay. I probably won't change my paste for another month.

 

I'm not sure why you're disagreeing with me considering I own an Envy 17 and have hooked up external monitors to it.

My Envy 17-1011NR has 1 mini display port and 1 HDMI port as documented under the External Ports section here:

HP ENVY 17-1011nr Notebook PC Product Specifications HP ENVY 17-1011nr Notebook PC - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

 

I am not disagreeing with you. It works on your Envy 17. It did not work for me. You have version 1 of a product and I had version 3 of the product. Things go backwards all the time in tech industry. May be my drivers needed updating although I thought I updated them when I got the laptop. Who knows!

Version 3 of Envy 17 does not have mini display port. My Envy 17 had 2 DP, 1 HDMI and could only support 2 external displays.

But tonne of stuff can differ between my laptop and yours. Just saying.

 

Quick question, what's the real deal with the 8gb express cache? Is it a big help or is the bonus marginal at best? A lot of you guys seem to be switching out the HDD for SDD and this is making me wonder about the performance of the express cache.

I'm looking for some pics comparing them to the 15 or 17 inch macbook pro, can anyone care to share? Been looking all over the web for this.

 

The ExpressCache builds up over time and speed up will be seen in subsequent boots and runs. But the speed of the Sandisk SSD used for expresscache is not really good (120MB/s seq read and 20MB/s seq write is pedestrian). It does not compare with anything modern. But, again, its better than the best HDD out there because of the random access speed which is order of magnitude better. All small file accesses during the boot are reads and random access, so super fast access times of SSD benefits those accesses.