Review of Samsung QX410-J01 14in Notebook Aluminum

Customer Ratings:

Let me start by saying there are some drawbacks to this computer: No bluetooth, no blueray, i5 and not i7, and I don't love the touchpad, but...

There are some great features that I love on this laptop.

The multimedia functionality is quite good. The processing speeds for multiple high-demand applications running simultaneously are good. The keyboard is very comfortable and responsive which is huge for me because I type on it a lot. It has a great port configuration with HDMI and 2 of the 3 USBs under an easily accessible protective cover on the left, and 1 USB on the right very efficient for multiple devices. There is very little preloaded "factory" software to remove after purchase, in fact some of the samsung applications are quite handy (the backup for instance).

The aesthetics of this machine are great, it was half the price of the Macbook Pro with the same processing capabilities, it has the seperate dedicated video processing chip which is essential I think, and the battery life is double a comparable Sony or Toshiba (about 6.25 hours per charge -with an additional 3/4 of an hour after powering back on after first shut down).

One thing no one has mentioned is the overall thoughtful engineering. Not only is it very solid and comfortable, but there are a lot of little things that are well thought out. For instance the palm rest is slightly elevated above the keyboard so that when it closes the screen does not contact the keys. Seems like a small feature, but I enjoy watching my friend constantly cleaning finger oils off the screen of his $2,200 MacBook Pro. You can also charge USB devices from the laptop while not running, and the auto save features allow for great convenience (just shut the lid mid sentence and come back whenever to the exact same configuration you had going. This is very useful for me because I utilize multiple research programs and resources simultaneously while writing, and love being able to just slap the thing shut and resume at my convenience when others need my attention).

The portability, durability, screen resolution/quality, processing power (again the dual video processing is invaluable if you want to keep this thing for 5+ years like I intend to), and beauty of this computer combine to make it a very wonderful machine at a very economic price point.

This is a very sleek, stylish and well thought out computer that performs extremely well.

I am glad I trusted the Samsung name even though they are relatively new to the laptop space.

I have no idea if the 430 is of the same caliber as this 410 so I would recommend the 410. It's probably worth the extra $150!

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I won't lie what first drew me to this laptop was its look. It is the essence of cool borrowing all the best parts from a host of other laptops and putting them together into the ultimate package. Ultra thin, light, and edge-to-edge glass = drool. But looks fade, right?

Well, so far, the QX410's brains match its looks. This laptop is fast and powerful. I've been editing HD video on here as well as mixing multiple tracks of audio. I have yet to make it slow down or stutter.

Last but not least, the battery. I routinely get 5-6 hours out of the battery and am very happy with that performance.

If someone forced me to say something negative I'd say that I wish the screen resolution were a bit higher it would help when I have an editing program open and a bunch of tool windows. Most times, this doesn't affect me.

Buy this laptop, you won't regret it.

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I've had the QX410 about 3 weeks now. I really like it.

Pros:

Nice feel, nice keyboard action. Stiff hinge. Looks pretty, feels solid.

Built-in drive partitioning

Nice start-up and shut-down speed

Great battery life 5 to 6+ hours per charge

Very nice display love the edge-to-edge glass, brighter and easier to clean than standard LCD

Cons:

A lot heavier than it looks

The i5 processor is so-so for multimedia work better than most in its class, but bogs down a lot faster than the Lenovo Thinkpad R400 I use for work.

Hate the keyboard layout if you're an IBM person, you're going to screw up your screen dimensions whenever you reach for your control key. Yes, you adjust eventually, but it's frustrating.

Also don't much like the mouse buttons integrated into the mouse pad. I keep relocating the cursor with my sleeves. But again, you adjust eventually. It's not a big deal.

Overall, it looks and feels great. Good strong wireless, nice port set up (3 USBs and a HDMI) for a slimline, really good battery life even on full-light display. Great value for the money, and I'm happy with it. It'll handle 2-3 high-load operations at a time. But if you're looking for serious multimedia processing power, this may not be the one for you.

Honest reviews on Samsung QX410-J01 14in Notebook Aluminum

In order to provide an extensive review, I would have to wait some more time for such a review. However, my first impressions can (hopefully) suffice for now.

I purchased this laptop from Woot! back on May 21st and eagerly awaited its arrival, which occurred on June 1st. I've had it for about a week now, have toyed with it, and so far it is wonderful. I could rave and go on about the great things about it, but I will only give a few cons for right now.

As per the most helpful critical review, I've had no touchpad problems of that sort. However, I have noticed that at times the touchpad doesn't register the click immediately after typing, even with the Palm Guard option turned off. This is hardly a nuisance, however, since I use a wireless mouse most of the time.

The hard drive is 5400 rpm, so those who are used to 7200 rpm hard drives may notice some degradation in terms of performance or file transfers, but whether this is troublesome or not depends on the end user. In my case, it makes no difference.

The screen is a bit iffy. While the edge-to-edge glass is pretty nice, it is extremely reflective, which can be a nuisance on lower brightness settings. But hey, you don't have to worry about accidentally hitting your screen and having it damage the pixels inside. Also, the 14" screen is nice, but considering the extra space around the edges to match the width of the laptop, Samsung could have fit in a 15" screen just as easily.

The battery may be a problem in the future. It is not user-replaceable, so anyone who likes to remove it when not in use cannot do so. Since it lasts 1000 cycles, this may not immediately be a problem, so we will have to see once the first owners of this machine have held out for its lifetime (since it was released in Q4 2010, we have a while to wait).

The GPU is not very powerful, but it is a vast improvement over an integrated card, which this machine also comes paired with, allowing for extended battery life when not using visually intensive programs. I play Minecraft regularly, and the dedicated card is more than enough to run it super smoothly, surprisingly better than my other machine with a much more powerful GPU.

One thing to note, though, about the RAM in this machine is that 210 Mb of its 4 Gb are reserved for video memory for the integrated GPU, so only 3.79 of its 4 Gb of RAM are accessible. However, considering how well this machine performs, I have never run into any problems with this.

As a final thought, the pros FAR outweigh the cons, which are few and minor. The laptop in its entirety is GORGEOUS. Very high quality, solid build, light enough to carry around with you, very thin, and -my favorite part -very long-lasting. The claim for the battery in this machine is 7 hours. Well, I've clocked it in at 8:23 before, so I'm one happy camper. :)

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The mouse on this laptop is VERY annoying! First it sticks, and then it runs around on it's own like crazy! There's a setting to change the 8 different things the mouse does. That's the problem...this mouse thinks it knows too much and doesn't want to always do what what you tell it to do. Other than that this is a REALLY nice laptop. Hope it helps to prevent someone for getting highly frustrated with the mouse.

Cheap Acer C710-2834 11.6-Inch Chromebook (Iron Gray)

Customer Ratings:

I only purchased this a week ago, but I find this an amazing piece of machinery. I am astounded how fast the internet is on this and I like Google Chrome. I switched over from IE because I was getting tired of the constant error messages and having it close all the time. I'm glad I did, it's easier to use and very stable. I have an Acer Netbook from two years ago that is great, but slowing down even with 2 GB of Ram. I decided to use that as my "Windows" laptop and use this Chromebook for web-surfing. I even use the trackpad because it is the best I have ever used. It works perfectly, and I have come across some really bad trackpads in my day. I know that this is not for everyone but if you have a main desktop or laptop and want a supplemental computer for really fast web-surfing, this is the way to go. You won't be disappointed.

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I bought this as an extra computer to have around the house. The biggest weakness is the inability to print unless your using a google cloudprint enabled printer. If you want to have an extra computer for the kids or guests to use, one that can't get messed up (no viruses, no settings to change), and you only want to spend $200 this is a good product.

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I bought this as a side machine to be an in-between for my heavy IBM laptop, and my iOS iPad. I have always loved the Chrome browser (have used since day 1,) so this seemed a logical choice. And the fact that I could play my facebook Flash games on it (can't do that on ipad!) I got this from a groupon, so I didn't pay $200 for it. But after having it a week, I would have. It is a great toy.

Pros:

Super lightweight

The apps for it are free!

Super super quiet

Doesn't burn my lap like my laptop does (runs very cool.)

Has a nice soft-touch keyboard

Has a great trackpad which doesn't have breakable keys on it

Has a hi-def screen

Plays flash animations

Can connect to my iCloud, Google drive, and Amazon kindle library (with free app downloads.)

Saves documents, etc. to Google cloud drive so I can grab them on my normal computer as well

Has memory card reader and USB ports

Has a camera for web chatting

Cons:

Battery life averages about an hour, which can be a hassle

Some newer flash items won't load and it says the flash player is outdated, but Chrome insists it's up-to-date and you can't manually update it

Can't use the machine unless you're on the Internet via wifi or LAN

You have to tap with two fingers on the trackpad to do a mouse right-click

Sound isn't fantastic

Has camera but can't Skype. My family doesn't use Google Hangouts to chat

There are great apps, but not as many as I'd hoped. I'm sure this will change in time.

Honestly, the cons may seem big but they're far outweighed by the awesomeness of the pros. Especially Flash. As an iPhone and iPad user, I have missed flash greatly on my portables. This is a great feature and was really the selling point (and the price.)

Honest reviews on Acer C710-2834 11.6-Inch Chromebook (Iron Gray)

Purchased because I wanted a second machine for checking email and browsing youtube. Works great, super fast, tried to install Ubuntu but for some reason the internet would not work =(. However I will not hold that against it.

I do love how light it is, it runs quiet, and starts from a cold boot in about 25 seconds (I'm not kidding), screen color is vivid and video play back (@720P res..) is flawless.

These are limitations of the machine, not downsides!

Battery life is short, not suprising in something this light.

O.S. use is limited offline (Well.. lets be honest, its useless w/o an internet connection!)

SO... If you just need a fast little machine that does about what a tablet does, you'll probably like this.

IF you're one of those special people that can't read the description and think you're getting a full blown laptop, you're probably going to be disapointed.

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I think for the price, this is a very good deal. I got my Chromebook because my Kindle Fire 8.9 is constantly crashing on me when I'm on the internet, in spite of my very good to excellent internet connection. I constantly get the "silk is not responding" signal and the screen freezes too frequently. I get lines showing up, it's frustrating. The video streaming on my Kindle is often blurry, it stops too often during the time I'm watching something. The Chromebook connects to my wifi internet, the only connection I have. I have not been able upload pictures from my camera. Maybe there is an app for that. Almost everything works through apps, the essential ones are completely free, so it may be more appropriate to call this "App Book".

That is why I got my Chromebook. It's cheaper, works well with all the features and apps turned on. Truth to tell, I didn't know that it was the Kindle and not me or the internet connection that was the root of the problem until I got my Chromebook. For general internet use this is the best bargain you can get. It's not a magic box so if you are looking for some serious use, I'm afraid you have to dish out some more money. This Chromebook is perfect for leisurely use and its appropriate for people to know that. It deserves the praise its worth.

I bought my first computer in 1994. Ive had some expensive ones, cheap ones, desk tops, lap tops, tablets and now a notebook. All together about 12-15.

THIS GOOGLE CHROMEBOOK IS THE ONE THAT HAS MADE ME THE HAPPIEST OF ALL OF THEM.

I CALL IT A WINNER.

The Google Chromebook gets me on the internet fast, it doesn't crash, but even though I don't like the format and bulkyness of the Chromebook as much as my slender Kindle, when I watch movies, I do get a clear picture. I've had it for about 3 weeks, it takes a little time to learn to navigate the Google Chrome but once you got a hang of it its easy to navigate. Google Chrome offers movies, music and app just like Amazon Kindle so i feel I may be as well off with Google Chromebook. At this price level the Google Chromebook is not a touch screen. What is important, GOOGLE CHROMEBOOK WORKS AS IT'S SUPPOSED TO DO.

Review of Sony VAIO Pro SVP1321ACXB 13-Inch Core i5 Touchscreen Ultrabook

Customer Ratings:

SECOND UPDATE

===================

(1) Speakers

(2) Build

(3) Temperature/fan noise

(4) Tips

(5) General Thoughts

(1) Speakers: I know some of the professional reviews said they aren't the greatest but they are not terrible for the size. No, you're not going to get blown away and you're not going to get deep bass. The built-in speakers are located around the hinge, facing up and slightly toward the screen. The sound doesn't get distorted at max volume and fills a standard room pretty adequately at max volume. I'm sure the small size also provided some challenges for the engineering team, so I'm not disappointed.

(2) Build: The more I play with it, I'm not convinced that it's mainly carbon fiber. I sense that there is a decent amount of "plastic-y" material in there but I'm not complaining. The only issue it gives me is the accuracy of the trackpad when not on a hard surface (see the second update to this review below).

(3) Temperature/fan noise: OK, I'll concede a little here with some of the other reviewers. I'm not so concerned with the noise as much as I am with the durability of components that heat up this much. Yes, when the fan gets going, the exiting air temperature is very hot, and the underside of the laptop is as well. SpeedFan reported temps as high as 78 degrees Celsius (172 degrees F)!! That's hotter than any other desktop or mobile computer I've owned without additional heat-mitigating mechanisms. I just hope the components are able to handle that temp--at least it's an SSD instead of a traditional platter. It's also a little bit away from the hot components. The extended battery gives a little relief since it pushes the laptop up a little like a stand.

(4) Tips: There are quite a number of Sony updates to install including a firmware/BIOS update. When you click on the assist button the updates are listed under "software" instead of "updates". I got an error message installing Intel Anti-Theft indicating that the device was not compatible with it. It is. I was able to fix it by going into the BIOS settings and clicking on enable TPM and AT (even though it already was). After a few reboots, it recognized it OK. One thing that drove me crazy until I figured it out... the only way to get to the UEFI and BIOS settings was from a "shutdown" state, then pushing the "assist" button.

Another tip, this doesn't use the camera for light sensor as some have speculated. It uses the dedicated sensor next to the "assist" button. I personally do not like this since if a directional light is shining down on the device but not lighting the surrounding, it is thrown off. I have LED lighting in the main room of my house and it is constantly auto-adjusting the brightness. I believe there is a way to turn this off but I haven't played with it. It also has issues with adjusting brightness when your arm blocks the light for a few seconds. Why would your arm do that you say? Oh, I don't know, maybe because it's a TOUCHSCREEN laptop!! Come on Sony, so perfect in every other way! Again, not so bad that I would return it. I still think it's one of the best Haswell Ultrabooks on the market.

Purchase tips in the first updated review below.

(5) General thoughts: I haven't bothered to fix my Android tablet yet (the Asus TF300T is a pain to replace the digitizer unlike any other device I've owned). This has all but replaced my netbook and tablet that were used previously for separate tasks. All in a footprint smaller than either one individually. I am looking forward to the Windows 8.1 improvements. I have not installed the preview. I want to wait for the more stable release. On another note, the Intel Anti-Theft is $6.99 for one year on Amazon here.Intel 1 Year Anti Theft Service for Ultrabooks and Laptops Totally worth it for me. I take this everywhere.

FIRST UPDATE AFTER flying with this (and for the first time, without an additional tablet)

===================

(1) TRAVEL THOUGHTS

(2) CASES

(3) OTHER QUIRKS ("Flex", touchpad, wifi, fan)

(4) TABLET REPLACEMENT?

(5) PURCHASE TIPS

(6) TAKE APART/DISASSEMBLY

(1) TRAVEL THOUGHTS At first I thought a 13.3" device would be too big to use on the airplane comfortably especially if someone in front of me reclined. I must say this was not the case--furthermore, this is where the touchscreen really shines. Since it is very light, I can hold it closer to me and use it like a tablet without having the keyboard get in my way. The on-screen keyboard also helps for this. I had to ask my colleague to hold the laptop for a second and when I handed it to him he was shocked at how light it weighed!

(2) CASES: The EasyAcc 13.3 inch Laptop Sleeve Bag Case Cover Neoprene Shock Resistant Pouch Protective Handbag for Apple Macbook Air 13, Macbook Pro 13, Acer Aspire S3, Asus Zenbook UX31, Lenovo IdeaPad U300s, Samsung SERIES 9 NP900X3B, Toshiba Satellite Z830, SONY S... did NOT fit this ultrabook so be careful which MacBook Air Cases you choose. I ended up using this Case Logic QNS-113 13.3-Inch EVA Molded Laptop / Macbook Air / Pro Retina Display Sleeve (Black) because it also lets me use the ultrabook in the case itself and I can also stash my second really thin screen (GeChic OnLap--read my review there) GeChic On-Lap 1302 13.3 USB Powered Thin Slim LCD Monitor with ThunderBolt/Mini Display Port Adapter for Apple Macbook Pro Air 13 in the same case! I can also use the Case Logic 14" Case Logic LAPS-114 14-Inch Laptop Sleeve (Black) but it doesn't let me use the laptop in its case. TSA had no issues with either case and I didn't have to remove the ultrabook.

(3) OTHER QUIRKS: So, I think I have figured out the problem with some people reporting touchpad sensitivity and issues. The chassis is carbon fiber and has some "flex" to it. Therefore, if the ultrabook is not fully on a hard surface, and more specifically, half on a hard surface and the palmrest hanging off, the touchpad must be getting compressed inside somewhere as it bends between the palmrest and the touchpad. That is the only time I had issues. If it were fully on a hard or soft surface it operated normally. Imagine taking the laptop and pushing down on the palmrest while it is half over the side of a desk. That is what seems to be happening with me at least. Easy enough for me to adjust so it's a non-issue for me.

The fan noise that people are complaining about I must admit can get annoying sometimes, but I have not tried too much in the way of intensive operations yet. The initial DropBox sync (about 7GB for me) kicked up the fan a lot and it was noticeable. In airports and other areas, it wasn't too much of a distraction, but time will tell if I will be the "weirdo" with the noisy machine in day to day meetings, etc. Ah well, I guess I will have to avoid playing video games during my business meetings!

I did not experience any major Wifi issues other than with networks that do not broadcast SSID's. There are a large number of Sony firmware updates available so I would suggest installing them if you are experiencing issues with bluetooth, wifi, and NFC (which I haven't tried yet). My problem is that the Sony Vaio Update app keeps getting an error so I will contact Sony shortly.

(4) TABLET REPLACEMENT? My Asus TF300T's digitizer broke prior to my flight and it's a pain to replace so I haven't done that yet. Needless to say, I've used the Sony Vaio Pro 13 in many situations that I would have used the tablet for and honestly, I feel less restricted than under Android limitations (read: multitasking, productivity office apps, etc.). I have all but replaced it and since it actually weighs less than my TF300T with keyboard dock, I'm happy to be using this. Yes, it's a little bit large for some situations, so I might hold out and get a decent 8" Bay Trail tablet when they are released later in the year.

(5) PURCHASE TIPS: So, after playing with this for a while, and knowing that some options are pretty expensive, here is what I can offer: most of the components are fixed and not upgradeable. If you can afford it, go with the highest processor and memory that you can. The memory is soldered to the main board. The SSD, however, is Samsung's new XP941 PCIe "M.2" form factor SDD. While they are not available for sale (that I could find) other than to OEMs right now, it is likely they will appear in the market soon. Going from the base 128GB, it costs $220 for 256GB and $720 or so for the 512GB. While the speeds are among the fastest you will see today for SSD, I might be willing to hold off on that, especially since it appears to be user-replaceable (no confirmation on that but see below). Your best shot is to keep searching for them online and see when they pop up cheaper in the future.

(6) TAKE-APART AND DISASSEMBLY: While I have not tried it yet, there is now a good tear-down video () and pictures () so you can see for yourself.

ORIGINAL REVIEW:

===================

In this review:

(1) In the box

(2) PROs (+)

(3) CONs/Quirks (-)

(4) Windows Experience Index Ratings, Battery Life, and Performance Observations

(5) Extended sheet battery thoughts

(6) Thoughts on travel/portability/business use

(7) General Thoughts and Thoughts on tablet replacement

(1) In the box: power cord and adapter with neat USB port in transformer, brief setup pamphlet, VGA Adapter.

I thought I would include this section because there was some confusion as to whether the USB-powered Ethernet wireless router that attaches to the power adapter was included. Sadly, it is not. It is also not listed as available for sale (as of this date) in the US. If you need the part number (since it's hard to find), it's VGP-WAR100 and is available on Sony Asia's website ()

(2) PROs

Great battery life (later)

Super thin AND great battery life!

full-size spacing on keys

Tight integration between hardware and Windows 8 (even some 8.1 features done Sony-style on Windows 8.0)

Screen lifts for the most part with one hand (better than I could have expected)

brightness is decent

Carbon fiber build seems flimsy (because it bends) but actually feels and appears to be durable (if that makes sense)

Really light.

Did I mention that it's really thin and light?

(3) CONs/Quirks (not all are really terrible and I've overcome some as described)

Yes, there is a known WiFi issue. Supposedly, Sony is working on a fix though not all their stores and call centers are familiar with it. However, that being said, I did not experience any major issues. Just in case, I have a WiFi adapter I can use if needed.

For me: lack of Thunderbolt port is a disappointment but I understand that Sony had to sacrifice some things for such a thin laptop. I would have preferred Thunderbolt over HDMI but that is just me and the market supports the decision to stick with HDMI right now.

Lack of Gb Ethernet. Really wished it had this but a lot of ultrabooks are forgoing this option these days. To overcome this, I purchased a nifty Asus USB router (see below under travel)

The large amount of flex in the build makes using the touchscreen difficult to use or at least not as "seamless" as it could be. The screen vibrates back and forth a lot with each press making for a slightly uncomfortable but bearable experience. It certainly does not replace a tablet feel (nor is it meant to so no stars deducted). It's just that it feels like the touchscreen could have been left out altogether but I must admit I still use it extensively over the touchpad (but maybe not over a travel mouse).

The sheet battery is not flush to the device (more on that below under the "extended battery" section).

The keyboard is a little awkward for me, but to be fair, I'm accustomed to a 12.1" netbook keyboard. The keys for me are spaced too far apart but I can still type pretty fast and it doesn't seem like it will take a lot of getting used to.

The lights for the backlit keyboard are visible from underneath the keys when you are looking at the device. It's kind of annoying and I wish it were just the letters that were lit instead of an outline of the keys.

Silly dedicated "assist" button launches Sony's troubleshooting and repair/recovery apps. I'd rather be able to customize a dedicated hardware button (and maybe I can?)

(4) Windows Experience Index, battery life, and other performance measures

Overall: 6.3 (internal HD4000 graphics being the limiting factor)

CPU: 7.1 (This is for Core i7 model but the rest of this review is relevant to this model)

RAM: 7.6

Graphics: 6.3

Gaming Graphics: 6.3

HDD: 8.6

It isn't meant to be a super high-end gaming machine. The idea here is thin and light...but seriously, it does a pretty darn good job at everything else while it's at it. Data transfer rates are extremely good. If I get a chance, I'll post some samples.

Battery Life is really really good. I use Battery Bar and it varies it's estimate based on use but going from a full charge on just the main battery without the extended sheet battery, it varies between 7-8.5 hours, way over Sony's 6.5 hours estimate. To be fair, I have only been installing software and not anything otherwise intensive. With the extended battery which is almost double capacity, I would easily believe Sony's 13-14 hour claim and then some. Time will tell and I will update if this changes.

Performance is pretty snappy and I haven't noticed any major hiccups but to be fair, I haven't done a whole lot other than web browsing and software installation. I'll update as time goes on if it changes.

(5) Extended Sheet battery thoughts:

Honestly, I have mixed feelings. Since there are really no pictures for this model, I thought I would post this so you have a good idea of what it is like. I will post a picture soon as well. For starters, it does NOT sit flush with the laptop. In other words, it adds a significant amount of depth (almost double) but at least it is a smaller footprint and not the whole side of the laptop. It serves as a stand while it is attached. One thing I do wish: the cover for the connector for the extended battery can be difficult to remove form the laptop (it has a spot to reattach to the extended batteyr to hold it in place but even that is a pain to do in a hurry. If I have to switch batteries in a hurry or switch to the extended, it can be irritating. A sliding cover would have been more practical (but I'm not sure if it's feasible space-wise)

(6) Travel and portability thoughts:

For me, extended batteries are almost a necessity and I'm so used to just ordering them that I ordered it with the device. As I am using this, I am actually thinking I wouldn't need it if I were just replacing my netbook/laptop. Since the sheet battery adds such significant battery life, I might use it to replace what I normally defer to my Asus TF300T tablet for (notes, travel, work on airplanes/trains, etc.).

I will update this review soon--I have ordered two different MacBook Air cases and will see how they fare.

I also ordered the Asus WL-300NUL pocket WiFi router (ASUS Multi-Mode Pocket Router (WL-330NUL). This can be used in much the same way as the Sony part I mentioned above with the added benefit that it can also be used as a USB ethernet adapter and standard WiFi adapter as well.

For travel, I also ordered a USB combo mini outlet surge protector Satechi Compact USB Surge Protector for Charging MP3 Players, iPhone, Blackberry, Android, and Windows Mobile Phones and an inline surge protector TRC 90510-10 Lap Top Surge Protector 3-Wire which should arrive soon.

(7) General Thoughts and Thoughts on Tablet replacement:

I was really hoping for a Haswell ultrabook convertible that would double as my desktop via a nice Thunderbolt dock for two monitors, GbE, USB 3.0 drives, etc. I was hoping for said ultrabook to also double as a tablet and take advantage of Window 8 handwriting recognition with a digitizer (this does not have a digitizer). In the end, while this may have been a purchase out of frustration in waiting or the "perfect" device to come along, I think I am happy with it. The near-instant on feature is nice so that certainly helps in pushing the case to replace my tablet. I can still think of a need for a decent tablet with digitizer (perhaps a future "mini" Windows 8 tablet with Bay Trail?). I thought about the Sony Duo 13 as well but the limited one angle kind of was a dealbreaker for me. In retrospect, it might be more of what I was looking for. The trackpad is becoming more and more of an after-thought for me as I use the touchscreen more so the fact that it is much smaller on the Duo may not be bad. At least it isn't behind the keyboard like on the recently announced Samsung device. The Asus Transformer Book Trio is probably the closest to what I wanted but it may not be released until much later this year. For now, I would say I'm very happy with the purchase and will continue to evaluate my needs as I go on in terms of living without a tablet.

I do hope that Thunderbolt becomes more common and is standard in the near future. Partly due to cost and partly due to ignorance, I think people are missing out on something great that might be too early for it's own good. It's almost like the "Apple Newton" was way ahead of its time and didn't succeed because of ignorance and cost until Palm released their version of the PDA when the market was "ready" for it. I'm hoping this is the time for TB.

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I am an executive and work in a technology company. Over the years I have owned a number of laptops, most recently the Lenovo X301, which was the best laptop I had/have ever owned. Recently, I decided to purchase the Sony Vaio Pro, mainly so I could get the Windows 8 experience on a touch screen device. In purchasing this new laptop I had a number of requirements -first and foremost that it be light and secondly that it boot quickly (when getting on and off airplanes, in flight, etc., I often don't have much time or the patience to wait for my computer to turn on or off). Additionally, I wanted a laptop that would adequately perform basic office functions, e.g., word processing, email, etc., and that had a sufficiently high resolution display so that viewing an occasional video would be a pleasure.

With these requirements in mind, I purchased the Vaio Pro -and only after adequately researching all the other options available. I am pleased to say that now, after having used this laptop for well over a month and under all the use cases which I typically experience (planes, cars, conference rooms, the office, at home, etc.,), the Vaio Pro 13 has exceeded my expectations in meeting all of the above requirements, and it is noticeably lighter than any laptop I have ever owned (the X301 was about 3lbs). Most surprising, though, is the boot time -about 2 3 seconds. This combined with the weight make it the perfect executive/office worker machine.

As for the negative comments this laptop has received in other reviews (poor Wi-Fi reception and loud fan). Frankly, I've not had a problem at all. The Wi-Fi has worked in every situation I have been in; it's speed is fine, etc. I really don't know what others are complaining about -as long as you use the latest drivers which can be downloaded from the Sony web site. The fan does occasionally run, but not often. Using typically office applications, web browsing and so on, it does not run at all (keep the computer settings on balanced performance). On the other hand, transcribing pre-recorded text using Dragon NaturallySpeaking, transcribing video or converting audio file formats while having the laptop set in high performance mode -yes, the fan will run, and in a dead quiet room, you will hear it. It will be "loud" -though not any louder than a fan in the back of many other desktop PCs or for that matter nettop PCs often used in home theater settings. My point, the fan noise (at least to me) is not even a nuisance.

Conclusion: This is a great laptop. My only complaint. Scratches show in the carbon fiber. It doesn't take long for the Sony Vaio Pro to look used. But then, I'm not worried about that. Use it is what I want to do, and carry it I must. The scratches, after all, don't add to the weight or take away from the performance.

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Love the high resolution screen, back-lit keyboards, light weight, battery life and fast start-up... Just what I need and want to be able to go around with my work. I would have given it a 5 if not for the below problems:

I had to return the first device within a week because of a bad USB port (broken pin), which was random problem anyone can run into.

Pre-installed Intel Anti-theft service is trash. Do not activate it without backing up everything! Not only it caused problems running some important software, its file protection service can lock or corrupt your important files even after you disable and uninstall it. It caused all my Office files stored in Dropbox folder and my Quicken database no long usable. This probably has nothing to do with the device itself, but something to call out.

Occasionally, after waking up from sleep mode, it will give you the Windows blue screen of death and restart. So you better make sure all you important works get saved before sleep.

Honest reviews on Sony VAIO Pro SVP1321ACXB 13-Inch Core i5 Touchscreen Ultrabook

Background: I'm a PhD electrical engineer/computer scientist and developer and consulting professional

I bought this laptop from Amazon and have now had it for a week. I carefully reviewed options and it came down to this laptop or buying a Macbook Air as I really wanted light weight, long battery life, and fast. After a week of intense work on the machine including updating to Windows 8.1, installing an extensive Python development environment, and doing work on a lot of different software (including LibreOffice), I have come to love this laptop. And I am a tough customer to please!

Things you will LOVE:

HARDWARE: Astonishingly thin and light and I genuinely like the look of it. It took a little getting used to but the character and look is nice and there are a number of nice small touches like the little clear "winglets" at the bottom screen edge that turn out to be support feet when you unfold it.

BOOTUP/SHUTDOWN: This was one of the most pleasant surprises! Most reviews of this laptop barely touch on the fact that it is fast to start and stop. The startup is easily as fast as my chromebooks or a macbook air and startup is just a couple seconds. Together with the very light weight and very good battery it has changed my approach to computing as there is now no overhead or minimum effort needed to start it up and use it. I can access my Sony VAIO Pro just as fast as going to the iPad when I need to jump into Amazon to buy something, so I use this laptop a lot more than my others.

-TOUCHSCREEN: I've been on the bandwagon that WINDOWS 8 was a mistake to insist on touch but it really works here. This was another surprise to me. The high quality and accuracy on the Sony together with the fact a laptop is close enough and well positioned for touch makes it more handy to just use touch rather than mouse or touchpad for a lot of things like accepting ToS, moving icons, or even using the menus in desktop mode apps. I was very surprised by this. Until this laptop I disapproved of touch sense screens on laptops/desktops.

-BATTERY LIFE: One of my goals was to have a light laptop with enough battery life that I can put the charger in my checked bags. This laptop fits the bill. I just finished a weekend torture test where I ran on battery from Friday night to Monday morning (not continuously, obviously). I did a lot of coding, a fair amount of web browsing, and lots of document review (over 80 pages). My particular work style turned in over 8 hours of battery life, so the Sony engineers have put together an excellent system of SSD and power savings. A nice review on Anandtech after I ordered found that the work-time per battery watt-hour of this laptop are astonishingly good.

Things that could be better:

-WI-FI: There is a lot of online argument about the WI-FI on this laptop so I've been carefully characterizing it everywhere. I have found that the WiFi is normally quite good *except* when sitting within about 5 feet of another, older, laptop that is accessing the same Wi-Fi on a direction that passes *through* the Sony VAIO. In that case the connection fits the online complaints perfectly with sub Mbps rates and infuriatingly long latency (e.g. pulling up Google Search takes ~7 seconds). This is the only scenario where I have found a problem and I am able to eliminate it by moving 10 feet. Additionally I found that the same spot next to the other laptop doesn't create a problem if I change Wi-Fi access points. This was infuriating when it happened (and is the only reason I don't give 5 stars) but now that I understand how to eliminate the problem I haven't had to deal with it.

-SCREEN ANGLE: I'm kind of mid-tall (not huge, above average) and find that if the laptop is sitting on my lap I have to tilt the laptop back because the screen doesn't bend back enough. Minor issue.

Overall this laptop is just a great game changer. The battery life is incredible and the startup time so fast that the two of those traits together make this laptop a practical replacement for grabbing the iPad when I want to get online for a few seconds and do something. Additionally, I can leave my programming environment going and hibernate the laptop and just open it up to code for a couple minutes while the kids are busy and I'm waiting. I wasn't able to do this before because my other laptops take too long to boot, are too heavy to have handy, and don't have the battery life to start up 20 times in a weekend.

Great laptop! I was worried about windows 8 and touch but this laptop makes them work really well do to high quality of build and very long battery life. I'm way more pleased than I expected!

I will update this as I find more details people may be interested in, feel free to ask questions.

Cheers

Reviews of U47VCDS51 14.1" Core i5 2.5GHz 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 750GB HDD DVDR 64-bit

Customer Ratings:

Pros:

-User replaceable battery! Hard to find in thin notebooks.

-Lots of aluminum! Keyboard, palm rests and screen backing are all metal.

-Bottom/underside is a thick plastic. Not cheap feeling at all.

-Matte screen with a 1366x768 is perfect for 14 inch display.

-Chicklet keyboard leaves a bit to be desired, but my desktop has a mechanical so its a bit of an adjustment. Adequate for typing.

-Very easy to get to the memory and HDD bay along with the screw holding in the ODD. Memory comes maxed out for this computer (8 gig max supported) but that is plenty for the foreseeable future.

-Mouse pad is smooth, not that annoying bumpy junk lots of notebook OEM's are using.

-Dimmable backlit keyboard.

-Dedicated Graphics card.

Cons:

-Quite a bit of bloatware. Easy to uninstall, would rather just get a disc and install what I want.

-Mouse pad placement is not good for me. My left plam/thumb keep tapping the upper left corner of the pad causing typing errors.

-The mouse buttons are not good.

-Pretty much I hate the mouse pad. There, I said it.

-Speakers are bad. They are loud, but that's it. Very tinney and hollow sounding. No range at all. Even for laptop speakers, they have a lot of room for improvement. Speaker placement is right under the palm rest.

Overall, I am really happy with this machine. Besides the mouse pad, its just as good in my hands as it looked on paper. After making sure I was going to keep this computer, I immediately swapped out the HDD for an SSD I had laying around the house. The stock HDD was really a huge bottle neck.

Here is the WEI;

Processor 7.1

Ram 7.5

Graphics 6.6

Gaming Graphics 6.6

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Researched many laptops. ASUS U47VC is the best around. I always have had great luck with my ASUS custom builds and this laptop is better than the 16" one I previously bought and took back. You cannot upgrade memory on many others. With this you can go up to 16GB. Best laptop I have had. Im not nit picky about the sound since I have a sound bar that sits on top and sounds great. Like I said before. Alot of research went into this laptop.HD,upgradable,great chiclet backlit Keyboard. Very easy to type on.Highly reccomend this model

Best Deals for U47VCDS51 14.1" Core i5 2.5GHz 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 750GB HDD DVDR 64-bit

This is my 2nd Asus laptop in the U series line. I previously had a 2011 model #U46SV and sold it recently to my cousin for a cool $700.

This review will be comparing both 2011 and 2012 models. As always with any laptop or ultrabook, I do a clean install on Win7 Pro x64 OS and installed a fresh Vertex 4 SSD 256gb I got on black friday sale!

My impressions with this year's model U47VC has met higher expectations than I thought.

It is slightly thinner, a bit lighter, and has extra features over last year's model.

Aesthetics I find the design of this laptop to be a major upgrade over the U46SV last year.

The battery is a lot more narrow and lighter.

Illuminated keyboard shines in the night time! Big + for me as I'm typing

this review in the night time :)

Brushed aluminum in gray this year over a silver finish. I like both whichever.

Touch pad design is neat and sleek. No separated buttons this time around.

Omission of VGA port. Finally yes! I cringed all the time, now it is gone!

Screen is anti-smudge fingerprint. Big + over last years model!

10/10 score on design and even feels like an Ultrabook. Well done Asus *Cheers*

Battery The battery lasts between 5 1/2 hrs 6 hours. It is just about the same amount

hours I get from a full charge than last year's model.

8/10

Gaming I played Walking Dead so far on Steam. Runs great with this nvidia 620m card.

However, I jumped from a 540m last year to a 620m and wonder if this year is weaker

or nearly the same performance. This is the only sacrifice I made in getting this

U47VC laptop.

Since I don't do much gaming on the go, this area here really suffices for me.

9/10

Features This laptop has an extra USB 3.0 port oppose to only one last year. The nice

architecture about Ivy bridge is it supports USB 3.0 natively from intel.

This means no more installing third party drivers. Yes finally!

10/10

Only downside to this laptop is the panel used in most laptops. TN panels have disaster viewing angles. I say enough is enough already with this low quality tech. IPS or AMVA panels are desirable.

9/10 laptop score overall. It is excellent and I hopefully will keep this gem for a few years to come until I get a super slim ultrabook.

Asus U47VC hits a homerun in the U series line in 2012. Again well done.

Honest reviews on U47VCDS51 14.1" Core i5 2.5GHz 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 750GB HDD DVDR 64-bit

I recently purchased this as an upgrade to a notebook I received for Christmas in 2010, and it's a very nice upgrade indeed. I've had some time to play with it and set it to my liking, and here are my thoughts:

Pros:

* Very light and thin, but it still has the RAM and storage space of a traditional full-size laptop

* 8GB of RAM, expandable to 16 even though ASUS says the max is 8!

* A dedicated graphics card. Not the best, but it'll do for some photo/video editing work and light gaming (can handle Portal and Team Fortress 2 just fine if that tells you anything. I don't think anything like Battlefield 3 would run at high settings though EDIT: Can play BioShock Infinite on high settings at a reasonable framerate. That should tell you it can handle just about anything you throw at it.). I should add that this laptop's cousin, the U47A-RS51, has the exact same specs minus the graphics card.

* 6-cell battery, lasts a very long time. Max is about eight hours which is great.

* Can easily be customized. ASUS is known for this.

Cons:

* The trackpad. Damn it, I hate the trackpad. You'll get used to it, but it's still kind of annoying. It can get in the way of typing at times and the multi-touch scroll is awkward for people with large hands (like me).

* ASUS bloatware, but this comes with any computer. Install Windows 7 (or 8 if you prefer) from scratch and you should very nicely get around all that.

All in all, great purchase. 10/10 would buy again.

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It took some getting accustomed and the mouse/cursor does jump around a lot. The screen recently (after only 2 months) had a green pixel line across it. But Asus did quickly get return set up and was under warranty. Still waiting to get it back (has only been 3 days since I shipped off).

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Customer Ratings:

The only reason I gave it four stars instead of five is because one part was broken (which the seller described when I purchased it). Other than that, this is the best computer ever. And when I took it to school with me, others (who had purchased more expensive laptops) were going ga-ga over it.

You can write on the outside of the cover when it is closed. You use a stylus pen which pops out of its own little compartment when you gently press down on it. You can detach the keyboard completely if you don't want to use it. There are so many different features that it is just amazing. Sometimes when I take it to class, I will go to the "One Note" program and click "record" and let it record the teacher speaking. I can even write notes on it. Both the voice and the written notes are typed right into a Word document for me.

If you can still find one of these, I would definitely recommend buying it because it is so worth the money. I only paid $220.00 on amazon.com which was a steal deal.

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Reviews of MSI Computer Corp. Notebook GT70 0NE-609US;9S7-176215-609 17.3-Inch

Customer Ratings:

PROS:

Great construction. The overall build quality is excellent. Is it too heavy? Not to me. This is not an ultrabook; nor is it supposed to be. The brushed aluminum is not only beautiful, but it's also essentially FINGERPRINT-PROOF! As is the palm rest

Trackpad is spacious, with nice accents

Speaker system is top notch, loud, distortion-free and even pleasantly bassy (due to the subwoofer)

SteelSeries keyboard is well-sized, has solid feedback and is above average in quality

Keyboard has nice backlighting which is fully customizable by using the onboard KLM software

Win8 is pre-loaded onto the spacious SSD, which makes OS functions and bootup lightning fast

Gold-plated audio jacks make it a breeze to connect this bad boy to external speaker systems

Fairly quiet to my ears

The backpack and headset bonus items are a combined value of just under $200, and are both high quality extras

Gaming performance is as good as it gets, as of this writing

The wireless module (Killer Wireless) comes with some pretty wicked software. According to some demonstrations on YouTube (which seem legit), it provides better and more consistent latency than competitors

NEUTRAL:

The display (which thanks to MSI's engineering, can be easily swapped out by the user if you prefer a different configuration) has a slight grainy texture to it when viewing solid colors under certain conditions. However, it's big, fairly bright, and glare-free

Left-side Windows key has been removed (there's still one on the right) in order to avoid accidents while gaming. Thus, if you used that key a lot, you won't have it (though you can always map out alternate shortcuts).

CONS:

Windows 8 UI blows for desktop users, but this is easily remedied by third-party software, and the OS is speedy and does have some improvements

Though it has 3 USB 3.0 ports, they're all on the left side (with 2 USB 2.0 on the right). No big deal though.

CONCLUSION:

This thing flies, is quality construction, and looks awesome. No, it isn't too big. It's the perfect size for its purpose. It feels very solid and appropriately weighted when carried (but again, I'm not after ultraportability; this is a desktop replacement). Feels good when used on my lap too. I had to use MSI customer service due to a minor issue, and they were extremely responsive and helpful, which is a good sign. I've not used the Alienware, Asus, or any other competitor, but honestly, I don't need to. My expectations were pretty high and this laptop exceeded them.

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This is a beast of a machine. Runs smooth and quiet. Windows 8 tolerable but I'm not a fan, that would be my only complaint.

Best Deals for MSI Computer Corp. Notebook GT70 0NE-609US;9S7-176215-609 17.3-Inch

Within moments the OS loads right up. Classmates, co-workers, & family members are very jealous. The backpack and headset are a nice welcomed bonus. Installed with MS office but requires a purchase. Quickly removed Norton and installed a different anti-virus application. Remember to change directories if you are installing or downloading something unless you do want it to sit on the SSD.

If you can fork over the cash it is a great investment.

Honest reviews on MSI Computer Corp. Notebook GT70 0NE-609US;9S7-176215-609 17.3-Inch

The msi 609us dragon edition is absolutely insane, I got mine about a month ago used for around 2,000 and couldn't be happier! It blew passed any other gaming computers i've tried (Alienware m17x, m18x and asus g75vw) This thing is extremely fast. If im just using internet or watching a video everything loads immediately, and when I'm playing very graphic intensive games I get very high FPS (Just to name a few WoW, LoL, diablo III, crysis 3, Dead space 3, bioshock infinite, skyrim, etc.) with incredible quality and no lag! The 680m is very good and it was really cool that MSI had the 4GB version of the 680m as most alienwares have the 2GB! And the ssd loads extremely fast, it also has some awesome features like 1 touch turbo/overclocking and easy fan boost, and tons of features to make your computer fast and more customized to your liking! This actually beats all of my friends desktops in gaming and loading, AND its portable so i think that's pretty cool! It's pretty light for a gaming computer and somewhat slim as well, It also has a pretty nice charge for a gaming laptop (a little over 4 hours) And I love the speakers! They get so loud and really add to the game you're playing. I really have no issues with this laptop its extremely fast, has stunning picture, lots of storage, fast loading speeds, and I thought windows 8 would bother me at first but I got used to it very quickly and it actually became more convenient and easy to use! Also it definitely costs a lot don't get me wrong but I've used alienwares that are even more expensive to reach its specs and I just dont like them as much, although i do kinda like alienware I'm really glad i found this one because It's way faster and better made than the alienwares. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who games a lot or that just uses computers for every day usage but has some money to drop! You won't be disappointed, nice job MSI!

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MSI GT70

ABOUT ME

This review is a comparison of MSI GT70-0NE (zero NE) 609US dragon edition vs Dell Alienware M18x-R2

I am a non-gamer. I am an adult. I am a casual laptop user. I do not do any cpu (central processing unit) intensive tasks like video editing. I simply surf the internet, watch dvds, watch Netflix, check email, and listen to music. My last computer was a 2002 Gateway desktop running Windows XP. I have no experience with Windows Vista or Windows 7 and it took a lot of effort and patience to learn Windows 8. I wanted the best laptop available by direct purchase from the manufacturer. I wanted a large screen desktop replacement laptop. I wanted to be hassle free in terms of trouble shooting and warranty service and thus I did not want a third party/middle man customized laptop dealer. I initially purchased the Alienware M18x-R2 with Windows 8 (released 10/26/2012) on 11/27/2012. It has an 18.4 inch diagonal glossy screen. The first M18x-R2 I received constantly gave me "display driver stopped responding and has recovered" errors. The case was also scratched. After weeks of telephone tech support, I opted for a full refund rather than switching out video cards and mother boards. I tried 3 more M18x-R2 laptops. However, these 3 all had a new problem. I ordered 16 GB (gigabytes) of RAM (random access memory) at 1866 MHz. Each was set to 1333 MHz out of the box. Tech support had me go into BIOS and change the DIMM profile from default to XMP profile 2. This did force the RAM to operate at 1866 MHz but the system still displayed it as 1333 MHz in Alien Autopsy and in the ePSA pre-boot assessment diagnostics. This issue persisted through 3 purchase and refund cycles. Dell Alienware was unable to ship me a laptop operating at 1866 MHz out of the box. Each time I had to change BIOS settings to achieve the performance I had purchased. Also, these 3 Alienware laptops all arrived with 5 to 10 dead pixels in each new build. The 4th M18x-R2 also kept failing a windows update for Intel Corporation Storage Controller and tech support wanted me to "hide" this update. It also had some keyboard backlighting glitches using Alienware FX. Another of my four iterations had a touch pad button that would get stuck in the down position and squeak when it was working. I was being very picky but this was an expensive laptop and I felt these technical issues were unacceptable. I decided to move on to a different manufacturer. Alienware has the largest screen at 18.4 inches. The next largest is 17.3 inches which is provided by many manufacturers. With all four M18x-R2s I purchased I chose the nebula red case. So, I decided to try the MSI GT70-0NE dragon edition as it is red also and offers excellent hardware.

CONSTRUCTION AND AESTHETICS

The M18x-R2 is sleek. It has a slot load optical drive which has a clean look. The GT70 has a tray load but does have a touch eject button above the keyboard in addition to a mechanical button on the tray in addition to a pinhole emergency release for a jammed dvd. MSI also offers blu ray burning capabilities and Alienware does not. Also, the optical drive in the MSI is much quieter and has less vibration than the M18x-R2. The M18x-R2 seemed to only have 3 construction materials. The palm rest was rubber, the screen was solid glass edge to edge, and the body was red aluminum. The GT70 is ugly. The palm rest is red aluminum with a laser etched dragon. The speaker grills are silver. The webcam is chrome. The keyboard is black, surrounded by a very scratchable high gloss fingerprint magnet plastic, surrounded by dull plastic. With the proper lighting, you will see the high gloss plastic scratches even with a microfiber cloth. The M18x-R2 palm rest did show oily spots from my palms. The M18x-R2 screen touched the keyboard keys when the lid was closed and oils from my fingers would leave an oily outline of the keys on the screen. The M18x-R2 had no writing on the laptop and was elegant. The GT70 is ugly and covered in writing and labels as follows: "mic" next to the microphone, "keyboard by steel series" on palm rest, "sound by dynaudio" on touch area, and "dragon edition" on touch area. The USB 3.0 ports on the M18x-R2 were black and seemed classy but they are blue on the GT70 and all other computers and look bad. The GT70 does taper to the palm rest and is very comfortable to type on. The M18x-R2 did not taper and was not very ergonomic to type on. The M18x-R2 had only the power port in the rear. The GT70 has many rear ports and keeps my desk less cluttered with wires. I wish the GT70 rear esata port was a USB combo port but it is not. My M18x-R2 did not have optimus technology for the video card and used the Nvidia card 100% of the time versus Intel onboard graphics and yet the cooling fan would occasionally turn off and when it did run, it was extremely quiet. The GT70 has optimus technology with the Nvidia 680m graphics card and yet the fan never turns off even though I am on Intel graphics 100% of the time. The fan is loud on the GT70. It is right below the point of being unacceptably loud. The M18x-R2 only had one sticker for Windows 8 on the palm rest. It looked really slick. The GT70 has 3 stickers for Intel, geforce, and THX on the palm rest and looks ugly. The windows 8 sticker is inside the battery compartment. I removed the 3 palm rest stickers by simply peeling them off and using scotch tape to take off residual adhesive. Alienware did feel more solid, metal, and glass although the keyboard did have flex. MSI feels a little more plastic but the keyboard has no flex. While Apple Computer Products are beautiful, sophisticated, organic, and elegant looking, the GT70 is really ugly. There are a lot of seams between build materials, plastics, the keyboard, etc. Dust gets stuck in these seams.

OTHER COMPLAINTS

The Dell Alienware Windows 8 OS (operating system) was very clean and stripped down. The MSI Windows 8 OS contains the following bloatware: adera, mahjong, freshpaint, puzzletouch, solitaire, taptiles, wordament, tu, games, pinball fx, evernote, music maker jam, movie maker, Korea media player center, Korea messenger center, taptiles, windows live mail, cookbook, and photo gallery. None of these were on the M18x-R2. I even tried a "remove everything and reinstall windows" but it still contained all these embedded extras. I ran MSI burn recovery to create a backup dvd. It insists on burning 6 dvds. It does not recognize dual layer dvds. It wouldn't let me burn from the c: drive. I could only burn from the d: drive. The Alienware Alien Autopsy recovery discs only needed 2 dual layer DVDs. The M18x-R2 function control panel was toggle push button but it was backlit 100% of the time so it could be used in the dark. The GT70 function control panel is touch but it is not backlit and cannot be seen in a dark environment. Keyboard backlighting and Alienware FX is excellent and highly customizable on alienware. MSI only offers 3 lighting zones with no speaker grill or touchpad backlighting. The alienware speakers were much louder with and without headphones. MSI has a much lower speaker volume especially with headphones. This must be due to THX or dynaudio software. Occasionally, the laptop speakers randomly crackle with distortion for less than one second even though external speakers or headphones are plugged in. The MSI touchpad has a learning curve due to a raised plastic ridge between the touchpad and the buttons and I constantly press on the ridge and then have to drag my finger lower to the button. The ridge makes me think it is the button. The alienware touchpad was much more intuitive. Cyberlink Power DVD 10 has some screen bleed at the bottom of the screen in cinema mode. The alienware does not. There was an issue with cyberlink playing audio cds and movie dvds but this has been resolved by a patch available from MSI downloads. The error would say "The integrity of CyberLink PowerDVD is at risk." The audio jacks on MSI are not intuitive. The labeling is simply molded and recessed into the plastic and I cannot see them in a lit room let alone a dark room. Alienware audio jacks were very intuitive. The GT70 headphone jack does not automatically turn off the laptop speakers. The alienware keyboard was intuitive and matched a desktop and number pad. The MSI keyboard is cramped with the right shift key, arrow keys, and number pad requiring a learning curve. The +/keys on the right of the steel series keyboard number pad do not seem to have any function on this laptop version even though they seem to have keyboard brightness control icons. The power button is a non-customizable bright white and blinks in sleep mode. It is annoying and distracting. In Alienware the sleep mode caused the power button to slowly pulse in a soothing respiration type of blinking or pulsing. The GT70 sleep mode causes the power button to blink in a harsh and jarring rapid blinking or flashing. It is disconcerting and looks more like an error or warning rather than sleeping. The mechanical hard drive in the GT70 does occasionally make a clicking noise about once an hour or less. The M18x-R2 could be set so closing the lid switched to an external monitor and opening the laptop lid turned off the external monitor. The GT70 does not offer this convenience. The GT70 must be manually switched from laptop screen to external monitor. Also, the Alienware touchpad could be permanently disabled when a mouse was plugged in. The MSI touchpad re-activates with every power cycle even though a mouse is attached. The GT70 has indicator lights below the touchpad on the front edge of the laptop and they are annoying and distracting. These lights and the touch button control panel are plain old amber and not as classy as the M18x-R2 lighting. Again, similar to the audio jacks, the lights below the touchpad are labeled by being molded into the plastic and recessed. I cannot see them in a lit room or a dark room. The tip of the laser etched dragon tail on my palm rest has a small gap in it. The headphones, backpack, and dog tags included in this purchase are for children. The backpack is way too large and heavy duty to be convenient or functional. The webcam is less megapixels and more grainy than the M18x-R2. I prefer the MSI anti-glare screen over the M18x-R2 glossy screen. I wish MSI would offer Windows 8 Pro with Media Center so I could play movies in Windows Media Center. I know I can upgrade but I would prefer if MSI offered this configuration standard. Dell offers Absolute Software lojack embedded in the BIOS. MSI does not offer lojack. Alienware had indicator lights for number lock, caps lock, and scroll lock. MSI has indicator lights for number lock and caps lock only. A new laptop can be so much fun. The "user experience" can be really fun. Apple seems very playful and fun with the unboxing experience and initial boot up. Calling tech support is always annoying. Many people buy laptops and never have to call tech support for years. I had to call tech support for each of my Alienware laptops multiple times. This involved navigating touchtone and voice menu options, long hold times on the phone, call backs, emails, etc. I have not called tech support for MSI once yet. This alone is a big plus. I have enjoyed my consumer experience with MSI. Also, Alienware had a pair of quick one touch volume control buttons on the control panel. MSI requires two hands for volume controls. Your left hand has to press and hold the "Function" button and your right hand has to press either volume up or volume down. Sometimes the volume is set too loud and a user would like to quickly lower the volume with a one handed jump from the touchpad or mouse. YouTube gives me random problems with this laptop. When I watch YouTube videos, the menu bar and video progress bar at the bottom of the video change appearance, configuration, disappears, or is only partially visible. It changes week to week or sometimes video to video. This could be due to YouTube, flash player, Internet Explorer, Windows 8, or the GT70. There is a white sticker covering a seam in the bottom panel of the laptop stating the warranty is void if the sticker is broken or removed. I would like to open the bottom panel and just look inside or blow out dust. Alienware allows users to open the bottom panel. I have heard speculation GT70 users are allowed to break this sticker but so far I have not researched this. The sticker is annoying.

TAIWAN COMPANY AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE

A lot of the user's guides, printed materials, MSI website, and MSI instructional YouTube videos have very bad grammar and spelling. It makes me lose confidence in the product. Alienware and Dell are also based in China but they translate their materials very well.

POSSIBLE WINDOWS 8 COMPLAINTS

The task bar clock cannot be forced to synchronize with internet time. A really minor gripe is the hourglass circle thing jumps to the left of the screen when initially configuring windows. Windows 8 took away the "internet explorer no add ons" feature. Windows 8 took away the "notify me of windows update" option. For awhile I was getting a little black box in the bottom right corner of internet explorer status bar. I turned on the status bar and the zoom information would randomly be black. This issue seems to have resolved itself however. Windows 8 is flawed in that when I run the Windows Experience Index it cannot register or report my graphics card as 680m due to the optimus technology and Intel graphics. My WEI is 7.1 on Windows 8 which grades on a scale of 1.0 to 9.9. I tried to run Windows Memory Diagnostics but it freezes. It runs fine until it hits 21% on pass 1 of 2 and 10% overall. This is a known issue. I hope it is due to the newness of Windows 8 and will be resolved eventually. I decided to download Mem test 86 as a work around for this glitch. It was difficult for me to achieve this. I had to change the BIOS setting UEFI to legacy and boot from USB because I downloaded Mem test 86 to a USB memory stick. Again, I was unable to burn mem test 86 from the c: drive, I could only create an optical disc from the d: drive. Which is why I ended up putting it on a USB stick. My laptop did pass mem test 86. I would love Windows 8 if I could play solitaire and minesweeper while on the desktop screen. This is possible but the games are confined to either the right or left one third or two thirds of your screen. I preferred Windows XP games in normal windows dialogue box type floating re-sizable windows. In XP I could watch YouTube videos and play minesweeper and really control my screen space to my personal liking and move the minesweeper game all around the screen. This is not possible in Windows 8. Another negative in Windows 8 is searching. In XP, my search string or file tree would remain as I double clicked different files looking for whatever I was searching for. In Windows 8, once I double click on a file, it jumps to that file sometimes on desktop or the start screen. When I decide this is not what I was searching for, I have to begin my search all over again. Sometimes, I can't remember how I got to that previous screen. I had it narrowed down to maybe 3 files and I wanted to do a process of elimination but now I must start over. All the Windows 8 "apps" are lame. The normal desktop versions are always preferable with much more functionality. Thus, all the "apps" are frustrating, constrictive, and lacking in functionality. All the apps seem like a waste of time. I suppose children live inside their cell phones and are more willing to tolerate lack of functionality on a desktop. Older generations were baptized on desktops and are frustrated by "apps" and cell phones. The Windows 8 hot corners and charms bar can be annoying. Especially, the upper right corner where minimize, maximize, and close are located. My cursor often activates the charms bar which then blocks the close button and I have to drag the cursor left to auto hide the charms bar and then approach the close button more cautiously. This also happens in the bottom left corner when trying to open internet explorer but the start screen box appears. Also, the task bar icon tray cannot be customized in regards to Microsoft one note and other icons. My M18x-R2 seemed like a more solid Windows 8 OS than this MSI. MSI is occasionally glitchy in internet explorer especially. It will be blank or encounter errors and close or recover the page. When I delete Internet Explorer browsing history, a yellow message box pops up at the bottom of the screen stating Internet Explorer has completed deleting the browsing history. This box only pops up sporadically. Maybe I'm not waiting long enough for the box to pop up. Alienware offered McAfee anti-virus which was constrictive with some web sites. MSI uses Norton which seems a little looser with websites or at least doesn't scare me with it's little warnings or choices in a weird "choose your own adventure" kind of way. While McAfee seemed less intrusive overall, it was more picky with some websites. Norton seems more like a many tentacled monster reaching into every corner of my laptop and yet hasn't blocked me as much as McAfee in alienware.

TECH SUPPORT

I am much more confident in Dells tech support, refund policies, hours of operation, warranty service, etc. MSI laptops must be purchased through retailers like Amazon and the refund policy is a little more vague. Alienware can be purchased directly from Dell.

QUESTIONS

What is "msi epf usb" in devices and printers?

GREAT FEATURES

Windows 8 boots very fast. I can be in my email within 35 seconds of pressing the power button. MSI super raid is pretty awesome. I guess it uses mSATA memory as the hard drive which is similar to current ssd (solid state drive) hard drives. It uses PCIe (PCI express) ports adapted to sata 3. SSD in RAID 0 configuration is fast but is vulnerable to unrecoverable hard drive crashes. However, Windows 8 offers file history which saves music, photos, documents, and more to the 750 GB mechanical rotating platter hard drive in this MSI configuration which is set as the d: drive. Not only does the d: drive offer a backup of data but mechanical hard drives in non-RAID can offer some data recovery in the event they crash. This d: drive uses sata 2 so it maxes out at 3 GB/s data transfer. Also, Norton 360 offers a backup program as well. I love the sata 3 (6 GB/s) hard drive port. I love the Intel I7 ivy bridge cpu. This laptop is very cool to the touch. However, I am on Intel graphics 100% of the time. The fan vents occasionally get hot. The M18x-R2 upper left surface, sides, and rear were very warm and hot. The Alienware laptop was much hotter than this MSI.

MY PURCHASE

I purchased the MSI GT70-0NE from Amazon. I purchased the 4 year square trade warranty from amazon for $400. I also purchased the MSI extended warranty which must be purchased from MSI within 30 days of laptop purchase. I installed Norton 360 on my laptop. MSI includes a trial version of Norton internet security with this laptop. I use external speakers and a mouse. I installed all the MSI downloads for this laptop. I purchased Microsoft Office 2013 non-subscription version.

CONCLUSION

I feel the GT70-0NE and the M18x-R2 are both equal. Each has its pros and cons. I especially prefer the tapered slope of the GT70 palm rest but I prefer the 18.4 inch alienware screen. Although, I did not like the glossy alienware screen. I prefer slot load optical drive but if I ever get a jammed dvd I will be happy with my current tray load. The 680m graphics card is wasted on me but I like the red aluminum color of this laptop case. I wish the headphones, backpack, and dog tags were optional and this might have saved me money because I would not have purchased them. I preferred the alienware touchpad. There are additional differences between the two laptops but they should be fairly obvious with a little research. Sadly, Dell simply could not ship me a working laptop after 4 tries. MSI succeeded where Dell failed. I have been using this MSI laptop for 6 weeks. I have had this laptop from March 29th, 2013 to May 10th, 2013 as of this review. I worked with Alienware from November 2012 to March 2013. This MSI laptop has been fully functional from a hardware point of view. I have had a lot of software glitches as mentioned above but I am understanding with regards to Windows 8 having only been released for 7 months and still working through its growing pains. I also preferred Alienware's customizable build options. I gave this laptop 5 stars because it is the most powerful laptop available directly from a manufacturer with amazon as the retailer. Alienware can be purchased by skipping the middle man retailer but Alienware simply could not ship me my order even after 4 attempts. I wanted a stock configuration laptop. I did not want to use a third party custom build retailer. I did not want to complicate the trouble shooting warranty process with a modified build. MSI offers cutting edge, leading edge, bleeding edge hardware and software. I wanted to avoid high gloss finger print magnets. I wanted a desktop replacement laptop. I wanted a red or non-black electronics item. Thus, the 5 star review. Well, I hope this review was helpful and I hope your computer brings you and the world much happiness! Peace!

Reviews of Acer Aspire NX.V6ZAA.010;TMP453-M-6696 15.6-Inch Laptop

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $840.89
Sale Price: $832.95
Today's Bonus: 1% Off

This is priced as much as I paid for a Lenovo z560 I purchased from Amazon two years ago. The Acer has the latest i5 but I still think this is overpriced becaue the Lenovo was somewhat futureproofed at this price whereas the specs on this machine means I can run some software programs but can't expect that it can lift more than its expectations in the future.

Acer has already exercised the downgrade rights on Windows 8 Pro to have Windows 7 Pro running on this system otherwise the advice of The Guardian's tech reporter is as follows:

"Start by disabling Secure Boot in Windows 8's Settings and use the Legacy BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) provided for backwards compatibility.

In the BIOS, change the Legacy Boot Order to DVD. I would also disable the Fast Boot system which is hidden away in a System Settings screen under Power Options.

You should now be able to reboot and install a full copy of Windows 7 Pro in the usual way, but you will have to enter a valid product key.

This key will fail online activation, so you will need to activate it over the phone. To do this, tell Microsoft you are downgrading and tell it the Windows 8 Pro key from your wife's Dell."

This has HDMI and one USB 3.0. I think it is still overpriced given the dual core processor and basic graphics but I am willing to pay more to get a hassle free Windows 7 Pro running.

All i5s reportedly have Turbo Boost while reportedly none of the i3s do. And this is 7200 rpm. So those two advantages is why this is 70 dollar more than Acer NX.V6ZAA.009;TMP453-M-6692 15.6-Inch Laptop.

Configuring similar specs on the Dell website cost AT LEAST $150 more and while the configuring of my ideal money-no-object machine was fun, it also illuminated how by losing a few treats, I could save a few hundred dollars with this Acer instead.

Based on reviews, I would disable Bluetooth in the OS if I didn't have the need for such devices.

Also, this is only expandable up to 8gb versus th Dell standard 16gb so ... BUT I am still using a 1gb Thinkpad surf the web with no problem.

HP ProBook D8C10UT 15.6' LED Notebook Intel Core i5 i5-3230M 2.60 GHz Tungsten is one hundred dollars more to expand it up to Crucial Technology 16GB (2 X 8GB) 204-Pin SODIMM, DDR3 1600 PC3-12800 Memory Module Kit CT2KIT102464BF160B but spending $906 would not make the HP into a dream laptop like MSI G Series GP60 2OD-072US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black). So for $300 less than the ideal, this working laptop can run Sage 50 Pro Accounting 2014 US Edition and Microsoft Office Home & Student 2010 3PC/1User (Disc Version) but is LESS futureproofed ....

Acer NX.V7EAA.015; TMP653-M-6861 15.6-Inch Laptopis about one hundred dollars more and you get an extra USB 3.0 port and an eSATA/USB Combo.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Acer 15.6" Intel Celeron 925 2.3 GHz 250 GB Notebook | AS5336-2460 Reviews

Customer Ratings:

my sister bought this laptop 3 years ago, its never been in the shop or has had a problem.

i just wanted this computer to have the credit it deserves, my sister is a heavy user in the youtube, music,netflix, and internet isle. i think there is a lot of laptops that could not withstand the environment this laptop has had to deal with. although the hard drive is at its limit and the ram is between low and average it has all performed like a charm.

my family abuses computers so i am very shocked that this one has held ground.

since amazon hasn't put good description i will clarify that.

RAM-3GB

PROCESSOR-INTEL CELERON 2.3 GHZ

OS-WINDOWS 7 PREMIUM

BATTERY-6-CELL LI-ION

HARD DRIVE-250GB

BACKLIT KEYBOARDNO

ENERGY STAR CERTIFIED

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

This laptop is good, if all you are going to do consists of word processing and accessing one webpage at a time. It feels drastically underpowered, as task manager shows that the CPU is maxed out when loading Firefox. Oh well, it will do for a time, then I'll plunk down the extra dough and get a dual core

Best Deals for Acer 15.6" Intel Celeron 925 2.3 GHz 250 GB Notebook | AS5336-2460

Bought the Acer Aspire 5336 after having a Compaq Desktop and a 19" HP Laptop. The Acer exceds my expectations! I love everything about this laptop! In my opinion, it performs better than the previous 2 brand name computers that I had. The 19' laptop was heavy, slow, big & clunky! The 15.6" screen size is perfect & it's light enough to bring to all the wi-fi hot spots. It is very fast and doesn't drop the connection. I will purchase an Acer in the future.

Alienware M17x R4 AM17xR4-7526BK 17-Inch Laptop Reviews

Customer Ratings:

I am here to give an updated review on this product. I, as many other, received the incorrect screen resolution. The item had been described as (1920x1080) but I received a (1600x900). After numerous support chats and phone calls over the course of the week, I have successfully gotten amazon to change the description to the correct resolution. As of 2/4/13 I have confirmed all the specs are correct, and you will get exactly as listed. I was very happy with the way amazon got things figured out with my issue (eventually.) Kudos to them for having the best customer support and being able to back up a product no matter the loss to them. That is what keeps me coming back to amazon. Anyone interested in purchasing this item that was scared off by the sketchy reviews, it is now SAFE to purchase. Hope this clears things up.

Now, on to the review. I will try to give an unbiased opinion as I have done months and months of research, comparing and contrasting every modern gaming laptop. I will also try to touch on points not stated by my fellow reviewers. This review will be fairly in depth (Should be for a $1600 laptop), and I will try to be detailed, but also universal in describing details, so that you don't have to know any extreme technical jargon to understand the review as well as giving an up-to-date one. Enough said.

The Build:

First things first the build quality is excellent, and this will be the first thing you notice as you un-box and remove it from its protective casing. I researched for months on purchasing a high-end/Gaming computer, and i have learned very much about numerous modern gaming computers and components. Most of the reviews on amazon and on review websites have stated its build quality is of the highest grade and that it is one of the biggest selling points for this laptop, and for good reason. The laptop feels solid, secured, and a bit heavy (weighs in at about 9.5lbs). In my opinion not overweight considering the amount of components stuffed into this thing. The rubbery matte texture compliments it's sturdiness well, and to me was a great material choice for this laptop as it resists fingerprints rather well and will not show scratches as aluminum or plastic well. Not to mention keeping the laptop light, and relatively cool. I dare you to find a better looking laptop (my opinion) that is more sleek and with better build quality (not opinion) than this one. The reason i put up with the weight over say a Sager NP9170 is that this M17xr4 is the thinnest 17inch gaming laptop with these components i could find. I'll take thinner to lighter any day considering, i will be hauling this in a excellent backpack (Everki Beacon or swiss gear) Where the 1 to 2 pound gain over the NP9170 will not be noticeable. Your port selection is numerous and above average, even for gaming laptops. 4 USB 3.0 ports (2 on the left, 2 on your other left), 1 USB 2.0/Esata combo (right) which is also a sleep and charge port which does just that (allows you to charge your phone, iPod or usb charging device while the laptop is asleep or even completely off). VGA, HDMI and Display port video outs (all left), 2 headphone jacks, 1 mic input, as well as an SPDIF optical out (All left). One cool feature is that the Soundcard software included can be used to configure the audio ports to do anything, For example configure all 4 ports to be headphone jacks, or 2 line -in ports. An HDMI-in (right) (not existent in any other laptop I could find. Trust me, I looked. More on this in "other features" below). Last but not least a 9 in 1 card reader above the optical drive (right) and a Kensington lock (left). The cooling system is well engineered with 3 intakes on the bottom, and 2 exhausts on the back, the left one being for the processor, and the right being for the graphics card. I can't tell you how nice it is having the exhaust shoot out the back instead of the bottom into your lap. You might think you lap will block the intakes but they are almost designed with a peak and valley structure, to allow lap use without block to the intakes. Don't get me wrong this laptop can get warm on the bottom especially during gaming, but it is rare I game on my lap. And when using a laptop pad or cooling pad, you won't notice it at all . The individual laptop exhausts are nice, first they limit noise to 1 fan most of the time, secondly they are effective and accurate at temp detection (i.e. Gaming, the GPU fan ramps up, Heavy app use or multitasking the CPU fan ramps up) not to mention the entire system is silent during basic and medium use.

Components:

I will go into greater detail of the components i have added separately or replaced later in the review. For now, the components it comes with. First off the processor, The Intel i7 3610m is the baseline mobile model for i7 cores in laptops. It is snappy, and has no problem devouring numerous tasks at a time. For gaming an i7 core IS MORE than enough considering most games don't utilize 4 cores to begin with (exception: Farcry 3). In fact you would do just fine for gaming if this laptop had an i5 core and you would not notice a frame rate difference. That being said, Alienware has refreshed their m17xr4 line with the i7 3630m, which is an updated version of the 3610m. Amazon DOES NOT include this processor in this build, where as purchasing from Dell, Xotic PC, and others will most likely get you the updated 3630, the performance differences will most likely only be noticeable in benchmarks and is not really worth it.

On to the Graphics, this laptop uses a combination of AMD Radeon 7970m discrete or dedicated card, in concurrence with an Intel HD 4000 integrated chip. First the 7970m, this is a nasty card that destroys most any game, modern or old. You can comment on this review, and I can test a game you might want me to play and let you know how it preforms. To name a few recent ones it preforms extremely well with that I have played. Black ops 2 (not very difficult for any machine), Battlefield 3 run great maxed out, Arkham city runs great, Farcry 3 runs insane on this laptop due to its great scaling on all 4 processor cores (all though I have had some crashes with this game). I've even played as recent as the Crysis 3 beta which runs great since the new drivers update. I cannot stress this enough, the ability to play such high-end games with such good results, all on-the-go, is a crazy feat to me. I run this laptop to a 27 inch monitor most of the time and it's hard to believe the graphics are coming from my laptop and not a desktop. Comparing it to the GTX 680m recently released by Nvidia, the 7970m in my opinion is on par with it, and even runs certain games better according to benchmarks. That being said in power consumption and cooling is better with the 680m. The biggest difference is the price. When I looked to configure my laptop on Dell or Xotic PC, the price difference is over $350 which is simply not justifiable, even for a Nvidia fan boy. I knew and researched both the 680m, 7970m before I even wanted to purchase here, so seeing that amazon had the 7970, it only pushed me further to buy here. Intel HD 4000 is simply an integrated graphics chip which is used for anything but high-end games and uses MUCH less power. Heck, it will even run older games or less resource hogging ones great. AMD uses "Enduro" technology to switch between the 2 graphics solutions based upon your power source (battery or plugged in) and application (Video game vs. Google chrome) this all can be configured manually, but by default your computer switches to the Intel HD 4000 when on battery power EVEN if you are trying to run a high-end game. But like I said, this can be changed manually with a combination of power and graphics setting changes. All that being said, the drivers are a bit faulty, especially with windows 8. I could not decide whether to install AMD's drivers for the 7970m from their website or Dell's which seemed outdated. I spoke to a few Alienware techs on this issue. All said that it is preferable to use Dell's drivers, but AMD's should be compatible. I noticed some performance loss using Dell's driver version, so I cleared the drivers completely and installed AMD's 13.2 version which had updates for the Crysis 3 beta.

* For your hardrive and standard 7200rpm Seagate 750gb drive. Nothing special here. See my upgrade.

* For RAM you got 6gb of 1600mhz DDR3 ram in one 4gb stick and one 2 gb stick. Fine amount of Ram ,I was going to upgrade anyways so I didn't care.

* Wi-Fi card is an Intel Centrino 2230, great reception, great speeds wireless N as well as 2.4ghz/5.8ghz bands. Not much else to say

* Standard DVD/CD RW that is a slot-load drive. I happen to prefer slot-load over tray load because: one, sleeker looking, and 2 no worrying about having a clumsy tray slide out and hit something, getting stuck, breaking, etc.

* For your sound card you get a SoundBlaster Recon3Di instead of a basic sound card, paired with a pair of Klipsch speakers, it sounds great. Where it really shines is when you hook this laptop up via optical or analog (stereo out) and tweak settings in the SoundBlaster control panel. I found the Rock preset to improve the sound even more. This excellent sound card is a rare and welcome addition to a gaming laptop. The speakers definitely aren't booming loud, but they are crisp, clean and have decent bass and are plenty loud for nearly any use. I think they could have used a slight volume boost in playing music, but with laptop speakers, it's tough considering power provided and space to put them in. The speakers are definitely above average and much better sounding than Sager or MSI laptops alike.

* The screen as stated before is 1600x900, decent colors, so-so viewing angle. Before you write this laptop off for the screen resolution, consider these two things. First, at only 17 inches (yes only) you won't see a ginormous difference between 1920x1080, and 1600x900. You will probably see it. But is it worth 200 dollars extra upgrade? Your call. Secondly, I personally route to a 27 inch monitor for gaming which I display 1920x1080 on. If your majority, or even part of your use is to an external monitor: just another reason you don't need 1080p on the actual laptop screen.

Personal Experience/Other selling points/Tips

The 3 largest selling points that had me choose this laptop over the Samsung series 7 gamer, MSI GT70, and the Sager NP9170 (in my opinion its top competitors) was first the powerful graphics card which beats the 675m and lower cards (670m, 660m, etc.) by a large amount. I was aware of the driver issues with the 7970m but I decided to take the risk, trusting they will be updated (and they have and will continue to be). Secondly the slim profile of this laptop. It beats all 3 mentioned AND has more powerful components. Now this laptop is nowhere near thin at about 1.98 inches but its as thin as its going to get for these components. You want super thin? Razer blade is $2599, and you get less powerful components than this laptop, but the razer blade is super portable (6lb,.88 inches thick). Thirdly, the icing on the cake for me (it might seem strange) the HDMI-input port. Why? The simple fact that being able to hook a console, Blu-ray player, or nearly any device to use this laptop, solely for use of its screen, is genius. Now I understand that some people do not have use for this feature because they do not own consoles or any form of device to utilize this feature and those that could have use for it might say, "Why would you want to hook a console-a less-powerful system--up to the screen of a more powerful system" well I personally have many friends on console and we often have "system link parties" the idea that my laptop could serve as a screen instead of having to haul a TV or monitor to play on is awesome. Not to mention you feel as if you have full control over your laptop to do as you choose and knowing that by the time the computer gets outdated, you could still always use it as a screen! I have used it with my Xbox 360 and it is excellent, just the right size, and the Xbox's sound even routes right through the HDMI and out the laptops speakers (HDMI carries audio and video). Of course it is not the 1920x1080 screen but with a 17 inch screen it's hard to notice that it's not full HD. For comparison HD starts at 720p, this screen is 900p, and Full HD is 1080p. It was a huge selling point for me and NO OTHER laptop has one of these that I have found.

Another cool feature I like is the speaker placement. Since I do use this on an external monitor I prefer to shut the laptop screen when doing that. This might not matter to most, but for me, when I do shut it and just prefer to use the excellent speakers on the laptop it will not block the sound. Why? The speakers on are the front of the laptop (the colored grill looking things). With most laptops you have a sound bar near the media controls and if you were to shut the screen the speakers would get blocked. Being able to use the speakers with the screen closed is a cool feature for me.

Another selling point for me personally, is it came with components that are hard to upgrade in a laptop that I wanted (7970m graphics, i7 processor) and nothing I didn't want (6gb ram, basic HDD). The laptop's accessibility is great. Pop the battery out, unscrew 2 screws, and you're in to most of the system. 2 of the 4 ram bays, HDD bay --which it has 2 of by the way--, fans, even your graphics and your processor can be seen. Again Alienware is giving you nearly full control of the system. Even the Wi-Fi card, other ram bays and optical drive are accessed through a little further, but not too difficult dis-assembly.

Here are the upgrades I have chosen and installed myself easily:

-Samsung 840 250gb SSD (purchased from Newegg for $150 with Farcry 3 Samsung MZ-7TD250BW 840 Series Solid State Drive (SSD) 250 GB Sata 2.5-Inch) an SSD is said to be the single best system upgrade you can make that will grant you the most noticeable performance boost to your system. And after installing one myself, I am a firm believer in just that. Honestly with processors so fast these days your limiting factor comes down to your HDD and good ol' disc drives can only spin to access data so fast. I would even go as far as to say if you don't get an SSD you're missing out on a chunk of your system's performance especially with a processor such as the i7 3610m. Not to mention SSD's silent, cooler, more reliable, and less power consuming operation than traditional HDD's as well as SSD prices dropping like crazy and 1 open bay in this laptop, what have you got to lose? Unleash your processor!

-16gb Corsair vengeance laptop RAM (purchased from amazon for $84.99 Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) Laptop Memory (CMSX16GX3M2A1600C10)) I wanted more than 6gb of ram and if you go higher than 16gb its near impossible to stress it. This RAM had great reviews, fast speeds and seems reliable.

-Killer Wireless N 1202, Faster 2.4/5.8 ghz speeds.

-Windows 7 professional OEM (purchased on amazon for $102) I had a feeling I would not care for windows 8 (and I did not that much, not to mention the drivers for the graphics card are nearly unusable on win 8). Bought this fresh OEM copy at a steal price, popped in my new SSD did a fresh install, Used "Sean's Windows 7 installation guide for SSD's" Which you MUST checkout if you do similar configuration as I, with the hard drives. I then formatted my original 750 GB HDD to use for storage space, and boom. My system flies with cold boot times under 18 seconds, and massive amount of storage space. In the future I will definitely move to windows 8 once graphics drivers are updated and the OS becomes more stable. But for now, it's windows 7 professional for me. Your system didn't include Windows 8 recovery disks for when you want to upgrade? No problem. Call up Alienware, and they will 2-day ship you your recovery media on a handy dandy flash drive.

-One of the many accessories I suggest for this laptop is the U3 Coolmaster cooling pad Cooler Master NotePal U3 Laptop Cooling Pad with Three Configurable 80mm Fans (R9-NBC-8PCK-GP). The reason I liked this for my desk set-up is it seems of good material mostly aluminum which is naturally cool without fans! It uses USB power, fits the M17xr4 perfectly, and the fans are even movable, and Removable. I lined all 3 fans up directly with my m17x's, 3 intake vents which really keeps this thing cool. You do not need a cooling pad, just a personal choice for me! A cool system, is a happy system. The compatibility with my system made this one a winner for me, but I do use it as a stationary "dock" at desk, it's really too big to lug around. For more accessory suggestions, Comment!

-Personally I use this laptop for school, web browsing/multitasking, high-end gaming, and a screen for my Xbox . Even though it is heavy, and many will say it is only a desktop replacement. It is still portable and I have no problem using this computer around the house, on my lap, or "docked" at my desk.

For purchasing locations I would suggest either here or Xoticpc.com. I chose here mostly because of the standard price and the partial refund I receive for the screen mess-up issue.

I do highly suggest this laptop, and encourage you to research more sites for yourself to see if it will fit your uses. I only wish it took me less than 3 months to figure that out. But at such a high price I wanted to be 110% sure this was the one I wanted.

Please feel absolutely free to comment with any at all questions, regarding why I chose the upgrades I did, or anything on the system I didn't touch on well enough, Specific Game performance, purchasing options, how to configure anything, component or accessory suggestions, or other laptop comparisons. I will do my absolute best to get back to you. Also let me know anywhere to improve on the review besides grammar (after a few pages I gave up ;). I will update this review with new info, and corrections.

You have reached the end, congrats and thank you for your time if you have stuck with me, and if you did not stick with it, Hey, I don't blame your skimming.

Thanks again.

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My Alienware M17x R4 is not the same exact spec as this build, but I can tell you that this laptop is a fantastic piece of hardware. I've had both 17" and 18" laptops and the difference of one inch is so minor to me that going with an M17x was worth it: when you're arm's length away from the screen, it's still generously large.

The body of the M17x is fascinating: it has a very tactile feel that isn't metal, but also isn't slick plastic: it's a grippable rubbery feel with a flat black look to it. The lid hinge is tight and the angular lid creates an interesting look that turns heads. I recommend the Green Onions anti-glare screen protector because the screen is still highly susceptible to reflections. I had to open the M17x to add my own drives and the build inside was clean and easily accessible: two screws and you're in! That said, you wouldn't want to do more than memory or disk drives: swapping out the modular CD-ROM can be complicated and the mSATA port is on the top side of the motherboard, which means a near-total teardown to get to (I'm told it's more accessible in the M18x).

for the R4, POST times are lightning-fast: as in, 5 seconds or less before you see "Starting Windows" on your screen. I'm currently using Windows 7 Professional 64-bit--at the time of this writing Intel has not produced USB 3.0 drivers for my specific build that are compatible with Windows 8. I HATE touchpads and love this one: it has lighted edges, its default sensitivity is perfectly fine for me, and the software can be configured to disable the touchpad when a mouse is plugged in. This last is a nice extra for gaming so you don't accidentally nudge your pointer, camera, or crosshairs in the heat of action.

Battery life is also surprisingly good: the M17x can switch to onboard graphics when on battery and this works well for general computing. I can get about two hours or more with the screen at full brightness and doing random computing while overclocked. However, if you are gaming with graphics enabled, you should still get over an hour of gametime like I do. We've apparently come a long way in both laptop battery technology and software that manages hardware power.

The lightshow on the M17x is lots of fun to play with: it has three separate zones on the keyboard from left to right and I set the colors such that my number pad is a different color from the keys (first two zones green, third zone blue). You can change the colors of the lights on the front but the alien head on the lid is always white now as it is lit by the backlight of the LCD.

If you're looking for a top-of-the-line laptop, the M17x R4 is an amazing piece of hardware. It can get expensive if you go for customization, but the underlying build is of good quality. I'd heard horror stories about cheap keyboards but I've had zero problems thus far. I've also enjoyed a very overclocking-friendly BIOS that lets you use pre-built profiles for increased performance with maximum stability.

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I've been custom building computers for years now, so I know the value of hardware. It's pretty commonly known that Alienware will make you pay a bit more for what you're getting, but now that I actually am typing on one and using it myself, I can see why. The build quality is absolutely top notch on this M17x R4.

The screen doesn't wobble.

It has a beautiful looking gloss coat on the screen that spans the entire panel, so it looks different.

The DVD drive is a slot loader instead of a generic manual tray.

The track pad is large and functional.

The keyboard is easy to type on once you get used to the spacing.

The color profile capability of the computer is really a nice touch, as I've been able to set up my back lighting to go well with my choice of desktop background.

Adding a SSD was easy; just removed the battery and two screws from the bottom and I was able to access the caddy for the second drive. Took a couple of minutes. Compared to other laptops, the process was incredibly pain free.

It's not a light laptop, but it's heavy in the ways that you want it to be. It's solid, sturdy, well made and looks like something that will survive for years to come. Couple that with Dell's support and you've got a great laptop in your hands.

PLEASE NOTE: As of 01/26/2012 the Amazon product information for this item is incorrect. I ordered this laptop and received one with all of the same specifications but a 1600x900 screen instead of the 1920x1080 one that is listed. I contacted Amazon about this issue and received 10% off the laptop as a compensation for my troubles. If I wanted to, I could easily find a 1920x1080 panel for this laptop and just add it myself with the money Amazon refunded me, so thanks to Amazon for looking out for their customers.

Alienware M17x R4 AM17xR4-7526BK 17-Inch Laptop

Honest reviews on Alienware M17x R4 AM17xR4-7526BK 17-Inch Laptop

The laptop is great. Beautiful screen, beautiful body, fast configuration. Really a top of line.

It is very difficult to see a laptop of this level here in Brazil and the first time that I saw it, I was really impressed.

As others said on their reviews, the body is not metal or plastic coated. It has a rubbery coat that has a great feel. It has a beautiful design and the Alien is very nice.

The keyboard is a really important thing on a laptop for me, and the keyboard of this M17x R4 is really good. The size of the keys and the feel when pressed is better than my last Samsung laptop. The touchpad is big and good as well. The backlights of the keyboard and on the border of the touchpad is really nice to play with. I always get myself playing with it.

Regarding performance, this laptop is really great. It is fast and everything runs like a charm. the only game that I played until now is Diablo III and it runs smoothly with everything on the top.

I did buy 16gb 1600 memory ram (total 22gb at the end) and a 256g SSD. With the SSD, I installed the windows 8pro and it was rebooting in less then 9 seconds. It is really impressive. I had to come back to the official OEM OS because of problems with the HD7970m driver. I don't know what happened but, as soon as it works, I come back here and say what I did.

The battery is really good, what is quite impressive due to the specs of this machine. It can run more than 3 hours on the internet and watching some videos.

The only con that I can tell about the laptop is that it is heavy, bulky but This was already known before purchasing.

So, if you want a beautiful and strong gaming laptop for a relative good price, this is the one.

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I received this laptop the over a week ago now, Let me say I am beyond impressed. It eats all modern games for lunch, I have not found one that I can't run on ultra and pull insane frames. Under full load it runs nice and cool its not to loud (the fan noise even under a heavy load is barely noticeable to me) unlike my desktop.

As for the quality of the laptop it is top notch and very very well built, I'm glad I paid the extra vs the upgraded Asus, Republic of Gamers. And as a former Asus, Republic of gamers owner I must say this one puts the quality of those laptops to shame. Also sorry for not doing a in-depth review but with some of the current reviews on here I don't see need to be.

Again, very nice laptop and the quality is top notch. Very happy that I went with this one VS a upgraded version of my old one. The Quality and performance difference is significant.