sxw123
08-22-2008, 09:42 AM
First, this is just a quick list of things I have observed, or my own opinions on the NP 8660 in the two days I have had it, and being my first time as an xopticpc buyer, and observation or two about xotic as well.
xoticpc delivered. No complaints whatsoever. My only question is what differentiates xoticpc from sager? Why shouldn't I have just placed my order with Sager? This is not meant to be a knock on xoticpc, as my experience has been great. My observation was that my laptop arrived from sager, in sager packaging, shipped directly from sager. Which again, is fine. Just curious.
On to my first impression on the NP8660
I have been using a Dell Inspiron 1520 for some time so much of my thoughts are a comparison between the two laptops.
The 8660 on first view is a very highly styled design. Brushed aluminum case, and gloss black plastic bezels. The very first thing I noticed was that this thing is a magnet for finger prints. You simply cant help smudging this laptop up with your fingers and hands, no matter how clean they are. This tends to make the laptop look dirty. So, simply an aesthetic issue for me. I also do not like the little image of the microphone printed next to the microphone hole on the notebook deck. It keeps catching my eye, and looks like a piece of lint or debris stuck to the surface.
The other thing I noticed right away, was the size of the power supply. It is a bit on the large size compared to my Dell, and has its own cooling fan. The cooling fan does make a fair amount of noise when you are pushing the system (such as game playing). Besides the added space and weight that this power supply adds to my backpack, I also worry about the vents and fan becoming blocked buy dust, and debris as these power supplies tend to sit on the floor.
The next thing I noticed was that the display was not very bright. (Display: 15.4" WSXGA+ "Glossy Type") I adjusted the brightness to full and it is still dim in my opinion. My Dell is much brighter, and to me more vibrant display. It’s the same type of Display same resolution.
Now this next point is very subjective. I have always been highly sensitive to screen refresh rate. If the refresh rate is too low, I will get a headache and slight nausea immediately. The 8660 is set at 60 Hertz, as is my Dell, but I cannot look at the 8660 for more than a few minutes without feeling ill. I am not sure what to do about this. Right now I have an external monitor plugged in which is fine. Not a good long term solution though.
I also noticed that my text and icons seem “fussy” or slightly blurred. Again, a subjective opinion, but my Dell in same settings is much easier to read.
The keyboard is nice and responsive, my only complaint is that the arrow keys are small and cramped (I am old time gamer and still use the arrow keys, not W,A,D, etc.)
I have not fully tested the graphics capabilities out yet. I have installed and played Call of Duty 4. It looks beautiful, and I get good frame rates. The problem I ran into was the came would constantly crash. Looking around I found this was related to Windows Vista 64 and the RealTek Sound drivers. The driver from Sager will not help you with this problem, you need to get them from the RealTek site. Release 2.0.2 seems to have fixed my crashing issue.
Here ends my first brief thoughts on the NP8660. Its only been two days, so I may get more used to it, or I may be giving it to an employee and ordering something else. It really depends on if I can get the display issues I have corrected.
Love to hear other 8660 owners weigh in on their thoughts.
Thank you xoticpc for doing what you said you would do when I ordered. That seems to be more the exception that the rule these days with many vendors.
-Steve
xoticpc delivered. No complaints whatsoever. My only question is what differentiates xoticpc from sager? Why shouldn't I have just placed my order with Sager? This is not meant to be a knock on xoticpc, as my experience has been great. My observation was that my laptop arrived from sager, in sager packaging, shipped directly from sager. Which again, is fine. Just curious.
On to my first impression on the NP8660
I have been using a Dell Inspiron 1520 for some time so much of my thoughts are a comparison between the two laptops.
The 8660 on first view is a very highly styled design. Brushed aluminum case, and gloss black plastic bezels. The very first thing I noticed was that this thing is a magnet for finger prints. You simply cant help smudging this laptop up with your fingers and hands, no matter how clean they are. This tends to make the laptop look dirty. So, simply an aesthetic issue for me. I also do not like the little image of the microphone printed next to the microphone hole on the notebook deck. It keeps catching my eye, and looks like a piece of lint or debris stuck to the surface.
The other thing I noticed right away, was the size of the power supply. It is a bit on the large size compared to my Dell, and has its own cooling fan. The cooling fan does make a fair amount of noise when you are pushing the system (such as game playing). Besides the added space and weight that this power supply adds to my backpack, I also worry about the vents and fan becoming blocked buy dust, and debris as these power supplies tend to sit on the floor.
The next thing I noticed was that the display was not very bright. (Display: 15.4" WSXGA+ "Glossy Type") I adjusted the brightness to full and it is still dim in my opinion. My Dell is much brighter, and to me more vibrant display. It’s the same type of Display same resolution.
Now this next point is very subjective. I have always been highly sensitive to screen refresh rate. If the refresh rate is too low, I will get a headache and slight nausea immediately. The 8660 is set at 60 Hertz, as is my Dell, but I cannot look at the 8660 for more than a few minutes without feeling ill. I am not sure what to do about this. Right now I have an external monitor plugged in which is fine. Not a good long term solution though.
I also noticed that my text and icons seem “fussy” or slightly blurred. Again, a subjective opinion, but my Dell in same settings is much easier to read.
The keyboard is nice and responsive, my only complaint is that the arrow keys are small and cramped (I am old time gamer and still use the arrow keys, not W,A,D, etc.)
I have not fully tested the graphics capabilities out yet. I have installed and played Call of Duty 4. It looks beautiful, and I get good frame rates. The problem I ran into was the came would constantly crash. Looking around I found this was related to Windows Vista 64 and the RealTek Sound drivers. The driver from Sager will not help you with this problem, you need to get them from the RealTek site. Release 2.0.2 seems to have fixed my crashing issue.
Here ends my first brief thoughts on the NP8660. Its only been two days, so I may get more used to it, or I may be giving it to an employee and ordering something else. It really depends on if I can get the display issues I have corrected.
Love to hear other 8660 owners weigh in on their thoughts.
Thank you xoticpc for doing what you said you would do when I ordered. That seems to be more the exception that the rule these days with many vendors.
-Steve