Sager NP8180 (Clevo P180HM) Owners' Lounge

[ElusiveNeutrino]

http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_headerpic.jpg
Clevo's Product Page (http://www.clevo.com.tw/en/products/prodinfo.asp?productid=358)
Sager's Product Page (http://sagernotebook.com/index.php?page=product_info&model_name=NP8180)
XoticPC's Product Page (http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np8180-clevo-p180hm-p-3250.html)

You think you know FAST? Think again. Introducing the fastest laptop in the world powered by Intel*i7*processor and nVIDIA SLI technology. With Mirror-Black finish, touch-sensitive buttons, and high quality isolated keyboard, it stands out advanced specifications for the demanding applications without competition.

Specifications
Display - 18.4" (46.74cm) FHD (1920x1080) 16:9 panel
Chipset - Mobile Intel HM67 Express Chipset (Huron River)
Processor - Socket G2 for 2nd generation Intel Core i7 CPUs (Sandy Bridge)
Memory - Three 204 pins DDR3 SODIMM sockets supporting dual channel
Graphics - Two MXM 3.0b slots with dual nVIDIA GeForce GTX 560m GPUs in SLi mode standard
Storage Drives - Three 2.5" 9.5 mm (H) SATA interface HDD bays supporting RAID 0/1/5
Optical Drive - 12.7 mm (H)SATA interface supporting Super Multi/ Blu-ray Combo/Blu-ray Writer
Wireless - One Mini Card slot for WLAN combo half size Mini Card with PCIe and USB interface

Features
Keyboard
Full size isolated keyboard with numeric pad,
eight instant buttons (CCD, Bluetooth , WLAN, www, silent mode, sound effect, Mute, LIght sensor),
eight gaming keys,
built in touch pad with multi-gesture and scrolling
Audio - THX TruStudio Pro 5.1 HD audio with two 1.5W, three 2W speakers and one 2W sub-woofer
Ethernet - 10/100/1000Mb Base-TX
Webcam - 2.0M Video Camera
Security
Kensington® Lock,
finger print reader
Ports
2x USB 3.0 ports,
4x USB 2.0 ports (1x power USB AC/DC port),
1x eSATA port (USB 2.0 combo),
1x mini IEEE 1394a port,
1x DVI-I output port,
1x HDMI 1.4a output port,
1x Headphone jack,
1x Microphone jack,
1x S/PDIF output jack,
1x Line-in jack,
1x RJ-45 LAN port,
1x DC-in jack,
1x ExpressCard (54/34) slot,
1x 9-in-1 Card Reader (MMC / RSMMC / SD / Mini SD / SDHC /SDXC / MS / MS Pro /MS Duo)
Power Supply
Full Range AC adapter 220W, AC in 100~240V, 50~60Hz, DC output 19V, 11.57A,
Removable 8 cells Smart Lithium-Ion battery pack, 89.21WH

Pictures
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_2.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_3.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_4.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_5.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/products/8180_6.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/Image/8180_Game_key.jpg
http://sagernotebook.com/images/Image/8180_Panel.jpg

P180HM Benchmarks
3dMarkVantage - 14,756
Intel Core i7 2630QM processor
8GB DDR3-1600MHz
500GB 7200rpm Hard Drive
Windows 7 Home Edition 64 bits

P180HM Reviews
Prostar Review (http://www.pro-star.com/index.cfm?mainpage=review&reviewmodel=P180HM)
Video Peak (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8958fP7IENs)

[ElusiveNeutrino]

10/11/2011 Phase 1 (Order Confirmation)
10/11/2011 Phase 1 (Pending Parts or Item Arrival)
10/11/2011 Phase 2 (Sent for Custom Building / Testing / Burn In & Final QA)
10/19/2011 Phase 4 (Order Shipped)

Sager NP8180 / Clevo P180HM
* - Display: 18.4” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Glare Type Screen (SKU - S1R602)
* - Monitor Calibration: NO Professional Monitor Color Calibration
* - Processor: 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-2960XM, 2.7-3.7GHz, (32nm, 8MB L3 cache) (SKU - S2R204)
* - Thermal Compound: -Stock OEM Thermal Compound
* - Graphics Video Card: SLi ENABLED DUAL (2) 1536MB PCI-Express nVIDIA GTX 560M's (3072MB Total) w/GDDR5 DX11 Video Cards (User Upgradeable) (SKU - S3R704)
* - External Display Video Adapters: No Video Adapter
* - Ram: 8GB - DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS) (SKU - S4R365)
* - Branding: Sager Branding
* - Exterior Finish: Standard Finish
* - Primary Hard Drive: 500GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache) (SKU - S5R207)
* - Second Hard Drive: None Standard
* - Third Hard Drive: None Standard
* - Raid: HDD Raid Settings - OFF
* - Optical Drive Bay: 6X Blu-Ray Burner/Reader / 8X DVDRW Super Multi Combo Drive (SKU - S7R556)
* - Optical Drive Bay Hard Drive Caddy: No Extra Optical Bay Hard Drive Caddy
* - External Hard Drive (Back Up): No Back Up Hard Drive
* - External USB Optical Drive: NO External USB Optical Drive
* - Floppy Drive: No Floppy Drive
* - Memory Card Reader: Internal 9-in-1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD/Mini SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS/MS Pro/MS Duo)
* - Back Up Software: No Back Up Software
* - Bluetooth: Bluetooth Included (See “Wireless Network” Section Below)
* - Wireless Network: Intel® Ultimate-N 6300 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module (SKU - S8R112)
* - Wireless Network Accessories: No Network Accessory
* - Camera: Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
* - TV Tuner: No TV Tuner
* - Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
* - Case: Basic Black Business Case - Included
* - Battery: Smart Li-ion Battery (8-Cell)
* - Car Adapter: No Car Adapter
* - Spare AC Adapter: None Standard*
* - Port Replicator / Dock / Adapters: No Dock/Hub/Adapter
* - Fingerprint Reader: Integrated Fingerprint Reader
* - Mouse / Keyboard Accessories: No External Keyboard or Mouse
* - Notebook Cooler: No Notebook Cooler
* - XOTIC PC Redline Boost™ Extreme Performance: No Thanks, Please do not Overclock my system (Overclocking will add 3-6 business days to build time)
* - Operating System: No Operating System Standard - Drivers & Utility Software Only
* - Microsoft Office Software: No Office Software
* - Software Bundle (Not Installed): No Software Bundle
* - Warranty: Sager 2 Year Parts & LIFETIME Ltd Labor Warranty w/ Lifetime 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Customer Support (SKU - S9R204)
* - Outside of U.S. Shipping Coverage: No Outside of US Shipping Coverage
* - Build Time: Standard Production Time
* - Xotic Gear: No Xotic PC Gear

Anyone else order/recieve this one yet?

[JP@XoticPC]

Elusive, glad to hear you've received the NP8180 already! Let us know how it treats you.

[cgkhan1]

Great looking laptop

:yes:

[m3usv0x]

I ordered mine earlier this week, Sunday I think.
All base specs but the wireless card.
Mine is currently being built/burned in/molested by fellow nerds.

I'm rather excited, as before this I was a desktop enthusiast; with recent room constraints I've had to rethink my machines and found this one to be it.

Anyone have theirs in-hand yet?

[ElusiveNeutrino]

Elusive, glad to hear you've received the NP8180 already! Let us know how it treats you.

Haven't got it yet :( Since it's shipping to an APO overseas it might take as long as 6 weeks.

[SmogHog]

Clevo P18xHM/Sager NP8180 Service Manual

http://www.mediafire.com/?745ehh7f9yd0zsj

[m3usv0x]

This is day two of ownership, and I have to say I love this beautiful notebook.

My list of complaints is much shorter than my list of positives.

So:
The trackpad is flat with the palm rest, and when I go off the pad I have no tactile feedback.
My touch volume slider doesn't go to zero, but instead sticks a few bars above. Maybe this was intentional, as the low is very low, and the mute is right next door.
Nothing reads the GPU fan speed correctly, as they seem to be pegged at 100%. If that's the case, I don't mind; fans are cheaper than new CPUs or GPUs. As for the "silent mode", it is silent, still no difference in fan speed (according to readouts, not reality).
Touch buttons are...meh. Good thing I don't use them alot.
Keyboard is too far right, takes some getting used to. Numeric pad keys are hard to use.
Fingerprints.

Not a complaint. The light in the back, goes from white to red, and I can't tell what the switch is.

Otherwise, bloody sweet. I love this thing.

[m3usv0x]

I don't know if this was intentional, but does anyone notice that the 'rear' speakers are coming out of the soundbar in the front where the center channel is located, and the 'front' are coming from under the palm rest?
Maybe it doesn't matter much because positional audio isn't really possible when all the sounds are coming from almost the same place, but logically this doesn't seem right; shouldn't the center and front come from the same area?

[q155]

can any one tell me approximately how long does your battery last under light use, like when web surfing/watch movie/word processing etc

thx

[m3usv0x]

can any one tell me approximately how long does your battery last under light use, like when web surfing/watch movie/word processing etc

thx

I have noticed that it's about an hour for me, and I wouldn't call it light per se; heavy internet usage and lots of network file transfers.
For such a beast I'm very surprised it lasts so long.

Now, I'm on the other forums as well, and I can't get an answer.
It's almost like no one owns this laptop. ;)
Again, does anyone notice the weird speaker placement, or do I have a defective unit?

[danny_christ]

ftp://usftp.clevo.com.tw/ALLBIOS/P18xHM/

there are some new bios.... any suggestion which one to install?


Name Size Date Modified

BIOS_103.zip 1.8 MB 11/3/11 11:38:00 PM
EC_03.zip 2.0 MB 10/3/11 11:33:00 PM
P18HM10204.zip 3.7 MB 10/20/11 2:51:00 AM

[asperi]

anyone know if the usb 3.0 and the express card are on different buses or on the same bus.? Thanks

[m3usv0x]

Had some problems with my fingerprint reader and some flakiness with the touch keys.
Just now all my games are showing artifacts and crashing before even loading. Thinking I got a bad motherboard or one of my video cards are done for.
I don't know what I'm going to do without a machine for weeks.
*sigh*

[Jagdfox]

I'm stuck in Afghanistan with nothing to do, so I'm desperately awaiting my NP8180 to get here. I won't be seeing it for awhile though. Put the order in two weeks ago, then due to my bank being slow it took one week to get the cash to Xotic, now the NP8180s are on backorder and estimated to arrive on Nov 30th. So after the 30th I'll have to wait for the thing to be customized then shipped out to my APO address. Guess I bought myself a Christmas present. =P

I already have the games I ordered for it pouring in and all I can do is drool at their cases...

Here's what I added to mine:

1xSager NP8180 / Clevo P180HM
- Display: 18.4” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Glare Type Screen (SKU - S1R602)
- Processor: 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-2860QM, 2.5-3.6GHz, (32nm, 8MB L3 cache) (SKU - S2R203)
- Graphics Video Card: SLi ENABLED DUAL (2) 1536MB PCI-Express nVIDIA GTX 560M's (3072MB Total) w/GDDR5 DX11 Video Cards (User Upgradeable) (SKU - S3R704)
- Ram: 12GB - DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (3 SODIMMS) (SKU - S4R559)
- Primary Hard Drive: 500GB (w/ 4GB SSD Memory) Seagate XT 7200RPM NCQ Hybrid (Serial-ATA II 300 - 32MB Cache) (SKU - S5R413)
- Optical Drive Bay: 6X Blu-Ray Burner/Reader / 8X DVDRW Super Multi Combo Drive (SKU - S7R556)
- Wireless Network: Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 (3x3) (SKU - S8R056)
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included

The only issue I think I'd have with this model is that it doesn't have aluminescent keyboard like most gaming laptops, but I'm sure I'll live.

[ElusiveNeutrino]

ftp://usftp.clevo.com.tw/ALLBIOS/P18xHM/

there are some new bios.... any suggestion which one to install?


Name Size Date Modified

BIOS_103.zip 1.8 MB 11/3/11 11:38:00 PM
EC_03.zip 2.0 MB 10/3/11 11:33:00 PM
P18HM10204.zip 3.7 MB 10/20/11 2:51:00 AM

I haven't tried it personally, but I hear it's not advised to use a Clevo BIOS for a Sager-branded notebook.

While the option to email your Clevo reseller and ask for the latest BIOS is considered now the official policy of obtaining the latest BIOS, it should be noted that Clevo is the only major notebook manufacturer that has such a policy.

IF YOU HAVE A FRIENDLY CLEVO RESELLER THAT CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH THE LATEST BIOS I STRONGLY RECOMMEND YOU TO GET THE BIOS FROM HIM RATHER THAN FROM THIS THREAD..

!!!In the attention of all Sager users!!!
For the Clevo models P170HM (Sager NP8170), P150HM (Sager NP8150/NP8130) and P170HM3 it is strongly recommended that you keep to a Sager branded BIOS, therefor just email Sager if you want a BIOS update, they will email you back with the latest version. The reason why this is recommended is because, while you can flash a vanilla Clevo BIOS on a Sager laptop, trying to flash back to a Sager BIOS WILL BRICK your laptop and you will have to pay to have it fix. If by any chance you have flashed a Clevo BIOS on one of the above Sager models, then you can only use Clevo BIOS from now on and you should never try to flash a Sager BIOS onto that laptop.

It doesn't mention NP8180 explicitly, but those look like their most recent models, and the NP8180 is the most recent model.

For the full discussion:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/416916-clevo-bios-thread.html

[ElusiveNeutrino]

Again, does anyone notice the weird speaker placement, or do I have a defective unit?

Just wanted to say the audio on this notebook is effin' amazing, despite what other people are saying. The problem is, it's 5.1, not 2.0 like you're probably used to if you're a notebook enthusiast.

When I first got this notebook, I too was severely disappointed by the audio, especially considering I'm a bit of an audiophile.

All you need to do is get an application to manage your audio. I use AC3 Filter, it's free and easy.

This is how it went down for me:

Opened up a movie/song in Media Player Classic Home Cinema

Palm to face 'cause audio volume sucked.

Installed AC3 Filter.

Another palm to face 'cause audio still sucked.

Opened up AC3 Filter settings while media was playing.

Had an epiphany.

I noticed when I was playing media, in AC3 Filter's settings, it was only using the speakers designated "Left" and "Right". This makes sense because a lot of the media you're likely to play is 2.0 audio (e.g. all your MP3's).

So, I fiddled around with it a bit. Obviously, the goal is to make it use all the speakers, but still give some sense of 3D feeling if you can call it that since it's pretty much all coming from the same place.

I'm an amateur, so this might not be the best solution, but it's what I was able to come up with quickly, and it settled the matter to my satisfaction.

This is the default
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/2913/defaultdl.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/442/defaultdl.png/)
This was my first attempt at a solution, however for a 2.0 source, is still unsatisfactory
http://img805.imageshack.us/img805/6332/solution1.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/805/solution1.png/)
This was what I settled on
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/750/mysolution.png (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/442/mysolution.png/)
Go ahead, give it a try. Despite the fact that I'm an amateur, I did put some thought into it. For example, it's a Markovian matrix. Yeah... bet you didn't think you'd see that outside of your Linear Algebra class... me either. To be honest I probably misused it, but the word did jump to my tongue after I decided that each row ought to sum to 1. It does sound damn good, though. The resulting sound from the speakers that is, not the word "Markovian."

Make sure you configure your speakers in Windows to use all the speakers first:
Right-click speakers icon on toolbar
Playback Devices
Speakers
Configure
5.1 Surround

Before you ask, I could not find the specifications of the speakers. Best leave it at no full-range speakers. If anyone here has any information regarding the speakers capabilities, I could definitely make use of it.

Also, when using AC3 Filter in this way, probably a good idea to disable THX's TruAudio.

I know this isn't an end-all solution. I'm still working on either making all applications use AC3 Filter, or finding a solution that can do that. Anyone who knows more on this subject I'd appreciate some input.

This computer is the first time I've owned a Blu-Ray player and to commemorate that, I went out and bought Star Wars IV-VI on BD. Because that was a 5.1 source, I decided best not use AC3 Filter, and simply used PowerDVD's 5.1 solution with THX TruAudio. THX was designed for Star Wars VI anyways, right? At any rate, it sounded phenomenal.

You'll find if you mess around with AC3 Filter for your mp3s or whatever, the P180HM's speakers are outstanding and can be very loud.

EDIT: for those of you not satisfied with what channel comes out of what speaker, this is a solution for you as well. Just swap them in the matrix and you're done.

[ElusiveNeutrino]

anyone know if the usb 3.0 and the express card are on different buses or on the same bus.? Thanks

Same bus I imagine. I understand the express card slot doesn't show up in some software.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo-reviews-owners-lounges/611401-official-sager-np8180-clevo-p180hm-owners-lounge-29.html

[Jagdfox]

*Update*

560

Really want my NP8180...

[JP@XoticPC]

*Update*

560

Really want my NP8180...

I can't believe that happened! What the heck USPS???

Anyway I think you probably got the new order submission I just put through. Let me know if you need anything else!

[Jagdfox]

I can't believe that happened! What the heck USPS???

Anyway I think you probably got the new order submission I just put through. Let me know if you need anything else!


Heheh, yeah. USPS is pretty bad.

Sales worked on getting me a new one sent asap, had to opt for the Intell ultimate-n 6300 instead of the killer wireless-n 1103 due to backorder issues though which bummed me out a little.

I should be seeing it in 2 weeks or less hopefully.

To the random guy who recieved my original laptop. Merry Christmas I guess. =P

[Jagdfox]

Finally got it!

Thing is a giant monster and looks gorgeous. I haven't had a chance to enjoy it yet since I spent the whole morning at work today installing windows and setting up the drivers for all the stuff this thing is packed with.

Having a problem installng the blu-tooth drivers, but I'll figure that out later. The keyboard is comfortable (a shame it doesn't have backlight).
I love everything about this laptop.

The only things I would say I have a tiny beef with is the lack of backlight for the keyboard and the glossy surfaces on the top and around the keyboard can scratch very easily (not a problem if you have a good carrying case and are careful with it), but thats a double edged sword. It may scratch easy, but it still looks very nice.

Going to further test its performance tonight after I'm off work.

[richardsharpe]

Finally got it!

Thing is a giant monster and looks gorgeous. I haven't had a chance to enjoy it yet since I spent the whole morning at work today installing windows and setting up the drivers for all the stuff this thing is packed with.

Having a problem installng the blu-tooth drivers, but I'll figure that out later. The keyboard is comfortable (a shame it doesn't have backlight).
I love everything about this laptop.

The only things I would say I have a tiny beef with is the lack of backlight for the keyboard and the glossy surfaces on the top and around the keyboard can scratch very easily (not a problem if you have a good carrying case and are careful with it), but thats a double edged sword. It may scratch easy, but it still looks very nice.

Going to further test its performance tonight after I'm off work.


The new Sager Models will have BL keys, but for now www.myglowkeys.com (http://www.myglowkeys.com) could be for you.

[Jagdfox]

The new Sager Models will have BL keys, but for now www.myglowkeys.com (http://www.myglowkeys.com) could be for you.


Oh, thank you. I'll have to look into that.

[Dunkles666]

Hey guys, I just found this laptop and I fell in love with it!
am a desktop guy, but I need to upgrade AND I need mobility..so I am thinking about getting one of these bad boys..

since am only used to customize desktops not laptops, I am wondering about upgrade potential,
what exactly can I upgrade after I buy? which parts I get stuck with after mine is already build? so I can configure those to a high enough standard without burning too much cash.. I'll mainly use it as desktop replacement to use 3ds max, photoshop and occasional gaming!

since it has 3 ram slots, can I install 3X8 gb ram chips for 24 gb later?

which part do you guys suggest spending the most $$ on?

and is it possible to upgrade to "big foot" wireless after I bought mine with default stock wireless adapter?

Thank you for your time guys..
Happy holidays :)

[ElusiveNeutrino]

Hey guys, I just found this laptop and I fell in love with it!
am a desktop guy, but I need to upgrade AND I need mobility..so I am thinking about getting one of these bad boys..

since am only used to customize desktops not laptops, I am wondering about upgrade potential,
what exactly can I upgrade after I buy? which parts I get stuck with after mine is already build? so I can configure those to a high enough standard without burning too much cash.. I'll mainly use it as desktop replacement to use 3ds max, photoshop and occasional gaming!

since it has 3 ram slots, can I install 3X8 gb ram chips for 24 gb later?

which part do you guys suggest spending the most $$ on?

and is it possible to upgrade to "big foot" wireless after I bought mine with default stock wireless adapter?

Thank you for your time guys..
Happy holidays :)

CPU, GPU and optical disc drive are usually a pain in the ass to upgrade aftermarket.

In my experience, you're not going to upgrade a notebook CPU without taking it to a pro and spending more than the notebook's worth. I haven't looked in to that matter in a long while though, and I understand notebook manufacturers are moving towards more modular designs. If I remember correctly, NewEgg was even selling boxed Santa Rosa CPUs off and on.

Notebook GPUs have been fairly standardized for quite some time. I imagine swapping video cards on a notebook would be a fairly straightforward home job, especially if you've built your own desktop in the past. The only trouble with this is it's almost impossible to find GPUs sold on their own. There's a couple sites out there but their selections are poor, and, overpriced at best. If you're looking for strong graphics performance towards the end of your notebook's life.

I'd recommend getting the best card you can and a nice long warranty. It'll be a lot more money up front but it's your best bet for futureproofing your graphics. I'd get with an XoticPC sales rep and discuss future GPU upgrade options and how much it would cost for a couple of mid-range GPUs (this notebook doesn't offer a great TDP range, but forgivab;e considering SLI).

In the past I've looked for slimline BluRay drives for a notebook and couldn't find one to save my life. This was a while back and they might be easier to come by these days but I'd guess it's still just as hard as GPUs. I didn't want to deal with that so when I ordered mine I just splurged on the BD burner.

Just about everything else on a notebook is easy to find and readily upgradable.