Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by jimmykvt

[User Review] ILLEGEAR R-11

jimmykvt — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 15:52:53 +0800

Size comparison to Acer Aspire V3-471G (Acer 14 inch laptop)

[addedon]January 4, 2013, 3:55 pm[/addedon]Good thing about this laptop

- Compared to ultrabook (which get rid of many of the ports), I find this illegear R-11 (Clevo W110ER) has all the ports that I need and the area where the ports are located is just nice. You got 2 USB 3.0 ports, 1 USB 2.0 port (for power off mode charging your handphone perhaps), VGA port (to connect to projector to conduct presentation), HDMI port, headphone jack and microphone jack.

- First of all, do not compare this to an ultrabook as ultrabook is meant to sacrifice performance (at least gaming performance) for portability where probably you don't get any fans or vent on the ultrabook. Believe me, you won't be able to find much choices for laptop with this size (11.6 inch). Perfect for bringing it around while able to enjoy some gaming.

- Customizable, that is why I got the matte screen.

Bad part (Like I said, I'm quite genuine when I'm giving review)

- Small right shift key (I think I need some time to get used to it XD). Suppose the laptop still have more space to accomodate the keyboard so that the buttons won't need to be shrinked that much. Look at the 12 inch Thinkpad and Alienware M11X, you will know what I mean.

- No backlit keyboard (Well, might be something particular to someone but to me, size of the laptop still comes first)

Something which I personally don't consider it as bad feature
- Plain design. I think for business traveller like me who doesn't want to seek attention, this is a pronton running on ferrari engine.

That's all folks. Hopefully you have an idea how small this laptop is.
Personally and overall I'm quite satisfied with the laptop because it offers both portability and gaming capability

[User Review] Sager NP8170-S1

jimmykvt — Fri, 27 May 2011 00:13:16 +0800

Hello guys. It has been a month since I got my Sager NP8170-S1 (it's also known as Clevo P170HM). For those of you who saw laptops sold by Malibal, they are actually belonged to Sager/Clevo, they are the same, just Malibal rebrand to become theirs, specs are all the same. This thread is going to be a very completed guide on why I choose Sager over the other gaming laptop brands and how I go about getting it as well as my advices. hLet's take a look at the specs I have over here:

Technical Specifications:
CPU: Intel Core i7-2720QM 2.2 GHz with 6MB L3 Cache
RAM: 2x 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 So-DIMM RAM (4 SoDIMM slots, configurable up to 16GB with 2 SoDIMM slots capable of running 1600MHz SoDIMMs, all slots support dual channel configuration)
LCD: 17.3" (16:9) Full HD (1920x1080) LED-Backlit Display with Super Clear Glare Type Screen
GPU: ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD6970 2048MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11
HDD: 2 x 500GB 7200rpm
6X Blue-Ray Read/8X DVDRW Super Multi Combo Drive
2.1 Sound System with Earphone/Microphone/S/DPIF for 5.1 and 7.1 Audio System/Line-In jacks with THX TruStudio Pro
2 USB 3.0 ports
2 USB 2.0 ports
1 IEEE1394/Firewire port
1 RJ-45 LAN port (10/100/1000MBps)
1 Intel® Advanced-N 6230 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module + Bluetooth
1 eSATA port
1 HDMI port
1 DVI-I port
2.0 Megapixel Webcam
2 years Sager warranty + 3 years XoticPC warranty

How much I paid for this laptop?

Wire Transfer at bank: SGD 30 (bank charge) + USD 9 (fixed agent bank charge) = approx. RM 100
Note: If you pay in Malaysia, the bank charge should be RM 30 only
Laptop: USD 2,093 (Discount 3% because paid by Wire Transfer) = USD 2,030.21 = approx. RM 6,192.14
Shipping Fee: USD 223 (Discount 3% because paid by Wire Transfer) = USD 216.31 = approx. RM 659.75
Total paid: RM 100 + RM 6,192.14 + RM 659.75 = RM 6951.89

My comment on the amount I paid as compared to purchase from other resellers

So far I'm quite happy with my purchase. Without concerning about the exterior of the laptop, my laptop can perform equally as the Alienware M17X-R3 but with a cheaper price. They have very similar specs and the same GPU. Probably the only hardware difference is the 3.0 megapixel webcam in M17X-R3.

As for the reseller, XoticPC (U.S. reseller) charges high shipping fee but it has
- a forum with huge community (mainly buyers).
- a good website and wide range of OEM laptops
- informative purchase info and warranty info

However, I would suggest you guys to take a look at the other U.S. resellers like LPC Digital, Powernotebook and RJTech, heard that they offer lower shipping cost. If you want to purchase from local resellers for warranty concern, you can go to Mucro website to check it out. Mucro is located in Singapore but they have a service partner in KL, so warranty coverage will be better than what I had done by purchasing from U.S. reseller. Or you can buy from Prince J who is a lowyat forum member. Bear in mind that if it is a motherboard fault, your laptop will still probably be sent back to U.S. for warranty claim and you need to bear the shipping cost. However, minor issue like RAM, HDD, CPU or GPU will most probably be fixed by your local reseller without the need of sending the whole laptop back to U.S.

List of Resellers
XoticPC: http://www.xoticpc.com
Powernotebooks: http://www.powernotebooks.com
LPC Digital: http://www.lpc-digital.com
RJ Tech: http://www.rjtech.com/
Mucro: http://www.mucro.asia

Sager thread in Lowyat forum: http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1882523 (Feel free to ask questions there, you will get answers there on anything related to Sager)

Any import duty/tax when my laptop entering Malaysia?

Answer is NO. There is no import duty/tax for importing laptop/PC into Malaysia. I just paid what I had mentioned above (RM 6951.89), nothing else.

Pictures

» Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «

Ordering process and how long did it take for me to receive it?

Check post #9
Link: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?act=ST&f...t=1894260&st=8#

Performance Review

Check post #10

How did I know Sager and chose it at the end?[/size]

In fact, two months ago before I choose Sager, I did consider getting Alienware M15X until I saw Asus G53SW-A1 and I did some comparison with the following tech specs:

Comparison of Dell M15X-R2 and Asus G53SW-A1

Dell Alienware m15x (Price: RM 6,832.00 - RM 478.24 [discount 7%] = RM 6,353.76)
LCD Display: 15.6" inch WideHD WLED (res: 1920x1080) Display Integrated 2.0 mega pixel web cam
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-740M Processor (1st generation processor)
Graphics Card: nVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M w/1.5GB GDDR5
Memory: 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Hard Disk: 500GB 7200RPM SATA
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Optical Drive: Slot Load 8X DVD+/-RW Drive with DVD+R double layer write capability
Dell Warranty: 2-year Premier Service with 1-year CompleteCover

Asus G53SW-A1 (Price: approx.RM 5,020)
LCD Display: 15.6” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Glare Type Screen integrated with 2.0 mega pixel web cam
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-2630QM 2.0 GHz (2nd generation processor)
Graphics Card: nVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M w/1.5GB GDDR5
Memory: 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (4 X 2GB)
Hard Disk: 500GB 7200RPM SATA
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Optical Drive: Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti 8X DVDRW Drive
Asus Warranty: 2 Year ASUS GLOBAL Warranty 24/7 Support

The very first impression I had in mind was that, I would go for the cheaper Asus due to the fact that Asus has a Sandy Bridge (2nd gen i7 processor). Don't ask me why M15X had GTX 460M two months ago while they only give AMD HD5850M now, you can find out for yourself :]

The very moment when I was so determined that I'm going to take Asus and thought of getting a bigger screen, so that should be Asus G73SW-A1. But, you know, I have a very bad memory of maintaining my Dell Inspiron 1420, I wanted to clean the fan in it and ended up I had to DISASSEMBLE THE WHOLE LAPTOP JUST TO CLEAN THE FAN!!! So, I want to make sure that Asus is not going to give me that headache, but too bad Asus G73SW-A1 is not easy to maintain, if I want to maintain the laptop myself and clean the fans in it, it will be the same experience as how I disassemble my Dell Inspiron 1420. Please take a look at the youtube video on disassembling Asus G73SW-A1, you will be surprised that how much you need to disassemble, then only you can reach the fans. So, my impression is...cleaning Asus G73SW-A1 is not easy! By the way, below was the G73SW-A1 specs.

Asus G73SW-A1 (Price: approx. RM 6259.20)
LCD Display: 17.3” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Glare Type Screen integrated with 2.0 mega pixel web cam
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-2630QM 2.0 GHz (2nd generation processor)
Graphics Card: nVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M w/1.5GB GDDR5
Memory: 8GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (4 X 2GB)
Hard Disk: 1TB (500GB x 2) 7200 RPM 32MB Hybrid Drive 4GB SSD Momentus XT
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Optical Drive: Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti 8X DVDRW Drive
Asus Warranty: 2 Year ASUS GLOBAL Warranty 24/7 Support

I was in a dilemma whether I should go for the more expensive M15X-R2 with a 1st generation i7 processor or Asus G73SW-A1 with a 2nd generation processor. Obviously, with almost the same price, I could choose to go for Asus G73SW-A1. Then, here comes Sager which I read it on notebookreview. Not many people know about Sager in Malaysia, but many people are discussing it about it on notebookreview and label it as a gaming laptop. I had a look at Sager and saw it had a very plain outlook. Honestly speaking, it didn't look appealing to me at first and warranty was an issue. But after looking the level of customization that we are allowed to do so and easy to access to every laptop parts and even the fans, so cleaning the fans and maintaining the laptop would be very easy! So, I'm kinda determined now because I know even after the warranty expired, a laptop is still a laptop, it still can be used for various purpose like surfing internet, watching movies, typing documents or whatsoever after 3 to 5 years, I want it to be easily maintainable, so I choose Sager.

How easy it is to maintain Sager laptop as compared to Asus G73SW-A1

» Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «

[addedon]May 27, 2011, 12:15 am[/addedon]
Other Sager laptop models that I would recommend with an approximate price range which might fit into your budget

All the 3 laptop models below come with 2 fans in it, one for GPU and one for CPU. And the laptop parts and fans are easily accessible which makes it easier to be cleaned and maintained. All of them have same equal number and types of ports.

» Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «

Dreamy Journey Online (Taiwan/HK)

jimmykvt — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:46:39 +0800

Websites:

http://dj.x-legend.com.tw/ (Taiwan server) <--- CANNOT PLAY TAIWAN SERVER, THERE IS IP BLOCK

http://dj.gamecyber.net/ (Hong Kong server)

Dreamy Journey Online is developed by EasyFun Entertainment in Taiwan.

The game currently is ONLY available in Chinese, there is no news about English version of this game.

If you like Fiesta Online, I suppose this game looks a bit like Fiesta Online, at least I feel that in term of graphics, Dreamy Journey Online is better.

You will start off with a fairy in game, and each fairy only has one type of forging ability, let's say forging swords.

So, later in game, you will get another two fairies which help you to forge armors and maybe shield as well.

Fairies are important companions in game, you can let it mine for minerals, or harvest some woods/herbs etc.

There are also quests and even guild quests for you to spend your time with your guildies.

The game is very smooth, you won't feel lag in game because the server is in Taiwan/Hong Kong which is nearer to Malaysia as compared to those online games hosted in U.S/Europe.

Here are some videos:

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mVYBgpABm8k&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mVYBgpABm8k&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xz-aJidpPBs&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xz-aJidpPBs&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hpSYAPja_3Y&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hpSYAPja_3Y&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

YS Online: The Call of Solum

jimmykvt — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 23:05:37 +0800

YS series is a popular offline ARPG developed by Falcom, Japan.

Not too sure how good is this game gonna be in an online version.

However, the graphics looks pretty splendid. Those of you who are playing Florensia Online, you might find YS Online's graphics is similar to Florensia's

Currently, the game is available in english in Europe, however, there is an IP block and sad to say that Malaysia is not in the 'ALLOWED' list to play this game. Not even North America is in the list, maybe because there will be an NA version in future.
There is a Taiwan version, but the game is not even in closed beta stage, only the site is up, but I guess it is just a matter of time for the chinese community to enjoy this game.

Okay, let's get to see some screenshots and videos.

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/61zBkJZ0_DM&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/61zBkJZ0_DM&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IJjlxjVD-XU&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IJjlxjVD-XU&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FcP1BVZWaOU&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FcP1BVZWaOU&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/x86VaXeVip0&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/x86VaXeVip0&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
[/YOUTUBE]