Custom Laptop Help (Clevo)

chrismscotland

chrismscotland

chrismscotland

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Looking for a little advice folks in my research on a new laptop I've decided that I'd be better with a custom built Clevo rather than paying extra for an Alienware and I've settled on the 17.3" chassis as there seems little difference in size between this and the 15" unit.

However I'm a bit puzzled on spec, obviously I will be able to upgrade parts in the unit myself later on and so I've settled for just a fast 1TB hard drive (or the Seagate Momentus XT 750GB) for now with 8GB of RAM and the base i7 CPU - (i7-3630QM 2.4 GHZ) and a Blu-Ray Drive.

I'm a bit puzzled though if I should go for the OCUK Limited Edition P170EM with the AMD 7970M card which would come out at £1184.95 specced like that and give me the option to add another HD/SSD myself later on.

Or to go for one with the Nvidia 680M (Vortex III) (albeit from a competitor), it seems that there are slightly better customisation options elsewhere (Matte/Glossy screens, Improved Thermal Paste, etc) but if I'm honest I'd probably rather buy from here.
 
From what I've read the 680M is more reliable but not significantly more powerful so I'd only choose that if the price wasn't too much more. The main drawback with the OCUK Clevos seems to be the lack of customisation for the screen. But if you're happy with the glossy screen (I assume that's what the OCUK ones have) then go for it. Unfortunately they were on offer last week, which made them more competitive price wise. I dunno if they're likely to come up in any daily deals (hint hint)
 
Get the 680m over the 7970m.

I recently purchased a 15" clevo with the 7970m and had nothing but problems. Albeit problems that could be ironed out with drivers in time to come, they soon added up and left me rather frustrated with my choice.

I returned my notebook and purchased the 680m instead. Received it back just before the Easter holiday and I must say that's possibly the best purchased I have ever made. Instantly games felt smoother, drivers felt more solid and the card has massive overclocking potential.

680M its worth the extra, trust me.
 
Proud owner of a p170em with 680m and such since august. But If I would choose a chassis today, I'd go for the p370em with an sli or crossfire setup...1 680m can run everything smooth, but not always on highest settings and maintaining 60fps.

the 680m and 7970m are basically as good, but the 680m can be overclocked up to 50% which is insane. (will need a descent cooling pad to keep temps descent though). Never had a single issue with the 680m
 
From what i read
The Nvidia optimus technology works well with intel cpu
But on amd side the HD7970m has driver difficulty in doing so
You can get over it by forcing graphics on dedicated graphic card
But that has a big impact on battery life when you are on the move
 
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