The Highest-End Notebooks, 2009
by Jarred Walton on October 14, 2009 3:10 AM ESTTest Setup
We've already looked at performance on these notebooks, but this time we're going to include our complete benchmark results. Obviously, SSDs -- or the lack thereof -- will affect performance in certain applications. Don't let PCMark results fool you into thinking one system is substantially faster without accounting for the SSDs, because you can easily purchase any of these notebooks with one or two high-end SSDs if you so desire. Graphics and CPU performance on the other hand won't get any better than what we're showing today, at least for these models. Each one includes the fastest GPU and CPU available, with the possible exception of the M980NU where a faster dual-core processor could improve gaming performance by up to 20%. Needless to say, Core i7's Turbo modes negate such arguments, but the two Core i7 laptops only support single GPUs.
We will dispense with commentary on many of the benchmarks, as the charts should be self-explanatory. We will also include gaming results with and without SLI on the M980NU, just so you can see where the system is CPU limited. Here are the configurations of the laptops we are testing.
| Clevo W87CU Test System | |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-920XM (2.0GHz 55W TDP) (Quad-core + Hyper-Threading, 45nm, 4x256K L2, 8MB L3) |
| Memory | 2x2048MB PC3-10700 @ DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 |
| Graphics | 1 x NVIDIA GTX 280M (Driver Version 186.81) |
| Display | 17.3" Glossy WXSGA+ (1600x900) |
| Hard Drive | OCZ Vertex 120GB SSD |
| Optical Drive | 8x SATA DVDR |
| Battery | 6-cell, 11.1V, 3800mAh, 42.18Wh |
| Operating System | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit |
| Eurocom M98NU XCaliber Test System | |
| Processor | Intel Core 2 QX9300 (2.53GHz, 45W TDP) (Quad-core, 45nm, 2x6MB Shared L2) |
| Memory | 2x2048MB PC3-10700 @ DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 |
| Graphics | 2 x NVIDIA GTX 280M (Driver Version 186.03 SLI/186.81 No SLI) |
| Display | 18.4" Glossy 1080p (1920x1080) |
| Hard Drive | Seagate 500GB 16MB 7200RPM (Momentus 7200.4 ST9500420ASG) |
| Optical Drive | 8x SATA DVDR/BD-ROM |
| Battery | 9-cell, 14.8V, 4650mAh, 68.82Wh |
| Operating System | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit |
| AVADirect Clevo D900F Test System | |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-975 (3.33GHz, 130W TDP) (Quad-core + Hyper-Threading, 45nm, 4x256K L2, 8MB L3) |
| Memory | 3x2048MB PC3-8500 @ DDR3-1066 7-7-7-20 |
| Graphics | 1 x NVIDIA GTX 280M (Driver Version 186.81) |
| Display | 17.0" Glossy WUXGA (1920x1200) |
| Hard Drive | 2 x OCZ Vertex 30GB SSDs in RAID 0 Seagate 500GB 16MB 7200RPM (Momentus 7200.4 ST9500420AS) |
| Optical Drive | 8x SATA DVDR |
| Battery | 12-cell, 14.4V, 6600mAh, 95.04Wh |
| Operating System | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit |
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7Enigma - Thursday, October 15, 2009 - link
Jarred,Ignore these people. They exist in a bubble that revolves around only what they perceive as useful....to THEM. For the rest of us, even though many of us will never need/want a system like this, it is enjoyable to read about how far (and how far left) they have come.
What's funny is some of these same people will ooh and ahh over the latest $600+ gpu or $1000+ cpu knowing they also will never buy one of these.
This is a tech site. The purpose is to review and discuss new technology, regardless of what mainstream appeal it has. If that was the case you should only be reviewing sub-$300 cpu/gpu and sub $500 monitors as that is what the vast majority of us purchase. While your at it, forget about hydravision, large capacity SSD's, 3D LCD's/goggles, etc.
Keep up the good work and try to ignore the trolls. That extra 10min you use to respond to a post like this could be better used GETTING SOME OC NUMBERS ON THE LATEST GPU! (hint...hint) :)
hybrid2d4x4 - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
I, for one, appreciate the review, even if the products are not relevant to me- I'm sure there are people out there that do want a high-end all-in-one/laptop. At any rate, I did want to chime in with a suggestion of what I'd like to see in upcoming mobile reviews: non-cookiecutter netbooks such as the ION-based ones (ex: HP Mini 311), or ones that stand out from the crowd by virtue of better screens (matte), battery life, passive/quiet cooling, etc. Basically, keep doing what you're already doing, as you've already had articles on the Asus 1005HA and CULV. Also, any word on the next-gen Atoms with the new chipset and IGP?mac2j - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
I understand the difficulty in getting samples of new high demand models.But if you want to know what a really useful comparison would be:
High-end Core i7 laptops (Envy 15, XPS16, M15x, MSI etc):
Aesthetics vs performance (business v multimedia v games) vs battery life vs extras vs cost
I'd be willing to bet that would be extremely useful for a lot of people and widely cited across the net.
Personally I ordered a Studio XPS 16 (820QM) almost a month ago and I'm still waiting for it so I'm sure it would take you a while to collect all the samples from the relevant companies... but it would be worth it IMO.
5150Joker - Saturday, November 7, 2009 - link
All the laptops you listed are junk. None of them can hold a candle to the Clevo W860CU and they aren't anymore aesthetically pleasing.HP Envy: overheating mac rip off that doesnt have an optical drive.
Dell SXPS 16: gets so hot you can cook on it while using it. Say goodbye to your sperm count.
Alienware m15x: competitor to the clevo series and fails. Overpriced, underperforming and poor quality control.
strikeback03 - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
Here's me posting my comment for the laptop makers to please offer better choices on LCDs. Its about time to replace my T43, am I really going to have to move from a matte IPS screen to something worse?mac2j - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
Why compare a bunch of notebooks that no one buys? The total 2009 sales for every notebook in this article will be in the thousands.How about comparing high end notebooks people are actually (trying to) buy.
HP Envy 15 vs Dell Studio XPS 16 vs Alienware M15x vs MSI Core i7s etc ....
The choice of systems and the timing of this article makes it a useless waste of space.
TheQuestian - Tuesday, December 8, 2009 - link
Irony.5150Joker - Saturday, November 7, 2009 - link
Your post along with several others here is a waste of space.GeorgeH - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
Super-CPU? Check.Super-GPU? Check.
Super-HDs? Check.
Super-RAM? Check.
Super-LCD? Wait, what?
The LCD situation on these laptops is ridiculous. The most important component in any laptop is the LCD screen, and the second is the chassis and keyboard - component specs come in a distant third.
As long as I have a choice I will never, ever own a laptop with a glossy screen and a native resolution less than 1920x1200 (for ~15" and up.) I don't care if a laptop has the fastest components ever, if you interact effectively with it you might as well be using a "regular" laptop. If you're using these for work, the few seconds you save using faster components to render and compile your projects will be lost many, many times over in human inefficiencies due to interface issues. If you're using them for gaming, you'll get awesome FPS and ability to use super high detail settings that'll be wasted on a dull, reflective screen.
It's crap like this that makes people switch to MacBook Pros. The components are lousy, the prices are lousy, and the company's policies are lousy, but you get a laptop that's a pleasure to own and interact with. Regardless of your feelings towards Apple, you have to admit they know how to build a laptop - as a complete piece of hardware the MBP is matched by only a handful of PC laptops (mostly "business class" models that the average consumer doesn't even know about), and surpassed by none.
warezme - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - link
Uh, hello??Macbook Pro's have glass glossy screens. You just contradicted your own statement. And for convenience and ease of use, Apple needs to master how its touchpad works and right clicking because it just doesn't work. But if you are going to give points to your system on aesthetics alone I suppose you will learn to live with it dude.