iBuyPower Valkyrie CZ-17 Notebook Review: MSI and iBuyPower Tangle With Alienware

Conclusion: Not Pretty, But a Great Personality

iBuyPower is a company that you need to be paying attention to. They're slowly but steadily growing from being a boutique player into a mainstream player, and the Valkyrie CZ-17 is proof enough of that. It's true that at its core, the CZ-17 is a slightly modified MSI chassis, but keep in mind that way back when the Mobile Athlon 64 was launched, eMachines/Gateway was doing roughly the same thing by taking notebooks built by Arima and rebranding them. This is how it starts.

As for the CZ-17 itself, it continues to suffer from the same aesthetic issues that plague boutique notebooks. An overreliance on plastic and a lack of real regard for polish make these notebooks much less attractive to use, something companies like ASUS and Alienware can capitalize on by deploying similarly-equipped systems with much better-looking chassis designs. That said, though, the performance is there.

Where I think the CZ-17 excels and even exceeds the Alienware M17x is, frankly, in how comfortable it is to use. Alienware's time-honored design features a fairly comfortable keyboard, but the front lip of the notebook is full of hard edges that can dig into your wrists if you're not paying attention and I've found that it can be uncomfortable to use over time. That's a problem the CZ-17 simply doesn't have, nor does it have any of the issues associated with a glossy finish on the display. There's also the excellent tactile response of the keyboard in the CZ-17.

The ace in the hole for iBuyPower is the price tag. Our review configuration was $1,459, which is frankly exceptional for the graphics hardware alone, but the starting configuration is just $1,259 for a notebook featuring what's essentially last generation's fastest mobile GPU. That's a bulletproof deal that you just can't beat; comparable systems from NewEgg start at least $400 higher. Graphics hardware is the hardest thing in the world to maximize in a notebook and you have to get it right the first time; with the CZ-17, you're able to do so incredibly cheaply and leave yourself room later on to upgrade the storage subsystem if you're so inclined.

Ultimately however you feel about the way it looks, the CZ-17 is comfortable to use and a wicked deal for the performance you get. This is one of those notebooks you read hardware review sites to learn about; if you want a monster laptop for a low price, you're not going to be able to beat the iBuyPower Valkyrie CZ-17.