The Highest-End Notebooks, 2009
by Jarred Walton on October 14, 2009 3:10 AM ESTClevo W870CU Specifications
Clevo makes the base notebook chassis for many companies, but this particular sample comes directly from the manufacturer -- courtesy of Intel. The W870CU is the first notebook to hit the market that utilizes the mobile variant of the Core i7 processors. That means you can get quad-core plus Hyper-Threading without resorting to the extreme cooling measures of the D900F. The result is that the W870CU weighs several pounds less than the D900F and M980NU. At the same time, it also offers less performance, and it typically costs less. AVADirect and others allow extensive customizations for the W870CU, and here are the common options.
| Clevo W870CU Specifications | |
| Processor | Core i7-720QM (4x1.6GHz+HTT, 45nm, 6MB L3, 2.5GT/s QPI, 45W) Core i7-820QM (4x1.73GHz+HTT, 45nm, 8MB L3, 2.5GT/s QPI, 45W) Core i7-920XM (4x2.0GHz+HTT, 45nm, 8MB L3, 2.5GT/s QPI, 55W) |
| Chipset | Intel PM55 |
| Memory | 2x1024MB DDR3-1066 to 2x4096MB DDR3-1333 |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280M 1GB GDDR3 |
| Display | 17.3" HD+ (1600x900) or 1080p (1920x1080) |
| Hard Drive | Up to two HDDs/SSDs with optional RAID 0/1 |
| Optical Drive | 8x DVDR SuperMulti Blu-ray Reader/DVDRW Combo Blu-ray Recorder/DVDRW |
| Networking | Realtek Gigabit Ethernet (RTL8168/8111 PCI-E) Intel Wifi Link 5300 AGN WiFi Bluetooth v2.1+EDR 56K Modem |
| Audio | 6-Channel Realtek ALC888 HD Audio (4 stereo speakers with four audio jacks+digital out) |
| Battery/Adapter | 4-cell, 11.1V, 3800mAh, 42.18Wh 120W Power Brick |
| Front Side | None |
| Left Side | Optical Drive 1 x USB 2.0 1 x Mini FireWire MS/MS Pro/SD/MMC reader Optional TV Tuner Input 56K Modem |
| Right Side | 4 x Audio/Microphone jacks 1 x USB 2.0 ExpressCard/54 1 x eSATA Dual-Link DVI Kensington Lock |
| Back Side | 2 x Heat Exhaust HDMI Power Adapter 2 x USB 2.0 Gigabit Ethernet |
| Operating System | Windows Vista or Windows 7 |
| Dimensions | 16.22" x 10.98" x 1.77-2.11" (WxDxH) |
| Weight | 8.8 lbs (with 4-cell battery) |
| Extras | 2.0MP Webcam 98-Key Keyboard with 10-Key 3 touch-sensitive multimedia keys Optional Fingerprint Scanner Multitouch Touchpad |
| Warranty | 1-year standard Warranty 2-year and 3-year extended warranties available |
| Price | Starting at ~$2150 online. Tested configuration priced at ~$3325. |
At present, there are only three mobile Core i7 processors. The slowest i7-720QM comes clocked at 1.6 GHz with single-core Turbo mode boosting clock speed up to 2.8 GHz. It's priced at $364, but the lower clock speeds may not be enough for some users. The i7-720QM also comes with 6MB of L3 cache instead of 8MB. The midrange i7-820QM runs at 1.73 GHz with single-core Turbo mode running at up to 3.06 GHz. That's going to be the sweet spot for most users, as the CPU cost of $546 is half of the $1054 Extreme Core i7-920XM, which runs at 2.0 GHz and has a single-core Turbo mode of 3.2 GHz.
Intel is the only company making QPI chipsets, so there's no getting around the requirement of the PM55. This is similar to the desktop P55, with 16 integrated PCI-E lanes that can be split into dual x8 lanes. Down the road, we will likely see SLI notebook variants, but for the time being we are limited to single GPU solutions. Depending on the laptop vendor, you should be able to get a single GTX 280M, GTX 260M, or a Mobility Radeon HD 4870XT. The latter has an ETA of December 2009 at Eurocom, with prices likely to be around $100 higher than the GTX 280M.
We don't know how it will compare in terms of performance or power requirements to the 280M, but it would be nice if ATI could provide some mobile GPU competition. Unfortunately, unless and until ATI begins providing mobile reference drivers, we remain very hesitant to recommend any gaming laptop with an ATI graphics chip. This is something ATI used to provide several years ago, but the OEMs apparently didn't like end-users being able to download drivers that they hadn't "validated". Frankly, this is a mistake, especially when it comes to gaming laptops. Clevo and other notebook OEMs need to work with ATI to remedy this situation!
The W870CU comes with two SO-DIMM slots, so users should be able to configure notebooks with anything from 2x1GB up to 2x4GB of DDR3-1333 memory. Likewise, we would expect to see reasonable options for hard drives, SSDs, optical drives, and other peripherals. Eurocom and AVADirect both have W870CU models, with the primary difference being that Eurocom supports a third hard drive using the optical drive bay. Intel originally equipped the laptop we're testing with a single 80GB Intel SSD, but they also included Windows 7 instead of Windows Vista. We swapped in an OCZ vertex 120GB SSD for testing under Vista; we will provide a look at performance under Windows 7 in the near future. Obviously, the Intel SSD is going to be slightly faster than the OCZ vertex (depending on application), but 80GB or even 120GB of storage disappears rapidly when you start installing modern games. Empire: Total War for example is a 15GB installation, and the same goes for Windows Vista/7. One game and the operating system and you've already used up almost half of your expensive SSD! Thankfully, the chassis supports two hard drives so you can have an SSD along with a large capacity HDD.
The W870CU we received for testing came with an HD+ 1600x900 LCD, but it looks like most companies will be shipping a FullHD 1920x1080 panel. Obviously, we won't be able to tell you how the 1080p panel compares to the HD+ panel, but it shouldn't be any worse. What's that mean? Well, unlike the other two notebooks, the HD+ panel in the W870CU doesn't have the same relatively high contrast ratio. While the panel is definitely bright, we would prefer improvements in contrast as well.
The Clevo W870CU is a lower power solution than the M980NU or the D900F. Unfortunately, battery capacity is also lower with the result being that battery life isn't any better -- and is sometimes worse. Clevo apparently doesn't think most users purchasing desktop replacement systems are interested in more than one hour of battery life; we would disagree. The battery compartment is rather large and it should be possible to at least double the battery capacity, which would give you twice the battery life. At least then we would have an area where the W870CU is clearly better than the D900F and M980NU, outside of size and weight. Prices start at $500 less than either of the big brothers, but you're most likely looking at $2500 for a reasonably equipped system so this isn't going to be a budget conscious notebook no matter how you slice it.
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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.