NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Alienware Notebook Forums › Alienware Sentia, M11x and M14x › Requesting Sentia Owner's Advice~!
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Requesting Sentia Owner's Advice~!

post #1 of 39
2/29/04 at 7:10pm
Thread Starter 
I am currently a high school student that is planning on attending college in fall, 5 or so months away. I always knew I would need a laptop and started saving early and now is the time when I start to narrow down my choices. A while back I was interested in the Toshiba P15 models, then the bulkiness turned me off. The Toshiba ZT3010 models inspired me until I learned about Alienware. I am now considering to get the Alienware Sentia to bring to college.

I am not a hardcore gamer, but do play a little and I also like to edit video on the computer. The solid design, compactness and reliability attracted me to the sentia.

I understand that the Dothan will be coming out this year (unless they delay again), but I think it may be a little late for me.

I am currently looking at the enthusiast version of the Sentia at--
P-M 1.6 ghz 528 mb ram, 60 gb 7200 HD, DvD-CDRW, XP-pro
My buget is around $2000-2500.

So now to my question, request-
I would like to know what current Sentia owners would do differently or buy something extra to enhance their product. I am greatly appreciative to any advice! Thank you.
Reply
Reply
post #2 of 39
2/29/04 at 8:23pm
First- the sentia is great for college, cuz thin and light and battery time
Second- the sentia wont be too good for vid editing w/ the intel gfx card

third- alienware overcharges for ram, get 256, and buy other 256 cheaper but i recomend the full gig. I got a gig of High Performance DDR 400 for 100$usd less than alienware charges for avg ddr266.
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 39
2/29/04 at 8:47pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by archalien
First- the sentia is great for college, cuz thin and light and battery time
Second- the sentia wont be too good for vid editing w/ the intel gfx card
Thanks for your input, the intel GFX video card is the one attribute I really hate and heard a lot of grumbling from other users on this forum. Do we know if AW is planning on changing this?
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 39
2/29/04 at 10:14pm
No...they've designed the Sentia for soft core gamers that mostly use the laptop for business apps. The Area51m is their ONLY gaming laptop offering as of now.

Most Sentia owners I've spoken with love their gaming ability. They're not looking for UT2k at 100FPS. More like CS or some Q3.

-Craig
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 39
2/29/04 at 11:07pm
I disagree w/ craig, it may take a while but companies like voodoo, hp, and dell all offer centrino based platforms with the latest dx9 gfx cards, alienware is playing catchup- but they will have one too, at least if they want to stay competitive.

and dont get me wrong the intel gfx card isnt as bad as peeps say it is, its just not ideal for heavy vid editing as u suggested. for the price its a solid performer as it costs about 1k more from the other companies to combine a centrino w/ a dx9 gfx card.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 39
2/29/04 at 11:26pm
I'm not saying they shouldn't have a Mobile CPU solution.

I'm merely stating the fact...they do not have one.

I'm this close to buying a Voodoo M460 for just that reason. Don't for a second think I don't want a DX9 card with a Centrino processor for AW.

-Craig
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 39
2/29/04 at 11:50pm
The senita is a good choice ir ur looking into slime compact laptops, but look into dell and other compaines as well. If your looking for sleek there are millions of options, dont just get set on one company, shop around u can get what you just asked for much less than 2000. Check out dell, sager, hp
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 39
3/1/04 at 1:22am
I've had my Sentia for a few days now. I went with the Extreme model, plus a few options. So far I really like it. I ordered an extra Primary Battery, and I get approximatly 3.5 hours on each of them. As for the video, I really wouldn't know. If you're taking a desktop computer to college I would just use that. I am not into gaming at all, so I didn't need the Area51m. I like the Intel graphics card. It does everything I need it do(dual monitors, TV out, etc..). I would recommend purchasing a mouse also, sometimes using the touchpad for long periods of time can get annoying. If you have any other questions please PM me and I'll help you out the best I can. Here is my setup.

Reply
Reply
post #9 of 39
3/1/04 at 2:20am
The ODM Uniwill has quite a few configurations in their products list. The question of another video card is asked enough that I am sure AW will consider it.
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 39
3/1/04 at 2:24am
too bad they said 1000 minimum for the upgrade cuz of board switch and new case most likely
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 39
3/1/04 at 2:22pm
If you really want a slim portable notebook for under 1200 you can just goto bestbuy and get something, that will last you a while. You have to shop around alot if your going to buy a laptop. Check out what people have to say about it, get all the possible information you can get.

The graphics on the senita are not great, it will run cs okay, but you dont stand a chance very well with q3. You will get crushed with your fps rates.

All im going to say if you want an alienware your going to get an alienware.
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 39
3/1/04 at 2:41pm
Qball,

That is just wrong...I've watched Sentias get Q3 framerates that are WAY more than playable. Not only that but it will play DX9 games (Call of Duty, ect) just fine with some of the graphics turned down.

Just thought you might want to know that.

-Craig
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 39
3/1/04 at 3:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by archalien
I disagree w/ craig, it may take a while but companies like voodoo, hp, and dell all offer centrino based platforms with the latest dx9 gfx cards, alienware is playing catchup- but they will have one too, at least if they want to stay competitive.

and dont get me wrong the intel gfx card isnt as bad as peeps say it is, its just not ideal for heavy vid editing as u suggested. for the price its a solid performer as it costs about 1k more from the other companies to combine a centrino w/ a dx9 gfx card.
The sentia is taking advantage of the centrino's integrated gfx solution and hence provides quite a bit of battery life compared to using external gfx cards. I too wish it was faster, but they are not behind by mobility/battery life standards.
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 39
3/1/04 at 4:15pm
Hi Warlock,

Getting a sentia is a very good choice under that budget. It plays most games and when it comes video editing, it depends on wht u r running. If you wanna go really hard core, u better off getting an Apple.

When u get the ram make sure u getting one stick caz u wont have to replace both dimms later when u r upgrading.

Hope this helps out.

Reply
Reply
post #15 of 39
3/1/04 at 4:19pm
Q3 was in my Sentia when I received it. Obviously left over from the tests performed on my computer before it was shipped.
Reply
Reply
post #16 of 39
3/1/04 at 4:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by manu
Hi Warlock,

Getting a sentia is a very good choice under that budget. It plays most games and when it comes video editing, it depends on wht u r running. If you wanna go really hard core, u better off getting an Apple.

When u get the ram make sure u getting one stick caz u wont have to replace both dimms later when u r upgrading.

Hope this helps out.
Errr...

He may want to play a game every now and again. Apple would not fit the bill there my friend.

-Craig
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 39
3/1/04 at 5:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dugbug
The sentia is taking advantage of the centrino's integrated gfx solution and hence provides quite a bit of battery life compared to using external gfx cards. I too wish it was faster, but they are not behind by mobility/battery life standards.
sorry my friend, the m460 by voodoo has every bit of mobility and battery life if not more. Its centrino w/ a G wireless card an ati 9600 and a screen thats an inch larger and it gets every bit of the 4 hours of battery life.
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 39
3/1/04 at 6:24pm
I would have probably bought the Voodoo but being in the UK there would be zero warranty and import cost etc would be too high.
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 39
3/1/04 at 6:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by archalien
sorry my friend, the m460 by voodoo has every bit of mobility and battery life if not more. Its centrino w/ a G wireless card an ati 9600 and a screen thats an inch larger and it gets every bit of the 4 hours of battery life.
It is not a centrino laptop. To be labeled Centrino it must have:

Pentium-M (which it has)
An 855 chip (it does not have)
Intel wireless miniPC (it does not have, btw intel has a G as well)

The centrino advantage (other than the wireless bit) is superior battery performance. The voodo pc you speced out is nice, but it will not hold up to your sentia on a long flight cross-country doing the same apps.

This link will discuss the relationship between the Pentium-M and the 855:
http://www.anandtech.com/mobile/showdoc.html?i=1800&p=9
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 39
3/1/04 at 7:19pm
Thread Starter 
Geez, I never expected so many replies. I am very grateful for everyones input.

When I said I would do video editing, I mean once in a while, take my dv camera and edit some home movies, nothing hardcore. If I wanted to really edit, i'd get a desktop.

Through out the past few years when I bought things for myself, I soon figured out that quality does not come cheap. Therefore, I could easily go out and a get a piece of junk for $1200. I know laptops become outdated quickly, but I am just looking for 2-2.5 years at the max. From what I understand, the Alienware brand is top of the line when it comes to sustainability and as well as a few other companies.

Gaming is not my top priority. What is, is the ability for the machine to sustain a solid life.

Once again, I look forward to more replies and thank you in advance.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Alienware Sentia, M11x and M14x
NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Alienware Notebook Forums › Alienware Sentia, M11x and M14x › Requesting Sentia Owner's Advice~!