I'm working on a review for those who are considering this laptop, but here are some quick initial impressions.
1. This thing is HUGE, I owned a Dell Inspiron 9300, 17" desktop replacement machine and it looked tiny compared to the AR! Really, the size of the overall system seems to dwarf most other 17" laptops in it's class. I'm not refering to overall weight..rather I'm talking about the width and the height of the system when fully open.
2. The screen is very nice. I had the opportunity to compare it to an FE690 with Xbrite Hicolor and the FE was actually a smidgen briter. Also, the whites have a slight bit of the "sparkle, wax paper" effect that everybody is talking about. My screen in the 1400x900 variety and overall it's very good.
3. Noise: the system is very quiet, even running the system at full speed will not compromise your quiet time. Compared to my BX series, this thing is like a ninja in the night.
4. Benchies: I got about 3900 in 3dmark 05, and hit the 4000+ mark slightly overclocked. Games look beautiful when you crank Xbrite up to max.
5. Build quality: It's actally built pretty nice. The CDROM eject button to your left (right under the volume switch) is a very nice touch. No more trying to hunt and feel the eject button. Just hit eject, and that baby pops out Very fast!
I'll try to post pictures with a full review asap.
1. This thing is HUGE, I owned a Dell Inspiron 9300, 17" desktop replacement machine and it looked tiny compared to the AR! Really, the size of the overall system seems to dwarf most other 17" laptops in it's class. I'm not refering to overall weight..rather I'm talking about the width and the height of the system when fully open.
2. The screen is very nice. I had the opportunity to compare it to an FE690 with Xbrite Hicolor and the FE was actually a smidgen briter. Also, the whites have a slight bit of the "sparkle, wax paper" effect that everybody is talking about. My screen in the 1400x900 variety and overall it's very good.
3. Noise: the system is very quiet, even running the system at full speed will not compromise your quiet time. Compared to my BX series, this thing is like a ninja in the night.
4. Benchies: I got about 3900 in 3dmark 05, and hit the 4000+ mark slightly overclocked. Games look beautiful when you crank Xbrite up to max.
5. Build quality: It's actally built pretty nice. The CDROM eject button to your left (right under the volume switch) is a very nice touch. No more trying to hunt and feel the eject button. Just hit eject, and that baby pops out Very fast!
I'll try to post pictures with a full review asap.
I just purchased FarCry tonight at my local Walmart, and it's amazing! I'm sure that newer games blow it out the water, but I was pretty shocked by the graphics quality and how the AR's graphics card handled it with ease.
