Torn

Wifi G is compatible with B so the one that comes with the 8790 will be fine

My experience is that no laptop keyboard is as good as an external. They just dont feel the same. That being said, the 8790 is the best notebook keyboard i have ever used. Haveing a #pad is also really nice. On the other hand, it is no big deal to plug a good external one into your lappy.

As far as the difference between the 8790 and the 5690 go, the major one is screen. I have to say that for me, the 17" screen is totally worth the extra money.

My only comment would be to seriously consider getting something with an A64/m11 (once they come out - before August I hope). Unless you upgrade frequently, why limit yourself to 32 bit, when you don't have to?

I vote for the 5690

I would go with a 5690, because of its smaller size and weight. They have a really great UXGA LCD.

I was torn between the 5680 and 8890 and finally went with the 8890 when the 16in screens became available again, but I don't carry it arround much. I would not want to lug an 8890 or 8790 along with a bunch of books arround a college campus.

Every one seems to agree that the 5690 has the best LCD available.

Dave

Since you don't seem to care about battery life and power I can assume that you don't plan on really moving around with your laptop. If you plan on keeping it in your room at almost all times the 8790 seems like the better choice for you. The TV Tuner (I think that's a default option) is a nice addition for your dorm room because you can hook your cable up to your computer.

I have an 8890 but I can tell you that the Fan noise isn't quiet when you start gaming. I don't know about your dorm rooms either but I know mine doesn't get great circulation and cooling (especially during summer) so I would think my laptop is a couple degrees warmer than the average one. I do notice that my fans go off and on during the night. It doesn't bother me at all when I sleep but some people may not like it?

As for keyboards, I don't really have a problem with mine, but if you're a gamer you are going to want an external keyboard anyway. I don't find the heat a big deal either. It does get warm by where the air blows out but it's hardly a big deal.

But... If you think you're going to be moving around often working on your papers and stuff I think the 5690 is a better choice. Unless you think you're going to need the TV Tuner and the bigger screen I would think a 4690 is more convient. When I was ordering my laptop only the 8890 was available but I would have chosen a 5680 if it was available. The 8xxx series isn't all too carrier friendly. But don't get me wrong I still love my 8890!

I think this was somewhat coherent? My two cents.

This line is the key to your needs. I'm a writer, by profession, and you just can't beat a widescreen for its ability to display several documents/windows simultaneously. The 8790 is the best choice. It also packs all the power and punch to satisfy any rabid gamer's late night, pizza and beer, fragfest instincts...and widescreen gaming ROCKS!!

If you want to see an alternative to the 8790, check out HP's ZD7000. It's got a brand new 17" widescreen in WSXGA+ (1680x1050) resolution that's absolutely gorgeous. I'm pretty sure that HP offers student discounts, too. If you can hold off on a purchase for another 2-3 months, there are some more 17" widescreens on the way that'll have the AMD Athlon 64 and WUXGA resolution as options. Good luck at college!

THis is a sager forum go to notebook general to talk about hp

There aren't any 17" A64 models, yet. We'll start seeing them in June/July. Logitech makes excellent keyboards, so definitely check'em out.

It's always beneficial to read this kind of helpful, informative commentary, don'tcha agree?

yup.

all people who are picky gamers, and need the power of a desktop in notebooks will not find it.

i'm actually quite tired of hearing FPS numbers thrown around. What you're getting is like 1 tenth the size of a desktop - do not *expect* desktop numbers from it - and quit playing the stupid numbers game!

get what you need.


and what you need, my friend, is a computer to do work on in school - i.e. a word processor. how powerful a machine do you *really* need to word process/surf the web?... A Pentium II? Pentium III at the most. .... really you dont need a great machine.... that can cost you under 300usd...

a gaming mini-form-factor PC is just as powerful as a desktop... and 1/3 the size... i priced a mini shuttle PC w/ a 19" LCD at the top desktop specs available at the time, and it came to the same cost as a top-of-the-line Sager model.

so there you go. : )

no need for an ultra-powerful laptop, that you'll eventually be disappointed in.

Presented with the requirements, believe this would serve as a more than adequate solution as they make use of desktop-grade components, which have always outperformed their mobile equivalents. With the price falling on larger LCD displays, one could even consider a 20" or 21" display.

This also presents a far greater upgradability path, as most of the major components will be upgradable (and, when the technology shift requires so, a motherboard replacement could even be performed at a reasonable cost), including those features which would seem (at least at first glance) to be of importance in your particular situation (in no particular order) : high FSB, SATA, newer memory technology (DDR2), PCI-Express, etc. Not to say mobile machines will not support these features as well - just on a slower implemented technology curve. Small form factor/mini-itx/nano-itx solutions are extremely appealing for machines that require some portability or environments that face space issues. If you've not researched this possibility thoroughly, believe you should do so.

From your own description, it sounds as though the machine will be stationary most of its days.

To that end, will offer this one piece of mild wisdom in closing : avoid a desktop replacement purchase if at all possible. Unless powerful portability on a regular basis (at least 4 to 5 days out of every given week) is an absolute necessity, alternative paths should strongly be considered, even so far as to suggest a small form factored machine as a "home" unit coupled with a very lightweight, long battery life (and much more inexpensive) notebook as an "away" unit. The reasoning is this : it is always far easier/more cost effective/etc to deal with a non-notebook machine than the opposite. Having owned various notebooks for the past 12+ years, I can personally attest to this, as undoubtedly those owners with similar experience would.

Do hope this helps, and good luck with your endeavor.

This may sound stupid, but even though the sager 5690 might be able to get better fps on games right now, the 8790's double ram seems to be more adepquate so resource hogging games will have more to utilize. Also, is the weight of the 8790 that big of a deal? One of my friends has the old 17" I think the 4780, and it really isnt that heavy, at least to me. I dunno, its prob because my backpack weighs so much im used to it, but somehow I havent really discovered a laptop that seems "heavy" though I havent yet met the 8890. But that was my thought and my question....umm also.......the 5690 and the 8790 are designed for very different ppl. The 5690 seems to be geared towards those that want good gaming performance and be able to do work on the side, while the 8790 seems to be geared towards those that want extreme gaming performance, and use thier pc's for mainly entertainment use like movies and stuff (hence the 4.1 speakers and 17in lcd). So its really up to you, but my opinion would be the 8790 because it would be kick ass to have that lappy on the road with you because it would look crazy good and sounds crazy good as well. Also it has a REALLY nice keyboard I hear, and if you're typing notes in class in a hurry or are typing in your room, it would much more comfortable to work on especially if you have a lot of papers to write.

right right... may

I just tried running that through my Eurocom-to-English translator:

Eurocom: Our A64 notebook will be available in MAY.
Translation: We MAY have an A64 notebook available some day.