Area-51m vs 8790

If you want the clevo here are some UK retailers that do simular machines. not quite as cutting edge but you wont need to sell your gran if it needs shipping back.

if you get it from the U.S dont forget shipping and VAT

http://www.rockdirect.com/notebooks/quaddrati2.htm
http://www.ajp.co.uk/?show=wide_info&id=D870P
http://www.meshcomputers.com/updated/ultimapro171.htm

I went through all this looking at the different models and I worked myself up into a right frenzy with all the choice, it was great if not a little scary

but at the end of the day Im well happy with my 51m in saucer silver and I wouldnt change it for anything ...except maybe the Aurora-m in saucer silver

On your table, you don't have internal wireless listed on the 8790. It does indeed have it (using it right now along with my Logitech MX 900 bluetooth mouse- you didn't list internal bluetooth, either )

Don't be scared of posting over @ the Sager side. We don't all bite You'll find there are actually quite a few of us that are Alien converts. Came here looking at AWs just like you were doing and ended up going w/ the Sagers.

A few other things you might want to list for the 8790 that are not available in the A51-m's:

7-in-1 card reader (being a picture-taking freak, it works great for me. Very handy)
RAID
DVI out (the A51-m might have that- I don't remember)
TV tuner/ subwoofer options
Hyper-Threading (wasn't sure if you noticed that- you only mentioned it for the AW)

I don't know what the A51-m's battery life is like, but I would imagine that it might be a little longer. I opted for a 12-cell battery in mine, but haven't run it completely down to get a good idea of how long it'll last.

Noise- this varies w/ ppl. If you read the Sager Reviews section, you'll see a lot of differing opinions on this. Personally, I don't think the fans on my 8790 are loud. The only fan that annoys me is in the power brick (and I live in Japan- my 8790 is on the floor @ the head o' my bed, so the brick is next to me; most ppl probably wouldn't notice. I think most of the newer units don't even receive this brick anymore, either). I've got a Pioneer DVD burner that is loud, tho'. Horrendously loud. Boeing jumbo jet loud. I think that's been addressed, though, too. I do believe that all the units shipping now are Toshiba drives that are much more well-behaved. That's what I get for being one of the first out o' the gates w/ my 8790

Overheating. It does get warm. I haven't had it overheat, though. I haven't seen anyone on the forums have theirs overheat. Not really sure how to answer this one as no one's had it happen.

It really comes down to what you want out of a machine. I love the sexy looks of the A51-m. I really do. Fantastic looking machines. But dollar for dollar, there's just no comparison, IMO, when you compare an A51-m to an 8790 (and thus, that's why I own an 8790 and not a sleek, Conspiracy Blue A51-m).

Either way you go, you're going to get a nice machine that's going to make heads turn. It's a lot of money that you're going to spend, so think about it a lot. Think about what'll make you happy and not what anyone here on the boards or any of your friends say. You're going to have to live with your choice for a long time, so make sure you're looking at what'll make you happiest in the long run.

Ganbatte, ne!

Just a few corrections/additions for the table rendered:

• The newer generation of displays should be classified WSXGA+ (correct resolution is 1680x1050, as listed in the table). Prior display was WXGA+, at a native resolution of 1440x900.
• NP8790 Chipset (table lables that particular section as "motherboard"): Intel® 865PE chipset + ICH5 (supports 8X AGP)
• External sound via the Audigy2 NX could certainly be added later to either machine. Not a fair comparison for either, as it is external. The "Sound-Blaster Pro Compatible 3D Audio" option would be a better choice, for comparison purposes.
• As FriedToast mentions (he posted while typing this reply) wireless LAN is indeed included with the NP8790, offered through a similar miniPCI card that supports both 802.11b and 802.11g connectivity.

Rather liked the idea of a table, for cross comparison sake. This idea could aid others making similar comparisons between both models.

Personally, I would eliminate the color coded advantages/disadvantages. Would also change the static cost comparison at the bottom in favor of a dynamic one listing available options at each level for processor, memory, storage, optical drive, operating system, mouse, bag, warranty, software, etc choices - showing a the base choice as the default (and each available option cascaded outward, with each respective pricing difference). These are two different machines, and should be treated as such. Each has distinct advantages and disadvantages, and tne end user should find the machine that best suits their particular needs.

Good luck with your individual search for the machine that bests fits your needs. Should you not wish to update that particular table, I may take the initial idea, and develop it a bit further at a later date.

How did you get that price on the 8790 with 2gig ddr ram and 3.4 p4 EE? The price i got came out to be 3995.

Indeed a typo. Alas, was still ending that last post when you posted. Now corrected.

I still want to know how did he get $2803 for the Sager with that kind of spec.

The cost iin SMG's table is listed in pounds (GBP) rather than US Dollars (USD). The equivalent would be $5,141 (USD) at the present conversion rate.

Thanks for clarifying that misunderstanding for me.

SMG,

One thing to keep in mind. The 8790 is HUGE. If you need any kind of portability, look elsewhere. Otherwise, its a great machine with all kinds of bells and whistles that will handle anything you throw at it. It just won't be travel friendly.

-Craig

That depends on what you carry it in, Craig. It is a behemoth. But I wouldn't trade the power for size. Not that I've had it- there's just no going back now

The original case that came w/ it was pretty flimsy and the unit felt heavy carrying it around. Definitely hurt my shoulder after a short period of carrying it around. However, I picked up a Targus case (CB400 I think) and it's a great case. Pad on the strap is a lifesaver as the 8790 no longer seems like an unearthly burden to carry around. I carry it to and from work everyday. No complaints here.

I have yet to take it on any long adventures, though, so I can't vouch for long-hauls. However, I'm a travelin' fool, so it's only a matter of time before I get a few miles in on it and can report back whether it killed me or not

That was the main reason I never looked at Sager prior to the 5690 hitting the market. The other was that they only offered the low res screen at the time. IMO, it is huge, heck, to be real honest 9-10 lbs is big as well, I use a Victronix roller bag to transport.

I found these forum looking for an Alienware laptop. Then I saw that Sager was cheaper. Then I bought a Dell. Here are some differences between the companies...

Alienware - Eye candy. Buy an Alienware if you want people to comment on it, as well as having a top of the line computer. Expensive though.

Sager - Great pricing, but fugly. Buy an Sager if you want the most bang for your buck. Did I mention fugly.

Dell - People laugh at Dells on this forum (except in the Dell forum). Dell has good pricing (as long as you use the coupons), and as far as I have seen, has the most options. Almost any kind of laptop you want, Dell can build one for you. Their gaming laptops (iXPS, i9100) are fugly though.

I went with Dell because I could get an P-M processor with a 128MB ATi 9600 Pro. The only other reputable sit I have seen with something that matches or exceedes this is Hypersonic (also a good company).

Shouldnt've gone with dell. but with voodoo M:360
it offers pentium M with up to 2.0 GHz and ATI 9700. let alone the fact that its 5.5 lbs.

yep

i have this machine, well the odm of it...

m:860, hypersonic cx5, frag book TL = originally maufactured by compal, modelis CL56

Maybe if I had an extra $2000 to spend...

Actually, it would be close, but I think you could get 2 x 8600's for the price of the Voodoo.

i paid 1700 for the odm of voodoo

all i missed out on was the paint