What’s up all? I wanted to give back to the Sager forums community by providing a detailed photo review on my 5670. But this review will have a somewhat different focus then other reviews. Basically I will be focusing primarily on gaming with the Sager 5670. I will tell everyone how the game runs, and provide pictures of the games tested.
WORD OF CAUTION: I am not a good photographer, and the digital camera I used to take the pictures is definitely not top of the line… so these pictures do not do the Sager 5670 justice. The UXGA wide angle monitor is something that needs to be seen with your own eyes. The graininess in the pictures is due to low light in the room. These pictures are just meant to give you a taste of what the Sager 5670 is capable of. Enjoy!
To see the pictures right away click here: http://www.shackspace.com/~thenatura...ite2/index.htm
First, the specs:
Games are being tested on a one month old Sager 5670:
Pentium 4 3.06 with Hyper-Threading enabled
1024 megs of DDR RAM
40 gig 5400 RPM hard drive
Windows XP Pro
Direct X 9
15inch UXGA Wide-Angle Viewing Monitor
128 Meg ATI 9000 video card
Dual Battery Setup
Latest Catalyst Driver modded for the M9 from here: http://www.s-seven.net/ati/
bla, bla. bla
Ok, now to the games being tested:
Hitman 2
Battlefield 1942
Unreal 2
MorrowWind
NeverWinter Nights
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Soldier of Fortune 2
Will Rock
Enter the Matrix
------------------------
This “review” is in two parts. In this section I give you some brief info on how I run the game. To see the actual pictures I took, just click this link: http://www.shackspace.com/~thenatura...ite2/index.htm
Also, at the end of the review, I will recommend some accessories I use with my 5670 that I am happy with.
HITMAN 2
Hitman 2 runs quite excellent with on the 5670. I have the settings cranked, with the resolution at 1600 X 1200. There is no choppiness when moving the camera around, allowing you to smoothly aim and enjoy the game at high resolution. By default, this game has low mouse sensitivity. So to remedy this, you just have to crank it up a little, depending on your taste.
---------------------
Battlefield 1942:
This game too runs pretty smooth. I run it at 1152 X 864 resolution. I enjoy this resolution for this game because on 1600 X 1200 its smooth, but not quite smooth enough for my tastes. So 1152 X 864 is a good compromise because you get almost the best graphics and smooth game play. Anyways, to make a long story short…this game ran perfectly UNTILL I installed Direct X 9. The game will still run, but I experience the “see through” terrain that some others have also experienced. Besides this…DirectX 9 has not had any other problems for me with other games as of now. I have the game up to date with the latest patches.
-----------------------------
Unreal 2:
The consensus of this game for most people is “awesome graphics, crappy gameplay.” I do disagree with this as far as the gameplay goes. It’s a fun first person shooter with good graphics. Feel like taken down a bunch of aliens with your pulse rifle? This is the game. At first I ran the game at 1600 X 1200, but I decided to tone it down to 1280X1024 for a little bit smoother feel. I have the game up to date with the latest patches.
-----------------------------
Morrowwind
A very fun RPG, probably one of the best. I run this at 1600 X 1200…but I would recommend 1024 X 768 mainly because there is a lot reading involved in this game (being an RPG) and you may not want to strain your eyes due to the small font of 1600 X 1200. Maps load up rather quickly and the graphics look beautiful on the Sager 5670.
----------------------------
Neverwinter Nights
A fun D&D style RPG. Runs very smoothly with all the graphic settings pushed up. There is also a cool option to make the text larger for those of us who like to play it at 1600 X 1200 resolution.
-----------------------------
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Runs smoothly at 1600 X 1200. The game has great graphics and is a good way to push your 5670 to the limits.
-----------------------------
Soldier of Fortune 2
Running at 1600 X 1200. I wish these pics could have come out better, cause the game really looks great!
--------------------------------
Will Rock
A “Series Sam” style shoot em up first person game. Running @ 1280 X 1024 and smooth. Awesome graphics, it’s a bargain at only $20 @ your local video game store.
-----------------------------------
Enter the Matrix
One of my favorite games of the moment, (and being a Matrix fan) I would defiantly recommend this game. I have all the settings up high, and although once in awhile the game will “hiccup” with some slight chop, its runs pretty smoothly. The smoothness of this game is impressive on the 5670, considering the ultra high requirements of this game.
The pictures in this game were very hard to capture, due to my taking the pictures in “real time” during game play. The blurriness in the characters is due to them moving fast while I took the shot. I especially like the picture of the agent, who is moving very, very fast to dodge some bullets.
EDIT: After installing the latest Cat 3.5 drivers, the game rarely has that "hiccup" effect and slight chop. In fact, it is pretty rare for the game to chop at all now. Very, very nice drivers!
-----------------------------------------------
The network card on the laptop is pretty good quality. I’ve had no problems with it so far and I use it a lot. The sound card is pretty good for a laptop sound card. Of course I do have the slight interference from the hard drive, but its really not a big deal. I do plan on purchasing the Echo Indigo PCMCIA sound card. http://echoindigo.com/
Tom’s Hardware gave it an excellent review. http://www.tomshardware.com/game/200302081/index.html
As far as my mouse goes, I go with the “gamers choice”…which would be the Logitech MX500. There is also a wireless version, which is the MX700. The mouse has plenty of buttons and feels perfect in your hand. The mouse wheel has the perfect amount of pressure for scrolling. Not to loose, but not too sticky to push either.
As far as headphones goes, I use Sony DJ headphones, model MDR-V700DJ. When you put these babies on, you experience the same sound quality as you would experience with expensive home theater speakers. The sound quality has to be good because they are intended for club DJs (who of course demand the highest quality sound). Check out some reviews of the headphones for further details. I believe you can pick up a pair for about $100-150.
I love the feel of the keyboard on the 5670. Very high quality keys. Yes, the keys do get kinda warm after some game play. I use the Nostromo gamepad to rememdy this situation. I included a picture of it in the gallery. Basically it is a game pad with programmable keyboard keys and a digital game pad built into it. It connects to your computer via USB.
Well that’s about it for now. I do have more games in my library, so if you have some requests for pics, let me know. I welcome any suggestions or comments as well. I hope you enjoyed this gaming review of the Sager 5670, and I wish you a great day.
WORD OF CAUTION: I am not a good photographer, and the digital camera I used to take the pictures is definitely not top of the line… so these pictures do not do the Sager 5670 justice. The UXGA wide angle monitor is something that needs to be seen with your own eyes. The graininess in the pictures is due to low light in the room. These pictures are just meant to give you a taste of what the Sager 5670 is capable of. Enjoy!
To see the pictures right away click here: http://www.shackspace.com/~thenatura...ite2/index.htm
First, the specs:
Games are being tested on a one month old Sager 5670:
Pentium 4 3.06 with Hyper-Threading enabled
1024 megs of DDR RAM
40 gig 5400 RPM hard drive
Windows XP Pro
Direct X 9
15inch UXGA Wide-Angle Viewing Monitor
128 Meg ATI 9000 video card
Dual Battery Setup
Latest Catalyst Driver modded for the M9 from here: http://www.s-seven.net/ati/
bla, bla. bla
Ok, now to the games being tested:
Hitman 2
Battlefield 1942
Unreal 2
MorrowWind
NeverWinter Nights
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Soldier of Fortune 2
Will Rock
Enter the Matrix
------------------------
This “review” is in two parts. In this section I give you some brief info on how I run the game. To see the actual pictures I took, just click this link: http://www.shackspace.com/~thenatura...ite2/index.htm
Also, at the end of the review, I will recommend some accessories I use with my 5670 that I am happy with.
HITMAN 2
Hitman 2 runs quite excellent with on the 5670. I have the settings cranked, with the resolution at 1600 X 1200. There is no choppiness when moving the camera around, allowing you to smoothly aim and enjoy the game at high resolution. By default, this game has low mouse sensitivity. So to remedy this, you just have to crank it up a little, depending on your taste.
---------------------
Battlefield 1942:
This game too runs pretty smooth. I run it at 1152 X 864 resolution. I enjoy this resolution for this game because on 1600 X 1200 its smooth, but not quite smooth enough for my tastes. So 1152 X 864 is a good compromise because you get almost the best graphics and smooth game play. Anyways, to make a long story short…this game ran perfectly UNTILL I installed Direct X 9. The game will still run, but I experience the “see through” terrain that some others have also experienced. Besides this…DirectX 9 has not had any other problems for me with other games as of now. I have the game up to date with the latest patches.
-----------------------------
Unreal 2:
The consensus of this game for most people is “awesome graphics, crappy gameplay.” I do disagree with this as far as the gameplay goes. It’s a fun first person shooter with good graphics. Feel like taken down a bunch of aliens with your pulse rifle? This is the game. At first I ran the game at 1600 X 1200, but I decided to tone it down to 1280X1024 for a little bit smoother feel. I have the game up to date with the latest patches.
-----------------------------
Morrowwind
A very fun RPG, probably one of the best. I run this at 1600 X 1200…but I would recommend 1024 X 768 mainly because there is a lot reading involved in this game (being an RPG) and you may not want to strain your eyes due to the small font of 1600 X 1200. Maps load up rather quickly and the graphics look beautiful on the Sager 5670.
----------------------------
Neverwinter Nights
A fun D&D style RPG. Runs very smoothly with all the graphic settings pushed up. There is also a cool option to make the text larger for those of us who like to play it at 1600 X 1200 resolution.
-----------------------------
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Runs smoothly at 1600 X 1200. The game has great graphics and is a good way to push your 5670 to the limits.
-----------------------------
Soldier of Fortune 2
Running at 1600 X 1200. I wish these pics could have come out better, cause the game really looks great!
--------------------------------
Will Rock
A “Series Sam” style shoot em up first person game. Running @ 1280 X 1024 and smooth. Awesome graphics, it’s a bargain at only $20 @ your local video game store.
-----------------------------------
Enter the Matrix
One of my favorite games of the moment, (and being a Matrix fan) I would defiantly recommend this game. I have all the settings up high, and although once in awhile the game will “hiccup” with some slight chop, its runs pretty smoothly. The smoothness of this game is impressive on the 5670, considering the ultra high requirements of this game.
The pictures in this game were very hard to capture, due to my taking the pictures in “real time” during game play. The blurriness in the characters is due to them moving fast while I took the shot. I especially like the picture of the agent, who is moving very, very fast to dodge some bullets.
EDIT: After installing the latest Cat 3.5 drivers, the game rarely has that "hiccup" effect and slight chop. In fact, it is pretty rare for the game to chop at all now. Very, very nice drivers!
-----------------------------------------------
The network card on the laptop is pretty good quality. I’ve had no problems with it so far and I use it a lot. The sound card is pretty good for a laptop sound card. Of course I do have the slight interference from the hard drive, but its really not a big deal. I do plan on purchasing the Echo Indigo PCMCIA sound card. http://echoindigo.com/
Tom’s Hardware gave it an excellent review. http://www.tomshardware.com/game/200302081/index.html
As far as my mouse goes, I go with the “gamers choice”…which would be the Logitech MX500. There is also a wireless version, which is the MX700. The mouse has plenty of buttons and feels perfect in your hand. The mouse wheel has the perfect amount of pressure for scrolling. Not to loose, but not too sticky to push either.
As far as headphones goes, I use Sony DJ headphones, model MDR-V700DJ. When you put these babies on, you experience the same sound quality as you would experience with expensive home theater speakers. The sound quality has to be good because they are intended for club DJs (who of course demand the highest quality sound). Check out some reviews of the headphones for further details. I believe you can pick up a pair for about $100-150.
I love the feel of the keyboard on the 5670. Very high quality keys. Yes, the keys do get kinda warm after some game play. I use the Nostromo gamepad to rememdy this situation. I included a picture of it in the gallery. Basically it is a game pad with programmable keyboard keys and a digital game pad built into it. It connects to your computer via USB.
Well that’s about it for now. I do have more games in my library, so if you have some requests for pics, let me know. I welcome any suggestions or comments as well. I hope you enjoyed this gaming review of the Sager 5670, and I wish you a great day.
