winkx01 - MSI MS-1032

After debating on what laptop I wanted for college, I decided on the MSI 1032. I recieved it on thursday and brought it with me on vacation over the weekend. These are the specs:
Intel 750 Pentium M (1.86 ghz w/ 533 FSB)
nVidia Geforce Go 6600
Samsung Spinpoint MPO804H (80 gig, 5400 rpm)
512 M of ram
LG GCA-1080N internal dvd burner
Intel Pro/Wireless 2915ABG card

I also purchased a Kensington saddlebag sport backpack and the Logitech wireless V200 mouse. Total came to be about $1500 shipped.

Build Quality
The laptop feels very solid and well-built. No creaks or squeeks. There is some flex behind the screen, but it's not too bad.

Keyboard and Touchpad
Very little keyboard flex... no more than most keyboards. The keyboard has a nice response. The touchpad is nice, but the buttons are a little wierd at first. They are a little more stiff on the outer sides than the middle, but it's nothing to complain about.

Heat
The whole notebook is cool to the touch. After playing Far Cry for about 15 mins, the notebook was still fairly cool, with only slight heat near the keyboard area and touchpad. The areas under the left and right palms remained cool. The fan is on the right side, so it kicks out heat onto your hand, if you use a mouse. When playing Far Cry, it was kicking out more heat, but nothing unbearable.

Display
Even though the display is only WXGA, it is still very nice. It's a high quality gloss screen. Playing games at 1280x800 resolution is more than suitable. The viewing angles are great. You can view things clearly from most angles.

Battery Life
I was able to watch a whole movie starting at about 80% and it took me down to about 30%. With a full charge, the battery meter in the system tray says 3:38 mins left. I haven't done too much battery testing other than the one dvd I watched.

Summary
Overall, I think this machine is great. I would definately purchase it again. I'll try to post some pics tomorrow night...

Mark

the range is pretty good. I can detect my wireless anywhere in my house and farther. When I was on vacation, I could pick up a hotel about 2 blocks away over the highway (probably about 150-200 yds away, but this is just a guess). No problems so far... very satisfied with this card.

here's a few pics... I had to wait to take pictures in natural lighting, because my camera hates artificial lighting. I took most of them on my deck, and the others in my living room. I tried to get pictures of the viewing angles, but it just didn't work... my camera sucks! I'll see if I can get some to work, eventually. Let me know if you want some specific pics of anything.

















I am going to install some different video drivers and run some 3dmark scores later tonight (to see what works best)... I'll post those when I get them done.

-Mark

I am running XP pro...

I have no complaints about quality. If the 1029 is built as well as the 1032, you should be happy with your purchase. I was debating between the 1032 and 1029, but decided on the 1032 because it was available when I wanted to buy. If I had known the 1029 would be released so quick after the 1032, I probably would have waited.


As for benchmarks, I ran just a few tests when I had time. I ran them at 1280x800. here's what I've got so far:
72.71 (MSI stock) - no overclocking
no AA, no anso - 2164
2x AA, no anso - 1931
4x AA, no anso - 1583

77.70 - no overclocking
No AA, No anso - 1854
2x AA, no anso - 1645
4x AA, no anso - 1476

Hopefully I'll be able to get some more benchmarks up soon...

Mark

The speakers sound very good. Much better than my sister's Averatec 6100 series do. No complaints for sound. They are more than loud enough.

Mark