.:Intro:.
This would be my first time doing a review in Lowyat.net. I’ll make this review as simple and packed with information. I apologized for my simple English. XD

Kindly visit LYN official Sager thread http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1755925

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There’s not much to tell about this model, since it’s already reviewed by our fellow LYN/Notebookreview member, This is a Lamp. You may refer to his post
http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1794588

The only differences are this barebone laptop doesn’t have Sager / Reseller logo embedded on it. This should make other people curious what kind of laptop I’m using.

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.:About R&J Technology:.
http://rjtech.com/shop/index.php?dispatch=....view&page_id=3

As you can see, we are keeping our prices as low as possible to be the one of the best price on net. There's a lot of people asking why your prices are so great. The reasons are:

1. We are focusing our product lines on barebone notebook kits right now, customers can use their CPU, memory and hard drive from their previous notebook or get it from auction site like eBay, then put it to our barebone notebook. This way you can have the most flexibility in your budget and the notebook you want.
2. Due to our wholesale experience, we have several excellent suppliers. We also have an assembly factory here to assure excellent workmanship and prices. This also allows us to do repair jobs in-house.
3. We don't have significant overhead since we market our products mainly on the Internet. We can keep our profits low and update our prices whenever the market price is moving--unlike those big firms, with overstocking problems. That's why they can not reflect the market price immediately.

R&J Technology is based on Southern California, USA

Most of resellers (like Mucro/Cubehub), they don’t provide much flexibility for customers to customize their notebook. In my case, I opt for no hard drive and RAM to make it cheaper. They can remove hard drive, but not for RAM because they have similar case which the customer install aftermarket RAM and it does not operate perfectly even though the module is suitable.

I have never dealt with any notebook seller outside of USA, so this would be my first time doing so. In research stage, I have visit Malibal, XoticPC, LPC Digital, Logical Blue One, Mucro, CubeHub, Mythlogic and R&J Technology to find the best deal (especially pricing, upgrade and payment flexibility, and shipping rate). It took me less than 2 weeks to decide which model and which reseller I would go.

Then, I decide to go with R&J Tech and inquiry almost everything, from upgrading the components till the warranty procedures. The response received is not as detailed as other resellers. I type the questions in paragraph and they reply in few lines. The answer is straight to the point. Based on the answering patterns, I am able to know that the seller is not a robot, and not using a predefined replies/templates (except when entering the processing stage).

The payment option consist of Credit card, Paypal and Bank Wire. Unfortunately, the seller only offers Credit card and Paypal for USA and Canada customers. Since I’m living outside USA/Canada (obviously), I have to use Bank wire. For shipping, I choose USPS Express Mail International which will be handled by Poslaju once entering Malaysia. Take note that computer/notebook come in one package will be exempted from tax.

I proceed by placing an order and wire transfer the payment to seller’s account. This would be the most expensive stuff I have bought outside Malaysia.


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.:Tracking Information:.

I'm using insured USPS Express Mail International to deliver the item, and it will be handled by Poslaju once entering Malaysia.




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.:Specification:.

I pick the default specification to suits my available budget, and took out optical drive to give some space for extra hard drive.

Model: P150HM (Sager NP8150)

Display: 15.6" Full HD (1920x1080) LED GlassView Display
Video Card: nVidia GTX 460M 1.5GB GDDR5
Processor: Intel Core i7-2630QM Mobile CPU, 2.0Ghz, 6MB Smart Cache, Quad Core
Thermal Compound: Manufacturer's Thermal Compound
DDR3 Memory: No Memory
Primary Hard Drive: No Hard Drive
Optical Drive Bay: Hard drive Caddy Case Only
Wireless LAN: Intel 6230 abgn WLAN
Bluetooth: Yes (need to press Fn + F12 to enable the device)
Webcam: Standard 2.0MP Webcam
Security Features: Fingerprint scanner, Kensington Lock
Audio: Realtek High Definition Audio, THX TruStudio Pro Software
Speaker: 2.1 (two channel, one subwoofer)
AC Adapter: 100 - 240V 180W Auto Switch AC Adapter
Battery: 8 Cells Smart Li-Ion Battery
Carry Bag: Generic Carry Bag
Warranty: 1 Year Parts and Labor Standard Warranty

Cost breakdown
Rate : USD $1 – RM 3.060 (as on Apr 5th)
Unit Price : USD $1294.00 (RM 3959.64)
Shipping Rate : USD $124.06 (RM 379.62)
Bank Cable Charge : RM 30
Bank Commission : RM 2.00

Nett : RM 4371.26

Bank wire transfer only takes less than 16 hours from my account in Public Bank to seller’s account in Cathay Bank. Once the seller receive the payment, they will start building the unit and ship out within 3-5 business days (excluding weekends). Since I’m quite rushing to get the unit and lack of extra funds, I miss the opportunity to upgrade from GTX460m to AMD HD6970m at the price of USD$245. Huhu~~~ *sobs*

This post has been edited by soundsyst64: Apr 21 2011, 02:03 PM

.:Unpack:.
Note : Click the thumbnail to view the full image size

The package looks simple and doesn’t have Sager/Clevo/reseller brand printed on it, sealed perfectly with “Void” tape and consignment note on the lid. Opening the first layer of box will reveal another box, containing the laptop and generic bag (which I did not order) with other accessories.


The unit without Sager logo embedded on the lid. I let the packaging plastic sticks on it.


Accessories inside the generic bag. (Power Brick, Standard USA 3-pin power cord, User manual, CD, DVI to VGA converter) Since I don't have USA power socket, I use Malaysia standard 3-pin power cord that usually used to power up computer power supply.


Actual size of power brick compared to my palm and other notebook power brick.

Open the lid to reveal the plastic protector on the screen, palm rest and speaker.


I'm adding 500GB Western Digital Scorpio Black SATA hard drive and two pieces of 4GB Corsair DDR3-1333 RAM


Going naked~~~ 1


Going naked~~~ 2. I install both of Corsair RAM on the slot underneath the keyboard.


Installing WD Scorpio Black on the primary hard drive slot.


Caddy case on optical slot.


Battery pack and power brick.

Windows Installation (I let the speaker cover on just in case RAM is not functioning)


CPUID/GPUID Information


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.:Others:.

I don't have lots of time to benchmark some games, but I can provide benchmark from Unigine Heaven. To preserve the performance, I prefer gaming in window mode instead of full screen. I don't know why, maybe I already used to it.



Temperatures seems normal. Using one screen, GPU temp is around 40'c and went up to 56'c on 2 screens. Processor temp score an average of 48-51'c in non-aircond room and slightly dropped to min 45'c with the table fan blows directly on the notebook.

The fans are not really noisy in normal state/ idle (around 50dB). Once I push Fn + 1, it will spin in full power and the noise increased to 90dB, pretty much similar to normal conversation or table fan run in full speed.

I don't have specific preferences on the screen whether matte or glossy, as long as it produce a vibrant yet rich color, crystal clear in default settings.




3DMark 11 (1280x720 settings)


Portal 2 Screenshot (1680x1050 highest setting)



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.:Conclusion:.

It's simple and plain looking notebook, but packed with beast inside and the components are upgradable, especially processor and GPU. I will keep this toy for the next 3-4 years before switch to new model. Once you're onto this model, I'm sure you won't look on others.


My current setup:
- 22” LG W2242TQ 16:10 LCD Monitor
- 1TB + 640GB Hard Drive installed in Hotway Non-RAID 4-Bay Enclosure HF2-SU3S2 USB3.
- A4Tech X5-70MD, Sensonic U3 Slim Keyboard with silicon keyboard protector

This post has been edited by soundsyst64: Apr 24 2011, 03:12 PM

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This post has been edited by joonwei23: Apr 20 2011, 09:32 PM

wow bro , why dont have sager wording 1?

yeah just wanted to ask that as well

Nice impression! Been waiting for it actually. Hehe.

Anyways, may I know how long does it take using USPS Express Mail International to reach Malaysia?

i think it took him around 1 week to 2 weeks time only =.=" to complete the whole purchasing process.

Lol that's fast. Haha. I'm better off using USPS Express Mail International when I'm getting one. UPS is soo expensive. 2 laptops for USD$498

@soundsyst64

better get some games installed and let us know how it performs!

why np8150 if u se gtx 460m should have gone for np8130 which is cheaper

I think it's because he ordered from R&J tech? they sell clevo barebones i think

upgradable ability.

You're aiming for the 6970m later on, soundsys?

It'd be a good review writeup to see how it REALLY compares with the 485m.

Nice system you have there. Congrats.
Would be glad to see some benchmarks from 3Dmark06 or 3Dmark11, if you're okay with that.

Nice review dude. And congratulations on getting your new toy

By the way, you should also include this one in your main post too so that everyone has an idea how long does it take to ship from RJTech (U.S.) to you in Kuching, Malaysia.

Here is the schedule that I copied from your post in the Sager thread:


This post has been edited by jimmykvt: Apr 21 2011, 08:44 AM

Soundsys, can consider swapping scorpio black 500gb with new 750gb. Much faster according to review.

Btw, is the screen view angle/color bad?

@kahjye, joonwei23
It's a barebone notebook, there's no brand embedded on it. And it's easy for the user if they plan to skin the lid.


@azimlatip
It's about 3-4 days from LA to Malaysia. The custom hold the item for a while and deliver it straight away.
The whole process (placing an order, payment, building, shipping) takes about 13 days.
I'll try to play and preform a benchmark on some new games, like Portal 2


@Riddhy
NP8130 doesn't have ability to upgrade to higher cards, but the processor is upgradable.


@This is a Lamp
I'm aiming on HD6970m, but the cost might kills me. The card including heatsink and shipping costs about USD$610.50 (RM 1838.31) compared to purchase together with notebook with upgrade price is only USD$245


@hidz7
I try to benchmark using 3DMark11


@jimmykvt
I already edit my first post together with tracking status from USPS and Poslaju


@toughnut
I have seek entire LYN garage sales, but I'm able to find 500GB. But it's good enough for me because I will get SATA 3 SSD in near future and place this 500GB as secondary hard drive.
I can see the image on the screen clearly from left and right. The LCD will tend to wash out if view from bottom and top, which is normal for other notebooks.

Fwir, motherboard using nvidia and amd gpu are different although both using MXM. So if ur laptop initially equipped with nvidia, you're stuck with nvidia offering.

Wow, that's fast. Haha. I'll just use USPS then if I'm gonna place an order. Anyways, may I know what's the weight written on the shipping receipt? If you don't mind that is