Hey corad. Just wondering, how would one go about obtaining the 7% student discount you mentioned from XoticPC? There doesn't seem to be any information on the website itself. Maybe I'm blind lol, but do you think you could enlighten me? Cheers haha. =p

Oh bummer. Yeah, figures that they would withdraw it - the $400 off is already a rather massive discount.

And I am only too aware of the uni student prereq lol, 2009 will be my final year (which means that it will be the last year for me to scrimp up some savings on this baby ).

Haha been meaning to ask if you had received your laptop. Good to know it arrived so promptly. I just placed an order for an NP8660(similar specs to yours), all the while worrying that something would go dreadfully wrong during shipping. Definitely reassuring to hear from you . Quick question though - who actually physically delivered the package to your address? Was wondering as the $223 shipping option that I chose means that the US Postal Service will be responsible for shipping. As they aren't a specialist shipping and logistics firm like Fed Ex or UPS, I'm kinda afraid that when the laptop reaches our shores the Pos Malaysia dudes will (mis)handle it lol. Please enlighten me!

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Dec 29 2008, 02:23 AM

What N1-C says is true, the Asus G50VT is an extremely good choice for those concerned about budget (about RM600 lower than the RM6800 Sager NP8660 configuration jackson mentioned, inclusive of shipping) and warranty (Xotic PC offers 2 years ASUS global warranty when purchasing the Asus G50VT from them). The graphics card (nVidia GeForce 9800M GS 512MB GDDR3) is more than sufficient for tearing through the latest games. Compared to the Asus G50V (no T) available in Malaysian markets that sports the GeForce 9700M GT and sells for over RM6500, this laptop slaps it soundly on both ass cheeks and roundhouse kicks it to Timbuktu, to put it one way.

On another note, for those that are still drooling over the NP8660, it seems to me that on the Xotic PC website they have removed the $400 off advertisement, but have integrated the discount/reduction in hardware price into the base cost. Essentially, this means that the prices they previously quoted as 'discounted' have now become base prices. In a nutshell - NP8660 is still a hell of a good buy lol.

On an even more pleasing note, Xotic PC acknowledged my wire transfer a few days ago and have begun the building/testing/burn-in/final QA phase of my NP8660. Fingers crossed, they might even ship it today or tomorrow! Another proud Sager owner coming right up!

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 12:48 AM

Ah crap! Totally forgot about your offer. Got too excited over getting my new laptop that I ran as fast as my legs could carry me to my bank and broke my account lol.

Oh definitely an excellent buy!

It's okay, I think the little extra I paid will make me treasure it even more.

I made the wire transfer on Monday, 5th January around 2-3 pm Malaysian time (corresponds to 12 - 1 am local Xotic PC time, as they are located in Lincoln, Nebraska). Xotic PC acknowledged the receipt of the funds just one day later (I'm amazed at the efficiency of my local bank), and have updated the status of my order to Phase 2: Custom building, testing, burn-in and final quality assurance. This process takes 3-7 business days, after which they will ship it out. All in all, very efficient service on their part thus far.

My laptop specs (the specs I deem as important, anyway) are as below:

- Display: 15.4" WSXGA+ "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright Glossy Screen (1680x1050)
- Processor: Intel® P9500 45nm "Montevina" Core™2 Duo 2.53GHz w/6MB L2 On-die cache - 1066MHz FSB 25 watt
- Video Card: nVidia GeForce 9800M GTS 512MB PCI-Express DDR3
- Ram: 4,096MB DDR3 1066MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS)
- Hard Drive: 320GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache)

As I already have Windows XP Professional on me, I decided to purchase the system without an OS. The total cost (shipping inclusive) came up to USD$1886.65, or roughly RM6600. Of course this amount is an approximation - expect to pay more to cover both local and international bank charges as well as to account for poorer exchange rates offered at banks. Ended up paying around RM6700.

The shipping option I chose was the USD$223 option - International USPS Global Express Mail. Not too sure if this option provides tracking, but from what I can gather off corad and N1-C, it does.

With regards to build quality, as corad mentioned, perceived value is subjective. No one else should make the final decision but you. Read through corad and N1-C's personal review posts as well as the third party review sites corad so kindly added to his first post. They should help you in making a decision.

Anyway, hope this helps! Cheers!

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 02:40 AM

Yup, my specs are very similar to N1-C's.

If you look a few posts up, you'll see I made a post detailing my specs, price and shipping option. N1-C paid USD$1,980.74 - the extra amount he paid was for Windows Vista, which I do not require. For more information on N1-Cs machine, click here.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 11:50 AM

As I do not currently have a Malaysian online banking account (been studying in Australia the past four years), I physically went to the my bank's nearest branch and filled in a remittance/transfer request form. Once I did that I just brought it to a teller and voila!

However if you do happen to have an online banking account with access to international money transfers, the process becomes even simpler. Do note that if you have not previously transferred money internationally using your online banking account, you will need to call your bank and ask them to raise the transfer limit (default is usually 0).

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 03:10 PM

As I have not personally received my notebook, I am not able to answer your question. From what corad and specifically, N1-C (who is also in Malaysia) have mentioned, there is no applicable customs tax. N1-C did mention however, that his dad might have had to pay EMS delivery charges.

I quote:

Actually, including Windows Vista Home Premium in the configuration would have set me back USD$97. That's close to RM350 for an OS that is questionable, at best. I have my own unused copy of Windows XP Professional here that I plan to install. Also, with the impending release of Windows 7 sometime this year, I thought to myself why not just hold out for that?



This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 06:20 PM

I am pretty certain that regardless of whether Microsoft offers a 'promo' price for existing users (which I believe to be nothing more than hearsay) or not, the total amount spent by Vista users (cost of Vista + Windows 7) will far outweigh that of buying Windows 7 straight off the shelf. Moreover, having used Vista on my Dell XPS M1330, I find the OS to be rather clunky and no where near as user friendly as Windows XP Pro, which I incidentally already have.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 8 2009, 09:23 PM

I am currently back in Malaysia for the summer break. Had I ordered the laptop from Australia, I would have been able to use B-Pay to transfer payment. Unfortunately I do not have access to an online banking account here, so I had to physically submit a remittance form at my bank branch.

Ooh congrats! Do post here when you get yours!

With regards to price though, quite hard to say whether or not it'll drop before you leave Malaysia in February (iirc you did mention you were heading overseas, right?). As it is, they have already integrated their previously advertised discounts into the base price of the NP8660. Do keep in mind though that Xotic PC does ship internationally, meaning that regardless of where you are, you'll be able to get your laptop. Who knows, you might be able to grab a bargain a few months down the road.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 9 2009, 01:54 AM

I doubt there will be any difference in warranty coverage should one be purchasing a Sager off Xotic PC. None of the available options for warranty state anything regarding global coverage.

PS: My laptop shipped today!

Time estimate:

If you pay through bank/wire transfer, Xotic PC will acknowledge receipt of payment quite promptly. For myself, it only took one day for my payment to be credited to their account. According to Xotic PC building, testing, burn-in and quality assurance takes around 3-7 business days (they took only 2 days for mine). Shipping to Malaysia via the USD$223 option takes (using N1-C's shipment as a reference) 4 business days. Therefore, a rough estimate of the time it takes for a laptop to be ordered, built, sent out and finally arrive at your doorstep is between one to two weeks.

Discount:

Paying through bank/wire transfer entitles you to 3% discount off the total price of the order. This includes shipping as well. For example, if your laptop was, say USD$1777, adding USD$223 to that would mean a pre-discount total of USD$2000. The 3% discount is then applied to this amount (remember to enter in the 'cashrebate' coupon code when prompted to get it!), making the post-discount amount USD$1940.

Nota bene - The 3% discount only applies to the shipping cost when you choose the USD$223 option! The United Parcel Service shipping option will not be subject to the same discount!

If you purchase your laptop using corad's referral link, corad is offering a 10% "discount" off the post-discount total. I say "discount" because he is actually offering to refund you the affiliate earnings he receives from the referral (So kind! ). Using the above amount (USD$1940) as an example, this would most probably mean that he will refund you a total of USD$194. I am however unsure of two things:

(a) Whether his referral earnings are calculated with shipping cost in mind, and

(b) whether I have applied the 10% discount properly. Here I make the assumption that he gets 10% of the post-discount amount as affiliate earnings. He will have to clarify this.

Do understand that this is not an instant discount - you will have to pay the USD$1940 first; corad will refund you later when Xotic PC pays him.

To summarise, the total discount that you will get is the initial 3% off the pre-discounted amount, plus 10% off the post-discounted amount (subject to clarification from corad). Hope this answers your questions.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 11 2009, 03:15 AM

Many congratulations on your monster of a laptop! By the way, would you mind detailing the shipping process to Malaysia for me? I'm in the middle of waiting for mine to arrive from the US (it shipped on Friday, 9th Jan) and not unlike N1-C before, my hair is going gray with worry and anticipation. Lol.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 13 2009, 01:38 AM

Oh darn, what are the chances of having an item retained by customs? Hopefully I won't have to go through the same ordeal to get my laptop. The good news is you got it safe and sound though, and that's what matters.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 13 2009, 02:45 AM

Hey kira, if I am not mistaken, the code should be cashrebate. This was the code I entered in to get the discount when I ordered my laptop. Hope this helps.

Edit: The code can be found at the bottom of the customisation page for Sager laptops (the page where you choose your specs). I quote Xotic PC - Please use coupon code "cashrebate" during our checkout process to receive our special discounted cash price.

This post has been edited by Ashikune: Jan 13 2009, 09:02 PM

Oh damn, how did they find out?