Eurocom Racer 2.0 Review: Intel's Ivy Bridge Meets Nvidia's Kepler

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]Nereus01[/nom]You should take a look at the Sager NP6110 (aka Clevo W110ER). This is truly a mobile gaming machine - it weighs in at under 4lbs, and that's including the battery pack! For hundreds less than the rig you have here, the NP6110 can be assembled with a quad core i7-3610QM, the GTX 650M GPU (DX11) - the 2GB memory model, not 1GB like you have reviewed here. 8GB RAM is standard but more can be installed.. This is a small 11.6" 1366x768 display, however it has HDMI plugs for a bigger monitor if you are at home. The whole point of a laptop is mobility, and the Sager NP6110 is unparalleled when it comes to mobility at such a light weight, while still packing an impressive amount of CPU and GPU power. I play BF3 on high on this machine, and it will go over 1 hour on battery without a problem for me. I do recommend the matte screen though - the ultra glossy has too much reflection, particularly if outdoors (this is a laptop after all). You guys really should review it, if you have not already. It's better than the Alienware M11X - and cheaper! The only thing it doesn't have is a backlit keyboard.[/citation]OK, so I'm not allowed to insult people...are you really suggesting to step down to a GTX 650M when a GTX 660M is barely adequate?

As for the CPU step down, Eurocom would rather show off performance than value: Tom's Hardware had to push fairly hard to get Eurocom to step down the CPU in this review from the top model i7 Extreme they had originally chosen. You could be right about the 3610QM, but that's going to be hard to determine unless someone else puts it in a review system.

 

[Guest]

[citation][nom]Crashman[/nom]OK, so I'm not allowed to insult people...are you really suggesting to step down to a GTX 650M when a GTX 660M is barely adequate?As for the CPU step down, Eurocom would rather show off performance than value: Tom's Hardware had to push fairly hard to get Eurocom to step down the CPU in this review from the top model i7 Extreme they had originally chosen. You could be right about the 3610QM, but that's going to be hard to determine unless someone else puts it in a review system.[/citation]

LOL no I'm suggesting nothing of the sort. My view of laptops is that mobility should be a primary factor - if not *the* primary factor, meaning weight and battery life. With that in mind, the Sager NP6110 (aka Clevo W110ER, aka Eurocom Monster 1.0) is an impressive *mobile* gaming package imo. The quad core is very responsive. The 650M, while certainly it isn't a 680M or even a 660M, it's still pretty damn good for such a compact machine. I guess it really depends what your priority is when considering a laptop. Performance is also extremely important to me (particularly for gaming), but if the laptop weights half a ton and I need a power outlet in order to use it for more than a brief gaming session, then really I might as well get a huge 18+" widescreen laptop with multiple drives and top of the line everything.. and make sure I'm always near a power outlet lol... or get a desktop.

What I liked about this little 11.6" beast is that it is so mobile, but maintains a surprising level of performance considering how compact it is. I really wasn't sure I could handle a small 11.6" screen, but now I've had it for a bit, I absolutely love it for being what it was intended to be - highly mobile, yet still with a decent amount of CPU & CPU power. As I said, BF3 plays fine on high. The smaller screen and lower res (1366x768) obviously help the 650M do the job.

Of course a few months down the line there will be something better and all this will be moot, lol.

 

[DryCreamer]

the Asus 75XXX whatever has a 660M and the 3610QM starting at $1100... at least in the states, I'm sure the 3820QM adds a couple hundred to that base... Eurocom seems high most of the time...

Dry

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]DryCreamer[/nom]the Asus 75XXX whatever has a 660M and the 3610QM starting at $1100... at least in the states, I'm sure the 3820QM adds a couple hundred to that base... Eurocom seems high most of the time...Dry[/citation]Yes, I do think Eurocom is around 10% higher than the industry average for the same parts. Eurocom might defend that with a statement concerning its support structure...

 

[tsnor]

"Adding benchmark results from that older solution in this review lets you jump back to some of our previous coverage in order to draw broader comparisons of platform performance. "

NICE, really nice. Drives me nuts when people don't do that (ehemmm like all the trinity reviews with only APUs or intel HD)

 

[VIPChristian]

Please! Get real people, Pricing in this industry makes no sense, I would love to be able to buy yesterdays Gaming Laptop at a discount.
right now Im looking at a toshiba for $479
It has HD 3000 Graphics, should run Minecraft and COD UO.
Satellite L850-BT2N22 Laptop
http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/cdetland.to?poid=2000037627

 

[dreadlokz]

Nice, but I would never pay that for a mid-end gaming notebook, I would pay more for a 680m and a nice ssd storage!

 

[zaxevil]

can this stuff run with SLI config ?

 

[VIPChristian]

Hey dreadlokz, could you please add to your comment, 680m what is that ?
thank you in advance.
Christian

 

[asalikus]

Toms: NVIDIA's Kepler meets INTEL's Ivy bridge!
AMD: But.. but, what about me 🙁

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]asalikus[/nom]Toms: NVIDIA's Kepler meets INTEL's Ivy bridge!AMD: But.. but, what about me[/citation]More to come for AMD

 

[Evshrug]

[citation][nom]VIPChristian[/nom]Hey dreadlokz, could you please add to your comment, 680m what is that ?thank you in advance.Christian[/citation]
The 680m is NVIDIA's mobile version of their top of the line, newest-gen single-GPU graphics card. Probably the best NVIDIA will offer this gen because I doubt they'd put a double-GPU card into a mobile version, lol! That would be awesome visuals for like... Ten minutes of battery?

I'm with Nereus01's point of view, get something that fulfills the promise of mobility or just get a desktop. In fact, I'm not even interested with notebook computers anymore: I have an office at home and work with an expandable, high-spec desktop, and my needs are satisfied 98% of the rest of the time on my tablet. Sure, the tablet doesn't offer the most powerful graphics, but with the large library of native apps, 10 hour battery life (6hr or so of gaming in an online multiplayer), .34" thickness, 1.36 lbs, 3G with GPS, dongles for camera card readers and HDMI out, and other nice touches, I feel I have a great mobile solution. Looking forward to upgrading my desktop tower with a GTX 670 GPU soon to max out my gaming and creative software.

 

[VIPChristian]

Thank You

I am now looking for something that will run CAD. I am working on a product design, and need to learn it.
Do You think an I pad, or a Tablet would run a CAD program, enough to draw things up quick on the go and
then come home to the desktop, sync it, and then add the details.
Pencil and paper work good too..lol

Whats the easiest way to search for a laptop with this 680m in it ?
I know that the processors they make a i3 second gen.
and then an i3 newer gen...
too confusing.
I was considering HD 3000 because if that would run COD UO and Minecraft...then it should run CAD programs too.
Im cheap so I didnt want to spend.
ltr dude
Christian

 

[VIPChristian]

Toshiba is only offering a 670m is it worth it to buy that ?

 

[Evshrug]

Yeah, there are a lot of sketching programs for tablets, but I only know of 1 vector based app. So I don't think it's best for CAD work that you can keep working on back on your computer. I'm not exactly sure what situation you would need to do CAD on the go... But maybe that's why I don't make the big bucks.
A 680m may be overkill for Minecraft and a 10 year old game (dunno if CoD:UO even runs on Win7), I ran Starcraft II at medium settings well with just a sandy bridge i3 and the 3000HD integrated graphics card.