m15x user review by shima

[WLF46WLF]

I bet it was 1280*800.

wait a minute! maybe the res 1440x900 can't play 3dmark @ 1280x1024??

maybe only 1650x1050 or 1920x1200 can.

am I wrong, or we can't compare this score to standard score until one get the 1920 LCD?

[Fade To Black]

Don't be so dramatic. It's not a big problem, as the same thing happens to many laptops these days. Not even the MacBooks run 3DMark at the standard resolution, but no one seems to care about that.
WXGA+ can't handle a resolution of 1280*1024, so 3DMark runs at 1280*800.

[WLF46WLF]

I'm not dramatic, but I've just found that for example you can't compare scores of a 8600GT ddr2 on a 1680x1050 with an 8600GT ddr3 on a 1440x900!

the difference I found was high! now I understand why

[Bo@LynboTech]

what is important for benchmarking scores, is to benchmark the machine at its native resolution, that way the pixels fit and look best

one of the main reasons for going for the lower resolution
personally I would have been happy with a 1280x800 screen like my current one
plenty of real estate for what I do and games dont have to run at such a high res

from the other reviews I dont think we need worry about the performance.

crysis results would be nice as well as bioshock

Futuremark are said to be starting up a game studio to do proper games, using their engines, those will be the ones to get the benchmarks from

[shima]

AC Adapter/Power Brick specs:

Manuf: LI SHIN International Enterprise Corp
Model: 0302A19120
Input: 100-240V, 5--60Hz, 2.0A
Output: 19V 6.3A

[kobe]

Thanks for the pics shima.

[shima]

Battery life w/Smartbay test

Conditions:
- Default battery and Smartbay battery both fully charged when I unplugged it
- Stealth mode active
- LCD dimmed to 2nd lowest brightness setting
- Bluetooth off
- WiFi off
- AlienFX on
- Light use - I was doing some word processing and msconfig/regedit Vista optimizations (don't have much time at work here to surf or do much else, sorry) until the battery life 10% warning popped up.

Result: 4 hours give or take 5 mins. Not bad at all. I'd imagine you lucky UK owners with the 9-cell battery can get 5 hours!

One issue: The battery life meter on the bottom of the battery wasn't lighting up, so I wasn't sure which battery was discharging first. I may try another test later to find out, and also see how much battery life decreases with WiFi on w/internet usage, and also with AlienFX off.

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Regarding the 3dmark06 score, I have no idea what resolution it was run on, since this score was logged as part of the AW burn-in phase before shipping out my laptop. I'll have to try my own 3dmark06 once I install it...I'll test it at native resolution this time.

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On notebook coolers: Popular opinion has the Zalman NC series being the best, and I tend to agree. The NC1000 is a little small like I mentioned; if you're really anal about it, you might want to get the NC2000 model for 17"ers. At work I use the small Pacific Breeze cooler which also fans cool air underneath the laptop, while lifting the back end up higher. They work about the same, but the Zalman can be used on your lap, the Pacific Breeze cannot.

[WLF46WLF]

alien fx on means that you had all buttons, touchpad and keypad light on?

to see what battery discharge first you can use everest or RMclock. very useful programs but I think it will be the smart bay one! it would be more clever

I think 4 hrs is not bad! maybe with alien fx off you can get better! hemlok said he reached 2:50 with one 6cells battery!

[shima]

WLF46WLF: yes, that's correct. All light effects were on. Oh, and I had no peripherals connected to the laptop at the time of the test. Thanks for the tips on those 2 proggies, I'll check em out.

A question for those that have the laptop w/Smartbay extra hard drive:

Can you look inside for the connectors where the Smartbay drive/battery/optical drive connects to the motherboard, and tell me how many separate connectors you see? I see 2 in mine, one for the battery and one for the optical drive. I'm curious if getting a Smartbay hard drive means they add another separate SATA connector there. If this is the case, that kinda sucks for those that didn't buy the SB HD at the time of purchase as you wouldn't be able to add one in the future. I'm hoping that the SB HD and the optical drive uses the same connector.

[WLF46WLF]

strange! I think hdd & optical drive will use the same connector

it would be damage for AW itself if it is not so. someone can choose to buy a smart bay battery or hdd after few time