Gaming laptop advice, upgradeable GPU possible?

[Clone05]

1) What is your budget?
$1200ish, but I'm pretty flexible.

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen.

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.
U.S.

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like: My old Asus lasted 4 good years, but no preference really.
b. Dislike: HP

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
No

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
Gaming, Internet, and the usual Microsoft Office programs.

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
Both, I travel quite a lot but I'm OK with hauling a 17 inch brick around.

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
Yes: Diablo 3, Starcraft 2, The Witcher 2 (don't expect to max everything though).

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
No factor, everywhere I travel should have power.

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
Online is just fine.

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows

Screen Specifics

12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer? Keep in mind screen size in conjunction with resolution will play a large role in overall viewing comfort level. Everyone is different. Some like really small text, while others like their text big and easy to read. Click here for Screen resolution information.
1920x1080

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?
Not really sure on this one, I use my laptop indoors so I assume glossy would be ideal?

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Not a big factor, unless it's butt-ugly.

15) When are you buying this laptop?
IMMEDIATELY

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
3 years, preferably 4

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
I have plenty of external storage, so I think I want a reasonable SSD.

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a CDRW/DVD-ROM, DVD Burner or Blu-Ray drive?
No


My laptop of over 4 years old decided it was time to die, so I need to order a new laptop immediately because my profession requires it, as does my free time.

After reading some advice on this forum and searching around I found the Sager NP9170, which looks great with the highly praised AMD 7970 GPU. This setup looks good enough to spend the $1600 or so to get it, unfortunately I just cannot wait until the end of the month for the 7970's to become available.

Are there any reasonably priced laptops that can meet my requirements and also allow me to upgrade my GPU in the future? Do the Malibal and Xoticpc websites explicitly state which laptops can do this?

I know upgradeable GPU's in laptops is a rare feature, so if this is not possible I would like your recommendations on the criteria in the above form. I really want the 7970 GPU but I just cannot wait (why couldn't you last one more month laptop?).

[Curs3]

Why dont you buy the NP9170 with the stock GPU and later get your hands on the 7970m and then sell your stock GPU and insert the 7970m? The GPU is upgradable in the NP9170 so it shouldn be a problem.

The NP9170 is a great laptop with dual HDD options. So you can get 1 with a SSD of your choice. It does have the 1920x1080 screen and also has the ivy-bridge CPU's.

Stick with the 8gb ram and the i7-3610QM and you should be just fine.

But if you dont really want to max out everything then I really dont think you require a 7970m as the GTX670m or the 675m (in case you feel the 670m is a bit slow) should do just fine. True the 7970m is worth every penny invested for a gamer. But if you really are not interested in the best display settings possible then it definitely is not worth getting one.
But again the choice is yours.

[idiot101]

See if the folks at Mythlogic can help you out with regard to replacement of your GPU with the 7970m. They do have a Phoenix plan. You will find more information on their website. Also try to find their representatives on this forum and talk to them.

[IronCladRooster]

I agree with the above poster. A Clevo model is your best bet.

[contradude]

also going to agree with the above posters. sager/clevo based models are how I would go as well (np9170 is a great unit)

[Clone05]

Thank you for the advise so far guys.

I know I mentioned not looking to max most games, however I have never owned a laptop capable of what the NP9170/P170EM can do. This could very well "convert" me from primarily console gaming to PC gaming.

I looked at this model again and must have missed the "[user upgradeable]" statement before. I even called Sager and I was assured the process of swapping GPUs is as simple as swapping RAM, which is great because I have never really heard of this option in a laptop before. The only downside I see is having to buy the 670M only to later upgrade it because I cannot wait a month or more (guessing since it seems many have pre-ordered and they will be busy building these) to get the 7970, therefore wasting a bit of money.

I checked out Mythlogic's Phoenix Plan, seems pretty useful for getting some longevity out of your computer. Although from what I gather I shouldn't need to send my laptop in if I want a new GPU because I can do it myself, but I do see they perform a "full service" including cleaning etc.

Now I would like to ask some more specific questions. I know very little about SSDs, other than they are mechanically simpler and faster than the typical spinning drive. How does Seagate compare to Intel? I like the idea of hybrid drives. Is it worth the extra money to upgrade to a "90% NTSC Color Gamut" display?

Here is the setup I'm considering so far: Custom Laptops, Gaming Notebooks, Custom Gaming Laptops | XOTIC PC.

Sorry for so much text, but I'm dropping a lot of money and wanted some input. Thank you!

[Curs3]

The Xoticpc page would direct us to the stock config. If you can config the same according to your needs and go to the check out page, you should be able to copy pate the entire config here. Then we can possibly tell you what changes you can make to the same.

[IronCladRooster]

The Xotic PC link didn't work for me.

For your other questions.
Upgrading your laptop's GPU - It is a shame that you will have to waste some money by upgrading your new GPU, but I really don't see another way around it. It might be worth some digging to see if you could sell the "old" 670 to someone else. Since laptop GPU's are usually pretty specific you might not have much luck, but it's worth mentioning.
I'd just recommend getting the cheapest GPU (which i think is the 670) and then holding off as long as possible to upgrade it. It might be worth waiting for Nvidia's 680m or ATI's 7990 in a few more months. With Windows 8 coming out in a few months there might be some new products that come out at the same time.

For the screen - Would you mind refreshing our memories on what you're going to be using the laptop for? Are you going to use this laptop to view a lot of movies or just play video games?

Good luck with the hunt.

[Karamazovmm]

its better if you post the config, that link is empty it wasnt saved.

But basically,

CPU: 3610qm
GPU: 7970m or whatever fis your budget, or your timeline
RAM: 8gb
Screen: pretty optional its up to you

[Clone05]

Oops sorry about the link, I'll just post the important specs:
Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM
-17.3" FHD 16:9 "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen (1920x1080)
-Sager - 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3610QM
-nVidia GeForce GTX 670M (Only because I need this laptop now, I cannot wait out the 7970)
-8GB - DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory
-750gb (w/ 8GB SSD Memory) Seagate XT 7200RPM NCQ Hybrid
-Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Installed
-Sager 3 Year Parts & LIFETIME Ltd Labor Warranty w/ Lifetime 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Customer Support - Special!

Comes out to $1660 before any discounts. I will probably call to make sure none of my hardware choices are on back-order or delayed if I pull the trigger.

The Xotic PC link didn't work for me.

For your other questions.
Upgrading your laptop's GPU - It is a shame that you will have to waste some money by upgrading your new GPU, but I really don't see another way around it. It might be worth some digging to see if you could sell the "old" 670 to someone else. Since laptop GPU's are usually pretty specific you might not have much luck, but it's worth mentioning.
I'd just recommend getting the cheapest GPU (which i think is the 670) and then holding off as long as possible to upgrade it. It might be worth waiting for Nvidia's 680m or ATI's 7990 in a few more months. With Windows 8 coming out in a few months there might be some new products that come out at the same time.

For the screen - Would you mind refreshing our memories on what you're going to be using the laptop for? Are you going to use this laptop to view a lot of movies or just play video games?

Good luck with the hunt.

I know! If my old laptop could have just survived one more month....
Since I have to settle on the 670M, I will probably wait out the next gen of GPUs just like you mentioned. By that time the 670M probably won't be worth much at all if I could even find a buyer in the first place, so it's lost money unfortunately.

As far as the screen, well I do everything on my laptop, I haven't owned a desktop since the late 90's; gaming, internet, Office, Excel, movies, some video encoding, etc. I guess to ask a specific question: is the 90% NTSC Color Gamut Glossy display worth an additional $185 over the normal Glossy display?

My last question is regarding the hard drive. Are hybrid drives good? Is the hard drive I chose reliable?

Again thanks for all your input!