I ordered an Octane 17" from PCSpecialist to replace a gaming desktop and a productivity laptop. It's been great so far. Spec-wise, I went for the old 7th gen chip (I think PCSpecialist added 8th gen as an option just after I ordered, but it doesn't make a meaningful difference for games). It has a 1080, a 250 GB Samsung Evo system/photos SSD and a 1 TB Samsung SM961 M.2 drive for games. I know you're meant to put the OS on the fastest drive, but I like my system drive separate and the difference between having the OS on the SSD and the M.2 is meaningless. On the other hand, the M.2 for loading games with huge textures is great.
As you can see from the pictures, I've spoiled the laptop - keyboard cover to prevent anything getting in the keyboard, privacy screen over the screen so it doesn't get any fingerprints (couldn't find a normal screen protector, so a privacy screen had to do - kept the plastic cover on it that it came with until then). Normally it's docked on a Klim laptop dock to cool it, outputting to a monitor, so the screen protector makes no odds.
Ordering from PCS was particularly convenient not just because I could get exactly what I wanted, but also because I could get the external soundcard and Kensington lock at the same time.
No dead pixels that I can tell, though I did get the insurance in case. I've had it less than a month so I can't attest for how reliable it is: I'm certainly hoping it will last me four years.
Obligatory terrible pictures so I can claim my free 16 GB USB drive. The screen looks good if I'm not taking photos of it :taz:.
As you can see from the pictures, I've spoiled the laptop - keyboard cover to prevent anything getting in the keyboard, privacy screen over the screen so it doesn't get any fingerprints (couldn't find a normal screen protector, so a privacy screen had to do - kept the plastic cover on it that it came with until then). Normally it's docked on a Klim laptop dock to cool it, outputting to a monitor, so the screen protector makes no odds.
Ordering from PCS was particularly convenient not just because I could get exactly what I wanted, but also because I could get the external soundcard and Kensington lock at the same time.
No dead pixels that I can tell, though I did get the insurance in case. I've had it less than a month so I can't attest for how reliable it is: I'm certainly hoping it will last me four years.
Obligatory terrible pictures so I can claim my free 16 GB USB drive. The screen looks good if I'm not taking photos of it :taz:.
