Review of Optimus V 15.6"

SuperMeggido · Feb 12, 2014

Review of the Optimus V 15.6” from PC Specialist

Date: 12/02/14

After doing much research and 'lurking' for 9+ months I have settled on this. I needed a gaming laptop as well as a portable essay machine, this the reason being that I chose the 15 inch version and not the 17 inch version. I chose PC Specialist because of the pricing as well as the customer support, as I didn't want to buy something for £1000 and then not have competent people helping me with future issues. I am writing this review 4+ months from when I received the laptop in October 2013:

Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4700MQ (2.40GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
16GB SAMSUNG 1600MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 8GB)
Changed: Originally ordered only one stick of 8GB, later ordered another 8GB stick from PCS and installed myself
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 765M - 2.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
750GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD7500BPKX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
2nd Hard Disk
240GB INTEL® 530 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 540 MB/sR |490MB/sW)
Changed: Originally ordered only HDD, later ordered SSD from Amazon and installed myself
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
6x BLURAY ROM, 8x DVD ±R/±RW & CYBERLINK SOFTWARE
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ 1103 WIRELESS GAMING 802.11N NETWORK CARD
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Optimus Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAh/76.96WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
Keyboard Language
OPTIMUS SERIES UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
1 Year Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs
Intel Anti-Theft Technology
Free 90 Day Intel Anti-Theft Trial - Prevent Data Access Upon Theft
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Total
£980
Total including changes
£1204

The PC Specialist website was easy to navigate and I soon was configuring my future laptop/pc with over the top components. After some research and forum reading I became familiar with the components and what I would need. My need being to play PC games at 1080p on Medium graphic settings or higher, at 30 frames per second or higher, as well as a machine light/sturdy/small enough to be carried around outside for 10+ hrs. In addition I have bought separately a Kone XTD mouse (£60), Steel Series 4HD gaming mouse mat (£20), Qpad QH-90 PC gaming headset (£95) and two Coolermaster Notepal U3 laptop coolers (3 fans each) (£25 each) to be used with the laptop. For backup of the hard drives I bought a 1TB WD My Passport Slim (£75) external hard drive with USB 3.0 connection. All were bought from Amazon but if you shop around you can probably find them cheaper, as I bought most of them last summer.

Accessories (not bought from PC Specialist)

The mouse is very nice, having customisable LEDs on it and a smooth matte texture. It is suitable for palm grip and finger tip grip users and can even accommodate small - medium hands (like mine). The shape is ergonomic meaning it is designed to be comfortable so you can use it for extended periods and still avoid discomfort, and it's tracking is also very sharp and reliable (depending on what DPI settings you put it on). From their website you can download a program for the mouse to even customise it further, and included with the mouse are four 5g weights for your preference.

The mouse mat is especially made for laser mice, as it has 'mirrors' on it's surface for faster and more accurate tracking. While it is not necessary for laser mice, as they pretty much can handle most surfaces very well, it will make that difference for those using mice in a professional or demanding way (animation, gaming etc.). Beware according to reviews the special 'mirror' coating does wear off with use, having had mine now for 7+ months I have not had a decrease in performance yet.

The QH-90 headset are really nice too, while not the best in surround sound or having the biggest base they have a really clear and very well balanced sound. Special mention must be given to the build quality and comfort level as you would be hard pressed to find something in the same price or lower as comfortable or sturdy as this headset.

The laptop coolers are comprised of a metal stand that slopes upwards with about 6cm height from the desk on the far end. It comes in different sizes (U1,U2 and U3) but despite the description given for the U3 and the U2, the U2 will be too small for the Optimus V 15 inch and so if bought with the Optimus V 15 inch in mind it is imperative that you buy the U3. The difference between this cooler and others is that is has three small fans instead of one giant fan, that that you can attach on the underside of the stand (using the grate like surface of the stand) so you can optimise and prioritise airflow and cooling. Having 6 fans (from two coolers) I put one on the HDD, one on the battery and the other 4 in a line for openings of the cover of the laptop and the SSD (see Pictures).

The 1TB hard drive is well protected in it's metal casing (which also aids to keep the hard drive cool as the heat dissipates faster) and using a USB 3.0 connection will transfer data very quickly. The case has a little white LED that will flash to indicate that the hard drive is in use and you might heard a faint noise from it, but not louder than your own hard drive in the laptop.

These are not full reviews but merely a quick guide with opinions, before you buy any of these you should make sure that they are the right choice for you by looking at other people's professional and amateur reviews/opinions (except that bit about the U3/U2).

Ordering, Packaging and Installation

When I ordered the above spec with 5 day fast track, the screen and processor were not in stock and I had to wait two additional weeks (in total 2 and a half weeks including fast track) for the laptop to be dispatched and delivered to me with a refund for the fast track. It was built by Jonathon Brown, tested and QC'd by Ben Wilson and packed by Anthony Cunliffe who all did an awesome job. The laptop has not developed or had any faults yet (besides the 'VGA' button that is unimportant to me and not working correctly). When it dispatched I got a text from DPD detailing in which hour slot they would arrive the next day.

When it arrived in the morning in it's huge box I was reassured that it did not suffer any damages on the way, as the packaging as well as the way it held the laptop were very secure. Everything was in a plastic bag of it's own, and there were coverings for the screen and lid of the laptop to prevent scratches from occurring. Unfortunately I do not have pictures of the unboxing or packaging, as I had all but a very low resolution phone camera then so I thought it wouldn’t be worth it. The laptop was not damaged or scratched in any way on the way as far as my naked eye could distinguish, maybe a microscope would beg to differ.

Once I put the battery in and plugged it into a socket I turned the laptop on and preceded to install windows and any drivers/programs. At some point the installation asked for a windows key which usually is a sticker somewhere on the laptop, but I could neither find it on the laptop or anywhere else in the box. I contacted PC Specialist and after explaining to them the situation and sending them a picture of the back of the laptop as proof that I did not have my key, I received a picture of the sticker (so I could enter the key immediately) and the next day the sticker arrived in the post. I was pleased as to how swiftly this issue was dealt with and continued my installation.

I was supplied with all the necessary drivers by PC Specialist on a CD marked with a sticker, detailing which Windows copy it was for and my laptop chassis model. Installation of the drivers was self explanatory, as once the program on the CD started you just had to click onto the drivers in the numbered order they were listed to install each of them. The only driver that was missing/not working was the one for USB 3.0. At this point I left it as the ports were working fine on USB 2.0 and I planned to reinstall everything anyway when I got my SSD. After the windows installation and the driver installation was complete I connected to the internet to download and install the windows updates.

SuperMeggido · Feb 12, 2014

Wireless Connection using Killer Card

Using the 1103 Killer wireless card with 3x3:3 MIMO (three antenna to receive and transmit data for more reliable and quicker transfers, as opposed to two or one antenna, three being I believe the current maximum in laptops) and fibre optic broadband at 60 MB/s on the 5HGz frequency (which is faster and more reliable, in part because the amount of people using it is very small and so it is not as 'congested' as 2.4GHz frequencies), it took about an hour to download and install all important and recommended windows updates. Once that was complete I downloaded my internet security and any other programs I needed and my laptop was ready for use. However downloading my entire Steam and Origin library (400GB together) took the rest of the day and half of next. You can see why I needed a 750GB hard drive

. Once that was complete I played Bioshock Infinite furiously

. In the first couple of days it would not connect automatically to my wifi but that sorted itself out. The connection gladly has never dropped for me.

Streaming and downloading things is not an issue using this card and my internet connection. Gaming wise is can say that I really appreciate the speed and low latencies (time difference between pressing a button and seeing it's action online) and generally when playing online games such as Airmech, Garry's Mod and Mass Effect 3 online (to name a few) I have the lowest ping or am among the group with the lowest pings. This will vary for others as not everyone as a high speed fibre optic internet connection. Be aware that this card however does not have Blue-tooth connection available, requiring those with need of this connection to buy an external Blue-tooth dongle.

Laptop Chassis

The laptop is very sturdy and well built. I am not scared to put it in a padded messenger bag and take it outside with me (well that's a lie I am scared even with dust landing on it or people merely looking at it but that is a problem with me and not the laptop chassis ). The track pad is not as smooth as I would like it, with some friction when first using it, but with time you get accustomed to it and it should pose no problem (it's also probably smoothing out with usage). The only part that flexes is the lid when pressed down which I am ok with and so it should be noted that you shouldn’t put heavy things on top of it (which for the price it came by I wouldn’t dream of xD). The keyboard is nicely spaced out, with the number pad skewing the main part to the left which is acceptable to me and actually the way I am sitting at my desk desirable. All 'fn' hotkeys work, as do all physical keys with the exception of the 'VGA' key in the top right corner. It should when pressed switch between the integrated and dedicated graphics card, however when pressed would bring up a message saying 'In order to Insure that 3D applications work either the iGPU or dGPU, please close the applications, and then run them again'. While it is an inconvenience for me I did not want to return the laptop if needed, as I could just go into the Nvidia settings and force either card if they were not already automatically switching, like when running Age of Empires 3 and not automatically switching to the dedicated card.

The reason why I chose this chassis compared to the higher end and better ventilated ones was simply a weight issue, (and money of course, but the weight was the deciding factor). I would have loved a 17 inch GTX 780m monster or even a 20-core 4 way SLI beast but it was not feasible as I would be carrying it around for some days 10+ hrs, so I choose the one with highest graphic capabilities that I would be comfortable carrying around (in a Adidas messenger bag) along with books and other stuff.

Built In Camera

The built in camera is poor (as expected from only 2 mega-pixel resolution, as comparison my mobile has a forward facing camera of 8 mega-pixel), the video containing a lot of 'static' but is enough to chat to friends (using the microphone on my head set) while the response time (the delay between moving and seeing it on screen) is actually quite reasonable. However those seeking to use it for anything but casual chat with friends and family or want a sharp high definition video of their face should invest into an external camera that you can attach and clip onto the top of the lid, while cumbersome it is necessary for business meetings, interviews, just looking at you face for hours etc. as the built in camera would not be sufficient.

Heat and 'Fan Issue'

The fabled fan issue plaguing 15/17 inch Optimus Vs, is not an issue for me. I understand now as I did when I ordered this spec that when I am running something demanding such as Games or downloading many GB's of data that the fan will spin up in order to accommodate the resulting rise in temperature. That’s to be expected from an i7 quad core processor with a dedicated graphics card in a compact laptop chassis. However the fan issue deals with the fan spinning up to audible or 'annoying' (think hair dryer) levels when lightly using the laptop (think web browsing, document editing/writing/ etc.) or gar when it is idle. Sometimes independent of the actual temperature of components.

Luckily for me I seem to have the problem in it's mildest form. Usually my laptop will rest on a laptop cooler (U3 Notepal) with 6 (yes 6) fans blowing full speed independent of what I am doing with the laptop. I have bought two U3 Notepals, as each comes with 3 fans I took one set and added it to the other. The remaining metal stand I use whenever I am using the Laptop on my lap or in bed, so the Laptop always has adequate air flow and stays cool. The result is that the fans never come on unjustified. I understand that many might not have a laptop cooler or that it should without a cooler not spin up, but I find that using a cooler will prevent or reduce the amount of times it comes on full speed. Luckily for me even when I do not have the cooler (and I use it outside the house at University for many hours) it might come on for a couple of seconds one or two times a day if that, and not even at full speed but at half the speed of that. I have never messed with the BIOS or tried to upgrade it in regards to this, it is the original BIOS I received in October 2013.

My laptop will idle 50C-53C for my i7-4700QM processor. The 'Notebook' temperature will idle 50C-53C. My two hard drives will idle 33C-35C, with 'air flow' for my Intel 530 240GB SSD idling 37C-39C. My GTX 765m graphics card will idle 41C-43C. All of these temperatures are without any outside cooling. With cooling and all six fans on max it will typically shave of around 3C for every temperature mentioned while idling, however when the fans spins up, like during gaming, the added cooling from the 6 fans is way more drastic (see Heat And FPS During Games). These temperatures have been taking from both the program 'Speccy' and 'HWMonitor'.

Sound

Another issue for some people is the sound. It is not an issue for me as I again knew and expected the audio through the speakers to not be good let alone rich and powerful. Having listened to (and owned) only average laptops from the high street (£300-£500) the Via HD Audio Deck (audio driver and program) on it's own is garbage. It is too quiet (with headset at 50-60 speaker volume for a youtube video) and the sound through the speakers or headset is not balanced at all. But when installed with Sound Blaster software and with configuration of the settings, the volume needed (for me) to listen through my headset to a youtube video is now 11 and the sound through the speakers itself is now balanced and very enjoyable compared to before albeit at best good, and not really comparable with those that have sub woofers built in etc. Listening through my headset however is another story, as I can now fully enjoy music and sounds the way they intended to be (without going into 5.1+ and co territory).

Battery Life

The battery life is poor, but for an i7 quad core with dedicated graphics that has a standard battery that is made for gaming or high power demanding applications that's expected. You should have no problem using it off battery for 3 hours on the integrated graphics card streaming a movie online on full brightness, but around 3 hours will be the max for that (also I have a lot of things running passively in the background). You can probably get to 4 hours or even more if you really maximise your laptop for battery efficiency but I have personally not tested this (maybe someone else can add to this) as 3 hrs is sufficient for me to be away from a plug (can't use it while I am in a moving vehicle like bus, train, car etc. otherwise I get really bad nausea and headaches, so I can only use it while stationary really D: )

SuperMeggido · Feb 12, 2014

Heat And FPS During Games

Hitman: Absolution at 1080p

My personal settings are all medium, couple of high's and one ultra resulting in 35-40 FPS, can't give more info because the settings have been wiped and it has been a while since I last played. Using the benchmarking utility provided by the game these are the FPS to expect when the game gets the most demanding:

MSAA off + Lowest Preset = Min. 42.7 Max. 77.7 Average 53.9
MSAA off + Medium Preset = Min. 35.8 Max. 80.0 Average 44.2
MSAA off + High Preset = Min. 25.2 Max. 62.3 Average 30.5
MSAA off + Ultra Preset = Min. 22.6 Max. 35.0 Average 27.6

MSAA 2x + Medium Preset = Min. 22.6 Max. 89.3 Average 29.4
MSAA 2x + High Preset = Min. 17.0 Max. 46.6 Average 21.5
MSAA 2x + Ultra Preset = Min. 16.5 Max. 23.3 Average 19.4

MSAA 4x + Medium Preset = Min. 16.0 Max. 33.0 Average 21.6
MSAA 4x + High Preset = Min. 13.2 Max. 42.8 Average 17.1
MSAA 4x +Ultra Preset = Min. 12.1 Max. 18.9 Average 14.9

MSAA 8x + Medium Preset = Min. 11.3 Max. 23.3 Average 14.9
MSAA 8x + High Preset = Min. 9.7 Max. 16.5 Average 12.1
MSAA 8x + Ultra Preset (everything max) = Min. 9.2 Max 14.7 Average 10.8

Running all of these consecutively, here are the temperatures with all 6 fans on max:

i7-4700QM: max. 86C/ drop to 50C-55C immediately/ after a couple of minutes 40C-45C
'Notebook': max. 83C/ drop to 50C-55C immediately/ after a couple of mintutes 40C-45C
Intel SSD: max. 35C + 42C (Airflow)/ drop to 35C + 40C (Airflow) immediately/
35C + 38C (Airflow) after a couple of minutes
WD HDD: max. 35C/ 35C immediately/ 35C after a couple of minutes
GTX 765m: max. 64C/ drop to 45C-50C immediately/ 45C-50C after a couple of minutes

Bioshock Infinite at 1080p

My personal settings are mostly very high's I think, resulting in 40+ FPS, can't give more info because the settings have been wiped and it has been a while since I last played. Using the benchmarking utility provided by the game these are the FPS to expect when running the game (FPS can dip lower when the fighting is really hectic):

Very Low Preset Overall = Min. 23.6 Max. 233.2 Average 96.0

Low Preset Overall = Min. 30.9 Max. 225.6 Average 70.6

Medium Preset Overall = Min. 13.0 Max. 241.2 Average 57.7

High Preset Overall = Min 12.0 Max. 100.8 Average 50.1

Very High Preset Overall = Min. 10.2 Max. 63.0 Average 41.6

Ultra DX11 Preset Overall = Min. 9.1 Max. 66.3 Average 38.4

Ultra DX11_DDOF Preset Overall = Min. 11.4 Max. 46.1 Average 30.6
(everything max.)

Running all of these consecutively, here are the temperatures with all 6 fans on max:

i7-4700QM: max. 88C/ drop to 50C-55C immediately/ after a couple of minutes 40C-45C
'Notebook': max. 84C/ drop to 50C-55C immediately/ after a couple of mintutes 40C-45C
Intel SSD: max. 35C + 43C (Airflow)/ drop to 35C + 40C (Airflow) immediately/
35C + 37C (Airflow) after a couple of minutes
WD HDD: max. 35C/ 35C immediately/ 35C after a couple of minutes
GTX 765m: max. 63C/ drop to 45C-50C immediately/ 45C-50C after a couple of minutes

Dishonered at 1080p

Maxed out at 60 FPS

Dead Space 3 at 1080p

Maxed out at 60 FPS

Crysis 2 at 1080p

DX11 enabled and Extreme preset at 30-40 FPS

War Game: European Escalation at 1080p

Everything on High at ground level 30+ FPS at half up from the ground 60+ FPS

Temperatures are pretty much the same as the two examples given and not higher, the fan was not even fully on yet. Obviously lower for less demanding titles.

SuperMeggido · Feb 12, 2014

Installing Ram And A Secondary Hard Drive, Optimising Your SDD

Early January this year I bought a 8GB stick of ram from PC Specialist, a 240 Intel 530 SSD and a 1TB WD My Passport Slim external hard drive from Amazon. The ram arrived after one working day, external hard drive too with Prime. Lets just forget when the SSD arrived (having delayed this review by a month). You will need proper screw drivers to remove the screws in the laptop, otherwise they will be too small or you might risk damaging the screws so they remain stuck.

Before installing or removing anything disconnect your laptop from the mains and charger. Then remove the battery by sliding the battery lock and it will pop up. Having removed the battery press the power button for a few seconds and you are good to go. The ram is very easy to install, once you have removed the main cover and it's three screws, you simply slot the ram into the free slot (if free for you) and press it down until it clicks, done. The SSD I installed into the other remaining hard drive space next to the ram (in the same row as the fan, see Pictures).

Physical Setup Using Sticky Foam Stripes

You are given some sticky foam stripes to be used to secure the hard drive so it doesn't move and knock against the motherboard or cover. It is best if you connect the SSD while supporting it so it does not move downwards towards the motherboard to avoid damage to the connectors. Once you know where to put the sticky foam stripes (ideally use no more than two for this step) cut in shape if necessary and remove the backing. I used two stripes, a tiny bit for the top left corner (if the fan is on your left), a tiny bit on the right towards the top right corner. One whole strip horizontally directly after the connector part of the laptop and one on the same area of plastic horizontally furthest away from the connector. If you are actually looking at the empty area this will make sense to you.

You are also provided with a additional plastic covering for your secondary hard rive (the hard drive PC Specialist installed already had it on) and two screws to attach it with. I would advise using the plastic covering otherwise you might have to stick some of the sticky foam stripes onto your hard drive, which I didn't like since it heats up. I put the plastic covering onto the SSD and aligned the holes of the plastic with the screw holes on the side and secured it using the two screws. Once that was done I connected the SSD and used a whole strip furthest away from the top (if the fan is on your left) horizontally onto the plastic covering. I cut a third of the second strip and used it vertically on the middle bit of the plastic closest towards you (I attached the two screws holding the plastic in place, on the side away from me). These positions and steps ensure that the sticky foam meet the cover of the laptop, but do not press it upwards (since the cover is angled) and potentially loosening it. Because this SSD is quite slim I have resorted to using the sticky stripes on both sides, and my configuration result in the SSD being firmly in place. If this doesn't make sense to you, it will when having your SSD and other materials in front of you. HDD tend to be thicker so you might only need to use sticky foam stripes on one side.

SSD/HDD Dual Installation

Once I dealt with the physical setup of my new hard drive it was time to install. I made sure to copy my entire HDD (not cloning, but cloning is another option) onto my newly bought external hard drive, so in case anything went wrong, my data will not be lost and also to transfer the data that I need onto my HDD since I am going format it. It is also good to have your windows/OS CD/USB ready for windows instillation as well as your key for activation. Also look up all drivers on the manufacturers or PC Specialist website, so you have all the up to date drivers and do not have to rely on the internet working just yet. Before installation I made sure that my BIOS is set to ACHI mode for my SSD. This is done by turning your laptop off and turning it back on. At some point it will say in the bottom right corner press 'F7' to enter BIOS settings at which point just mash F7. Once in the settings go to your storage mode and set to ACHI.

Having secured all my data before-hand connecting the SSD, I disconnected my HDD and connected my SSD. It is important that you only have your SSD connected when installing it to avoid problems. Having your windows installation CD/USB in, start up your laptop with only your SSD connected and your battery back inside. Following the instructions, I installed my copy of Windows. Once that was finished, I turned my laptop off and removed the battery. Then connected my HDD. When starting up I did not press anything and just let it boot up to the desktop. Once there I clicked on the start button, then 'Computer'. Then right clicked onto my HDD and clicked 'format' (make sure you data has been secured, this is irreversible). Set all settings on default and tick 'quick format' then 'start'. My HDD has now been wiped clean.

I then right clicked onto my SSD, click onto 'Properties' and unticked the 'Allow files on this drive to have contents indexed in addition to file properties', you do not need it with a SSD and not having it helps extend it's life too. While in the 'Properties' menu go to the 'Tools' section and click on 'Defragment Now'. It will not Defragment, do not worry. Then click on 'Configure Schedule' and untick the 'Run on a schedule (recommended)' and then click 'OK'. Click 'Close', now it will not defragment my SSD which is bad for SSD's, degrading them over time.

To make sure that 'Trim' was enabled for my SSD (essential for all SDD's), I went to the start menu and typed in 'cmd'. Right clicked on the program in the results and then clicked 'Run as administrator'. Once inside I typed 'fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify'. 0= enabled Trim, 1=disabled Trim.

Lastly I made sure that all 'Desktop', 'Downloads', 'My Documents', 'My Music', 'My Pictures', 'My Videos' and 'Saved Games' were on my HDD and not on my SSD. I went on the start menu and clicked 'Computer', then clicked onto my SSD and then onto 'Users'. I copied the entire '*INSERT YOUR NAME*' folder over to the HDD, and then on the HDD made a folder called 'Users' where I would put the folder that I just copied over in. To complete this I clicked onto my start menu and then '*INSERT YOUR NAME*' on the top right corner and did this procedure for every folder named in the first sentence of this paragraph: right clicked on the folder, then clicked 'Properties', went to the 'Location' section and changed the 'C' (C Drive is my SSD) in the pathway to a 'D' (D Drive is my HDD). This ensures whenever I click onto any of those folders that it points me towards my HDD, all downloads go to my HDD, saved documents and so on.

I installed all updated drivers from my USB and then copied my entire Steam and Origin library from my external hard drive. Using USB 3.0 (found on Intel's website) it transferred them in an hour, so I did not have to download them again. I downloaded my anti-virus and other programs and made sure that all my save files from my games were intact.

Everything besides those folders and the Steam/Origin libraries, are on my SSD.

Conclusion

It has been a long 'Review' with a little How to do in there as well, but I am 100% pleased with the product and customer service that I received from PC Specialist. In the pictures it is shown very light grey and I was afraid it would look cheap, but I was positively surprised when it arrived in a dark grey/charcoal colour. As the short comings of the Optimus V 15 inch were expected, I can honestly say that I spent my money very well and would most definitely come to PC Specialist again for any other computing needs. I understand not everyone’s experience is like mine, despite that I would whole heartedly recommend them to family, friends and strangers on the internet

vanthus · Feb 12, 2014

Nice review + rep

SuperMeggido · Feb 12, 2014

Pictures

Direct upload didn't work for some reason so here are some links

keynes · Feb 12, 2014

That is a pretty extensive review! Glad you are happy with your laptop.

feetofclay · Feb 12, 2014

firstly, great review. i have been trying to find a really good review of the optimus v 15.6" but couldnt really find one. so ofcourse one turns up 2 days after iv ordered one

(not as high spec but still fairly similar) and also you have done a bit of a review of the cooling pad im thinking of getting so many thanks for that. i was just wondering if having your laptop that close to a radiator could affect the results?

SuperMeggido · Feb 13, 2014

No problem

, in regards to the cooling pad, I bought the first one originally August 2013, so have been using a 3 fan configuration until January this year. I received my Optimus V in early October so I had a fair bit of time with the cooler and Optimus V togetheter with a 3 fan configuration. 3 fans will do the job, 6 fans is a bit overkill. With only 3 fans (one for fan opening in cover, one for ram opening in cover, the other for battery) is totally sufficient for cooling and so I would definitly recommend this cooler. You will see the drastic change in temperature like in the heat/games section of my review for your GPU and CPU with only 3 fans. I can't talk about other coolers or how the U3 compares to them, but in my experience you can't go wrong with the U3 Notepal.

In regards to your actual question, I have limited the maximum temperature of that single radiator, since I sit in front of it I don't like it getting hot (though I always have cosy feet

). The limit is set between 4 and 3.5 (for people in England you know what I am talking about, I hope). There is a 25 cm gap between the radiator and the table, and a 15 cm gap between the top 'plate' of the table and the radiator. This gap is there by purpose as I am aware that there might be some interferece and so any wires hanging are not touching it and are at least 13+ cm away (in the summer when it is off I move it all up to the radiator). When it is on there may be a rise in temperature but none that I have really noticed (and I have HWMonitor on at all times). I would say it would add a max of 5C; when the radiator is off (and the house is cold) it idles 40C-45C. Since the radiator was on during my heat and FPS results, you can assume that it will perform better by a small margin, not enough to worry about in my opinion. Hope that answers your question

feetofclay · Feb 13, 2014

yeah that is plenty! think ill invest in the u3 at some point. many thanks

NuckyThompson · Mar 28, 2014

This is really great and very helpful review. Thanks a lot for that. I have decided to order Optimus V as well and here's the specs below (I'm an enthusiast photographer and was building the order having in mind heavy photo apps like Photoshop, Lightroom and few more. Also I work mostly on RAW files so it has to be fast and future-proof machine. It's not top of the line but I went for it over MAcbook Pro, which would have been twice as expensive at least in this configuration). Laptop is in testing process now so I should have it shortly. Could you please tell me more about backlit keyboard this laptop comes with? How does it perform in dark or poorly lit rooms?

SPECS:

Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4910MQ (2.90GHz) 8MB
Memory (RAM)
16GB SAMSUNG 1600MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 765M - 2.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
1st Hard Disk
750GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW) + SECOND SSD 250GB SAMSUNG EVO added later
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
6x BLURAY WRITER, 8x DVD ±R/±RW & CYBERLINK SOFTWARE
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Wireless/Wired Networking
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® N-7260 (300Mbps, 802.11BGN) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Optimus Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAh/76.96WH)
Power Cable
1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
DVD Recovery Media
Windows 7 Professional (64-bit) DVD with paper sleeve - CHANGED TO WINDOWS 8.1 PRO LATER
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Internet Explorer
Keyboard Language
BACKLIT OPTIMUS UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
1 Year Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs
Delivery
PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON
Build Time
FAST TRACK 3 WORKING DAY DISPATCH
Miscellaneous
FREE £90 IN-GAME VOUCHER with GTX 650 / 750 /7000M / 8000M Series GPUs
Quantity
1

Review of Optimus V 15.6"

SuperMeggido

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SuperMeggido

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SuperMeggido

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vanthus

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SuperMeggido

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keynes

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feetofclay

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feetofclay

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NuckyThompson

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