I don't normally do things like this (usually too excited playing with my new stuff) but after the experience I've just had with PCS I feel like I owe it to them.
OK here goes...
The Spec:
Chassis & Display
Vortex II:17.3" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080) (£69)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-2760QM (2.40GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD® Radeon® HD 6990M - DirectX® 11 (17.3" Vortex II)
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB KINGSTON HYPERX SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
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 (£9)
Sound Card
Intel 5.1 Channel High Definition Audio + SPDIF/MIC/Headphone Jack
Network Facilities
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® ULTIMATE-N 6300 (450Mbps)
USB Options
2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD
Battery
Vortex Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAh/76.96WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 220W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON (£9)
Build Time
FAST TRACK 3 WORKING DAY DISPATCH (£59)
Processed Date - 05-12-2011 (06:15pm)
Pre-Production Date - 06-12-2011
Build Date - 06-12-2011
Test Date - 07-12-2011
Awaiting Dispatch Date - 07-12-2011
Dispatch Date - 08-12-2011
Delivered - 09-12-2011 (10:15am)
Built By - Craig Whiteley
Tested By - Carl Auckland
QC'd By - Carl Auckland
Packed By - Anthony Cunliffe
The website:
Originally I was contemplating an Alienware laptop but I can't stand DELL's website and quickly got annoyed with it. I remembered seeing a PCS advert in a magazine so I thought I'd check out their website. First impressions were very good, the whole process from choosing a spec to delivery is well detailed and I love the brilliant little touches like the links to drivers and spare parts for chosen spec. The forums are also a great source of info and it's good to see PCS representatives constantly available to help people out. The amount of choices you get to configure your spec is brilliant, my one gripe is that you don't always know the price increase a component will have without working it out yourself from the total, I'm sure there's a valid reason for this though.
The ordering process:
Again very good, the website enabled me to track what stage of development my laptop was in, emails and texts also kept me up to date which was a nice touch. Me being a numpty, I made 2 separate amendments to my order which must have been an annoyance but PCS dealt with it brilliantly.
The delivery and packaging:
Ordered on the 5th at 06:15pm and it arrived on my doorstep at 10:15am on the 9th... excellent service from PCS!! The laptop came in 2 boxes and was securely packed, no complaints what so ever.
The build:
This laptop isn't going to win awards for looks but it's a solid chassis and I love how PCS have refrained from branding the thing, it gives the laptop a quiet, understated look.The keyboard works fine as does the fingerprint scanner, I wasn't keen on the touchpad at first but I'm getting used to it. It feels fine moving your finger left and right, but up and down there is resistance but you do get used to it and it works fine. The palm wrest area is the same brushed aluminium as the lid and it stays nice and cool which is nice. Overall I'm happy, just wish Clevo would offer an illuminated keyboard!! As far as PCS are concerned I can't fault the build, everything fits flush and there's no creaking at all... top job.
The screen and performance:
First of all the screen... it's beautiful and perfect for my photographic needs. The colours are rich and faithful and there's no hint of glare. It also makes a change not having to clean the thing every 5 minutes like my old screen. My old laptop was only 2 years old but this one just blows it to pieces in terms of performance, the SSD makes a huge difference. I can have CS5 and Lightroom up and running whilst the old machine hasn't even made it to the login screen.
A few things I have noticed though... Firstly Windows Exp Index won't seem to run since I changed the power plan to high performance which is strange, secondly I got a scary blue screen whilst checking out youtube the other day (KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR) any ideas? It's been fine since then though so I'll see what happens. Very happy with the performance so far though especially when you consider what I'd have spent for the Alienware!
Final thoughts:
I'm chuffed to bits with my new toy, and I think I owe PCS a big thank you for the brilliant way they dealt with my order, from initial configuring to final delivery I have nothing but praise and I'd definitely recommend them to anyone wanting a new PC build!
Finally here's some pics of my baby (Delilah):
OK here goes...
The Spec:
Chassis & Display
Vortex II:17.3" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080) (£69)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-2760QM (2.40GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD® Radeon® HD 6990M - DirectX® 11 (17.3" Vortex II)
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB KINGSTON HYPERX SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
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 (£9)
Sound Card
Intel 5.1 Channel High Definition Audio + SPDIF/MIC/Headphone Jack
Network Facilities
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® ULTIMATE-N 6300 (450Mbps)
USB Options
2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD
Battery
Vortex Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAh/76.96WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 220W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON (£9)
Build Time
FAST TRACK 3 WORKING DAY DISPATCH (£59)
Processed Date - 05-12-2011 (06:15pm)
Pre-Production Date - 06-12-2011
Build Date - 06-12-2011
Test Date - 07-12-2011
Awaiting Dispatch Date - 07-12-2011
Dispatch Date - 08-12-2011
Delivered - 09-12-2011 (10:15am)
Built By - Craig Whiteley
Tested By - Carl Auckland
QC'd By - Carl Auckland
Packed By - Anthony Cunliffe
The website:
Originally I was contemplating an Alienware laptop but I can't stand DELL's website and quickly got annoyed with it. I remembered seeing a PCS advert in a magazine so I thought I'd check out their website. First impressions were very good, the whole process from choosing a spec to delivery is well detailed and I love the brilliant little touches like the links to drivers and spare parts for chosen spec. The forums are also a great source of info and it's good to see PCS representatives constantly available to help people out. The amount of choices you get to configure your spec is brilliant, my one gripe is that you don't always know the price increase a component will have without working it out yourself from the total, I'm sure there's a valid reason for this though.
The ordering process:
Again very good, the website enabled me to track what stage of development my laptop was in, emails and texts also kept me up to date which was a nice touch. Me being a numpty, I made 2 separate amendments to my order which must have been an annoyance but PCS dealt with it brilliantly.
The delivery and packaging:
Ordered on the 5th at 06:15pm and it arrived on my doorstep at 10:15am on the 9th... excellent service from PCS!! The laptop came in 2 boxes and was securely packed, no complaints what so ever.
The build:
This laptop isn't going to win awards for looks but it's a solid chassis and I love how PCS have refrained from branding the thing, it gives the laptop a quiet, understated look.The keyboard works fine as does the fingerprint scanner, I wasn't keen on the touchpad at first but I'm getting used to it. It feels fine moving your finger left and right, but up and down there is resistance but you do get used to it and it works fine. The palm wrest area is the same brushed aluminium as the lid and it stays nice and cool which is nice. Overall I'm happy, just wish Clevo would offer an illuminated keyboard!! As far as PCS are concerned I can't fault the build, everything fits flush and there's no creaking at all... top job.
The screen and performance:
First of all the screen... it's beautiful and perfect for my photographic needs. The colours are rich and faithful and there's no hint of glare. It also makes a change not having to clean the thing every 5 minutes like my old screen. My old laptop was only 2 years old but this one just blows it to pieces in terms of performance, the SSD makes a huge difference. I can have CS5 and Lightroom up and running whilst the old machine hasn't even made it to the login screen.
A few things I have noticed though... Firstly Windows Exp Index won't seem to run since I changed the power plan to high performance which is strange, secondly I got a scary blue screen whilst checking out youtube the other day (KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR) any ideas? It's been fine since then though so I'll see what happens. Very happy with the performance so far though especially when you consider what I'd have spent for the Alienware!Final thoughts:
I'm chuffed to bits with my new toy, and I think I owe PCS a big thank you for the brilliant way they dealt with my order, from initial configuring to final delivery I have nothing but praise and I'd definitely recommend them to anyone wanting a new PC build!
Finally here's some pics of my baby (Delilah
):
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