Lenovo IdeaPad Y510p 15.6-Inch Laptop (59406648) Dusk Black

Lenovo IdeaPad Y510p 15.6-Inch Laptop (59406648) Dusk Black..

Buy Lenovo IdeaPad Y510p 15.6-Inch Laptop (59406648) Dusk Black By Lenovo

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37 of 39 people found the following review helpful.
One-Of-A-Kind, But Beware Of Differences
By Joshua
Here's what's rotten--there are about a zillion different "y510p" models of the IdeaPad. So comparison shopping is extraordinarily difficult. This is compounded by the fact that, despite what some commenters are saying, this exact model number is *not* available on the Lenovo site. Even more hilarious is that contacting Lenovo support to ask details on the differences is a moot point--they'll tell you that, despite it being their product, if it's not listed on their website, they can't tell you about it.

So for more details on this exact model number (59406648), check out the listing on Tiger Direct. As I said, there are many, many different IdeaPad models, but that Tiger Direct listing has some more specifics (for example, on the processor).

Another thing to be wary of is all of the confusing information that exists about the Ultrabay. In terms of the Ultrabay, this exact model from Amazon comes with the second graphics card. So yes, it's a dual-graphics card setup straight out of the box--you do not need to upgrade this. I have to add that this might still be confusing when you first fire up this machine, because they give you all of the DVD software, including the burning suites.

But again--this does NOT come with a DVD or BluRay drive. You do get tons of bloatware though! A quick internet search will help you delete the garbage you don't need.

Performance-wise, this is amazing. It runs a little hot, but modern games on high settings play well, and don't seem to chug. The speakers (the JBL ones everyone's so hyped about) are nice and loud, but they tend to favor the mid-range.

That's the bulk of it. Everything else is pretty clear-cut, but I wanted to help anyone else who was a little confused about the lack of and/or conflicting information out there. Especially when it comes to other models--you *cannot* get this model many places, including Lenovo's own site, and it really is remarkable for the money! Thanks!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
The right laptop for this price-tag
By Saad Mohammad
This is my first days with the laptop and will update my review after sometime of using it.

I have been searching for this laptop for a long time. It is one of the most powerful laptops in graphics, with its dual Nvidia GeForce GT 755M GPUs it can run Battlefield 4 or even Assassin's Creed IV in ultra settings easily. Moreover, it has the 4th generation i7-4700MQ CPU and 16 gigabytes of ram. REALLY you can't find those specs in any laptop with a price less than 2000$.

Pros:
- Astonishing performance.
- New and great GPUs.
- Price-tag.
- Well back-light keyboard.
- Solid ports and build quality.
- Loud and clear JBL speakers.

Cons;
- Touch-pad clicking is not that good and two fingers supporting is not working well " I don't mean the scrolling ", they must update the app.
- The body of the laptop gets dirty easily from dust and finger-prints.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful.
It's Insane!
By FatedCb
This thing is a beast! It will play all the latest games and do daily task without breaking a sweat! If you are looking at getting the Y510p make sure you get this model, it has everything you need.

Pros:
Fast!
I7 processor
Sleek metal design
Matte 1080p screen
Decent webcam
Backlit keyboard with 2 different levels.
Stylish

Cons:
Runs a bit hot
Touchpad is a disaster
Fingerprint magnet(impossible to remove them too)
The ultrabay GPU's are still not on the market.
Slow 5400 rpm hdd(really is the only cause for slowdown on this laptop)

For a full review check out my youtube channel
User= FatedCb

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AmazonBasics 11.6 Inch Laptop and Tablet Case

AmazonBasics 11.6 Inch Laptop and Tablet Case..

Special Price AmazonBasics 11.6 Inch Laptop and Tablet Case By AmazonBasics

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218 of 225 people found the following review helpful.
How Did Amazon Manage to Do Better than the "bag companies" on This One?
By MWebb
Well I am simply surprised. I have 4-5 other netbook cases and this one is significantly better than all of them, for a lower price (a word on pricing later):

* The handles are the right thickness and "feel" - they aren't just webbing that seems like an afterthought and feels uncomfortable, they appear to be made of a thinner Neoprene style material with stitching on the "grab" area to create a nicely-formed, nice-feeling, handle. At first I thought there was a "stiffener" inserted in the handle area to give it more shape and "grippability," but apparently its just a good choice of materials and a well-executed design. You won't need any additional handle wrapper to be comfortable!

- I have another zipper case with a handle but would never feel comfortable carrying it by the handle around town. The handle is too flimsy to be comfortable and I don't trust the security of the construction/stitching. This AmazonBasics case is completely different. I feel like I can have my normal day back and carry this one by hand for quick and easy access on a commuter train or bus.

* The zipper, which runs only across the top and down each side about 2", is robust-looking - it isn't one of those "narrow gauge" flimsy looking zippers (technically, it is a "coil" not a "flat lock" design).

* As another reviewer mentioned, the zipper tabs are large enough to find and operate quickly and easily, and they are a "soft rubber" that feels good to the touch. One minor negative is the large "amazon basics" lettering on the zipper pull. Actually it is beginning to grow on me - yeah baby, I am too cheap (and too smart?) for Belkin or Built! (And got a better designed product.)

* There is NO zipper or "single stitch seam" at the bottom of the bag. Look carefully at some other designs. Make sure that when you send the bag down there is actual padding on the bottom of the bag so the netbook won't "slam" down hard on the table top, floor, etc. Some bags are just Neoprene panels that are sewn together at the seams along the perimeter, and the stitching compresses the Neoprene at the perimeter so it can't do its cushioning job.

- My netbook nestles between the "panel seams" (the bag has two flat side panels, then a perimeter panel to give it width, just like a "normal," larger bag) and rests on normal thickness Neoprene.

* Because the zipper isn't full length on the sides (you only need the zipper across the top, it is plenty wide, for getting the netbook in and out), there is less risk of failing to close the zipper completely and having the device slip out one end.

* The inside of this bag is ORANGE so you can easily make sure you haven't left something inside.

* There is a zippered side-slot on the exterior of the bag which may, in fact, be large enough for a Nook as another reviewer noted. There is ample room for a typical power brick with cord, although that would pretty much ruin the appearance of the bag for carrying, but would be helpful for transiting security (if you have to remove power bricks as well as small computers).

- I checked this side-slot for use with both an external DVD player and with a couple of external hard drives. All fit with room to spare (well, not at the same time!).

- My preferred use for this side slot is to carry memory sticks and an older (3rd gen) iPod Touch. The Touch "boots up" much more quickly than a netbook for quick email and Facebook monitoring.

Recommended modifications/usage adjustments:

- I will put some orange duct tape on one handle so I can keep a better eye on this through airport security (although I try to put my computer bag under my shoes and jacket in the bin through security).

- If I end up not liking the Amazon zipper pulls, it is a simple job to cut them off and replace with lanyard style zipper pulls from REI or other sources. But I think I will keep the stock zipper pulls.

- I will probably find an extra microfiber cloth and roll it up length-wise and lay it down across the entire width of the bottom seam to add extra padding there. It's always handy to have a microfiber cloth around anyway, for wiping the screen on the netbook (not required often) or for wiping my iPod Touch screen (required more often).

- I won't store the power brick in the side slot. I don't like the bulge, not for appearance reasons so much as because it creates a potential pressure point against the netbook side. I will store a DVD player or external hard drive if I decide to carry one (the DVD player is useful for playing DVD's purchased on a trip, the external hard drive is useful if I am taking a low-capacity netbook in which I have installed an SSD - solid state drive - instead of a conventional hard drive).

- I probably won't carry this around like a mini-attache. But the handles are almost indispensable in getting a secure grip on the case when inserting the case and netbook into my daily carry pack or into a laptop slot in carryon luggage. The greatest risk of damage is when we pull the case out of our other bag or put it back in, and handles GREATLY reduce the risk of slipping and dropping during those moments.

- During storage at home, I will separate the battery from the main unit so it doesn't discharge, and the side slot is a perfect place to put it (diagonally).

A WORD ON PRICING: Amazon's prices on EVERYTHING fluctuate like the commodities market. This nice piece is selling for 20% less than when I bought it just last week (10 vs 12). You need to compare prices to other netbook bags an other online and bricks and mortar dealers before you buy so you don't get irate later! (At 12 bucks it was a bargain at 10 it's a steal!)

169 of 180 people found the following review helpful.
Works great with my iPad.
By Zulma Johnson
UPDATE 12/03/2013: Going on three years and I am still using this bag for now my iPad 3G. No rips or tears. Has a few stains from coffee spills, but that is about it. Love how the side pocket is expandable/stretchable, I can fit all kinds of extra accessories into it. By far the BEST bag out in the market!

This is the perfect iPad carrying case. I already use the official Apple iPad Case that folds over to protect the iPad from daily use, but now I will be able to carry it without worrying it will slip from my hands. I have been searching for a quality made carrying case with handles that would make it easier to carry my iPad from place to place. The AmazonBasics Netbook bag has been the answer. Unlike other iPad carrying cases I have been eyeballing, this Netbook bag is extremely affordable. The rubber grip zippers operate with ease and it is padded for added protection. I can even fit my iPad in it's case inside this bag without having to jam it in, there is plenty of extra room to spare. The side compartment is great to store my portable AC power adapter and digital camera. Great product.

96 of 103 people found the following review helpful.
Amazingly roomy for such a compact bag!
By Jennifer Ray
Since I bought my netbook, I've been on the hunt for the perfect small case to tote it in. Almost every case I've used has been lacking in some way, but the AmazonBasics Netbook Bag with Handle comes the closest to the perfect case for me of anything I've tried thus far.

Yes, I said it comes the closest, which implies there is something missing, so I'll start with that. It's a pretty minor thing, really, which is why I think the bag still deserves 5 stars. The only thing I would change is I would add a detachable shoulder strap. It's a small detail and one easily remedied by purchasing a universal shoulder strap to it. But if it already had that feature, it would be perfect in my eyes.

Let's move on to what I really appreciate about this case. First and formost, it fits my 10" Asus 1000HE very well while maintaining a small form factor that easily fits inside a larger case. The handles make it easy to pick up and run with when you want to leave the larger case behind and just tote the netbook with you.

On top of that, the zippered side pocket is roomy enough to hold the power adapter for my netbook without `squishing' it. Similar cases have had pockets that were too tight and worried me that they may damage the cable if I stuffed it in them. Not only can I fit the power adapter, but I also keep a Bluetooth mouse in that pocket.

The case has a small bit of padding all around, sufficiently protecting the device with just enough cushion.

If you've been looking for a small netbook bag that can double as a sleeve or an easy-to-tote case on the go, the AmazonBasics Netbook Bag with Handle is for you!

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Cooler Master NotePal X3 Laptop Cooling Pad with 200mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-NPX3-GP)

Cooler Master NotePal X3 Laptop Cooling Pad with 200mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-NPX3-GP)..

GET Cooler Master NotePal X3 Laptop Cooling Pad with 200mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-NPX3-GP) By Cooler Master

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454 of 471 people found the following review helpful.
Cooler Master - The Best
By Vince
I didn't purchase this product through amazon but I wanted to add this review regardless as I often do use amazon to either purchase products or read reviews about products that I am interested in buying. I thought this review might help someone else out just as the many reviews I have read here over the years have helped me out on occasion. So here's my story.

I went into the store to get a laptop cooler for a laptop who's gpu runs very hot. I brought the laptop with me of course so that I could make sure whichever cooler I got would be the best fit and provide the best cooling to the affected area. The guy that was helping me was kind enough to let me try a few of them out right there in the store. I narrowed it down to two, this Cooler Master X-Slim and a Thermaltake Massive 23. While the Thermaltake looked very cool with its blue leds and seemed to be pretty well made, the Cooler Master was the winner. It cooled the laptop down a good 10 degrees more than the Thermaltake. Not to take anything away from the Thermaltake, it was also a very nice product, but I have been very satisfied with the products that I have gotten from Cooler Master and this is no exception. I am pleased with the peformance of the X-Slim. It is a great cooler for a great price.

P.S. There are two other things that I liked about this product, one is that the laptop fit very snugly on it, and two is that it has flip down tabs on the back with rubber feet, similar to what you would have on a keyboard for a desktop computer, so you could either lay it flat or have it on a slight incline.

79 of 84 people found the following review helpful.
Looks Nice/ Works Nice Too
By Shadow
i have gone through 3 other cooling pads, the coolermaster U2, the thermaltake massive, and this other unbranded one that had 2 big fans, well this looks a lot nicer then the thermal massive one, and it cools a looot better. the way the blue LED's light up the fan looks pretty sexy actually, now it is very big, and it isn't very portable, now if you don't care about looks then get the u2/u3, those fans are actually really strong and are a little more quite then the fan on this one, they basically cool the same though, its just the base isn't as nice. Some people say they have a laptop slipping problem but mine doesn't slip off... also the "palm cooler" dosn't really blow out too much air, but it keeps the hands a little bit cool, especially if your laptop gets hot... but overall the product is really nice, a little pricey but good non the less

edit/week 2
-well some things i have noticed in the past week, the first think is the serial number sticker came right off, the rubber feet on the bottom of the laptop are unsticking and are somewhat fallng apart, and now when i have it on full with my laptop on it makes a weird sound... im sure it is fine but the sound scares me

edit/week 4
-well i have noticed that the fan is actually supposed to make that sound when it is on full blast so that's fine, also the rubber feet aren't glued on the bottom they are actually clipped on in some way so that's why it looked like it was unsticking, i have moved it around a lot and it still works great, but another thing thing bad that i noticed was that it makes a nasty burning plastic smell, i don't know if its just because it blowing the hot air and it just smells like it or not, but whatever, also the metal top on it is actually getting quite slippery, when it is at the normal angle it is fine, but when you raise it with the pegs it slips very slowly down it, which is quite dangerous, overall i'm happy with this product, Definitely the best laptop cooler i have used

i would also like to add how well the fan works so here are the temperature of my CPU's 4 cores (in Fahrenheit)

W/O Fan (Regular Use)
Core 1- 100-110
Core 2- 93-109
Core 3- 97-109
Core 4- 104-112

W/ Fan (Regular Use)
Core 1- 93-102
Core 2- 84-100
Core 3- 90-102
Core 4- 93-106

as you can see in terms of everyday regular use like watching videos on youtube or just surfing the web it did keep the laptop about an average of 8 degrees cooler

W/O Fan (Gaming Use)
Core 1- 156-176
Core 2- 154-174
Core 3- 153-174
Core 4- 151-180

W/ Fan (Gaming Use)
Core 1- 140-163
Core 2- 135-158
Core 3- 140-165
Core 4- 140-172

As you can see the fan does help when you are hardcore gaming, keeping it around an average of 10 degrees cooler, which is significant

I would also like to add that this is not very comfortable on the lap with the back pegs sticking out, but with its regular position it feels okay, overall i lowered the rating to a 3 because this basically cools a little better thn the u2 that i had bought for 12 bucks, the only difference is that this cooler looks very cool and works when its on the lap, i will update this review next week as well if there are any other problems that arise

edit/ i have done some more tests on how well the fan works, i have updated the above information

115 of 127 people found the following review helpful.
Excellent as a 'passive' cooling pad.
By 80sGuy
I've been using an Xpad Slim for some time but they were cheaply made and broke in less than a year. After months of looking for something similar I came across the Coolermaster X-Pal. I received it today and out of the box it works just the same 'passively' except it also gives me the option to turn on a fan. Although the X-Pal is a bit thicker, quality is much better and the mesh surface is flat all across thus gripping my 17.3" laptop a lot better compared to the X-Pad slim -- which is 'arched' up on the center of the pad and makes my laptop spin around. The 'passthrough' USB-powered fan is approximately 6 inches in diameter and housed inside the center of a heavy-duty plastic base. There are also multiple cooling vents on all angles from the bottom and sides. The USB plug is neatly tucked away flushed underneath to the base, and the cord is managed and conceals in the same manner. This is excellent for someone (like me) who chooses not to power the fan as often and uses the pad as passive cooling. The only time I use the fan is when I do home video renderings with Sony Vegas Movie Studio, this will help cool my CPU and Memory modules. Depending on your type of machine (I have Dell XPS17 w/ Intel Corei7, 8GB RAM), under normal usage with the fan on, this helped cool my laptop on average of about 4-6 Celsius during normal tasks....and I'm ready for summer!

The good:

- Quiet! You can hear the air but not the fan, and the air passes 100% through the meshed surface.
- USB power plug/cable conceals neatly without any obstruction.
- Very lightweight
- Tilt-able

The negatives:

- There are not enough internal support for the fan in between the mesh grill surface and bottom base. The fan is sandwiched between them and has less than 2mm of play reaching the surface. If the fan is turned on, it can easily be pushed upwards while moving around which can cause it to scrape the inner upper surface and produces a pretty nasty grind.

- The X-Pal itself has an overall rounded edge and corner design, but there ARE sharp protrusions stemming from the USB pass-through plug. The edges from the female end of the plug is not as sharp per se but the corners of it are very pointy which can give you a 'kitty scratch' if your hands are accidentally swiped. This can also damage your fabric or upholstery if not you're not careful. Again, I'm not worried because I will not be using the feature as much.

Overall this is an excellent product, so far it has served my purposes and I'm happy to have purchased it.

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Iwoo Sports Wireless Bluetooth Headset Headphone Earphone for Cell Phone Iphone Laptop Pc(red)

Iwoo Sports Wireless Bluetooth Headset Headphone Earphone for Cell Phone Iphone Laptop Pc(red)..

Grab Now Iwoo Sports Wireless Bluetooth Headset Headphone Earphone for Cell Phone Iphone Laptop Pc(red) By Masione

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45 of 47 people found the following review helpful.
Great Value!!!
By Andrew Arnold
This is the first Bluetooth headset I've owned. It's a no name brand from China so I didn't expect much. The instructions included are fairly useless, but I really had no trouble with the set up. I'm no audiophile so I can't speak to the quality of the sound because I use it when I'm walking for audiobooks, plus I've got a little bit of a tin ear. But it sounds clean and clear to me- no interference at all. When I got it, I was on my way for a walk, so I figured I'd try it out right away- no charging first. It lasted through the whole half hour walk. When I got home I charged it, and within a half hour it completed the charge. (I don't know how long the charge will last, if need be I'll update the review). As the title suggests, it's a great value- you'll pay this much for a regular set of wired headphones (Which I hate like Wile E. Coyote hates the Road Runner). So I'm very happy with the purchase.

BATTERY CHARGE UPDATE- I use these headphones for about 30 minutes every day and the charge lasted about 2 weeks before it needed a recharge. When the battery is low, you'll begin hearing 4 quick beeps every 15 seconds and then after a few minutes, it will shut off. Also, I forgot to mention that I'm a 'big and tall' guy so the back of my neck looks like a package of hot dogs, and I would describe the fit of the headset as snug. It's not too tight but almost, so if you're not a Heavy Chevy like me, they will probably fit perfectly comfortably.

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful.
First impression was disappointment, once I got it working, I am happy.
By msn yin yang
Received the headset and was eager to try it out. Looks sharp with the red and black styling. First fit was good for my small neck and ear buds sat comfortably in my ear. The red plastic covering the back of the neck was loose on one side. Tried to push it back but it did not stay. It wasn't a snap joi nt but it needed to be glued in place. No big deal. Will do that if I decide to keep it.

Unfortunately I will have to wait for some instructions before I can review the sound quality and pairing capabilities. I could not truth this unit on. There is one pin hole marked with on/off below it. Tried the usual paper clip method but can't feel any clicks and given the fragility of the product, I dare not pushed too hard. Waiting for others to comment on how to turn this unit on and off. If unable to do that, it is going back.

Update:
Vendor replied with options to return or replace it but I got it figured out and now testing the unit before final decision.

Do not stick anything into the pin hole. It is not a switch but the LED. What's mark as on/off is really the status led.

The instruction in the back of the packaging refers to a Bluetooth key, that's the play button or the center button. Hold that for about 5s to turn it on. This is also the talk and hang up button.

To pair, press the play button and hold it until it alternates between blue and red for paring, this can only be done from the off state.

To turn it off, Press the play button until you see it flash red. Let go of the play button.

To turn it on, press he play button until you see a blue light, let go of the button.

To answer or hang up, press the play button.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful.
affordable bluetooth headphones
By Michael
simple to use
works well
light wieght
last a few days off of a charge
fits fairly comfortably on most heads

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Cooler Master NotePal X2 Laptop Cooling Pad with 140mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-4WAK-GP)

Cooler Master NotePal X2 Laptop Cooling Pad with 140mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-4WAK-GP)..

Buy Cooler Master NotePal X2 Laptop Cooling Pad with 140mm Blue LED Fan (R9-NBC-4WAK-GP) By Cooler Master

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1071 of 1099 people found the following review helpful.
Really Cool!
By Johnny thunder
Currently, I own a 2008 Dell Latitude E6400, which always gets the "blue screen of death" from over-heating. Keep in mind, I often crossed my legs on my lap, allowing sufficient airflow to the cooling vent. I honestly thought notebook coolers were a niche product. Having had experience with the awful Targus PA248U1 Chill Mat, I had virtually given up on a notebook cooler being able to solve my alarming heat problem. However, I perused Amazon's site for a few hours and did my homework. I soon discovered the criteria that my prospective cooler needed to fit:

-College student's meager budget
-Solve severe laptop over-heating problem
-Style wasn't important. An ugly/effective cooler is better than vice versa.
-Casual web-surfing/movie-watching/paper-writing use. I don't need a gaming cooler, since I don't leave my laptop on for like 6-8 hours at a time.
-Ability to be used on the lap. I do lots of homework on the couch at my school's study lounge.
-Good Warranty when Amazon's return period expires
-Preferably one fan
-Preferably with an extra USB port
-Preferably a company that specializes in desktop/laptop cooling
-Most important: Something that will LAST a long time, more than 1 year.

Front-Runners

-Zalman NC-300U
-One fan, not-bulky, great workmanship, extra USB ports and fan control...man this had it all! While the price was a bit of a stretch (I still could have afforded it), it did not look lap-friendly at all.

-Antec "Classic" Cooler
-The three year warranty and trustability on the market since 2003 was really, REALLY tempting. However, the sole reason I did not choose this was that the wire adaptor looked very flimsy.

-X-Pad
-No fans, no electricity, cheap price, highly durable, effective rubber stoppers and beating out other coolers in a Cnet.com test made this very tempting! However, I have heard the customer service is non-responsive, the new rubber stinks and some users have reported the heat is transferred to their legs. Most of all, cooling ability depends on the laptop's design. Since my laptop's vent is on the side and not on in the center, I was skeptical. By the way, here is the link to that Cnet.com test:
[...]

-Thermaltake Massive23 LX
-This, in my opinion, was the most similar to my final decision. However, it looked really bulky and didn't seem suitable for lap use.

-Targus Lap Chill Mat AWE55US
-I really wanted to give Targus another chance, no hard feelings. It looked really roomy! However, it was reputed to not last longer than a year. After looking at the price against the reliability, I decided against it

-Cooler Master Notepal U2
-While the fan-positioning, price and #1 best-selling status made this a front-runner, I decided against this for 3 reasons: the fans weren't known to last long, the wiring was exposed and it wasn't good for lap use

-Logitech Cooling Pad N100
-The silent operation, rear-intake and how it was designed specifically for the lap was really tempting. However, the material looked flimsy, it was reviewed to not last long and the airflow was not adjustable. I needed a really strong fan.

First Impressions

When I opened to box, I was immediately struck by how much sturdier, classier and compact it looks in person. I was reading the reviews and I noticed some say its bulky, but for my needs, I don't find this an issue. I carry a leather briefcase in addition to my laptop backpack, so I'll just stick this in there so it doesn't get crushed.

Performance

I used a free program called CPUID Hardware Monitor to record the temperature with and without the cooler.

Without and wireless on (casual web surfing): 108 Degrees Fahrenheit
With (high speed) and wireless on (watching movie online): 100 Degrees Fahrenheit
With (high speed) and wireless on (casual web surfing): 98 Degrees Fahrenheit
With (high speed) and wireless off: 94 Degrees Fahrenheit

Pros

-The aluminum "mesh belly" dissipates heat effectively. I'd also imagine that it would make using a can of compressed air easy.
-Cool Light-up effect. Not only does it look space-age, but it lets you know that the cooler is on.
-On/Off Switch. As I have been told, this is more valuable than you think because detaching the USB cord while the fan is on could possibly shorten the cooler's life. I would turn it off first before disconnecting it
-Fan Control. Its stiff (indicating great build-quality) and responsive. At a touch or two below max level, it's still very quiet!
-Having one large fan instead of two smaller ones is rather nice. Not only is it quieter, but distributes heat evenly. Even though my laptop's main vent is located on the left side (as opposed to the "windier" center of the cooler), it still cools very well!
-Pop-out legs for height adjustment
-2 USB ports, one to connect your laptop and one to replace the USB port you gave up connecting this cooler. That means you don't give up any USB ports at all to connect this cooler to.
-Detachable USB cord is well-constructed. If you don't want to use up your laptop's battery, you can plug in the USB cord into an MP3/Cell phone charger.
-Unlike some other (especially more high-end) notebook coolers on the market, this can be used comfortably on the lap. While it does not have a mesh underside, the plastic is surprisingly comfortable and does not conduct any heat to my legs.
-1 year warranty

Cons

-Doesn't look easy to take apart to really clean inside the nook and crannies.
-Perforated edges don't hold my laptop securely. The crannies between my laptop and battery pack thankfully provide a good anchor to the cooler. A rubber stopper on the surface (like on the Cooler Master Notepal U2) or pop-up legs on the bottom (like on the Logitech Speaker Lap Desk N700) would have been nice.

To buy or not to buy...?

For day one, I'll let the performance speak for itself. However, I will keep you posted if anything arises.

Thanks for reading and good luck on your search!

211 of 214 people found the following review helpful.
Great cooler!
By Rebecca Beal
Unbelievable difference in temp!
My older HP was getting very hot to the touch on the top and bottom of the processor, my internal fan was running all the time, not any more.
My laptop stays on all day, I am an artist and have several programs running at the same time. I use a larger battery so I was concerned about the ergonomic design (elevation), its very comfortable, fits my 15" laptop just perfect.
The plastic seems very durable, and I appreciate the aluminium screen(grate)for its great air flow, the fan does blow up onto the bottom of the laptop. No sliding problem with the rubber feet on the bottom of my laptop.
Really quiet fan, even when I keep it on high.
I would highly recommend this product.

167 of 175 people found the following review helpful.
Does a great job
By Studio 1 Productions
This laptop cooler does a great job and the fan is VERY quiet.

This laptop fan blows air up onto the bottom of the laptop to keep it cool. While the fan doesn't blow a huge amount of air from the laptop cooler, it does blow out enough air to keep the laptop's temps lower than without it.

We used HWMonitor (a free program you can find on the web) to monitor the laptop temps. We notice a 7c to 9c temp drop of the CPU and a 6c temp drop of the hard drive.

Well worth the money.
[...].

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Thermaltake Massive23 LX Laptop Notebook Cooler Oversized 230mm Blue LED Fan USB CLN0015

Thermaltake Massive23 LX Laptop Notebook Cooler Oversized 230mm Blue LED Fan USB CLN0015..

GET Thermaltake Massive23 LX Laptop Notebook Cooler Oversized 230mm Blue LED Fan USB CLN0015 By Thermaltake

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144 of 153 people found the following review helpful.
Going out after a little over a year!
By Rob
EDIT 9/26/2012:

After a little over a year this cooler started getting a bit noisy, and clunky on start up... LED's still work fine, but despite cleaning it out as best as possible quite frequently it seems that the fan is wearing out on it which of course is making it less effective.. I also started to have issues with the USB cord ends being quite wiggly when plugged in which TT said is normal and ok... I contacted them again about the fan possibly wearing out and they said I could send it to them for repair, but no refund of shipping costs or anything... Guess I'll try a different cooler!

Original:
This thing is ABSOLUTELY AWESOME! got it under my 17" laptop, and within an hour of running, my laptop was ice cold! It runs quieter than my laptop does, and the blue glow from underneath just gives it an extra kick of awesomeness! its a little smaller than my laptop, but I find this to be a perk as I can store it in my laptop case on the go, Before this product, I had a monstrous Belkin Laptop Cooling Lounge... While it was nice to have the Belkin for propping up higher on my lap, its cooling capabilities can't even compare to the Massive 23x! Absolutely recommend to any laptop user..I also love the extra USB port that it gives me, and the on/off switch for the fan and leds for when it gets to cool, or just don't want the lights on... Storage for the usb cord is very nice as well.. The only CON I can think of really, is the USB cord is a bit long... but I'm sure that will come in handy at some point..

51 of 51 people found the following review helpful.
Over 3 years now and this laptop cooler continues to cool my laptop!
By Amazon Customer
MARCH 2014 UPDATE: Seriously. It's been over 3 years and this unit still works.

OCTOBER 2012 UPDATE: It has been almost 2 years since I purchased this product and it continues to work great. Not as quiet as when it was new but after 2 years and operating 24 hrs a day, I did not expect it to last this long. So, I have gone from an original 4 star rating to now a 5 star rating.

ORIGINAL 2010 PURCHASE REVIEW: Before I purchased this cooler for my 17" HP Pavilion Entertainment Notebook PC, the lap top would just shut down on its own due to over heating after I had been using it for about an hour give or take. I have been using this cooler now for about a month and there have been only a few times where I have turned off my lap top and the cooler. Otherwise, they are both running 24 hrs a day. At first I didn't think it was going to work because when I turned it on I felt very little air movement. But to my surprise, not once has my lap top shut down on its own, nor do I about scorch my fingers on the exhaust vent on the lap top. In fact the lap top's own cooling fan hardly seems to ever turn on. The metal mesh gets very cool to the touch so that might also have an additional cooling effect on the lap top.

The unit looks very nice, with or without the blue LED lights on and is very quiet. The handles are a great feature.

There is only one reason I don't give it a 5 star. Sometimes I like to use my lap top in bed and therefore if I place it on my lap the intake vents under the unit are blocked by my blankets. So I use a traditional lap top rest to place the cooler on top to give it the space it needs underneath. No big deal to me but it would be nice to see this unit have its own base attached.

So, over all I am very pleased with this purchase and would definitely recommend this product to my friends. Oh, and by the way, delivery was fast. I ordered the cooler on a Sunday with regular shipping and received it by that Friday of the same week.

187 of 210 people found the following review helpful.
Great cooler and highly recomended for increased performance!
By Christian A Sutter
Updated (Please see bottom):

I have a Dell Studio 1535 Laptop. I've never pushed my laptop hardware to the limits before and it will still get really hot over time but not slow down. So then why would I need a laptop cooler? Well, about 6 months ago I purchased StarCraft II.

My laptop's specs:
4 GB 667MHz RAM
Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 2.1 GHz Dual Core CPU
ATI Radeon HD Mobility 3450 256MB GPU
1440x900 resolution
15.6" screen

When playing StarCraft II I needed to set everything onto low settings (shaders to low, all lighting to low, effects to low, physics off, textures to low, and run at 1280x800 resolution). Even with everything low, my laptop got blistering hot and the framerate would drop significantly to 20fps or lower in more taxing gameplay making the experience difficult to play. The heat was incredible as well. My hand rests left of the touchpad in order to hotkey and that location gets burning hot.

I realized I needed a cooler. I looked between the 3 different Thermaltake coolers at the time and decided on this one. I have my USB Hub connecting my printer, mouse, and other items plugged into one of the USB ports on the cooler, while the other USB plug goes to my laptop. This way when I connect the cooler to sit down, all my devices are connected as well which is great, it is basically a dock. The cooling is also incredible on how well it improved my system.

Now I can't give you any temperatures but I can tell you how drastically my experience improved. I went from running the lowest settings on StarCraft II with bad framerate drops and a blistering hot computer to being able to bump my effects to medium and physics to low (my gpu bottlenecks my computer so I still keep the graphic settings to low), my computer is cool to the touch on the underside and the spot where my hand rests is warm instead of blistering hot, and my framerate never drops below 30fps whenever I play (even during 3 vs 3) making my experience much more enjoyable and easier to manage.

I highly recommend this if you want to cool down your laptop and improve performance. Heat isn't good for the hardware and most laptops can't dissipate heat very well at all. This is the perfect size for 15.6" laptops or less (anything bigger will overhang the cooler), and the 2 USB ports allow you to connect your USB dock into the cooler making the cooler a hub (you will need the USB ports on your laptop to be on the left or back, if they are only on the right you will need a USB extension to connect the cooler). Lastly, you will not need to worry about the noise of the fan, although it is powerful and large, it is very quiet. Quieter than my laptop's internal fan.

Update:
Now that I use certain programs like CPUID Hardware Monitor, I can give definitive numbers and shed light on an alternitive route. Withoug my cooler, playing StarCraft II. I could get my CPUs to upwards of 180*F while they would sit idle at about 120*F. My GPU would climb as high as 205*F under max stress and would sit idle at 160*F. These numbers are terrible in the computer world, especially for a laptop. By adding the cooler, my GPU would get no higher than 190*F, I cannot remember the CPU though.

However, I no longer need to use my cooler and can even run StarCraft II at my monitor's native resolution of 1440x900. The thing is, my computer is 3 years old. That means the thermal paste is 2.5 years older than it should be. I opened up my laptop, removed the heatsink/fan assembly and used ArctiClean to remove the old dried out thermal paste and disgusting thermal pads from the CPU/GPU/Northbridge/VRAM. I cleaned the heatsink and dusted the fan and computer the best I could with can of aerosol compressed air. I then applied Arctic Silver thermal paste (which I had left over from two other computers that magically worked when applying new thermal paste: My Xbox 360 and a 12 year old Windows 98 dekstop that used a Slot 1 CPU). Once that was taken care of I reattached the heatsink/fan and closed it up.

Be ready to be amazed... my max temperatures under max load now (when playing StarCraft II) are CPU 140*F and my GPU 170*F and this is without using the cooling pad. With the cooling pad, no difference so actually it doesn't help anymore. My computer runs cooler and no longer gets crazy hot on the wrist rests and the fan never runs max anymore unless playing a game. My idle temps are much much better too. CPU is 85*F and GPU is 127*F.

That is a huge difference. So, as a recommendation. Yes, this is a great Laptop Cooling Pad, but, if you're computer is old, even only 1 year old, and it is running hot and the fan is always blasting, it maybe cheaper and much more effective to replace the thermal paste on the chips. If you do not know how to do this, seek help from a friend with tech skills or go to youtube (which is actually very helpful).

Update #2:

I still recommend this cooler over a year later. I have since bought a new laptop, a really high performance Clevo P150EM, which has dedicated cooling for each the GPU and CPU. The thing is a beast and is designed to cool crazy temperatures. I still use the Dell though. I don't game with it at all but I do dock it to my desk by plugging in external speakers, ethernet, a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Essentially I use it like a desktop. It is more or less my media computer now used primarily for music, internet browsing, and backing up data from my other laptop.

I leave the Dell on 24/7 now with the screen down sitting on the Thermaltake cooler. Since I live in a dorm room at the moment, everything is in one room. The fan is always running and I never notice it, yet it does a great job at cooling. I haven't changed the thermalpaste in forever and don't plan to anytime soon. For what my laptop needs, it gets the job done. My current idle temps just using internet browsing: CPU 100*F (38*C), GPU 145*F (63*C), HDD 91*F (33*C), Mobo 110*F (44*C).

My final summation, it all depends on your laptop that you are using. It may need a thermalpaste reapplication, it may need a heatsink reseating, it may be fine and you're worried about exhaust air (exhaust air should be hot, it is an issue if the laptop is), it may need a cooling pad, it may be a combo of things. Most gaming laptops don't need a cooling pad since they are designed to cool high temps on their own. Multimedia and everyday use laptops may need a cooling pad if they run hot, especially on non-hardware intensive tasks like internet browsing.

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HP ENVY 15t Quad Edition Notebook Laptop PC

HP ENVY 15t Quad Edition Notebook Laptop PC..

Buy HP ENVY 15t Quad Edition Notebook Laptop PC By HP

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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful.
A Notebook to Envy
By Tyler Sloan
The Envy 15t-j000 is a high end laptop made by Hewlett-Packard that offers fast processing power with a 2.4 GHz Intel Core I7, and with the upgraded graphics option, can handle almost any game on the market. This machine is a good alternative for gamers looking to have a more portable option than a desktop computer or a heavy gaming laptop. After owning this computer for three months I have encountered very few problems with the machine. The overall build quality seems very solid and reliable, something I would expect from an $800 computer. The one terabyte hard drive is more than enough memory for the average user and the excess hard drive space means that very little management of the hard drive is required, as most users will not fill the one terabyte hard drive in the life of the computer. I have only used 170 gigabytes of the 905 gigabytes of available storage and have installed most of the programs that I need or enjoy using. I have never been a fan of touchpads, however the touchpad on the Envy 15t-j000 had surprisingly smooth motion on the screen and quite responsive. While this computer runs very quickly and provides the performance I required while remaining portable, I do have a few issues with the device. The most aggravating thing about the machine is the lack of an optical drive. When purchasing the computed I did not even think to check if it came with one because it seemed like it should be standard, however this laptop does not include one. This is easily remedied by purchasing and external CD-ROM drive, however it is an inconvenience especially when taking the computer places. The lack of the option to downgrade to Windows 7 was disappointing however Hewlett-Packard did a good job with integrating their own start menu when in desktop mode, a feature windows 8 lacks. This allows you to use Windows 8 just like Windows 7 which makes up for the lack of the optional downgrade. Overall, the performance, build quality, and large hard drive make this computer a good and reliable purchase that I would recommend to users looking for performance on the go. I have been very pleased with the computer so far and look forward to discovering what else the machine has to offer.

26 of 33 people found the following review helpful.
Jumpy touchpad ruins otherwise nice laptop
By M. Levine
I bought an HP Envy 15t (no touch screen, 4th gen i7 processor) direct from HP and I love it. The sales rep helped me make good choices to keep the cost down while giving me a perfectly usable PC. However, I was so unhappy with a small dopey feature that I was ready to send it back. The feature was the "touchpad" - that indented rectangle below the keyboard that is supposed to replace a mouse. It was so very horrible that it was ruining my life - that stupid indented rectangle. What the hell? Don't designers actually use these PCs or do they all use Macs? With the help of customer support, I enabled a hidden amazingly fantastic feature: now when I plug in a USB mouse, the whole damn touchpad turns into a cup holder. When I unplug the mouse, the touchpad comes back to life as a total piece of dogdoo.

Funny how a problem in a small component can render an otherwise wonderful PC almost useless. The problem, you wonder? I was forever unintentionally brushing the touchpad with the balls of my hands as I typed. At least that's what I suspect the problem to be. I never felt myself doing it but the cursor was always jumping around the page. With the touchpad disabled, I can now type complete sentences without checking to make sure that the cursor is still in place.

I would rate the HP Envy 15t a 1 of 5 with the touchpad enabled and a 4 of 5 with a mouse and disabled touchpad. If you buy it, invest a few bucks in a nice mouse.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
Great
By Meli
I just received my new laptop, I think it's awesome, at the beginning I had a problem with the battery it wasn't charging, but I solved the problem very fast, I would like to give to everybody the steps in case you have this problem.

steps

1) turn off you computer, remove the battery

2) turn on the computer ( without the battery)

3) go to pannel control, hardware and sound, device manager, then click in batteries, then click in the 2 options you have for the baterries ( microsoft AC adapter and, microsoft ACPI- comppliant Control Method Baterry)

4) once you did the uninstall, turn off the computer, now you can put the batery, and it supposed to work.

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Corsair Apple 8 GB Dual Channel Kit DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) 204-Pin DDR3 Laptop SO-DIMM Memory CMSA8GX3M2A1066C7

Corsair Apple 8 GB Dual Channel Kit DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) 204-Pin DDR3 Laptop SO-DIMM Memory CMSA8GX3M2A1066C7..

GET Corsair Apple 8 GB Dual Channel Kit DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) 204-Pin DDR3 Laptop SO-DIMM Memory CMSA8GX3M2A1066C7 By Corsair

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29 of 30 people found the following review helpful.
Great Product, & Easy to Install
By NetworkWraith
I have used lots of Memory modules over the years, and Corsair has come to be one of my top choices when making a purchase. I recently obtained the Corsair [Apple Approved] 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 1066 PC3-8500 DDR3 Memory for my Macbook Pro 13" (Late 2009 - 2010 model). The memory itself worked on boot up no issues, and as far as the installation on the macbook pro, its not so bad. Granted the install is a lot different than that of the white MacBooks, but it is still pretty simple. All that is required is a small screwdriver and some patience. There are many tutorials on how to do this on Youtube, pretty much its as simple as removing 10 little screws (I would highly recommend keeping them in order, as at least 3 of the screws are longer and must go back in specific holes) and having somewhere to place them safe so they don't fall or get lost. ** Of course as always due care is required when touching or changing components inside your computer, things like a simple static charge on your fingers can be an issue (like when you rub your socks on the ground and shock your friend... not so funny with a computer) **

One thing that I noticed while installing my memory, is that the memory type required by the macbook pro changed sometime between 2010 and 2011 so you may want to verify your memory type in "System Profiler" which can be found in your Utility Folder on your Mac. That will usually tell you how much memory you have and what type (i.e. DDR3 1066, or some other type). If you need to know your maximum allowable/recognizable memory, I would recommend searching your model number on Apples Support page.

As to system speed improvements going from 4GB to 8GB of memory, I have noticed that my multi-tasking does not slow my computer down as much, and some programs seem to work a little bit better with the extra memory.

MacBook Pro 13"
2.53Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo
8GB 1067 MHz DDR3 (The RAM I purchased and took out of my laptop was "1066", but the OSx calls it "1067" not sure why)
Lion OSx

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful.
Dead after two weeks
By JD
RAM worked very well in my MacBook Pro, easy installation, went without a hitch. Two weeks later I'm watching a movie and my computer goes into Kernel Panic, giving me a flashing grey screen and to restart. Turns out the RAM died WAY too quickly-and I'm very careful with my computers. Amazon was great about the exchange, had new parts to me the next day. Nice memory, pretty cheap, but definitely buy from Amazon and keep your package around...

26 of 32 people found the following review helpful.
Great Memory From Corsair, As Usual
By Ed
Does your Mac only have 4GB of RAM? Upgrading the memory in your system is still one of the quickest and easiest ways to boost its performance. Buying it from a memory company instead of Apple will save you TONS of money. Though, unlike high performance desktop memory, there aren't as many distinguishing factors when considering which SODIMM to buy. Pretty much all the major manufacturers have similar stated performance specs, so why would you choose Corsair's Mac Memory Kit over the others?

PROS:
- Great price
- Tested at Apple's compatibility lab
- Proven reliability
- Excellent support
- Lifetime warranty

CONS:
- Hard to remove from packaging

INSTALL & MEMORY TEST
Installing the Corsair Mac Memory kit in a 15-inch MacBook Pro was quick and easy, though I struggled a little bit trying to remove the modules from the plastic packaging. The memory was immediately recognized by OS X and everything ran quickly and smoothly. Rember verified the memory size, type and speed. The Corsair kit also passed memory tests with flying colors. Check out the Rember screenshots I uploaded to Amazon.

RELIABILITY, VALUE & SUPPORT
The timing for the CMSA8GX3M2A1066C7 is 7-7-7-20, which is the same as the kits offered by the other manufacturers. So then why would you consider the Corsair memory kit over the others? The most obvious is price. The Corsair kit has a very competitive street price. Did you know that Apple charges $400 for an 8GB memory kit?!

What might be less obvious is that the Corsair kit has been tested at Apple's compatibility lab. This ensures that the memory you buy has actually been tested to work with Apple's products. Though I'm sure that kits by other manufacturers have been tested for compatibility, the fact that Corsair went through the trouble of testing their memory at Apple, provides extra peace of mind and tells me that Corsair is willing to go the extra mile for their customers.

Additionally, Corsair's top notch support is always something to consider. Sure, like Corsair, many memory makers provide lifetime warranties, but how good is their support and how simple is the RMA process? If your Corsair memory goes bad, getting a replacement takes just a few short steps and their turnaround time is very reasonable. If you're in a hurry, you can even request an advance replacement (provided that you give them a credit card #, just in case you don't return the defective memory).

CONCLUSION
You can buy memory for your Mac from anybody, but why would you? You'd might as well get it from a company known for high-performance, reliable memory, who actually tested their memory at Apple's lab. The 8GB Corsair Mac memory kit is a terrific value and I recommend it to anyone looking to maximize their Mac's performance without sacrificing reliability or top notch support.

* Review sample provided by Corsair.

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MSI GE70 Apache Pro-012 17.3-Inch Laptop

MSI GE70 Apache Pro-012 17.3-Inch Laptop..

Buy MSI GE70 Apache Pro-012 17.3-Inch Laptop By MSI

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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful.
Great Laptop
By Cali
(I bought this laptop at a local Fry's but I wanted to review it here) I have been using this laptop to run The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim on ULTRA HIGH settings all maxed with no lag. I get 60 FPS and when running bandicam, it stays the same! No drop of FPS.
Some people do not like Windows 8, and not having the start menu was very annoying, but I have adjusted perfectly by installing a program called Start8, which has a start menu that looks great for the windows 8 theme (you can also change it to look like the windows 7 start menu). The program is $5 though, so if you are looking for a free alternative I suggest "Startisback".

This laptop does not come with bloatware but comes with NVIDIA Control Panel (which is on pretty much all NVIDIA rigs), SteelSeries Engine (which lets you change the keyboard settings, macros, and LED color), Dragon Gaming center, and a few more. They are all useful.

This is a pretty new laptop, as it was recently added to my local stores and amazon.

MSI is actually not a cheap brand. MSI is most known for good computer parts, but they also make great computers.

PROS:
- Fast
- No Lag
- Newer GPU
- Light up keyboard (you can set the color of the LEDs to anything you want)
- Portable
- Not heavy
- Large clear display
- No glare on display
- You can switch between intel integrated graphics and the NVIDIA GeForce 860m GPU to save battery. (Use intel integrated graphics while web browsing, etc, and use the NVIDIA GeForce when gaming or using graphically intense programs)

CONS:
- Computer gets warm when gaming, but I just made sure the left side (where the vents are) were ventilated and it was fine.
- Games lag when the laptop is unplugged and running on battery (but this happens with pretty much all laptops I know of)
it doesnt make popcorn

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
Portability, Excellent Design, and Powerful
By Misty
Purchased this laptop over the similarly priced Destroyer with the GTX870M GPU for the style and portability that this unit offers. It is also the most powerful Maxwell GPU available in a laptop currently (870 and 880 are both slightly modified Fermi based units).

Stuff you want to know:
- It appears to be running the Maxwell 860M, supported by clock speed and part number.
- There is one 2.5' bay (filled with an excellent HDD), two mSATA slots, and two RAM slots (filled with an 8GB and 4GB). Accessing any of these will require breaking a warranty seal.
- According to MSI the warning seal is "preventative" and they don't actually deny service when broken, still -1 star for the scare tactic.
- Laptop runs shockingly cool for a rig of this power. 45C at the bottom and 65C at the exhaust port after 30 min. of BF4 on Ultra.
- There are some glitches. Relatively minor thus far, but you should expect this on a system this new.

Pros:
- Extremely appealing aesthetic design, not the typical garish gaming rig.
- Most powerful overall unit in this price range that will still fit in your backpack!
- GTX 860M performs fantastic with the new 337.50 driver. 1080p Max settings on everything!
- HDD is excellent, for a HDD. Absolutely the fastest HDD based laptop I have ever used.
- Keyboard is fantastic. Easily the best laptop keyboard I have ever used, and the color effects can be configured to your preference.
- Screen is extremely good for a matte solution.

Cons:
- Ships with an outdated GFX driver that wont run anything. 337.50 Beta drivers were released today (4/7/2014) and are the only alternative to the shipped version. No issues with 337.50 thus far, but given the Beta status I suspect I will find something broken before long.
- Really should be using at least a small hybrid SSD to be called a modern gaming laptop, but as I said the included HDD isn't bad for what it is.
- Must void warranty to install RAM, add an SSD, or clean the crap out of the fan? -2 stars for this alone, FIX IT MSI!
- Sound Blaster presets are extremely poor. DTS and Dolby have had some wonderful innovations in the past decade, Sound Blaster is still the same as they were back in the 90s from a preset perspective.
- Integrated speakers are disappointing. Midrange and Bass are completely gone. If you only listen to Banjo riffs this should be perfect for you...
- Windows 8.1. It's not MSI's fault, but sometimes I wonder how Microsoft can be so out of touch. Metro was and is a huge flop in the mobile space on Windows Phone, what makes them think it will be a different story here?
- It is configured out of the box with a dynamic disk! That's bad news for those of you who want to add an SSD as you will almost certainly end up reimaging the entire thing.
- Occasional low level crashes that cause the device to completely power down without warning. Able to reproduce this 100% in the boot recovery menu->advanced->boot options. Wait a few seconds after it boots into the utility and it will crash. Have seen it twice randomly in windows.

I'll update this review if anything significant happens over time.

Update: I installed the SSD, what a pain! Use the "Burn Recovery" utility to create a set of backup DVDs or flash drive, then install the SSD (remove the HDD even if you are using an mSATA for now), hold F3 on boot, run recovery disk, proceed thru recovery, after booted into new OS install open disk management, delete the data partition, expand the OS partition to fill the space. If you are doing an mSATA drive you will also need to: connect HDD to USB with adapter, use Acronis True Image to wipe all of the old windows 8 partitions (cant do this in drive management), reinstall HDD in SATA bay, and finally format with a new MBR NTFS partition in drive management. If this process description does not make sense I would strongly suggest you buy one of the models with an SSD included!!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
MSI GE70 Apache Pro with GTX860m
By jhughy
I have had this laptop for the better part of four days and have had a chance to play around with it, game with it, tinker with it, so I think that I can post an honest review for the few days of ownership. If there are any updates to my review I will be sure to post them as well.

Four stars is what this laptop will get from me thus far, which I believe is an honest and fair score (albeit a relatively positive score) considering:

Pros: For the price, this laptop is relatively a good value. I have been reading reviews on gaming laptops for the better part of the past year now, and I can say that the new GTX860m packs a pretty good punch for what you pay for. (I'm assuming that a majority of purchasers will be buying for gaming as well). The 860m is quite a bit faster than the 765m and supposedly requires less energy. I was playing BF4 on Ultra (1080p) on a large conquest 64 player map whilst getting a steady frame rate of 40. The low frame rate was around 28 whilst the high frame rate was 58 (these are frame rates that were sustainable that I could physically see in the upper left corner while running FRAPS).

It comes with a 7200 RPM HDD which is a decent upgrade from the 5400 RPM drives gaming laptops usually come with. My previous laptop had a 5400 RPM HDD which was very sluggish.

The case is beautiful, sleek, thin and relatively light. If you are considering between the GT series and the GE or GS series I would recommend stopping by your local Fry's and putting hands on all three. I personally was going to get the GT or the Asus ROG 750 series but I ended up not liking how bulky they were once I was hands on with them. The GE is much more nimble than the GT.

The sound quality from the laptop speakers are incredible for laptop speakers. They play plenty loud and can easily fill a small room with noise.

Cons: The fan is incredibly loud especially during gameplay. I guess this is the trade off as I assume the GT series does not get as loud with the larger base and rear blowing fans. I've noticed that during gameplay the CPU and GPU get rather hot. I ran HWMonitor as the high was in the 90's C for CPU and the 80's C for GPU. MSI could have done a much better job with the temps if they'd use higher quality thermal grease and heat pipes from the factory.

So far the fan is really my only con (besides maybe some of the bloatware and other gimmicky software).

Note (to user and MSI): I'm frustrated that it costs a premium for any small upgrade. If I wanted to get an SSD in place of the HDD I should be able to do this with only paying for the difference between the two (instead of retail price and then some). Same goes for other components. I know that their are companies that allow for upgrades on the MSI (xoticpc) but even they charge a premium for any upgrade. It's cheaper to do some upgrades (HDD to SSD and memory) yourself after the laptop arrives (but then you run the risk of voiding warranties I assume).

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AmazonBasics 11.6-inch Laptop / Chromebook / MacBook Air Sleeve

AmazonBasics 11.6-inch Laptop / Chromebook / MacBook Air Sleeve..

Grab Now AmazonBasics 11.6-inch Laptop / Chromebook / MacBook Air Sleeve By AmazonBasics

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38 of 42 people found the following review helpful.
My MacBok Air Loves this - Unbelievable Value
By Steve H
Firstly, this AmazonBasics 11.6-inch MacBook Air Sleeve is just that: a sleeve. It's not a case to travel with, there is no handle. However, there are many uses for a sleeve. It protects your computer on your desk at home or work when you are not using it. Furthermore, if the briefcase, messenger bag, or backpack you carry your computer in doesn't have quite as much padding as you would like in the computer compartment or it's not quite snug enough, the form fitting sleeve is perfect to add that extra protection for your cherished and costly device.

I love having the sleeve on my Macbook Air at my desk when not in use. This way I don't have to worry about a pen, or anything else with a sharp edge scratching it, etc. It's just that little protection when not in use.

With the AmazonBasics sleeve priced so low. What's not to love?

The quality? The quality is superb! Honestly, I have seen sleeves from other manufacturers easily costing 3x this much at the same quality level. The Air fits securely in the sleeve, it's not too tight and not too loose, as the description says "precise fit." It's perfect for the MacBoook Air.

Furthermore, as long as you insert the computer all the way into the sleeve and carefully close the zipper, there is just enough space and cushion that we hopefully won't have to worry about the zipper coming into contact with the computer. Still, I wouldn't carry the sleeve with the computer's weight pushing down against the zipper. Naturally, still be careful with the computer in the sleeve. If you have an impact, the computer can certainly still be damaged.

Overall, whether you use a sleeve to store your computer around the home or office, or use it as extra protection in computer bag, this sleeve won't let you down. The price is oh so right, and the quality is oh so good. Thanks Amazon. Highly Recommended!

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful.
Nice, but too big for a MacBook Pro Retina...
By Shopaholic
This sleeve seems to be very well made. The neoprene is sufficiently thick, and the zipper seems sturdy. However, it's much too loose for a 2013 Macbook Pro Retina 13.3". It is still usable, but the sleeve is a lot larger than what I would prefer.

35 of 43 people found the following review helpful.
At first I had my doubts, but I grew to like this
By Joseph Siegler
First off, what this is not. It is NOT a laptop bag. It is described with the word "sleeve" in the title, and that is a surprisingly accurate description.

Now I didn't think I was buying a laptop bag, but when it arrived, and I saw it just a sleeve, I thought "Well, this can't be the primary transport if I want to bring a mouse and a power brick and all that". So I was mildly disappointed in that.

But I put my laptop in there, and to my surprise it worked well as a protective sleeve, hence the name. Once I got over the initial disappointment (which I admit was mostly self induced), I grew to like this. For those times when I am NOT taking all the stuff with me (power brick, mouse, etc), I can just carry this, and the overall package is lessened by not having my full laptop bag with me.

There's some room in here, it's not a tight fit for me, and due to that, I can also put my iPad in here as well, and there's plenty of room. So it's a nice carrying bag (er, sleeve) for my laptop and iPad together (should I bring them both, which happens sometimes).

If I do need the full laptop bag, I can put this entire sleeve inside the larger laptop bag as well, so in the end I ended up liking this a lot.

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