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Well I got my new laptop... here is my review for any interested,
If you read Custom PC Magazine then you may be aware of this company who have won the Dream PC competition in the past. Kobalt are an established small company who construct high end gaming PC’s and Laptops.
After my Dell XPS1530 broke I was in need for a new laptop that I would use for work and gaming. Because I use it for work any laptop larger than a 15.6†starts to become unpractical for lots of travel and as I use in front of clients it needed to look professional.
Having had a not so good buying experience with Dell last time (I was nearly able to speak fluent Indian by the end) I was also looking for a company that delivered good customer service as well as a good product.
I spent a long time researching gaming laptops from many companies including Asus/Alienware and finally came across the Clevo brand. Clevo don’t actually sell laptops in the UK themselves but there are a number of re-sellers that do, Kobalt are one of them.
Looking at the over whelming positive comments on their forum, plus the flexible customisation led me to choose Kolbalt. I also was impressed that you can actually speak to people that actually know what they are talking about - in fact if you call them you will speak to one of the Directors. The Directors can always be found on there forums and don't shy away from issues. All these things gave me confidence.
The Laptop
The G860 is a 15.6†high end gaming laptop that has a truly remarkable base spec built around the Intel Core i7, GeForce GTX285M and 4GB DDR3 PC3-1066 and starts at £1329.
I’m not going to list all the components as its possible to customise and upgrade to just about any combination you want (example there are 11 different hard drive choices) – you can see the full spec here:
Welcome to Kobalt Computers - G860 15.6" Notebook Specifications
My version has an 160gig Intel SSD, i7 820 and 1900x1080 screen.
When I compared the spec with other laptops I wasn’t able to find any others that matched the spec of this machine or the price.
The delivery time quoted was 7-10 days but I experienced a number of delays during the build which took the actual delivery time to nearer 28 days. The reason for this delay was that shortly after ordering the laptop they moved from the GTX280 to the GTX285 and the initial batch they received were faulty.
When it did finally arrive it was well packed and certainly matched my expectations. Its sometimes difficult to really see what a laptop is like when all you have is marketing pictures – so here are some real life ones.
As you can see it’s certainly not ‘bling’ and it’s thicker than most laptops as it has a lot of high end kit inside that needs to be kept cool. It weighs in at around 3.3kg, which is fine for carrying around.
I’ve found from early use that the extra thickness at the front (compared to my XPS) takes a little getting used to but in no way awkward. The one design point I was a little worried about was the keyboard.
Hopefully the pictures illustrate the different type of keyboard – more like an iMac. The inclusion of a separate set of number keys (like a normal external keyboard) is nice but is also different to standard laptop keyboards. The keyboard is nice and solid and well built but these differences mean I have to re-learn my touch typing.
The issue that worried me was the noise. Given the high end nature I didn’t expect this laptop to be silent – my old XPS could certainly pump out the noise when under load. The cooling is handled by 2 fans with the hot air pumped out the back via 2 vents.
It appears to do a fine job of keeping it cool (my old xps used to get really hot under the palm rests) but there is more noise than my XPS. I am relieved that it doesn't ever get 'too' loud. However if you are looking for a silent laptop then you may want to think before ordering this one - that said 'silent' and 'gaming' are not two words you will ever get in this type of laptop.
Performance
This is where it matters.
This machine is very fast. To give you a comparison my home pc is based on a Core i7 920, Asus PT6 Deluxe, 6gb Ram and ATI 4870 1gb and has a 3dmark06 score of 14794.
My Kobalt 860m scores 12537 in 3dmark - only about 10% slower than my large desktop pc.
I've only had chance to play TF2 and L4D2 but I have a solid 60fps with everything maxed - plus I'm running a 1900x1080 screen which makes it even more impressive.
Add the performance from the Intel SSD and my laptop is better than my desktop.
So if you are looking to invest a lot of money in a gaming laptop then I have to say that currently you will be hard pressed to find a machine that can beat the Kobalt. It may not be to everyones styling taste but performance cannot be matched.
In summary here are the pros and cons (for me)
Pros
- Competitive pricing compared to rivals
- Incredible performance.
- Understated design - looks professional.
- Unrivalled customisation options.
- Kobalt know what they are talking about and stay close to their customers.
Cons
- Any delays or problems are likely to impact your delivery date - mine was delayed 2/3 times.
- At times its difficult to get through on the phone - there's only really one person answering it.
- Once you place your order everything is currently done manually which means updates and communication can appear slow.
If you have any questions then please feel free to ask.
Oh yes - and would I buy again from Kobalt..... yes I would.
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