Buying Advice: Because we can: High-End Gaming Notebook feat. OCZ Octane 1 TB
Category : System Requirements
Published by Marc Büchel on 26.06.12
This buying advice is a bit different from the ones you usually find here on ocaholic. About one week ago we received an OCZ Octane SSD with 1 Terabyte capacity. We have been asking ourselves what would be the the most "useful" setup for this insane device. So finally we come up with a buying advice for a super high-end gaming notebook. And yeah, we're aware that the thing is - let's say - quite expensive.



System components

Basis Notebook: XMG P702 Pro Gaming Notebook 17.3'' 1919.- CHF 1599.- EUR
Processor: Intel Core i7-3920XM / 2.90 - 3.80 GHz + 1151.- CHF + 959.- EUR
Memory: 4 x 8 Gigabyte RAM+ 288.- CHF + 240.- EUR
Graphics card: NVIDIA GTX 680M + 528.- CHF + 440.- EUR
Solid State Disk: Intel 520 Series SSD 240 Gigabyte + 287.- CHF + 239.- EUR
SSD Mass Storage: OCZ Octane 1 TB + 2'549.- CHF + 2124.- EUR
DVD/CD burner: DVD SATA Multinorm Writer + 0.- CHF + 0.- EUR

Subtotal:   6719.-  CHF 5601.- EUR

Brief description

The basis for our "slightly" extravagant Gaming Notebook is a MYSN Schenker Notebook. To be a bit more precise it is a XMG P702 Pro with a 17.3 inch FullHD display. So, the only suitable CPU for an absolute High-End Gaming Notebook is a Core i7-3920XM processor, which comes with a default clock of 2.90 GHz and a turbo clock of 3.80 GHz. Furthermore there is also plenty of memory. In fact there is 32 Gigabyte of it, which is enough to do some serious RAM caching with, for example Super Cache. This is going to bring you quite a substantial performance boost for everyday usage. Of course there should also be an adequate graphics chip. With a dissipation power of 100 Watt the GTX 680M isn't exactly low on power but that's really not what it should be. In fact, it's the fastest mobile graphics chip available at the moment. But lets step ahead to the heart of this beast. First of all there is a 240 Gigabyte Intel 520 Series SSD for the operating system and the programs you use most and second there is a 1 Terabyte OCZ Octane SSD. In fact OCZ is the only manufacturer who has this kind of "because we can" 1 Terabyte SSD for the mainstream market. Sure it's horribly expensive but there are some gamers out there who do not care about how much their setup costs. So this SSD let's them put their entire Steam folder onto one single SSD. As you can see in our SSD Charts the performance isn't bad either. Between 300 and 450 Megabyte per second for the sequentials and between 22'000 and 32'000 random IOPS. Those numbers and figure are really good enough to launch games quicky.

Dispaly and Peripherals

Display: HP ZR2740w, 27'' 664.- CHF 553.- EUR
Keyboard: Corsair Vengeance K60 122.- CHF 102.- EUR
Mouse: Saitek Cyborg R.A.T. 9 Gaming Mouse 122.- CHF 102.- EUR
Mousepad: SteelSeries 9HD 44.- CHF 37.- EUR

Subtotal:   952.- CHF 793.- EUR

Brief description

Concerning the display we recommend an HP 27 inch TFT with native FullHD resolution and LED background light. Tanks to the LEDs the display comes with good brightness and it is energy efficient. Furthermore the display comes with an IPS panel, which offers excellent image quality. Mouse, keyboard and mousepad come from Saitek, Corsair and SteelSeries. For the keyboard we recommend the Corsair Vengeance K60 which has been equipped with mechanical switch for longevity. The Saitek Cyborg R.A.T gaming mouse is highly customizeable and suits almost every gamers needs. Futhermore it's also very good looking. As for the mouspad we recommend a 9HD from SteelSeries which is not only comfortable but also very accurate.
If you should be thinking about buying this entire configuration you'd have to pay CHF 7'627.- (est. EUR 6'356.-). The price is without obligation.
Total:   7'671.00 CHF 6'393.- EUR


Pleas feel free to use the comment system below or our Forums to tell us what you think about this configuration. If you have ideas for improvement(s) we'd happily read them. Please always consider that the price should stay withing the given borders.

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