This will be a fairly short review of my new 15.6'' Optimus V laptop I just received from PC specialists less than two weeks ago. I’d like to outline some of the strong points of this machine however I’ll be also making a bit of emphasis on the service I got from PC specialists rather than going into much detail on the machine itself. This is due to fact that as many of the people in this forum may know, the Optimus v is based on the Clevo W355SSQ chassis which has been reviewed a handful of times by external sites such as notebookcheck, for an in depth review of this machine I strongly recommend you to visit their site.
Just as I mentioned before there has been a number of reviews on this laptop in its many configurations and were this positive reviews that made me go for that one. There is not much to say about the build quality although there are some reviewers that complain about a “plastic” look I would say that unless you come from an all stainless steel elitebook or something like that you will notice that the Optimus v (Clevo W355SSQ) is a very sturdy and robust machine. The overall design is simple and slick, not flashy gimmicky brand led lights or odd shapes which I certainly couldn’t care less about as I’m all about the performance.
This machine is a beast, at least on the configuration I choose, the Maxwell version of the new gtx860m goes like a hot knife through butter while gaming on high settings on 1080p. Just to give an example, after I finished setting up the machine last week I started playing assassins creed 4 black flag on high settings and have been playing it smoothly nonstop since then (it’s quite a long game) without any lag or overheating problem as the machine handles heat quite efficiently, what takes me to my next point.
The fan noise level while gaming is quite reasonable for a gaming laptop like this one as its using all the powerful hardware is packed with and is actually quite surprising how quiet it is when is idle or doing some other light task such as browsing or watching something which is fine because the speakers are not the loudest out there which again takes me to my next point.
Most reviewers of this laptop complain about the poor sound, which I think is a fair point although is not something I care much about I can notice it. My previous laptop was an MSI fx600 which got a four speaker cinema audio setup, I must say the speakers on the Optimus v are nothing compare to those. The speakers on the fx600 were a lot louder and clearer than the ones I got now on my new laptop, however most of the time I don’t use the speakers as I’m gaming with a headset on so is not actually a massive issue. I guess the problem will come when watching films so if you are going for this laptop and want it as an entertainment centre be thinking about getting some quality speakers. However as I said before is not a massive problem, at least not for me.
Now I would like to talk about the service from PC Specialists, I chose them because of the reasonably cheap prices they offer and the wide variety of hardware customization they offer and I’m not disappointed. The ordering process was smooth and simple, I knew what I wanted and how I wanted and there was no problem ordering it and having it build. I must say that going for a fast track service is a must if you are in a hurry or just don’t like to wait, believe me is well worth it. I made the order on the 25th of May and got processed on the same day with an average build time of 12 days. However after going through the posts here in the forum I got worried that it might take almost a month to get build which is time I don’t have as I’m a university student and I’m moving out of my current address by the end of June so I ordered a 3 day fast track on Sunday the first of June and by Wednesday the same week the computer was already built and waiting for dispatch. I got the laptop on Thursday the fifth of June all according with the estimated delivery time. The laptop came nicely packed in two boxes, the laptop box inside another bigger box nicely padded and protected. I’m sure a lot of people here in the forum have seen what the packaging looks like, well I also did and was waiting for a similar one and that’s what I got. Overall I have to say I’m very satisfied with my new laptop and the service I got from PC specialists. I did a lot of research before coming here in search of a reasonably priced gaming laptop and I got exactly what I was looking for.
*Just something I must point out before finishing, I didn't get a core i7 sticker on my laptop which may sound a bit whiny (and to be honest i don't care much about) but i would have been nice to have it anyway.
Specs
Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4710MQ (2.50GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
4GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 860M - 2.0GB DDR5, 640 CUDA Cores - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA II 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (5,400rpm)
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
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS 802.11N CARD + BLUETOOTH 3.0
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
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Keyboard Language
BACKLIT OPTIMUS UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days
Change to:
FAST TRACK 3 WORKING DAY DISPATCH
Just as I mentioned before there has been a number of reviews on this laptop in its many configurations and were this positive reviews that made me go for that one. There is not much to say about the build quality although there are some reviewers that complain about a “plastic” look I would say that unless you come from an all stainless steel elitebook or something like that you will notice that the Optimus v (Clevo W355SSQ) is a very sturdy and robust machine. The overall design is simple and slick, not flashy gimmicky brand led lights or odd shapes which I certainly couldn’t care less about as I’m all about the performance.
This machine is a beast, at least on the configuration I choose, the Maxwell version of the new gtx860m goes like a hot knife through butter while gaming on high settings on 1080p. Just to give an example, after I finished setting up the machine last week I started playing assassins creed 4 black flag on high settings and have been playing it smoothly nonstop since then (it’s quite a long game) without any lag or overheating problem as the machine handles heat quite efficiently, what takes me to my next point.
The fan noise level while gaming is quite reasonable for a gaming laptop like this one as its using all the powerful hardware is packed with and is actually quite surprising how quiet it is when is idle or doing some other light task such as browsing or watching something which is fine because the speakers are not the loudest out there which again takes me to my next point.
Most reviewers of this laptop complain about the poor sound, which I think is a fair point although is not something I care much about I can notice it. My previous laptop was an MSI fx600 which got a four speaker cinema audio setup, I must say the speakers on the Optimus v are nothing compare to those. The speakers on the fx600 were a lot louder and clearer than the ones I got now on my new laptop, however most of the time I don’t use the speakers as I’m gaming with a headset on so is not actually a massive issue. I guess the problem will come when watching films so if you are going for this laptop and want it as an entertainment centre be thinking about getting some quality speakers. However as I said before is not a massive problem, at least not for me.
Now I would like to talk about the service from PC Specialists, I chose them because of the reasonably cheap prices they offer and the wide variety of hardware customization they offer and I’m not disappointed. The ordering process was smooth and simple, I knew what I wanted and how I wanted and there was no problem ordering it and having it build. I must say that going for a fast track service is a must if you are in a hurry or just don’t like to wait, believe me is well worth it. I made the order on the 25th of May and got processed on the same day with an average build time of 12 days. However after going through the posts here in the forum I got worried that it might take almost a month to get build which is time I don’t have as I’m a university student and I’m moving out of my current address by the end of June so I ordered a 3 day fast track on Sunday the first of June and by Wednesday the same week the computer was already built and waiting for dispatch. I got the laptop on Thursday the fifth of June all according with the estimated delivery time. The laptop came nicely packed in two boxes, the laptop box inside another bigger box nicely padded and protected. I’m sure a lot of people here in the forum have seen what the packaging looks like, well I also did and was waiting for a similar one and that’s what I got. Overall I have to say I’m very satisfied with my new laptop and the service I got from PC specialists. I did a lot of research before coming here in search of a reasonably priced gaming laptop and I got exactly what I was looking for.
*Just something I must point out before finishing, I didn't get a core i7 sticker on my laptop which may sound a bit whiny (and to be honest i don't care much about) but i would have been nice to have it anyway.
Specs
Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4710MQ (2.50GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
4GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 860M - 2.0GB DDR5, 640 CUDA Cores - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA II 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (5,400rpm)
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
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS 802.11N CARD + BLUETOOTH 3.0
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
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Keyboard Language
BACKLIT OPTIMUS UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days
Change to:
FAST TRACK 3 WORKING DAY DISPATCH
