So my new Defiance 15" finally arrived yesterday!
The initial order was placed on the 13.08.15 and it arrived on the 28.08.15 which id say is a pretty reasonable time for a custom build, especially given that i didn't pay any extra for fast track. Despite this it still felt like a lifetime (If anybody can explain the physics of why when you order something time suddenly slows down astronomically, it would be much appriciated).
This was only made worse by the fact it arrived ten minutes before i had to leave for work, so i havent had a chance to get my hands on it till today!
First impressions
PACKAGING:
Firstly very well packaged and secure so 10/10 for that!
AESTHETICS:
Upon removing the numerous layers of protection, holy s*** this thing looks good! The pictures on the website really don't do it justice, it seemed quite plain but boy was i wrong, beautiful brushed metal surrounding the trackpad and covering the back of the screen. The white backlight looks great, and the angular edges give it an upmarket look which i didnt think it would. My only gripe appearence wise is the red arrows on the wasd keys which kind of cheapens the look, however this really isn't a problem so again 10/10
BUILD QUALITY:
I'm certainly not an expert but it seems pretty sturdy, only things i can see that may bring it down are weakness in the base of the screen (but why would you be pressing here anyway) and the top of the keyboard across all of the Fn buttons, which seem to sit out at an angle rather than flush with the keyboard, and there is a noticeable bend when using these keys. Whilst this doesn't in anyway affect the usability of the machine, i feel like this may be one of the areas that goes in time with use. I'ts heavy like really heavy, but what did i expect with a laptop of these specs (See bottom of post) and finally the power socket seems by far the sturdiest on any laptop ive had (my old one broke six or seven times and i finally gave up trying to repair it) the power jack requires a bit more effort to get in than just sliding in, but not in a bad way, it slots in with a satisfying click and there is no play in the socket at all which is a good sign for the future! 8/10
PERFORMANCE:
Coming from a four year old laptop which took at least ten minutes to start up if it started at all, there is a massive improvement dont have an exact time but damn it's quick!
I havent yet had a chance to really put it through its paces with Autodesk Revit or 3ds Max or any games, but so far for everyday tasks like browsing etc. it's been quick. There were a couple of little hangs here and there but i have a feeling this is down to Windows 10 being brand spanking new and not fully optimised yet. The killer Wireless card seems pretty good, i was getting around 4mb/s whilst downloading Revit which is pretty impressive for a wireless connection. Fans so far haven't really started whirring, pretty silent under normal use, putting out a little heat but nothing out of the ordinary. Finally the screen, so glad i went IPS the viewing angles are insane, colour accuracy seems pretty spot on from what i can tell, which is ideal for any designers out there. I'll update this section more once ive had a chance to really put it through it's paces but so far 9/10
CUSTOMER SERVICE:
Luckily during the whole build i haven't really had to deal with PCS which is a good mark for them, I changed my mind on the operating system three times which they had no problem with. Build time and delivery was quick. Best price i could find for these specs. So all in all my experience has been a very positive one (Let's hope it stays that way haha) 10/10
So now the boring bits over here's my specs:
Defiance Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4720HQ (2.60GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM): 16GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 970M - 3.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
2nd Graphics Card: NONE
Memory - Hard Disk: 250GB Samsung 850 EVO SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk: 500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm)
mSATA/M.2 SSD Drive: NONE
2nd mSATA/M.2 SSD Drive: NONE
RAID NONE:
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NONE
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NONE
Memory Card Reader Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader: (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
Thermal Paste: ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Sound Card: Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + MIC/Headphone + SoundBlaster X-Fi MB3
Bluetooth & Wireless: GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ 1525 WIRELESS GAMING 802.11N + BLUETOOTH 4.0
As i said above i'll continue to update this review with more use. Hope this has been helpful to anyone trying to make up their mind!
The initial order was placed on the 13.08.15 and it arrived on the 28.08.15 which id say is a pretty reasonable time for a custom build, especially given that i didn't pay any extra for fast track. Despite this it still felt like a lifetime (If anybody can explain the physics of why when you order something time suddenly slows down astronomically, it would be much appriciated).
This was only made worse by the fact it arrived ten minutes before i had to leave for work, so i havent had a chance to get my hands on it till today!
First impressions
PACKAGING:
Firstly very well packaged and secure so 10/10 for that!
AESTHETICS:
Upon removing the numerous layers of protection, holy s*** this thing looks good! The pictures on the website really don't do it justice, it seemed quite plain but boy was i wrong, beautiful brushed metal surrounding the trackpad and covering the back of the screen. The white backlight looks great, and the angular edges give it an upmarket look which i didnt think it would. My only gripe appearence wise is the red arrows on the wasd keys which kind of cheapens the look, however this really isn't a problem so again 10/10
BUILD QUALITY:
I'm certainly not an expert but it seems pretty sturdy, only things i can see that may bring it down are weakness in the base of the screen (but why would you be pressing here anyway) and the top of the keyboard across all of the Fn buttons, which seem to sit out at an angle rather than flush with the keyboard, and there is a noticeable bend when using these keys. Whilst this doesn't in anyway affect the usability of the machine, i feel like this may be one of the areas that goes in time with use. I'ts heavy like really heavy, but what did i expect with a laptop of these specs (See bottom of post) and finally the power socket seems by far the sturdiest on any laptop ive had (my old one broke six or seven times and i finally gave up trying to repair it) the power jack requires a bit more effort to get in than just sliding in, but not in a bad way, it slots in with a satisfying click and there is no play in the socket at all which is a good sign for the future! 8/10
PERFORMANCE:
Coming from a four year old laptop which took at least ten minutes to start up if it started at all, there is a massive improvement dont have an exact time but damn it's quick!
I havent yet had a chance to really put it through its paces with Autodesk Revit or 3ds Max or any games, but so far for everyday tasks like browsing etc. it's been quick. There were a couple of little hangs here and there but i have a feeling this is down to Windows 10 being brand spanking new and not fully optimised yet. The killer Wireless card seems pretty good, i was getting around 4mb/s whilst downloading Revit which is pretty impressive for a wireless connection. Fans so far haven't really started whirring, pretty silent under normal use, putting out a little heat but nothing out of the ordinary. Finally the screen, so glad i went IPS the viewing angles are insane, colour accuracy seems pretty spot on from what i can tell, which is ideal for any designers out there. I'll update this section more once ive had a chance to really put it through it's paces but so far 9/10
CUSTOMER SERVICE:
Luckily during the whole build i haven't really had to deal with PCS which is a good mark for them, I changed my mind on the operating system three times which they had no problem with. Build time and delivery was quick. Best price i could find for these specs. So all in all my experience has been a very positive one (Let's hope it stays that way haha) 10/10
So now the boring bits over here's my specs:
Defiance Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4720HQ (2.60GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM): 16GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 970M - 3.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
2nd Graphics Card: NONE
Memory - Hard Disk: 250GB Samsung 850 EVO SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk: 500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm)
mSATA/M.2 SSD Drive: NONE
2nd mSATA/M.2 SSD Drive: NONE
RAID NONE:
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NONE
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NONE
Memory Card Reader Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader: (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
Thermal Paste: ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Sound Card: Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + MIC/Headphone + SoundBlaster X-Fi MB3
Bluetooth & Wireless: GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ 1525 WIRELESS GAMING 802.11N + BLUETOOTH 4.0
As i said above i'll continue to update this review with more use. Hope this has been helpful to anyone trying to make up their mind!
sort of ruined the holiday