Rongnongno Loc: FL

Two weeks ago I announced the purchase of a laptop for graphic/PP use.

Some asked to the specs:

MSI GT80 Titan SLI-263
- Display: 18.4" (60Hz) WideFHD WLED (1920x1080) Matte-Type Screen
- Processor: 5th Generation Intel® Broadwell™ i7-5950HQ (2.9GHz - 3.7GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache)
- Graphics Video Card: SLI (2x) - NVIDIA® GeForce™ GTX 980M (16.0GB total) GDDR5 PCI-Express DX11 (Maxwell)
- Ram: 32GB DDR3 1600MHz [SKU-818CP] (Dual Channel Memory (4x8GB SODIMMS))
- mSATA / M.2 SSD Drive ( Slot 1 ): 128GB Solid State Drive [M.2] SSD - Stock
- mSATA / M.2 SSD Drive ( Slot 2 ): 500GB Crucial MX200 Solid State Drive [M.2] SSD (Read 550MB/s - Write 500MB/s)
- mSATA / M.2 SSD Drive ( Slot 3 ): Open
- mSATA / M.2 SSD Drive ( Slot 4 ): Open
- Second Hard Drive: 1TB 7200RPM (SATA III - 6GB/s)
- Optical Drive Bay: Slim - Blu-Ray Reader + DVDRW/CDRW
- Wireless Network: Dual Band Wireless-AC N1525 - 802.11 AC/A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module + Bluetooth 4.0 [M.2 Chip]
- Memory Card Reader: Internal 3-in-1 Card Reader (SD/SDHC/SDXC)
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio
- AC Adapter - European/UK Power Cord: Standard US Power Cord
- Operating System: Windows 7 Professional - 64-Bit (Disk Included)
- Warranty: 2 Year MSI US/Canada Parts & Labor 1 Year Global Warranty w/ Lifetime Tech Support
- 1 Year Accidental Damage Warranty
- Weight: 9.9 pounds
- Batteries 2hours

Connectivity:
5 x USB 3.0 Ports
1 x HDMI 1.4
2 x Mini Display Port (v1.2)
1 x Microphone
1 x Headphone Out Jack
1 x Line-in Jack
1 x S/PDIF

The first drive M.2 SSD will be the OS & Programs
The second drive (M.2 SSD) will be the temp/scratch disk
The third SATA drive is the Data drive.

Since it is user upgradable I can expand the storage capacity by loading two more M.2 SSD drives.*
I did not select a faster CPU because quite frankly I did not see the point.
The weight is a concern but since I will not be carrying it (a car does) I am not concerned.

I am expecting this monster the Friday 7th.

This thing is way more powerful than my desktop. I intend to take it with me in two weeks for two weddings in Detroit (No, I am not the photographer). Just family events.

---
* I am already considering it. If only to make a distinction between the OS temp file and the software.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Planned software load:

Windows 7 pro (or windows 10, not sure yet)
Comodo firewall
Skype
PS CC 2015
ACDSee Ultimate 8
Open office
Firefox
Thunderbird
Filezilla

That's it.

doduce Loc: Holly Springs NC

[quote=Rongnongno]Two weeks ago I announced the purchase of a laptop for graphic/PP use. quote]

Sir, you have one helluva lap!!!

wihakowi

Sounds like a monster machine! Where did you get it? $$?

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

Sounds like a wonderful machine but I'm confused about why you would take this to family events. Couldn't you just relax, take your shots and do whatever you want to do once you get home?

sarge69 Loc: Ft Myers, FL

I have the GS70 from MSI now since May. Fantastic with a few less features than your new one.

No problems and it's faster than my Alienware desktop and, to date, never a problem.

Congratulations

Sarge69

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Testing.

We will be traveling for two weeks.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Sounds like you took the same path as I did. I also had an Alienware first... Had it since 2007. gave up the ghost a month ago. I think I can repair it and give it away but I am too lazy at the moment to figure out how to repair it.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

About 4k.

sarge69 Loc: Ft Myers, FL

Mine is in the closet right now. I'm going to initiate a fresh start with Windows 8 CD I have and then sell it at a yard sale. I built it with Dell Alienware parts and it's a beast. Never found anything it wouldn't do in graphics or games. But I have more with this MSI and I can, if needed, carry it around.

Sarge69
PS: Surface Pro 3 is powerful too and much smaller and lighter.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

I had the M17x but it had only 4GB so showing its age when used with PS CC 2014 and a Nikon D800e. It was slow as a dog despite having been reloaded before my trip to Europe. It just could not keep up with the software demands.

Then the screen (connection?) died a week after I was back. I have lost nothing in the process as I always keep two copies of everything on SD cards when traveling.

Honestly, at 9.9 pound this is not a field computer but a hotel/B&B PP machine. I rarely shoot outside when tethered so... The weight does not bother me, it certainly would otherwise.

ralphc4176 Loc: Conyers, GA

Super laptop! It's way better than my current desktop, which is none too shabby. Congrats on getting an extremely fast and competent machine. (I have you beat on view screens--I have two Asus 24-inch backlit.)

Reinaldokool Loc: San Rafael, CA

Wow! I love it. All the best choices. Probably can't call it a laptop though. LOL. I've never seen a laptop with five drive bays or 32 gb. As my daughter would say, "Awesome". And you can't do that with a Mac toy computer.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Ok, so I got it today.

I backed it up before anything and...

The mail I sent to the company...


I just need to install Firefox, Filezilla and Skype. After that I will scrub the laptop from unwanted install and upgrade files before a final backup. That will take place tomorrow.