WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:07.919 I think the Sega NP9873 might be the worst gaming laptop 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:12.240 I've ever encountered. What makes me say that, you might ask? Well, for one 00:00:10.000 --> 00:00:18.720 thing, there's almost nothing about it that qualifies it to be called a laptop 00:00:14.559 --> 00:00:21.920 at all. The CPU and the two video cards 00:00:18.720 --> 00:00:24.800 and SLI are full performance desktop 00:00:21.920 --> 00:00:28.519 parts. I mean, really, it's more like a a a port 00:00:30.320 --> 00:00:39.280 I mean, really, it's more like a portable desktop with a screen attached 00:00:36.079 --> 00:00:42.239 to it and a battery and a touchpad and 00:00:39.280 --> 00:00:47.250 okay, it's a laptop, but it's unlike any laptop I've ever seen. Let's take a 00:00:45.120 --> 00:00:55.920 closer look at it. 00:00:55.920 --> 00:01:02.800 The be quiet! Darkbase Pro 900's modular design supports a variety of different 00:01:00.719 --> 00:01:07.720 layouts and configurations. Click on the link in the video description to learn 00:01:04.760 --> 00:01:13.119 more. So, not everything about the NP9873 is actually new. It's very 00:01:11.119 --> 00:01:18.320 similar, at least externally, in many respects, to the Sega NP9870 that I 00:01:15.920 --> 00:01:23.040 checked out a little while ago. Here, let's take a quick look. It rocks a 00:01:20.479 --> 00:01:30.759 17-in display backed by a relatively tasteful LED lighting effect in either 00:01:25.720 --> 00:01:33.439 1080p 120 Hz or 4K 60 Hz G-Sync IPS 00:01:30.759 --> 00:01:38.000 flavors. Out of those two, I opted for the 120 Hz. And I'm actually happy with 00:01:35.759 --> 00:01:44.960 the extra fluidity, though I think a 75Hz 1080p G-Sync option would be swell. 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:48.880 The bottom is basically all ventilation. The reason for that is pretty obvious if 00:01:46.880 --> 00:01:53.280 you consider the kind of heat figuratively and literally that this 00:01:50.640 --> 00:01:58.399 baby is packing. And IO is pretty similar looking but with a couple of key 00:01:55.200 --> 00:02:02.079 upgrades. On the left is dual LAN, three 00:01:58.399 --> 00:02:04.320 USB 3 5 GB ports and 5.1 audio with a 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:10.959 dedicated mic port. At the back is another USB 3 and an HDMI 2.0 port this 00:02:08.239 --> 00:02:18.360 time around. A welcome addition. And on the right to go along with the last USB 00:02:13.040 --> 00:02:22.879 3 SD card reader and dual mini DP 1.3 00:02:18.360 --> 00:02:26.080 ports is two Thunderbolt 3 USB 3.1 10 GB 00:02:22.879 --> 00:02:27.920 ports. This baby is loaded for bear. The 00:02:26.080 --> 00:02:32.080 keyboard is still decidedly average though and doesn't seem to have been 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:36.720 modified much. It's accurate and comfortable enough, but given this is 00:02:34.160 --> 00:02:40.959 nearly a 2 inch thick laptop, I don't think a longer travel distance or a more 00:02:38.879 --> 00:02:45.280 tactile feel would have been that much to ask for. And the touchpad works well 00:02:43.599 --> 00:02:49.519 enough that it didn't bother me at all. But the fingerprint scanner was pretty 00:02:47.200 --> 00:02:54.560 hit or miss for me, making Windows Hello more work than just using a pin. All 00:02:52.080 --> 00:03:00.800 right, now then, let's crack this puppy open. And no, wait, there's another 00:02:57.760 --> 00:03:02.519 outside change we missed. What's he 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:08.879 talking about? The NP9873's box is heavy partially because 00:03:05.920 --> 00:03:18.000 it contains a big ass heavy laptop, but also because it contains not one but two 00:03:13.159 --> 00:03:19.920 330 W power bricks with a dual brick 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:24.720 adapter. For those of you wondering, the maximum 00:03:22.239 --> 00:03:31.440 power draw from the wall that I ever saw with this beast was 450 watts running 00:03:27.440 --> 00:03:34.280 our Crisis 3 Skybox test in SLI and IDA 00:03:31.440 --> 00:03:41.440 64's floatingoint CPU stress test in the background. So, I did then try it with 00:03:37.760 --> 00:03:43.840 just one of the 330 W power supplies. 00:03:41.440 --> 00:03:48.480 And theoretically, you could actually use it that way if you didn't push it 00:03:45.840 --> 00:03:54.480 too far, but Sagger and therefore me does not recommend this for safety 00:03:52.120 --> 00:03:58.799 reasons. Inside the device, we're finally getting in there. We'll find the 00:03:56.400 --> 00:04:03.599 reason for the dual bricks. Under the keyboard is the pre-installed Killer 00:04:01.120 --> 00:04:09.840 Wireless, 16 gigs of RAM from some brand I've never heard of, and a 512 gig 950 00:04:06.799 --> 00:04:12.319 Pro NVMe SSD with an additional M.2 two 00:04:09.840 --> 00:04:20.479 slot available for another. And on the bottom is why the most beautiful 2 plus 00:04:17.280 --> 00:04:24.080 pounds of copper vapor chamber cooling I 00:04:20.479 --> 00:04:26.360 think I've ever seen. Let's take it off. 00:04:24.080 --> 00:04:32.400 Look at those heat pipes. With that removed, now we get a 00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:35.880 much better look at the MXM 3.0 0 TypeB 00:04:32.400 --> 00:04:39.600 GTX 1080 graphics cards with 8 gigs of 00:04:35.880 --> 00:04:42.639 GDDDR5X that make this by far the most 00:04:39.600 --> 00:04:46.560 powerful gaming laptop I have ever laid 00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:49.120 my hands on. Like the desktop grade 980 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:53.440 before them. They're wider than the M-Class cards that preceded them. And 00:04:51.440 --> 00:04:57.759 while we don't know their TDP since that's between NVIDIA and the individual 00:04:55.440 --> 00:05:05.120 system builders, we do know that they're rated at almost the same speeds as the 00:05:01.520 --> 00:05:07.680 full desktop parts, although we'll have 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:12.240 to see how that holds up with GPU boosts having a lot of control over the dynamic 00:05:10.000 --> 00:05:18.320 clock speeds of all Pascal based graphics cards. Also in here is our Core 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:20.240 i7 6700 K unlocked quadcore processor 00:05:18.320 --> 00:05:24.400 and the somewhat anemic looking cooling solution that goes with it. Though it 00:05:22.479 --> 00:05:29.600 should be noted it does manage to keep it under 80° with very reasonable sound 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:34.400 levels even under a synthetic load. And the whole system is actually very 00:05:32.400 --> 00:05:39.840 reasonable acoustically. It's nearly silent at idle, fairly quiet under 100% 00:05:37.360 --> 00:05:45.919 CPU load. And even with both GPUs working, as you see right 00:05:41.960 --> 00:05:48.320 now, my mic's right here, it's not that 00:05:45.919 --> 00:05:54.160 bad. With that said, I did manage to overwhelm the CPU cooler when I had both 00:05:50.880 --> 00:05:55.759 GPUs and the CPU under synthetic loads. 00:05:54.160 --> 00:06:00.240 Under the graphics cards, though they're not populated in my configuration, are 00:05:57.840 --> 00:06:04.160 two 2 and 1/2 in SSD or hard drive slots. Nice to have if you want to order 00:06:02.560 --> 00:06:09.199 it with a different configuration or expand your storage down the road. And I 00:06:07.440 --> 00:06:15.960 guess that leaves us with the big question then. How does cramming two of 00:06:12.120 --> 00:06:18.240 these in one of these affect 00:06:15.960 --> 00:06:24.800 performance? Well, just like last time around when I compared the 6700 K GTX 00:06:21.840 --> 00:06:29.479 980 laptop, apples to apples with a similarly equipped desktop, I'm going to 00:06:27.520 --> 00:06:35.280 be challenging the NP9873 to beat a dual 1080 Founders 00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:40.400 Edition equipped test bench. Let's see how it fares. And there you have it, 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:45.360 folks. If there was any doubt in your mind that the notebook version of the 00:06:42.319 --> 00:06:47.039 GTX 1080, I got to say, NVIDIA is really 00:06:45.360 --> 00:06:52.080 taking this whole confusing product naming thing to a new level here, is 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:57.440 basically equivalent to the desktop version. You can leave that behind now. 00:06:55.199 --> 00:07:02.560 You need to reboot to enable or disable SLI for some reason, but that was the 00:07:00.080 --> 00:07:07.440 only major difference I observed. The slightly lower base clock speed doesn't 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:11.759 hurt it. Though it should be noted that we are comparing to Founders Edition 00:07:09.520 --> 00:07:16.319 cards rather than a board partner designed one with a beefier cooler. And 00:07:14.479 --> 00:07:21.280 this particular Seager notebook integrates a pretty unbelievable cooling 00:07:18.960 --> 00:07:27.039 solution with other notebooks featuring 1080s potentially not being capable of 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:29.360 boosting as high. Which I guess leads us 00:07:27.039 --> 00:07:36.720 pretty well into the conclusion. I still remember my old GTX 7800based gaming 00:07:33.400 --> 00:07:39.759 laptop. The thing was a turd with 00:07:36.720 --> 00:07:41.919 terrible battery life and frankly very 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:46.960 mediocre performance compared to desktop GPUs at the time. And while some things 00:07:44.639 --> 00:07:51.599 never change, don't expect to be gaming for long at the park with your 12 lb 00:07:49.440 --> 00:07:56.960 beast here. From a performance standpoint, we've reached a whole new 00:07:54.160 --> 00:08:01.759 level of zero compromises gaming laptops. The only thing really left in 00:07:59.360 --> 00:08:06.879 my mind is for manufacturers to commit to providing upgrade parts for folks who 00:08:04.080 --> 00:08:10.639 want more life out of these beasts. MSI did try to take a step in that direction 00:08:08.639 --> 00:08:16.000 with the GT80 Titan, though those replacement kits didn't end up being 00:08:13.000 --> 00:08:19.199 possible. So, we're not there yet, but I 00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:22.039 can see a near future if we fix that 00:08:19.199 --> 00:08:26.160 where desktops just aren't necessary anymore. That is to say, assuming prices 00:08:24.479 --> 00:08:30.400 come down a little. Did I mention this laptop is like 00:08:28.039 --> 00:08:35.760 $4,000? Don't you hate it when stuff you want is expensive? If only there was 00:08:32.719 --> 00:08:38.000 some way for many potential buyers to 00:08:35.760 --> 00:08:44.080 come together and buy all at once for a volume discount. Oh, but wait, there is. 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:49.760 Massdrop. Massdrop connects buyers like you with companies and authorized 00:08:46.399 --> 00:08:51.360 distributors with genuine products at a 00:08:49.760 --> 00:08:56.000 discount. And they're hosting a drop for the TFZ Series 5 in-ear monitors right 00:08:54.560 --> 00:09:00.000 now. 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