Sager is a computer manufacturer known mostly to gamers for its high end gaming laptops. One of the most popular Sager laptops on the market today is the np8170 with a 17-inch display and some pretty impressive technical specifications.
Design, ports and features
The Sager laptops are not extremely popular amongst gamers from the design point of view. That is mostly because the design is simplistic and a little rough on the edges. Despite that, the np8170 design is not necessarily unattractive, being at the same time simplistic and professional.
The new model from Sager is elegant, classy, but could seem a bit more attractive if it had some curves on it. Also, the np8170 is a bit thick and its weight is not exactly travel-friendly.
The ports are numerous and cleverly placed so as not to crowd either sides of the laptop. On the right side, you have the headphone, the microphone, an optical/digital out and additional audio out with a USB 2.0 port, while on the left side there is the card reader, three USB ports, Ethernet and CATV input.
Keyboard, touchpad and screen
The keyboard is, as the entire laptop, solid, but quiet. The chiclet style is nice and the keys are well-placed and well-distanced so as to offer plenty of comfort. The touchpad is a Synaptics one and supports multi-touch. There are also distinct left and right metal buttons, separated by a fingerprint reader, a nice touch if you ask us and a welcomed change from the usual toggle bar.
The 17.3-inch display full HD with LED-backlit display technology and a resolution of 1920×1080 offer extremely clear images, with brilliant colors, contrast and excellent brightness. The viewing angles are also more than decent for a 17-inch display laptop.
Performance, graphics and battery life
If the Sager np8170 suffers a little in terms of design and elegance, as far as performance is concerned this is one of the strongest laptops on the market. The second generation Intel Core i7 processor and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 485M with 2GB DDR5 will guarantee that you can play all the new video games with the highest quality and the fastest speed.
As far as battery life is concerned, the 8-cell 77WHr should provide you with a decent autonomy of at least three hours and a half, even when the laptop is at a high power usage.
Wrap-up
In conclusion, the Sager np8170 is one of the most interesting gaming devices available today, the level of performance and the quality-price ratio canceling the design and elegance problems.
And yes, this might not be the best looking or the slimmest of all gaming rigs on the market, but is one of the fastest, and if speed is what you need, you'll hardly find anything better than a Sager.
