Album - http://imgur.com/a/82jWe
So.. after two horrible months with the Chomebook running Ubuntu, XoticPC finally delivered the laptop I ordered on the past Thursday.
The wait has been well worth it.. and I highly recommend XoticPC for anyone looking to buy a Windows laptop, whether it’s a desktop replacement or not.
This time, I decided on the MSI 1761, a Barebones Whitebook that MSI sells to resellers like XoticPC and GenTech PC, who then build it according to the desired spec, test it and send it out. As you can see in the pictures below, there is no branding anywhere on the laptop, nothing at all that says who is the manufacturer. My previous laptop went well out of its way to stand out, with its flashy design and blue lights, but this is the exact opposite. And I must say, I prefer the simple understated and classy look.
The build quality is surprisingly, extremely good, all around the laptop. I think it’s brushed plastic, but it has a premium feel to it, like a brushed aluminum feel. It curves in around the keyboard as you can see in the pictures, which looks pretty nice, and keeps the keyboard level with the rest of the surface. I really like how the ports are somewhat shielded by the design, it’s a bit inside instead of being directly on the side, as you can see in the pictures. The power button is firm, and the soft capacitive buttons work well, no complains there.
I haven’t tested the speakers, but they sound pretty loud, and there is a subwoofer underneath as well. It’s the result of a partnership between MSI and Dynaudio, apparently. Will fire up a few movies and songs, and let y’all know how they sound.
The SteelSeries keyboard that XoticPC has installed in place of the stock keyboard is fantastic, I think it rivals the MacBook’s keyboard as well. It’s firm but easy to press, and it’s much better than the keyboard on the ASUS G51. I have to get used to the layout again though, after getting used to the Chromebook’s slightly different layout. I keep pressing the CAPS lock button thinking it’s the search button.. And then there’s the colors, and the variety of styles. As you can see above, there’s the Wave, Breathing,
Now, on to the SSD. Simply jaw dropping. The performance difference is so noticeable; the install, the bootup, launch of the apps, loading time in games, everything has improved drastically. IMO, 256GB is the optimum amount for one OS, 64GB for the OS install partition, and the remaining space, 175GB or for the applications and games. Mainly games, I guess. I’ve moved my library of documents and pictures to another drive altogether, and obviously music and movies have their own respective folders. Oh, thank you so much @KiD0M4N for convincing me to get a SSD. I regret not listening to you earlier.
The screen is another aspect which I was pleasantly surprised by. I’ve gotten used to the sub par display of the ASUS ever since I switched to a laptop 2 and half years ago, and I didn’t expect the MSI to be much better. Fortunately, I was in for a surprise. I will post comparison pictures later, but I feel the MSI display comes decently close to the quality of my cousin’s MBP display. Which is extremely good, considering the 15.4” MBP display is glossy, thus will have better colors. The earlier shitty glossy display of the ASUS G51 doesn’t stand a chance. Here, I have to thank @Ad1tya and @KiD0M4N (mainly Aditya) for convincing me to go Matte, no reflections at all is such a boon! Oh, and 17.3” of 1080p goodness!
Fire any questions/requests you have, I’ll do my best to answer/fulfill.
Total damages - $1740 to XoticPC, and $310 to Amazon for the SSD.
