Review Schenker XMG A523 (Clevo W350ST) Notebook

Nothing has changed in the case design. There is a strong resemblance to the last generation Clevo found here. Instead of using the W350ET barebone (HM77 chipset), Schenker now relies on the W350ST barebone (HM87 chipset). Apart from the XMG logo on the lid, the laptop makes a rather unobtrusive addition to any desk. The buyer will not find any daring design elements.

One of the biggest modifications is found on the wrist rest that is now no longer rubber-coated and less receptive to greasy fingerprints. Clevo unfortunately has not replaced the display's glossy bezel with a matte alternative. In contrast to the 15-inch P150SM (Schenker W503) and P157SM (Schenker XMG P503), the bezel is extremely susceptible to scratches. Just careful polishing quickly leads to small discernible cosmetic damage. The brushed aluminum looks of the lid can only compensate for this flaw to a certain extent.

The quality of the case is pretty good if you ignore (with some difficulty) this design flaw. The laptop does not feel cheap even if it is shrouded in tons and tons of cheap plastic. When we disregard the lid and vents as the obvious points of weakness in the chassis, the overall stiffness is more than decent. The base unit barely yields even under higher force. The laptop case is stiff even when you consider the height of the base section at around 44 mm which is not very surprising when you consider high-performance machines from other vendors too. But you can find a few thin pieces that go against the norm of ‘fat and ugly’ machines like the Samsung's 770Z5E (Radeon HD 8870M) which is only about half as thick. It is generally possible to carry the XMG A523 quite comfortably. This is also due to the slim power supply (147 x 75 x 26 millimeters) that is much smaller and lighter than the one in the W350ET barebone (462 vs. 742 grams). We would have liked to see a new hinge design as the chassis is prone to wobbling and both hands are absolutely needed when you need to open the lid.

Software

This is a custom machine and the user will be pleased to receive a clean OS build with no additional software which we rudely term as bloatware. Most of the 20 entries in the Installation window are essential drivers that make the bits of the laptop operational.

Accessories

Clevo needs to keep costs down if it wants to compete with fellow OEMs in this cut-throat business. A buyer cannot expect much in the way of accessories other than the quick-start guides and driver toolkits. Schenker goes the extra mile and includes a Windows OEM disc that should make the tinkerer in you extremely happy. The same, 430 gram, 8 cell W370BAT-8 battery model is available with this laptop.

Warranty

The basic warranty cover is for 24 months. It is possible to upgrade to three years for an additional 100 Euros (~$130) or 200 Euros (~$260) for 4 years. This upgrade includes a pick-up & return service in Germany. Schenker also specifies a 6 to 24 month immediate repair service depending on the warranty type chosen.

The Core i7-4700MQ is the most interesting quad-core from Intel's stable solely considering the price-performance ratio. With frequencies of 2.4 - 3.4 GHz, it performs at the same level as the older Core i7-3630QM that also features 6 MB L3 cache and 1.4 billion transistors. However, the Core i7-4700MQ is a bit faster owing to the new architecture but this difference is rather insignificant.

Hyper Threading is an Intel technology that has become a standard feature in the last few generations. Each core is able to process two separate threads making it possible for the quad-core processor to handle 8 simultaneous threads. We also need to point out that the new Haswell processors have a slightly higher TDP compared to the last generation at 47 W (45 W for Ivy Bridge). The reason for this is likely the integrated voltage transformer. But the process technology remains the same with the Intel fabs churning out the chips using the 22 nm process technology.

Clevo relies on nVidia's Optimus technology to keep the power consumption as low as possible. Depending on requirement, it switches between the dedicated and IGP on the fly. HD Graphics 4600 is implemented in the processor and is absolutely sufficient for low performance applications.

One of the biggest improvements is certainly the graphics card. Although the XMG A522 could boast a premium GPU from nVidia's Kepler generation, the XMG A523 has been bestowed with a very welcome (and significant) update.

Owing to twice the shader count (768 vs. 384 CUDA cores) and the increased core clock (850 vs. 835 MHz), the GeForce GTX 765M clearly places itself above the old GeForce GTX 660M. The narrow memory interface of just 128 bits is back in perspective with the modern memory model. 2408 MB of GDDR5 VRAM (2000 MHz) is still decent in 2013. Like the 600 series, the GeForce GTX 765M is based on 28 nm process technology.

nVidia has to be praised for the GPU Boost technology. This is dynamic overclocking that analyzes the temperature and the power consumption. In the case of the XMG A523, the chip clocks up to 902 MHz which is an advantage of about 6% over the base clocks. –The Turbo clocks are maintained at maximum load to and we applaud nVdia for getting it right the first time.

However, it is aggravating that we had to use the outdated GPU driver ForceWare 311.27, like in previous GeForce 700 articles. We did not try out the newer ForceWare 320.21 that nVidia provided us with due to the bad experiences we had with the MSI GT70 (black screens). The GTX 765M should perform a bit better when the new drivers are implemented after the problems are resolved.

Beside HDDs and hybrid models, Schenker offers several SSDs on its homepage. We used the opportunity to examine the brand new Crucial M500, to be precise, the 480 GB CT480M500SSD1 version.

Although the sequential read rate of just below 480 MB/s is not record breaking (many SATA III SSDs manage over 500 MB/s), the 2.5-inch drive does a good job when you consider where it positions itself in the market.

We were particularly impressed by the sequential write rate. 413 MB/s is 25% above the level of the cheaper Samsung SSD 840 MZ-7TD500 (331 MB/s @ One K56-3N2). The Crucial M500 handles small files much better than the budget Samsung 840. The access times are also excellent. Many rivals do not achieve 0.05 ms (read) and 0.07 ms (write).

All said, we can definitely recommend buying the Crucial M500. Users who have experienced the speed of an SSD will never again want another mechanical hard drive.

It is possible to enjoy newer games at high or even maximum graphic settings at native resolution when anti-aliasing is disabled.

Most modern games will be able to run at maximum settings but there are some hardware busters like Metro: Last Light, Crysis 3 or Far Cry 3 that force the user to lower settings to enjoy better frame rates. There are no issues with artifacts or tearing when the screen resolution is lowered to 900p and compromises are made with the settings.

The GeForce GTX 660M easily outperforms the GeForce GTX 660M. Its advantage is approximately 40%. The GeForce GTX 670M also loses in a direct comparison, but the difference shrinks to about 10%.

System Noise

Like in most gaming laptops, the noise development is one of the biggest drawbacks. Almost 44 dB in 3DMark 06 and 49 dB during full load make the laptop one of the noisiest we have come across. It can get on the nerves without a headset or high speaker setting.

Users will not notice system noise in games like First-Person-Shooters, racing simulations and the like but consider quieter games which need stealth or strategy games which include city building and you will realize the always-running fan in the background. The 15-inch P150SM and P157SM barebones are affected by the same issue. Despite its much stronger GeForce GTX 780M, the MSI GT70 is slightly quieter at about 41-47 dB.

The XMG A523 is agreeably quiet when performing basic tasks. Only noise levels of 29-31 dB is heard depending on the energy saving plan, GPU activity and hard drive configuration. However, the fan sometimes speeds up suddenly and without reason like other designs from the Clevo house. We believe that the fan management will be optimized a bit in the next weeks and months.

The temperatures do not give reason for complaint. The laptop finished the idle test with a surface temperature of approximately 30°C.

The average temperatures increase very marginally in 3D operation. We measured 31°C on the top and 33°C on the bottom after a multi-hour stress test. The wrist rest and WASD area did not reach unpleasant temperatures even during longer gaming sessions. The measurements of the XMG A522 are not directly comparable since we tested the precursor in much warmer surroundings.

The verdict about the components is divided. Although the Core i7-4700MQ and GeForce GTX 765M settled to just over 70°C during full load, the CPU's moderate temperature is made possible by throttling to 800 MHz (2.7 GHz without Furmark). However, seeing that our stress test is an unrealistic scenario, there is no need for concern in practical use. The benchmarks did not indicate throttling.

The 15-incher lasts for quite a long time without its power supply due to good battery capacity of 77 Wh (5200 mAh). Three hours of movie playback with 100% brightness was just as impressive as a four hour Internet marathon session via WLAN at 60% brightness.

We ascertained a minimum runtime of almost two hours. A charged battery should last for approximately 5.25 hours under ideal circumstances. The XMG A522 managed slightly better times but with lower performance parts.

It is praiseworthy that the graphics performance remains stable in battery mode.

The XMG A523 aims at gamers who want a high performance but are unwilling to put out the extra cash for better parts. Users who prefer plain looks without flashy design and would like to configure the components to their liking will mostly be satisfied with this notebook.

Unlike many rivals, the understated looks might find it buyers who wish to get the best bang for their buck without caring for the aesthetics and the design. This is a practical and functional design that has the best hardware you can afford at lower price points.

nVidia has a swift and fairly energy-efficient premium GPU with its GeForce GTX 765M. The performance numbers can compete with a desktop PC owing to a quad-core from Intel's Haswell platform and a solid state drive. However, the graphics card would only be midrange GPU for a desktop card.

The XMG A523 is not just a performance demon. In addition to the matte Full HD screen, we found the input devices, connectivity, battery runtime and temperatures very interesting. The convenient maintenance options and clean Windows installation are a bonus.

We do pile on the criticism when it comes to the atrocious bezel design. We simply don’t understand why this would be the only glossy part on a completely matte laptop. The only other drawbacks that come to mind are the excessive system noise at load and the relatively poor speakers.

However Schenker's XMG A523 is generally a well-designed gaming laptop that will not disappoint most buyers.