Review Update Notebookguru Earth V (Clevo P370SM) Notebook

Processor

The swift Core i7-4700MQ is a 2.4 - 3.4 GHz quad-core processor that is built in the 22 nm process like its Haswell relatives. Owing to the Hyperthreading technology, the Intel CPUs can process four (dual-core) or eight (quad-core) threads simultaneously.

Although the 6 MB L3 cache of the i7-4700MQ cannot compete with the more expensive high-end 4900MQ and 4930MX models (both 8 MB), the performance will easily be enough for most applications. Readers who ask why the 200 MHz weaker Core i7-4702MQ costs over 30 Euros (~$41) more: The i7-4702MQ is one of the few quad-cores that are specified with 37 rather than 47 or 57 Watts. Since the P370M barebones sports a voluminous cooling system with three fans, the corresponding model only makes sense to an extent.

The HD Graphics 4600 chip integrated into the Haswell CPUs remains inactive due to the dual-GPU option. Optimus or Enduro, that normally ensure longer battery runtimes, are not available in the Guru Earth V.

Our test file was stored on a big 500 GB SSD. Despite its reasonable price, the Samsung 840 EVO belongs to the swiftest solid-state drives on the market.

With a sequential write speed of 490 MB/s, the 2.5-inch drive surpasses the standard 840 by about 50% (331 MB/s @ One K56-3N2). The EVO also usually wins in compact files. The non-EVO is approximately 10% inferior when all rates are added up and the total score is compared. The access time of both SSDs is good (~0.03 ms @ write).

However, a second storage device also finds room in the hard drive cage. We would recommend the HGST Travelstar 7K100 with 7200 rpm if an HDD is being considered that does not add more than 100 Euros (~$137) to the price. The terabyte model surpasses almost all contenders. Sequential read and write rates of over 130 MB/s strongly remind us of the XMG P304 that featured the same hard drive in the test. Smaller and/or slower 5400 rpm HDDs often have problems exceeding 100 MB.

The Radeon R9 M290X CF is powerful enough to render most games smoothly in 1920x1080 pixels, maximum graphic settings, and multiple anti-aliasing on the screen. The Crossfire array only has a hard time with extremely demanding or poorly optimized games like X-Plane 10.

It is however too bad that not as many games support dual-GPU support as Nvidia does. While the Aorus X7 usually delivers twice the performance (GTX 765M SLI vs. GTX 765M), the Crossfire in the Guru Earth V only achieved a noticeable performance plus in 2/3 of the cases. A few games (e.g. Guild Wars 2) even ran slower than on a single GPU.

This circumstance might of course be due to the driver version. It has been known for years that Nvidia offers a better dual-GPU support. Accordingly, passionate gamers who value a smooth as possible operation should prefer SLI. AMD makes an inferior impression in a direct comparison. The following issues underline our allegation:

• Massive image errors (e.g. black lines) often occur when starting a game or other 3D applications. This particularly affects intro videos.
• Call of Duty: Ghosts did not run well at all on the R9 M290X CF. A single HD 8970M calculates much faster in some cases.
• When using 1920x1080 pixels, the image in Guild Wars 2 permanently scrolled from top to bottom. We also experienced unfounded performance decreases.
• Generally, the frame rate seems to have a higher fluctuation rate than by Nvidia. Micro-stuttering is also more intense/frequent subjectively, whereby the R9 M290X CF does not often reach critical fps regions.
• The words in Thief were not displayed correctly (omitted letters, etc.). The benchmark delivered the "right" result only in the second run.

Users who do not want to take unnecessary risks, and do not want to update the driver repeatedly will be happier with a "conventional" laptop with a single GPU. Crossfire and SLI machines are only interesting for a small consumer group.

A short note about the ranking: While the HD 8970M CF achieves the same performance overall (One K73-3S), the GTX 780M SLI is 10% faster (Alienware 18). In view of the extra charge of 500 Euros (~$687), Nvidia's advantage is rather slight.

As to the temperatures: The casing's surfaces remained amazingly cool during basic tasks like MS Office, Internet or videos. Around 28 °C (82.4 °F) in idle mode and an average of 32 °C (89.6 °F) during extreme load are not uncomfortable even over a long period. The Guru Earth V only reached a maximum of 35 °C (95 °F) (upper side) and 39 °C (102.2 °F) (underside) even in the fan's area, which traditionally heats up in particular. Most gaming laptop settle at much higher temperatures, and over 50 °C (122 °F) in the stress test is often nothing unusual (e.g. Toshiba Qosmio X70).

The Guru Earth V does not fare quite as well with the hardware. As known from Intel's Haswell generation, the processor climbs up to extreme temperature regions. The fans turn up to full speed as soon as the Core i7-4700MQ comes near the 100 °C (212 °F) area. One of the two Radeon chips also got very hot with up to 88 °C (190.4 °F). We ascertained an average temperature of 89 °C (192.2 °F) (CPU), 79 °C (174.2 °F) (GPU1), and 57 °C (134.6 °F) (GPU2) at the end of the stress test. However, the situation never was really critical.

The user should not put very high expectations in battery runtimes. Although a powerful 8-cell model with 89 Wh supports the Guru Earth V, the laptop is drained after 1 - 2 hours using enabled Crossfire mode. Reducing the screen's brightness and turning the energy-saving options to maximum does not help much either.

Although approximately 80 minutes in 3D operation are decent in the class comparison, the P370SM is not very suitable as a portable gaming platform. The 17-inch device has been primarily conceived for stationary use.

The Guru Earth V is certainly not a device for everyone. It can only be called a "laptop" to a certain extent in view of a casing weight of 4.3 kilograms (~9.5 pounds) and height of approximately five centimeters (~2 inches). Desktop replacement would be a more suitable term.

The P370SM is also fairly impressive as a member of the DTR category. Of course, the high-gloss touchpad gets annoying after a few minutes (poor gliding properties, insufficient stability, unreliable inputs, etc.). Additionally, the fans gain an extreme speed in 3D operation. Otherwise, we did not find any serious drawbacks. The bulky power supply, the short battery runtimes, and the screen's disappointing color accuracy will unlikely deter most gamers.

On the pro side, we primarily have the first-rate performance. The Guru Earth V outshines the entire competition owing to the optional second "graphics-whopper". Only the 18-inch Alienware 18 or other laptops based on the P370SM or P375SM barebones are worthy rivals.

The individual configuration and excellent maintenance options also add to the device's consideration. In our opinion, the casing's pleasantly cool surfaces, the stylish backlit keyboard, and the generous connectivity (Thunderbolt port!) are even more buying arguments.

Those who want to replace their desktop PC without making compromises can confidently think about purchasing this device.