Schenker Technologies XMG Pro 17 (Clevo PA71HS-G) Laptop Review

In terms of technology, the XMG Pro 17 relies mostly on components from Intel and Nvidia. The laptop is equipped with the Core i7-7700HQ, which is a powerful Kaby Lake-based quad-core processor that can handle eight threads at the same time, thanks to its Hyper-threading capabilities. As for the GPU, here we have a choice between a GeForce GTX 1060 with 6 GB of GDDR5 video memory and a GeForce GTX 1070. The RAM and storage space options look equally impressive with up to 32 GB of DDR4 RAM and up to three storage devices (two M.2 drives and one 2.5-inch drive). In the in-house configurator, the customer is offered a very wide range of SSD and HDD options to choose from.

Choosing the display will not be easy, either. All of the displays feature support for G-Sync. Whether you choose to go with a 1080p, 1440p or a 4K display will depend not only on the kind of graphics card that you pick, but also on your personal needs. In our view, the GTX 1060 is suitable for 1440p gaming at the most, whereas the GTX 1070 can handle 4K resolutions in a number of games - at the medium to high settings, that is. 

The price for the 17-incher starts at 1449 Euros (~$1788). However, for this price you will only get a Full HD panel, 8 GB of RAM and a 500 GB HDD without an operating system. Our review device, which is designated as the Pro 17 - L17wzw, and which is available in various online stores, comes with a 4K display, two 16-GB sticks of RAM and a combination of a 500 GB SSD and a 1 TB HDD. The price point (including Windows 10): 2679 Euros (~$3306).

Because the underlying barebones laptop (Clevo PA71HS-G) is almost identical to the previously reviewed Defiance IV from PC Zentrum, we shall skip the sections in this article that deal with the case, connectivity and the input devices. You can find all the relevant information herehttps://www.notebookcheck.net/PC-Specialist-Defiance-IV-i7-7700HQ-GTX-1060-Full-HD-Laptop-Review.273096.0.html. When compared to the competing laptop from PC Zentrum that uses a similar design, there are not many changes to be found (the rear rubber feet are placed differently; there are now small openings on top of the keyboard). The most important change is the inclusion of a USB Type-C port, which, in the case of the XMG Pro 17, also supports Thunderbolt 3.

Those who prefer a high pixel density and are not put off by a hefty surcharge are going to be quite happy with the 4K display. Here, Schenker Technologies relies on the high-quality AU Optronics IPS panel with the designation B173ZAN01.0, which has already impressed us with its great color-space coverage in the XMG U727 and the Acer Aspire V17 Nitro BE.

The same applies to the XMG Pro 17. 100% of sRGB and 87% of Adobe RGB are superb results, which most gaming notebooks do not come close to. 60% of Adobe RGB is standard fare here, which is what the Razer Blade Pro can offer. Even the color-accurate 120 Hz panel CMN N173HHE-G32, which is found in both the MSI GS73VR 7RG and the PC Zentrum Defiance IV, and which covers 77% of Adobe RGB, cannot keep up.

The brightness distribution is also not perfect. Like many other gaming notebooks, the XMG Pro 17 has to contend with glowing halos around the edges of the screen, which, however, are not always visible. Despite the above-mentioned criticisms, we are still quite fond of the UHD panel in the XMG Pro 17.

Complete with a solid state drive and 16-32 GB of RAM, the XMG Pro 17 belongs to the high-end niche of the notebook market. The Core i7-7700HQ and the GeForce GTX 1070 deliver enough performance for demanding applications, which makes the whole package seem very potent and well-rounded.

By means of Intel’s Turbo Boost Technology, the Core i7-7700HQ can increase its clock rate up to 3.8 GHz under load in single-core applications and up to 3.4 GHz in multi-core applications. As long as you do not subject the XMG Pro 17 to extreme loads (then the clock speed drops to 2.8 GHz), the clock rate of 3.4 GHz can be maintained over an extended period of time. In our 30-minute Cinebench loop (see the graph below), the results were relatively consistent.

The CPU benchmarks went as expected. The CPU performance of the XMG Pro 17 is on the normal level for a notebook with a Core i7-7700HQ.

There were bigger fluctuations during the system benchmarks. Whilst the comparison gap in the PCMark 10 benchmarks was only 10%, it grew significantly wider in the PCMark 8 benchmarks, which, considering the hardware components, is very hard to explain. However, there is one thing that could definitely be improved, and that is the latency times. Because of latency issues, our review device often suffered from annoying but short delays when, for example, right-clicking on the desktop. This must be some kind of driver issue.

The M.2 SSD is complemented by a 1 TB 2.5-inch HDD. The Seagate BarraCuda ST1000LM048 operates at 5400 RPM and achieves normal results for this kind of HDD.

Unlike the Zentrum Defiance IV, the XMG Pro 17 offers support not only for Optimus (this technology allows automatic switching between a discrete and an integrated graphics adapter) but also for G-Sync (this technology allows the refresh rate of the monitor and the GPU to be synced up, thus greatly improving the gameplay experience). You can select either of the two modes in the “Control Center” utility (a restart is required).

Out of performance considerations, we would definitely recommend the GeForce GTX 1070 for the 4K display. After the GeForce GTX 1080 and the GTX 1080 Max-Q, the GTX 1070 is Nvidia’s third most powerful Pascal-based laptop GPU. The performance gap between the GTX 1070 and 1060 is very wide. In the Fire Strike benchmark, the laptops with a GTX 1060 perform almost 50% worse than the GTX 1070-based notebooks. The Max-Q variant of the GTX 1070 falls about 15% behind.

Having observed the CPU behavior under load, we moved on to examining the GPU behavior. To be more exact, we spent some time looking at how the clock speeds behaved over a prolonged period under load. For this, we ran The Witcher 3 for one hour on the highest settings. There is no reason to worry that the frame rates will fall significantly over time, because in our The Witcher 3 test the only thing that happened was a small drop in the GTX 1070’s boost frequency. The average core clock came in at 1700 MHz, which is significantly higher than the GTX 1070’s base core clock of 1480 MHz. Throttling only occurred under full load (a thing which is highly improbable in everyday use) and when the notebook was running on battery power.

If you wish to play games in 4K all the time, it will not be easy with the GeForce GTX 1070. Not many games will be able to deliver smooth frame rates at 2160p with the highest settings, meaning that you will have to be content with playing games on medium to high settings.

When playing extremely graphics-intensive video games, it is advisable to reduce the resolution down to 1920x1080 - a resolution at which images still look astonishingly sharp. The ideal compromise between image quality and performance would be a WQHD display with a resolution of 2560x1440. The GTX 1070 would have no problem with running games smoothly at that resolution most of the time.

The XMG Pro 17 is not a good choice for noise-susceptible gamers, because the fan noise reaches 50 to 56 dB(A) when gaming (52 dB(A) for the The Witcher 3) - a considerably audible to annoying sound level, which generally necessitates the use of a headset. Here, the competing devices are a bit quieter. But, they come with weaker graphics cards, though.

In terms of the temperatures, the XMG Pro 17 takes the middle position. While the case is comfortably cool when idle, under load the surface temperatures can reach up to 55 °C (131 °F) at the top and 56 °C (132.8 °F) at the bottom. Accordingly, during gaming you should not put the device on your lap under any circumstances. Fortunately, the wrist rest area, which is more important in practice, does not get particularly hot (37 °C (98.6 °F) max.).

Despite its kinship to the Defiance IV, the XMG Pro 17 offers a significantly better sound quality. This can be attributed to Creative Labs’ software, which was not preinstalled in the notebook from PC Zentrum. Thanks to the Sound Blaster technology, audio content sounds either passable or good, although the built-in subwoofer can only be felt to a limited extent. That said, other gaming notebooks, like the MSI GS73VR 7RG, sound much worse.

Frequency diagram in comparison (checkboxes can be checked and unchecked!)

When it comes to the energy consumption, the 4K display does not make itself known directly. 13-26 watts can easily come from a Full HD notebook. Under load, the 17-incher draws between 95 watts (3DMark06) and 220 watts (stress test). While gaming, the power draw comes in at about 179 watts, which is on the normal level for a GTX 1070-based laptop. This means that the 230-watt AC adapter will have no trouble supplying the laptop with enough energy.

Thanks to Nvidia’s Optimus Technology (which enables automatic switching between a dedicated and an integrated graphics adapter) the battery life of the XMG Pro 17 can give the competition a run for its money. 3 hours and 38 minutes while surfing the web and 3 hours and 42 minutes in video playback is acceptable for a gaming notebook, although it is nothing to get excited about. With almost 7 hours in the Wi-Fi test, the Razer Blade Pro holds out for much longer, even though its battery is only marginally larger (70 vs. 66 Wh).