Performance

Fan Noise

Overall the notebook is sufficiently quiet when in idle, but once you ask for the huge power of the Penryn CPU it will get noisier. This was to be expected though, since even at 45 nm the CPU will generate lots of heat that has to go somewhere.


A small button near the keyboard will let you choose between "Silent" and "Normal" fan mode. When silent mode is enabled the CPU multiplier is reduced and the fan speed is limited.

Battery Life

This is where the Hyper Sonic AG2 disappoints most. The included four cell battery lasts you about an hour, give or take 15 minutes depending on power settings. Even with Windows Vista (Aero) sitting idle at the desktop the battery will be empty after 95 minutes. This is clearly not enough for a portable notebook. But this is the price you pay for very high performance.
An optional 8-cell battery (M720SBAT-8) should help increase battery life but will also increase the footprint of the notebook a bit.

If you plan to use the AG2 as sexy desktop replacement where it will be connected to AC all the time, this won't be a problem for you of course.