A8JP Owners Lounge

I didn't get home until late last night so I didn't have the chance to dig too deep into the msconfig settings for major adjustments.

I haven't noticed scratching on mine whatsoever. I do use an external mouse which keeps my hands off the touchpad. I used the supplied bag to transport the laptop on a roadtrip last weekend and everything seemed fine (I also used the foam sleeve the included in the packaging).

I'm very much looking forward to getting into some new games with this machine. I've essentially missed out on every game put out from 2001 - present. So anything released after 2001 is brand new to me. Currently I'm just playing Civ IV, which obviously runs flawlessly with max detail settings on this notebook. Homeworld 2 is coming the mail as well.

I'm hesitant to push the cutting edge games until ATI releases the actual drivers for the x1700. But in reality I've got enough gaming with these 2 games to keep me busy until the drivers are out (hopefully).

 

I just peeled the stickers off with my finger nails. Stuck the stickers on the back side of the laptop, then cleaned up the residue on from the stickers with some alcohol. Now the laptop looks very clean and professional.

I wouldn't recommend using a blade or anything because you could easily scratch the plastic. Just start with a corner of the sticker and keep picking on it with your finger nail until enough of it comes up to grab with your fingers. Then peel back slowing in the same direction until all of it is off.

 

Noticed that Newegg just changed the statement from saying the A8JP was coming in today to just saying Out of Stock. Which other vendors sell this model?

 

In the United States, it looks like Chief Value is also selling them (or re-reselling them from NewEgg). Unfortuntately, also "out of stock":

Chief Value

Those are the only US websites that I know of that have the A8Jp. Maybe you can be wait-listed for the next batch that comes in?

 

I'm having a problem with Notebook Hardware Control 2.0 PR4 blue-screening my notebook in Vista Home Premium. I install the application, run the patch then try to run it. Then it blue screens. I have all the latest drivers/utilities installed from the Asus/Vista driver thread.

Any ideas?

 

Only Newegg/Chiefvalue have them. Newegg gets directly from Asus Taiwan. They are supposedly the only NA importers (this info from ASUS USA RMA department)

 

I disabled the bluetooth application in my msconfig but the **** thing still defaults to enabled everytime I boot up. Not a huge deal but perplexing. I just read Sanpabloguy's suggestion and I will try that next.

Otherwise couldn't be happier with this laptop.

 

to all A8jp owners,

I am about to buy A8jp from newegg. few questions.

1. I saw in the pictures that A8jp has only one vent, so does it heat up much.

2. I don't know much about XP media center, can I install databases, run servers like weblogic and java applications. I know XP professional is good for those applications, but i don't know XP media center.

Please help ASAP. Thanks in advance..

 

1. The air out of the vent does get warm, but the laptop stays cool.

2. Can't answer this one.

 

XP Media Center is the same as XP Pro with the media center application added on to it. The only thing it doesn't have that XP Pro has is the ability to join a domain. Even that can be done by changing a registry key.

 

I should clarify that the fan only blows out warm heat when I'm using a demanding application. The fan runs at idle but so far has always been cool unless I"m running demanding software.

 

Newegg has these Notebooks back in stock.

 

Yesterday I finally got around to hooking up the a8jp to my 5.1 stereo using a monster cable headphone/audio jack cable I've had for years. I experienced a lot of static coming out of the subwoofer.

This problem never happened with my last 2 notebooks (same cable and stereo). I plugged some headphones into the a8jp and that sound quality was great. So I think to myself, maybe it's my sub or the cable that has gone bad. I plug my MP3 player into the stereo with the same monster cable and the sound is perfect.

So it's something with the notebook generating interference with the subwoofer.

Anybody else experience anything like this? If I can't fix it I guess I'll have to try one of those USB soundcards to circumvent the asus headphone jack.

 

Are you using any of the SoundMax equalizer profiles? I would not modify the audio in anyway through that junk. Just disable all the soundmax stuff from even loading at startup. My audio comes out very clean.

 

So I purchased one of these from Ebay.



It took a while to arrive, but it fit perfectly on my laptop and is very nice. If you're worried about scratching your laptop, I highly recommend this item.

Note: Although it fit well, it was quite difficult to install. The good thing is, if you place it crooked, you can peel it off and try again.

2nd note: The kit came with 3 pieces. One for the lid (easy to install), one for the palm rests and the area around the outside of the keyboard (goes all the way around and is hard to install), and one for the touchpad (easy to install and the touchpad still works the same). There is also a large piece the size of the keyboard that is left over.

 

I also have a problem I want to ask about. Every time the computer comes out of hibernation, Media Center starts up on its own. It's not that big a deal, but it is annoying the crap out of me because I can't figure out what is causing it. Does anyone know how to fix this?

 

This thread tells how to activate MCE on startup. So, reversing the steps might fix your problem. Hope it helps.

 

I also had the same problem. I tried going into the MCE general settings but it did not help. I therefore disabled DMEDIA in msconfig and MCE no longer starts up by itself.

 

Thanks... I'll try this out soon. I had already tried all the obvious things, but they didn't help. In fact, it isn't even just a startup problem. The problem even happens when it comes out of hibernation (this should never start any additional programs).

 

I'm planning to get an A8JP from Newegg at the end of February, and I'd like to get 2GB of memory and then upgrade to Vista. Any suggestions appreciated re the memory and OS changes, how to do it, etc...

[email protected]

 

For Memory...just order if from Newegg along with your computer (that is what I did). I purchased 2gb of 667mhz (PC-5300) Patriot SO-DIMM RAM. Just make sure your RAM has those specs, but get whatever brand Newegg has a good deal on at the time (do check the reviews on newegg before ordering though).

As far as the OS, if you buy at the end of February, it should come with Vista pre-installed. If it does not, I'm certain that, very soon, there will be a lot of Vista installation information in this very forum (Also, if you get an XP laptop, make sure not to pass the expiration date for the free update; I think it is sometime in March, but check for yourself before you buy).

 

Terve!

I'm finnish as well and considering making an order for a8jp from Germany since the model isn't available in Finland. The main thing is that I'm pretty picky about the monitor and therefore haven't made the order yet. Can you please check is your panel CMO or AUO type? And if it is CMO, from which shop did you purchase yours?

 

I think all A8JPs come with the CMO screen. I haven't heard of anybody with an AUO model. Only the old A8JS laptops have the AUO screens, even the new A8JS use the CMO screen.

 

in europe the a8js has the cmo screen.

I wouldnt base your shopping on north american models. It might end up being the exact opposite for you.

 

i have A8JE which is using the same bios with A8JP but equiped with intel cd2 t5600, 1gb ram, ati x1450 and 100gb. it has auo screen 1280*800. i bought it from turkey.

 

Problem with my A8JP.

First, whenever I restart, my screensaver goes back to none in my display preferences. Second, Windows explorer seems to crash pretty often as of late.

Any ideas?

 

Could be a couple of things. What version of Windows are your running? Did the problems start after installing or removing any programs? Here are some things you can try that are generic:

First, I'd recommend running an antivirus scan (updated definitions) and a anti-malware app like Spybot Search & Destroy.

If you've added any new programs, they might be causing the problems, too, per this article on Help With Windows.

 

Hey guys, new to the group and am awaiting my new A8Jp(from Newegg).

Quick question, anyone install the retail Vista on their A8Jp yet? I was thinking of clean installing Vista right away, but would like to hear any of the success/horror stories. Anything specifically not supported yet in Vista for the A8Jp??

Thanks for any info provided.

 

Hi,

Mine is from mindfactory.de and it has an AUO. That's a bummer but what can i do Gotta admit that there's some lightleakage on the bottom of the screen.

So far so good otherwise.

 

I did a clean install for kicks. Everything worked that I tried. I didn't install the Power4Gear stuff as the Vista power management is pretty good itself. However, the battery life is significantly shorter on Vista, probably because of the 3d accelerated desktop. So, I went back to XP Pro. Plus, I didn't really see any advantage to using 32bit Vista. My 64 bit Vista is on its way, I am going to put that on a second partition and toy around with it.

 

I have Vista running on my A8JP everything seems fine accept for Splendid, and the p4gear not really sure on the battery life as Ive pretty much have it on ac.

 

Thanks a bunch. I was think about mindfactory as well..AUO screens seem to appear in the german version of A8js also, so guess I'll just have to wait until these babies come available in Finland so I can check the screen before buying one. Or then wait for A8jr.

 

This is a nitpick I know but does anyone have a good suggestion for removing glue residue from where I removed those two large stickers that came on the notebook?

 

Hey everyone, this is my first time here, and I stumbled upon these forums looking for info on the A8JP. This thread has been a very informative read, kudos to all the contributors. You've pushed me closer to my purchase of the A8JP.

I have been building (read as 'breaking') desktops for about 6 years now, and I really wanted a solid laptop to compliment my 'main' desktop system for when my tinkering renders it a doorstop. This would be my first time buying, owning, or even using a laptop for an extended period of time, so please excuse me in advance if I end up asking questions you all might have heard before.

After digging up and reading all the info available I could find on the A8JP, I still had 2 main concerns, one of which was addressed here. The x1700 driver support, or lack thereof; fresh install of Windows. Now I read about reinstalling XPMCE and that was very helpful, but would I have any issues trying to installing XP Pro? Would I be losing certain drivers for the laptop that I would only be able to get via MCE installation? Also I've read about the fat32 format default, can you just reformat into NTFS or do you have to be fancy about it?

Again, this thread had exactly the information I was looking for, and I'm happy that the product I was going to choose has a community of supporters who are as excited about this device as I am. Thanks a bunch!

 

I was just reading through the posts so i dont know if this has been said already, but you can turn off the touchpad by pressing Fn+F9.

 

XPMCE is pretty much XP Pro with the MCE application added to it. You shouldn't have any problems with drivers on either. I am running XP Pro on my A8JP.

 

I just received my A8JP today and had just a few hours to play around with it. I'm VERY impressed with the laptop build quality, CMO screen and screen resolution.

Also a huge thanks to sanpabloguy for his help with my RAM questions. I bought two 1GB sticks of RAM and installed it in about 5 minutes. I was extremely happy to find out that both RAM sticks were accessible from underneath the laptop. From the Asus sticky, I thought I had to take off the keyboard to install the other RAM stick. I booted up the notebook and 2.0GB appeared right away!

The only thing left to do is wait for my DVI>HDMI and SPDIF cable to come in from monoprice.com and I'm all set for some gaming on my HDTV.

 

Congrats on the purchase - I received the very same cable last week and have been having a heck of time getting dealing with overscan and other issues with my Toshibia CRT 1080i HDTV. I'm using powerstrip as well as a beginners guide to powerstrip and still am having a lot of trouble (i've basically given up for the moment). What kind of HDTV do you have? Please post your notebook's display configuration and setup when you do get the cable in.

 

I have a JVC 52" D-ILA (720p), so I'm hoping it will be easy to compensate for overscan.

 

Congrats on the RAM upgrade. It is easy on the Asus. I had visions of needing to try and pry out the keyboard, but a few screws is all that need to be dealth with. The memory popped out and in very easily.

 

If you'd post your notebook display config and results when your cable comes in I'd appreciate it. Even though we have different TV's perhaps I can use that information to get mine working.

 

Hey guys. I'm a newbie to the forums but I've been reading review/posts of users here immensely over the past 2 weeks to help me decide on finding the perfect laptop for my needs (student / moderate gaming needs) and was happy to be directed to the fantastic A8JP off Newegg. I just placed my order and wanted to thank you guys for your valuable info and insight into this product. It's gonna feel like forever waiting for this thing to arrive!

I have a question about the stock ram, however. Until I can get together a tad more money to get the 2x 1gb sticks, how well do the current 2x 512mb sticks work for moderate gaming? Also, is the installation of the ram pretty straightforward (ie. snap in/out and presto?) This is my first laptop so i'm not entirely sure how it looks on the inside (however I did build the current desktop I'm using). Thanks for any help you fellas can provide.

 

Not sure what you mean by "moderate" gaming.

I ran Morrowind on the original RAM with no problems. Worked fine.

The memory is easy to replace. This is the first time I ever upgraded RAM and it was a breeze. Remove the bottom panel, remove the two RAM sticks, and replace them with your new ones. They came out easily and it was easy to put in the new RAM.

 

nappyhurr:
It depends on what games you play. Not too many games are memory intensive, where you'd see a noticeable difference between 1gb and 2gb. Graphic card and cpu are the biggest factors in gaming performance. With the T7200, x1700, and 1gb RAM, you should easily be able to run most games with at least mid to high-level resolutions and detail settings.

 

Hey guys, got my laptop today and am loving it so far. Got a CMO screen and happy with that too.

So I install Vista right away and everything seems to work one way or another. I do have a couple questions though. Is there anyway to get the quick start buttons (the ones above the function keys) working. Only the bluetooth works right now.

Also, the last time I rebooted the hcontrol was using 50% of my cpu resources. I just ended the process, but any ideas why the would happen?

Anyother tip and suggestions would be great.

 

Congratulations on your new A8JP. Glad to hear Vista is working well. Waiting to get my free upgrade from Asus (but may hold off a while longer).

Don't know why the quick start keys wouldn't work. They do work in XP (except for the one for the DVD player, but that's a known issue).

One thing that I just discovered (and I could just be really slow) that speeds things up is converting the D: (DATA) drive to NTFS.

I converted C: when I first got it; after upgrading the RAM I didn't notice a huge improvement (and I don't have a lot of programs at startup or any real resource hogs); and it just occurred to me that I never converted D:.

Startup is noticeably faster, the time from logon to full desktop is noticeably faster, and runnings apps seem to be running faster.

So that's my tip for the day - convert d: to NTFS when you convert c:.

 

How do you convert D: to NTFS? I already converted C: like you did, and after doing that I double-clicked on the same NTFS converter program that Asus provides, put in the volume label, and it said an incorrect volume even though it isn't. So how did you do it?

Also, what is the purpose of a DATA partition?

 

D (DATA) is just a partition of the drive that Asus pre-named DATA. You can use it for whatever you want: programs, data, backups, photos, music. Or you can partition it into more drives if you like with something like Partition Magic or by using Windows built-in partition management utility.

The Asus conversion utility is just a command prompt file, but it only converts C:. Instructions on Converting FAT32 to NTFS on WinXP are at that link. Just be sure to use "D:" instead of "C:" when you run the command.

As far as I know, the instructions would be the same for a Vista system, and since the Asus utitlity worked, there should be no problem.

 

DATA partition is to back up your important files to that Drive, instead of burn them out to CDs.

I always save my stuff to DATA so if i have any virus or any similar problem, my data is safe for computer reinstallation. IT's a good habit to save your data to Another Data partition rather than C drive.

I usually left 30gb for windows on C and the rest is for data.

After I look back at the A8.. i'm a little bit regret of getting a 17"... However, I prefer larger view screen good for movies and photo editing.

Sorry for interrupt to A8 lounge.

A8 = best choice for student, power, portability , price . I'd recommend my friend to buy this than those HPs DV 6000 , and E1505 1405,

 

i found out A8JP is very high temp, very hot
the temp is always around 68 celcius, and hdd is 50 celcius
how about urs?