A8Js - Owner's Lounge

no flash is used. and it's notepad.

 

I'm sorry about that... It does look really bad. Asus should definitely replace that screen, but there's probably not much of a chance of that.

 

Does your screen look like your picture?

If the light is leaking out i mean you see a whole line thats not normal no. if it literally obscures a whole row of pixels that is a defect.


I have light leakage, it is a small color change in the middle bottom. This is normal. would be better to have none.

If there is light leakage that obscures the bottom row of pixels thats not going to be in manufacturers specs, theyre going to replace the screen.

 

Can somebody please confirm that the model type A8JS-4S014P sold in Germany is with CMO and not AUO screen? No "i think" information please, but rather a confirmation from someone who actually has this type of notebook. Thanks a lot!

 

I have one of those bought last november and it has AUO screen.

 

I deleted the partitions in the hard disk because I want to install it my way, and the stupid recovery cd's asus chooses to supply us, goes through the entire process and than says partition not found. They also did not provide us with XP cd, which is really the worst way to do business in my book. So now I am stuck with having to find an XP install CD with which my license will work. I have several xp cd's at my disposal (legit ones) and none of them work. Is there something I can do, I really hate the software asus installs from the factory, intel proset is useless, lightscribe is useless, norton is absolutely the last program I EVER want to use, etc. And the stupid recovery cd's don't work when you wipe the partition table!
What should I do?

 

I just swapped my AUO screen with an LG one.... The colors are way better and the light leakage is still there but not that noticeable.

 

thats cool

can you describe the process?

I dont plan on doing it other than if the screen breaks. They break often enough.

Also as cheap as the replacement lcd is, 220, I can get a 20 inch widescreen samsung monitor with 4 ms response time and 260 nits

 

Nice Job!

I was hoping I wouldn't be the only one here to attempt this!

Also, I must concur: I am much happier with my A8JS after getting rid of the terrible AUO screen...

JWB-VT

 

Thanks a lot! Will have to reconsider then..

 

I am considering to buy the Western Digital My Book Pro External Hard Drive with 500 GB of storage capacity. However, it is quite expensive, so if the a8js is not capable of handling firewire 800, then i will go with a cheaper solution.

Therefore; Is the firewire port, on the a8js, 400 or 800?

Thx.

By the way, any comments on the my book pro from WD?

 

There is a 4-pin firewire port, but it's 400. very few notebooks have firewire 800, the only one I know of is the macbook pro, although there might be others.

 

Thank you, then i should find a cheeper solution.

Would it be stupid to go for an 7200 RPM external drive considering that the internal drive of the a8js is only 5400 rpm?

 

If you need external storage, just buy for example 250GB usb2.0 drive. They are so cheap nowadays. And just get the least expensive 7200rpm one, because all of them are mostly the same.

You should also consider whether you need to use the drive on road or not. All the 3,5 inch usb2.0 drives need external power supply to operate. 2,5 inch usb2.0 notebook drives do not, although they are more expensive with less storage capacity.

I have used an iomega 250GB 7200rpm usb2.0 drive for over an year and I have been very happy with it. I use it for downloads and music etc. and only install programs and smaller downloads on the internal hard drive.

 

Do you find 250 GB sufficient?

I was thinking about getting the WD my book premium with 500 GB (usb 2.0, 7200 rpm, 3,5"). I just need it for storage, no portability, as my a8js is almost filled up with 'media' already.. lol.
It costs around 300$ = almost 1500 danish crowns (DKK). I think it is rather expensive, the 250 GB edition will cost approx. 900 DKK. A nice point is that is a pretty designed external enclosure.

Edit
Here is the link for the product:
http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.asp?driveid=224&language=en

 

I seriously doubt you need a 7200 rpm external drive. Now, if you replace the internal drive with a 7200 rpm one, you should definitely see a difference. But for the external, just check the fatwallet.com "hot deals" forum. People always post great deals on 500gb or higher drives (drive speed really won't matter much, if at all).

 

Yes, i am aware of that.. But the one i am looking at doesnt come with 5400 RPM. I was first looking at a 2.5" 5400 rpm external drive, but they go up to max 160 GB, and is almost priced the same as the 500GB 7200 rpm drives.

 

I'm very disappointed, to say the least. The price difference of this laptop between Thailand and other Western countries is too much. Plus the Thailand version has lower specs.
Your typical a8jp would have 2.0 core 2 duo while Thailand's has 1.83. The RAM which is supposed to be 1 gig is only 512 in Thailand. And it only has 256 dedicated memory from the go 7700 instead of having the 512 dedicated memory. And you know what the worst part is? Thailand's version is more expensive to buy. If you convert Dollars into Thai Money (Baht), The typical A8Js sold in most western countries would total 47,000 Baht. But our version here, which has lower specs, costs about 58,000 Baht. Where's the sense in that? They're making the price higher in poorer countries. A lot higher I should say. With the amount of money I'm spending to buy an A8Js here, I could be buying it for an Asus G1 if I were in the US. Unbelievable man.

 

The process is really simple. Just take off the screen bezel and put in the new one...

This one still has light leakage, but less. The glare is not that intense as on the AUO. The LG Philips is a lot brighter and has better color and contrast. I guess i will have to wait until ASUS starts using LED LCD so i can swap this one...

 

what are the connections to the lcd, where are they located?

the new lcd has the same connection?

what is it called?

 

Well, now that you mention that, I do find 250GB a bit small But I bought that one over a year ago.

Here in Finland, 250Gb drives are a bit under 100€ (130$). And 500Gb drives are around 180€ (230$). Are the prices really that much more expensive there? I thought Finland was quite expensive land, at least when you are talking about computer stuff. Aaaaand, that WD drive you are talking about is a bit under 200€ (255$) here.

 

Hi guys, a question: 3 months into ownership, I removed the spec and power4gear stickers. Yeah, I should have removed them sooner, and recommend anyone that gets the laptop to do so.

Now I have in the area next to the mouse pad two shades of gray, a brighter one where the stickers used to be. Will the tone of the plastic level to just one tone with time, as the material absorbs stuff from the environment? Or will this difference in tones stick?

The lid on my screen keeps getting more scratches. My main complain with this laptop... Asus could have used a more scratchproof material in such scratch prone area as the exterior! Otherwise, a great laptop (and I am Ok with the screen, except for vertical angles but I adapt).

Thanks!

 

Hmm, 1500 DKK is sligtly above 200 euro, if i recall.

But in general, yes. For example; There were some news on a danish gaming-site. It said that the prices were highest in dk of all european contries for the PS3. On avarage 1000 DKK (ca. 150 euro) more than in other contries. I am kinda sick of it.. hehe

 

The area under the stickers has not been "exposed to the elements" as the rest of it has. Have you tried cleaning the whole area?

 

Just out of curiosity, where do you buy laptop screens and how can you tell which ones are compatible with the A8Js?

 

The LCD has 2 connections... One to the motherboard through a flex cable, and an other one that goes into the inverter. The inverter is the device that powers up the back light. The LG panel i bought comes with a inverter attached to the bottom. I had to remove that so that it would fit into the A8Js chassis. This way you will use the A8Js inverter. I think the inverter the lg brings is better than the one the A8Js has though.

I want to point out the warranty thing.... I have not voided the warranty of the A8Js.... The warranty strip is located on top of the CPU chip.... If anything goes wrong with my A8Js, all i have to do is swap back the screen. Someone correct if i am wrong please.

 

You can buy them through ebay, or any online store that sells LCD's, like smartmicrousa.com. Any 14.1 wxga+ will fit and work good with the A8Js.

 

Just got Power4Gear extreme for Vista, from Asus support site. Works well (considering it is Power4Gear with a facelift). Not as good as NHC, but for the time being (while NHC is update not to crash vista) it should do.

Just a headsup for those using Vista to check the download page

 

Hey all I don't know if this has been let out yet, but I just got an A8JS at ZipZoomFly.com for a low price, althought it looks to be an AUO... We shall see...

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=262648

Threw in another 1GB of Ram and my total was $1470 after shipping. Check it out!

 

Great deal MilitantDanny. Do you know anything about ZZF's customer service?

Update:

Eek, Reseller Ratings only has a 5ish rating for ZZF. As long as it comes with an ASUS Global Warranty though you shouldn't have to deal with them much post-purchase.

 

Not a clue lol Its the first time I bought anything from them. I usually go NewEgg, but I looked at some ratings site and like 1000 people gave ZZF an average of 4.5 outta 5... So I figured hell I'll take the chance! Now if it can just make it to my house in NY, and then make it 7000 miles over here, I'll be good hahaha... :::fingers-crossed:::

 

I accidentally pressed the Fn and C key and discovered I could switch between different LCD settings like Theater, Vivid, etc. I was wondering if anyone knows of other useful keyboard commands that's not marked.

 

Haha.. the same happens if u press the 'S'-key by the Wi-Fi and Instant-fun keys... it's not that secret

 

um fn and all of the function keys do something

fn and a lot of the keys do something. There you go just fn away and youll know everything.

 

Hey guys, what is your GPU temp at idle, low, mid, high stress?

 

I believe is the best thread to get some questions answered about the A8js, though it my not be the most appropriate as this is for owners

I attend college and "need" a laptop. I am looking to getting the most bang for the buck and cannot decide on where I should get the A8js or the G1. The answers to the following question will help me make a decision.

Who sells the A8js with the "good" CMO screen?

Is there a better screen coming out for the A8js?

Is the build quality poor on the A8js as compared to other 14” laptops?

Is the G1 build quality superior to the A8js?

I like all that I am hearing about the G1, but it does NOT have an Express Slot. Would buying the A8js because it has an Express Slot and is ~$300 less expensive seem unreasonable?

Do both the A8js and the G1 produce the same quality on an external display?

Does an extra gig of RAM pull a lot more power (Battery life)? Do I need it? I don't often play FPS, though I understand Oblivion is pretty demanding.

Thanks for your help.

 

Since ZipZoomFly is selling the older A8JS-4S034P models, I am pretty sure they will have the AUO screens. This model also does not feature the built-in bluetooth. Just a warning for those tempted to go for the lower price at ZipZoomFly.

 

Well, I previously posted that I had the CMO screen in my a8js-4s024P. Unfortunately there was a problem with that screen, where the right 4-5 inches of the screen looked washed out, kind of like someone used sandpaper to clean the screen, with it mostly evident on a dark background. Maybe a backlighting issue. Anyway, I sent it in for repair, and despite pleading for a CMO screen replacement, I saw that it had an AUO screen when I got it back. It's not as bad as I thought it would be, and I think the main problem with this screen is the vertical viewing angles. It's pretty easy for me to find a good position where the screen is mostly uniformly lit from top to bottom though. Side to side viewing angles aren't that bad. And the backlighting in a dark room really isn't much different than the CMO screen I had.

What model LG screens are people using as replacements? I'm considering just getting a higher quality screen and replacing it myself. I saw the link posted earlier, but there are a ton of lcds for sale in the 14.1" wxga size. Anybody have a specific model number for a good replacement candidate?

 

Poncho, where are you located and where did you send your notebook? Did you send it to the CA service facility?

 

Ive never seen the cmo screen.

However I use logic that its of extremely similar specs to the auo screen.

You can get one with defects from each company but id feel more confident in one from cmo because its made in smaller batches.

I wouldnt buy another lcd really or put it high on your list. After the warranty expires you might break the lcd anyway, I did on my previous laptop.
By then the competition makes me believe the lcds will be even better and cheaper.

 

Poncho... If you are really not that picky and you are satisfied with the AUO screen i would advice you not to swap it.

I think i am starting to like matte screens better. I guess i just miss my good old z70va's screen.

 

Im not in the least bit convinced the lg screen that the person bought is even as good as the auo screen.


I really doubt it because dell owners use the same one in a lattitude computer and they hate the lg screens and send them back to try and get the auo ones.
So were seeing some weird psychology in action here. If you freak out from viewing angle you can get a dim murky screen with a better viewing angle....

 

I know that this thread is devoted towards the A8Js, but given that Intel's Santa Rosa is coming out in the April-May timeframe, I just wanted to know what you guys think of me holding off and then purchasing the successor to the A8Js.

I don't think the A8Jr will cut it because it doesn't have much of a dedicated graphics processor, but if I can pick up something with Robson Hybrid HD, more RAM, DirectX 10 GPU etc. I will be happy. Do you think I can expect this dream laptop to come out before the back-to-school shopping season (September 07)?

 

I have a few questions about the A8Js...maybe some of you owners can help me out.

1. Does it come with a glossy or matte screen?
2. Is there anywhere I can buy a Bluetooth module for it?

 

Yes it is worth while to wait so long as you can wait this long.

Here's the thing, we know in Q2 Santa Rosa laptops will be available.

But Penryn is hard to predict whether it will be available around Sept, more like December, in my opinion.

Right now, I suggest you wait since you got the time, yes the A8jr has a X2300, I'm not 100%, but maybe there will be more A8 series notebooks with better dedicated graphics.

 

The A8js comes with a glossy screen, two brands of screen CMO and AUO.
The CMO screen is what people prefer.
The AUO screen is still nice.

You are able to check your screen by using Everest.

Yes you can add a bluetooth module, depending on your reseller. We have exclusive A8js, that came with factory ASUS installed bluetooth modules.

 

Thanks a lot. Seems like CMO is the way to go...I know this is slightly unorthodox, but is there any way for you guys to check which screens you have on your A8Js's?

 

Thanks. I hope for the A8Jw or whatever to come out before the back-to-school season ends. That way I might get some rebates.

Pumped up Core 2 Duos with 800 Mhz FSB, 120GB Hybrid Harddrive, 2GB RAM, Wireless-N compatibility, 64-bit Vista and of course, a DirectX 10 GPU [1 GB VRAM is probably too much but between 512-768 MB sounds about right].

*Drool*

Penryn won't bring any major changes; you know it's only a shift from 65 nm to 45 nm chips. Anyhow, it will be useless without Montevina and that won't come until Q1 2008 and I certainly can't wait that long. In fact, I really can't wait until September, but I'm a university student and I can't afford to buy something that won't last 3-4 years so I'm going to wait.

You work for MilestonePC.com? The home page says you guys are expanding into the US from Canada? That's interesting b/c I live right outside Toronto. Where are you guys located? I might buy from you if you can offer a rebate or two. Your price for the A8Js is only slightly above NCIX.com's but way below infonec.ca's ($1,899 vs. $1,795 for the bluetooth enabled versions). And tigerdirect.ca doesn't stock it.

 

Sorry if this question has been asked before... but I just don't feel like reading 80 pages.. lol

I just got my A8Js, and do you guys have any suggestions on reformatting the laptop? Or what programs that are needed for the best performance, and what I can delete? Thanks.

 

To answer the previous question, I sent it in for repair to the CA facility. I really can't complain, they were very helpful and they had no problems switching my screen (and keyboard, since I complained about a crunchy enter key). Unfortunately I had to pay for shipping there, but they overnighted it back to me. Total turnaround was about a week, since I didn't overnight it to them. They probably just didn't have any CMO screens on hand for replacements. I'm pretty picky about things, but I honestly don't think the AUO screen is nearly as bad as I've seen people saying. But who knows, maybe there's a lot of variation with them and I got lucky with mine. I'm pretty satisfied with this laptop overall.