ASUS UL30 Owner's Lounge

Share a drive from another computer over the network. Works fine, and I don't think 100mbps (assuming you're wired in) is actually the bottleneck in most cases/installs. (edit: you should get "8x" DVD drive speed if you're copying raw files from a DVD over a 100mbps network.)

Make an ISO on another computer, copy ISO to thumbdrive, load ISO.

 

Great ideas! Thanks

For the person that said to go buy one, I don't want to because I rarely use it, only for installation purposes.

 

Did you get a mouse yet? I'm looking for a good one, too, preferably one for my manly girlish fingers. At home, I use a Logitech G3, but that is too big to carry along. I just bought a Case Logic PLS-13 laptop sleeve that has a separate compartment for a mouse and whatever else.

 

Does Windows 7 not have an Outlook Express? I wondered this when I first got my UL30 but I just did not bother with email because I have it on my desktop. But now id kinda like it on my laptop as well. Do I have to download it at Microsoft or something?

 

It's been replaced by Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail. My suggestion: use Mozilla Thunderbird.

 

Logitech V450
http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/mice_pointers/mice/devices/4335&cl=us,en

 

Can I please get a few of your comments on the Atheros Wifi card? I have seen one post that shows concern about only getting 3 bars approx 3 feet from the router... they also said they were unable to leave the room without dropping the connection.. This laptop sounds great and I'm ready to pull the trigger if that is an isolated complaint. I've never used an Atheros card before and am used to the seemlessness of an Intel.

Thanks!

 

My experience with UL3A has been mostly positive in 1 day. Internet connection was great with Atheros Wifi card. I was able to detect 6 other spots from other places but only 1 spot had 3 bars though. Full bar near my G router of course.

 

EDIT: What kind of results are you getting in your home? are you able to go to other rooms/upstairs without dropping connection? Is there a significant drop in bars?

 

Seconded. Receiver is ridiculously tiny, and I haven't had to change the batteries in around 9 months (still using original pair to this date).

 

Hi all,
anyone knows where I could find a bluetooth internal cable to plug in a receiver ?
Thanks !

 

I did not have time to fully test my new laptop. I sent my laptop in for repair as it had defective power cord....

 

I am on the brink of purchasing either the UL-30A2 or the UL-30 VT. However, there is one particular hangup that keeps holding me back, and that is the touchpad. I've read that disabling it is a good solution, but that would not be viable for me as I would be using it in a classroom environment at my Masters program. I can imagine how such a sensitive touchpad would drive you crazy if you were taking notes and had to keep readjusting the position of the cursor.

Can any current owners speak to this? Is this something that just requires an adjustment period or is it a design flaw?

I've also been looking at the Lenovo U-350 and the HP ProBook 5310.

Thank you.

 

You can adjust the sensitivity of the touchpad to your liking. I have it on default setting and it feels like any other touchpad I've used. I find the cursor doesn't jump much while typing when my palm touches the pad.

If necessary, disabling/reenabling the touchpad doesn't take much effort. Hitting Fn-F9 is no more a chore than hitting Ctrl-C.

Thanks, Soulsaber, for the mouse suggestion.

 

Soulsaber's mouse suggestion is perfect.

I know there has been some concerns with the performance of the Atheros card. I got my ul30 yesterday, and I have yet to drop the connection. A floor above and 60 ft from my router, it still shows 4 bars. And it is also picking up 2 wireless networks from my neighbors on either side (about 250 ft, both of them), that I've NEVER seen before. So I guess I lucked in with a good one.

Overall impressions of this laptop: FANTASTIC! dcc, the keyboard has turned out to be very good, and the touchpad is very usable as well. I prefer my dell's, but it far exceeds my Sony's usability. Someone asked whether or not the sensitivity would cause problems when typing. I haven't accidentally moved the cursor yet. However, I do keep my wrists abnormally far to the side, so perhaps I'm not a good test candidate...

The webcam was being knocked for only being 0.3 MP...but it has the same quality of any others I've seen. It still does skype resolution, so it's quite functional.

As far as the LCD goes...the angles aren't great, but it's a solid, nice screen.

Basically, I love this notebook. Did I mention that it hasn't even been plugged up for two days (when I did have it plugged up, the adapter was only mildly warm)?

 

what's with all these different models ending with like -A, -x5, -a2? any difference?

 

@tbweems,
I *love* the ability to stay unplugged for two days of moderate work. This is the primary reason I'm pining for the UL30Vt. The fact that you don't even need to think about battery life is a huge plus, meaning you can just leave the adaptor at home.

While most others will be searching for a seat next to an outlet, you're free to roam wherever with your laptop. And with a small form factor, there are less things to worry about in your bag. Awesome.

@twe90kid,
-A1 == 5600mAH battery with windows Vista installed
-A2 == 5600mAH battery with windows 7 installed
-X5 == 4400mAH battery with windows 7 installed

The difference between the 'A' and 'X' is the battery size. The 'A' has a 27% higher capacity battery (at the same voltage).

}:^)~

 

Ok, im going to usa, what external dvd writer / cd drive should i buy and what should i watch out for.

Is 1 usb plug not enough ?

 

Thirded. I have one of these too ... 6 months to date for me and no battery replacing needed!

 

Yes....
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002DPUUL4/ref=ox_ya_oh_product


Mainly because......."BlueTrack Technology - Works on virtually any surface including granite countertops, carpets, and wood tables"

And because its got a tiny USB plug......
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/415VLSuNrGL._SS400_.jpg

 

And you can stow it in the mouse.....

 

Does anyone know if the Celeron ones (SU2300) shipping in the UK have the 5600mah battery or not?

 

Must be someone who knows this

 

Some users posted information on this before in this thread. Let me see if I can find it... Ah, here we go:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5459075#post5459075
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5462983#post5462983
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5497127#post5497127

 

I've just ordered one, should be delivered on Wednesday so will post the info then - fingers crossed for the 5600mah!

 

That would be great if you could! Fingers crossed for you as well

 

Just been into a store and it's the 5600mah. Couldn't tell if it was x64 or x86 though because the user account was really locked down.

 

Good news! Unfortunately CPW seem to be taking ages to process my order so it doesn't look like I'll be getting mine tomorrow :-(

I reckon that it will be x64, but will let you know for sure when I get it

 

@Scottland

Just called CPW and apparently my order didn't go through properly despite receiving an order number and me having called them yesterday to confirm that it was in progress. So, wont be able to let you know re x64. Hopefully you will have a better experience if you do decide to purchase!

 

So I take it no one has tried putting the Turbo33 version of the Power4Gear utility on their UL30A? I can't see why it wouldn't work on the UL30A as its just software overclocking and not BIOS related. Its listed as V1.1.25 on the UL80VT page compared to V1.1.24 on the UL30A page (weirdly the UL30VT page only has the non turbo version). The file name is even called Power4Gear_Hybrid_Turbo33_Win7_64_110025 but doesn't say it's device specific. Can anyone try this out?

For those needing a link you can get it here:
http://support.asus.com/download/download_item_mkt.aspx?slanguage=en-us&model=UL80Vt

It's in the utility section after selecting your OS. Much appreciated.

 

Thought I would post this here -Asus gave a post on amazon.com regarding those who are having difficulties with their ul30a-a2's wireless connection.

 

It'd be cool if someone could try. You mention it is just software overclocking but I suspect it may not be so simple as just running Power4Gear.

 

Even if the the UL80VT Power4Gear utility works on the UL30A, it could be luck of the draw whether the system is stable at those speeds. Much like how Nvidia/ATI/Intel/AMD had been known at times to cherry-pick processors for higher speed versions, I suspect Asus does the same for the CPU and other components for the -VT models.

I forgot who but one UL30A user here even mentioned that they started getting system errors when just pushing the BIOS overclock to 5%.

 

I guess thats possible but if VT models really were hand selected processors they would be charging a lot more for the VT models just to cover the costs of testing which processors run faster. As it stands there doesn't appear to be much of a price difference between the UL80Ag and the UL80VT and most if not all of that difference probably goes to cover the Nvidia graphics card. I really can't believe not a single person that owns this system wouldn't be interested in attempting to boost their system performance.

 

Is this the model with the best battery life ?

http://www.amazon.com/UL30Vt-X1-13-3-Inch-Laptop-Windows-Premium/dp/tech-data/B002XZLURC/

 

No, the model ends in an X1 so it will have the 4400mah battery. Any model that ends has an A attached will carry the 5600mah battery.

As a side note, The UL30A-X5 is selling for $650, not sure if it's permanent price change (Black Friday and all).

Edit: Went back up to $680. Guess it was a Black Friday deal.

 

No way to upgrade an X1 model with a 5600 mAh battery ?

Maybe an X1 model consumes less power than A model ?

 

...I don't understand what could possibly lead you to think that. What would be the purpose of having a model that consumes less power and then putting a smaller battery in it when you could also put a bigger battery in it.

The only specs difference between the X5 and A2 models that are currently on Amazon is the color and battery size.

You can buy an extra 5600mah battery online, someone posted it in this thread.

Edit: Kind of misread your post. I mean, it's entirely possible that the UL30Vt-X1 will consume less power...but that's impossible to tell you right now, but it's highly unlikely. I can almost guarantee that it will have identical to the UL30A-X5 because it will have the 4400mah battery (confirmed by Asus) and it'll have the same integrated Intel graphics.

What's special about the UL30Vt is that it'll also come with switchable discrete nvidia graphics but your battery life will be much less with that on.

 

Battery of 5600 mAh operates with 15 Volt > 84 Whr

http://www.anandtech.com/mobile/showdoc.aspx?i=3665&p=2&cp=5

Does the 5600 mAh battery also fits in the UL30 VT ?

 

Hmmm


ANyone have any issues with the WEBCAM on the UL 30 - a ?


I had the model with windows vista right.... so i updated to windows 7.

anyway problem is with MSN Messenger and the webcam..

in a chat window if i click on VIDEO call ... the image shows GREEN. though if i do " show web camera " it is fine and dandy works well..


but once i do a video call forget it.. green image etc.

anyone else? any fix any recommendation.. i've installed the drivers a few times now and still the same issue

 

Ok? What's your point?

The 5600mah battery fits in the UL30, UL50 and UL80

 

anyone know of any tie-down lock for the ul30a? It's not a kennsington slot.

 

Here's a question regarding the thickness of the UL30a:

As I understand the battery/legs protrude slightly, bringing the overall thickness up to 0.98". How thick is it not counting the battery/leg protrusion?

}:^)~

 

It is ~ 25 mm (0.98") without the feet protrusion. With the protrusion of the laptop, without the battery, it is 28 mm (1.1"). So without the battery, thickness is 0.98 to 1.1 inches.

 

just got this laptop. it's really nice, and thankfully i didn't have any problems with the wifi.

but i did notice the weird sound it makes when i tilt it up. did anyone ever figure out what it was? i think it was coming from the top right side of the laptop.

 

Here is a pic of the tiny USB plug that goes with the Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 4000. I just leave it in but if your concerned about it falling out it snaps inside the bottom of the mouse very nicely. This mouse rocks, I highly recommend it!!

 

Thanks for the answer, but I'm a little confused. What is the thickness *with* the battery, if without it it's 0.98 to 1.1"?

I was under the impression that the UL30a was 0.98 at its thickest point with the 8-cell.

}:^)~

 

With battery, it is 31 mm (1.2"). With feet, it is 33 mm (1.3"). All measurements are with lid closed. The lid is 6 mm (0.236").

 

Wow. 1.3" is rather thick. I'm a bit sceptical, but I'll take your word for it. If this is true, I'm surprised that nobody has listed this thickness.

Can anyone else confirm?

}:^)~

 

This laptop is thin. I can't think of another laptop on the market outside of the Dell and Apple EXPENSIVE versions that is thinner. You're splitting hairs if there is one. I'm very much pleased with the size the of this laptop