Asus F8P-B1W Review, photos, benchmark and video

F8P-B1W Reivew


· Screen: 14 inch WXGA (1280 x 800) glossy screen
· Mobile Intel® PM965 Express Chipset with ICH8M
· GPU: ATI HD2400 256MB DDR2
· CPU: 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T7250 processor 2.0GHz 800Mhz FSB 2MB
· RAM: 2GB DDR2-667 SDRAM up to 4GB
· Hard Drive: 160GB 5400 RPM SATA HDD
· Optical Drive: 8X DVDRW Dual Layer Super-Multi
· Camera: 1.3 Mega Pixel 240 degree swivel
· LAN: 10/100/1000 Mbps
· WLAN: Intel 4965 802.11a/b/g/n
· Built-in Fingerprint reader
· Bluetooth: Bluetooth V. 2.0 + EDR
· Card Reader: Built-in 8-in-1 card reader
· Speaker and Microphone: Built-in
· Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 32 bit
· Weight/Dimensions 5.7 lbs / W 13.6"X D 9.8" XH 1.5""

-Interface:
· 1 x VGA port/Mini D-sub 15-pin for external monitor
· 1 x Headphone-out jack (SPDIF)
· 1 x Microphone-in jack
· 1 x RJ11 Modem jack for phone line
· 1 x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert
· 5 x USB 2.0 ports
· 1 x IEEE 1394 port
· 1 x TV Out (S-Video composite)
· 1 x Express Card
· 1 x Infrared Port(CIR)
· 1 x DVI-D Port









Reason for buying:
Style meets portability at a very great price point, its the twin brother of the F8SV-A1 from another dimension, where aesthetics are a higher priority. Small changes can mean a big difference for the right person things like the leather palm rest or higher quality keyboard.

If your a ATI fan this is a good chance to find a notebook with a ATI GPU instead of a nVidia for once.


Build and Design:
No holds barred on the build quality, from the accents in leather to the high quality finish this thing will be sure to turn some heads and will feel right at home no matter if its a internet cafe, or your big business meeting or your lap at home. The design for the most part is just like the F8SV fully loaded with a built in webcam, a finger print reader, Bluetooth and all the standard things like WiFi and ethernet. Its really everything you need in one small smart package

The design is not directly targeted for those seeking high end gaming that’s more of the F8SV if you want a similar notebook or even the G1S, the F8P-B1W is like the mature clean cut version for those who favor style over all out performance. A defining object like your car, some will rather have the fast loud sports car while somebody else would rather have the smooth ride and nice look/feel of a luxury car. I think that’s where Asus was really headed with this one and they did a great job doing it.

Screen:
As always the screen is perfect and backed with Asus's great warranty and dead pixel policy. 14" 1280x800 glossy type. It has the perfect resolution for the screen size and among best color and clarity of any laptop screens, most gamers maybe not like the lower 1280X800 resolution but will be perfect for someone who proffered readability

Speakers:
Not something to write home about, but what laptop speakers ever are. Facing reality the speakers are everything you would expect them to be, nothing more and nothing less. You will hear everything just fine but earphones or external speakers are always the best way to go if you want more.

Keyboard:
Great feedback from the keys, very responsive, the whole color scheme ties in from the keys to the rest of the laptop. There is not one flaw to be found in the keyboard.
Some people would proffered CTRL key to be on the left.

Performance and Benchmarks:

WEI: 3.4


3Dmark06: 1522
Setup:
Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 2.0 GHz 2MB 800FSB
2GB DDR2 667
ATI HD2400 256MB DDR2
Driver: ATI Catalyst 7.9


Games:

Medal of Honor Airborne Demo
Setup:
Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 2.0 GHz 2MB 800FSB
2GB DDR2 667
ATI HD2400 256MB DDR2
Driver: ATI Catalyst 7.9












For the money the performance is not too bad, you have the core 2 duo inside giving you plenty of CPU power, and you get the honor of having one of the few ATI GPU laptops around. The Santa Rosa chipset is used so it has all the newest features and is currently the best mobile chipset available.

Also for those interested chipset fully supports 4gb of ram (remember you need a 64bit OS)

Heat and Noise

Could be little loud in a quiet room when set to high performance mode, but still noticeably quieter than F8SV because of the less powerful ATI HD2400 GPU.
Touchpad is little warm but not hot at all.

Battery Life: 2 hours and 15 minutes
-Battery saving mode, browse internet, youtube video, MSN messenger.



Pros:
-Great looks & aesthetics
-Great price
-Good keyboard
-Runs cool & quiet

Cons:
-Lack of HDMI port
-Not so good LCD viewing angle from bottom
-Gamers will be disappointed in it’s 3D performance

Conclusion:
Overall I had to say the F8P-B1W is a great machine and another great addition to the Asus notebook lineup, What ever may have attracted you to the F8SV but you felt it was just missing a little something, you can probably find it here. Its sure to be attractive to anybody seeking a high end aesthetics with the look and feel truly being masterful. It’s just as much a piece of art as it is a laptop, for those who like different colors a black leather version F8P-B2B will be available soon.


F8P-B1W Video:
http://www.gentechpc.com/Asus/F8P-B1W-2.wmv

 

Wow thats a sweet looking laptop! I really like the leather palm rest those are comfortable and more ergonomic to the hands (my hands get abit sore typing on the c90 for a long time, tilting it with a cooling pad helped alot tho)

This seems like something that a business type person may enjoy more than say the F8SV, cant wait to see what the black one looks like tho.

 

Great review Ken!

Just a couple questions. Is 6-cell the standard battery that comes with the laptop? Is there an option for a 9-cell battery?

 

Yes the leather feels very comfortable to use, I am sure the black version will look even better.

Yes it's not a gaming notebook, the ATI HD2400 scores the same on V2S's under power 8600M GS but you know what, it's the same MB and chassis as F8SV, I am gonna try flash F8SV BIOS and swap the video card to 8600M GT and I am sure it's gonna work.

It only has 6 cell battery and because of it's design there is no way to put in a 9 cell battery, I've just uploaded the video and you can take look at it.