M51Sn: Review & Owners' Lounge

Asus M51Sn-A1

15.4" WXGA 1280X800
GeForce 9500M GS 512MB DDR2 @ 475/950/400
Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 @1.66GHz 2MB 667 FSB
3GB DDR2 667 (2GB+1GB)
250MB 5400rpm SATA
Windows Vista Home Premium 32

A note by the moderators: As of today 29 April 2008, this thread is also the Owners' Lounge for the M51Sn. Enjoy!

WEI





3DMark06 3693 with stock driver no overclock @ 475/950/400





3DMark06 4149 driver 174.16 overclocked @ 561/1122/451





Medal of Honor Airborne Demo
Game setup:


Video 1:
Driver 174.16 @475/950/400 no overclock



Video 2:
Driver 174.16 overclocked @550/1100/440



Video 3: Need For Speed Pro Street Demo Driver 174.16 @475/950/400 no overclock



Video 4: Call of Duty 4 Demo Driver 174.16 @475/950/400 no overclock




Windows XP installation tutorials by Allen Hobby:
http://synthank.blogspot.com/2008/05/install-windows-xp-on-asus-m51sn.html

M51Sn with Windows XP benchmark:

15.4" WXGA 1280X800
GeForce 9500M GS 512MB DDR2 @ 475/950/400
VGA driver: 174.31
Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 @1.66GHz 2MB 667 FSB
3GB DDR2 667 (2GB+1GB)
250MB 5400rpm SATA
Windows XP Professional

3DMark06 1024x768 no overclock: 4375




3DMark06 1024x768 overclocked @525/1171/437: 4864




3DMark06 1280x800 no overclock: 3930




3DMark06 1280x800 overclocked @528/1175/432: 4415

 

Looks like it's confirmed that the 9500M GS DDR2 is pretty much identical to a 8600M GT DDR2 except minor DirectX 10 differences. It scores only slightly higher in 3Dmark06, although negliable. Even those overclocked results looks similar.

 

Thanks Ken!

 

No problem.

The performance is not bad at all if you watch the video.
Yes I agree it's similar to 8600M GT DDR2, but Asus now make it more affordable for laptops with high end GPU.

 

What is the power useage difference between the 9500 and 8600 though? I'm willing to bet the 9500 consumes less power and could help asus address their battery life shortcomings while still keeping their performance image up.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

I was going to buy a G1s but now should I go with this one?

 

Hmm.. I doubt it would be huge difference because of the already implemented 8600M Power settings. When in battery mode, all core clock & memory are running at half the speed. So if there is an overall improvement of power consumption of the GPU, lets say 10% on full GPU load(which is overly optimistic), at half the speed and in desktop usage I doubt it would be remotely close to 5% battery improvement on GPU consumption.

If you saying better battery life when gaming, sure then that would apply. But who does that?

 

im really wondering if I should get this one instead of what i was going to get at xoticcp

1x SAGER NP2092 Custom Laptop (Built on Compal JFL92)
- Display: 15.4" WSXGA+ "Matte" Type Super
- Arctic Silver: Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- Dead Pixel Policy: Standard Dead Pixel Policy
- Processor: ~Intel® 45nm "Penryn" Core™2 Duo
- Video Card: 512MB PCI-Express nVidia GeForce
- External Monitor Video Adapter: None Standard
- Ram: ~ 4,096MB DDR2 667 PC2 5300 (2 S
- Intel® Robson Turbo Memory: 1GB Intel® Robson Turbo Memory (
- Exterior Finish: Standard Finish
- Optical Drive: - Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti 8X
- Primary Hard Drive: ~ 160GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 3
- 2.5" SATA Enclosure & Hard Drive: None Standard
- Floppy Drive: None Standard
- Memory Card Reader: Internal 4-in-1 Card Reader (SD/
- Bluetooth: None Standard
- Wireless Network: Built-in Intel® PRO/Wireless 496
- Wireless Network Accessories: None Standard
- Camera: Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
- TV Tuner: None Standard
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audi
- Speaker Systems: Integrated System Speakers - Inc
- Case: Carying Case Optional (Select if
- Battery: Smart Li-ion Battery (9-Cell)
- AC Adapter: 110/220V 120W Auto Switching AC
- Car Adapter: None Standard
- Docking Station / Port Replicato: None Standard
- Fingerprint Reader: Integrated Fingerprint Reader
- Mouse / Keyboard Accessories: None Standard
- Notebook Cooler: None Standard
- Operating System: ~Windows Vista Home Premium 64-B
- "Medialess" Microsoft Office Sof: None Standard
- Software Bundle (Not Installed): None Standard
- Warranty: 3 Year Labor* 1 Year Parts Warra

 

Think of the 9500M GS as a G92 based 8600M GT, just like G92 technology is going to allow for a 8700M and 8800M now in smaller form factors.

 

There's a thread on the M51Sn here.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=210426

For you guys comparing it to other notebooks, realize that Asus made the stupid decision to put a relatively weak last generation CPU in this notebook for the US market, so keep that in mind. I think that's a deal breaker for me.

 

Hi GenTechPC,

I have a few questions on this laptop, first one is do you have any pictures of the bottom of the laptop. I can't find any and I am wondering if it is an easy laptop to upgrade the processor to a T7700. I have read it uses the Intel PM965 Chipset so I know you can use this processor to get a higher FSB of 800Mhz verses the 667Mhz the T5XXX series run at.

Second if you don't have the bottom pictures do you know how to access the processor so I could do an upgrade on this system.

Any info from anyone would be helpful.

Thanks,
Ross

 

Here is the picture:



It's the same chassi as the M51Sr, you can find more pictures here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=219335

yes you can use 800FSB CPU on this laptop.

 

Need for Speed Pro Street and Call of Duty 4 video added.

 

Nice work Ken. Impressed by the numbers. So it seems the 9 series might be as good as we hoped.

 

Thanks.

The M51S series is a brand new idea from Asus NA, it's for people wants a fast GPU but doesn't need a fast processor, and most importantly, the price.

Normally a laptop at $1000 range people will expecting a less powerful GPU such as Geforce 8400M or 7100, this not the case with M51Sn. in fact, it's a more affordable powerful gaming machine.

Asus already tested different processors and found out faster processor doesn't help much in games, similar test done by Chaz can be found here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=2982599

The 9500M GS performs about the same as the 8600M GT, too bad Asus don't have the 9500M with GDDR3 version yet for me to test, I would really like to see if compare with the 8600M GT GDDR3.

 

Well, the 9500M GS is a G84 with the same clocks as the 8600M GT so it should be about the same. Just a new name

What's the CPU in it already? A T5xxx? It's on par with it I guess, I know it cripples the gateway P61xxx a lot with a 8800M GTS.

Is the battery life better?

 

This m51Sn appears to be the perfect laptop for me except for the weak CPU. I have built many many desktops but never a laptop. What kind of difficulty are we looking at here if I upgraded this laptop to say a t7700 with an 800FSB? Would it be total chaos? Or is it a matter of removing some screws?

Really, this laptop plus an upgraded CPU is still very nicely priced...
TIA
M

 

look at the photo, the cpu is under the brownish thing, you have to remove those screws then the cooling pad and change the cpu.

I think you'd be better with a T9300 or T9500 than a 7700 though

 

Not only did Asus make the mistake of using a weak CPU, but look at the poor placement of the touch pad! It should not be centered to the notebook because of the keyboard essentially being shifted left due to the numeric keypad on the right side. The touch pad should have been placed directly under the space bar, like every other smart manufacturer does. Because of this mistake, accidentally touching the touch pad while using the keyboard will likely be a constant problem and source of frustration. What a shame.

To get a better understanding of what I mean, here's a picture of the Asus M51Sn and a picture of another notebook with a numeric keypad that has proper touch pad placement.

Improper Touch Pad Placement



Proper Touch Pad Placement

 

Atleast it has a proper touch pad, I think I would sell my C90S in a heartbeat for a C90P is it had a better touch pad. As it is now I'm happy with the upgrades I'm getting later this year. I shutter everytime I need to use it, heck even my EeePC has a better touch pad.

 

LOL same here. The c90P looks to be much improved. I especially like the copper heatsinks. But touch pad for sure is one of the things they need to improve...

 

I like it <_< but maybe because the only other laptop I've ever used is my dad's Inspiron 1501 where the touchpad is too small.

 

Totally agree...but is the T9300 plug and play with this model?

 

It should be, but maybe Ken can confirm.

 

Yes it is.

 

Is it possible to disable touchpad by using FN keys and does it stays disabled (over the reboot) until you enable it again?

 

Yes you can press FN+F9 to disable the touchpad, there is another touchpad enable/disable single button that allow you to enable/disable it, the touchpad stays disable until you enable it.

 

sorry,
I have one of those (m51sn) but hate Vista, I think it is becoming personal!!!

Any chance any of you know where or can help to locate the XP drivers?

Any info of compatibility levels with linux?

Thks,

 

I plan on getting one of these, but I would like to know if it is good enough to run Oblivion and Assassin's Creed (when it comes out).
Thanks

 

Most of the drivers for the Vista works on XP except the Audio driver and GPU, the newer revision of XP disk will automatically install the webcam driver, here is the driver for audio and video card:


http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17608

ftp://209.216.61.149/pc/audio/WDM_R187.zip

The tricky part will be the audio driver, you will see a yellow mark under system device called "PCI Device", that's the audio card, just right click on it and then click update driver and browse the driver folder for the sound card.

Have not try linux on this unit.

Should play fine but have not try these two games, I'll probably buy Assassin's Creed not just download demo if it does come out on PC.

 

yup,

Everything works fine except a device which shows as pci memory controller

I have heard something about this being not useable in Xp.

Otherwise, all is fine!


Thks for your help

X.

 

It's probably the Turbo Memory thing. Not very useful in Vista either (according to some), or somewhat useful (according to others).

 

5.3 for 250MB 5400rpm SATA ???
My Segate 120GB 7200RPM SATAII got 5.2 %-)

 

Size matters?

 

Will I'm left with this laptop as my only option of purchase since Bestbuy Canada has apparently sold out all the Gateway P-16831fx notebooks within the last two weeks.

Don't get me wrong I'm loving the price of this laptop, but is there any improvements at all with the Geforce 9500M GS over the 8600M GT (DDR-2)?
Since the 8600M GT is nearly a year old now and if I do buy this laptop I’ll probably keep it for 2 years so I just want to get an understanding on whether the 9500M GS is by any degree, as small as it might be more futureproof than the 8600M GT (other than a higher number)?

Also have you tested Crysis on this notebook?

 

It's bit better in DX10 apps, not a lot of thing.

My friend got one P168, bestbuy canada only got one shippement, but they managed to get another one for him probably because the last unit was sold between the time he send the order & that his father verify his visa identy.

 

Does this laptop have Ricoh or TI Firewire controller?

 

How is the performance on the CPU, I just let go of a much lesser specced HP (2GB of RAM, 8400GS w/128MB RAM, etc.) but the processor was a 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo; would I be disappointed by this compared to that?

I'm thinking of waiting for the F8Sn-B1, but I'm also really anxious about not having my own computer at the moment (don't own a desktop anymore) and the ETA IS mid-March but I haven't seen any conclusive info that it will come out soon...

 

It uses Ricoh R5C833 1394 controller.

 

Does this thing have a user replaceable (easily) hard drive?

Can it handle running Folding @ Home on both CPUs all the time? (Without killing the hardware )

I'm thinking of getting a decked out Dell XPS 1730...but I'm alternatively considering a "low end" gaming laptop. $1000 for this or $900 for the Asus with a 2Ghz Athlon x2 and a Radeon 2600...or something like Toshiba's x205-s9800 seem like they might be a smarter move for me, since I can buy like three of them for the price of an XPS 1730, and if it dies in a year or two I won't feel as stupid as I would with a much more expensive system.

 

Will the Geforce 9500M GS is practically the same and even a little better than the Geforce 8600M GT (DDR2) so I wouldn't call it "low end" (in today’s standards). The Geforce 8600M GT is a mid-range choice for mobile graphics and places the Geforce 9500M GS at the same level. The Radeon 2600 though is not as powerful as neither the 9500M GS or the 8600M GT, so although the 2600 it's a better choice in comparison to perhaps a low-end card such as the 8400M GS it's still not ideal for running games as well as other mid-range options provided at present time such as the 9500M GS.

 

Yes it does, see the picture on the lower right hand side, only 2 screws to remove the cover and you can pull the hard drive out:

 

Great job on the first look Ken.
Also, got my V1S-B1 from you and could not be more happier. Thanks for great service in NBR community and being our inside source to Asus goodies.

P.S. Do you know if Asus has any intrest in using the 8800M cards in their G-series? My brother is considering going mobile-gaming.

 

is there a ddr3 version of the 9500?

 

I agree, the only low end component in this unit is the CPU, the screen resolution is subjective so I don't count the screen.

9500M GS runs pretty much the same as 8600M GT and it's not low end at all.

The price may not sound like a high end unit but that's the main point of this unit, low cost with high end GPU who doesn't need the fastest processor.

Thanks and hope you enjoy your new laptop.

M51Sn look the same as M51Sr and you can see more pictures here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=219335&highlight=m51sr

The only difference between M51Sr and M51Sn is the M51Sr has eSATA port on the right and M51Sn has USB port instead.

For the new GPU it'll be anything but the 8800 series.

No plan for GDDR3 version right now, maybe in the future.

Also has you guys notice all new Asus models does not comes with Turbo Memory anymore.

 

Why GPU matters than CPU, check out the VX3 performance review here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=221306

The VX3 has the faster processor Penryn T9500 but weaker GeForce 9300M G 256MB DDR2 GPU, see the WEI and benchmark on VX3 compare with M51Sn's weaker CPU but faster GPU.

 

Awesome, thanks! This is probably sily, but I like having a replaceable drive, so if I have to send it in for warranty service I don't have to send in a drive with personal data.

Does anyone know if this thing can stand up to running Folding @ Home on both CPUs all the time? It seems like some notebooks can't really handle that (they overheat, or get too loud, etc.)

I want any system I buy to be able to run Folding @ Home whenever it's on

 

Pls don't double-post questions, things get confusing. You will be answered on your other thread.

 

Thanks, yeah I actually posted this first and then thought it might be better to have a new thread.