* OFFICIAL UL80VT and UL50VT / VS Owner's Lounge *

Since you have never seen one in person, why should we care what you think your wife MAY think about a machine she's never seen in person, either?

Cheap and dirty?! Some people's kids....

 

I tried COD again last night and it seems to be working great now! I'm not sure what changed. Maybe my anti-virus was running in the background or something.

However, I'm still curious. Would a gaming mouse improve the game control even more.

Also, I still would like to know what program you guys use to measure FPS.

EDIT: By the way, I was really impressed with the game on this PC and amazed that this laptop can run a game this graphic intensive!

-Jason

 

Hi All,

Any recommendations on a laptop sleeve? I'll be toting mine around in a Swiss Gear laptop backpack which has good protection, but I'd like some ideas from fellow UL80VT owners of what laptop sleeves you guys are using. Any feedback/examples appreciated. TIA

 

I got a Built NY sleeve. Fits PERFECTLY, with barely any space between the zipper side and the laptop itself. They make a newer version which is longer and does not fit as nicely. I got an older version (for a lower cost) and with a much better fit. Sadly, I'm not sure if you can still find them readily available or not. Plus it is TSA compliant, so I just leave it in there when I travel. I then use a Targus laptop backpack, and just put the UL80VT and the sleeve in the backpack.

 

Does anyone know the screen and build quality is compared to a n81? (n81vp-d2?)
Which would be better if I was to carry it around and watch movies with family and friends?
-thanks.

 

I bought the Caselogic PLS-14 on the recommendation of someone else in this forum. It works well for me. They're $22 at Amazon.

 

What are you currently using, the touchpad? If so, I would say definitely most certainly positively YES it would improve the game control. I imagine it would be pretty awkward using the touchpad for a first person shooter...not to mention accuracy for headshots and what not would improve greatly by using a good gaming mouse.

For games that don't have a built-in benchmark utility, many people use FRAPS.

 

Hi quickcanary. I did try the touchpad initially when I tried the game a 2nd time just to see if the game played smoother. When it did I switched to an external optical trackball. It's not a gaming trackball though. I imagine a gaming mouse would make it even better.

Thanks for the benchmark utility. I'll have to double-check if COD has a built in benchmark.

-Jason

 

Thanks DallasBull but my point was the shiny plastic. Unless you're telling me that ASUS uses a different shiny plastic in this particular model than all the other shiny plastic in their various incarnations at BestBuy, then I am taking a guess that this one will look fugly with all the fingerprints, just like the ones in BB look fugly. Actually it seems to be one of the most universal pans against the UL80vt (that and the creaking palmrest and flexing keyboard).

I'm not alone, but I'm not a fan at all of the super-shiny plasticky look that the notebook mfrs are using right now. Great for a marketing brochure, but totally wrong on a day-to-day usage basis.

Since you're in love with it apparently, I guess the fingerprints dont bother you? and FYI this is not a fingerprint-only decision, but moreso the $200 extra too

 

ew! yucky fingerprints! i'm selling my UL50Vt-X1 for that reason but also because it is so big. want to buy it?

 

update, i just use p4g hybrid thingy now, but i dont close it just minimize, cause i i reopen it it automatically goes to entertainment.

Overall very happy with performance and build issues affect me minimally

 

Is the build quality of the new batch better?...

 

I bought the UL50VT a few weeks ago. I love the machine. The only major drawback is the keyboard. It flexes when I type. However, I fixed it by applying double sided tapes behind the keyboard. This increases the contact between the keyboard and the frame of the laptop so the flexing decreases. It definitely helps. I actually learned this tip from ASUS customer service. It's an easy fix and it doesn't really hurt the ventilation so long as you don't tape up the open areas of the frame.

 

I've noticed a couple of other users have mentioned heat issues with the ul80vt and today while using my laptop it kept spontaneously hanging up then shutting down while I was browsing the web. I was running on battery in high performance mode at the time. I installed HWmonitor torun a temp check and these were my results (they seem a bit high to me).


Hardware monitor ACPI
Temperature 0 62°C (143°F) [0xD18] (THRM)

Hardware monitor Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo SU7300
Temperature 0 50°C (122°F) [0x32] (Core #0)
Temperature 1 50°C (122°F) [0x32] (Core #1)

Hardware monitor NVIDIA GeForce G210M
Temperature 0 85°C (185°F) (GPU Core)

Hardware monitor ST932032 5AS
Temperature 0 42°C (107°F) [0x2A] (Assembly)
Temperature 2 42°C (107°F) [0x2A] (Air Flow)



After turning off the graphics card these were my results:

Hardware monitor ACPI
Temperature 0 47°C (116°F) [0xC82] (THRM)

Hardware monitor Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo SU7300
Temperature 0 38°C (100°F) [0x3E] (Core #0)
Temperature 1 38°C (100°F) [0x3E] (Core #1)

Hardware monitor ST932032 5AS
Temperature 0 41°C (105°F) [0x29] (Assembly)
Temperature 2 41°C (105°F) [0x29] (Air Flow)


It seems like the GPU is running too hot and causing everything else to heat up.....are my results too high?? I've had 3 hang ups just today and then the lappy then restarts...as if its trying to protect itself from overheating.

I only bought the laptop last week...do you think I should take it back to the seller and exchange for a new one???

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

I don't like fingerprints all over that shiny black plastic anymore then the next guy, however it seems easy enough to just buy yourself a microfiber cloth and stick it in your laptop sleeve/bag. Then a quick wipe will do the trick. Or what's ever better is to wash your grimy paws and don't eat donuts while you type. You might also keep yourself from contacting H1N1 at the same time. What a concept!

 

I would. That definitely doesn't sound normal. There may be an internal flaw, such as the graphics card not making good contact with the cooler. I would get it checked out by Asus (or exchanged if that's an option).

Thankfully that issue doesn't appear to be common. I've seen reports of this laptop freezing (which may be a software issue), but this is the first time I've read an account of the system shutting itself off/restarting on its own.

Good luck and let us know the outcome if you get it exchanged. How long had you had yours before this started occurring?

 

That might be a problem with the unit, my 210m hits 55C idle and about 70 on some load (native resolution Civ4). Is the fan still working?

 

I hear you and the fingerprints is not a be-all end-all deal killer, but its one of those little things that detracts from the purchase decision esp when I know my non-techie wife will not like the overall package as much. My original post was more a b!tch session to the laptop mfrs - this trend to glossy is just fugly I think personally.

IF the UL80vt wasn't fully $200 more than the Timeline, I'd probably be biting. But its basically 25% more cost for DEFINITELY a better inside (Turbo mode, switchable graphics) but I personally decided I'm not likely to get much use from those specific features (I've got a desktop to do video editing, and a PS3 for gaming.....)

Even though it was a few bucks more than via mail-order, I bought the 4810TZ-4120 at Costco because they have a 90-day no-hassle return policy. I figure I'll use the Timeline and make sure I like it, and also watch during those 90 days in case Asus shows up with anything interesting (like a matte BestBuy version of the UL80vt or any nice discounts that get it closer to the $629 price I paid for the Timeline)

 

The UL80Vt doesn't have to be $200 more than the Timeline if you have a good eye for deals. By taking advantage of Bing cashback, you can buy the UL80Vt right now on eBay for $715 with free shipping ($795 - 10% cashback = $715) which narrows the gap to $85. I have previously seen the UL80Vt on eBay for $749 when only 8% cashback was offered, but that still works out to $689. Unfortunately, I hesitated at the time and the ones available @ $749 sold out and reappeared for $795-799. I purchased one last night and instantly received $80 that was deposited into my PayPal account. Even for $720, the extra speed and features sold me on the Asus vs. the Timeline.

But, there is something to be said for buying it locally and having an easy return option. If I'm dissatisfied with the unit, I'd be forced to return it with a 15% restocking fee or try to sell it and cut my losses. Good luck with the Timeline and let us know how it works out.

 

i just received my UL80vt
everything seems perfectly fine, no clickity keyboard or the chasis coming upart
however there is some flex in the keyboard if you push hard enough...but i don't push that hard when im typing so it's not really a problem

but the problem im having is the fact that my hdmi cable isn't fitting into the hdmi port on my laptop =S
anybody else having this issue? are there two different hdmi cables?
i don't want to push too hard in order to bend the little pin in there
=S somebody help!

 

I just got done playing BF2 and here are my max temps from playing:

CPU 66C
GPU 94C (my highest has been 95C from CSS playing deathmatch with 56 people without a stutter!)

I haven't had any problems at these temps.


My laptop seems great so far, biggest anoyance is that the cd drive tray rattles? Anyone else have this problem? Any fixes?

 

I'd say it is. After reading online reviews and customer reviews of the UL80VT, I was pleasantly surprised and relieved that mine didn't have the palmrest issue being flexible. There is some flex in the left side of the keyboard as compared to the right side which is very stable. Mine arrived on Dec.17, and I think Asus has heard the complaints and have made the design more stable.

I would suggest doing a complete Win7 reinstall with the recovery disc and Asus software disc provided. I was worried about doing the AI Recovery backup before doing a clean install, but was having trouble with computer freezing during 2 attempts to backup. I scrapped that idea and skipped the backup and went straight for the Win7 & Asus software discs and the laptop has performed perfectly since.

 

I just bought a UL50Vt from Amazon and paid more than you did. I opted for overnight shipping since I don't want to be bored during the holidays. However, one thing you failed to mention about buying locally is sales tax. The overnight shipping was less than the sales tax in my area and no one carried this model locally that I could find. I live in Austin, TX which has a plethora of geeks (I'm one!) and our local vendors don't offer a lot of choices in computers. Even if you opted for a Dell, you'd have to pay to have it shipped across town. Go figure!

 

I am planning to buy this laptop for uni, but i'm not sure if the laptop's compatible with a few softwares i must run for uni.

Solidworks - there's actually a webpage ( http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/videocardtesting.html )on the official site to determine if the system is capable, but i got stuck at the 'select graphics card model'. i can't seem to find G210M from the drop down list... can somebody point me out?

MATLAB - afaik, there's an installation issue for the program with windows 7 64bit, so hopefully someone using the UL80VT runs this software and could let me know if it could be run smoothly

The ability to run these programs on the laptop is my main concerns, much appreciated if someone could help out.

 

Hey guys!! I just got done overclocking my UL80VT. I got my 3DMark06 score up to 3949 (up from 3461). I made an overclocking guide for the UL80VT. It's really pretty easy. You can find the link to the guide in my sig.

 

does anybody know a solution to my hdmi problem ? =S
the hdmi cable isn't fitting in
are there two different types of hdmi cables that i have to buy?

 

Yes it will run fine any of the above programs. As a matter of fact it will run pretty much anything out there including Premiere CS4, Photoshop CS4, After Effects CS4, AutoCAD 2010, Maya, 3ds max, XSI, Visual Studio, you name it...How fast will it run that's a different story, so, you shouldn't expect a top notch performance from a 1.3Ghz @ 1.7Ghz UCLV CPU.

 

@Cequential: Could you take a picture of your HDMI cable and post it here?

 

umm sure i will try to s
but i bought it from walmart i think around 20 dollars =S
the brand is DYNEX
and i actually tried it on another laptop, the sony vaio, and it worked perfectly fine

ugh and i also just found out another problem, when i click the switchable graphics button --> the screen just goes blank and remains blank and i had to shut it down and reboot
anybody know what the problem is?
i got this laptop yesterday, ordered from ncix, should i call for a replacement? or is it a problem with the nvidia drivers ? =S

 

ok it looks like my switchable graphics problem is solved
i just updated the nvidia drivers, and it seems to switch now without the blank screen.....for now =)
just the damn hdmi problem left

 

I don't have a UL80VT, but I do use Win7 64bit with MATLAB. I had trouble installing it from the DVD, seems like temporary install files don't copy right, but I managed to install it from an image file + virtual drive and it runs fine in Win7, minus the fact that it doesn't exactly work right with the Superbar but it's not a crippling issue.

 

Oh man now you've got me thinking again.......after sales tax on the Acer that's not too much different for Turbo plus discrete graphics....with the tradeoff of extra 1/2 pound and fingerprints on the Asus.

I really wish someplace, anyplace carried one that I could look at as I don't want to shell out $800 and then have to return it and pay restocking etc

 

Quadron - Did ASUS ever fix your RMA?

 

Just saw this now:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5441

Let no dust settle on technology

 

is the office 2007 a 30 day trial on the ul80vt or does it just have limited functions?

 

@westcoaster --> i still think the ul series beats the travelmates in certain specs
the build quality might be better though

 

It's crippled with smaller 320HD. Has no glare screen and finger print reader.

Asus still wins IMO.

Review summary follows
-----------------------------------------------
"Verdict

The Acer Travelmate 8371 is an interesting alternative to its sister models in the Aspire range. Except for the not yet available dedicated graphic and the UMTS module, it can do everything almost as good and has, beyond that, the one or other substantial additional argument.

An advantage is the anti-glare display, which can boast with a far better brightness distribution and slightly better contrast values, beside other similar basic characteristics.

The hardware configuration with a 2 core CPU is also considerably more practice suitable. This especially allows for an obvious increase of work speed at simultaneous running applications.

Not vital for everyone: the docking option, Windows Vista Business (instead of Home Premium) with a downgrade option to Windows XP Professional and the fingerprint reader.

The omitted HDMI port isn't only painful for home users, as especially high resolution displays are preferably connected digitally at the office. The missing optical drive will prevent the one or other user from a purchase because an external device presents itself as inconvenient particularly at mobile use.

The main critique point is the somewhat higher system noise in the load scenarios, which can get disagreeable in the long run.

The buyer is, however, reimbursed for this with a very good battery life, a low weight and a good price-performance ratio for this notebook category."

from ( http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Travelmate-8371-Timeline-Notebook.20315.0.html )

 

when you switch the graphics from integrated to high performance does the screen go blank?
mine does not, the screen just gets brighter =S
is this the case with everybody else using the UL80vt?

 

Mine goes blank first, it's pretty annoying.
Did you install the Nvidia driver update off the ASUS website? And if so, did you have to install the patch they had?

 

i actually downloaded them from the nvidia website
here's the link
http://www.nvidia.com/object/notebook_winvista_win7_x64_195.62_whql.html
s
were we supposed to d/l them from the asus website? =S

can u post the link to the drivers on the asus website, wh00pded00?

 

Not sure how to post it, but if you go through this link ( http://support.asus.com/download/download.aspx?SLanguage=en-us), picking Notebook > UL80 > UL80Vt > Windows 7 64-bit, the drivers should be under VGA.

However, your drivers seem newer, so I will try them.

 

Quadron, thanks for the guide, I was able to use your settings stable. Tried a little higher and 3dmark06 would crash.

 

that's good to hear it can run properly, most likely MATLAB will release an update soon to solve the issues since win7 is becoming more common

yes i'm not expecting top performance with the laptop running any of those programs, but as long as it can run fine without too much hassle for basic usage it is considered ok for me

can anybody help me out with identifying the graphics card? is G210M in the list?

 

nevermind, my screen does flicker when i switch graphics
looks like that is working

also, what is the temperature of your cpu?
i used everest, and its giving me 52 degrees celcius and my seagate harddrive at 37 degrees celsius

 

My idle/web surfing temps range from 35-40C and the hottest I have seen it get while gaming is 66C.

Also, my HDD idles in the low 30'sC and I think it peaks at like 44C at full load.

These numbers are from HWMonitor, it shouldn't matter though as they all read the same sensors.

 

Finally!

I just received my UL80VT a couple of hours ago (thanks FedEx guy!). I was so hoping it would get here today, otherwise I'd have to wait until Monday to play with my new toy.

So far I'm extremely pleased with it! Build quality is actually a lot better than I was expecting after reading some of the reviews and comments on this forum. I wonder if it's true that Asus heard some of the complaints and improved the build quality on the newer batches? Or maybe I just lucked up, who knows. Of course, some people said they developed palm rest squeaking after 2-3 days so we'll see how that goes. But I have very little flex in that area, and it's nowhere NEAR as bad as what the guy on Expertlaptopreview.com experienced where squeezing that area actually made the lower plastic edge bow out. The whole laptop actually feels a lot more solid than I was expecting. Keyboard flex doesn't appear to be a problem either -- w00t!

So far there are only two areas where I noticed minor issues -- sure enough, the thin plastic bezel under the screen can be pulled away from the panel like Mr. Jefferies noted in his review of this unit. I probably wouldn't have immediately noticed that, but when I was removing the plastic screen protector that sticks to the bezel I saw the bottom strip pull away just a bit. I don't expect this to be a problem in normal use.

The other thing I noticed is that there is a slight bit of play when the battery is inserted. As in, if you press on the battery or shake the unit you can tell the battery moves just enough to make a slight click when it contacts the surrounding plastic. I've seen tighter fits, but I'm not bothered by it and I've seen this mentioned with other laptops as well.

Overall, I certainly wouldn't call the strength and construction of this laptop "disappointing," as was Mr. Jefferies opinion, but then again I don't review laptops for a living and don't have other models here to do direct comparisons with. That being said, I am a network admin and have used (not reviewed) dozens of other laptops, and though the UL80VT doesn't have the really solid (or thick & heavy) feel of one of the older Latitudes or ThinkPads it doesn't feel like a flimsy toy and I'll just say that this particular sample exceeded my expectations after everything I've read.

Well, off to finish burning the recovery DVDs so I can start really playing with this thing. So far it's been 63 minutes and the first DVD is almost finished writing, heh. It took quite a while to build and prepare the ISO before the unit even starts burning. I can't wait to uninstall some of this bloat and see how it performs! First impressions are very favorable and I can already tell the battery life is going to be awesome.

Glad to finally and officially be a part of the Lounge.

 

I am running 64-bit MATLAB R2009b on the UL80VT, installed from a network share and runs fine with no problems.

 

I am the proud new owner of a UL50Vt. One thing I noticed right off is that the 500 GB hard drive has 3 partitions on it. One must be the recover stuff and the other two are the OS and am empty volume, C & D drives.

I'm totally new to Windows 7 so maybe one of you bright people can help me out please. I want to remove the D: drive partition and have it become part of the C drive. I don't really see the point in splitting of the 500 GB drive like that.

I went into disk management and tried to do "Delete Volume" and specified the D drive. I got a warning message telling me that it was being used by one or more applications and that if I deleted the drive they might stop working. Needless to say, I backed off. I went to Explorer and made sure I had "Show hidden files" turned on. I looked at the D drive and there was nothing on it.

How can I get all of space of the drive to be used by C: and not have to wipe everything and start over?

Thanks!

 

You could use something like this to delete D: and resize C: to occupy the remaining space on the drive.

 

quickcanary, can i ask where you purchased from? just wondering if ASUS did in fact release a new batch of ul80vt's with improved build quality....