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

can someone using an ul80vt do me a favour and tell me what devices they have under sound, video and game controllers in the device manager? i'm having this problem of the realtek HD audio manager sometimes being disabled at startup even though i have already set it to run at startup using msconfig. i currently have realtek high definition audio as well as 4 nvidia high definition audio under sound, video and game controllers and i'm thinking that its the nvidia audio drivers that i installed through the windows update that might me causing this problem. therefore if the nvidia audio drivers weren't preinstalled with the laptop i think i will just go ahead and remove them

 

Hey N1kx,

I been thinking about pulling the trigger on the ul80vt-a2, but am concerned that it will have the same qc issues the black one had. Have you noticed any of the problems that have been happening with the black ul80vt on your silver one? Right now I'm looking at the ul80vt, ul30vt, or bumping up to a mac pro. I've thought of waiting for the ul30jt but if they take to long to release then I will buy soon as I need one for school.

 

No, my laptop doesn't have any build quality issue like the black mentioned here.

My laptop is build on december 2009, maybe asus has fix some build quality issue.

 

That is very odd. My own UL80VT has rebooted itself a couple of times, but nothing like freezing. So I don't know what could have caused your problems. I hope the third time is the charm for you.

 

My temps are a few degrees lower than yours but I use it inside an air conditioned office room. The discrete GPU does get hot in the UL80VT since the notebook doesn't seem to have any intake ventilation for cool air to flow freely through it. The thin form factor also doesn't help, and when playing a DVD movie the DVDROM drive adds to the heat. Don't forget also that the CPU is overclocked by 33% via Turbo33 mode which adds more heat. IMHO the UL80VT has poor cooling design when used as a gaming notebook, but it wasn't really designed as a gaming notebook. Constantly using it as one will most likely shorten its lifespan considerably unless additional cooling is provided.

That's the FastBoot utility at work. During startup, FastBoot delays some background apps and services from running so that startup time is faster. After a few minutes, those delayed apps and services will run automatically. The Realtek HD audio manager is one of the apps delayed by FastBoot, but you can configure it using the FastBoot utility in the Start menu under All Programs->ASUS Utility.

Having said that, I've found that the Realtek HD audio manager is not compatible with the Nvidia HD audio so you have to end the Realtek HD audio manager process to be able to switch to the Nvidia graphics. This is because the Nvidia HD audio is used to output audio through the HDMI port when in Nvidia graphics mode, so if the HDMI port is connected, the Realtek HD audio is automatically disabled and all sound is outputted through the Nvidia HD audio. Sound is still outputted through the Realtek HD audio if not using HDMI.

Random freezes or restarts may indicate faulty RAM. Try testing your RAM using Memtest86+ which you can get from http://www.memtest.org/

You should use Memtest86+ to test your memory for several hours. If your notebook is still running after several hours running the test and no errors were detected, then the problem is most likely software related.

 

I have ul50vt and the Nvidia audio driver comes preinstalled because of the discrete Nvidia display card. This audio driver is for connecting the laptop to the TV through the HDMI port.

 

Has anyone here noticed a significant loss of battery life like the op in this thread did in a short amount of time? If the ul30vt-a1 on amazon doesn't come in stock soon I will either get the ul80vt-a2 (silver) or a macbook pro. If a loss of 6% battery life in 2 months is common, then I may as well get a mac pro since they are supposed to last about 1000 cycles before losing around 20% life.

 

I've lost approx 10% battery life in 3months.

 

OK, I've searched, but can not find this answer. Does the UL80vt support hardware-assisted virtualization (HAV)? I.E. compatible with the Windows 7 XP Mode.

Thanks

 

Yes, it supports both VT-x and VT-d. VT-x is required for Windows 7 XP Mode, and can be enabled in the BIOS settings.

 

Wow, that seems a lot of wear for such a short period of time for the battery. I hope the wear slows down over time. But even at 50% wear you'd still be getting 4-5 hours I guess.

 

After 3 months use with some decent battery time I have lost only about 2-3% total from 84000mWh as new to 81300mWh now.

 

I always recommend using some type of cooling pad if you're at home and playing games on a laptop. Less heat stress overall could very well extend the life of the laptop in the long run.

I use this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834998686

It is pretty much silent and has a USB port on either side so you can draw power from either side of your laptop and not lose a USB port.

 

hi to everyone!

this forum help me alot in deciding my 2nd laptop and im happy to say that im
enjoying my ul80vt since a month ago from amazon. thanks y'all.

i just want to inquire if anybody has experience what i observed few days back - "plugged in, not charging" that is from 100% battery few days back and now its 96% while plugged in......is this normal?...any settings i missed?

TIA

 

Mine shows 97% so I assume it's normal, though seems odd.

 

that was a quick one, thanks!

i guessed this is normal..?

 

The Lithium-ion battery does lose its charge a little bit even if you're not using it and even if your notebook is plugged in. It loses its charge at around 1% each day because internally it has some protection and monitoring circuitry which draws power from the battery itself. Even with the notebook plugged in, the charger waits until the battery drops to around 94% before charging it back up to 100%. That's just how it works so it's normal. However, if Asus had used a higher quality battery, the rate of loss probably could've been much lower, perhaps 1% every 3-4 days.

 

thank you much! just read what you said in the manual also..that is, till it drops to 95% then will it start charging...this is really new to me...

 

Hey guys, I just got this laptop and the battery doesn't seem to be working. When i have it plugged in it sits at "44% Charging" but it doesn't charge it at all. It just stays there. The laptop wont run off the battery at all so I doubt it has 44% charge. Any ideas?

Also can someone explain to me how I am supposed to turn the Turbo 33 mode on/off and can I set it to always be on somehow?

 

Well from the factory, Turbo 33 is set to default to being turned on. To turn it on and off, what I do is right click the battery icon in the system tray. Then click on Power4Gear Hybrid. Then in the bottom left corner you will see it say Turbo Mode and it will be lit-up RED. If it's not Red, it's turned off.

 

So the laptop needs to be restarted to change between turbo and non turbo?

 

After updating to the latest version of Power4Gear (1.1.27) I have been able to click on the Turbo button to turn it on and off. It gives you a warning message and the screen goes dark for 5-10 seconds, but it no longer requires a reboot to switch between turbo and non-turbo.

 

I hope the Nvidia driver for the UL series gets updated from version 186. I was hoping to try out the Flash player beta optimized to use Nvidia graphics chips and learned a newer Nvidia driver is required, version 195 or greater. I hope that driver support for these Vt's is not orphaned after the release of the new models with Nvidia Optimus .

 

I just received one too, same thing (except mine says 48%). What is the date of production? Mine is 2010-01. I have a replacement on the way. Hope it s not a bad batch and my replacement is from same.

 

Mine is also 2010-01

 

after switching from discrete to integrated graphics my screen goes blank which i know is normal, but about 1 minute later my screen goes blank for like 1 second again. does anyone else face this problem?

 

You would have to upgrade to win7 pro since home premium doesn't have xp mode

 

It's actually 2 minutes, since 2 minutes is how long it takes for the Nvidia discrete graphics to shut off (and disappear from Device Manager) after switching to Intel integrated graphics. It's normal and unavoidable since it seems to be how the switching circuitry was designed. Blame it on Asus engineers if you don't like it.

The new Nvidia Optimus technology will get rid of the switching artifact, and in fact will do the switching automatically when needed so it's a much better implementation than the switchable graphics hack that Asus did in their ULxxVT notebooks. Unfortunately, it seems that the ULxxVT cannot use the Nvidia Optimus technology (I hope I'm proven wrong here), and Asus most likely will abandon (or has abandoned) support for the ULxxVT notebooks and will never release updated hybrid graphics drivers for them. Asus seems to have fully embraced Nvidia Optimus technology, and the new Nvidia Optimus drivers are available for the new Asus notebooks. Guess what? The ULxxVT notebooks aren't listed as being supported by the Nvidia Optimus drivers.

 

Would they switch the new UL series models to use optimus or just future models? Also, what can we expect the next iteration of the UL80vt to be?

 

The UL80JT is suppose to be coming out, which to some would be considered the "heir apparent" to the UL80VT.

 

When I bought the UL80VT 2 months ago, I was hoping it would last for 2 years before being hopelessly obsolete. Thanks to Asus and Nvidia Optimus technology, it'll be obsolete in another 2 months instead. Nvidia Optimus is pretty much the future of switchable graphics because Asus no longer has to add any switching circuitry or develop hacked drivers. Nvidia does all the work now with Optimus, and Asus has "volunteered" to be their guinea pig by releasing a bunch of new models which support Optimus. Those who recently bought the ULxxVT models pretty much got screwed, unless those Optimus drivers can somehow work on the ULxxVT models.

In other news, Asus has released new BIOS update for the UL80VT bringing it to version 213. One can hope that the new BIOS update adds Optimus support. However, as usual Asus tells us nothing about what the new BIOS fixes (or doesn't fix).

 

The one thing I don't like about Optimus technology is that it requires "templates" or atleast thats what I call them. If it's not in the system, Optimus doesn't always know to automatically switch.

 

Yes, the use of profiles is a key factor in getting Optimus to work correctly, just like for SLI technology. However, you can override or make your own profiles just like any regular profiles in the Nvidia Control Panel, so it's not a new inconvenience. Furthermore, since Nvidia is making the Optimus drivers, each new version will hopefully have updated profiles and Nvidia is known to release new drivers regularly (unlike Asus with their hybrid graphics driver). It's much better than having to manually switch graphics every time. With profiles, you just set them up once and then forget about it since Optimus will handle the switching automatically according to the set profiles. How is that not much better than the current switching technology in the ULxxVT series?

 

Well because for me, it'd be redundant. I have my UL80VT set to automatically detect whether or not I am plugged in or running on battery. That to me is fine right there since usually when I am running off the battery I am at an airport or something where most likely I'm not running something so intensive that I need the discrete graphics. Optimus is better for many people, I just think for my uses, I really would not benefit. Normally my laptop is plugged in so I am running off of discrete, then when I am traveling, I run off of battery and integrated. So I very rarely (I can think of one time) where I had to manually switch. I'm just saying Optimus for some can actually be a bigger headache than a solution. I think for myself, I can see Optimus causing some problems that I am not normally seeing with the UL80VT I currently have.

 

Fair enough, Optimus is not for everybody. I personally use the integrated graphics almost 90% of the time even when plugged in since it can handle everything I do except 3D games. The only time I have to switch is during that 10% when playing 3D games. In my case it would be nice not to have to manually switch to discrete graphics whenever I want to play a 3D game only to switch back to integrated after I'm done with the game. And the geek in me likes new technology like Optimus to play with.

 

No offense intended, but most computer products are obsolete the day after they are introduced. ANd let's face it, ASUS has a LONG history of poor support after the sale. Their RMA support has improved dramatically, but I did not buy this notebook expecting it to have much driver support for long. As long as mine continues to work like it does, I am still VERY happy with it.

 

Anybody put in an Internal Bluetooth Module?

If so, does anybody know what model the bluetooth module is?

 

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290392339757&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I'd love to know how to install it as well......

 

lol you and I both!

in the Australian Version it is standard
However the Aussie version is $250 more exxy!

If I have to live with a USB module well so be it!

Is the stock 5400RPM HDD Fast?
I was thinkin of getting a 7200RPM?

can anybody comment?

 

I have no complaints at all with the 5400RPM Seagate 500GB SATA HDD inside my UL80VT. It's fast enough for everything I do and also quiet with no vibrations or clicking sounds. But of course, faster is always better as long as there are no side effects such as extra noise, vibrations, or heat. Might as well put an SSD inside if you want more noticeable speed.

 

I have to agree there. I have no problems with the 320GB drive inside mine other than not having as much storage as I would like. The only logical replacement in my mind for my particular version is the Westen Digital 640GB drive since it is the largest 9.5mm drive available.

 

Does anyone know if it's possible to configure the increment of volume using the function keys?

 

Hey guys, my brother just bought a UL50VT. I have a few question for you.

1- So, after searching this thread, I found out (from what I understand) that there is no Nvidia driver for this notebook except the one from Asus, is that correct?

2- Is there a turbo? Mine came with DirectConsole? But I can't find it for this notebook?

Thanks alot!

Seb

 

The increment/decrement amount is probably hard-coded into the ATK utility program, and as far as I know the ATK utility doesn't have any configuration options.

1- Yes, that is correct. Since the notebook uses custom switching hardware for the switchable graphics to work, it requires custom drivers which only Asus can provide. Unfortunately, it seems that Asus won't be providing any updates to it since they have embraced Nvidia Optimus technology.

2- All the ULxxVT notebooks have Turbo33 mode. Use Power4Gear Hybrid utility to turn Turbo33 on or off. Changing the Turbo33 settings requires either a reboot or a suspend operation depending on the version of Power4Gear Hybrid used.

 

I am interested in purchasing one of these notebooks, but it hinges on one factor.
I am an engineering student and run programs such as autodesk inventor 2009, autocad2007, space gass and microstran.
Is anybody able to tell me if this notebook will be able to handle such applications.
Thanks in advance
Dave

 

You would be better served by a full size laptop with higher end specs, especially video. You should look at the new Quad core based notebooks with the best graphics chip you can get for that type of work.

 

Oh that's crap! What about DOX drivers? Maybe some day, they will support it...

 

In Bios: Just upgraded to v2.13 and have two questions:

1) Asus directions state that after a bios upgrade, select "Load Optimum Defaults" but mine only has "Load User Defaults" & "Load Manufacture Defaults". Which to use?

2) For Windows XP Mode. There are two Options I think. Intel Virtualization Tech (currently set to Enable) & Intel VT-d (currently set to Disabled). What should they be set to?

Thanks

 

So far Dox hasn't been able to get it to work on the ULxxVT series yet, and I have a feeling he won't be able to without help from Asus.

1) If you use WinFlash to update the BIOS, then ignore this instruction because WinFlash automatically does it for you. But if you still want to do it yourself, use "Load Manufacturer Defaults".

2) Windows XP Mode requires the first setting (VT-x) to be on, but the second setting (VT-d) is pretty much useless in Windows. I have both settings enabled and no problems yet, so might as well turn both on.

 

I hope they will get help! I love Asus, that would be a shame if they ditch this notebook