S96J Owners Lounge!!!

Hey Guys, I saw the W3J lounge and Im thinking we gotta do the same. The S96J is a brand spanking new laptop. We need to put our heads together and discuss everything about this laptop. Cool new ideas and desyphering problems that we might have( if any).

 

Im looking into possible getting one and building it up

 

Very nice idea!

Ordered from powernotebooks.com.

Here are my specs: (not recived yet, but coming soon!!!!)

15.4" WXGA(1280x800)"Color Shine" LCD w/ATi RADEON X1600 w/256MB
Intel® Core™ Duo T2500 2.0GHz Processor w/2,048k L2 On-die cache
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
2,048 MB (DDR/667 Dual Channel Memory
100GB SATA/150 7200RPM Hard Drive
Combo Dual Layer DVDR
Built in PRO/Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g
Windows XP Home
3 Year warranty (Next Business Day Shipping - Lifetime 24/7 Tech Support )

Everybody - Come on. Lets keep this thread alive and healthy!

 

im still undecided between the s96j and z96j. could anyone post a screenshot of the desktop with word/browser open so i can see how the resolution is? Thx

 

GR8 IDEA!!

here's a link that shows the S96J's resolution....so far i havent seen a screenshot for a Z96J cause they r'nt out yet...so no one really has one to show (other than the resellers) and none have posted a screenshot yet.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=1397059&postcount=56

enjoy

 

Sure..


Won't fit two side by side like the Z96J, but on the other hand, it's a lot more readable for a 15.4" laptop.

 

BTW, I think we should have this being a S96J/Z96J thread.. they only differ in resolution and bluetooth option... so they're diff configs of same laptop. hell, a S96J even says Z96J in the BIOS.

 

I ordered mine from Powernotebooks too (specs in sig)^^

 

I am the happy owner of a new S96J with the following specs

1.83ghz core duo
1 gig 667mhz kingston ram
100gig 7200rpm

I am happy thus far and I think the screen resolution is fine. However a couple issues I have:

-seems like some keyboard flex on the left side
-can't get the camera to work

Outside of the power management utility how can you dim the screen?

 

I would talk to your vendor about the camera not working. When you try to use the camera does it just give you a black screen?

 

Have you installed the BisonCam drivers for the camera? Does it appear in My Computer?

 

I should be getting my s96j this WED the 31st. I got the 1.83Ghz 100GB 7200rpm and 1gig 667(for now) from gentech.com. They are really quick with turnaround. They shipped it the next day after ordering.
Im gonna run benchmarks on it when i get it. I might plan on doing them with the omega drivers.

 

SMT, your OS task bar seems to have a lighter hue. Are you running XP or could it be a window blinds or vista on it J/W?

 

It's Microsoft's new RoyaleXP theme.

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Desktop-Enhancements/Themes/Royale-Theme-for-WinXP.shtml

I really like it. Good for daily usage.

 

Thanks a lot smt, the resolution looks good...which makes my decision even harder now.

 

Is there any update on what the release date is for the Z96J? I really want one!

 

Have you ordered it yet?

The longer you wait the later it will be, but if you get your order in quickly you will see it before the end of June.

 

What video drivers is everyone using?

Also, what is a reasonable plan for replacing the thermal pads for the video memory. I assume they'll be shot when I remove the heatsink to upgrade to Merom. I neglected to measure to see if the thermal pads were needed to fill a gap. Anybody bother to check if the heatsink will make direct contact with the memory?

 

how's the screen brightness? i heard u have to set it at 80% or higher for comfortable viewing, and at 100% it's still not that bright (compared to the W3J) & how does it affect the battery life (if it does in the first place)?

Thnx

 

Im wondering about the screen brightness as well, are they as bright as the SOnys brightview. Thats one of my primary concerns.

Hyperluminous: I plan on using Omega drivers, I read somewhere that the regular ATi drivers dont support x1600, I think I read that somewhere in the graphics forum.

 

Dunno about screen...I've read one thing saying 80% isn't that bright, another person saying 30% is fine 0___o

 

Hows the quality of the camera on the S96? Is it decent enough to take simple pictures or no? Also what is the better configuration? To go with 512MB 667 and then buy another 1GB stick off of newegg or go with the 1GB straight from the company( deciding between powernotebooks.com or GenTech.com)

 

Brightness is no concern.....it's better than average and more than passable.

Here it is beside my VX924 also at 100%.

 

It's not very good quality. It's more for webcam usage. It's only 1.3 MegaPixels. It can take simple pictures fine though.

 

I keep it at 50% in a dark room, and it's very readable. It's very bright at 100%. In a room with normal sunlight, 60%+ is good.

 

MilestonePC said "I will say 80% on S96J gives me the same brightness of 50% on A8Jm and W3J". I believe him but to me the S96j is very bright at 100%. The A8jm and W3j are very bright notebooks then. With notebooks I have only compared to a Dell e1505 and S96j is definately brighter.

I have worked on the S96j in dim light at 30 - 50% with no complaints (though I would only run at 30% if battery time was of very important). I played Quake 4 in a dark room at 50% and it looked great. In a well lit room about the lowest I will go is 65%.

 

Ive seen the brightness on a Sony SZ series and a dell 9300 with bright view, would anyone know how the brightness compares to those, I like the brightness on those two notebooks, who can compare to those? 3 days till i get my s96j, yippe!!

 

yesh...the price change for processors is today, so...sooon....

 

guess what....the memrom needs a bios upgrade!! lets hope asus comes out with one soon...

PS: i know there's a thread about this already....just keeping this one alive!!

 

Ive never thought about upgrading to the merom, who know in three years from now, ill want a new laptop. I am dreading waiting for my laptop, so long, 3 more days, too long. THe first thing i want to do is play bf2 on it.

 

I want this S96J too, but my parents are making me wait untill August to buy it. It's so bs..

 

I feel your pain man. I keep looking at pictures of it and pining.

 

I ordered mine yesterday morning. I'm excited. I got the t2500, 1 gig of ram, hitachi 60 gig 7200 rpm HD, and wireless and the dvdrw. I ordered mine from gentech pc. Ken was so helpful with all my questions, responding to each one within 10 minutes. They also had the best price I could find.

 

I ordered mine from gentech too wetzilla.
Here are my specs:
CPU Intel® Yonah Core-Duo T2400 1.83GHz 2M 667 FSB 315.00

RAM 1GB DDR-2 667 SODIMM (1X1024) 79.00

HD Hitachi Travelstar 7K100 100GB 7200rpm S-ATA 195.00

Internal Wireless Card Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945 Tri-mode 802.11a/b/g 38.00

Warranty 3rd Year GenTech Limited Warranty 125.00

Display 15.4" WXGA 1280 x 800 Color Shine (Glare)

VGA ATI Mobility X1600 256MB PCI Express

Optical Drive 8 x DVD-RW Dual Layer Super Multi 39.00

Camera Built-in Camera


Shipping: Ground: $0.00
Tax: $0.00
Total: $1,440.00


Ill get the second gig when i need it, prob when bf 2142 comes out

 

the only verified use of a merom in the napa platform was in a fujitsu notebook.

it didnt need any bios upgrade, it worked right away. dont count on needing any bios upgrade for this machine.
my reasoning is because its built to order, why would asus force all its resellers to update bios on all their machines when merom comes out so they can sell one with a merom?

 

according to this thread, the s96j will definitely need at least a bios update.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=56332

 

what IS a bios update? 0__o

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BIOS

 

I just ordered mine last night. Here are the specs

Windows XP Home CD

Intel® Yonah Core-Duo T2400 1.83GHz

Corsair 1GB DDR-2 667 SODIMM (2X512)

80GB 5400rpm S-ATA

Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945 Tri-mode

8 x DVD-RW Dual Layer Super Multi

Total - 1,289.00

too bad to days memorial day because I dont think that they work today.

 

you ordered the exact same one i think i'm gonna get...just have to convince my parents that i've done my homework on all the other choices and get them to order it...when does urs come in? also, probably a stupid question, but can you order it with no OS and buy Windows XP Media Center Edition and load it yourself? or is there no reason to since you can't order it with the built in TV tuner...i dno

 

you can buy windows media center and install it yourself. even if you don't have a built in tv tuner, you can still use an external tv tuner that will work just as well.

 

From gentech.com, you can order with no OS, but from my knowledge, I have not seen a copy of Media center edition out for purchase. Mine should be coming in in two days, WED. I ordered last tuesday and they shipped last Weds. But Ive been tracking the package and it still only says that it departed Cali on the 25th and thats all i see, it says it should arrive in two days but i dont know.

 

We do not force our customers to buy an OS either...we think Bill Gates is rich enough as it is

 

yeah....i just checked, media center can only be pre-installed, and does not have a separate retail version. that explains why a lot of computers don't have the option for xp media center....

 

Yea thats what i was thinking, i havent seen a retail version out. I dont really care for it, im not a tv maniac or recording shows or anything like that.

 

So what do you guys plan on doing with your s96j or z96j?

I plan on doing school work( basic docs and eventually engineering programs) and gaming like BF2, CS:S, ...etc.

 

How do you adjust brightness on the S96J?

 

PowerPro A 2:24 ULTRA (ASUS S96J) comes fully assembled correct?
and if i order around june 10th it should arrive before august right?

 

Hey guys

I am planning on using my system for everyday home use - internet browsing, home photo editing, and of course gaming - which mostly is going to be WOW and Guild Wars. Sometimes I will play some FPS (FEAR?) but I am not huge fan of those. Something like Oblivion, Fable, etc is more like it.

Any of you guys got this laptop already? I know some of you posted some reviews - Can you post some experinces oyu had with your laptop since your reviews/comments. Just want all of us to see how are your laptops holding up.

thanks,
vasylko

 

I am not sure about shipping. You should double check with reseller