~U3S Owners Lounge~

Use the drivers that are available from www.asus.com -- no reason not to

 

will keep you guys posted.

 

Is the 9 cell the same size as the 6 cell?

 

no, it sticks out a little more.

 

:O


Q:

When I update the bios, on my U3s with the original Vista Ulitmate that came with the notebook, do I then use the Vista 32bit-driver available at Asus.com, or the "All OS"-driver?
Is my Vista 32bit ?

 

Its probable. I think most notebooks come preinstalled with only 32bit versions of Vista, right?

 

I'm joining the club, I just ordered a U3S \o/

I live in Holland so it'll be the European version. I ordered a piece of 2GB Kingston memory with it to max the memory. (Firefox with loads of opened tabs )

The downside: It costs $2330 :/
But is does come with an extra battery, external drive, LED screen and EU GPS maps.

It's a black one btw, for some reason they don't sell the white one here, unfortunately.

 

I didn't get an extra battery with my EU/Nordic version

Paid $2400
(but the dollar is useless these days)

 

Do you perhaps know what model you have?
The one I ordered is called the U3S- 3P050E (aka 90NQFAU112D63EACG0I).
That one should have two batteries.

 

U3S-3P041G

oO

 

hey

im also live in holland and want to orde one too, where did you orderd and did you get 2 x 6 cell battry and how about the fan noise?

thnx

 

I ordered it at 4Launch.nl, but I haven't received it yet.
So I can't tell you much more, but I do believe the laptop comes with one 6-cell and one 3-cell battery

 

The fan is quite loud while ideling

Does the new bios-update fix this ? Anyone ?

 

Here's my take on the fan issue.

The 300 bios is a slight help (as there's a noticeable change under linux, with no fan controller other than the bios).

Now, as to why the U3S fan is running constantly, there's a few reasons.

A) Windows Vista. It's a resource hog, and due to the always on "glass aero fx" and the wasteful CPU throttling and process amounts -- it'll run all the time. Under linux, my fan is currently running very very low and I have 3 programs open, streaming music, and more (while using the intel card). It keeps it at 40*C on intel. With the dedicated card on, it is a tad louder since the graphics card warms up a lot more than the intel one. However, it still keeps it at a mere 45*C. Which is very very low.

B) Graphics card selection. Run the intel card unless you're going to game. The geforce card runs a LOT hotter than the intel card. So, unless necessary turn it off.

C) Processes under Vista. Kill of those which you don't need/use. The less processes, the colder the processor will stay. Also, I believe turning off your graphics effects really could help lower your fan noise.

D) Updates! Install all the asus updates. You have no excuse not to.

So, what can you do to fix it?

Well, there's a few things. Wait for SP1 to come out for Vista, or switch to a linux derivative like Ubuntu for a bit. Otherwise, you can do the following:

- Turn off the "aero effects"
- Kill off your useless tasks (all the security programs you don't need, spyware checks, etc etc...)
- Use the Intel (non-dedicated graphics) where applicable. AKA: Unless you're gaming, use your intel card.
- etc etc... there's guides to help speed up vista and tune your memory properly as well.

Hope that helps. Ubuntu runs very nice with this laptop. However, for Vista users -- the big fix should be the SP1 release coming up.

 

Proof that it's mainly Vista at this point (and some helpful fixes for you guys/gals):
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=109232&page=9

 

Thanks for the information.

 

Question:

When i download the new bios-file from http://support.asus.com/download/download.aspx?SLanguage=en-no

Where do i put it ?

<- noob

 

use asus flash utilities

 

What's that ? :\

 

This page helped me as I'm a bit of a newbie too!

http://support.asus.com/technicaldocuments/technicaldocuments.aspx?root=198&SLanguage=en-us

 

Thank you =)

Bios v.300 in now installed

 

Update:

After i turned off the Nvidia-gfx card, and installed the v.300 bios, the notebook-fan makes less noise!

It's still not QUIET, but it's slightly better. Now all we have to do is wait for SP1 - Vista =) Happy times!


With the nvida-gfx car and bluetooth off, i now get 3 hours of batterytime from my 6cell. Up from 2 hours with the card on.

 

Vista SP1 RC1 is out...so just wait a month or so and the new SP1 release should be out for everyone

 

Finally I'll be getting a U3S of my own in a matter of days , but I've got a question about the external optical drive. The store I'm getting it has it at $125CDN. Problem is, I don't know much about optical drives, so should I just get the Asus one or shop elsewhere?

 

The optical drives matches the notebook, and has a special "always on power" plug built into the usb port. I don't use it, and instead have an external one at home. However, to minimize cables if you intend on carrying it with you, I'd suggest buying it.

[Check ebay, or excaliberpc.com for a cheaper price]

 

125 CDN.. wow, that's expensive. I got my ext. optical drive with my notebook for free..

 

^ How much was your notebook? Maybe it was included in the price..? In any case, I'm happy with it so it doesn't matter. It's a shame they didn't have the white one to match with my notebook though..

I've got a few more questions if anyone's willing to answer:

1) How do I activate the fingerprint scanner? I had the option of using the scanner or a log-in when I first started up Vista, but after I created a new user, the fingerprint option disappeared.

2) How do I turn off the Nvidia graphics card?

Thanks

 

You turn off the Nvidia-card by flicking a switch on the right-hand side of your notebook. It's easy to find. Then you have to reboot.

My notebook was $2400 USD - with the GPS, the ext. disc-drive and 1 6-cell battery.

 

^ Ah, thanks. Found it.

Ouch, $2400USD? Mine was $1500CDN without the external optical drive..

 

Forgive me if this has been posted elsewhere in the thread (I'm still searching).

The place where I purchased my U3S from indicated that ASUS would be providing a downgrade-to-XP disc in December and I am seriously contemplating that. The main reason being some of the programs I use for work are currently not compatible with Vista. However, my main question is -- where can the XP drivers for the various things be found? From what I've seen on ASUS' website thus far, they don't have the XP drivers.

Any insight that could be offered would be greatly appreciated.

Happy Holidays folks!

 

I just bought myself a U3S. I am quite impressed with its looks. But after having it on for less than a minute, I see what everyone was saying about the fan. At first I thought people were just being picky but it actually quite loud. I had an M6N before this and that thing was quite.
First problem I am running into. I put in my XP SP2 cd to install that instead of windows, but after setup goes through loading the drivers and moves on to the "starting windows" portion of the setup process, I get a blue screen of death with really no explaination at all. I dont know what to do at this point. I don't want to activiate my Vista as I already have a copy and it sucks, and I'm hoping to get a refund from either ASUS or Microsoft.

 

You can't install XP using the SP2 CD without slipstreaming updated drivers first. Do a quick search on the forums and you should find a guide on how to go about doing that.

 

You should be able to download the XP drivers directly from most manufacturers (Intel, Realtek, Nvidia, etc...). The GPS driver is not available AFAIK.

 

Updated the Bios and then had no problems installing XP after setting SATA to compatibility mode.
Also the annoying fan noise has reduced
I am a happy U3 owner

 

good to know. didn't realize Asus finally enabled compatibility mode for SATA on the U3

 

Hi Eugene
Can you please give a link to these drivers.
I cannot seem to find them and can't get XP loading in enhanced SATA mode.

Thanks

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=160809

Is it this?

Google is your friend

 

Here are the intel downloads for XP and U3S
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/fil...XP+Professional&lang=eng&strOSs=44&submit=Go!

 

Thanks guys
I actually did try the intel matrix storage drivers and it kept telling me my system does not meet the requirements. I did already install in the inf drivers and such.
Taltos I will try slipstreaming the drivers and reinstalling. Thanks

Does anyone elses built in webcame seem to be misaligned? I have to go way to the side for it to get my whole face. sitting in front of the laptop only gets half my face.

 

i may be purchasing the u3s sometime soon, but i still have some questions about it.

1. how bad is the fan problem really? is there a notebook that i could use as a comparison?
2. does it come with the 3 cell battery? ideally, i'd like the battery to be flush with the notebook.
3. are there any good pictures of the black one? i'd like to get some idea of the finish.
4. i'm also looking at the u6s. how does the u3s compare? of the two, which would you choose?

 

Hi Dreamz

1. Bad, but seems the 3OO release of the bios helps
There's now a 302 release, does anyone tried it ?
2. Mine ose sold with a 6 cell plus a 9 cell (European model)
This is great while travelling, just get the 2 batteries full and you'll do a Paris-New York flight with no problems working or watching divix
3. I have uploaded a bunch here http://forum.hardware.fr/hfr/Ordina...bles/ultra-portable-chipset-sujet_42730_1.htm
No matters if it's in french, just look the pictures
4. The U3

 

That's not a problem with mine. Maybe it's mounted bad from the factory

 

thanks, but it seems that the fan is still loud, even with the v300 release.

good to know!

nice pictures. that helps a lot.

why the u3 over the u6?

i actually came across this lg notebook: http://www.lge.com/products/model/detail/e300_1_6.jhtml

similar to the u3, but $500 cheaper.

 

Th U3 Because of the size of the screen, and LG, well I'm not sure, they don't have a good reputation on laptops no ?

 

That LG doesn't look comparable to the U3 in build quality or design.
I'll give Asus a call about the webcam. Its definately annoying. Hopefully i won't have to ship it to them or anything.

1 more issue I have. The GPS software bluescreens my XP. It worked only once, the second time trying it after the first blue screen. It was fun to play with for a while though it wasn't getting any GPS reception. 5 blue screens of deaths later and I have given up on it. Is it Vista only? it did work once leaving me wondering...

 

Hi all.
I found very suitable info on this forum and I want to post my experience:
I put XP on U3S and everything seems to work!!
few info before getting any reply:
everything seems to work fine included geforce, esata and probably HDMI.
not sure splendid and gear extreme button,but not needed in my case.
before installing I injected (find info on internet) the sata dos driver controller drive into xp installation disk, formatted and installed on a fresh sata disk, made all the driver installation, ghosted the xp partition on dvd, replaced spare sata disk with original one, ghosted back teh xp partition on ex vista c drive and that's it. no need to reformat d drive.
I both used xp driver for xp found on different asus notebook with similar chip specification/feature and vista driver for u3s like fingerprint.
if anyone interested, the driver collection full on stuff, is 400 mb.
just wanted to share this experience with you all. hope it helps.
be aware to start the xp installation on a spare disk and ghost it back to the original one. it's too risky to start from scratch on the original disk.
no responsability is taken for any problem/damage caused. installation is at you all risk! and support should be offered only in a friendly approach. I am not a IT specialist. only one unhappy with vista OS.
the sending should be done with one multiple pando ( www.pando.com) attach.

 

For the fan to be really quite on Vista, and not on all the time, you need to do the following:

- Use the Intel card
- Set the power settings to "power saving"
- Use the latest 302 [?] bios

This will make your computer really quite on vista. It's comparable to linux at that point.

 

My U3S came with bios revision 204 and i'd like to update to 302.

Last time i tried, my laptop crashes, the bios failed and i had to send it with a rma to the warranty office.

I know that some of you updated the bios, so, what was the procedure ?

-windows asus update ?
-bios easyflash ?
-USB bootable key with award flash update or something ?

thanks, caus' i don't want to crash my computer again, i've to travel for work for 2 monh in a few days

 

no one ?

 

I used the Bios Easyflash with a USB drive. It took about 5 minutes