ASUS Global Warranty vs. barebones warranty

Still deciding between the w3v and a souped-up z70va. The matter of the warranty is something that continues to confound me, I've never really considered warranties in my purchasing decisions before.

I will be travelling much of the next year, although when I reach my destinations the laptop is supposed to be more of a desktop replacement. Hence I'm quite befuddled.

My questions on ASUS' warranties are these:

- Has anybody had any experience using their ASUS global warranty? Preferably any w3v situations where they've had to send it in for service.

- What is the protocol for making a claim on the ASUS warranty? (e.g. calling a number, sending them the defective equipment, waiting how long?)

- In a whitebook instance where I buy a built-on ASUS model (like the z70va), the components are individually covered by the manufacturer's warranties. Would this mean that say I am in Australia, and the hard drive fails, can I contact Toshiba or whoever it is directly from there to deal with the matter?

- I've heard ASUS will in some instances assist with built-on machine problems. I would like to substantiate this beyond heresy. If I need their help with a faulty z70va, will they help me while abroad?

- In a whitebook situation, what's the worst thing that could happen that I couldn't resolve myself? For instance if the LCD is screwy? I know if a hard drive fails I can always replace it. Send the parts back to Canada or find a local dealer to help? Will this be more expensive in the long run?

- Is there anything like a global network of small resellers? For instance, if I bought from Canadasys or one of the US retailers, are there partnership stores in say Australia that could handle the dealer's warranty obligations from there and bill them for the costs, if any? That would be a cool network.