ASUS U46SV Pre-order/Info Thread

Since a lot of people seem to be wanting this laptop with not much information available, I figured it's better to make one thread with all the info instead of having things like release date and build quality floating around in different threads and replies.

PREORDER LINK
GenTech PC - Customize System

RELEASE DATE
As of latest email with Ken Lee from GenTechPC, sometime in September

SPECS
Screen:
14" 16:9 1366x768 HD LED backlight (glossy)

Graphics Card:
nVidia GeForce GT 540M 1GB GDDR3 Optimus Technology + Intel HD Graphics

Processor:
Intel 2nd Generation Core i5-2410M, 2.3-2.9GHz,32nm, 3MB, 35W
2nd Gen Intel Core i7-2630QM, 2.0-2.8GHz,32nm, 6MB, 45W (Not officially listed by ASUS)
2nd Gen Intel Core i7-2720QM, 2.2-3.3GHz,32nm, 6MB, 45W (Not officially listed by ASUS)
2nd Gen Intel Core i7-2820QM, 2.3-3.4GHz,32nm, 8MB, 45W (Not officially listed by ASUS)

RAM:
2 slots, up to 8 GB

HDD:
Check GenTech PC - Customize System for options

Webcam:
0.3 MP
***Note: I've seen several posts about people being concerned about the low MP webcam. 0.3 MP is 640x480 pixels which is more than enough for video chatting, using up 400 kbps at max (which many will not be able to reach). Unless you're looking to take nice photos with it or have lots of bandwidth to spare, 0.3 MP is fine, and in some cases is better than 1.3 MP or 2.0 MP webcams because of higher framerates due to lower res.

Battery (GenTechPC only offers 8Cells, not sure which):
8Cells : 5900 mAh
8Cells : 5200 mAh
4Cells : 2950 mAh

Dimensions & Weight:
4.85 lbs (with 8 cell battery)
13.11"x 9.65" x 0.97"~ 1.06" (W x D x H)

Interface:
1 x Microphone-in jack
1 x Headphone-out jack
2 x USB 2.0 ports
1 x USB 3.0 port
1 x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert
1 x HDMI
1 x VGA port/Mini D-sub 15-pin for external monitor (If it is the same chassis as the U46E, pics seem to confirm)

Card Reader:
3 in 1 card reader SD,MMC,MS


BUILD QUALITY
Many people have been asking about this because there are no reviews of the notebook out as it hasn't been released yet. However, it seems to be the same chassis as the U46E-BAL available at Bestbuy and Office Depot, judging by pictures online.

PCMag review: Asus U46E-BAL5 Review & Rating | PCMag.com

My personal impressions after taking a look at the U46E at Bestbuy:
-Sturdy build, no flex on palmrest, no flex on keyboard.
-Hinges tight
-Metal on palmrest + top lid exterior, black matte plastic on bottom
-Little bit of flex in optical drive area
-Screen is very thin, but pretty rigid compared to other similar screens (I'm looking at you, Vaio SA)
-Touchpad has a little bit of radial metal texture, which is nice.
-Click buttons work fine and are 2 separate buttons unlike a lot of clickpads nowadays

GenTechPC has some very nice photos from all angles of the U46SV. From the photos and my experience with the U46E at Bestbuy, they really do seem to be the same chassis except U46E-BAL5 is silver color and the U46SV is champagne. Check here: GenTech PC - Asus U46SV 14 inch Sandy Bridge Notebook and click on "Photos"

ALTERNATIVES
Below are some alternatives to the ASUS U46SV, some are released, and some are not. These alternatives all have similar profiles (14" screen, somewhat light), dGPU, and price range.

MSI X460DX (i5-2410, 540M) *unreleased
ASUS U41SV (i5-2410, 540M) *only available in EU and Asia
Gateway ID47 (i5-2410, 540M, 14" screen in 13" frame) *throttling issues: http://forum.notebookreview.com/what-notebook-should-i-buy/596669-your-thoughts-new-gateway-id.html
Sony Vaio SA (up to i7-2620, 6630M, 13.3" screen, 900p)
Acer 3830 (i5-2410, 540M) *throttles: see Acer forum
Sony Vaio CA (i5-2410M, 6630M, only 2-4 hours battery, heavier, 900p)
Dell Vostro 3450 (i5-2410M, 6630M, only 2-4 hours battery, expresscard slot, business grade, heavier) *Switchable graphics issue
Lenovo Ideapad Y470 (up to i7-2630M, 550M, only 3-4 hours battery, heavier)
Samsung QX411 (i5-2410M, 525M)

Now all that's left is to be patient and wait. If you guys need/want anymore info I'm sure there's something people are curious about that I left out.

 

Nice thread. On the Asus site there also the option for Intel® Core™ i5 2520M. I've yet to see/hear more info about this.

 

i don't want to be negative..... the the release date... is moved from end of july/august => maybe late august, then now september .... the next thing we know is that it is pospone till october ... then sorry, "we never intended to release this in america" ..... sorry i just got a bit frustrated with them that's all... it is just that this is just about the only machine with all the specs i wanted, so got a bit pissed how this machine always happen to get delay...

 

dartz, the MSI X460DX is coming out around this week and has around the same specs as the U46SV: http://forum.notebookreview.com/msi/598691-any-news-x460.html

I believe the battery is 6 cells instead of 8 cells though, so less battery life.

On the bright side, it weighs 4.4 lbs instead of 4.85 lbs

 

hmmm that maybe a good replacement, but any news on the build quality of the msi ? But i found this idea a bit interesting... here i am trying to buy asus's laptop (one they released in many places on the globe already), but it is like they just refusing to sell it... it is almost like they are doing us customers a favor by releasing it ... If only their competition can release something of the same quality ....

 

so this laptop does not have throttling problems? thats what im getting from the description of the other laptops. since you only list 2 that throttle.

 

It's impossible to tell if this throttles or not until it's released. The only physical units in existence are the U46E-BAL, which don't have dedicated cards. I can tell you that those don't throttle

 

The SA has a 13" screen but it seems to have a huge bezel. The u46sv has a pretty thin bezel (based on what I've seen at Best Buy)

I'm eager to see how well the u46sv avoids having to throttle.. haha

 

By the way, after checking the u46e at Bestbuy, I was impressed. Display wasn't too bad, chassis felt amazing, and the hinges were tight. Not to mention the weight ant thinness of the computer. It was definitely impressive. If it doesn't throttle, it's a buy!

 

I actually bought the U46E a few days ago at Best Buy because my old laptop suddenly became unusable and I needed a sort of "stopgap" laptop while I ordered a better customized one online and waited for it to ship. The U46E was the best of what Best Buy had and so far it's been awesome and I really have no complaints whatsoever. It was exactly what I was looking for (14 inches, long battery, but still lots of RAM and fast processor, it looks and feels great) and I was really excited to find out that a newer model with a dedicated graphics card would be coming out in the US soon.

So basically, coming from someone who has been using the U46E for about a week now, it's definitely a top-notch laptop. And if you don't want/need the dedicated graphics card the current model is quite a deal at under $800.

 

Guys and girls, check this site out for a review. The language is not english but google translate did a good job of making it understandable.

 

Unlike the U46SV though, it seems to have glossy finishes which would make it a pretty big fingerprint magnet. The U46SV has an awesome feel to it.

However, it's lighter, comes with 6 gigs of ram, and has Intel's widi. It's on pre-order on Amazon for the same as Gentech's price on the base U46SV. Might make a strong alternative but the aesthetics seem inferior.

Edit: I was wrong. The 1000+ version is what has the bigger and faster hard drive.
http://www.amazon.com/MSI-X460-004U...5F3I6TY/ref=dp_return_1?ie=UTF8&n=541966&s=pc
(X460-004US, 1099.99 dollars)
http://www.amazon.com/MSI-X460DX-006US-14-Inch-Laptop-Black/dp/B005F3I734/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_1
(X460-004US, 849.99 dollars)

 

I've heard you can't have both the i7 + 540M in the X460DX, you can only have the i7 with integrated or the 540M with an i5. Amazon doesn't list specs either which is annoying.

Historically I feel like ASUS has had better build quality than MSI (though that's just my personal experience), so I'll still be sitting tight for the U46SV

The Korean review only has an i3, but it's apparently about to get 50-60 fps on SC2 on "push to the best" according to Google translate. The fps drops to 20-30 when there's lots of units on the screen, but if that's on High it's perfectly fine (especially only on an i3)!

 

Do we know if anyone on Amazon might carry the U46SV when it's released? I want a free xbox..

 

what free xbox ? can you please explain yourself ?

 

here's the thing with i7s...the bottleneck in games will always be the 540m holding it back. i7 in such a small form factor will melt your undies IMO.

 

Students with a .edu email address can get a free 4 gb xbox 360 with a windows pc purchase of over 699 dollars.
Buy Select Windows 7 PCs and Get a Free Xbox 360

 

The laptop was out here in the UK at comet and it's bloody expensive, £900, but it seems that the listing has been discontinued. I just hope that by late August it's out in Canada or US (via Gentech) so i can buy one there on my visit to both countries.

 

I somehow doubt amazon will be getting these as it seems gentechpc is really the only place in NA that even mentions its existence :\

 

Just wanted to let everyone know that the MSI x460dx maybe be ready in another 2-3 weeks according to a few stores I called. Both Gentechpc and Excaliber PC had no confident ETA when I called, although the Gentechpc Rep said that it could possibly be in September.

 

from this pic, it looks like it's very easy to access the hard drive. Really hope this comes out in the next couple of weeks before school starts and is still eligible for a free xbox when it does

 

w.. if it is not out then, we should organize an assault on asus Hq in the US >.< it is soooo good to keep away from us

 

How good are the speakers of this laptop? Is it loud? Anyone has a previous Asus model could comment on the speakers? I've read bestbuy customer reviews and a lot of people are complaining the sound is not good. The Korean review website mentioned the weight being 2.32 kg not 2 kg.

Also what is the difference between this laptop and the Asus U46E-BAL5?

 

With a laptop this size, there isn't a lot of room to place speakers, let alone high quality ones. If you'd like a laptop with great quality speakers, you can look at the N series (N43/N45)

 

Too heavy. Need something like as I move a lot.

 

Then you have to choose, light and portable or good sound quality.

 

Just a head up

Got this deal just 30 minutes ago at Office Depot


Asus® U46E-RAL5 Laptop Computer With 14" LED-Backlit Screen & 2nd Gen Intel® Core™ i5-2410M Processor With Turbo Boost 2.0 / 8GB Memory / 750GB Hard Drive - Platinum for $612 AFTER tax and Visa Gift Card.

Today is the last day. Student ID requires.

Asus U46E RAL5 Laptop Computer With 14 LED Backlit Screen 2nd Gen Intel Core i5 2410M Processor With Turbo Boost 20 by Office Depot

 

Physically they are pretty much the same, except that the color of the U46SV is champagne-ish, while the U46E is more tinnish.

Spec-wise the big difference is that the U46SV has a dedicated graphics card while the U46E only has an integrated graphics card, which is a pretty big deal for anything graphic-intensive.

Other than that I'm pretty sure they're the same, although there might be some other minor differences I'm not aware of.

 

Or simply purchase a good headphone, e.g. Sennheiser.

 

I was thinking more of doing some movies/aerobics on the move with this.
Toshiba has light, portable Harmon/Kardon but Atom CPU...

 

And the U46SV has the Altec Lansing speakers. Both of those are horrendous.

If you want to do movies, buy an external speaker. Most, if not all the laptop speakers (possibly with the exception of N45/N55/N75) are quite underwhelming when it comes to high quality audio playback.

 

Yeah, the U46E internal speakers are atrocious (bad quality and very soft), and the U46SV won't be any different. However I don't think it should be a big deal for most people since you can just plug in headphones and be good to go, but external speakers are always an option.

 

Just located another review from a danish site.

 

Just preordered mine. Hopefully will arrive by Friday. But its the 4 gb version. I plan to immediately upgrade the RAM. Any suggestions on which good value RAM should I get?

 

Well people tend to recommend buying the same size of ram for optimal performance. As for what brand, i'm not too sure. Maybe samsung since they make load of memory parts for other companies.

I was wondering where you pre-ordered your laptop from? I'm also from the UK

 

Hi ! I'm very very interested in this laptop, and it's already available in my country (France) with i5, 540MGT and HDD 750 Go/7200tpm... for 799€...

I would like to buy it but i'd like to know before if there's throttling on this laptop, such as Acer Aspire 3830TG ?

Thank you !

 

It doesn't throttle i think. I read a review on amazon.de saying it doesn't.

 

A similar computer, the MSI x460dx (i5-2410/gt540m) is up for sale on Newegg.

Newegg.com - MSI X460DX-006US Notebook Intel Core i5 2410M(2.30GHz) 14" 6GB Memory 500GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M

Looks good but I bet it's a fingerprint magnet with all those glossy surfaces.. -_-

Edit: Looks like only the i3 version is in stock at the moment..
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152277

 

Most likely not. ASUS has been pretty good with their thermal management for a couple of years now (ever since the G1S).

Plus, the Acer 3830TG is ill-designed.

 

Thank you dp3000 and viperabyss ! Let's hope it's true

ForumNewb, what about the battery life on the MSI ?

 

They advertise 8 hours. It has a 5900mAh battery so their advertised battery life (on idle) is probably true.

MSI Global ? Notebook - X460DX

Both the Asus and MSI have switchable graphics, sandy bridge, and a large battery so I'd think they'd be very similar in battery life.

 

Ok, it seems quite interesting too... but I think quality on Asus is more reliable than on MSI, isn't it ?

 

I love the Asus U46E build quality and feel so if the U46SV is exactly the same, I'll definitely pick it over any other 14" notebook.

Can't say anything about the MSI but it looks glossy and that's a turn off for me. Its glossiness keeps me away from it. xD

 

Here are more foreign sites detailing the u46sv. Site1 site2

 

...and then some more

 

Dude this laptop is sick. If only it was released earlier!! My school starts next week so I bought the Envy 14. Nvidia 540m, 88 Whr battery, clicky touchpad buttons.

I would totally sell my Envy 14 for this Asus.

 

Got mine Waiting for it to arrive tomorrow.

Got it from them. Had to change online shops due to the lack of availability.
Asus U46SV-WX044X 14" i5 W7HP 4GB 500GB

 

I did the comparison on Asus' website between the U46E and U46SV. From the comparison, the only thing that seems different is that there is the inclusion of a separate video card with the SV.

 

And the u46e is silver and the SV has a hint of champagne.

 

It seems like there is also the silver option for the SV.