Really torn/tempted by the G51Vx-X3A... HELP!

... on Newegg. It's only $1279.99... $320 USD less than the X2A...

Was planning on getting a refurbished G51VX-RX05 and popping in a T9900... But I think the 1920x1080 vs. 1366x768 is a *HUGE* plus to me. And the actual difference between a T9900 and P8700 would be marginal for my case. Plus throw in the cost of Windows 7...

Makes the G51Vx-X3A extremely tempting. Someone talk me out of it... or into it!

Cheers,
Kermee

P.S. Newegg shows the X3A having GigE. Am I safe that assume that's correct?

 

Get the X3A, OC the P8700 to 3.0 GHz and you're set.

 

My P8700 doesn't break 61C when OC'd to 3.0GHz and is 100% stable. I'd definitely get the X3A.Another plus- it also includes bluetooth

 

Get the X3A.

 

yep 1080p enuf is the reason to buy it. tho if 1400-1500 is not an objection in ur budget, get teh G51J-A1, a much better laptop with a Core-i7 (that is worth a 300usd upgrade IMO, it just so 1337), 640gb hdd, ddr3 memory (hey, at least its better than DD2 so its worth a mention) extra items like copperhead mouse, bag, free batman AA game etc etc.

 

Thanks, all, for the suggestions and recommendations! It seems like an X3A and OC'ing the P8700 to 3.0 GHz is probably the way to go.

I did think about the G51J-A1. The i7 is definitely nice (I have a desktop i7-920 D0-stepping that's on a mild OC to 3.5 GHz) and the upgrade from DDR2 to DDR3 is nice also.

The price difference between the X3A and the G51J-A1 is about the cost of an Intel X-25M G2 80GB when Newegg "dumped" them as a Shell Shocker for $239 USD a pop. (I picked up 5 of them; wish I had picked up more now!) I was going to pick up a spare HDD 2.5" bracket (when they're back in stock) and when the X-25M G2 80GB hits around $239 USD again, pick another one up and make that the boot drive and move the 320GB to the 2nd HDD bay. Least... that's the plan...

Thanks, again, everyone! I think I'm heading towards the X3A...

Cheers,
Kermee

 

Is the X3A just a X1A with Win7 because I can't find anything different in the specs of the two?

I would go with the X3A as I think the X1A is a great machine and they seem to be the exact same save the OS.

 

I'm fairly certain the X3A is the "Windows 7" refresh of the X1A, so virtually the same hardware. I believe the X1A debuted at $1349.99 USD when it first came out @ Newegg. So there's a small savings...

Cheers,
Kermee

 

Just ordered the X3A today! Newegg dropped the price to $1249.99 (-$30) + Free Shipping. Did the 2% Bing CB for $25 so not a bad deal.

Thanks again for everyone's help/suggestions!

Cheers,
Kermee

 

congrats! its a beast of a machine, you'll love it

 

Oy! Thanks! Time to retire my Dell Latitude D630... I've got an Acer 1810T for "netbook" duties. So a "beast" machine for a companion is perfect

I was going to order the G51J-A1 from GenTech... But the $1250 price on the X3A was too hard to pass up.

I have some spare heatsink compound cleaners and some AS5 left from some desktop builds. Would you guys recommend redo'ing the compound for the CPU & GPU on the X3A?

Cheers,
Kermee

 

I'd definitely recommend doing it. I did so on my X1A (same model different OS) and my max temps in furmark dropped 2C to 88C, and dropped 4C in 3dmark06. The time from idle to max temp has also increased by about 600% I however used ICD7 so YMMV

 

Awesome. Thanks!

I read the G51 is similar to the G50 so I can use this disassembly guide?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=318551

Cheers,
Kermee

 

Yes, chassis/cooling assembly are all identical to teh G50.

 

You will be voiding your warranty by doing so. Even if you don't break the sticker, the change in thermal compound can't be missed by Asus.

 

Yeah. Asus is going to see how nicely applied the thermal paste is and sound the alarm on your warranty, haha.

 

LOL. No worries... I'll run it a bit at "stock" to break it in just to make sure everything is working well. Then void the warranty shortly afterwards

Thanks all for your help!

Cheers,
Kermee

 

This, ladies and gentlemen, is an example of a real man.

 

They could use it as a reason to deny warranty work. Plus resale value goes down, just look at my system. It runs better than a new one but I have to lose $ on it because I changed the thermal paste.

 

Resale value on my M570TU went up because it's from Siberia.

 

haha, dam how much did u get fo yo clevo SS?

im the realest , i dont dare to void warranty...my laptop runs hot and if changing the temps from 97C in most non-valve games to 90C void my warranty i would rather not since who knows, if my GTX 260m breaks @ 90C...with warranty i have the piece of mind to think i can run @ 97C...at least for two years that is. then the mods are gonna start.

 

does the G51Vx-X3A have better battery life than the J1 version? And are you sure opening it voids the warranty? I remember talking to an xotic pc rep. and he said you would be aloowed to change things and maintain your warranty?

 

You can change your ram/hddd/wireless card but there is a distinct yellow sticker on the heatsink for the CPU that says warranty void if removed. Whoever you were talking to at Xotic seems to have been ambiguous at best.

 

Code:

11/03/2009 08:23:00  	OUT FOR DELIVERY[I]  	SEATTLE, WA, US

My X3A should be delivered within the hour here at work. -- Course, shortly after I ordered it yesterday, an Open Box X2A (with the T9600) showed up on Newegg for $1158.99... LOL. Oh well... Least I wouldn't of had to purchase a Windows 7 Upgrade disc for the X2A. If I upgraded from the P8700, it would probably be to a T9900 anyway from the HP Parts Store or SparePartsWarehouse... (which still has it for ~$315 for a new OEM T9900 + S/H).

Cheers,
Kermee

 

Seattle eh? just a lil bit above me =P. and if I were to upgrade anything on my G51 it'd be to an SSD

 

Yeah. I've run out of SSD's I've purchased five X-25M G2 80GB's in the past month for various desktop builds and two notebooks... Waiting for the 80GB G2's to hit around the $239 USD mark again or if there's a better deal on the G2 160GB's.

I actually work in Seattle/Fremont. I live up north in Mill Creek just east of I-5/I-405.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

I'm personally waiting til I can get a 256GB for less than 250$ so it'll be a while for me lol.

 

I will stick to hard drives thank you very much. My 100GB 7200.1 PATA is still running strong.

 

Yes Soviet, we all know how small your hard drive is.

 

Yeah, but do you know how big my RAM stick is?

 

I really don't think I wanna answer that question- your 6600go might start to feel a little ashamed of itself.

 

You guys are HILARIOUS.

UPS just stopped by... I think there's an X3A somewhere in this box... I'm going to throw it around the office for a while and then open it.



Cheers,
Kermee

 

Let me throw it around the office for a while. I can guarantee you that there will be X3 X3A's in that box once I'm done with it.

 

Congratulation!

I also want to find a laptop around 1k3 and matte...screen.......
...except 1366x768 .
I hate grossy..........and 1366x768...

If g series have matte screen...

 

Bah... No such luck for me Still only one.

She's up and running though. Unboxed and Ghosting the original drive right now before I do a clean wipe.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

ASUS G51Vx-X3A (P8700) vs. Acer 1810T (SU7300)...



Cheers,
Kermee

 

hi kermee.can u mention laptop's tempretuare and noisy?

 

Still loading a fresh copy of Windows 7... I'll get numbers once she's up and running with drivers, etc.

OOTB (out-of-the-box) though, the machine is virtually silent at idle and during Windows 7 install. Definitely vents a lot warmer air out of the left-hand side than my Acer 1810T does

Cheers,
Kermee

 

ok kermee thanks a lot im waiting for ur temretuare review.i ll buy g60vx rbbx09 or this one

 

Intel WiFi 1000 BGN... FAIL.

Need to hunt down a 5100 or 5300 on eBay now for 5 GHz... My fault for not checking which WiFi card was in the X3A...

Cheers,
Kermee

 

So... here are the numbers. Fresh install of Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit. nVIDIA 186.81 WHQL Windows 7 64-bit Drivers, yadda yadda yadda... Stock settings, etc.

Ambient Temperature in Room: 70F/21C

3DMark06 Run

Core #0: 37C/59C
Core #1: 37C/56C
GPU: 62C/89C
3DMark06 Default (1280x1024) Score: 9416



3DMark Vantage Run

Core #0: 35C/51C
Core #1: 35C/49C
GPU: 62C/88C
3DMark Vantage Default (1280x1024) Score: P5190 (PhysX Enabled)



And the scores:





No surprises there...

Cheers,
Kermee

 

can u say this laptop's pros and cons?plz

 

I've only had it for 24 hours so I can't really review or say much yet. However, I've been extremely pleased with it so far. Much better machine than I expected for the price point.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

thanks a lot mate i ll probably buy it.why are u dissatisfied with intel wlan bgn wlan card?

 

Intel WiFi 1000 doesn't support 5 GHz band.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

what is 5 ghz band i dont understand can u explain it?

 

There are two bands in which WiFI operates in. 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. Most people use 2.4 GHz. (Where you usually see Channels between 1 to 11, or 1 to 13 in other places).

2.4 GHz is pretty crowded sometimes with other users; an option is to use the 5 GHz band. I have a wireless router which operates in the 5 GHz band and the Intel WiFi 1000 doesn't support that band.

The Intel WiFi 5100's and 5300's supports the 5 GHz band.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

Everyday around lunchtime, the free campus internet gets really slow from stupid people torrenting and playing WoW on their Macbooks. I just wish the signal amps were upgraded to emit 5GHz as well.

 

hmm i was just reading about that and decided to change my wireless setting on my linksys WRT300N to wide channel level 7, 5-2432GHz.

with these setting, will i be able to get a farther wireless signal or is this just to operate at a non-cluttered freq?

dont know if i should keep it, does wireless G in other laptops/usb wireless devices support 5ghz or is that only a privilege of wireless-n? if not, then my other home computers wont be able to pick up a signal

 

5GHz band is only available on A and N. It's only useful if you're in a public WiFi spot. At home, 2.4GHz is just fine as you will barely be getting any interference from other 2.4GHz devices like microwave ovens and cordless phones. Plus, 2.4GHz has a longer signal range.