interesting dilema

i would post this in another thread, but seeing as they are both basically the same model of computer, i thought this would be the most appropriate

What should i get from these two asus notebooks? Its sort of symantics when you get down to it, but it really comes down to the warranty



G71GX-RBBD09
Cooler+Cheap Mouse+ 360 controller+Backpack from newegg
(basically everything minus the warranty)

1,399.99+$177.66=1577.65 + shipping

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9382553&type=product&id=1218095770874




Asus G71GX-a1
BRD, Nicer (Dual Lamp) screen
already Comes with, Mouse, Backpack, (2yr parts+labor +1 yr accidental)
(but has no cooler or 360 controller)



Asus G71GX-a1= 1992$ + Shipping
http://www.xoticpc.com/asus-g71gxa1-order-p-2591.html
u[graded with AS5






-I probably wou;dn't use the Blu-ray, though it WOULD be nice, it's dumb to have. i won't use it. Ups the resell value though

-I'd kind of have to like a nicer screen. Either way, i play 1024*768 on a CRT, so either one is an improvement really.

-No warranty kind of sucks, but it saves me bundles of money.



Major questions are, Is the warranty worth it/will i need a cooler/a controller would be nice

 

youre talking about which laptop?

 

edited message for clarification

 

post some links up. i cant really compare based on accessories...

 

updated again.....

 

best buy tries to dodge their warranty. its a huge headache, i wouldnt get it.

also, since u like the 360 controller, i assume you have a 360? for $20 you can get a microsoft wireless adapter that makes your laptop work with all 360 wireless accessories.

If it were me, I'd get the best buy one because you save a lot and personally i don't like the red on the A1 because i personally dont think it goes well with the blue leds.

 

the 360 controller is for the computer, i'm pretty sure there's a way to plug it in.

i heard you can change the colors of the LED from red to blue, but I'm not entirely sure. I probably won't get the A1 until i get another job anyways. I kind of heave my heart set on it, but i can slightly afford it

 

The G71GX-RBBD09 DOES have a warranty, it's just valid for 1-year instead of 2-years, does not include accidental protection, and apparently doesn't work globally (I'm not sure how true that last statement is).

You already said you probably won't use Blu-ray, so I see it as a feature you're paying for that you don't need.

The higher resolution screen of the G71GX-A1 is nice, but some people think WUXGA on a 17" makes things too small (and also puts more stress on your graphics card); many people I know think that WXGA+ is fine on a 17". However, if I did have a Blu-ray drive, I'd want WUXGA, so that I could watch Blu-ray movies in their full glory.

The other differences is the hard drive capacity, which is relative to each person (I think 500GB is fine, but you might not... also, since it comes with a 500GB, you can pop another one in for around $100, and you'd have 1TB), the accessories, which I don't care for Razer products, and I don't like the backpack that the G71GX-A1 comes with (I wouldn't mind if it was solid black, but I don't like the red accent), and the chassis of the notebook (once again, I don't like the red accent). Are these differences enough to push you one way or another?

Lastly, you said the warranty was the big issue for you... at Best Buy they offer the 2-Year Black Tie Protection Plan for $349.99. I'm not sure everything that it includes, but if you really need a 2-year warranty instead of a 1-year warranty, there's an option (I'll be getting a 2-year warranty for free through my credit card company since I have a Visa Platinum/Signature card).

 

how does that work? how do you qualify for the plat card? How good is that warranty?


So you highly reccomend the RBBD09 then? Does it actually have 2 HDD docks?

 

yes, they have one designed for the pc with no adapter needed. just saying if you already have one made for the xbox, its a lot cheaper just to buy their adapter. then you could also use your 360 headset too if you have one.

EDIT: I was going to post a link but they dont make it anymore. here is one on ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/Microsoft-9Z2-00001-Xbox-360-Wireless-Gaming-Receiver_W0QQitemZ160344824236QQcmdZViewItemQQptZVideo_Games_Accessories?hash=item25554bd9ac&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1205|293%3A1|294%3A50

Its a shame because they were $20 new and I now have 4 controllers for emulators for that price.

 

well, the g71gx-a1 looks rediculously marked up. the only improvement over the rbbd09 looks like it will have 6gb of 800mhz of memory, whereas the the rbbd09 will have 6gb 600mhz memory (not to mention the additional hdd, but those things come by cheap). both models have the same gpu and the cpu, which is pretty ridiculous regarding the price. i know newegg will be offering a new laptop from asus in the coming weeks that will have a 1920x1200 screen for about $1500 with the same specs.
check this one out:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9366615&type=product&id=1218092150740
the only difference between the rbbd09 is a 2.53 dual core processor, easily overclocked to 2.9. you can upgrade the processor to a decent quad for the $ you save on them.

 

as to the best buy warranty, my laptop had all kinda of problems like crashing, ports randomly not working, cooling fan on high when laptop is cool. Took it in to best buy in april, for a month they kept saying it was software and not covered under my accidental, then finally they slowly replaced everything (mobo, cpu, lower case, battery, etc). Every time i brought it home something was wrong within an hour. I called corporate who didnt care (even with that geek squad kept calling me a liar and was rude). I still havent gotten a replacement yet.

 

It has two slots for HDDs, but only comes for the bracket for the one that is installed. You can buy a bracket for around $20 from ASUS and another 500GB hard drive for around $80 from Newegg (for a total of $100).

To be honest, the Visa Platinum card is my FIRST credit card. Most banks offer a Visa Platinum/Signature card. For a list of banks that offer them: http://usa.visa.com/personal/visa-signature/apply.jsp

The way the warranty works: if you put the entire purchase of your notebook on the Visa Platinum card, Visa will take the 1-year warranty on it, and double it to 2-years. If you need warranty service after the first year, you send the notebook into Visa, and they will handle the rest of the warranty process for you, and send it back to you. If the problem is considered under the terms of your original warranty, Visa will foot the bill for the service costs, elsewise they will give you the option of having it returned to you or having it fixed on your expense.

Not trying to attack you, but please don't make incorrect assumptions, these only lead to people getting confused. The G71GX-RX05 and the GX71GX-RBBD09 both come with DDR2-800 memory, they just run (by default) at DDR2-667 speeds, just like I'm sure the G71GX-A1 does as well.

The memory runs in DRR2-667 mode (at 333MHz):


However, it is DDR2-800 memory (capable of running at 400MHz):

 

If you feel that its the warranty that is holding up your decision as you feel that you need more than a year or don't want to deal with BBs extended warranty; and don't have any plans to crack it open and void whichever warranty you do choose I have a great alternative.

SquareTrade offers 3 year warranties and for that BB model it would only cost $150 not to mention unlike BB or ASUS you can transfer theirs to new owners if you decide to sell it before the 3 years is up. Even better if at some point you want to cancel the warranty you can get a pro-rated refund. O' did I mention you can add the SquareTrade warranty up to 30 days after your purchase unlike BB (I think 15days maybe) or any of the e-tailers. Not to mention they offer a max 5 day fix, BB often takes WEEKs to fix something, for example, it took BB over a MONTH to get to the point where they said my camera's issue wasn't covered. I used BB's extended warranties before on bigger ticket items but since SquareTrade I wouldn't touch BB's plans based on their service and cost in comparison.

http://www.squaretrade.com/pages/

 

You need to update again

 

The notebook is from Best Buy, the accessories are from Newegg.

 

^ yeah, unless things have changed in the past year, best buy doesnt even carry a backpack that can hold a 17" laptop...

 

talking of accessories, im planning on getting the g71 for 1150 at best buy today. would this cooler be enough to cool it: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834998921
its the most powerful 17" cooler ive found so far on newegg.

 

with all the hastle mentioned (buying a bracket+warranty+other crap) i'll just end up getting the A1.