Asus g71v versus MSI gx720

Asus g71v

Intel Quad Core QX9300
Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme Processor X9100
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T9600/T9400/P8600/P8400/P7350
Mobile Intel PM45 Express Chipset + ICH9M-E
Intel WiMAX
Windows Vista Ultimate or Home Premium
Up to 4GB DDR2 memory
NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT with 512MB RAM
Intel Turbo Memory with 2GB Flash
17 inch widescreen display
Dual and single hard drives
DVD burner or Blu-ray/DVD burner
2 megapixel camera
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR


Operation System Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
CPU Intel Core™ 2 Duo Processor
Chipset IntelPM45
17 WSXGA+ / Glare (GX720)
VGA Controller NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
VRAM DDR3 512MB
Memory Type DDR2 800Mhz
Config DDR2 SO-DIMM x 2 slots
Maximum 4GB ( 2048MB x 2 )
Audio Speaker 2 (GX620)
4+1sub (GX720)
Webcam 2.0 M Webcam
Communication 56K Fax / MODEM 1
LAN 10/100/1000 LAN
Bluetooth Yes
Wireless LAN 802.11 b/g/n
I / O HDMI 1
Card reader 4 in 1
Mic-in / Headphone out 1 / 1
USB 2.0 3
RJ11 / RJ45 1 / 1
D-Sub 1
E-SATA 1
Express Card 1
Storage HDD form factor 320 GB SATA
Optical Drive DVD Super-Multi / Blu-Ray
Battery 6 Cells
Keyboard 103 keys
Power AC Adapter 90W
Physical Characteristics Dimension 14.10″ x 10.24″ x 1.06″-1.22″
Full System Weight 5.94 lbs (with Battery

I've narrowed my search to these two notebooks. Which of the two would you recommend and why? I won't be buying the quadcore version of the
g71v.

 

G71V
http://www.asus.com/news_show.aspx?id=12427
GX720
http://www.msimobile.com/nblist.aspx?series=GX720

This is a difficult choice because each product has its pro and con.
ASUS G71V got 9700M GT which is slightly better than 9600M GT and is a welcome feature.
ASUS G71V can load 2 HDDs and run RAID which is also nice.
MSI GX720 can perform 15% OC on the fly using Turbo button which is an unique feature.
Overall, I would say ASUS G71V has more performance than GX720, but GX720 has more C/P ratio (Cost/Performance).

 

The G71V also has an overclocking function built in. Don't by how much, but it's there. The MSI meanwhile has an Eco function which downclocks parts to extend battery life.

It also has pretty lights, but the bright red could be too much for some.

The MSI has a sexy brushed metal finish. Then again the red on the GX720 again.

Besides, the 9700M GT is just a slightly faster version of the 9600M GT (same processor, same core etc.)

The GX720 has a subwoofer. To my knowledge, the G71v has none, only 2 Altec Lansing speakers.

The Asus has the better keyboard (apart from the 3-key issue where you can't push more than 2 keys at once).

But the GX720 is cheaper.

Also, Asus tend to have better screens than MSI.

Personally I'd get the Asus, it has a 2 year worldwide warranty and 1 year Accidental Damage Warranty.

 

the Asus has turbo boost, which auto OCs by .3ghz.

The g71 has 4 altec lansing speakers (i think)

The 9700 GT is much better than the 9600 (1300 3dmarks)

 

GentechPC has the G71V listed as 4GB of DDR3 ram and Blu-Ray drive