Asus A8Js Review (pics, specs)

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by Rodin Max Hai-Jew

Overview and Introduction

The Asus A8Js can best be classified as a thin-and-light notebook, although its strong graphics capabilities make it a standout in this category.  The A8Js is a refresh of the Asus A8Jm, its notable improvements over the A8Jm are the Core 2 Duo “Merom” processor, the nVidia Go7700 graphics card, and an improved WXGA+ resolution (1440x900).  The full specs are below:

• Intel Core 2 Duo T7200 2GHz, FSB: 667MHz, 4MB L2 Cache
• nVidia Go7700 512MB Discrete Memory
• 1GB RAM, DDR2 667MHz (1x1GB)
• 100GB 5400RPM 2.5-inch SATA Harddrive
• 8x DVD-RW Dual Layer Drive
• Intel PRO 3945 Wireless 802.11a/b/g
• 8-in-1 Card Reader (SD/MMC/MS/MS Pro/XD)
• Gigabit LAN, DVI, VGA, S-Video, Firewire, 5 USB ports, Infrared
• 19mm Full Size Keyboard
• 13.18” x 9.64” x 1.37”~1.46”, 5.25 lbs

Reasons for Buying

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I bought this laptop because my old laptop, a Compaq Presario 2500 (Pentium 4 2.8Ghz, 512MB), was very unstable and could not handle two programs at once.  Specifically, when I had a video chat session going with my girlfriend and a browser running at the same time the computer would slow to a crawl and almost beg to be put out of its misery.  During my days at the University of Washington, I could do most of my gaming at the school computer lab, but after graduating it became obvious that my Compaq was falling woefully short.  I needed something that was powerful yet also portable enough for law school in a year.  I considered purchasing the Sony VAIO SZ, the Asus W3J, and the Asus A8Js.  The Sony SZ seemed underpowered in terms of graphics capabilities compared to the other candidates and the W3J seemed too expensive and lacked a webcam.  The A8Js was a prime candidate for me because of its integrated webcam, powerful video card, and excellent resolution for a 14” screen.

The unboxing...

Where and How Purchased

I bought the A8Js from MilestonePC.com as a part of a group buy program the company offered.  They offered a discount off of the going rate of $1,599 and threw in a bonus of an additional pocket-sized Asus router, the WL-530g, which will be covered later on in this review.  This was in addition to the Asus carrying case and optical scroll-wheel mouse that is included standard.  In my opinion, the benefits to cost ratio is very high for this laptop.  I think the benefit derived from this purchase would have outweighed the cost even if I had paid full price.

Build &amp; Design

Asus A8Js back view and lid (view large image)

The main competitor in the Asus lineup to the A8Js in terms of size and performance was the Asus W3J.  The W3J’s main attraction was that it was made of brushed aluminum and so I was a little glum when I decided on the A8Js because I knew it would be plastic.  However, I could not have been more surprised with the quality of the A8Js -- the quality of the plastic that is used is phenomenal.  It feels almost metal-like and there is certainly no flex in the area surrounding the keyboard.  The A8Js feels extremely sturdy and the difference when compared with my Compaq is like the difference between an S-Class Mercedes Benz and a Daewoo (although I read that Daewoo is making a turnaround -- albeit not in the United States).

Asus A8Js right side view (view large image)

There are no screen ripples when you push from behind the screen or from the side.  However, if you push the border of the screen while facing it, you will see some localized rippling.

Asus A8Js left side view (view large image)

I can’t help but mention the modern, sleek touchpad that the A8Js sports.  The touchpad has no separation between the left and right mouse button -- it appears to be just one big button, but in fact it still retains its left/right clicking abilities.  The touchpad feels almost identical to the rest of the laptop.

The black keyboard contrasts nicely with the silver case and the Asus logo on the lid of the laptop is understated but still impressive.

The hinges are tight and there doesn’t seem to be anything loose, out of place, or poorly designed about this laptop.

Screen

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I’ve seen many screens in my day and I would say that this screen is one of the best for several reasons.  First, the resolution really sets it apart.  It’s tough to find 14” screens with anything higher than WXGA resolution.  I’m used to higher resolution laptops, so I’m biased, but it just seems that if you can turn up font settings and if you can’t tell the difference between games at native and non-native resolutions then you might as well go for the higher resolution.  Second, the viewing angles are surprisingly good and there seems to be a large error margin for being within the “sweet spot”.  Third, the clarity and brightness of the screen are superb and the glare-type screen (versus matte) is not as distracting as I had feared it would be.

Speakers

I had read on the forums of NotebookReview.com that there was a problem with Asus laptops having low speaker sound.  Now this is no doubt true, but it didn’t seem to be a problem for the A8Js.  Either they fixed something or my sound expectations aren’t as high as others.  The speakers have no bass and probably shouldn’t be used on an airplane in-flight (not only because your neighbors will glare at you) but they are perfect for filling a room with reasonable amounts of sound.

Processor and Performance

I have the 2GHz Core 2 Duo and it is blazing fast.  Of course my reference point is my work computer and my Compaq laptop, but still, the processor is truly a work of advanced science by Intel.  Hats off to them.  AMD has a ways to go before it can even approach the combination of performance and power savings.  As you can tell, I’m impressed with the performance of the A8Js, and this is only with 1GB of RAM.  Everything is snappy and responsive with this laptop, especially in the area of gaming.  I played Counter-strike 1.6 (not Source) and as expected it could run it on high settings with no problem.  I also installed Warcraft III and there were no problems with that either.  The strong performance coupled with the beautiful screen really enhanced the gaming experience.  I wish I had more recent games so I could regale all of you with details of my frames per second, but unfortunately I haven’t been gaming much recently because I didn’t want to hurt my Compaq laptop’s feelings by giving it games it couldn’t hope to run playably.

Benchmarks

Super Pi calculated Pi to the 2 millionth digit in 1 minute and 4 seconds.  Not too shabby!

Super Pi

Notebook	Time
Asus A8Js (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo)	1m 04s
LG S1 (2.16 GHz Core Duo)	1m 11s
Dell Inspiron e1505 (2.0GHz Core Duo)	1m 16s
Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (2.0GHz Core Duo)	1m 18s
Toshiba Satellite M100 (2.00GHz Core Duo)	1m 18s
Samsung X60 (1.66GHz Core Duo)	1m 29s
Dell XPS M140 (1.86 GHz Pentium M)	1m 41s
Sony VAIO FS680 (1.86 GHz Pentium M)	1m 53s
IBM ThinkPad T43 (1.86 GHz Pentium M)	1m 45s

 

3DMark06 Results and Comparison:

Notebook	3D Mark 06 Results
Asus A8Js (2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo, Nvidia Go 7700 256MB)	2,665
Apple MacBook Pro (2.00GHz Core Duo, ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 128MB)	1,528
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB)	2,183
ASUS A8Ja (1.66GHz Core Duo, ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 512MB)	1,973
Dell XPS M1710 (2.16GHz Core Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GTX 512MB)	4,744
HP Pavilion dv6000z (1.8GHz Turion X2 TL-56, nVidia GeForce Go 7200 256MB)	674
Sony SZ-110B in Speed Mode (1.83GHz Core Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7400 256MB)	794
Toshiba Satellite P100-222 (2.16GHz Core Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GS 512MB)	3,534

 

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Heat and Noise

Now heat and noise, or lack thereof, are pretty important to me.  Since the A8Js has so much power in such a small package, I worried that a tradeoff for all that power would be large amounts of noise and heat making using it on my lap a risky affair.  My old Compaq Presario laptop sounded like a 747 jet, and that was just while typing.  The A8Js is blessedly silent with only some hard drive access noises which I find sort of reassuring anyway.  I tried gaming for a while but all I got out of the A8Js was a low whir -- definitely nothing that would turn heads in a fairly quiet lecture hall.  As for heat, it’s been on for hours now doing both demanding and easy tasks and it is somewhat warm but not uncomfortably so.

Keyboard and Touchpad

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The keyboard has no flex and the buttons on the laptop all seem to make sense in terms of placement.  The first button resembles a running man and it toggles through modes in Power4Gear which is Asus’ included power settings program.  Undoubtedly, it increases/decreases performance likely at the cost and benefit of battery life.  Next is the Bluetooth button which actually doesn’t work because Bluetooth doesn’t come standard with the A8Js (you can have it installed, but it voids your Asus warranty).  Then comes the Wireless On/Off button and after that a button which affects screen color modes.  Finally, the last button launches some sort of Asus media center.

Input and Output Ports

The A8Js has a variety of ports.  There’s not much more to say beyond the fact that I am impressed that there are DVI, VGA, and S-Video ports.  With 5 USB 2.0 ports, there’s no shortage of USB capability.  An ExpressCard slot is included as is a gigabit LAN and telephone modem port.

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Wireless

The included Intel PRO 3945 Wireless 802.11a/b/g card works as expected and gets strong reception even through multiple walls.  As mentioned before, Bluetooth is NOT included although there is an infrared port.

Battery

Battery life ranges from around 2 hours 15 minutes at full brightness and while downloading large files over wireless.  With battery saving mode on, that number changes to around 2 hours 40 minutes.  Not too shabby, I thought it would be worse so I was pleasantly surprised.  It’s not ideal for road warriors but okay for those who need some battery time between plug-ins.

Operating System and Software

The A8Js comes with Windows XP Professional and Asus is a part of the Vista Express Upgrade program so if you buy it during the promotional period, you should have a free or at least subsidized upgrade to the new Windows Vista.  A lot of software comes pre-installed, but it’s not as bad as other manufacturers.  Skype comes pre-installed as does Norton Antivirus but the majority of the other programs are Asus utilities which actually are pretty useful.  Power4Gear has a variety of power settings and Asus’ Splendid program has varying color settings for different occasions.

Customer Support

I have not had occasion to utilize Asus Customer Support but the support and involvement at MilestonePC.com was phenomenal.  I was very happy with their level of communication and prompt responses.  Their Group Buy program just sweetened the deal in an altogether very enjoyable buying experience.

Extras

The Asus WL-530g is truly a pocket-sized router.  Initially I was worried because it appeared as though I had not received the US power adapter but it was in the package and installation was simply a matter of snapping on the US power adapter, attaching the antenna, and plugging in the router.  Setup was a breeze and it’s been chugging away happily ever since.  It has four LAN ports and includes basic security features such as WEP and WPA.  This bonus from the MilestonePC Group Buy program was a nice perk especially since I was in need of a wireless router.  For most people who already have a wireless router, this will be a novelty item because of its size but not necessarily something that will be particularly useful.

Included was a carrying case which says Asus Design on it and an Asus optical scroll-wheel mouse.  The case is stylishly subdued and I think I’ll use it, but the mouse is just way too small.  It’s bigger than the typical notebook mouse but markedly smaller than a standard mouse.  Personally, I abhor smaller mice and this fits into that category.

Conclusions

This is a laptop where it’s hard to go wrong.  My one complaint would be the battery life, but for the price and the feature set it’s a small complaint among many praises.  This laptop is exactly what I was looking for and it should last me on through law school.  Hopefully its gaming prowess won’t prove to be too much of a distraction during my studies.  I would recommend this to those gamers who like power but don’t want to lug around unwieldy 17” desktop replacement laptops.  Asus has found the niche between thin and light and desktop replacement and I applaud the A8Js for fitting my needs so perfectly.

Pros

• Powerful processing/gaming performance
• Beautiful screen
• Multitude of ports
• Useful Asus utilities
• Useful extras (router and carrying case)

Cons

• Unremarkable battery life
• No Bluetooth

 

Those benchmarks can't be right... The 7700 scores higher than the 7900GS in 3DMark06?! :O Very good machine altogether anyway.

C.

 

I was about to ask, that seemed like a really high score for 3DMark06 (as you noted, it appears to outperform a 7900GS).

What did it get in 3DMark05?

 

I wish it could do 3665 in 3dmark 06, but yeah that must be a typo, I'm pretty sure the 7700 gets about 2700 in 3dmark06

 

The editor of the review was distracted while posting

It's really 3,665 - 1,000 = 2,665 and I just changed it to erase all evidence.

That benchmark is compliments of Danny from MileStonePC.com who posted the score on another thread in NBR: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=1637581#post1637581

 

Excellent... This will, in all likelihood, be my next laptop. Thanks for a very nice and informative review.

btw/off topic: you went to UW? lol, I'm a freshman there.

 

Yup, I went to the UW and graduated fairly recently. Good luck in your studies and probable A8Js purchase

 

Ah good, because if those scores were true I was so going to sell my Sager and get this one instead, lol. Good job on the rest of the review! Awesome stuff.

C.

 

Oh my god...I love you! Hahaha not really, but thanks for the review!

 

Id like to see 3dmark 05 scores, and then 3dmark 05 ando6 scores with overclocking from coolbits enabled.

I need to see that data to see what a difference it is between it and the 7600

and finally pictures of the pack and the mouse

manufacturer of the hd and ram

 

Great review! And I totally agree with you, stamar! 3dmark05 scores would be nice! And if you get the chance to do a bit of overclocking that would be great! Post some scores!

 

wow. i'm jealous.
i'll just stick with 32bit for a while then...... that's what i get for being impatient.
so, you never mentioned just how much you paid for it through the group buy

 

Excellent review! Yeah, I would like to see some 3DMark05 scores as well.

 

Yea I'd be interested in the group buy discount as well.

 

Is it possible to purchase an extra 2 year warranty over the current 1 year ASUS stock warranty from any websites in Canada? I've checked Milestonepc and NCIX with no luck so far...

 

Actually, ASUS has since upgraded their warranty from 1 year to 2 years for all ENSEMBLE models, though you may have to inquire to see what warranty upgrades ASUS provides now.

 

the milestonepc.com discount was 1539 + a router. No more sign ups so far as I know.

 

I'm glad to see that one of you lucky SOB's has finally gotten around to reviewing this machine... still waiting on an Australian launch for this model.

I'd also like to see 3DMark05 scores to allow us to make a comparison with the 7600 in the A8Jm, but I won't pester you to overclock unless you really want to.

Stamar, if you're interested in pics of the bundled mouse and bag then look at any of the other Asus reviews posted for the last 6 months. The bundled freebies are exactly the same.

 

My W3J only got 2069 on 3DMARK06, that machine is crazy..........seriously......

 

Thanks for the review! The A8Js is a very nice system with some excellent selling points!

 

Thank you for taking the effort to write this review, but it is no different from the run of the mill, uninspiring ones already here that provide absolutely no constructive analysis or comparison. The laptop is "extremely sturdy" and "blazing fast" with technology that is "truly a work of advanced science." Another review that falls under the PR scheme or written by those who just want to express their joy in their new notebook and feel prideful of it, whether deserved or not, and make it out to be completely faultless. Almost every review will say their laptop is the best, has the best screen, is the fastest thing they have ever seen, etc., and it is sometimes justifiable by how limited their knowledge and experience with laptops are (compaq presario 2500), but such people should refrain from ever writing a real review as they will provide absolutely no constructive criticism, and we need that criticism as the whole purpose is to help in our notebook buying decisions.

 

You are forgetting one crucial element: people here are notebook aficionados, not IT professionals--and despite that the average level of competency is very high. If anything, I would say the reviewers here do a fine job of conveying their opinions. That, combined with the views expressed by all users in the forums, give potential buyers plenty of elements to work on in the process of making an informed decision. If a notebook has grimes, they will and do come up, despite what the reviewer will say in his or her piece.

C.

 

Yeah, seriously, give me a break. There are plenty of places to read professional laptop reviews, but I'll be honest and say that the "professional" reviews from places like PC Magazine, Laptop Magazine, CNET, etc. are the ones I usually find to be worthless.

What I like about so many of the reviews published on NBR is that they are much closer to giving a regular user's opinions and experiences with a laptop.

I will agree that it seems like sometimes there is a tendency to focus on the positive (I think this might be natural, as when someone has made a major investment in a product, they are more likely to try and justify the purchase to themselves and focus on the good), but that isn't always the case. I've seen plenty of NBR reviews where people do highlight the negatives as well.

But what matters is, do they like the laptop overall, and why? And this review, like most others, gives that hands-on viewpoint, and that is what I and I think many other NBR readers like about it.

 

Silverwolf leads a life full of angst.

 

Silverwolf does make a good point. Most of these reviews pale in comparison to the ones on www.hardocp.com

But the people who write the reviews here do it on their own time, so eh...

 

Silverwolf does have a point, and I don't think his unwarranted negative tone should make you overlook that point. The fact is, the vast majority of reviews on NBR are overwhelmingly positive, and don't give much of a frame of reference as to the cons. Part of the problem is that many NBR reviewers haven't handled large numbers of laptops like the "professional" reporters, and so can't make a fair comparison.

The other part of the problem comes from a selection effect: the kinds of people posting reviews here are the kind who have done their homework, researched the hell out of the field (usually with the help of other NBR reviews) and then picked what was best for them. Being such well-informed consumers, it is not surprising that they end up very happy with their purchase and let us know in the reviews. And so we end up with countless Asus, Lenovo and HP reviews but not very many from Averatec, Toshiba, or Gateway.

But sometimes, this starry-eyed view of the laptops being reviewed can really result in misleading conclusions, in my opinion. A case in point for me is the review of the Acer Aspire 5112 posted here a couple weeks ago where the reviewer came out with a very positive conclusion despite showcasing glaring deficiencies in design. He had a video in the review showing a large amount of keyboard flex that seems to be the hallmark of Acer's questionable chassis design. The notebook also had an AMD X2 processor which is not only much slower than a Core Duo (let alone Core 2 Duo) but also less power efficient. Next, the 64-bit bus of the X1600 graphics card results in performance only marginally better than a X1400 yet sucking up power like a full X1600. But the kicker was that you CAN find an almost identically spec'd Aspire 5672 except with a far superior Core Duo for cheaper.

I don't mean to single out this reviewer for a bad report, as I do think he did a thorough job on the writeup, but the conclusion was simply flawed based on all the design problems in the notebook.

On the other hand, the 3 or 4 paragraph reviews you will find in all the major publications are so brief, and lack so much depth, that their outcomes often seem arbitrary and unjustified. Another problem I find in their reviews (which also extends to NBR to some extent) is that the award-winning laptops are usually the most expensive ones. In real life, yes that Qosmio or that Sony might be a great laptop, but most consumers need to make cost valuations because of their limited budget.

NBR reviews are definitely biased towards giving good reviews, but I will still take NBR's in-depth reporting and benchmarks over the canned crap you find in most of the major publications any day.

 

I'd rather have the opinion of a layman who did some serious research in choosing the laptop, used it for a good time, and bought it from normal stores; than that of a "professional" who looked at the laptop for a few minutes, simply requotes what's on the box, got a free specimen from the manufacturer (= 1) he ain't forking out any money; 2) he gets a creme de la creme version), deals not with customer care, and quite possibly needs to sell the bloody thing on the website (CNET, anyone?)

 

The take home point from this discussion is not that user reviews are better than most profressional reviews (that goes without saying), or that reviewers here need to "talk bad" about their brand new notebook which they spent months researching about and thousands to bring it home, but rather that users need to start writing more critical reviews. Such a critical review should bring out both the pros and cons of a particular laptop.

One of the main reasons why the majority of user reviews aren't really critical is because most of them are done when the laptop is brand new. Any product will be performing well, will be absolutely brilliant, *insert other superfluous remarks here*, especially when it's just brand new. It's how a laptop or any other gadget holds up after a few months to a year of hard use, being knocked around, exposed to the elements, will the user only begin to realise how good/bad a laptop actually is. Otherwise, the rosy picture painted by the user of a brand new laptop is almost no different from the baised promotional drivel you get from the other types of reviews.

While this would mean that we'd never get to read about stuff until it's already obsolete (at least in the tech world), it'd be good to have the your cake and eat it too. I propose that while we still have these reviews of "cutting edge technology" as and when they are released, we should also promote reviews of notebooks that are a few years old. While it may not have much relevance to new products which are being released (which may have very different characteristics from their predecessors), it will help the casual reader identify the pros and cons of a particular manufacturer's models before spending all that much on an investment. Sure, all this info is available in the numerous complaint threads in the respective forums, but not all visitors to NBR actually read the forums; quite a lot of the people I've introduced this site to only read the reviews and end up completely believing everything in the rosy picture painted for them. Some might even venture on to reading the comments posted on the first pages of the discussion thread of the review, but if all they see is "Excellent review!" and "Oh my god...I love you!", they're gonna end up believing that all the praise for the review might indicate that indicate that the picture painted of that particular laptop/gadget will be like that for quite a few years to come.

Just because a fair number of us are geeks (at least at heart) and technophiles who will read anything and everything about every available product before making their decision, there is an even larger proportion of people out there who don't. So, all I'm saying is that NBR (as a community) should make an effort to post good critical reviews of not only brand new systems, but also relatively aged systems (up to a year old perhaps?) so that we can enlighten the casual reader and prevent them from making a bad decision.

just my 2 cents...

 

When searching for a certain notebook, user reviews are usually the first place I stop at. But after that, I tend to hit the brand threads of the particular notebook. There you will tend to see what problems have arisen once the afterglow has faded. Nonetheless, its good for reviewers to post even if they lack experience, and receive criticism and compliments for said review. Otherwise how will they gain experience and improve their techniques?

 

Why does the A8j series have to look that ugly? Pity cause the A8Js looks to be a great machine.

 

Great specs, really wanted to get this model but the price in EU is to expensive. Nearly 2000$

 

It would be nice if people did the hardocp approach and documented the process from configuring the item for purchase to testing the system to calling the tech support (even if there was no problem, maek up one), so we get an overall feel of the system and supplier.

That's all wishful thinking though as no one here gets paid to do these reviews, amirite?

The reviews here could use some major reform, but is it really practical?

 

Please try not to hijack the thread

If you have a problem, feel free to make a thread in the suggestions forums, as visitor comments are always welcomed.

However, as many mentioned, buying a $1000+ notebook(sometimes less but generally) and saying all its negative points and emphasizing it isn;t something a new user with a new machine will do. Sure there are always problems, no machine is perfect. Its the truth but it doesn't mean it has to be shown all the time, its human nature to 'sugarcoat'.

Such views makes regular humane views so negative, yes, there is the harsh truth(like right now, wars, AIDs, drugs, etc.) but again, its human nature to look at the positives as much as possible. Its wrong to hide the truth, but not fair to emphasize the negatives.

Again, if you feel the review structure should change, feel free to add ideas in the suggestion forums.

The guide can be found here:
http://www.notebookreview.com/writeReview/

 

Hello! some more comments from *french* geeks (at least at heart) and technophiles => http://forum.hardware.fr/hardwarefr...Jp-dates-Disponibilite-Prix-sujet-33147-1.htm
(+printscreens if french is chinese for you)
I've got it and 2000$ is worth it, as much as a MacBookPro with more gaming power...
It's also quite pretty when closed, not? (see also picture on the first page from it.com.cn)

Indeed the reviews on NBR.com are pretty positive for a simple reason I think : when you have paid about 1000-2000$ for a notebook : you want to be proud of your smart choice and minimize the number of Cons anyway!?... Auto-convincing factor and you want others to confirm your opinion and believe the same.
Well, believe it or not, this notebook has all I was waiting for about 6 months and will last for long hopefully (also with Vista soon+Ubuntu).

 

hehe Coriolis, I was writing the same as about the same time!
Well, NBR.com is anyway a good source of information before buying... as a complement from professional-geek reviews!
A8Js forever! =>

 

<3 hrs for a 14"?

way weak

and i was seriously considering this notebook, too

 

Congrats on the machine, nice review.

drum: The W3J, A8J, W7J all seem to get under 3 hours, prob more due to their video cards instead of the form factor?

 

regardless of whether it's because of the gpu or not, i still feel like that is just inappropriate for an LCD of that size.

i have a 15.4" lcd with a dedicated vidcard (granted, not topshelf) and i get 4 hrs easy with the smallest battery available, 6 hrs with the larger batt.

a smaller LCD should directly translate to better battery life and, IMO, a 14" getting less than 3 hrs is unacceptable. heck, you can get the 17" dell with the "gaming" gpu and get this kind of battery life.

i'm really surprised

 

Well indeed battery life is quite low, maybe some tweaking in the bios or new bios v2.05 would help?!...
http://support.asus.com/download/download.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&model=A8Js
"Description BIOS 205 9oct2006
In order to support Tj85 Merom CPU, add a new thermal policy."

or disabling VT ?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=83408
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=83610&page=1
...
to be investigated battery wise.

 

the E1705 has a 9 cell battery. Simple as that.
The one I find unacceptable is the W7J. It makes 0 sense, because a similarly equipped M1210 gets an hour or more additional to the W7J, and also, the Go7400 is pretty weak as a GPU.

There isnt much variation in this: any notebook with a 6 cell batt and an X1600/X1700/Go7600/Go7700 will get around 2.5 - 3hrs of battery, regardless of screen size. The size of the LCD screen doesnt make that much of a difference.
The Go7700 and X1600 outclass the X300OC in your i6000 by a long ways, but they consume much much more power. Their battery life is not that bad comparatively, look at the battery of a S96J or a nc8430. Its all about average for the class. If you want more battery life, get a 9 cell one. That comes standard on the Go7600 Comapl Hel80 and HGL30, so they get closer to 4hrs.

 

I agree with all your points here. I do despise CNET, Laptopmag, PC mag, etc. CNET has the most skewed and random ratings I have ever seen. Laptopmag doesn't doesn't even review anything. PC mag is bleh. Although HardOCP reviews are quite thorough, I definitely don't like their style of pussyfooting around problems they encounter and overly indulging in euphemisms. It would be so much simpler to just say something "suck". I do like PCPerspective reviews and a few other sites, but they aren't geared to notebook specifically. I also find it really sad that there are so many cell phone review sites out there but the only major notebook sites with some credibility are notebookreview and notebookforums.

I am not dissing NBF reviews, just a large number of them that are done by casual users who compare their new purchase with their 4 year old Dell or the like. Its obviously going to be overly positive, and that doesn't help in making a purchasing decision if choice A, B, C, D, E, etc. all have high ratings and all are "extremely sturdy" and "blazing fast". I've been through my fair share of notebooks and have owned or played with some that have been reviewed on this site and all I have to say is that some of the writers are probably on crack when they write their reviews and are stuck in euphoria, completely reflected by their overly optimistic and positive tone. I am not a demanding person either with impossible expectations. I am perfectly happy with my current x700 and P-M 1.83ghz, pretty much a downgrade some might see it as.

There are some gems in the notebookreview database and I hope more will surface so the overwhelming number of lemon reviews get put into check. I find no problem with the structure of the reviews, but I know there are a lot of reviews that just don't get posted. Is this the whole money issue? Because I know most people don't care about that when they write a review. I want as many reviews of a notebook as possible to look through and get a better idea and to find patterns for a more informed buying decision.

 

each review with actual pictures and actual scores is very valuable.

Laptop mag pictures do us no good.

Whether the reviewer thinks it looks cool and is fast.... well I dont even read that.
I apologize for being so honest, I do not even read the users review lol If I thought about it I might feel the same way as silverwolfe.

But the review itself is very valuable to the shopper. Seeing actual performance, packaging material, actual pictures.
Extremely valuable. Its the whole purpose of this site.

this information can only be gotten from the consumer not a magazine reviewer or even the staff reviewers here.

 

Major reform? The reviews are submitted gratis by enthusiasts. They have no obligation to you. They most certain do not have an obligation to satisfy every pedantic and breathtakingly inane question put by stamar-esque posters like you who are perpetually delaying a purchase for the promise of something just a little bit better on the horizon, and who will not take the massive step of purchasing a fairly cheap piece of consumer electronics without the sure knowledge that the CEO of Asus will hand deliver it.

Show some gratitude

 

be wrong with a smile

 

Any sign of it in the UK? The UK Asus website has not been updated. Asus are quite poor at updating their site. Has this laptop got the same name here in the UK?

 

Double post... sorry

 

I too am waiting to see if it arrives in the UK. The best graphics we can get on the A8 series from Asus in the UK currently is the 7300go, which quite frankly sucks. I am currently looking at Macbook Pro more closely since the other alternative to the A8Js is W3J or V1J... and if you start paying 1200 quid for a C2D, 1GB RAM & a Radeon X1600, why not go Mac?

 

If you're going to be running Windows a lot though, you have to factor in the cost of a Windows license on top of the MBP itself.

I still think it only makes sense to go with a MBP if you want to run OS X a fair portion of the time. I think it is a really solid machine, especially based on the initial reports of the new C2D MBP's, which seem to have really improved on the original MBP.... but I still wouldn't recommend it to someone if they planned to use Windows most of the time, and didn't need or want OS X as well.

-Zadillo

 

Thats really a weird comment on me.

I mean I was world record obnoxious about my research on this model. Something like a month and a half.
But I actually already bought it. I spent the money. I own one. So I belong here and you are a looky loo by your standards.

My questions were in detail and exact because I already own one, its already on the way. I signed up to buy it weeks ago, I already made this decision a long time ago and I live vicariously through the first people to get theirs.

I decided to buy this machine like I said a month and a half ago based totally on a preview spec.

 

Actually... reviewers here are paid (at least I was for mine), so you can't say it's all completely altruistic, although I certainly wouldn't go spending $1-2k for a notebook just so I could write a review of it. I think you may be over exaggerating a bit. Of course reviewers don't (and shouldn't) have to answer a whole mess of stupid questions, but the concern I saw people post (that in general there is not enough real criticism in many user reviews) seems to be much more valid than you give it credit for. Constructively criticizing a review does not always indicate a lack of gratitude. Sometimes it represents a challenge to excel.