Interesting Computer Info & Offers. Daily Updates!!

To set the context: I have a two year old Dell desktop, a 4 year old Dell Latitude D400 (12″ screen with INtel Pentium M), and a 1 year old Dell Mini 9″ (Intel Atom). Like many, I no longer use my desktop, and the D400 was getting a bit long in the tooth. The Mini I found useful for taking on travel but was agonizingly slow for daily use with a very cramped keyboard. Even the D400 choked on multiple websites on occasion and multitasking was a chore. Of course, neither laptop had discrete graphics.

This new laptop has changed everything. To be fair, I would probably be raving about the better experience on any current laptop compared to the older Latitude. However, I really do think the U30JC, even though it’s under $1000, is on the cutting edge. It sports Intel’s new Core i3, the successor to the Core 2 Duos (still around at good deals), and Nvidia discrete graphics. Critically, Nvidia’s Optimus allows for seamless switching to the integrated graphics when power saving is an issue.

I have not really taxed the computer yet and I will update the review down the road with thoughts on more heavy duty performance and battery life issues. But I imagine a number of folks are considering this model and would find initial thoughts helpful.

1) The build quality is very nice. The brushed metallic exterior and lack of plastic except on the screen bezel minimizes fingerprints. Very solid and looks great.

2) I prefer matte screens but the glossy screen in regular indoor conditions is great. I can see this be annoying in very bright light, however. Definition and video quality are leagues better than what I’m used to or have seen before in sub-$1000 laptops.

3) Performance is awesome on my limited trials. Hulu, youtube, multiple websites, quicken, windows media player. Everything pops up so quickly and the platform has no issue with lots and lots of multitasking. No stuttering, no lagging.

4) I really like the programmability and adjustability of everything. For example, maybe this is a Win 7 feature, but I really like the ability to assign “hibernate” to the power button.

5) This is definitely not a thin and light ultraportable. It’s a bit heavier than my D400 and bulkier because of the bigger screen. I am still going to travel on work with the Dell Mini. It would be OK for students but I think it’s too big (and performance overkill anyway) for most business travelers. I am viewing this as a desktop replacement and because I’m not going to be using this as my primary movie viewer or gaming platform, I really think 13″ is where I want to be at.

6) Battery life seems to be excellent. I have not put a video on endless loop to max out the battery (and you can read technical reviews that are now popping up). HOwever, just having the laptop idling and using it periodically throughout the day, it was lasting a looong time.

7) I am not a huge fan of the chiclet keyboard and prefer the regular keyboards with more travel and contours. However, I can see that this would be easier to clean and it’s not a bad typing experience. I don’t find the layout strange in any way.

I really hate touchpads (one reason why I stuck with Dell and its pointing stick). I found this touchpad hard to use and not uniformly sensitive, especially on the left side. This could be a slightly fiddly unit or could be my lack of experience. In any event, I am going to use a mouse. (Lack of integrated bluetooth on this laptop is a demerit).

9) very quiet, didn’t run very hot in my limited testing.

I found the whole Asus package to be stripped down and bare bones, which I actually liked. I didn’t think there was a ton of bloatware compared to other companies. The box was very small and spartan and there is no manual (it’s on the desktop). Some of the built-in Asus utilities are not fully explained. Most of the Intel/Nvidia and random stickers come off easily to provide a very clean, elegant look.

Overall, I believe now (and will update with additional thoughts) that this is a spectacular value. Yes, there are things that I would like changed, but I am very happy with the machine standing alone and then compared to the price point, it’s awesome.

Update: After a few weeks of usage, I definitely affirm my initial positive review. This went on a coast to coast business trip. Battery life was phenomenal (I still haven’t fully drained but it was lasting for hours off the cord when just doing basic businessy-web stuff). Traveled very well and was not as heavy to lug around as I expected. (although it is slightly heavier than it appears).

One of my keys popped out (my fault) and so I had my first encounter with Asus support. The support was fine and they are shipping me a new keyboard under warranty. So I am satisfied with my limited interaction with Asus US support. Speaking of the keyboard, I still am not in love with it. The chiclets slightly squeak sometimes and the limited travel does take some getting used to. But I can imagine some folks would prefer this kind of layout (very similar to Macbook).

Having the optical drive definitely came in handy for installing some software.

Finally, the glossy screen has turned out to be less annoying than I anticipated. Almost all of my usage has been indoors and not in bright sunlight. I would not recommend writing a novel in a sunny coffee shop, however.

The balance of this (performance, value, battery) is really perfect for me.

Update 2 (May 28 2010):

One slightly disconcerting development that I post so that others can be aware. In general, I almost always hibernate my laptop. On certain occasions, when awakening, the screen does not power on and the cooling fan starts blowing very hard. I press power for several seconds to shut down. When powered back on, most of the time it actually comes back to the hibernation point (in a few times, it did a hard reset).

I have seen this comment from a couple of other people. It does not appear to affect functionality.

The other slightly annoying thing is that sometimes the screen flickers for a second… especially at the beginning of a computing session.

My only slightly educated guess is both of these issues are related to the growing pains of Optimus and switching between the GPUs. Probably needs to be a driver update in the future.
Rating: 5 / 5

I received my laptop last week. Since getting it I have uninstalled bloatware and added internet security, Office 2007, visual studio and warhammer online.

While I was installing Office 2007, I was updating Warhammer, browsing the internet with both IE and chrome and the antivirus was doing a scan. This laptop handled all of that simultaneously without a problem.

I was looking for a laptop for:

> work trips

> trips for fun (motorcycle/camping etc.)

> college classes (I use it in place of pen/paper for notes)

I bought a netbook last year before school started and found it to be very helpful for class but I hated waiting for it to load programs, start up etc. Also in some classes I would need a a web browser, power point, word and visual open…which was more than it was designed to handle.

Before a two week long trip this past summer, I bought a bargain gaming laptop. Awesome fast but crappy battery life.

Asus N10j (one of last years high speed netbooks) for school and lite trips.

+ Excellent portability

– Slow start up

– Atom processor sucks for multi tasking

Asus G51vx for gaming on the go (15.6″ format, good video card).

+ Plays the same games my desktop will

– Not so portable

– 1.4 hour battery life really sucks

So last month when my wife’s laptop died I started looking for a compromise laptop so that I could hand down one of the others to my wife:)

I was looking real hard at the Alienware M11x but was not enamored with the looks of it.

I was also looking at some Sony laptops but was reading horrible stories of their warranty coverage with screens breaking

(too much flex in their design)

I liked the Asus UL30 series but was unhappy with some of the reports of screen quality.

Then the Asus U30jc came out…and the reviews were very glowing…and they are dead on.

Asus U30jc:

+ Plays many of the games I do on my desktop

+ Battery: ~7 hours of web surfing or 3 hours of gaming

+ Nice looking, very professional, best looking laptop I’ve owned

+ Screen is decent and large enough to actually use

– No Express card slot for my data card…

_____________________________________________________________________

= I ordered this and a new USB data card

The fit and finish are great, it feels solid, the screen looks good, it plays the games I play most, it fits on my desk at school

and in the tailbag of my motorcycle, I can use it all day without having to plug in.

If this were a motorcycle it would be a do everything VFR from the 90′s.

It is the best compromise of portability, usefulness and price that I could find.

Maybe I’ll give both of the others to the wife…mmmm…nah.

—Update: 7 July 2010

Still loving this laptop. It’s been on multiple road trips now and did great.

Two weeks ago: I installed Supreme Commander 2, playing online the graphics look decent, with no lag.

Last night I hooked it up to our 42″ Vizio: watched some shows on Hulu, did some browsing with it after, no problems.
Rating: 5 / 5

I purchased this computer after seeing great reviews on the CNET and PC Magazine websites. I would agree with both reviews that you get a lot for your money with this package:

Windows 7 64-bit

4 GB RAM

the energy miser i3-350m processor

Great display

Sturdy aluminum accents

DVD optical drive – for those of us still clinging to an increasingly obsolete format

320 GB hard drive

802.11n wireless capability

All of this adds up to a quick, highly capable machine that should satisfy all but hardcore gamers and high-throughput multimedia types.

Other features deserving mention:

- The chiclet keyboard is a real treat to type on, with a great tactile response. Despite the smaller computer (I used a 15.4 inch HP before), I don’t find my hands significantly cramped.

- The multitouch pad has won me over. I find it difficult to use my older computer’s touchpad because I have already gotten used to these time-saving fingerstrokes.

- DVD drive is much quieter than others I have used before.

- Battery life, battery life, battery life. Having used a Core Duo HP before (getting a meager sub 2 hours of battery life), I was relieved to see that I might actually be able to watch two movies on a single charge or perform basic work duties for somewhere between 6 to 8 hours.

- Weight – at between 4 and 5 pounds, it’s no featherweight, but certainly is easily totable without causing scoliosis.

- Ships in an appropriately sized cardboard container

- Only a little bloatware as opposed to what I’ve had to tediously delete of my HPs in the past

Negatives worth mention:

- Despite the nice touches offered by the aluminum, let’s face it – Apple still does a better job with overall appearance; that being said, this is one of the more visually pleasant PCs I’ve used

- Integrated speakers are acceptable in terms of range and volume (given what they are), but being located under the front of the computer, it’s easy for your wrists to muffle the sound while you work

- The thumb button on the touch pad requires far more pressure to activate the “left click” than the “right click”. As a result, I’ve left the touch-click feature active on the touchpad, just because my thumb gets too sore. I’ve already noticed that the resistance is decreasing with use, but I shouldn’t really have to deal with that – it should be good to go from first use.

- Would have been nice to have a blu-ray drive instead of DVD, which may actually become obsolete before the rest of the computer

In summary, I’m very happy. I’ve only dropped a star because of the aesthetic issues I’ve mentioned above, but if those are not a concern for you, feel confident you are buying a great machine at a very nice price.
Rating: 4 / 5