Asus G53JW - I Need Your Help Guys ...

Solved: Going with the Asus - Thanks!

I'm in dire need of a quality gaming laptop with a budget of 1500$ or so and this laptop looks phenomenal. It's getting released on the 3rd week of this month and I'm near ready to hit the pre-order button.

School starts next week, so I'll be laptopless for two or so weeks if I do get this one.

Is this really the ultimate gaming laptop for that price? I was considering getting the MSI counterpart with the ATI 5870.

So here's the Asus:
Asus G53JW-A1 15.6" FHD/NV GTX460M 1.5GB GDDR5/i7-740QM/8GB DDR3/500GB 7200rpm/DVDRW/Win7HP64: GenTech PC Store

Here's the MSI I was considering:
MSI GX660R 15.6" 1920x1080/ATI HD5870 1GB GDDR5/i7-740QM/6GB DDR3/640GB 7200rpm/Blu-Ray/USB 3.0: GenTech PC Store

In your opinion, will the Asus turn out to be incredibly better? Going to school laptopless for two weeks would be an incredibly awful experience, considering the professors spam 'next' on their power point presentation remotes so someone using a pen/paper would lose half the notes, but I'm willing to take the punishment if this laptop is much better than the MSI.

Thoughts?

Keep in mind, another thing keeping me on the Asus side is the global warranty, since I'll be moving to Asia in less than a year to teach English ...

 

LOL Really? You can't manage university without a laptop? Grow up.

Also, the asus warranty really is awesome.

 

Grow up? I'm being serious. Notes are nearly impossible to capture on paper/pen with the speed of the PP presentations. You may of had a better experience, but it's different where I go (I forgot my laptop one day and lost 50% of the notes - they also don't post them online later). Right after the notes, we're given instant individual assignments, so 'trading' notes isn't possible. But let's get back on the topic ...

But yeah, the warranty seems to be my main selling point. I'm just worried b/c I finished reading a gigantic thread and several posters said the graphics card in the Asus is worst than the Ati. Is this fiction or reality?

 

Even if it is reality, it really doesn't matter. The GTX 460M and 5870M are very, very close in performance to one another, and with driver updates the 460M will improve.

The CPU/GPU on both is pretty equal IMO, so you have to figure out what you need. Do you want Bluray? Will you need 8GB RAM? Do 3D movies/games interest you? Only you can answer those.

Also, regarding PP presentations...couldn't you use a camera or cellphone to record the slides and then find a computer lab and type them up?

 

I'm having the same exact dilemma.
Heres what I have narrowed it down to.

Weight:
MSI: 7.71 Asus:7.5
Battery:
MSI : 9cell , Asus: 8cell
GPU:
MSI: ATI 5870m , Asus: Nvidia GTX460m (see: http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus-gaming-notebook-forum/515317-we-got-winner-so-far.html)
Speakers:
MSI: Dynaudio 2speakers+ subwoofer Asus: Altec lansing
RAM:
Asus: 8 gb MSI: 6bg
SIZE:
Asus:15"x11.42"x2.36" (W x D x H) , MSI:14.72"(L) x 9.68 "(D) x 1.06"~1.22"(H) ??

Asus: Free shipping vs MSI: regular
Asus HDMI +(WIDI) vs MSI: reg HDMI

Asus: 2 years parts and labor + one year accidental +30 day ZBD, MSI: 2 years parts

MSI: 2 USB 3.0 ports Asus: 1 USB 3.0 Port
Points in these categories[MSI: 5 Asus:5]

Cooling: Asus: Unknown?, MSI: Very good, with fan boost controls

Asus: Comes with backpack and mouse and is overall cheaper than the MSI

Edit: Forgot dual hard drives in the MSI, allows for raid0 I believe.

I also have no real idea if the 1.5gb in the GTX460m makes any difference to the 1gb in the 5870m??
As far as battery life goes, I hear that the MSI can last up to 3 hours on battery saving modes doing basic tasks or idling. Wouldn't know how long the Asus lasts though because of the GTX460m/8cell.
(Price from Xoticpc.com before shipping) starting price: Asus 1499.00 , MSI 1503.00 (minus blu-ray)

I guess it depends on what you want, prices are very close and specs are also very close.
I think that if you do not have a mouse and backpack, the most for the value would be the Asus. If you do have a mouse and backpack, it might be more worth it to get the MSI for some few bucks more. The MSI is overall smaller too ( although just a bit heavier). But there are always flipsides. No benchmarks for the G53jw ,makes it a bit harder to compare.

 

Well... if you want advice on teaching English in Asia, I can help you there. I assume you mean South Korea, since that is almost the entire market. I'm already over here doing it. Let me know via PM if you have questions/want advice, etc!

 

@a4500435
Some lecture halls do not have plugs, so if I were to use my Palm Pre to record, my battery would be gone in one lecture, not to mention there's no zoom on the 3MP, so both pics and video wouldn't be really readable.

@Spyral

Hah! That's a great comparison chart you got going.

Oh, as for the battery, I was reading it was almost 3 hours as well, so they should be nearly tied, but that's just from a tech forum (I went through the majority of googled info on the unit ). I'm pretty sure I've decided, and will go with the Asus. What pushed me over was the global warranty being twice as long as MSI's. If only MSI copied the Asus warranty >.<

Good luck with your decision. I watched all youtube videos, googled for 2-3hours and read everyone's reviews, benchmarks, thoughts, etc.

@Morticae
Very kind of you to offer. I actually do have some questions. I'll make a short list and PM you tomorrow. Appreciate it!

 

Well, if you can't go to school without a laptop, get a cheap netbook while you wait for you Asus, it should do the trick and it's a good companion of gaming laptop...

 

I'd go for the MSI.

1. No GSODs (rock solid support from MSI so far, plus MSI Afterburner is awesome).
2. Cheaper Price tag.
3. Less bulky (and smaller) than the Asus, easier to carry around campus n
take notes.
4. 9 cell, meaning slightly longer life (with Overdrive enabled).
5. No need to wait 2 weeks.
6. The ATi 5870 is better than the 460 in most DX10 games, and even with Dx11 editions, the 460 cannot match the Ati in terms of sheer processing powers. (The only thing you might be forgoin is PhysX).

Goodluck.

 

1. G73JW has no GSODs since it has an NVIDIA Card, plus the G73JH now has an official Fix for GSODs.
2. You Get more bang for buck with the asus.
3. I'll give you that, since it was meant for gaming and 17" is awesome to look at.
4. Yep.
5. The wait is good for the long run due to warranty asus offers.
6. Yes, I agree very much, thats why the G73JH is better than the JW, well only on the video card side.

 

Eh, we'll have to wait to see the real video card results. I think it will be comparable, not much worse. A tiny bit better processor speed (740 as opposed to 720). It's also worth remembering that the 5870 has been out longer, thus better drivers available to help it. The 460 will improve over time as well with drivers.

 

Wish the JW had Usb 3.0

 

it does.. didn't u read the spec sheet? The JH doesn't have USB3.0..

 

My Bad My Bad lol