G73SW-XR1 - $1400 Sandy Bridge

I don't know why this laptop isn't getting more love on this site? Browsing for a G73SW-A1 I came across this variant of the new Sandy Bridge Asus G73.

Micro Center - Asus G73SW-XR1 Laptop Computer - Black G73SW-XR1

i7-2630QM? Check
8GB DDR3-1333 RAM? Check.
1920 x 1080 Full LED? Check.
GTX 460M? Check.

So why exactly are people paying $400 more for the G73SQ-A1? For a Blu-Ray drive? I mean, who gives a crap about that? I download/stream all my movies and I expect most tech savvy people do the same. And I am happy it only has 640GB drive rather than two - it's one less drive I'm paying for that I'm immediately going to replace - because SSD is the only way to go with laptops these days anyhow.

I was *this* close to pulling the trigger on the A1 variant but this cheaper model is a NO BRAINER.

 

the 640G HDD is only 5400rpm, doesn't seem to have bluetooth, and only has a 1 year warranty, which might be why it is cheaper. Plus no BluRay, bag or mouse. Probably does not have the HDD caddy for the second slot (but that is now on sale at the Asus e-store)

Theres your cost savings, plus I bet Microcenter gets a Volume discount for buying X Lots of G73SWs all with the same config.

 

It mentioned 8GB DDR3-1333 RAM (Not Expandable), AFAIK, G73 can be expanded to 16GB.

It mentioned 640GB 5,400RPM Serial ATA Hard Drive, if it is only one HDD, then you don't an extra HDD Caddy most probably. And A1 has the Hybrid Seagate HDDs (with small SSD inside it). 5,400RPM is far from the 7200RPM.

It doesn't include the ROG bag and mouse too.

It also said 1 Year Limited Warranty. That is far from the 2 Year Global Warranty + 30 Days Zero Bright Dot Warranty + 1 Year Accidental Damage Warranty.

Those are your missing $400

 

Sounds better when you say it! (Just Kidding!). Beat ya to it

 

7200 RPM drives are yesterday's technology . Hybrid drives are half-assed attempts at the real thing. If you want a high-performance, low power-cost drive you go pure SSD or you go home.

No bluetooth? Who cares?

No bag or mouse? Seriously...why does this matter? Again, anyone who is looking for a performance gaming laptop already has specific preferences about the mice they use. Chances are it is not some budget Asus mouse. And many laptop bags that can accommodate a 17" laptop (and there are lots, including my North Face laptop backpack) can fit a G73.

You guys are playing right into the hands of retailers...all the things you're talking about are the most profitable but least important features of a laptop.

 

If you dont mind a smaller size, and a an above average display, you can always go for the g53 which you can get easily for 1400$.. I got mine for 1350$ it comes with 2 year global, 1 year accidental warranty, bag, mouse, bluetooth, hybrid drive.... Am having it and am very happy with my laptop .. I dont see the point of sandybridge with a discrete graphics card but without optimus.. Even most modern games dont use even half the power of i7..

 

ROFLS.... nice flame dude... each of those things add cost to a product. We were just saying WHY its cheaper. I personally bought a Bestbuy G73, and upgraded what I wanted to upgrade. I wasn't saying its a bad product, just why its cheaper... so don't take it as me crapping on your thread.

Personally, I'll take more storage (Momentus XT) vs. excessive costs (SSD) as I can go anywhere with most of my Steam Library installed, and I still have a second drive for Media and Virtual Machines(work stuff). So, is the speed increase worth the storage space loss to me? No, its not. I'll save the money, and spend it on my Daughter or my house. If an SSD was more cost effective, I would buy one, but the manufacturing isn't there yet, so I will stick with my higher capacity spinning disks for now.

 

It's also important to note that G73SW users are reporting battery life almost at 4 hours, which is twice as long as the JW counterpart, if that matters to anyone. That's HUGE for students.

I personally think this is a good value if you buy an SSD or 750GB 7200 to add to it.

Too much fuss about the bag/mouse, etc. Bag is crap (no padding on the top area). Bag is good for the G53 but not the G73 since b/c Asus uses the same bags for both and the G73 can barely fit in it (surpassing the padding). Mouse is decent but it's one of those mouses that pushes your hand outwards (those types contribute to carpel tunnel - i prefer flats like the g9x, since flats are medically superior).

You could always grab a Square Trade warranty for year 2 as well

 

+1
Try reading any of the SSD reviews--OCZ, G.Skill, Corsair--at either Newegg or Amazon. All of them have 15-20% of one-, two- or three-star ratings: lots of DOAs, lots of failures after one or two months, lots of data loss and corruption, lots of OS reinstalls, lots of RMAs. And almost none of them achieve advertised speeds. Intel's seem to be the most reliable, but they are also the slowest, so what's the point?

But hey, go ahead and be a fanboy. If you make everyone else look bad, then you'll look good, right?

 

I agree. With those extra hours of battery life, It would be a big win.

 

No?

I have no problems with the five SSDs that I own. Post links to the stuff you wrote. Your wall of text is the most ridiculous thing I have read. To me, it sounds like you are mad because of the cost of "GOOD" SSDs.

 

I do not even own a SSD drive, I am not sure why I am being called a fanboy?

If you go to Newegg's site and read the reviews, the latest generation SSD drives that support SATA 3 are all getting top reviews. As someone who has had numerous hard drives fail on me in the last several years, all from reputable companies like Seagate and WD, I am hardly worried about drives with no moving parts being any less reliable.

What exactly is a "caddy"? I am new to the G73 series...are some of these laptops built so you can only have 1 hard drive instead of 2? If so, that's a dealbreaker as I need a SSD drive as well as a traditional 7200rpm drive for media storage.

 

No, they can handle 2 drive. Some just don't come with all the mounting hardware needed to put the second one in. The BestBuy versions are the most prevalent models w/o the extra bracket.

Cheers,

 

The caddy is the holder of hdd. You can easily buy the caddy for $20.

 

Cool thanks guys

 

I agree with the OP, this laptop is a steal at $1400. Buy a SSD for the OS and use the other drive as storage. In the A1 version, the hybrid drive is the bottleneck by far if you run the Microsoft Experience Index. http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus-reviews-owners-lounges/547044-asus-g73sw-owners-lounge-3.html

Why buy this beast of a laptop and run a slower HD? The Crucial RealSSD C300 on NewEgg is $135 (over 100 reviews, 5 stars). Hmm, I just convinced myself to buy one... now to convince the wife.