Just bought the G73 (Best Buy model)...

Very pleased overall with it. I don't think you can find a better laptop at that price point. Bios was already updated to the newest version and I updated the ATI drivers with no issues. So the issues that plagued earlier G73 series are now gone. Like many out there I wasn't prepared to go spend $1500+ on a laptop. I was thinking more like $800ish. But boy at $1199 I just don't see anything out there that can compete with this today or long term that is within about $300. One of the best mobile video cards and i7-740 that will power you into the future for quite awhile. I usually keep my laptops about 4-5 years and I think this one will easily last me for that long. I think if I would've went a few hundred cheaper I'd be kicking myself 3 years down the road that I don't have a quad core and avg. video card that came in it then is now worthless for the most part.

This thing really moves. Been playing some Mass Effect 2 at max settings and the laptop is barely working. Very quite even after 45 mins of gaming. Going to load in Crysis soon and see how that works. I highly doubt it will phase it much. The laptop and all inner temps stay well below any area of concern. Speaker system in this laptop is outstanding and more then anyone can really wish for out of a laptop.

I know some complain or point people in a different direction because of the screen being only 900 and not full HD. I see a lot of comments on the net to not buy the Best Buy model and spend the extra money on the other G73's. I got to say do not let this sway you unless your really picky and doing some high end graphic/video work, you will not notice being an every day joe like many of us. This screen is bright with great colors through out the screen. I have a Dell at the office with there RGB screen(think that is what they call it can't remember off the top of my head). Honestly between the two for everyday usage for 90% of the people out there you'll be 100% happy and more with the 1600x900 screen in the G73, it looks outstanding.


Didn't know if I'd like the case material overall. But after having this for just 24 hours I must say its a delight to not have fingerprints all over. Laptop itself is built very well and sturdy. The keyboard is the only thing on it that seems kind of cheaply made. We'll see over time how it holds up. But besides that it has a nice touch to it and the keys are fully lighted unlike some back lights. The overall look of the Asus G73 is hit or miss with me. Personally it isn't winning any beauty pageants but it has a nice retro style to it. It is a big unit overall when compared to other 17" laptops. But its needs to be to control the heating. Won't buy it if I was lugging the thing around every week.


If anyone has any questions about it please ask away otherwise if your looking for a new laptop in that 1K range you better have this on your list unless your looking for pure portablity.

 

I just bought a little upgraded version from tigerdirect (and yes, I looked at the one at BB but since they have a restocking fee now, I passed on getting one from them as I'm very picky) but i have a couple of questions.

It does NOT seem fast to me. I'm in the Nvidia control panel and just clicking on different options takes it between 3 and 5 seconds before it actually pulls that screen/option up...?

Also, I'm not impressed by the brightness on the screen and I think the colors are a little blueish which is why I wound up in the nvidia panel to start with.

Any ideas/comments?

Thanks

George

 

What model do you have?

 

Well if your getting a little blue hue windows 7 has an excellent calibration system in it. Also I'm sure your video card should have some type of controls also.

I take it you must have the GTX 460 card??? This being very new to the market and very new to the G73's there maybe some driver tweaking that needs to take place. Are you running the most current driver?? Not having that card I can't tell you if that pause is normal or not. I know on the ATI I make a change and its instant. I'm sure you noticed during research that there was issues at the start with the ATI 5870 and G73 that have been worked through. Same might be going on with the GTX 460.


Does everything else work smoothly and quick? Also if this is just out of the box brand new make sure Windows isn't doing one of its million updates in the background, that could cause some slower performance.

 

Nvidia control panel takes a few seconds to open up no matter what configuration or type of computer you are running, man. Don't know about the tint issues, though.

I also own the BB model, and I'm really pleased as well. Aside from one person, the only consistent complaint I've heard about the screen of the BB model - from people who've seen it and/or replaced the screen - is that the viewing angles are bad, not so much the PQ. And I agree, you basically have to be head-on to get a proper view of the laptop - but it's a laptop, so I'm always looking at the thing head-on.

The only thing I don't like about this laptop is the keypad. Takes way too much effort to click on that thing. Doesn't matter for my gaming needs since I use a mouse for that, but when I'm just chilling in bed, it is a little annoying.

On a sidenote, the cheapest option by far is the recertified BB model, which for some reason flits in and out of stock on Newegg.com from a ridiculously low $800 or so these days. It comes w/ 90 day warranty.

 

Plus you can buy a extended warranty for the newegg refurbished. Only thing with refurbished is the battery will have some wear on it.

 

This one ASUS G73JW-XT1 Laptop Computer - Intel Core i7-740QM 1.73GHz, 8GB DDR3, 500GB HDD, Blu-ray Player/DVDRW, 17.3 Full HD, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, Black, 2-Year Warranty, 1-Year Accidental at TigerDirect.com

 

Well, it's not so much opening the nvidia control panel, it's just moving from one option to another. Hell, my ATI on my desktop is instant which it should be for something that small.

I'm having someone doing a clean install on it anyway so he'll take care of that stuff for me but I was curious.

I didn't see anything to set color temperature in the nvidia control panel though.

I don't like the position of some of the keys like the page up and down keys and especially considering how much space there is for more keys.

Yes, I do have the 460 card.

George

 

thank u for your help!

but when i pay 1200$(bestbuy) i dnt hope to have problems and fix them!! like(grey screen of death)!,,and most of g73jh users had this problem in the first week!!!
so wat do u expect after 2 years,,or 4 years!!
i dnt hate this laptop i want to buy it!

but im afraid and i think after 2 years this laptop will die!!

 

Thanks

George

 

Skylolow, did you score the LG or AUO panel? You can check this by clicking the Monitor properties in the Device Manager. Then go to Details tab and select Hardware Ids from the drop down menu.

 

Most of the issues people had, have now been fixed is my understanding. Bios have been updated a few times and same with the video drivers.

So I won't worry much about. Long term its an electronic device. One day it can work flawless like has for the last 8 years and the next its dead. With a laptop it really comes down to how much your moving it around. If your a heavy user taking it all around town everyday then I'd say get a warranty. If its sitting on your desk 95% of its life chances are quite slim your going to have any hardware issues.

 

LG is what I got.

Looks really good like I said. Being that you got the glossy plate over the screen side viewing angles get cut down depending on light conditions. But otherwise a real nice evenly bright white on a white screen and text is very sharp. Better then Toshiba's non 1080+ screens. I can't really complain at all about the screen quality.

 

Well, I still have to figure out how to adjust my screen properly. Colors suck on this thing

 

The Best Buy model has an ATI card. NOT the Nvidia. Isn't this thread about the G73JH-BST7 ???

I'm considering getting this model. The G73JW-A1 looks terrific but it's over $500 more! I'm thinking that since the BB model has a 1600x900 screen, that's a lot less pixels for the GPU to have to push around and I'm assuming I'd get better framerates. The JW model has 1920x1080... that's over 2 million pixels to address in each frame.

Any thoughts on performance at the lower screen resolution? And to the OP: have you had any problems with the ATI card ?? Some have reported having to upgrade the video BIOS on that card.

I definitely want the LG screen and it seems the BB models have those.... so that's another consideration.

 

Yes the 1600x900 screen will give you more frames per second. I have not had any problems with my card. It came with the 211 bios but I haven't updated the vbios. I did update to the ati 10.10 though.

 

Do the vbios....I always got GSOD with new drivers eventually and I too have the BST7 from BB.....and my games work great......its easy to do......all the best!

 

I haven't had any GSODs so if its not broke I am not going to fix it.

 

It's a personal choice. I always update to the latest BIOS whether it's the computer's or video card's. They often fix things that they don't tell you about that improves performance. But then, flashing BIOS can be risky, they say. I've done it dozens of times and never had a problem.

@xxERIKxx: Thanks for the reply. And, I thought the BB model had the 720QM, not the 740QM like the G73JW.

 

I agree....if it isn't broke don't fix it...and actually flashing the vbios seems safer that the actual bios......was very easy to do......good luck and happy gaming!

 

Congrats on the LG! It is a nicer screen than the AUO.

 

Ah, sorry...my fault!

Also, what's the deal with the screens and why is the LG better?

Thanks

 

Don't know exactly why. They just look better. Better color saturation, brighter, crisper. LG makes good products. The AUO screens are everywhere. I think their quality-control has suffered a bit recently due to ramped-up production.

 

Not to crash the thread here but a quick question. The one that I have I think isn't too bright and colors are way off. Could it be due to the screen and how exactly do I find out which I have?

I'll take that advice in PM in order not to hijack the thread further.
Thanks for any info..

Also to the original poster..BB didn't have the choice of upgrades did it?

When I talked to the dude over at BB when I tested theirs, I was surprised that they put 5400 rpm drive into a machine like this and he was too.
Other than that, the specs and price was good.

Does yours have a backlit keyboard too and can you change the colors on it?

I know when doing some research here, I found a dealer that offered to change the colors but for $35...?

George

 

No they didn't offer any upgrades at BB.

Yes fully lit keyboard. Can't change colors out of the box on the keyboard lights.

I was worried about the 5400RPM. But after doing some research you have to be moving some serious megabytes around on the drive for it to really matter(ie:video editing). So I guees it depends what your doing with your laptop. My solution was going to be if I didn't find it up to par I would just buy the new Seagate Montmus(sp?) XT for about $125 today(who knows another 3 months and it might be under $100). It has a solid state 4 GB part and then a 7200 RPM Harddrive. The review test on this HD are amazing and all the reviewers are quite shocked at its performance.

No issues with the card. Been playing some Mass Effect 2 on it at max settings and it doesn't even phase anything. Temps cool and no issues what so ever with game play.

Your in the same position I was. In the end I couldn't justify the $500. To each there own though.

 

Last notes, I think I'll keep the HP and return the Asus to Tiger. The screen sucks big time and the screen on the Asus at BB IS better but still not as good as the HP so I think I'll just stick with the HP.

Good luck with yours and for what it's worth, I DO like the Asus better as a computer.

George