ASUS U80V-A1 Review

Sure, if you live in the U.S. But they don't ship to Canada.

 

DAMIT DAMIT DAMIT! I was dead set on getting my Vaio Z790 but this might make me change my mind! The gpu is better and although everything else goes down, it seems to be an amazing laptop! I'm really so confused since all things considered the sony is 2x as much too!

Any recommendations? I want something that will last a few years (for university use) I love the screen on the Z (only thing that unit lacks is backlit keyboard) and I'm just torn between these 2.

Any suggestions?

 

Asus usually uses average quality screens. Get the Sony SR. Same GPU better screen.

 

Sony SR's 4570 also uses DDR3, instead of the U80V's DDR2.

 

Hmm at first i was set on the Z but now the SR sounds good, but i thought it had horrible battery life... i like how i hijacked the U80v thread...

 

If you have the budget, the SR is a nice choice indeed. I believe it has comparable battery life to the U80V and if you get the extended battery, you can probably get more than the U80V.

The SR has better specs and the U80V has better warranty. Aside from that, it's a question of form factor(13" vs 14"). The rest is more or less preference(style, the U80V lights, etc.)

 

Ya I'm ashamed sony hasnt implement keyboard backlights, or any lighting method for that matter. It's what got me interested in the asus... as for the glowing light trail on the touchpad sounds fun and pretty but good end up being annoying. I hate shopping for technology!

 

Which one are you leaning towards?

For me its the Asus. I prefer the 14" screen, the backlit keyboard, the looks, and most importantly the warranty. Plus the price is superior. I do not mind the screen because for games I will connect it to a monitor. I would like a gpu with a little more punch but it should work for me. WoW, SC2, SF4 should be playable with it and anything else that I would play in the future.

 

Just got my U80V today!!! I did bust a nut. how do i boot from the cd drive at start-up?? Im a N00B.

 

ok did a fresh instal of W7 32-bit and the keyboard and the touchpad are not lighting up. any advice. also i'm going to install the 64-bit because its only using 3gb ram.

 

Just to note...the lady who's doing the special order for me at staples informed me of a 20% restocking fee in the event I wish to return it.

She also said it would take 2-3 weeks for them to get it into the store...

 

Woot Messy! I would guess that you need to reinstall the program that handles the whole backlit keyboard. Should be on your Asus app cd.

I am waiting for it to be available from my supplier and hopefully with the T9 cpu.

 

And what supplier might this be?

 

anyone using 64bit W7 please let me know which software to install for the lights on the keyboard and on the touchpad

 

I was just wondering how you were able to get windows 7 64-bit? Did it ship with a DVD for Windows 7 32-bit AND 64-bit?

 

You can just download from MS's website...

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/get/download.aspx

 

Hey guys, is it just me or is the U81A nothing more than a retarded version of the U80V? I've been looking into the U81A on Best Buy's website and am going to check one out tomorrow. I'm a bit bummed the U81A lacks the backlit keyboard; I can deal with the slower processor.

So, onto a question: outside of gaming, how's the fan noise in general on the U80V? I'll be using my notebook in a very hushed, quiet library environment, so it's a priority for me.

 

ok, there is a thin white line on the very left side of my screen.???? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!

Nevermind. it was just the wallpaper. hehe.

 

Anyone else care to add their thoughts on their newly purchased machines? Keep the mini-reviews flowing

Also, would be great to get a few comparison shots. Maybe a few piccies of the new sexy looking U80V next to some other laptop designs? Im most interested in the size of this thing. How does it compare portability wise compared to the Asus F6Ve, and Sony SR which are both 13" laptops. Portabillity will be the biggest deciding factor for me!

 

i think its a new review of u80v.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/laptops/review/2009/08/06/Asus-U80V---14in-Laptop-Hands-On/p1

 

I believe the SR is a 14 incher.

The review model came with a pretty good processor. They should at least offer better processors in the U80v.

 

I seriously had a dream that I was putting a T9600 in my U80V.

 

Im just woundering, but does anyone know if we are able to upgrade the processors ourselves.

 

I wouldn't know. The french version got a P8700 which is more than enough for me. You seriously had a dream about it ?? Come on ...

 

dude. I dont joke when it comes to 2.8Ghz.

 

SR is a 13 incher
see:
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs...0151&langId=-1&categoryId=8198552921644570898

anyway... different countries get different processors.
in singapore its t6500 i believe, and i've heard of p8700 i china i think
etc...

 

strange. Staples just canceled my dads order on the asus u80v. Saying lack of availability through the vendor.

 

Damn it.. Does this mean we can't get it anymore? I was hoping to come by your work today and order it.

 

Yea I was hoping of visiting a staples again today, because they haven't got back to me yet. Do you know when they will more available?

 

Im just curious... does anyone know where to get the Sony SR in Toronto? Sony Style perhaps?

 

Yea you can get it from SonyStyle.ca, but the last time I configured it to have specs/warranty comparable to that of the Asus, it was somewhere around the ridiculous price of $2000, a bit over even. What's even more stupid is that if you the Sony SR with the same specs except for processor which is better on the US Sony Style site, it's something like $500 cheaper. It's extremely stupid.

 

Best Buy's U81A-RX05 and U80V-A1 both have the same T6500 CPU. The U81A lacks the backlighting (and lit up touchpad) and the 4570 GPU.

 

Yea thanks for the insight. Just went over to Sony style and did the same and its ridicuously overpriced for comparable specs. I just hope that staples can get more of the U80Vs

Also does anyone know what kind of hard drive comes on the U80V-A1?

 

leetpyro, i don't work this week anyway. When i said i worked those days were for next week.

 

Oh okay. Well do you think there's any chance of getting it now since your order was cancelled?

 

how is the heat on this laptop under web browsing and gaming respectively? thanks

 

I'll post some thermal info here in the evening. off-note, does anyone know if we can upgrade the RAM to 8GB?

 

I'm going to try and find out monday when i go in.

 

The product specs at the ASUS website says the max RAM is at 4GB.

 

and it doesn't have bluetooth

 

My u80v from amazon is gonna ship on the 10th. Pumped

 

seems the vendor isnt carrying the u80 anymore. The u80 isnt listed on the site anymore: http://ec.synnex.ca/vendors/ASUS.html

 

The whole thing is really odd. I wonder what the issue is with this notebook. It never really made it to the US outside what Amazon is now offering and none of the other online us guys ever got it (GenTechPC, Excaliber, Xotic).

Scratches head

I do not want to have to go to a Sony but it looks like I will have to.

 

i got an email from the sales manager at the staples on Markham Road and he said the following:

I just reconfirmed with our buyer that the laptop that you wanted is not available to us. I don't have anymore explanation at this point for you, it probably is because models are changing right now and that one is no longer in production or available as they are not making anymore of them.

Please look at any other laptop that you are interested in. Feel free to email me and I will see if it is available from the vendor. Thank you very much.

So i dont know what to do? Does anyone know this for sure? Maybe people who work at a staples?

 

I confirm what Sorrix said. EMJ doesn't supply the U80V with the code Sorrix provided. I tried after I saw his post and indeed, the system tells me the special order number doesn't exist.

I'll try and see if they changed the code or simply removed the machine altogether.

 

My friend was really interested in one of these at first, but now that he has seen the Synnex website he maybe interested in the G50Vt-B1 instead, is it safe to assume that he can just go to a Staples to special order it?

 

so does that mean the laptops listed on that site through the link you provided available to order through staples?

 

Most of them should be(considering I've seen at least half of those in store stock anyways). I know Staples in Canada has a grip on Asus notebooks in terms of the mainstream retail stores(no other large mainstream stores carry them except us here).

I can check tomorrow if you give me a few SKUs.

 

Hey Forever Melody, if you could check the price of the Asus G50VT-B1, SKU: 4417272 for me that would be great. I dropped by a Staples today and they said it'd take at least a week just to check if they can special order it.

 

Well for price checking it takes a second, not a week. As to whether or not they can, I think it takes a week so they can be sure the supplier has it. If they do, then the order itself shouldn't really take more than a few business days(usually we say 3-4 to be safe, but in most cases it arrives by 2-3).

I'll check that tomorrow for you