ASUS A3F notebook

Hello, I'm from the Philippines and I'm new in the column.

I am looking forward to buying my first laptop. I'm a programmer and looking into BUDGET 'business class' notebooks of ASUS. I seldom play games and if ever, not the resource-hungry new ones.

I'm eyeing this ASUS:

ASUS A3F CORE DUO NOTEBOOK
Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology
Intel® Core™ Duo Processor T2300
(1.66GHz, 2Mb L2, 667MHz FSB)
Mobile Intel® 945GM Express Chipset
Intel® PRO / Wireless LAN 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home
512Mb DDR2-533MHz
60Gb SATA Mobile HDD
15.1in. XGA Clear-Wide Screen
DVD SuperMulti Writer
Intel® GMA 950 (up to 224Mb VRAM !)
10-100-1000Mbps Gigabit LAN / 56Kb modem

PHP68,888 (Approx. US$1324)

Does anyone know what is the chassis made of? I know that ASUS build quality is top notch but I want to know if it's true that 'business class' notebook are more durable in terms of build quality. Most I see in threads here are in the multimedia line of notebooks so I'm interested in knowing more about business class ones. The ASUS A3F I mentioned above is the cheapest ASUS Core Duo notebook available here in the Philippines. There is an ECS G410, also Core Duo, which is cheaper by PHP5,000, but I know that ASUS is better in terms of build quality. There are Core Duo BTO ones available here in the Philippines under PHP60,000 with these specs:

Apex S62FP / Mainstream - Napa Core
Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology
Intel® Core™ Duo Processor T2300
(1.66GHz, 2Mb L2, 667MHz FSB)
Intel® 945GM Express Chipset
Intel® Pro-Wireless 3945a/b/g Card
14.1in. WXGA TFT Display 1280x768
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Built-in DVD SuperMulti Drive
1.0Gb DDR2 667MHz Memory
80Gb 5400rpm PATA HDD
Built-in 10/100/1000 Gigabit LAN / 56Kb Modem
6-cell Li-Ion Battery
3-in-1 Card Reader (MS/SD/MMC)
Weight: 2.4Kgs. (w/ battery)
Carry Bag

Apex SW1 / Mainstream - Napa Core
Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology
Intel® Core™ Duo Processor T2300
(1.66GHz, 2Mb L2, 667MHz FSB)
Intel® 945GM Express Chipset
Intel® Pro-Wireless 3945a/b/g Card
14.1in. WXGA TFT Display 1280x768
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Built-in DVD Dual Drive
512Mb DDR2 667MHz Memory
80Gb 5400rpm PATA HDD
Built-in 10/100/1000 Gigabit LAN / 56Kb Modem
6-cell Li-Ion Battery
4-in-1 Card Reader (MS/SD/MMC/MS Pro)
Weight: 2.25Kgs. (w/ battery)
Carry Bag

Does anyone know from what ODM S62PF and SW1 are from? These machines is cheaper by P10,000+.

Thanks for all the info anyone could provide.

 

the S62Fp is Asus, the SW1 is Quanta.. both are Intel VBI models.. infact I believe they both use the same lcd panels

 

Thanks for the reply.

Sorry for the double post. I tried to post this one first but got an error message saying I am not logged on and when tried logging I didn't see it posted and started over again.. I even search for all my post but didn't found this one...