ASUS M70SA Review & Benchmarks

Review by XOTIC PC
(Click on images to view a larger image)

[size=+0] [size=+1] Introduction [/size]

The Asus M70SA-C1 laptop is a 17" multimedia high performance notebook with a powerful punch. It features a terabyte (1,000gb) of storage space, bu-ray drive, and a crisp clear design. The M70 would be considered the big brother of the popular M50. The M series is ASUS’s multimedia line and packs many multimedia features.

The configuration is as follows (M70SA-C1):

Screen: 17" WUXGA (1920x1200) glossy
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Penryn Processor T9300 2.5GHz 6MB 800 FSB
Video card: 1024MB (1GB) ATI HD 3650 (DX10)
RAM: 4GB DDR2 667Mhz
Hard Drive: 1,000GB 5400RPM Hard Drive (2x500GB) Dual HDD Capable
Optical Drive: Blue-Ray Disk/DVDRW Drive
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium 32-Bit
Wireless: Integrated 802.11a/g/n and Internal Bluetooth
Battery: 8 cell battery
Other: Built in TV Tuner

Additional Items included:




Other M70SA Versions Available

M70SA-A1
Screen: 17" WXGA+ (1440x900) glossy
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Processor T5550 1.83GHz 2MB 533 FSB
Video card: 1024MB (1GB) ATI HD 3650 (DX10)
RAM: 3GB DDR2 667Mhz
Hard Drive: 500GB 5400RPM Hard Drives (2x250GB) Dual HDD Capable
Optical Drive: SuperMulti 8X DVDRW Drive
Other: Built in TV Tuner


M70SA-B1
Screen: 17" WXGA+ (1440x900) glossy
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Processor T8300 2.4GHz 3MB 800 FSB
Video card: 1024MB (1GB) ATI HD 3650 (DX10)
RAM: 4GB DDR2 667Mhz
Hard Drive: 320GB 5400RPM Hard Drives Dual HDD Capable
Optical Drive: SuperMulti 8X DVDRW Drive
Other: Built in TV Tuner


[size=+1] Build & Design [/size]

The Asus M70SA follows the same design as the popular M50SV. The outside of the notebook is glossy black with soft lines running across the outer surface. The cover is made with ASUS’s In-Mold Roller (IMR) technology which makes the surface scratch resistant. The inside of the notebook has the same soft straight lines and uses the same IMR technology except it’s gray in color. The bezel around the LCD is a glossy black surface with an Asus logo in the top left corner. Pushing in on the lid from the outside does not cause ripples on the LCD. It’s possible to twist the LCD casing slightly. While the notebook is open pushing on the LCD the hinge wobbles very little and the screen maintains its position. Overall a solid build and design.












[size=+1] Screen [/size]

The M70SA-C1 features a 17" WUXGA (1920x1200) glossy screen. The screen has a reflective surface. Text and lines are very crisp and clear. Asus integrates ALS (Ambient Light Sensor) which automatically adjusts brightness and provides images with the best lighting effects and least strain on the eye for the specific environment the notebook is in. The Ambient light feature can be disabled by pressing " Fn + A " keys, which will provide full control over the brightness settings. This test unit did not have any dead pixels. If a dead pixel were to show up within the first 30 days a consumer would be covered with Asus’s 30 day ZBD guarantee. The viewing angle on the M70SA-C1 is good from different angles when looking at the screen.










[size=+1] Speakers & Audio [/size]

Asus integrated 4 surround sound speaker + 1 subwoofer Altec Lansing stereo speakers into the M70SA and the results are impressive. Sound is clear and fairly loud at the highest setting. The speakers are located in the upper left and right corners of the inside of the notebook and two more in the front of the laptop underneath. The subwoofer is located on the bottom of the laptop.




[size=+1] Keyboard & Touch Pad [/size]

This keyboard has no flex to it when typing. The M70SA also provides a numeric keypad off to the right side of the keyboard. The touchpad is smooth to the touch and has multimedia controls on it that you can activate by tapping on the upper right corner. The touch pad lights up blue so you know when you are in the multimedia mode. The multimedia functions work with Windows Media player.






[size=+1] Heat & Noise [/size]

This laptop is very quiet and produces little to no noise, except when you are using the speakers of course. There is no warmth around the keyboard and touchpad area, but a user can notice a little warmth near the multimedia controls and speakers. This should not be a problem as your hands will not normally be above the keyboard.


[size=+1] Input & Output Ports [/size]

The M70SA-C1 features 4 USB ports, two on the right side and two on the left. Also on the right side of the notebook are 3 audio ports (microphone, headphone, spdif out), the WLan switch, and the express card slot. On the back of the notebook are modem port, wired LAN RJ45 port, power in jack, av-in, e-Sata, HDMI, Kensington lock and a VGA out. On the left side of the notebook you have 2 USB ports, Antenna in, IEEE 1394 firewire port, and the 8-in-1 Card Reader.











[size=+1] Battery [/size]

8 cell battery - about 2 hours and 25 minutes reported by Windows Mobility Center in Power4Gear Battery Saving Mode

[size=+1] Performance & Benchmarks [/size]

1024x768


1280x800


1920x1200








Crysis Stock Scores (1024x768, )
All settings on Medium except:
Physics Quality : low
Shaders Quality low
Volumetric Effects Quality :low
Game Effects Quality :low

Frames= 1605
Time (ms)= 60000
Min= 14
Max= 35
Avg= 26.75

Crysis High Resolution Scores (1920x1200)
All settings on Medium except:
Physics Quality : low
Shaders Quality low
Volumetric Effects Quality :low
Game Effects Quality :low

Frames= 732
Time (ms)= 60000
Min= 5
Max= 18
Avg= 12.2

[size=+1] Warranty & Support [/size] ASUS 360 with 20224 Protection

• A two year global warranty

• A zero bright dot dead pixel guaranty

• Free two-way standard overnight shipping

• 24/7 Telephone Support through Asus and 24/7 Telephone Support through XoticPC on customized models.

• ASUS Accidental Damage Warranty Users who register their new notebook within 60 days of purchase are eligible for ASUS’ 1 Year Accidental Damage Warranty.


[size=+1] Conclusion / Reason to Buy [/size]

This laptop will be the multimedia users dream machine. It offers the latest optical drive to play your blu-ray movies with a multimedia touchpad, a 17" glossy screen for crisp clear enjoyment of watching movies or just browsing the web and has a terabyte of storage for all your multimedia storage needs (C1 version). Also many additional devices such as the e-sata port, HDMI output, and built in TV Tuner!

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nice review!

 

That's one heck of an overclocked GPU! 34395 MHz memory?!

Anyway great review, as always!

The HD 3650 does seem weak though... DDR2, but still weaker than 8600M GT DDR2... Kind of weird giving it so much video memory on a 128-bit bus. And DDR2 memory at that.

 

Great Review

Get Happy Multimedia Users ^_^

 

Thank you for all of your kind words

 

Very tempting - thanks for the post; waiting to see these for sale in Australia/..
Its down to the M70 or G70 for me now. (I think) lol

http://www.asus.com.au/search.aspx?searchitem=1&searchkey=m70
http://support.asus.com/download/download.aspx?SLanguage=en-us

Ouch:
http://www.neowin.net/index.php?act=view&id=46888

http://www.hothardware.com/Articles/Diamond_Viper_Radeon_HD_3650_1GB/?page=10