ASUS Workstation Notebook?

Does ASUS offer a workstation capable notebook?

P4, dual 60GB 7,200 RPM HDD, 3-4GB RAM, preferably a 17" screen. So far, the best offering I can find is the CLEVO D900T (Voodoo, Sager, Hypersonic, Boxx, Eurocom, etc.). Dell has pulled the P4 from their notebook lineup.

 

There are no ASUS notebooks that fit this discription, the yet to arrive W2, would be the closest, but that will still be more of a mobile 17" multimedia machine rather than a workstation.
Sorry
a


ASUS M6Ne 15.4" WSXGA 1.7 PM ATI9700 80Gb HDD 1Gb RAM

 

There is never going to be another P4 laptop from Asus..... all the P4 systems that were put out in the last 9 months were basically for low end systems (becasue the chips are cheaper)..... but you're not going to see a P4 is some super workstation with the design and quality of Asus behind it......

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

I run AutoCAD Arch Desktop 2006 and 3ds Max 6 on a regular basis on my W1....... 1.7ghz p-m, 64mb ati 9600..... I haven't loaded these onto my W3 yet, but I can assure you they are going to run better on the update chipset.

The story about autodesk recommending nvidia card because their products are open gl based is a valid point..... but I'd still put an ATI card up against nvidia any day.

The only difference I have between my notebook and my desktop is that I'm running a 3400+ a64 w/ 256mb ati x800 and a stripping setup on dual 10,000rpm raptor drives....... Yes my desktop is going to toast my laptop in rendering times. However the laptop will still get it done. The biggest difference is the time it takes to render. A Max file that might take 45 minutes to render on my desktop will take 115 minutes on the laptop.

When you work it out..... the battery life on a centrino system is 3-4 times greater while really getting 95% of the cpu power. Also, they weight 1/2 to 3/4 of the weight of a P-4 system. So decide what's most important, but if you really want a "workstation" and think you really need all that power, go with an a64 based system like the Z80k. If nvidia is your guide... go with the Z71v... If you want a huge 17" system with 128mb x700 graphics... hold out for the new W2.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

I have contacted Intel twice during the last month with the specific question as to which processor, in their opinion, would be better for running notebook workstation graphics for CAD and 3DMax. Both times I was told to stay away from the P M and order the P4 660, even if I needed to find and alternative way to provide auxillary cooling.

My search would certainly be simpler due to the fact that there are more options are available for the P M chip.

So what do you do if the pros tell you P4 and OpenGL graphics...not much out there!

 

By the way... intel is far from a pro and just becasu both of the cpus are theirs doesn't mean they know what they're talking about.

The biggest thing is... why are you looking for a laptop in this case? Because you'd be better suited with a cube pc or something similiar with a seperate monitor....... it'll probably end up weighing the same...... but with the set up you're looking for, they might as well not even include a battery becasue you'll get 30 minutes at most on a battery that adds a good pound or more to the system that will weigh in at what.... 11-12 pounds?

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

PROPortable;

First of all, I thank you very much for your help with this matter. Here is my situation:

I work for a construction/developement company and am solely responsible for site selection, site design, project cost analysis and project presentation for a national client of ours. As such, I travel frequently (driving mostly) in the midwest reviewing sites, making Zoning/Planning Commission presentations. My Dell Inspiron 8500 is my only computer and, therefore, is my lifeline and the source of making very lucrative profits for my company.

I spend, on average, 10 hours a day on my laptop but size, weight and battery life are non issues with me. I would say that with the three Dell's I've had that I have not run on battery power for a total of one hour in six years. I go where I need to go, plug it in and begin to work.

Currently I use ADT 2005, Revit 7, Photoshop and may migrate shortly to 3ds Max. My I8500 with P4 M, 2.4GH and 1 GB RAM runs fine with ADT and Revit and Photoshop. I do bog down considerably when multitasking the three. Rendering with Revit is a nightmare. It can take 10 hours to render an exterior scene, albeit with many plants.

I am tied neither to Intel nor Nvidia. In fact, I've been advised by local 3d modelling experts that their preference in graphics cards are the ATI FireGL, but I have not been able to locate any of these on notebooks. The concensus is pretty strong for OpenGL. I would prefer also a system with RAID 0, knowing full well the shortcomings but willing to take the chance for the added speed.

After two months of researching I thought the two main objectives were P4 and OpenGL. It just seemed that the P4 is a more powerful and faster processor, but the notebook options are extremely limited.Can you even get a PM notebook with a 7,200 RPM RAID 0 setup? You certainly know more and have more experience than I have. All I know is that I have had three Dell Insprions and have had a very satisfying relationship with Dell. However, the Dell M70 can't be configured to be all I need my laptop to be for me.

One last and very important issue, and certainly the most important, is service and tech support. One lost day of produciton is very costly to me and my company, so money is NO ISSUE in my decision. I am prepared to spend upwards of $6,500 for the right notebook.

We just had delivered on Friday a custom built workstation with dual 10,000 RPM drives, ATI FireGL, RAID, 500 GB storage, dual monitors, etc. I loaded Revit and went to render an exterior scene and, although it certainly was speedy, the processor CPU useage was 100% duirng the entire render process. It took 6 hours to render on my I8500 and less than 1 hour on this amchine.

 

For your comment on what you're willing to spend, I think of a quote from "Meet the Parents" where Ben Stiller is looking for a $100 bottle of champagne and the clerk suggests he could "buy a whole bunch of mums."....

A 2.1ghz p-m is going to perform like a 3.7ghz p4 (going with the 1.7 multiplier).... so "speed" means nothing.

You're not going to find a Centrino based system running a RAID 0 setup...

The system you have right now... give me the specs... and tell me how it performs the tasks you're already doing. Also, throw in the weight, battery life, etc....

I know the situation you're in, but I also think you're going for over kill... I'd seriously suggest two Z71v's, maxed out at this point if you really need that much power.... then you could be rendering on 3d max and on the other system on arch desktop or photoshop [ ]

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

FYI the IBM thinkpad T42 offers ATI Firebird TL on their site, you gotta config it and stuff though.

 

I recommend a top-of-the-line IBM ThinkPad T43p... good IBM support and those ThinkPads are very reliable.
ASUS, too, is very reliable.. but I'm not so sure if they have anything that will truly fit your needs

ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, Toshiba Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

You can also check the HP NW8240...it looks like it is a very good workstation unit..For me it is the IBM and HP...should fit what you are looking for although both are pricey.

 

Id go with the Sager NP9860, as long as you dont mind carrying the beast around. In the past, the only difference between a consumer grapics card and workstation card were the drivers, and there were ways to get the workstation driver to work on the consumer card. worth checking out, dont now if that is still true.