Advice Please: loaded brand new UX31A for $999 new - good buy or asking for headache?

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[MODS: I meant to post this here, accidentally posted it in the Owners Lounge; would you kindly kill that one, not this? Thanks.]

Hi all. Long time NBRer, new to Asus forum. I made a bit of an impulse purchase over the weekend and wondered if I could have some up to date advice from those of you who have this model (uX31A) and/or are very knowledgeable about it.

I got a brand new UX31A DB71 i7-3517, 256GB SSD (don't know which of course) and the usual 4GB, which should be fine for me. All this was new, not open box, for $999 from NCIX, which regularly sells it for $1,495. I've seen it elsewhere for $1,395. I've coveted this product since intro but the bad rep has scared me away. Is it safe now?

My questions:

1) Is this still/now considered a good product, with most of kinks worked out, or are people still being advised to stay away from it (even at a great price, i don't want to own a headache).

2) Has anything been done about: a) backlight bleed, wonky trackpad, other quality issues?

3) On NBR, nobody seems to be posting pretty much anything about the UX31 (as compared to the UX32, UX21; is this because it is pretty much cooked in peoples' minds, because people are waiting for a touch screen version for W8, or other explanation?

I'm looking for no more than a good UB such as this can do, except that I am a fiend about screens (see two Sony Z's in my sig!) No gaming, no intensive photo/video editing.

Very much appreciate your feedback.
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Is the UX31A considered a decent machine - at any price? There were so many negative reports for the first six months and now you really don't hear much at all. Should I open the box and try this when it arrives, or should I just send it back to the vendor?

Thanks

 

Regardless of track record, you take your chances with any purchase. A quick search of reviews from major e-tailers will provide you with an idea of whether said concerns were ever remedied.

If you got it on a good deal, I'd say test it. As long as you have a return policy, you can always get your money back within the seller's return period. Just don't go beyond that, because once you have to resort to RMAs from Asus (or most any manufacturer), you're looking at replacements, never a refund.

 

Hmm.. I realize you have to be careful what you say as an Asus dealer, but I couldn't help but notice that Prostar does not appear to offer the Zenbook UX31 in any form or version on your web site. Taking that with your guarded comments, tends to make me feel this product may just not be ready for prime time - if it ever will be.

One last thing, though, and I would be grateful if any Asus/Zenbook owners could chime in here: I took your advice and read through many, many, many user comments from main etailers. Of course, it's a polarized bunch: most big etailers show 3-star avg for the product, made up largely of an equal # of 4/5 star reviews and 1-star, with little in between. Can't really see a trend of later shipments being better or not. But if you take a look at this mega-review aggregator Alatest.com, that aggregates 275 user reviews from etailers, the overall average is almost 4-stars for owners and 4.5 stars for "experts."

This is the most frustrating product I have seen in a long time! An incredible gem (for what it is made for) if you get a "good" one. According to some owners, quality and cust. support is so bad it's one to stay away from. According to many others, the first one was just fine, and they love it more than any product they've ever had before. When you make the assumption that forum and etailer review content is always weighted towards the problem situations, maybe it's worth the try as long as you go into it with eyes open, and don't need it to be ready for business day 1.

Sorry for such long rambly posts. I really would appreciate anything owners, without the uncomfortable position the PRoStar people are in, could chime in with by way of advice. I will almost surely take delivery, set it up and see how things go. I'll try to "chronicle" my experience including any useful contacts I develop along the way. Thanks.