Asus F6V-A1 vs. F6V-X1

What's the difference between these two models? I can't find any side-by-side spec listings. Does Asus intentionally try to make it impossible to figure out their model numbering scheme?

 

The X models are usually models that have been downgraded to suit the needs of the masses and cut costs & prices. The next level in performance would normally be A and then B.

So you can expect the A1 model to have slightly better components. Normally this would include either the CPU, HDD, Memory, or screen resolution.

 

Excellent! That's a start. Now how do I find out which components have been downgraded or cut to suit the masses. I'm already carrying more mass than I should be

 

So how much better is the A1 model than X1? From what I see so far, the components are pretty much indentical, but the price differs from $100-$200.

I'm thinking about to get the X1 model, but don't want to end up with a very inferior model for the 100-200 price difference.

 

Well, you'll have to pull up the spec sheets for both models from the reseller or retailers websites and compare them. Usually it's the cpu, hdd and sometimes the lcd resolution (but I doubt the latter in a 13" model).

Now, for the middle masses these changes are unlikely to result in an appreciable or even noticeable difference in their daily usage patterns and performance, and the lower price entices them to purchase so Asus gets to sell more product. On paper it may be inferior, but in practice it will often offer relatively comparable performance. It's kind of like the argument for integrated vs dedicated graphics.... some people just don't need the discrete gpu for their daily use, and Igpu offers the benefit of better battery life at the expense of 3D performance that they aren't using anyway (that's why I bought the W3a rather than the W3v back in '06).

The other part of the price difference is usually the warranty. -X1 models generally do *not* have the standard Asus 2yr global warranty with 12 month ADProtection and prepaid 2way overnight shipping.

 

Not helpful! The original post noted that no one has listings for both. No two different retailers even have the same spec format.

 

I beg to differ - I did tell you what you had to do, but I chose not to do it for you . You could have just asked for help if you were having problems locating individual spec sheets for these models; reading your initial post it stated you couldn't locate side-by-side postings where direct component comparisons would have been quite straightforward. Usually when people post this type of question they've already found the models and specs but they are unsure how to correctly compare them. Well, on to the rest....

Asus has always had consistent specs for all of their units of a specific model designation, as Asus NA places the orders to Taiwan themselves for distribution in the North American market..... F6V-A1 will be the same no matter who sells it, as will the others, because *everybody* in North America gets their supply from Asus NA in Fremont, California.

A check at one of the major retail sites (NewEgg) and one of the Asus resellers from the InfoBooth sticky of this forum (BTOTech) reveals that the -X1 specs can be found at NewEgg here, and the -A1 specs can be found at BTOTech here. You'll probably have to compare components individually between the sites but that's where the differences will lie, as I said. Differences in listed internal component specs on various web pages for a single model variant in the North American market are due to errors in data entry, which you can come back here and ask for insight about if you run into it.

While you are correct that no one likely has both model variants for sale, that would be due to -X models being exclusive releases for certain retailers (BestBuy, NewEgg) and not available to the rest of the reseller distribution chain. Those retailers, at the same time, do not typically either have access or choose to offer the regular Asus models (-A1, etc) for sale. This detail you may not have been aware of, which is reasonable for people new to the world of Asus notebooks as this is a rarely noted detail in general - except for around here.

 

Well, gee. I thought I had asked for help to start with. FYI, I had previously found the Newegg listing, as well as J&R, BeachAudio, ZipZoomFly, and some 50 others. Btotech not being one I'd ever heard of. And after comparing their sec listing with Newegg's, I STILL don't know what the difference between the models is!

 

You did, in fact - from your later clarifications it seems I managed to initially misread the context of the post; my fault, I guess. OK, since you're still uncertain I took a look... here you go:

Only component difference appears to be the -X1 has P8400 cpu, -A1 has P8600. And the warranty terms.

 

I noticed some other differences:

X1 A1
WLAN 802.11N 802.11ABGN
card reader 8 in 1 5 in 1

Is it safe to assume the 802.11N can satisfy my general wireless needs? It should be backward compatible. Also newegg didn't list the resolution, is it also 1280x800?

Other than these differences, it seems like the X1 model is not bad after all?

 

The 802.11N final approval has been delayed in committee for so long now that it's a de facto standard anyway. Since the item you mention is 802.11ABGN, one would assume it will work with any of those protocols.

 

I believe the 802.11N is a "shortcut" for saying ABGN. I don't think the draftN will be backward incompatible with the older standards. But I'm not sure.

As to the difference between models, I would reemphasize again the difference in warranty and accidental damage coverage. That is a major difference, for certain users certainly more important than a minor 5 or 10% difference in CPU speeds. (assuming of course that the X1 has only 1 year warranty and no accidental coverage; usually the X models do but I didn't check explicitly for the F6.)

 

802.11N isn't a shortcut for the other standards. It is possible (though maybe not likely) that someone could build a N only piece of hardware that wouldn't work properly with non-N systems.

Back to the original issue, the price difference has less to do with the model then with the seller. I've found A1 models for less than the X1s. Now that I understand the difference.....

If only someone would publish a complete naming guide. I've repeatedly found trying to compare models on the Asus site frustrating.

 

Yeah, I meant that it's unlikely that someone builds such a WiFi card. It doesn't make much sense.

In which case that 802.11N would be a typo rather than a shortcut. I wasn't being very clear.

As to naming conventions, there is a very old thread explanation here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=25849#naming

But it doesn't explain X vs A/B. I think that usually the A's are the higher-end models with the Xs being cheaper, and poorer configured, models.

 

802.11 hasn't gotten to X yet, you would be referring to 802.1X, which is a general network security protocol.

802.11A is usually more expensive, but it is also a different frequency, and is usually used by businesses with a captive user pool.

For anyone buying new hardware, I would recommend G as a minimum for new stuff. N is the next version in the pipe, but it hasn't been officially "blessed" yet, so there is a small risk on compatibility between brands and between pre- and post- "blessed" standards. Approval for N isn't expected until next year.

 

LOL

EBE's talking about the -X1 Asus notebook models vs the -A1 -B1

 

EBE????

:confused2:

 

Yeah, that'd be me And I was talking indeed about ASUS notebook model naming conventions, as in e.g., G50V- X1, G50V- A1, G50V- A2. I was talking about that in connection with your statement: