Asus G1 Review

I wonder if with an update the G1 direct messenger display could be used as a SideShow device in Vista.

Similar to this Toshiba model shown at CES:

http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/19340.jpg

While not as convenient as an outer display, it would still be interesting.

 

Beryl was pretty easy to get going with kubuntu 6.10 if you google kubuntu Edgy 6.10 beryl in goolge you should get several hits.

As for the battery life I haven't ran it down yet but from all the sources I've read its gets 2.5hrs. I'm sure you could extend that by running the screen at the lowest brightness as well under clock the gpu and cpu.

 

OK - I've got to agree that I am not loving the Asus Direct console - it actually blocked Outlook from sending today - I love the console even as is apaprt from stupid things like that. I'm going to have to disable it or at least the check mail process anyway.

As for the Lightscribe - I think it must depend on the batch or at least the territory. Mine has lightscribe stickers on the drive and when I load Nero it gives me loads of lightscribe options including letting me import images to print to disc. I will get some LS discs just to do a final check but when I tried with a normal DVD it told me my disc wasn't compatible, not that the drive wasn't.

Other than my annoyance with the Direct Console blocking my emails I am still very much in love with this laptop and think that everything else is fantastic - I even used it for a presentation in a meeting today and only got positive comments, no-one made any comment about the green (except a hardcore FPS player who noticed the WASD keys).

 

YAY, Danny sent me an email saying wednesday is the day i can come get it

 

Hi Radium3D. Where did you get this information? I asked about the free upgrade at both Newegg.com and Ewiz and both said NO. The ASUS website says "any ASUS notebook/ PC/ DVA Center purchased between October 26th, 2006 and March 15th, 2007 is eligible for the Express Windows Vista Upgrade Program." I called ASUS, but there was no answer.

Has anyone actually gotten the upgrade through? I'm really digging the G1 even though it's well above my original budget. Although a lot of people are saying they're going to wait to upgrade to Vista, I don't want to have to spend another $160 bucks should I want to upgrade in the future. That would put this thing at 2K! Thanks.

 

@jamestux

Lightscribe Problem
is your Drive also atshita DVD-RAM UJ-850S?
What firmware version?

 

what panel does the US version have (1680x)...

I want the Code...

and what prog can read the Panel Type?
I want to compare it to the EU version (1280x)

 

According to UPS I get mine this Thursday (1/11). Sweet action.

 

Hi Abogo - mine is a UK model so I guess it's EU not US. As for the DVD drive, it's recorded as a HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GMA-4084N if that helps (it looks like a Hitachi model but I'm not taking it apart to check!)

I have the 1680x1050 glossy panel, and have no problems with reflections, mainly due to the brightness of the display. The display does not tell me what it is anywhere, it just refers to a plug and play monitor in the device manager, and the display properties do not detail it either.

 

Here's a some answers to the users who asked about Linux. I have gotten all the hardware other then direct display working and I haven't bothered with the web cam but it shouldn't be hard as its just a USB web cam. I've tried the card reader and it works fine with SD cards.

lspci:
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/PM/GMS/940GML and 945GT Expr
ess Memory Controller Hub (rev 03)
00:01.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/PM/GMS/940GML and 945GT Expre
ss PCI Express Root Port (rev 03)
00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) High Definition Aud
io Controller (rev 02)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 1 (r
ev 02)
00:1c.3 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 4 (r
ev 02)
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI #1 (rev
02)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI #2 (rev
02)
00:1d.2 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI #3 (rev 02)
00:1d.3 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI #4 (rev 02)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB2 EHCI Control ler (rev 02)
00:1e.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge (rev e2)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation 82801GBM (ICH7-M) LPC Interface Bridge (re v 02)
00:1f.2 IDE interface: Intel Corporation 82801GBM/GHM (ICH7 Family) Serial ATA S torage Controller IDE (rev 02)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation Unknown device 0397 (rev a 1)
02:00.0 Ethernet controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. Unknown device 8168 (rev 01)
03:00.0 Network controller: Intel Corporation PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Conne ction (rev 02)
04:01.0 CardBus bridge: Ricoh Co Ltd RL5c476 II (rev b3)
04:01.1 FireWire (IEEE 1394): Ricoh Co Ltd R5C552 IEEE 1394 Controller (rev 08)
04:01.2 Class 0805: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C822 SD/SDIO/MMC/MS/MSPro Host Adapter (rev 1 7)
04:01.3 System peripheral: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C592 Memory Stick Bus Host Adapter (re v 08)

lsusb
Bus 005 Device 006: ID 0b05:1726 ASUSTek Computer, Inc.
Bus 005 Device 005: ID 05e1:0501 Syntek Semiconductor Co., Ltd
Bus 005 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 046d:c01e Logitech, Inc. MX518 Optical Mouse
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 003 Device 002: ID 0b05:1712 ASUSTek Computer, Inc.
Bus 003 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 004 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 001 Device 004: ID 046d:c505 Logitech, Inc. Cordless Mouse+Keyboard Receiver
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 0000:0000

 

Hi people! I'm a new UK G1 owner and love the machine! Its great!

The only thing I can't work out how to do is set up my outlook express mail with the LCD display?! Can anyone help?

Thanks in advance

 

I am waiting for mine to arrive this thursday. More likely than not I will reformat the drive and reinstall with xp pro. So I got a question for those that did that. Did you delete the first hidden partition on the drive as well?
Thanks!

 

Yeah, I have almost the same question. By the way, my G1 is fantastic.

Anyway, the G1 promised about 160gb of HD; however, on mine, I can only find a little less than 150 GB. Where is the 10 GB? Is it normal in other HD? Is that the hidden partition? If so, what is the purpose of this?

Also, if there's is a new BIOS version, do you recommend to update it right away?

 

I just got my G1 and I love it. It is the F1 of laptops. Thanks for your help and answers to my questions.
Can't wait to game on this beast. !

 

Hi,

I'm also thinking of buying a G1. I was looking for a 15.4" notebook on wich i can game also. And i think the G1 is the best option. But i was wondering.. does anyone have any experiance with runing rainbow six: vegas on his G1? It seams to be a monster te run, i heard that there are users with similar notebook specs who are able to run it, and some don't.. So i'm wondering how the G1 will do.. I really like R6:V and would be great iff that would work.

Thanks!! Greetz

 

there is a 2 gb recovery partition thats hidden

so that 152 gb

the 8 gb is a rounding error the hd makers are allowed to do making 1000 mb a gb when its really 1024

 

So, let me ask a quick question; how intrusive is the decor on the G1? Would you guys feel comfortable walking into a conference room/boss' office with your G1 tucked under your arm?

 

My boss loved the G1 when I showed it to her. I have been using it for the past week now and everyone thinks it looks great, they love how shiny it is haha

 

I'm working on a project with a pretty massive company in the UK and dealing with board level managers and directors. The only negative comment I have had was someone asking if the green keys are the ones you use for playing doom....

It's not obtrusive at all especially with the brightness of the screen turned up. Just don't start playing direct x games in meetings with the direct console on - I think justifying bright green bars being lit may be a lot more difficult!

PS I'm carrying it around in the supplied laptop bag (as mine is too small) and not even that is drawing negative comments.

I do work for a software company though so maybe people expect it from us...

I hope that this helps

 

That is my dream right now...
My nightmare is that I will be forever using my current crappy laptop while waiting for that other technology just around the corner...

 

Anyone willing to swap their G1 Laptop backpack with my upcoming V1jp side bag... if not where can i get that cool looking G1 bag

 

Awww I went to buy the pc and they said it's gonan bea couple fo hours to search through thier inventory. I couldn't wait so i left :/ with them promising to ship it tommorow. Now, I play the waiting game :'(
Well atleast they are shipping it for free and gave me a discount

 

my G1 is arriving the next day!

can't wait!

 

If it's a messenger bag I would trade you. I got the G1 today and the bag is nice but I think I would rather have a messenger bag because it would probably look more professional. I'm liking the G1 so far. I haven't put any games on it yet but I can already tell that it is super fast compared to my last computer. I just wish my 3meg charter cable line would stop going at less that acceptable speed so that I can download all the apps I need.

 

One thing I have noticed is the sound quality is not as good as some notebooks. Although a moderate volume level. I give it a 8.5/10 on volume and a 6.5/10 on quality.
Another bad thing is including a PCMCIA slot instead of a express card or both which can be useful in the future.
Also, does anyone know if a 10 or 12 cell battery will be supported? and also where would one get there hands on a spare battery.
One thing that I love is the keyboard. It has a sexy feel to it. Plus the Font is SUPER. I love that style of font and even would like to download it as well

 

just installed a fresh copy of vista bussines on the it. works like a charm...i don't understand why this notebook is listed as beeing "Vista Capable"..."Vista Premium ready" would have been more apropriate.

 

With regards to the battery, if you look at the placement of the G1's battery, it is a front load battery, which distributes the weight. But having an extended battery would mean it will extend outward to the front and hit you in the stomach or something. So an extended battery doesn't seem like a viable option from my understanding.

However, if your interested in more battery life, I suggest purchasing another main battery and swap it once one finishes. Lets assume the G1 gets an easy 2.5 hours but with two batteries you can get an easy 5 hours! That is if you don't mind carrrying another main battery.

 

is there going to be a significant of performance between the G1 and S96J??

 

got the G1 on saturday, fired it up for the first time on tuesday. anyone know why its not letting me hibernate? says i dont have sufficient memory for the API but the 2GB of RAM and 160 GB HDD say otherwise. had some difficulty setting up the mic for skype...had to go into control panel and fiddle around, did anyone else have that problem? finally is there a way to use the webcam without using MSN messenger or skype? thanks guys

otherwise, the machine is a dream rig.

 

For skype I had to go to tools>options>sound devices, and play around with the different devices that were listed. For the webcam, it should be in the "My Computer" folder.

 

Just a quick question: How do you guys use the built in microphone in G1
Thanks

 

The microphone in the G1 should be picked up by applications such as Skype and MSN without a problem. As far as I know there is nothing special that you have to do in order to "turn it on" so you can start using it.

 

Hi, its not a messanger bag, its an asus one, ill post a link to show you

 

I just got my new G1 and love it so far. One thing I did notice is that on the far left of the keyboard there is a bit of flex and it makes a small noise when I use those keys. Has anyone had this issue? I am going to call Asus next week about this.

 

Received the G1. Love it. In the process of installing the oses. No dead pixels, everthing worked as advertised.

Only one little problem, and that's the keyboard. The left side keys rattle a lot. (Or the term maybe "flexes" a lot.) The right side keys are solid and quiet while the left side keys esp. the tab, shift, caps,cntrl keys are noisy. Seems like the "base plate" (if you know what I mean) is loose?

Anyone having the same problem? I'd appreciate any comment or any suggestion you can offer to alleviate the problem.

Thanks in advance.

 

3 minutes difference in posts with the same problem...

 

When you install Vista, did you have any issues with drivers or software? Did you attempt to load any of the ASUS software?

 

question to u guys: does the webcam get hot after a while even when it's not being used? i believe i've read somewhere before for ANOTHER asus laptop (can't remember which one) that the webcam gets hot even not in use cuz electric current still goes there. that dude 'disabled' it (dunno how) and got more batt life outta it too.

u guys feeling the warmth? if so, how do u disable it? does it really make a difference in terms of batt life?

 

Hi Teecee, looks like we are on the same boat here. Please let us know what asus says about the keyboard. Those keys are directly above the dvd drive maybe that is an expected characteristics?

I am thinking about sticking a tiny piece of rubber or plastic at the left seam to hold the "plate" in place to remove the rattling.

 

Yeah, that rattling noise is driving my nuts. This is nuts.

 

i hear a little bit of a rattle but its not significant. wouldnt have noticed until you guys brought it up. now i have to meditate to remove the memory...

got a lead on my hibernation issue, apparently its a microsoft bug with windows xp (sp2) and windows media center 2005. if installed on laptops with more than a gig of ram it takes issue...downloading the hotfix for it as we speak off them microsoft support page.

infinity: i had to set up my mic by going into the control panel

 

I orderd my laptop from milestone pc with a 7200 rpm HD When I get it I will post some benchmark results. Asus rulessssssssssssss!

 

Well I just went ahead and ordered a G1 from Nexus13 here in the UK. Let's hope all goes well. Anyone got any experience of these guys? Went with them primarily because it comes with XP Pro (as opposed to MCE) and they confirm the screen res as the proper one.

 

I think you may have taken the last G1 Confy, as I was speaking with Nexus13 about my F3Jp and they said they were out of G1's until 01st Feb. They also mentioned new stock will have a new (higher) price and possibly a higher spec to reflect this. They intimated it might be a new GFX card to justify price rise, although I think this is probably just speculation as I can't believe they'd put a new card in this soon after the model has been released... then again, hold the front page!

On a slight aside, I gather Asus are reducing their laptop stock levels in the UK for some reason. No idea why though.

 

getting my G1 today, can't wait! I'm looking out the window every second for the UPS truck to come. it's just too exciting.

 

Well, I got mine yesterday and did a clean install using an OEM disc. I have to say I really like it. The keyboard flexes a little to much in the left upper corner. I'm wondering if a tape fix, like the one used on the Compal HEL80, would work. Its not real bad though, its just annoying to see (partly because I'm OCD about small things lol). The unit feels very sturdy and the screen is really nice looking and bright. Theres no light leakage that I could noticeably see. Personally, I can comfortably use the screen below 50%. However, this may just be because I'm used to staring at an old dim matte screen I'm overall very impressed with the notebook.

 

I'm sooooooooo happy I got my G1 today plus extra bits unexpected.... it's partition into 2: 100GB & 60GB just as I wanted, without me asking. It's got XP Pro & it's got LightScribe.

Yay!!!!

 

I think you're right about the stock as I was speaking to Nick from Nexus13 on the phone today and he said it was the last one. He also mentioned that the price was going up and I suggested it was perhaps the increased licensing cost of Vista. He reckoned this was a feasible explanation but didn't mention anything about improved graphics in an upcoming model.

However, I was reading yesterday about the new MSI notebooks on show at CES which made mention of new ATI & Nvidia gfx chips (X2600 and G8NP or something like that) but I agree with you that releasing an iteration of the G1 this quickly after its initial release would be a bit odd.

Still, it will be interesting to see what happens. I hope I haven't just bought a model that's out of date already

 

Just got my ASUS G1. I was staring at it the whole time and literally collapsed when i powered it on. Seriously, they did such a great job w/ packing. it was just too amazing. screen was amazing..everything

two nit picky things i dont like:
- why does the left part of the keyboard feel extremely light! it appears loose or something, or maybe it was meant for gaming purposes. iono. but any1 know how to make it the same as the right side?

can you actually remove the keyboard?

thx.

 

I just got my G1 and its really amazing! This is the laptop that I was always looking for. Can you guys reccomend me what program I have to uninstall to make the start up faster??