Asus N56VZ-DS71 first impressions

This guy is putting the right words to what is going on. I guess it's a MW3 thing, and not my n56vz
MW3: Mouse Sensitivity Feature - YouTube
This is exactly what I am struggling with...

 

@kourosh: No, the amount of work you can do while on battery will be about 3-4 hours. The screen - lgd02d9 is what it says in the hardware id tag on the monitor. Device-manager, monitor, etc.

Always misunderstand that "I'm not going to do any serious gaming" line. Read it as "I'm not going to play games on it, and will study all day instead".

@elmer_f: Seems like it's possible that the chipset drivers include something that controls the boost states. I'm not really sure how this works, but it looks like windows has some support for the same functions. So it could be a conflict or something like that. That you're getting more threads, the boost goes down, activity drops, you get boost again, etc. That might cause some sort of resource hicup.

Not that Activision is known for quality control on their games, though..

Did you install ad-aware and run a check, by the way? Won't hurt, at least.

 

I got this laptop yesterday, and so far I'm very content. My screen is a SEC314C, which I believe is made by Samsung. It's fantastic anyway.

I have a question, though: Is it possible to middle click with the touchpad? Say you want to open a link in a new tab; on my old Dell, I could simply click the two mouse buttons simultaneously to achieve this.

 

@Nipsen: *phew* great. I can definitely handle 3-4 hours on battery -- I'm almost always near an outlet thankfully -- but reliability is a big deal for me. Based on your review and others, it seems the N56VZ is reliably built.

Regarding the screen, thanks for that part number (LGD02D9). Seems that this review from notebookcheck must be representative of the stock screen specs then: Review Schenker XMG P502 PRO (Clevo P150EM) Notebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews .

If that's right, the screen comparison between the stock screen and the 95% gamut screen from XoticPC (assuming it's the AUO screen) looks like so:
-------------------------------------------Stock | High-Gamut
Max. Brightness:----------------369 cd/m2 | 259 cd/m2
Avg. Brightness:----------------329 cd/m2 | 247 cd/m2
Brightness Distribution:--------------77% | 92%
Black:-----------------------------0.83 cd/m2 | 0.5 cd/m2
Contrast:-------------------------------440:1 | 518:1
Gamut:----------------------------------60%? | 95%

That comparison makes the screen upgrade seem worth it, even at $165. I would appreciate the lower blacks, higher contrast, and better colors, at the expense of brightness.

HOWEVER,

@saksa

According to Saksa, the screen is the SEC314C. That Samsung screen has. . .what specs? I can't find any online so far. Anyone know?

---

On another note, anyone know anything about Intel Wireless Display technology (Wi-Di)? According to the ASUS website and their retail support line, it's not supported. The major issue is that the correct software is not "preinstalled" by Asus. But this is a software issue, by nature, so I would like to think it's a surmountable problem. Is this software available online anywhere?

If it's a hardware issue, I'm prepared to buy and install the Intel Ultimate N wireless network adapter, but two XoticPC reps have told me that Wi-Di would still not work since it's not "supported" by the laptop. But the only thing this laptop doesn't have is the pre-installed software ( Intel® Wireless Display — System requirements for the Intel® Wireless Display) So again: software issue. Does anyone know a workaround?

 

Note that the full name of my laptop is Asus N56VZ- S4037V. It has 8 GB memory and a 750 GB HDD (7200 RPM). I just noticed that the title refers to N56VZ- DS71, which may differ some. Sorry about the mix-up.

Edit: Here's another review: ASUS N56VZ-DS71 Review | Multimedia Notebook Reviews

 

Does anyone here know how do I get access to wifi card?(and a guide to do it)
It can't be accessed from hdd and RAM bay (stucked by interlocking of Aluminum chasis and the plastic body), tried to unscrew all the bolts in the body but I couldn't get the chase to come off
I got a different type of n56vz with crappy wifi, I might want to change it with intel.
Thanks

 

The N56VZ might come with two different stock screens (or more, but I've only seen these two), here are the data measured by notebookcheck:

LG-Philips LGD02D9 ( Update review Asus N56VM Notebook with GT 630M - Notebookcheck.net Reviews)

Maximum: 404 cd/m²
Average: 361.6 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 81 %
Center on Battery: 404 cd/m²
Black: 0.59 cd/m²
Contrast: 685:1

Samsung SEC314C ( Review Asus N56VZ-S4044V Notebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews):

Maximum: 310 cd/m²
Average: 298.8 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 90 %
Center on Battery: 303 cd/m²
Black: 0.59 cd/m²
Contrast: 514:1

The LG-philips being slightly better with better contrast and brightness, but both are good.

 

That review you linked to is for this screen: LP156WF1. Apparently that's a different screen than the one that shipped in Nipsen's stock n56vz-ds71 (screen: LGD02D9).

According to the review you just linked, LP156WF1 was in a pre- production test unit of the N56 VM.

Yes, this screen has good specs. I don't think it would be necessary to upgrade this one. It seems that this Samsung screen only ships with the N56VZ- S4044v, not the N56VZ- DS71. What confusing naming conventions. I've tried asking asus for this info, by the way, with no luck. From some cursory google searching, it seems the s4044v was sold internationally, while the ds71 was sold in North America.

 

Hopefully I will get my N56 soon ... I have 99% chosen one over Dell XPS 15 and HP Envy 15. It's a little thicker, but seems to use it's thickness to work better!

A couple of questions:

1. Did anyone find a case (USB) to put the bluray drive into after removing it to install a second drive? I'd still like to be able to use mine if I need it.

2. Since the battery life is not great, and no extended battery is available, did anyone consider carrying a spare battery around? It would be slightly less convenient, but a quick hibernate to swap it out and you could get 6-8 hrs instead of 3-4.

Thanks for everyone contributing to this thread, it's got a lot of useful info in it.

 

Hi all, I've noticed that sometimes my n56's video+audio will freeze for 1-2 seconds during any sort of videos - youtube, mkvs, mp4s and it's sporadic. Also happens in games too including non-intensive ones, I was wondering what could be the potential cause? Video drivers perhaps or hard drive related? Thanks!

I've had the laptop for roughly 2 days and thus far I am very very impressed with its build quality, having looked at the y580, ge60, and dv6. Laptop runs very quiet during non-gaming and palmrests remain cool-lukewarm. My only gripe against purchasing initially was the gddr3 on the gpu, but it turns out it that it's plenty sufficient for what I need. With some tinkering I have several of my settings on ultra in bf3 at 30-35fps @ 1080p, only issue are those sporadic mini freezes.

 

Does it have an HDD from WD?
If YES, then install quietHDD and turn off power saving and AAM (Acoustics management), could also help with other HDD makers, but WD are known to cause that lagspike due to power saving.

Do you have mcafee antivirus?
If YES, get rid of it ASAP, problem solved.

 

just in case anyone needed a calibrated profile for stock samsung lcd:

SAMSUNG_ 156HT01_201.icm [created by K_Michael from ixbt.com]

for me it works great, gray is THE gray now, and it was blueish without the profile [but relative nature of color vision made me think it was gray nonetheless].

 

Hello, I have just bought this laptop through Amazon, and I was wondering which BIOS it will come with. If it comes with the 202 (release) bios, do I really have to update it? I have read many reports of people bricking their computer and making it unusable.

I have been saving for this laptop and I cannot afford even the slightest chance of breaking the motherboard. Can anyone tell me exactly the benefits of the new BIOS? If it is small bug fixes, I don't think it's worth it.

Also, if I update it through the BIOS, using a flash drive, what is the worst that can happen? For example if something goes wrong with the update, or the flashdrive accidentally disconnects, and this causes the computer to brick. I am extremely scared of an operation like this, as I don't know whether I will be able to return the computer or fix it.

Please give me some advice!

The_Paranoid_Parrot

 

Most noticeable fix of the 0204 bios is that CPU performance will be improved when GT650M is in use.

 

Finally picked one up from Microcenter this weekend.

Very happy with the laptop except for one thing I just noticed tonight. One side of my screen if you look at it exactly from the opposite side you can see that the glue has already separated and there is a gap where you can see light. It's not visible from the front, really only from the side. I can totally live with it but I'm afraid of dust or other crap getting inside and affecting it in the long run. Other side is mostly glued down with a small gap showing as well.

What do u guys think? I really don't want to go through the return process.

 

DUDE, i've gone through 3 and they all have the same problem!!! I guess they are all like that.

 

What cosmetic problems for example? I bought mine from Microcenter and it has small bezel gaps. I made three exchanges and all of them had the same defect.

 

So I checked out two other laptops and they all had the same issue with panel gap. Ended up picking out the best one and still trading mine in.

But then I started having all these new issues with the new one. Track pad was raised so I had to click it in. Then I had to re-install the drivers for the keyboard (keep in mind I didn't have any of these issues on my original one.

Now everything seems to be working normally except I feel this one gets hotter than my original one (especially around the palm rests). Although my temps are pretty much the same as others have posted *sigh* it's probably my imagination as I tend to stress myself out more than I need to.

 

I always flash my BIOS. Done it with two n56vz, and one downgrade as well. Never bricked a machine, but it is a risk. They are shipping the new laptops with the 204, so you might not have to do anything, depending on how many are in stock.

 

It seems like a flaw occur frequently all the way through the same shipment of a product line. I had to work my way through 8 n56vz's, before settling on one I consider as good as it gets. That's from the first shipment, with green indicator in the brick, BIOS 202, and logo light working

To answar Nipsen earlier question, I guess we get the same shipment in north of Europe, that is Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. I noticed some sereous flaws with sticky keys, and cosmetics like no lit logo on the back of the screen.

 

Yeah which is lame for a $1k laptop. But whatever, trying to not sweat the small stuff

FYI I mine came with BIOS204 already (whew!)

 

Tried ad-aware free. Did no difference. Would you recommend ad-aware for use as sole protection. Used to run MSE or panda, with windows firewall!

Can you reproduce the 'hiccups' in 3DMark-Vantage, anyone?
Stutter on Asus n56vz gt 650m running DirectX10 in 3DMark Vantage - YouTube

An other thing. Is the usb-ports, after installing 3.0, supposed to shut down external drives on reboot, or normal boot. I have to unplug my usb-drive, each time I boot into windows. Before installing usb-3.0 it doesn't shut down tid drive on reboot?

 

They should be able to do a better job for the money, but still, in spite of the flaws, I wouldn't be able to settle for what else is out there in change.
Luckily I'm responsible for the returning of something between 8 and perhaps a 100 n56vz or more. That ought to send some kind of message to asus.

I guess we started getting the 204 bios in the shipments about a month ago.

 

My other one didn't have the lit logo either but I didn't notice it then. And the speakers are not that very good either, in my opinion. They distort during some songs, like Lotus Flower - Radiohead. "Persistent Perfection" my .

 

How do I check what brand monitor and bios version I have?

 

Mine seems to play the music just fine, at max(Lotus Flower - Radiohead). That's what I like about it, it doesn't just play louder at the expense of sound quality. It simply just doesn't go louder, but still has a decent volume.

BIOS version, hit F2 when booting, as long as you see the ASUS logo. Then you can read the BIOS ver. from BIOS.
If you do an ver. upgrade, do it from BIOS, and use a FAT32 formatted USB-pen. NTFS is known to 'brick' your ASUS laptop. If this applies only to DOS of 'easy flash', I am not sure, but better be safe!!!

 

To find the BIOS version, you can also press the Windows key, type msinfo32.exe and press enter. Look a little above the middle of the list. My laptop shows American Megatrends Inc. N56VZ.204, 11.05.2012, which is the newest version now.

To find the monitor brand, press the Windows key, type device manager and press enter. Then expand Monitors, double click Generic PnP Monitor, go to the Details tab and chose Hardware Ids from the drop-down menu.

 

I'm also having the same issues. Nvidia drivers are up to date. Windows live update doesn't show anything either. Not sure what's up. Kind of annoying that's for sure.

 

Don't know why Asus included only 6 cell battery to this laptop.

 

Yeah it is pretty annoying that there isn't even a 9 cell option. I was hoping there might be an aftermarket one.

I'll probably resort to carrying a spare charged battery with me sometimes ... a bit of a hassle to swap but very effective in doubling the capacity without affecting the profile.

 

I couldn't find one. The power brick is too large. These makes this laptop less portable.

 

Agree. Shame they don't have a higher capacity lithium polymer cell option..

 

are there any updates on how to enable keyboard backlight without installing asus bloatware? it just seems ridiculous. I'm about to start learning how to code my own driver.

 

Yeah, Lotus Flower mostly plays fine but in the first few seconds, the speakers can't handle the bass so it distorts a little.

 

Thanks. I have the 202 version 3/15/2012 and LG monitor. Is the Samsung better than the LG? It seems like only the earlier models have bezel problems. Does your have any casing gaps? And is there any way to tell from the S/N, P/I, or P/N when the laptop was manufactured or if it comes with 204 bios version?

 

I'm not sure which screen is better (if you scroll up on this page, there were some posts discussing the specs), but at least I'm very happy with my Samsung screen. If I look at the laptop from the side, I can see some small gaps between the frame and the screen, but it's not noticeable during normal use. I don't know if there's a way to find out what BIOS version the laptop comes with.

 

I prefer the LG screen, better viewing angles and higher brightness. But beside this they are both good.

 

I too am using the same drive and all I can say is heat isn't an issue with mine. There definitely has been a small temperature rise, but nothing that makes the laptop unusable. There may be an issue with your drive?

 

The silver painting around the keyboard was damaged. I received a new one that is perfect!

Is it normal that the fan stays on all the time? As soon as I boot the notebook the fan starts spinning, not very audible but in a silent room you can hear it. It almost sounds as a HDD, but I don't have a HDD becaused I replaced that with a SSD .

 

Any profile for the LG monitors too ?

 

Sorry, I only saw the one for samsung...
And wow. I launched AIDA64 just to see I actually have LG Philips LP156WF1 display in my notebook!..
So I'm using wrong profile. Well, it looks good anyway. Gray is gray.
But I'm on a mission of finding the right one now.

 

this is strange, because I've got N56VZ-S4044V and I have:

LGD02D9, according to PC Wizard 2012 v2.11,
LG Philips LP156WF1, according to AIDA64 2.50.2000

I'm baffled. Help anyone What's the real model of my screen?

Something is telling me that LGD02D9 and LG Philips LP156WF1 are essentially the same model.

 

LG Phillips changed their name to just LG a while back, at least

 

Your monitor ID is LGD02D9 which is an LG Philips LP156WF1 (full model number, which is not same as monitor ID).

 

Yes, fan normally spins all the time, at low speed.

 

Hey
i was thinking about buying this pc too. I am from Denmark too, so i was wondering there you bought it?

 

Ah, interesting. So monitor ID does not equal model number.

Therefore, a notebook with the LGD02D9 ID could have a different LG screen than another notebook with the same ID. Does that sound right?

Otherwise, what explains the huge difference in specs between these two screens: Update review Asus N56VM Notebook with GT 630M - Notebookcheck.net Reviews versus Review Schenker XMG P502 PRO (Clevo P150EM) Notebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

 

For those still having problems with the sound clicking / crackling, check out this post about the N76. It's virtually the same so should also work for the N56.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/670037-asus-n76vz-5.html#post8804181

It seems to have fixed the problem for at least 2 users.

 

Probably the hardware ID identifies the actual screen, and the same screen is used in different "models".

Hahaha. Someone else noticed. Awesome. Probably no technical reason, no.

 

Anyone bought the N56VZ from singapore? Is the webcam 0.3MP?

The one I'm buying comes with a 1TB 5400RPM HDD, what differences would I see if I get a 7200RPM one? Can't afford an SSD atm so please don't recommend that. In terms of difference in speed, and battery consumption, what would be the better choice?