Asus N81Vp Hands-on

When I first read about this notebook a while ago,I though that it is totally awesome- Hi-end CPU,GPU that scores 6k+ on 3D Mark,LED screen,etc.! Only 2 drawbacks that I sow were 1)the relatively low resolution screen and 2)The weight(2.5 kg).
I thought that can live with them,since this little monster has so much power!But after seeing it here,at CeBit,I must say that there are couple of other issues with it!



Build Quality: I sorry to say this,but the 2 N80 notebooks I played with were not even close to other Asus notebooks I sow there!At first I though that it is defected,but the other one was exactly the same,so I think the BQ is a general "problem".The materials used on it feel cheap,whole body flexes and it is a fingerprint_magnet^2(a girl from Asus was struggling very hard to get rid of them!)!



The Screen: The screen on N81 has diagonal length of 14", WXGA resolution and is... a total joke! Colors are washed out,picture is blurred,resolution is relatively low,and even a little change of the viewing angle makes the colors to invert!











Actually,my camera makes the screen's colors better then it actually are

Also,see the following picture to see why there is so much glare on the screen!



Keyboard and Touchpad: Keyboard,on the other had,is excellent! Keys have nice "feedback" and are almost silent.You wont have any problems while gaming or writing texts on it!After applying pressure,I noticed a small amount of flex under "Q-E-D-A" area(at the top of optical drive),but nothing problematic.





Nothing bad to say about the touchpad-it works in the way it should

I/O Ports: N81 has a decent amount of ports for 14".Lets have a tour around it!


(Right side: 2xUSB ports)



(Left side: Card Reader,Optical drive,USB,FireWire 400,Express Card,Audio I/O ports)



(Back: VGA,HDMI,and eSata ports)


Specification and Performance: Here is where this notebook shines-packed with latest Core 2 Duo CPU from Intel and Ati HD 4650 GPU,it will archive more then 6000 marks in 3D Mark test and play Crysis on 30+ fps with medium/settings!And all for around 1300 U.S. Dollars!



Conclusion: I am totally lost with this notebook...I can't decide: does awesome performance cover it's cons or not!So that's why I am leaving conclusion part to you!

P.S. I really hope that the problems I found were just because of pre-production units were displayed....

 

Your comments on the flex is quite true, especially about the lid. The rest of the system is still bearable.

Hey Xirug, I think you took photos of the N80, but your spec sheet is from the N81.

 

It was the only model displayed,I asked staff and they said that this and 80 are the same,just different spec.!it is N81 really(look at 1st pic.)will correct now!

 

too shiny

 

Looks like a pre-production unit or the N80 because the FN key is in a different place than the final model.

 

Nope, not an "80", my N80 fn key is on the far left also, not the same as that pic. I wish it was though....

 

the Screen is a bit on glossy side but other then that it looks fine the keyboard looks really solid as well great job as always Xirug!

 

Note to Asus: That brown looks disgusting.

 

So they swap the CTRL and Fn keys.. and call it a new model. *yawn*

I'm quite happy with my N80.

 

I would have been upset about buying my N80 if they hadnt nerfed the resolution in this model. Im sure in a few months this will have a revision with a 25 watt P series processor and a normal resolution. thats when I will get all grumpy.

 

What's with ASUS and the scratched lid look, great little powerhouse but not very sleek or sexy looking, but still very nice.
The brown like color around the keyboard has to go.

 

in person,it looks even worse...

 

Some of these newer ASUS casing designs are taking a turn for the worse. Brown on a laptop? Ick. They need to move away from all the gloss coating too.

 

Agreed.

I'd buy this laptop without hestitation if it was black/silver/white. But the brown is a real turn off for me.

 

At least they look like they are heading in the right direction with the U and K series, the K401N looks real sharp, to bad it only has a AMD 4570, the AMD 4650 in the N81Vp would have been a much better fit.
Here's hoping it will be available in it in the future.

 

Never judge a book by its cover

 

Well when the cover looks like that......
look there is no denying it's power, if only it came out with a better color scheme and the awful brownish color around the keyboard.....what was ASUS thinking, great performance, bad design.
But that's just me

 

You have a point, but you didn't go out and buy the 9262 for it's looks either, did you? I didn't... I bought mine because of the specs only... When people see my Sager, they think it's just an ancient, big laptop, and they have no idea what it is...

By the way, saying hello from NH, via IQ...

 

Got my 9262 as a desktop replacement and yes I mostly got mine for the specs and performance but now I'm just looking for a smaller secondary unit I can game on and actually carry without breaking a sweat
I will admit the 9262 is nothing special to look at but it still looks much better than the ASUS, don't get me wrong the overall design is good I just wish they went with a solid color on the lid and had the same color keyboard not that brownish color (around the keyboard), I'm still considering getting this unit, just having second thoughts about the color scheme, it might be a deal breaker. As I have said before I just hope the new U20 or K401n come out with the AMD 4650 soon.
Hey I might be dreaming here...but it's my dream,OK
You probably got a lot of snow dumped on you last week, and hello!
Can't wait until winter is over!
DAMM!never used so many smiley faces

 

IMO,9262 looks better then this one...

 

Ouch...

________

 

What is with the black bars left and right? the screen is not cut off there is it?

 

Ever viewed a picture in full screen? Sometimes they don't fit the whole screen.

 

thank goodness

 

nono,it really does!have you seen one in_person?

 

Hey guys and what about the GPU? The HD 4650 is better than GeForce 9650M GT from the n80?

 

Yes, by far..

 

Yes it's better just watch the game demos on the Gentech website, it also handles Crysis pretty well so that's saying something.