Asus U80V vs U81A - $400 more?

Please help me to decide.

I can get the U81A at Bestbuy New York for US$680 after tax. The specs are T6500 + GMA4500MHD + 320GB HDD.

Or I can get the U80V in Malaysia for around US$1080. The specs are P8700 + ATI 4570HD + 500GB HDD + Bluetooth.

The HDD and bluetooth are both non-issue for me.

My question is whether the price difference worthwhile for the better processor and much stronger graphics card? I'm a very casual gamer only. I dont play first player shooting game but only some RPG and strategy games. Is US$400 justifiable for P8700 and ATI 4570?

 

What games specifically? And, do you care about battery life or weight/screen suze or resolution?

 

Also, what applications do you use?

 

i want this Asus brand particularly for the lightweight and long battery life (5 hours) due to travelling. Basically just for web-browsing, email, music, video, photos and occasional gaming. I think the most demanding game i would ever play is Overlord and Overlord 2. Would I be able to play this game using Intel GMA4500MHD under the low settings?

 

Overlord 2 on the previous generation intel graphics:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NSB38Gq4qY (not my video)

It is playable on the very lowest settings. On the current intel graphics it might run 30% faster.

 

I have the U81A-RX05 from Best Buy. Like you, I don't play any highly demanding games. Save the $400 and get the U81A. It's all the power you'll need. I don't think the P8700 is going to give you that much of a boost and the graphics card in the more expensive model will drain your battery faster.

 

$400 is a big price difference. you might as well get a dedicated gaming laptop. Gateway p-7805U.
With price difference i rather cop the u81a (or ux50v because that's what i chose and run cod4 for fun)

 

I have the U81A-RX05 from Best Buy also. I'm currently running Windows 7 on it and it is fast and zippy. I can also run Aion (an MMORPG coming out soon) at a playable framerate in low settings so I'm pretty happy about that.

I love how sleek and light this laptop is. I picked mine up for $590 (priced matched the outlet price online in-store) and i don't think there are other laptops in that price range that offers the same value.

 

I agree with TMFAN. It's fast, light, good battery life, everything you need for anything you want to do except really demanding games. Use the extra $400 for accessories, like maybe an external USB hard drive, a carry-bag or any other things you might want. My local Best Buy has it on clearance for $575. They won't last long at that price and there is a limited supply of them left.