Asus UX302

See page 4 of this thread for an example of what you should get. Make sure you get ONE stick, there is only one open slot for adding memory. The other slot has 2 GB soldered in.

Good luck, Jim

 

Thanks, Jim!

A previous post ( http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/734016-asus-ux302-2.html#post9432931) noted that THE UX302LG's warranty is voided if you try to remove the HDD. Can someone confirm or deny this?

 

I believe the consensus is that you can remove and replace the HDD without any way of being detected. So, if you had to send the unit back to Asus for warranty work you should put the original HDD back. (And probably the original memory also.)

Regards, Jim

 

Yes the machine is classified as not user serviceable. Take of that what you will.

 

Thanks for the replies. How would one be able to get an extended warranty on the UX302? I live in the USA and am hoping to order it from either Amazon.ca or perhaps NCIX and Canada Computers.

 

warping in the middle of the keyboard

 

The processor can handle 16GB in both slots, but since ASUS has used 2/4GB as onboard, and with one open DIMM slot therefore the max is possibly 4GB (onboard) + 8GB (DIMM slot) = 12GB.
> DDR3L 1600 MHz SDRAM, up to 8 G, OnBoard Memory 2 GB / 4 GB, DIMM Up to 4 G

ARK | Intel® Core
ARK | Intel® Core

 

Also, might I ask which screwdriver is best preferred to open the UX302? The screws seems absurdly small!

 

So, you didn't have the 2 screws under the feet like everyone else who opened their cases? That's pretty odd. Could you explain in a little more detail, or anyone else for that matter, how you were able to fully remove the bottom plate? Thanks.

 

I use this one myself.
Husky 8-IN-1 Phillips and Slotted Screwdriver Set

 

That's is a bad one you should return for another. I had to return twice to best buy to find a good one. It is just slightly warped.
I did notice that the one I kept seems to be a newer build ( different stickers on it has an ultra book one) and seems to be faster thinking they may have switched HDD too

 

I ordered mine from ncix and plan to get Squaretrade warranty, assuming I like the laptop. Squaretrade will run you $225 for 2 years and includes accidental damage from spills and drops. If you google for a coupon code, you can find forums with people who are giving away $30 off codes. ST has never failed me and if you sell your item, they prorate and refund the remainder of the policy.

 

You need TORX T5, Philips 0 and Philips 1.

To remove the HD you need to remove both screws from underneath the back black pads (ph1), then remove torx screws (t5), then remove the battery screws(ph0), slightly move the battery to access HD mount screws, then remove the HD mount/HD(ph0), the untape the HD protection, then remove HD from the HD rack (ph0). All of those screws are different.

The part that is super painful and tricky is to remove the back cover by inserting, from the sides, somthing very soft (for instance a plastic prying tool or by wrapping a very small screwdriver with the screen cleaning cloth provided with the laptop) in between the round piece of the back cover and the fixed plastic hinge and use it as a lever to very gently push the curved/back part in a horizontal motion towards the back of the laptop, eventually releasing the clips that hold it in place (you'll be able to see the cuts where the rounded part is clipped once you remove the back panel).
Make sure to : not damage the weak plastic hinges because the lever will be sitting on them and not pry to hard on the plastic round part of the back cover because it'll break. Also be careful of the metallic part on the corners of the back panel sice it could be easy to damage.
Mad paint skillz describing the operation : http://imgur.com/LqtXLmb

ifixit.com sells a very nice toolset for a decent price that includes all of those super-small strange bits (and knockoffs available on dealextreme).

One sure thing : plan what you want to replace in advance, it is such a pain to open that you don't want to be doing it too often (plus the black rubber pads will get damaged in the process).

 

Is the step where you "untape the HD protection" what voids the warranty? Can you replace the tape if you need to returrn the unit to Asus for warranty work? This wasn't on the UX302LA if I remember correctly.

Regards, Jim

 

I was here referring to the plastic/pad that is taped on the HD in between the back panel, inside the laptop (it is visible from previous picture in this thread). This can be fairly easily untaped (might leave a bit of it on the surface of the HD though) if done smoothly. There's no tamper-evident stickers that I've seen while opening the laptop (UX302LG).
Don't know/care about the warranty though, if changing HD & RAM, both of which are pluggable components voids the warranty, f*** the manufacturer. Putting a 5400rpm HD in that kind of ultrabook is a bit of an insult to intelligence imho.

 

I agree with you, Asus putting a HD in an ultrabook is ridiculous!

Regards, Jim

 

Wonderful description, tehownt. That information will surely come in handy.

So how's the UX302LG/UX302LA holding up for you all? Weeks later, are you still impressed by Asus' newest offering? I'm just curious to know if the novelty has worn off, or if the device is continuing to impress.

 

This morning I bought the UX302LA for $800. It has terrible keyboard warping, such that the G and H keys are completely sunken into the board. I'm going to keep it for a week to decide whether to exchange or return it.

Added: backlight bleeding on the bottom, trackpad jumps all over the place, auto-brightness too dim. Keyboard lights just leak all around the keys. I was expecting a soft warm glow. Overall the laptop is a good idea but poor execution. Perhaps the UX301 is better?

 

Not really sure why you both don't like this. Personally, the only reason I'm getting this over the UX301LA is because of the hard drive bay. It opens up so many options. The only thing I wish for was a standard msata over the half slot so I can go higher than 128GB. Then I'll either use the 500GB for storage or eventually upgrade it with a faster SSD in the future. The problem with other Ultrabooks is they either lock you into propriety SSD(Apple, Asus) or they give you a single msata slot and claim RAID 0 when it's merely 2 controllers on 1 msata(Acer). Makes it really hard to upgrade in the future. I'll take the extra 2-3mm for more options.

 

I also bought the UX302LA at BB for $799. I have the same issue for the keyboard, but for me it's the TYU, FGH, and the VBN keys. They aren't "completely sunken" into the keyboard like yours, so I'm also going to keep this laptop and see if I need to return. I'll most likely decide by Monday, 6 January.

 

Me too!! I'm on my 3rd "exchanged" unit now, and yes, I also have the backlight bleeding visible on the ASUS startup screen, and a few "slightly" sunken keys. Only visible on the TYU, FGH, and the VB keys...if I end up returning it, I'll have the open up the "new" one and check out the keyboard first!

 

Can you find out which HDD it has.

 

Quote Originally Posted by revival View Post
That's is a bad one you should return for another. I had to return twice to best buy to find a good one. It is just slightly warped.
I did notice that the one I kept seems to be a newer build ( different stickers on it has an ultra book one) and seems to be faster thinking they may have switched HDD too
Me too!! I'm on my 3rd "exchanged" unit now, and yes, I also have the backlight bleeding visible on the ASUS startup screen, and a few "slightly" sunken keys. Only visible on the TYU, FGH, and the vBulletin keys...if I end up returning it, I'll have the open up the "new" one and check out the keyboard first!

screen bleed was always there even on last years zenbooks not an issue once the OS loads... but this warped keyboard is a serious quality problem Asus needs to address IMO issue i wish there was a way to fix it myself

 

That warping looks more to do with the mesh around the keys than the keys themselves.

 

How in the world did you guys manage to remove the bottom plate from the hinge area? Did you need to open the keyboard partially? If I pull up on the plate it won't go further than about 30 degrees or so, too little space to unscrew anything in the HD area.

 

There's a guy on Youtube that shows you how to do it kinda in this video, almost right away in the beginning

Asus UX302 RAM and SSD Upgrade Part 2 - YouTube

You have to find a thin, sturdy object, insert it into the gap between the hinge and the middle area, and then kinda lever the middle area off the hinge outward. It should just pop off if done correctly- took me quite a while to get it correctly, though.

 

What exactly do you mean by 'the middle area?'

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant the middle area as in the piece of the back cover that curls over that space between the two hinges - holding the ultrabook upside down, you should see the two rectangular hinges which are NOT attached to the back plate. The "middle area," however, is, and that's what you have to get off in order to get the back plate off.

This is assuming, of course, that you have gotten all of the the screws out beforehand, including the two under the back rubber feet.

 

Great, and is putting it back on as simple as shutting it back in place?

 

Yes, it is a lot easier- you just push it in place and it snaps back on easily.

 

Hey, thanks for your help. I can't believe how it easy it was to get it off the hinge area. Took like 10 seconds after I realized how. I used one of the those plastic wedge tools that are typically used to take apart phones, if you have one of those lying around. It's not necessarily thin, and you don't need anything that thin anyway. Just a firm plastic wedge of some sort will sork.

 

No problem! Glad you got it. Yeah, I started out trying to use a screwdriver head and scratched up my hinge quite a bit. Felt really dumb when it finally popped off so easily.

 

I just found a UX302LA open-box at Best Buy for $599...too good of a deal to pass up. Unfortunately, I have the exact same warping around the keys (this is why it was originally returned).

I would like to try and fix it because of the great price I got. Everything else appears to be perfect on it.

I can't tell if there is some sort of adhesive under there or not. If I press it back down, it stays (which makes me think there is some adhesive), but it doesn't abruptly pop back up; instead, it just seems to slowly rise back up (which makes me think it isn't adhesive).

Anyhow, does anyone know of a walk through that goes far enough as to pull the entire thing apart so you can get between the keyboard and the panel it sits against? I've seen how to get at the HD and such, but nothing that goes any further than that.

This keyboard looks like it's the same one as in my computer, so it looks like there might be a spot to add some adhesive or something to keep the frame down. Maybe. Hopefully.

Any pointers are appreciated!

 

Curious why so many mentioned that the ambient light sensor doesn't work. Mine seems to work fine. Could it be a recent upgraded driver in W8.1?

 

And a second question: is there a way to reverse the F1-F12 keys? I'd rather have them directly control brightness/volume etc without having to hit Fn. I read around online, and found things that said there is no way to do this on Asus machines. I went into the UEFI/BIOS menu (or whatever it's called), and didn't see any options to change this, though I may have missed it.

Thanks in advance! :hi2:

 

I bought my UX302LA at Best Buy on 12/31, and I have the exact same keyboard warping. I didn't get an open box, and I'm still debating whether or not to exchange it for another unit- one that hopefully doesn't have keyboard warping. Everything else about the ultrabook has been amazing. I've found that pressing firmly down on the metal between the keys makes it stay down for a while, but mine also slowly creeps back up to a warped position. I think the metal just needs to be bent slightly, but I do not have a clue how to get the metal front off. If anyone has found a solution to this, I would also like to know!

 

Dude look at the video......

 

Yea take it back and get a better one. My third one is pretty good

Asus Zenbook UX302LA Unboxing - YouTube
If you look at this video about 7:50 youll see it bent a bit. But if you have to press it down that is too much

DO Asus reps every read this forum?

Does any one know how to change 2 finger scroll speed

 

Hey, does anyone know how much of the ram on the UX302LG-C4007P is soldered? I'm thinking it might be cheaper to get the UX302LG-C4006P and just upgrade. Thanks.

 

The only reason I picked this up was the fact that it was $599, which is $200 less than the already-discounted-price of $799. If I have to return it, I have to then pay more to get another...in which case, I'm going to go with a different computer.

 

From what I have read, its 4GB soldered for the UX302LG. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

 

The processor can handle 16GB in both slots, but since ASUS has used 2/4GB as onboard, and with one open DIMM slot therefore the max is possibly 4GB (onboard) + 8GB (DIMM slot) = 12GB.
> DDR3L 1600 MHz SDRAM, up to 8 G, OnBoard Memory 2 GB / 4 GB, DIMM Up to 4 G.

 

Is this the same for all 302LG builds?

 

According to Asus, yes, but I have only seen one 302LG on the market in North America.

 

Where can I find a website that sells the Asus 302LG in the US? I cant find anywhere besides amazon in Canada. Please Help! I don't know of they released it for the US yet.

 

The UX302LG is a weird situation in the US. The official statment from ASUS is that the US has no release date yet and it may never even be released, but a few stores have them?? Idek. It smells to me like they planned to release it and shipped it but then recalled it??

I'm trying to order one from Australia lol. The Canadian model has a non-US keyboard from what I hear.

 

i think the ux302lg is only avaliable in Canada of as of the moment. I have one and it has a standard layout

 

NCIX,Memory express, and Canada computers carry this model as far as im aware of. I don't think the LG version is available in other regions yet.

 

NCIX sells models for the US

 

I took the bottom of my computer off to try and gain access to the keyboard. It appears as though the assembly with the motherboard is glued to the metal panel the keyboard pokes through. I unscrewed quite a few screws, and was unable to get any plastic portion to move freely of the metal. It looks like you might be able to pry the whole thing out of the metal, but I didn't want to risk breaking everything. Bummer.

Also, I can verify that the UX302LA from best buy has a removable RAM module. I didn't replace mine, so I don't know if there will be issues with it recognizing upgraded RAM, but you can definitely pull RAM out of it.