Asus UX31 Ultrabook

Its a sticker outside the box of the UX31 who says what SSD they put in it. But remember if you find one with Adata it probably has the sentellic touchpad.

 

Man it's my fault then...I took a look at the box specifically to see if it said anything about the SSD, but I didn't see anything. Then again, I know I rushed and wasn't very thorough. But if this is true, then I'm glad, cause after I finish exams, I'm gonna go hunting for a Zenbook with the Adata.

Also, I think I got the good touchpad (the sentelec or it's called?), cause mine was working no problem. Maybe like the guy on Amazon said, I'll find a "lottery" UX31 with the Adata AND the good touchpad (not that I care much, I don't use the touchpad, I use a mouse).

 

its ELAN so im assuming elantech
i reset the bios and tried it again and the driver update worked
thanks for your help though

is it just me or does the screen seem REALLY glossy, reflective?

 

I'm having a Sandisk SSD U100 256GB. It gives me the "bad" scores on 4k... but: it gives me the good indicator in Windows (see attachment, sorry for it being in German).

 

I have been trying to find info on battery replacement in such ultrabooks as the Zenbook. Since it seems that the 1 year Asus manufacturer's warranty you get with the Zenbook won't replace your internal battery, how will Zenbook owners replace their battery after 2 years of ownership? This seems like a critical piece of laptop ownership that is not as clear as it should be in this case.

Also, when you buy a Zenbook from online retailers such as Newegg, Amazon, or J&R, it comes with a standard 1 year Asus warranty. Is there no way to purchase a manufacturer's warranty extension, or do we need to purchase the store's proprietary laptop warranties (ie. Squaretrade for Amazon, Service Net for Newegg)?

These are really the two major issues to me preventing me from taking the plunge on a Zenbook. I can't in good faith spend a thousand dollars on a laptop not knowing how to get my dead non-user-replaceable battery replaced after some time.

 

I ended up getting a 3 yr warranty from squaretrade for 110 bucks. I believe its worth it if you have the Ux31. I asked and Squaretrade will replace the battery on any notebook if its built into the notebook. I never purchase ext warranty on any of my previous notebook but with the battery been not replacement I went ahead and got the warranty.

 

FWIW, I purchased my UX31 w/Sandisk from Amazon 3 weeks ago.

 

Any Swedish member who know any reseller that have the ADATA SSD and the Elantech touchpad? Or is it just random? Or atleast a place where i can ask for one with these components?

 

New 209 (unofficial) bios for Asus UX31 and UX21

WWW:
Notebook Support - Bios recovery bei der UX-Serie

PDF:
http://www.asustreiber.de/faq/6-nbsupport/39-bios-recovery-bei-der-ux-serie?format=pdf

Google Translator can handle German translation.

I hope this one will fix too loud fan issue after upgrade 206 to 207 bios.

When you downgrade bios 207 to 206 version you will notice that your laptop run much more silent

If you want downgrade bios in UX31 / UX21 you need start WinFlash with parameter /nodate
Just Start -> RUN... -> "C:\Program Files (x86)\ASUS\WinFlash\WinFlash.exe" /nodate

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/853/przechwytywanien.png

I've just installed BIOS 209 and everything works. The fan is quiet, but this is only the first 5 minutes of work.

 

I just bought my own Zenbook UX31E (i7-2677M/4 GB/128GB) from Finland.
A sticker in the left corder of the box says "Sandforce Driven" which i belive implies that it has ADATA SSD. and yes it does have adata ssd and also sentellic touch pad.

I tested CrystalDiskMark strait way, i got these fiqures...



And the sticker pic

 

For those interested, bios v. 2.09 is up on Asus's FTP site:

ftp://ftp.asus.com.tw/pub/asus/nb/UX31E/UX31EAS209.zip

 

what is new in this bios version 2.09?

btw, my ssd score is also 5.9, also after clean wndows 7 installation

 

Filiox Jag letar också efter ux31an med adta och elantech (om detta är den bästa) touchpad! har ingen aningen om var jag kan få tag på en men ska fråga runt diverse elektronik kedjor. Återkom gärna om du hittar en sådan dator

Edit:
Filiox I am also looking for ux31an with adata and elantech (if this is the best) touchpad! have no idea where I can get one but will ask around various electronics chains. Please check back if you find such a computer

 

anyone experiencing a lot of wifi drops?

 

anyone experiencing random freezes and reboots into bios?

 

I had a problem with the wifi drop and pure signal.
I tried to downgrade the drivers, set to "mximum Power", upgrade BIOS to 207...
After two days of fighting I gave the laptop to the shop. I got a new one and everything worked out of the box with the same drivers.
No more drop signal and now I can find much more Wifi network in the same area.

 

I'm on my third UX21. The first had a defective hinge (really loose). The second wouldn't boot into windows (bios didn't even recognize the SSD). The third has trackpad issues. Its a Sentelic. Same as my first UX21, but that one didn't have issues with tracking.

Yes, I've installed all the latest drivers and bios.

Has anyone managed to improve tracking with the Sentelic by changing reg values in hkey local\software\avc\fsp? Lots of tweaks can be made there.

*edit*

The settings in hkey local machine don't seem to have any effect. However, settings in current user\software\avc\fsp do. I changed the "Gears" setting from 6 to 9. I think this is acceleration, which helps because now I can turn the pointer speed down a bit.

 

I want your laptop...

Good thing is, now that I know the Adata is identifiable (Sandforce label on the black box, item number or w/e on the cardboard box it comes in), I'm gonna go hunting for a good one at local stores once I finish my exams.

 

I have a sentelic touch pad and a kind of loose hinge. I was wondering if the replacements you've received were any better in terms of the hinge thing. Mine isn't horrible. just kind of loose. I just don't want to deal with the hassle of sending it back if I don't have to especially if it means i'll just get another with the same issues.

 

I was referring to the screen hinge.

 

Bandana, how's the screen? How are the vertical viewing angles?

Can you do any subjective comparison to these images:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/582672-asus-ux31-ultrabook-149.html#post8110449

I'm just looking to confirm that this rig doesn't usually ship with a poor screen. Very little talk about the panel here would suggest that. Sent mine to be replaced because of the dismal screen 2 weeks ago, no word yet...

 

yeah i mean the screen hinge too. sorry i mentioned the touch pad as well i guess that was kind of confusing.

 

The hinge is better but isn't great. I can hold the keyboard perpendicular to the ground with the screen at a 90 degree angle and gravity will not pull the screen open further. But, the hinges feel nowhere as sturdy/reliable as my x220.

 

it seems like on mine the lid is just too heavy. after a 90 degree angle the lid just falls back on it's own. but thank you for the response i hope they update the drivers for the touchpad soon >.<

 

See my earlier posts about editing registry settings. Changing the Gearindex setting from 6 to 9 helped a lot. This allowed me to turn how the pointer speed, which I believe contributes to the jumpiness.

 

thanks I appreciate it~

 

I received my UX 31 on Wednesday. Ordered through BestBuy Canada on November 16. Laptop arrived from BC warehouse. Mine is the i7, 256 Gb model. It performed very well out of the box. Elan trackpad is okay. Wifi is also okay (actually on the speed test UX scored better than my iMAc which is connected with cable , huh). SSD scored 5.9 on WEI, although I can't seem to detect that it is slow. I might get a better sense of the SSD speed when I manipulate large files.

I gave it to the IT guy to perform a clean install of Windows 7 (Enterprise). He kept the laptop for 2 days. He told me it's been turning heads for two days so I was very happy to learn this. The laptop is gorgeous indeed.

I have two (minor) issues so far:

1. As mentioned by others, the keyboard is not top quality and it is not just a "travel" issue. I've been using a Mac keyboard for 2 years and I can feel a big difference. But this is not a huge issue for me as I am not a big "typer". I guess I can live with this.

2. I have not encountered the jumpiness issue with the trackpad. But one issue which is a little bit annoying is the pinch & zoom gesture is not very responsive.

Other than that I am very happy with this laptop and I think it will make my life easier. My back and my productivity will certainly be thankful to this laptop... And I think that the next iteration of this laptop will be on par (if not better than) the MBA...

 

which touchpad is best, elan or sentelic?

 

I dont know, but I have the sentelic and cant fault it.

And while I am on a pro zenbook mood I will add that I have had none of the issues on my i7 128GB that other have.

I even like the keyboard (after getting used to it).

My only niggle is the lack of 5ghz wifi..... stupid thing to be missing.

 

I updated to Bios 209 just yesterday.

I still get wifi drops every once in a while and my power settings are on maximum -- I don't use Power4Gear anymore. The wifi drops aren't as long I think.

Trackpad seems better? Maybe just placebo.
I have Elan trackpad and it's working well. My only problem is the few unregistered clicks I sometimes get. However, the multitouch gestures work well. The only multitouch gesture I can't get to work perfectly is the zoom in and zoom out. I think it has more to do with my browser than my trackpad though.

I changed some of my mouse settings to fit my needs though. Made it faster and made scrolling faster -- might help some of you guys.

So anyone know what has officially changed? Can't seem to find anything on the official Asus website.

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. - Notebooks- ASUS ASUS ZENBOOK UX31E

They have 209 bios up on the website -- but no changelog.

Edit: Wifi problems actually might be related to my network -- not the zenbook.

 

I have also updated my UX31e to Bios 209. So far so good. Felt a little bit snappier when doing a cold boot. Also curious to know what was the changelog in 209, compared with 207. It surely means something by skipping 208 and went straight to 209 instead.

By the way, has anyone tried out the Micro HDMI connectivity? Does it work? Mine had no output on my Toshiba Regza HDTV...:-(

 

It does say "Firmware change", could it be the promised Sandisk firmware fix? Any of you have a Sandisk SSD that you could test with WEI and/or CDM?

 

I did a test on WEI with mine after successfully flashing BIOS 209. It was an i7 unit with 256G Sandisk SSD. The test result is the same on hard disck, at 5.9. No change from my end.

 

i have the sandisk 256gb and my wei rating is 7.2 for the hard disk, i7 processor

 

Wow! 7.2 for i7 sandisk 256G SSD? How did you managed to get that score? Was it tuned, or as measured out of the box...:-0

Mine (5.9 scoring on HDD) never changed despite several WEI assessment re-runs.

 

Mine is 7.4, but there's a lot of people stuck with 5.9, and someone a few pages back said that Asus is waiting on a firmware update from Sandisk.

According to a German forum this update added AES-NI and PXE boot.

 

Oh~ okay. I'm not that picky on WEI scores. It is a nice sight to see high scores. But the sandisk 256 SSD is definitely much snappier in loading apps and doing boot ups, compared with the normal mechnical HDD laptop that I have.

 

usb 3.0 doesn't work

hi guys!
i have istalled the empty (msdn) version of windows 7 ultimate x64
and installed all drivers from asus.com (including fresco usb driver 3.5.4)
but STILL usb 3.0 doesn't work with my external hdd Samsung m2 1gb
it works with the left usb 2.0 port, it works with micro usb cable via that blue port on the right (on speed of 2.0 certainly), but does not work by usb 3.0 cable
Anyway, I hear a 'connecting' sound when connect it to the usb 3.0 and the position in Device Manager appears with a problem sign '!' and inscription 'code 10' but the hdd doesn't open in my computer

Please, help me. Lost 2 days to find a solution, still no good news

 

Have you tried using anything other than the Samsung external hdd?
Maybe it specifically has a problem with the usb 3.0 port.

 

Wait for Windows 8, it will support USB 3.0 natively.

 

i find myself using the fn keys for volume and brightness all the time. can anybody tell me how i can lock the fn key so i dont need to press it to change volume/brightness?

 

Use keytweak to create your own short cut. I have f3 for volume - and f4 for volume +

Download KeyTweak 2.3.0 Free - Remap your keyboard. - Softpedia

 

Thanks!

Just downloaded it -- now just need to figure out how to use it. I thought I remapped it correctly but it doesn't work even after I restart.

I would like the volume - and + keys to be f3 and f4... don't know why Asus put it on the other side.
They were f3 and f4 on my old vaio and it was so easy to turn my volume up or down.

 

launch the program and click on the Half Teach Mode button. Click on the scan a single key and then press f3. Click on the drop down menu and select your new key. Repeat the step for f4 key and then hit apply and reboot. The only thing that sucks about using keytweak is that it will not display the status of the volume like when you are using the fn + f11, f12. but it works tho

 

Has anyone had any luck connecting a Bluetooth device to this laptop?

I have the UX31E-DH52

I have been trying to connect my mouse for a few hours with no luck. My Android tablet pairs and connects with the mouse just fine.

I also tried connecting my phone to the laptop to see if it was just the mouse, but neither show up when searching for a device.

Both connect to my tablet and other Bluetooth enabled laptop.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

My UX31-53 is ready for pickup from Bestbuy. It was on back order for around 3 weeks and hopefully Asus could fix the issues of the wifi and touchpad

 

I have no problems connecting another notebook and several smartphones. Have you tried to set the bluetooth to discoverable and find the UX31 with your other laptop?

 

Does usb 3.0 work with the stock laptops from the box? Unfortunately I forgot to try my new hdd when the laptop was in "stock". I want to know it to figure out if now it doesn't work because of windows reinstall and drivers absence

 

Just flashed bios 209.
The first i recognised is the improved wireless speed... The first time im getting full speed with download. Tried various speed tests. Before i was getting only 60 to 70 percent of what the internet is capable (on two different locations).

If the touchpad (sentelic) will get a little bit better driver than i will be fully satisfied with the zenbook.

 

Yes, USB3 works with the stock installation. You should try to get your hands on another USB3 device and see if that one works.