Best value ASUS G51Vx-A1?

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for best "bang for the buck" version of the ASUS G51Vx (A1 vs X2a vs X1a) laptop. I am a moderate gamer who plays mostly WoW looking for an upgrade to my Dell XPS M1530 with a 8600GT GPU. I notice there are 3 versions on newegg.com with basically 3 different CPU's: P8700, T9600, and Q9000 all with the 1920x1080 (TrueHD) screen that I would like. I think the highest end one has a larger hard drive as well which I don't really care about. Which laptop do you all feel is the best deal (bang for the buck) in terms of CPU performance? Also, does anyone know of any stores/websites with any of these higher end G51Vx's laptops selling for a good deal now? The best deal I've found so far is Newegg with the 6% Bing cashback. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

I've only seen the P8700/T9600 versions on Newegg, while the version with the Q9000 and dual 320 GB HDDs is the base version available at reseller sites. The quad version is the only one confirmed to handle quad core CPUs, so get that if you want to update the CPU to a faster quad in the future.

I'm leaning towards the T9600 as I have exactly $1500 to spend, and I do not intend to upgrade the CPU later, so I'll go with the best I can buy now. It has the single 320GB HDD, so there is an open bay to add an SSD drive later.

 

well im really lucky i just got the A1 for 1244USD after rebates/bingcashback. IDK if the deal is still on but you will have to pay 1580 upfront and get the rebates after 2months. Hopefully i get em soon.

 

I bought the A1 with the intent on the cpu qx9300 upgrade when it comes down in price.

I've noticed the BIOS cpu config is locked tho, so no playing with the stock Q9000 settings from there at the moment....

 

Wow... nice deal you got there.. how did you swing such a good deal? I think the best for a similar setup for the ASUS G51Vx-A1 would be 1699 - 100 MIR - 102 bing CB = 1497 + shipping from Newegg. I screwed up a few days ago when Newegg Bing CB was at 10% because I had an old, invalid credit card on my Paypal account and had to cancel the order. $1244 is just sick for a top of the line A1. Congratz on getting that deal.

By the way, does anyone follow the Bing cashback amounts for Newegg closely.. do they often have 10% CB deals or is it pretty rare?

 

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10010751&prodlist=celebros when they had the 20% bing cashback thing going on. The laptops sold out in a few hours though.

 

Honestly I was leaning towards the T9600 because I've read that for straight up gaming performance that higher clocked dual core CPU's > lower clocked quad core CPU's. I don't plan to upgrade my CPU as I don't have to know-how to do laptop upgrades other than easy external stuff like memory/hard drives etc (I can handle desktop upgrades just fine but...)

 

Thanks for the tip.. the price at zipzoomfly.com is significantly cheaper (like $125) than Newegg at the moment still. And, they offer 6% Bing CB just like Newegg. Anyone ever order from them before.. are they a pretty reliable online retailer?

 

haha yep ZipZoomFly is where i ordered it from. Got 20% off + 100USD cashback (91USD actually, cost 9USD if you want 3-5 day shipping, free takes 8-10 weeks). So total is actually 1253USD. HOT DAM, if the Bing is still working, then this laptop can be had for 1160USD!!!!!!!!!. Its 1575USD rite now. + 20% cashback (its not 6% Bruin) + 100USD mail-in-rebate = 1160USD. someone should order b4 the deal is gone.....

Zipzoomfly is very reliable, they did ask me for a signed invoice cuz im new and have no credit score. They were asking for SSN but i declined. The laptop is here in charleston according to Fedex but needs to wait for next business day (monday) to arrive.

EDIT!!!!!!!!! nvm nvm its now 6% OMFG I feel so lucky to have picked it up at such a good deal. You know Bruin, if you found this a week earlier you couldve got this laptop for my price i paid, 1244USD....I paid an invoice price of 1680. i guess now that the bing.com 20% cashback is gone they lowered the invoice price to 1575.

 

That was an unbelievably hot deal. So.. I wonder if I should wait for the next big deal or just spring for the ZZF 6% cashback deal. Hmm...

 

Most games run fine at 2.0 GHz (if they're only using two cores of the quad), and it's very easy to upgrade, anyway.

I had zero experience, period, with upgrading CPUs, but I did mine without a hitch.

 

So.. would you go with a quad core for a little more money or a dual core for a little less, assuming that I don't plan to upgrade my CPU?

 

Unless the money is utterly redunkulous, I would always choose a quad.

 

The quad is only $100 more at Newegg, so it really isn't a big deal. In fact, the quad core at ZZF after rebate is actually cheaper than the highest end dual core at Newegg. Did anyone read the NBR review today on this laptop? The author thought that a quad core really ruins the battery life versus a dual core CPU. Anyone have any thoughts about this? Does using a dual core CPU save considerable energy versus a quad core CPU?

 

i just bought the A1 from ZZP and it arrived today about 4 hrs ago (336 cashback sitting in bing.com) + 91USD mail-in-rebate = MAJOR WIN in A1 deal. im having trouble reinstalling windows plz feel free to help me...i dont mean to spam but srsly...i need help!!!!!

 

I'd say go with the quad for a measly +100.

Power wise a quad would eat more energy than, say, a P8700. However to counteract heat and energy consumption you can undervolt/underclock the Q9000.

 

Thanks for the advice Forge and everyone else. I'm going to use a laptop cooler for sure for this laptop anyways so not that worried about the heat and I doubt I will be doing much intense gaming in an area without a power outlet (so the low battery life should be OK). Just have to look for a good deal on the quad core ASUS now.

 

Going with the quad model also includes that extra 320 GB 7200 rpm HDD, which is nice if you want to boost your system performance with a RAID 0 setup ... definitely worth the extra $100... and as always, a nice included mouse (Razer Copperhead) can't hurt!