Buying the W3J without seeing it.. what to expect? problems?

Well I'm about to order my W3J without actually seeing it, what can I expect from this pricy machine... alot of ppl telling me im paying too much (mostly because they don't know much about asus). Can I expect any problems with this beast? Or will I be thorougly satisfied with the purchase..

will problems such as poor screen quality, standby locking, excessive heat, stupid ctrl/fn switch, battery life be problems??

Any input from current owners would be fantastic! Thank you very much

 

also, is it safe to pay with straight up cash? I've ordered to pickup at Milestone and for some reason their shop only takes cash.. Safe?

 

1. screen is fine.
2. fixed with bios update or other easy fixes to be found in the forum here.
3. all high end components generate heat; w3 isn't excessive in that regard.
4. learn to live with it.
5. high end components (esp x1600 gpu) eat power. 3 hours for such a powerful unit is good.

If you have the money and are willing to spend it (without guilt), you won't get a better value for your dollar than the W3j.

Milestone is perfectly safe. They are a reputable reseller.

 

Are you buying a toy or are you buying a valuable piece of equipment? I payed with my American Express card knowing that if I have problem with the retailer, they can intervene on my behalf.

 

yea im pretty much on the same boat since i preordered mine and expecting it to come around the beginning of next week. i didnt even want to mention the price to some of my friends since they all think dell pwns for the price. just cant wait for it to come to my doorstep !!

 

I feel the same way. $1500+ is a considerable amount and way too much to pay in cash, regardless of the seller's reputation.

 

I don't remember if they have any other methods at the momment, besides Cashier's Cheque or Certified Cheque. I think the bank is still doing their debit/CC system.

I paid for both of my laptops with a cashiers Cheque, it was fine

If you don't think its safe, you can always buy it from somewhere else...

 

If you compare Asus W3J with it's protable counterparts,you find it as a rescuing angel,IT's problem are :
1 - Heat coming out of right vent (I'm left-handed) (a cooling pad decreases the heat)(there is a solution including bending a card and putting it in front of the vent to send the air upwards)(Absolute no warranty)
2 - Swapped FN/Ctrl
3 - The standby dying can be solved by :
1 - Do not let W3J to hibernate while sleeping.
2 - Do not at any cost let your notebook to turn off the monitor(for me no recovery)
3 - A ~4hour battery life can be gained by using Battery Saving Mode.(all the high-performance notebook consume a lot of power there are some notebooks out there with only 1.5 - 2.5 hours of battery lives)
The way you list the problems shows that you are absolutely a newbie at notebooks - compare W3J with it's equals (nc8430 I think) and compare the design quality and the issues...
And go to Asus notebook FAQ to find a suitable and well supporting shop (ProPortable.com) for instance...

 

I believe that tk is in Canada, in the Toronto area specifically, since MPC has 3 storefronts in that area, so thats why he opted to do a pickup.

 

Hey Coriolis,can I ask what exactly is your avatar?

 

heh, the problems I listed arent really real probs, I know...thats why I wanted others to give there input on any poor experiences with this machine.. And paying with cash does seem pretty flakey but I guess since Milestone is well known and also since the warranty goes through asus it should be ok... **** those taxes though its gona cost $2335 total CDN...
Just wanted to be reassured that I will not be disappointed

 

I never heard of this issue. Is there a fix for it. What do you mean my turning off the monitor and having no recovery, and not letting W3j hibernate while sleeping. . I ordered mines and should be coming in next week or so.

 

Reload windows to a single partition then update the bios. All soft problems gone.

 

By reload windows to a single partition, you mean to reinstalling windows right? (I have no OS disc with me, does the W3J come with a restore/backup/recovery CD or will I have to go to Best Buy and buy an OS.)

And updating bios by going to ASUS site right?

Thanks for your help G2P.

 

All ensembles come with a restore pack. Just pick restore to whole drive once the menu for recovery comes up. Dont pick the partitions option

 

Whatever many partitions you want, it still needs a windows cd to reinstall. You can buy a full version from them if you don't want to use a recovery cd to reload a Windows. The original full version comes with a unique product key, it will let you to activate the windows after installation.
Cheers

 

i was using word and firefox without wifi this morning and it drained to 52% in 2 hours

expect a lappy like one youve never seem before

 

what are the chances of not having to reinstall the OS, due to this standby issue.

 

Doesn't the W3J come with WinXP?

 

yes it comes with full xp pro. Its a restore cd not oem. meaning asus took the oem cd and added all the drivers software and whatever else. That is why install takes 2+ hours instead of 30 minutes

 

what kind of shop that sells high priced items doesn't accept credit cards pretty sketchy

 

We dont take credit card locally for anything under 50$ and anything over 200$. On the web for mail order we sure do but if you use cc then it has to be shipped. Nothing sketchy about it. Thats the policy. You ant to use your credit card? Buy it online and have it shipped. You want to pick it up? come in bring cash or check in advance.

 

Just another note about paying by credit card. When I buy my W3J, I'll use my Visa because they will match the manufacturers warranty...which means I'll have 2 yrs global warranty. Can't beat that option!

Oh, and I dropped by Datavision to take a look at the W3J and its beautiful. The resolution is the same as the one I'm using on my Compaq so it won't be much of a change. But the feel of the laptop was great! Didn't stay long 'cause the salespeople were circling around me waiting to reel me in for the sale.

 

I have already downloaded and installed W3J207AS - Problem still presists.

 

I was there yesterday and the W3J is no longer on displayed and instead repleace by an Asus 15" model whose name I forgotten.

 

You Mean W1J ?

 

I think so

 

i actually have that problem with turning the monitor off..though its only prevalent on occasion if that makes sense..usually when its been idle for say 3 or more hours..the thing is i made sure to have the hd timer on OFF as well as any standby or hibernate options

 

Doubt its the W1j, it's only avaliable in the UK/Asia...

 

I've had mine for 5 months now and love it!

(and I'm coming from a personal iBook and a super duper work PC with dual flat screen!)

Mine had/has no fault (touch wood)
I'm sure if you get the laptop and really look for a "problem" you'll find one.
(I'm more of a half "full" glass kind of guy...)

The only thing I have done is:
Disable the "Hibernate" (a personal setting thing...)
and after 3 weeks removed Norton. I just found the stupid software updating all the time, the firewall preventing me going on basic stuff like Google hearth and Loging-on was taking longer and longer (over 2 minutes?)
After deleting Norton, I got Avast of the internet and use the basic Windows firewall (also my service provider claims to protect me over virus etc)
Loging-on is about 1 minute flat.

Bottom line: It's a nice, special, machine that makes me feel good every day.