G50V Questions Prior to Purchase

I am very close to pulling the trigger on this machine, but I have some questions before I buy:

1. Since I don't need the Blu-ray, I would get the A1, and I wanted to ask if GenTechPC is the best place to get one (everyone here seems to like them and Ken is around a lot).

2. Do the glossy parts pick up scratches? I know they are dust and fingerprint magnets. Also, how bad is the glossy screen in sunlight/direct lighting?

3. Is the 3rd year warranty worth it? If yes, then would I have to purchase it along with the laptop, or can I get one later from somewhere else?

4. Has anybody tried the 9-cell battery? How much additional battery life could it provide over the 6-cell? I'm just asking in case I find the 2 hours on the 6 cell insufficient! On a related note, how reliable are ASUS batteries, in general?

5. How big/heavy is the power adapter?

Just as background, I own a 4-year-old Dell Inspiron 9100, and recently purchased then returned a Dell Precision M4400 (grainy screen, keyboard flex). The only other notebook on the market right now that I would consider is the HP Elitebook 8530w, but the high price is unfortunate, and the price/performance ratio on the G50 is hard to beat, in spite of the gloss and orange trim.

Thanks in advance.

 

Oh and yes I do recommend if you want a notebook that plays games at this price point.

 

Sure...or excaliberpc.com, any other Asus reseller. Avoid newegg, b/c you give up reseller benefits...

Yes, expect scratches on the inside around the screen border, and outside if you aren't careful. Scratches pretty easily.

Up to you.

I hear ~3 hours on the 9 cell. I easily get 2 hours doing word processing/music/internet surfing. Easily.
And the batteries are like any other notebook's...reliable enough but will take damage from bad use.

The power adapter is relatively massive...my friend has an HP dv5t and my adapter absolutely swallows his up...this is a -big- power adapter and it gets HOT![/QUOTE]

I must disagree with you on some points, see my thoughts above.

 

Since you seem to be getting worse battery life than others -- are you sure your CPU and GPU are downclocking properly on battery? Use CPUZ + GPUZ or Everest to find out. Also make sure that you have no malware or anything eating up your CPU. And turn off unused wireless devices such as Bluetooth and WLAN (only if you don't use them of course).

 

Thanks for the responses, guys. I do intend to keep this laptop for at least 3-4 years, and the low scratch-resistance is indeed bothersome. Has anyone found 15.4" sleeves that this will fit into, or do u have to go with 17" ones?

 

I'm pretty sure you'd have to go with a 17" sleeve. Although, the scratches are more hairline light scratches than deep noticeable ones...and oddly Ihave more scratches inside around my screen border than I do outside. I'm sure they can be polished out though...

 

Sorry to bump this up again, but I'm trying to decide whether the NewEgg G50V-X1 is a good deal or not. The price difference is about $220 between the X1 and the G50V-A1 at Gentech/XoticPC. Does anyone know if the P8400 improves battery life without a big hit on gaming performance? For me, the P8600 is ideal but since I have to choose between the P8400 and T9400, I'm finding it hard to decide.

I know the better-looking G50VT is on its way, but I need a new laptop soon. Also, anyone have trouble taking this monster aboard aircraft?

 

1. Battery life is going to be less than 20 minutes different between cpu's.

2. Gaming performance is gpu based, not cpu.

3. You get terrific customer service from Ken at GenTech if anything happens. Newegg and you're on your own.

4. I haven't seen a 15" notebook that fit on a Coach-class tray table, that was usable for anything, in over a year. No one hauls out 15" notebooks to use on airplanes anymore -- they don't fit.

 

It seems that GentechPC is out of the A1's right now. I need this laptop soon so I think I'll go with XoticPC. Good decision?

 

I have never bought an Asus from xotic, but I got my sager from them. They are easy to get a hold of and easy to talk to so I would say customer service is good. I received my sager 6 days after ordering, it wasn't pre-built either. Overall I have been impressed with the company.