New ASUS N550 Multimedia series, IPS panel ?

It has 4 or 6 cells. You need to ask them if that is important. Again the 6 cell I saw on some models and reviews. We only have the 4 cells and I only could find a 4 cells replacement.

The battery is inside the laptop, you need to remove the back panel to get to it. This is just like mine ASUS N550J Battery | Replacement ASUS N550J Battery Online Store and not exactly what you might be used to.

 

I have nothing for you. It's all about Asus' cal. Seems like they do not sell the same stuff in US and EU for some reason unknown to me.

"inde" works fine

I know about these little problems that make usage such a pain.

 

Xotic probably has no idea. When I bought there a few years ago, they delayed so long I had time to move residences twice, over a span of a few months. I wasn't in too much of a hurry but that's something you don't forget. At least gentech lists it as a pre-order (just noticed it is now in stock).

Is the Amazon screen IPS? How do you know the website specs are incorrect?

I'm also going to add the SSD myself; youtube videos on N56 ssd install is very straightforward and hopefully it's the same procedure here. It's probably easier/faster to just do a clean install rather than cloning. Bloatware is bloatware no matter how they try to dress it up

 

Gentech is in stock, ready to build/ship. Confirmed with Ken and placed order this afternoon. He said US SKU does NOT have IPS screen, so went with 95% screen.

 

I just checked the device manager of a N550JV-DB72T (touchscreen) and it's a LGD0323, so it's indeed a IPS screen, however, because of the touchscreen so it's glossy not matte-type:

 

I ordered the non-touchscreen version. So do this mean both versions are IPS, or just the touchscreen version? I may need to reconsider the upgraded screen on my order if stock is IPS.

 

No it does not have mSATA slot as far as I can tell:

I haven't check the non-touchsreen version, I'll find out and let you know.

 

After you remove the entire back panel, you see this (takes about 10 screws):

http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...0-multimedia-series-ips-panel-asus-n550vj.jpg

HDD should be easy after that.

 

I have the same ID like the above for non-touch IPS.

 

Looks like c-man just answered your question, it's a IPS screen.

thanks.

 

OK, so IPS confirmed. I've been reading about this panel and info is all over the place. This was in the HP Envy and Sony Vaio and had the orangegate problem. Then it looks like that was addressed, but user feedback is still all over the place. Some say it covers sRGB, some say it's not even close. Apparently there are different versions of this panel using the same model no. c_man has posted an sRGB graph from a UX51VZ which is probably the closest info I'm going to get, and it wasn't pretty. Seems like on this model, the 95% screen may be a better choice for photo editing than the IPS. Any other thoughts from anyone who has actually used this IPS panel for photo editing?

 

If I order w/o the hdd, does that mean Asus won't service the warranty? Earlier someone said you have to have the original hdd for the warranty?

 

You need to ship the unit the way you buy it.

 

Is the gentech site updated with full specs? Just curious if there are other inaccuracies in the initial specs aside from IPS.

 

May be somewhat off-topic, but has anyone else been scared off by the whole "ssd write life" thing? I mean some say that an ssd can last 4+ years, which is plenty, but other say that their ssd's only lasted a year, maybe half a year, sometimes a month, before the ssd fails COMPLETELY, as in its virtually irreparable. Does that still happen nowadays?

 

Well, SSD is such a generic term. There are different tehcs and stuff. I'm sold to Samsung, but keep in mind that the "normal" SSD they sell now use TLC not MLC (like the Pro family). Rumour has it the TLC ones have about half the life of the Pro series (specs suggest more like 3 times over). What exactly that means is hard to say, no one knows exactly. The SSD itself has 3y warranty, so at least it should last that long. Some test show that writing (this is what kills the SSD) about 20GB of data daily on TLC will wear the SSD in about 5 to 10 years (depending on the exact model). So even the lowest life span is still decent. If you use the SSD a lot, with huge amounts of data, it will stop working sooner (a lot sooner under heavy usage, one year could be it). This is why it's ideal to use HDD for storage and SSD for working. I'm saying this for some time now. Using it to download tons of files with tens of GB is another matter, more suited for HDDs. So in the end it's just user error and not a SSD problem, at least with some models. Take a look at your needs and choose wisely.

 

Read up here about write life:
Taking a Hard Look At SSD Write Endurance - Slashdot

 

Have you received the laptop from amazon, because I have a few questions before I purchase it.

1. What is the screen resolution?
2. Did it include the 24Gb SSD?
3. Was the processor really a 4702HQ instead of the 4700HQ? Amazon is the only dealer that I found that include the slower processor.

 

Keith, how did the laptop for amazon turn out? Was the reolution 1920x1080 or 1366x768? Did it include a 24Gb SSD? Finally, is the processor the i7 4702HQ or the i7 4700HQ?

 

What brands and models can I trust then? I know samsung and intel are pretty good, but anything else?

 

Netflix screen test per your request by email:

Yeah there was typo about the Intel HD Graphics 5200, should be HD 4600.

 

Thx Ken, looking pretty red. Asus qa is no HP!

Adorama also lists the 4702, slightly slower but uses less power, from intel site.

 

Be very careful with the screws on the bottom. We stripped a good half of them trying to take off the panel to swap the HDD for an SSD. Now waiting on extractor tools from Amazon to try and remove those stripped screws. Almost seems deliberate how bad those screws are.

 

Did you use the exact right tool for the job?

 

Hi,

Thanks for that!
What size optical bay caddy will be needed?
Also, is the HDD SATA III?

 

Mine says Drive Controller: Serial ATA 3Gb/s, but I see no real speed difference between this and other 6Gb/s laptop (still 7200rpm drive).

 

the optical bay size is 9.5mm.

the 1TB drive is HGST HTS541010A9E680 5400rpm and it's a SATA 2 drive.

Edit: it's 9.5mm.

 

GenTech PC- This is where I ordered mine they are in stock and ship to the us. You can upgrade it just like you would on xoticpc. Also customer service is great.

 

This looks like a pretty good notebook, especially due to having a matte IPS display at this price.

• Is this IPS display actually better than the stock TN panels on laptop like the MSI GT60? I've seen mixed opinions here.
  
• Despite having an internal battery, is it still user replaceable? It looks like there is a connector inside instead of solder, but maybe that connector is for something else.

 

Hey, can you remove the optical drive on this laptop and replace the current 2.5'' into the Optical drive and add your own 2.5' SSD? (I already own a 2.5' 64gb, not mSATA )


Thanks

 

Thanks!
Will I benefit from a SATA 3 SSD over a SATA 2 ssd if I were to replace the main hdd?

 

GT60 has a better sRGB coverage.

Battery looks like this ASUS N550J Battery | Replacement ASUS N550J Battery Online Store and you can replace it.

 

GentechPC gives you the option to do so, so I would assume the answer is yes.

 

Thanks.

So this IPS display is actually worse than a TN panel? That doesn't even make sense... but I guess it explains how they kept the price to about $1k. I was considering buying this laptop instead of the GT60 because of the IPS display.
Also, do you know anything about contrast ratio and brightness?

Edit: Sorry about the double post. I'm used to forums auto merging them.

 

It's fine. If you do no image editing, at best you will notice that some human skin tone is a bit warm (but that can be fixed even from within Intel Display driver) - other colors you might find intersting and more pleasant. So far with Asus no panel has been perfect.

 

It's not just about coverage but accuracy too, you would have to compare deltas between the two displays calibrated.

 

It appears I've double posted somehow. Sorry.

 

Turns out the screen is the same as the one in the ASUS UX51, so this review will help anyone curious about screen quality.

Review Asus Zenbook UX51VZ (U500VZ) Notebook - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

Also the MSI GT60 is considered to have a pretty good TN panel, so here's a review of the GT60.

Review MSI GT60-i789W7H Notebook - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

 

Is it safe to say that all their units ship with this panel? Both Amazon and Microcenter's site quote the display at 1366x768, is that just misinformation? Or is it possible they have a watered down version?

 

Hi. I was wondering the same thing. I bought one from adorama this weekend and it doesn't even mention the display resolution. The other descripancies I've noticed on the various websites are some say they come with i7 4700 HQ and other say i7 4702 hq . I called Asus and they weren't really helpful they said that there were several computers under the designated mfr number I gave him n550jv-db72t. With the most expensive one being 1099.00 others being as low as 600 usd. The more expensive one had 4702hq processor and the other ones had like i5. He said on his specs the screens for all of them were 1366/768 which makes no since. If you go to Asus website it says the n550jv series up to 1920x 1080 if it is supposed to be the more expensive model it better have fhd display I would hope. Maybe they are planning to release lower end n550jv series but when I do a search I only find the one with the touch screen and without. He also mentioned something about a multimedia series of this model i thought that was what this was according to one of the reviews i saw on you tube but he said according to his specs the multimedia series one only had a msrp of around 600-700 dollars. I'm hoping that all the varying specs are miscommunication with retailers and typos on the various websites. I have seen a few smaller computer resellers who are showing 1920x1080. I won't know for sure till late Wednesday until I receive mine from adoroma and I will for sure post the specs for those potential buyers if you'd liked. Sorry for such a long post but I thought I would pass along what I found out from Asus and that really left me a whole lot more confused. I can see now why the various retailers are all over the place if they had to deal with guy I did to get the spec.

 

So Asus in the us actually got the wrong spec themselves...No wonder... As for the cheaper version, I think he was probably referring to this LF model.
Deal: Asus N550LF Haswell laptop goes on sale for £796 | ITProPortal.com

 

I don't know about the stores you mentioned, but i know GentechPC has them with a 1920x1080 screen for a lower price. I'm pretty sure their conpetitors have it as well.
Gaming Laptops - GenTech PC - Gaming Notebooks - Custom Laptops - Custom Notebooks - Systems

 

To followup on this thread, I got in touch with Micro Center and confirmed it is in fact the 1080p IPS, I don't know where the misinformation is stemming from. I picked it up today from Micro Center and I can confirm it is the 1080p IPS and I suspect Amazon and other retailers are the same, but I can only speak for Micro Center.

Lastly, I got a 840 pro for it as well and have hit nothing but walls trying to get Windows 8 onto the new drive, so much so that I've just decided to use a Win7 pro key I have lying around. Horrible choice by MS with the handling of the OEM Win 8 key, I woulda loved to give it a shot, but I'm not going to jump through the hoops needed nor purchase ANOTHER key just to use the one that I paid for already. Oh well, I have no qualms with Win7 in the least.

 

Customer care, nothing more, a lot less

And this goes for both Asus and Microsoft.

 

A lot of people wont know what an ips or tn panel is which does not help.

 

Thanks spooky, was it a touch or non-touch screen? What do you think of the screen?

 

Hi. What processor does it have the 4700hq or the 4702hq. I ordered from adorama and they price matched the micro center price saved me tax but on there limited specs it lists 4702hq which I've seen on some other websites. I even called Asus and they have it listed as 4702hq and only 1366/768 screen they really have the information right. I don't get mine until Wednesday. Do you like it so far.

When I installed my upgrade windows 8 I bought when it first came out to my desktop on an Intel ssd drive I first installed windows 7 and then upgraded I believe it did a clean install. Maybe you could try doing that a little more work. I'll double check my drive later and see if I have a windows old folder but I think its windows pro on the ssd drive by itself. If you try it let me know if it works.

 

I went with the touch screen and to be honest I've used it more already than I ever thought I would. I'm not a huge screen snob, so I might not be the best to ask, but I got one of those early Korean IPS panels from Monoprice when they first got them for my desktop and have been spoiled by that for a while and this I think is easily on par with it -- simply, I have no qualms yet but I haven't done a lot on it yet.

Mine is the 4700hq. I'm really jumping the gun jumping to any conclusions, I've merely been installing work stuff / working which isn't exactly taxing. I would highly recommend swapping out the HDD for a SSD (duh) if you can live with the cost / lack of space, the performance kick is huge. The 5400 rpm drive it comes with is a little disheartening for the short time I used it with it installed.

Regarding Win8 I had an extra upgrade license lying around, I'm just using that with an old Win7 key to do a clean install. I found cloning and/or installing Win8 with the OEM key it comes with to be an absolute nightmare. It really just ended up being not worth my time trying to clone, then restore, etc when I had a license to use AND get a clean install, esp on a SSD.

 

Could anyone recommend a caddy with enclosure suitable for this laptop? thanks

 

I'm actually interested in this as well, if you find any info please share.