New UX31A at BestBuy - Win8/touchscreen/black finish

Just curious if anyone has any additional information about the new UX31A that popped up on the BB website recently. Can't find it anywhere else, including the main ASUS site. Seems like the next revision of the BB's UX31A-R5102F, with Windows 8, touchscreen, and a (rather nice, I might add) black finish.

Asus - 13.3" Laptop - 4GB Memory - 128GB Solid State Drive - Radiant Black - UX31A-BHI5T11

 

I don't see it on there site...how much is it selling for?
They've reduced the r5102 to $899...

 

$1099
It's under "Laptops and Notebook Computers" -> "14" and Under". I've provided the link above.

 

I just got the UX31a-5102 from Best Buy at 900 less 10%, $810 which is a really great price...
but I'm wondering if I should get this???

 

Wow, even the BIOS config screen can use touch input?

 

i have been waiting for this laptop for a few months already. How does this handle with games like wow and tf2?

 

Excellent news indeed.
Wonder if they also have an i7 version of it. The link points to an i5 version.

Radiant Black? Hopefuly it is subsidized by Loréal.

 

I am wandering how reliable this information is? Do we really believe that this computer will have 10/100 and not 10/100/1000 Ethernet ?

 

I was going to go buy the same model tomorrow... How did you get the 10% off?

 

I found a store with an open box. When I got to the store they couldn't find it.
Spoke to the manager, told him ,I had called before coming to check it was there, drove far...manager honored the open box price on a new one!
BB needs business, if you get to the manager, they will be open to making deals...done similar things with them before...
they have now even started matching online pricing, like from Amazon!

 

You laugh about it now, but wait till your keyboard configuration is screwed and the only way you could restore is by changing BIOS settings. What will you do then? Oh the tragedy! Luckily with this laptop you would be good to go.

 

But seriously, how does it compare with the Acer S7?
Acer S7 has similar specs and apparently much sleek and equally robust.
Acer S7 Touchscreen

 

This zenbook looks pretty awesome.

I just bought the N56VZ because I wanted the bigger screen and the ability to play games, but if I had the extra money, I might have wanted this notebook too for on-the-go.

 

Ah, but how will I hit the F keys to boot to BIOS?

 

Giant green button on the screen that says "BOOT TO BIOS". :thumbsup:

 

Just curious if there are any owners of this fine device out there

 

It's impossible to buy (at least from where I live). No shipping available so you have to get it from your local best buy store. I don't know if only a few stores had them or if it's just a mistake. I was very dissappointed I couldn't buy it.

 

Hi all,
I was on ebay eariler and came across this exact model number. The seller looks to be pretty good with a 100% feedback rating but it looks like their are only a couple units listed though. :thumbsup:

 

Hello Everybody,

Anyone have any information pertaining to this notebook? Thinking about pulling the trigger on this (also considering samsung series 9 - however, no touch screen) or should I wait?

 

I pulled the trigger on it and it shipped immediately. Should arrive by thursday.

I'm interested in finding out what sort of issues people have had in the past with the ux31. I read a blog post about some of the tweaks asus did based on feedback (touchpad and loose power connector). Has anyone had any problems? From the drivers shown it looks like they use an intel wifi module (probably a bestbuy thing since they push WiDi boxes)

My biggest concern is how well the touchpad works. I heard the first version was quite poor.

 

Anxiously awaiting your impressions, Snipester

 

I also pulled the trigger right after I saw Snipester's reply last night. Hopefully it arrives tomorrow, I chose express for shipping. I think I'm gonna love the color, radiant black sounds so awesome!

 

Please keep us posted guys Pictures, first impressions, etc., will be greatly appreciated. I am very curious how Asus was able to augment the UX31a with a touchscreen, yet keep the price and especially the weight essentially unchanged (X1 Carbon, in comparison, gained 0.5 lb and about $150)

Edit:
Found a short article with an embedded video clip. It's in Hebrew, so I had to rely on the Google translator, but it seems that the reviewer were quite impressed by the machine, with the exception of the trackpad (I believe) - surprise, surprise Also, their unit retains the silver color scheme of the non-touch version.
http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4318537,00.html

 

Ugh... bestbuy cancelled my order, and I had to call them again to place another order to see if they "actually" have the item in stock. Now I really wanna see Snipester's reply when he(she) receives the order. They don't even know if this one's actually available for shipping or not. What kind of system do they have!!! WTHeck!!!$#@%$@%$@$!#$@! always having issues with bestbuy, sigh...

 

Sorry to hear that Let's hope Snipester's luck is better.
On the brigher side of things - there is now one review up on the BB site, so apparently the machines are being shipped (and received).

 

Oh sweet Jesus, this one's so beautiful. I just got mine and opened the box, it's so beautiful. I like the color very much, much better looking than the grey version in my opinion. I'm not sure how BestBuy got this exclusive deal, but they did a good job!

The biggest concern I had was the type of display and resolution, but I"m sure it's FHD w/ IPS!

 

Congratulations! Looking forward to your additional comments after some time with the notebook

 

How about a few pics too?

 

Here you go

 

I got mine, I love it, but this model has the same issue as the non-touch version of Zenbook Prime UX31A, backlight bleeding.

Does this look ok? I've never tried IPS monitors, so I'm not really sure if this is tolerable. I honestly think that I can't, sigh...

Please advise guys.

 

Hi Snipester, does your display have backlight bleeding also? Have you tested?

 

That is a lot of light bleed, my recently purchased normal UX31A has barely any bleed at all, though I think the battery may be faulty ?

 

Do you guys know if I can use a Wacom stylus with this ultrabook (or any stylus for that matter)?

Mine just arrived and it is pure love. Don't see any backlight bleed. Only problems I see so far (though I just got it) is that the whole thing smugs easily with fingerprints and the camera on it is terrible.

Oh well, I can bear it considering this is so much cheaper than the acer s7 and way better than the yoga in my mind. Plus it's the only one with widi, full hd, backlit keyboard, 13" screen under 3 lbs I could find.

 

Such a great looking machine! As for the bleed, eh... its alot, but not that bad. I would live with it for a little while and see if you can even notice it later. Most of the time, its something that you notice for a sec when being super critical at first purchase and then after a week, its no biggie. My UX31A has just about as much bleed as yours.

 

I don't have that much bleed. There is some minor brightness uniformity problem but not too bad. It does feel like a nice piece of tech for the price but I'm seriously going to consider going for the surface pro instead. It's a bit big/heavy compared to what I think i was looking for.

 

Really? From everything I've seen about this notebook, it is identical in size to non-touch UX31A, and approx. 0.22lb heavier, and that, in itself, is in the same league as MBA. I don't think ultrabooks get much more compact/lighter than that (Samsung Series 9 and Toshiba Portege Z935 are closer to 2.5lb, but Toshiba's screen cover is quite flimsy, and Samsung's keyboard is atrocious).

 

looks like it only has a 5 point touch screen. It's definitely a lot heavier than a Microsoft surface pro but still very light, enough for me - especially for a 13" screen.

 

Does this have an Adata SSD?

 

I just got mine and here are my initial thoughts:

1) Now I get all the W8 fanatics out there. With this touch screen (though see below for downside) all i want to do is touch all the tiles and look at the gorgeous rendering. The problems I have are: You need a maid to keep cleaning it every 30 mins; it's kind of a long reach over the keyboard to the screen, gets a little tiring after a while and found myself preferring the touchpad for comfort
2) The glossy screen is a buzz-kill for me. Even more gorgeous than the matte as long as there's no reflecting light, but between the reflections and the fingerprints I don't know that I can live with it
3) The black "satin" aluminum finish is very slick, but it's more than a fingerprint magnet - it's a hand oil sponge! I mean, I wash my hands before I work on my computers but just opening and closing the lid, carrying it across the room and laying my palms on the palm rests and it was more shiny black than satin black in an hour!

I now have two UX31A's to compare and I really think the backlight bleed issue is overblown. All very bright backlights - especially IPS screens - will show some backlight coming through when there's no rendered color around the edges of the screen, such as in the W7 boot screen. But put any fully rendered content - video or still - on the screen, even black, and you won't see the light come through. Possibly if you have the screen at full brightness in a dark room with a low res black or gray coloring at the edges, but that's just not how you use a computer. I have two Sony Z's, the former best 13" screens on the market, and the backlight comes through the Window splash screen but as soon as the desktop or any real content is on the screen you see no bleed at all. I find the best test to be to put a video with a different aspect ratio than 16X9 and look at the black bars. I see nothing but solid black.

I have too many laptops (!) but I've definitely decided to keep my non-touchscreen i7/256GB (Adata) and somehow part with my Z13 (snif) and even the gorgeous HP Envy 14 Spectre, which is not very powerful but has the best keyboard/trackpad on any Ultrabook, looks like it's made of black onyx and costs $5,000 (I got mine used for $700!) and has a damn good 14" 900p screen in a 13" chassis. Hmmm, maybe I'll keep the Spectre for a while longer...

Seriously, I've come to feel the current Zenbook UX31A is worlds better than all its competition, including the Samsung 9 and MBA, and if it means you have to send it back to Asus for a hardware fix or two, it's worth it. It's both a work of art and a great piece of kit, just has some teething pains from being rushed out too quickly.

my 2 cents....

 

Do either of yours have the Fan off/on/off/on issue? I am wondering if they fixed this in the new touch version. I just got my UX31A and the fans are driving me nuts (I am 80% of the time in a library style environment).

 

Totally silent unless I stress it with a benchmark. You just ruined my day by reminding me of that! I had decided I like this BB Touchscreen model so much that I'm going to crack open the seal on my UX31A-DB71 (256GB Adata, i7) because it takes this touchscreen model and loses the glossy screen (I find W8 works fine with a mouse/trackpad) and lose the hand oil/fingerprint SPONGE of a case and get all of the great stuff I love on this computer: screen (duh), keyboard (unless they've improved it for this touch model, I think it's as good as any UB kb I've used except MBA and my beloved Envy 14 Spectre), toucpad - with current drivers, it's just fine - and the awesome design, light weight and tolerable battery life.*

But now I have to remember that the unopened box I have could have a fan problem, bad wifi, keyboard that dies from time to time - and I'll have to see if my light bleed assessment goes out the window when I see the standard matte IPS screen that everyone has been using and finding the blacklight bleed intolerable; FWIW, I see absolutely zero backlight bleed on this touch/glossy screen. (And as long as there are no reflections, I have to say this glossy version of the UX3A IPS has got to be even more kick-butt than the matte.

So, if I have this touch model which appears to have none of the "Zenbook curses", W8 installed and apparently running fine (haven't tested everything by a long shot), even an Adata SSD, though only 128GB, and while having the downsides of a glossy screen, has the upsides as well, even with the black greaseball case it's still a cuts a striking figure. So maybe I should quit while I'm ahead and keep this one. That would leave me with what they call a "classy problem": the non-touch UX31A I can RMA for 100% refund (as long as I don't open it) or, I could offer this $1,400+ computer I got for $999 for sale to the highest bidder.

Thoughts? Anything y'all want me to try on the Touchscreen and report back on?

What cpu do you have? SSD? don't know they matter, just trying to see what causes some to have the fan problem and others not. You have to figure that the vast majority of UX31As out there do not have the fan on/off thing because even when you read through all the negative reviews on Amazon or Newegg, very few mention the fan issue, though to read the threads here, you could believe that 50% or more do it.

 

Well I think the fan thing could just be an OCD trait. Most people don't really care to have a silent machine as much as others. As for the negatives you list about the UX31A, the only one is the fan.... everything else is non existent due to updates. I have had no wifi issues. Backlight bleed is there, but even when watching netflix I don't see it (just when windows starts). I am a fan of matte screens and I really do think thats a major plus of the non touch. I had a thinkpad twist for about a week and the glossy screen combined with the fingerprints made me quickly return it. Touch is nice, but until a screen can be completely oil resistant (not really possible) then I am going to hold off on getting one.

I am jealous that the new one does not have the fan issues though. I have an i5 3317u and adata 128 drive, there are no reports of whether the fan issue is related to one specific processor or another.

 

Just picked up one from BB but won't open it until New Year. Very happy with the purchase as I was waiting for this exact model a long time and the timing is awesome.

BB didn't have any on display but I am sure the quality should be very good.

 

Nice! I am yet to see this model in stock at any local (and not so local) BB store, thus I figured it was an online purchase only.

 

Just picked one up from bestbuy. I love this thing!

Mine came with an Sadisk ssd, don't know if there are any adata shipping as well - anyone know if they are?

 

Just an update guys. I returned mine on Sat and got a new one from BB (they started selling offline, not a lot of locations though), same amount of bleeding, returned it again today, and this one's little better. I'll just keep this since no other laptops will replace this beauty I'm not sure why zoom in and out won't work on Chrome, but oh well, I'm still trying to learn Win 8.

Mine is Sandforce, the second one was something else (not Adata), I forgot Anyways, thanks guys again, and enjoy a new week.

 

So I got one of these today as an early Xmas gift after my daughters machine was stolen last weekend and I gave her mine.

I love the screen- at least as good the HP Spectre I configured for my VP last week.

I also love the color screen especially the silver/black keyboard deck. I normally don't care but this is one of the nicest looking systems I have come across.

But, I'm having a couple of issues.

1. The trackpad- It frequently will not do either vertical or horizontal scroll. I have the updated Asus smart gesture software installed and have made sure the gestures are enabled, but it doesn't seem to help.

In addition intermittently, but most commonly after waking it from sleep, the cursor will just disappear. At that point the only option is to use the touch screen.

For both problems, rebooting fixes the issue for awhile.

2. Wifi- Intermittently it just drops the connection. It will usually come back if i have windows reset the connection, but it's already annoying me. This is the same Wifi that is rock solid on the three other computers and two tablets in the house.

I have tried updating/reloading the driver without success.

Any suggestions would be most helpful. I don't want to return it because it was a gift AND the screen is awesome

 

For the wifi, it may be a router issue, try updating the router firmware, if it is from a cable provider you can ask them to replace it for free (I have verizon).

 

A question for those who have the computer - how is the quality of the black paint, especially on the silver/black base? Does it look like it'll hold up to the daily abuse or will it start chipping (or is chipping already)? The original UX31A was brushed aliminum, so the paint durability was not an issue.
Also, what is the color of the sleeve that came with the laptop? Same as original (brown)?
Thanks.

 

Sleeve is brown, same as original. Quality of paint is good, especially on the back of the screen. Can't really comment on chipping (no chipping yet) as only had for a few days.