Next W3J refresh???

Does anybody have any ideas of when the next refresh will be for the W3J and if so what do you think will be changed?

 

The next shipment which arrives within the next two weeks is supposedly unchanged. Merom will be popped into the systems shortly, with a complete turnover in the lineup by early October.... I don't have any firm proof, but just knowing how Asus does things, the W3 and W7 should be the last to get turned over, so that "refresh" which should only include a Merom update, should be here in just under two months. The first Merom models should be here in a month and should start with the V6 and W5.

 

I dont see the point of refreshing the w3j until intel starts shipping the 64 bit processors but maybee thats just mee. If that happens or not i guess we will see but otherwise asus will sure bring another superb notebook.

At the moment i think the w3j is the best notebook in the 14 wide format and they seem to be selling good so why change a winning concept.

 

Can't wait for W3Jm (all this goodnes + nVidia 7600 GPU)

 

Any update only makes it better obviously..... Asus gives a little and then everyone excepts more and more... that's how it goes I guess, but I agree with you. I don't know why there would be much change at all until the end of the year and the holidays come around....... early next year brings another new platform and another refresh for all of the current models......

 

That's too bad, I'm going to school the 21st of September and I thought I'd wait it out to see if they would start shipping them with merom in mid-September. I'd like it now for some of the travelling I do, but it's not a necessity. I know upgrading is possible with a bios update (so people say), but I don't want to void my warranty to do so. Should I wait or just get it now? Because it doesn't seem like prices will be going down on the current W3J before school starts.

What kinds of refreshes may we see with the W5? Anything more than just a cpu upgrade?

And what's this W3Jm talk?

 

W3J with Merom 2.13Ghz??

 

I'm in the same situation as you Aryding. Move-in for me is September 22-25 (we haven't been given our assigned day yet), and if the W3j with Merom will be out in time for that then I'll wait. I'm not sure if I should go ahead and buy it now or just wait it out and hope it comes in by early-mid September.

-Brian

 

Same situation here. Move in is the 21st, and I'm struggling with getting something now or holding off until the last minute to see if anything becomes available.

 

... where the hell are you guys going to school that you're starting at the end of September? Are you on tri-mesters or something?

Think about it this way..... if you're interested in upgrading to 64bit quickly.... what's being without a computer for the first week or class or so? Honestly, there's so much going on in the first couple weeks of college that the computer is going to be the last thing on our mind..... and getting the lastest model with merom is going to save you from having to upgrade and void your warranty if that is infact what you're planning on doing.

I'm just saying, when you're cutting it that close, a week is nothing, especially when you look back at the purchase in six months or a year and think you're glad you held off a week or so...

 

It is my understanding that this release of Merom is intels 64 bit version of their dual core processor, so this refreash will mean the W3J will now come with a 64bit processor. you just have to wait for Vista and software to update before you can fuly utilize the 64bit, but as Proportable suggests, it will be a good future proof model.

Also @ Proportable, is it going to run the same chipset?

 

You guys west coast? U of Oregon here...

Proportable: Yeah, the Oregon University system has all of the schools beginning on the 25th of September.

 

Yes, it's going to run the same chipset until the even newer Core 2 Duo's come out in said to be January 2007. Which then the new Core 2 Duo's will be built on the napa platform and no longer on yonah. That means different socketed cpu's with the fsb performance increase to 800mhz. This is what intel plans to do, but things can change. It will also include a new integrated WLAN upgrade as well.

 

Wow....as Pro portable said, having Merom capabilities in the first week isnt important. Its better on the wallet to get the Yonah processor and then upgrade later towards Merom. Unless you can tell between speeds, the performance boost isnt worth wanting now. Save some cash now(you will really need it) and go with Yonah.

P.S; Many colleges are starting school in late Sept(Alot of West Coast ones are I guess).

 

I agree with this. If you really want the Merom, wait the extra week or two. If you really can't wait, just buy a Core Duo system. It's not like Core Duo is a weak processor. It should get you through the life of the system.

Then when you replace the laptop, get the best available CPU at that time rather than wasting money buying two processors and throwing one away.

 

Yeah, I understand the situation. Now I just have to figure out if I want to wait that extra week or two. Personally, and like proportable said, it will save me money from upgrading later.

I'm just wondering if there is a date that ASUS plans on shipping out the refreshed W3J or if this is all just speculation on it coming in at the end of september?

Err, I'd upgrade to Merom after my warranty went up, but as you probably understand I'd rather have Merom capabilities without having to upgrade later on (or at least for a long time).

 

What will the price difference be between the W3J now and W3J with Merom?

Also, what is the expected cost of purchasing a Merom processor compatible with a W3J? My schooling begins in August and I want to know if getting a Merom would be worth a month's wait, cost-wise.


Thank you.

 

The W3 line has always dwindled around the $17xx-$1800 area, so I'm assuming it will continue to do so.

 

ok but will it come with at least the 2.0 GHz at that price range. I know that Merom has other speeds such as the 1.83GHz, and if you try to look for a W3J you wont be able to find a 2#J with a 1.83Ghz, but instead only 2.0GHz and up. All starting mostly at 1799.99

 

yup..this isn't like the past w3v's where they ended up having some lying around hence the rebates..so far the w3j's have been pretty much selling out everywhere..and they usually bump the specs before dropping the price so it'll range anywhere from the low 1700s to 1799 depending on the website

 

Can anyone the estimate what the least processor speed will be for the W3J. Are they going to stick with the 2.0GHz and up.

 

Doubt it, early release of processors = lots of money + bugs.


I wonder what the 'naming' scheme of the Yonah is....by processor speed or number system(like Centrino 750/760/735/etc.)