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    Official Waiting for the ASUS K-Series Thread

    Discussion in 'Asus' started by najim, Mar 24, 2009.

  1. trvelbug

    trvelbug Notebook Prophet

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    whered you get your new avatar super cool!
     
    trvelbug, Apr 5, 2009
    #51
  2. racerman119

    racerman119 Notebook Consultant

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    haven't really been paying attention to the k series. is it suppose to beat the n series performance wise like the n80vn-x5(from newegg)?
     
    racerman119, Apr 5, 2009
    #52
  3. racerman119

    racerman119 Notebook Consultant

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    also backlit keyboard?
     
    racerman119, Apr 5, 2009
    #53
  4. franzerich

    franzerich Notebook Evangelist

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    I guess so. The Mobility 4860 is supposed to perform the same way as the Mobility 4850 or the 9800m GT. That'll be remarkably better than any 9600m graphics.
     
    franzerich, Apr 6, 2009
    #54
  5. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    The 4860 should be about 10% faster then the 4850, which is on par with the 9800M gtx. So to answer your question, yes it should be much faster, as long as the cpu doesn't bottleneck anything. :cool:

    I don't think it'll have one.
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 6, 2009
    #55
  6. racerman119

    racerman119 Notebook Consultant

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    ohh ok sounds nice. to bad it wont feature the backlit keyboard. it was something i looked forward too. maybe i will consider the u series now.
     
    racerman119, Apr 6, 2009
    #56
  7. orcymorky

    orcymorky Notebook Guru

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    If it is as cheap as we think it is, I am pretty much sold. Pending reviews of course :p Seriously though, why is there so little information out there?
     
    orcymorky, Apr 8, 2009
    #57
  8. mjfrozenchips

    mjfrozenchips Notebook Consultant

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    If this laptop was first announced or be seen in march, if we're lucky enough, this will comeout first week of may if not, early june. Its always 2 months after we see the first appearance of the laptop. This happened to the G50VT, N81 and other asus laptops.
     
    mjfrozenchips, Apr 8, 2009
    #58
  9. saeedN

    saeedN Notebook Guru

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    puma or common core 2 due,which one is better?
     
    saeedN, Apr 8, 2009
    #59
  10. skynet1988

    skynet1988 Notebook Consultant

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    core 2 duo
     
    skynet1988, Apr 8, 2009
    #60
  11. sparkguy

    sparkguy Notebook Guru

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    sparkguy, Apr 13, 2009
    #61
  12. franzerich

    franzerich Notebook Evangelist

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    ya.... it's also somehow annoying that there's no quad CPU support, not even on the "Tigris". So i guess you can gladly buy the old Griffin... and some years later buy a new one with the "Sabine" platform with 32nm, skip everything in between.
     
    franzerich, Apr 13, 2009
    #62
  13. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    I'm not going to fret over the CPU, since %80 of games do not depend on the CPU much. What's really important is a good GPU, which this notebook has. :)
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 13, 2009
    #63
  14. grkazan11

    grkazan11 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Can anyone comment on the speed of the AMD Puma processor and how fast it is ghz wise???
     
    grkazan11, Apr 13, 2009
    #64
  15. neilnat

    neilnat Notebook Evangelist

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    The CPU in this laptop will probably be 2.0-2.4 GHZ, but that is just an estimate. I don't think AMD makes a Turion Ultra any faster than 2.4. However, these do not compare (not favorably at least) to C2D CPUs at the same speed.
     
    neilnat, Apr 13, 2009
    #65
  16. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    AMD processors perform as good as their Intel counterparts in day to day applications and games. Only those people who need speed for mathematical calculations or 3D graphic work, would benefit from the faster, high end Intel CPUs.
     
    sgogeta4, Apr 14, 2009
    #66
  17. trvelbug

    trvelbug Notebook Prophet

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    is there any added benefit from a system thats has an amd/ati cpu/gpu combo?
    hopefully the combo has some synergistic effect :)
     
    trvelbug, Apr 14, 2009
    #67
  18. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Hopefully it's the switchable/hybrid graphics.
     
    sgogeta4, Apr 14, 2009
    #68
  19. orcymorky

    orcymorky Notebook Guru

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    I'm pretty sure it does have hybrid graphics. That's how they say they can get like 5 hours of battery life.
     
    orcymorky, Apr 14, 2009
    #69
  20. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    It might have hybrid graphics, but most likely the long battery life will be a result of the 128-bit bus.
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 14, 2009
    #70
  21. trvelbug

    trvelbug Notebook Prophet

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    yup i am wary of this 128-bit bus

    afaik the bus could be a serious bottleneck. it sort of like a pipe where water can flow only in 128 bits as opposed to double (256 bits)
    so even if the memory can deliver data at blazing speeds it will slow down when is passes through this 'pipe'.

    so the 1x4=4 and 2x2=4 example given a while back is wrong...
     
    trvelbug, Apr 15, 2009
    #71
  22. franzerich

    franzerich Notebook Evangelist

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    That's also what I'm afraid of... I can imagine that any lag in games will be much worse on this 128bit bus than on the 256bit bus. Also I think the possibility to overlock on a 128bit is not as good as on 256bit, because the amazing speed sending data through the pipe has already reached its maximum.
     
    franzerich, Apr 15, 2009
    #72
  23. neilnat

    neilnat Notebook Evangelist

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    Actually, a pipe isn't the best analogy since computers are digital. It's more like a bucket brigade. Instead of having 256 rows of men passing buckets of water, you have 128. However, those buckets are getting passed twice as fast, so it does (should) even out.
     
    neilnat, Apr 15, 2009
    #73
  24. Hahutzy

    Hahutzy Notebook Deity

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    So? A 9800GS on a G50VT has a 96-bit bus, and people are using it just fine...
     
    Hahutzy, Apr 15, 2009
    #74
  25. trvelbug

    trvelbug Notebook Prophet

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    hmmm good analogy. im just worried because of an article written in gamespot a year and a half ago detailing diffreent gpu concepts.
    in that article they mentioned how higher end 7xxx series gpus had to switch to 256bit buses bec the 128bits were bottlenecking them.
    and i did get the pipe analogy from that article as far as i remember...
    i guess the question is, what is the physical limit of a 128bit bus
     
    trvelbug, Apr 15, 2009
    #75
  26. trvelbug

    trvelbug Notebook Prophet

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    interesting. i didnt know that
    could make the bus discussion a moot point then..
     
    trvelbug, Apr 15, 2009
    #76
  27. skynet1988

    skynet1988 Notebook Consultant

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    I doubt the K series will come with hybrid graphics. The long battery life is probably caused by GPU being manufactured in 40nm process.
     
    skynet1988, Apr 15, 2009
    #77
  28. neilnat

    neilnat Notebook Evangelist

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    I think you are thinking of processor cores or shader pipelines (the 9800m GS has 64 processor cores, GT has 96)

    Memory Bus width on all 9800's is 256-bit

    http://www.nvidia.com/object/product_geforce_9800m_gs_us.html
     
    neilnat, Apr 15, 2009
    #78
  29. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    Those cards are GDDR3. All GDDR3 cards use double data rate, whereas GDDR5 uses a quad data rate. Hopefully these Wikipedia articles will help clarify what I've been saying all along.
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 15, 2009
    #79
  30. sampatkun

    sampatkun Notebook Enthusiast

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    A question:
    If say all other specs of a GPU were the same (shaders, clock speeds, vRAM, etc). The only difference was 128 vs 256 bit.

    Approximately how much performance gain would you actually get? Would the double bus size equal double fps in games, double scores in benchmarks, etc.?
    Or would the performance gain be less than that?
     
    sampatkun, Apr 16, 2009
    #80
  31. Hahutzy

    Hahutzy Notebook Deity

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    Hahutzy, Apr 16, 2009
    #81
  32. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Double the benchmark performance, but FPS is highly variable (depending on resolution, game quality, etc.)
     
    sgogeta4, Apr 16, 2009
    #82
  33. Rondo

    Rondo Notebook Geek

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    So guys...I've pretty much had my mind made up to get a N81VP in the next few weeks since it's in my budget ($1300ish) and seems to pack a lot of power. Now I start looking around some more and see the really promising K50/51 coming out soon for around $1000 hopefully. What kind of performance difference would there be between this and the N81VP, and would it be worth it to wait? And what's the difference between the K50 and the K51, exactly?
     
    Rondo, Apr 18, 2009
    #83
  34. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    K series w/ HD 4860 will destroy the N81Vp...
     
    sgogeta4, Apr 18, 2009
    #84
  35. Rondo

    Rondo Notebook Geek

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    That's what I was afraid of. My video card's dying in my current laptop (for the third time, and this time the warranty is gone), so...I really hope the K50/51 comes out in early May or so. Otherwise it's either settle for less performance (N81) or throw my budget out the window and go for a Sager np8662. :/
     
    Rondo, Apr 18, 2009
    #85
  36. neilnat

    neilnat Notebook Evangelist

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    On the bright side, the N81 will probably have a much better CPU and may even have a better screen. And, if you're going for gaming performace above that stuff, you could spend the same or less money and get a G50vt or MSI 627. Still wouldn't match the 4860, but it'd be a whole lot closer.
     
    neilnat, Apr 18, 2009
    #86
  37. Rondo

    Rondo Notebook Geek

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    I know the N81VP has a better CPU, and I mostly play CPU and RAM hog games (The Sims, etc.), but I do want to give Crysis a try. And the N81 can run Crysis - it's just the fact that I'm afraid that as soon as I spend the money for it, the K series will come out and wipe the floor with it for the same price or less.

    I will be using the laptop for Photoshop as well as Finale (I'm a music major), so that's a plus for the more powerful CPU.

    This is why I'm more of a console gamer anyway. =p
     
    Rondo, Apr 18, 2009
    #87
  38. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    It should come out within the first week or two of May, since Asus normally releases their products 2 months after they first announce it. Also, the desktop 4770 (4860's desktop equivalent) is supposed to be released on may 4th.
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 18, 2009
    #88
  39. Ozofriendly

    Ozofriendly Notebook Guru

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    I for one, can't wait to see the first reviews of this notebook.

    We're all well aware of the potential power of the HD4860 following the impressive performance of the 4850 in the GT725.

    I've been putting off upgrading my ageing Acer 5503 for over a year now and I'm glad I waited; the K50/51 spec seems almost perfect for the mobile gamer on a budget.

    Let's hope Asus haven't skimped on build quality and their IceCool design lives up to the hype.
     
    Ozofriendly, Apr 19, 2009
    #89
  40. cereal jeff

    cereal jeff Notebook Geek

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    Anyone know if theyre still going to release the U/UX series? As I understand it they were presented at the same time as the K series, but there seems to be little further information about U/UX given whereas the internet is full of stuff about the K series.
     
    cereal jeff, Apr 20, 2009
    #90
  41. najim

    najim Notebook Consultant

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    New Info. has been released on the ATI HD4770, which based on the specs looks to be the desktop equivalent of the Mobility 4860.
    Both the HD4770 and the Mobility4860 sport the 40nm chip, the GDDR5 memory, 128 bit bus, Directx 10.1 support.

    http://www.tomshardware.com/news/AMD-ATI-Radeon-4770,7547.html
    Clicking on the picture brings up a slideshow with some benchmark comparisons from ATI comparing the GPU to the 9800GT that are a bit hard to believe.

    The 4770 is said to be released in May, and we can only hope the 4860 sporting K-Series follows.
     
    najim, Apr 20, 2009
    #91
  42. IKAS V

    IKAS V Notebook Prophet

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    Still waiting for a release date on this laptop!
    C"mon ASUS!
     
    IKAS V, Apr 21, 2009
    #92
  43. xilerate

    xilerate Notebook Guru

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    any body have an idea when these will be released in AUSTRALIA (PERTH)? guessing which month?
     
    xilerate, Apr 21, 2009
    #93
  44. David

    David NBR Random Reviewer NBR Reviewer

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    Me too, and I look forward to next month **hint hint** :)
     
    David, Apr 21, 2009
    #94
  45. 1337haxorz

    1337haxorz Notebook Guru

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    My prediction is that it will be released on May 4th, along with the desktop 4770. Also, the 4860 was announced on March 3rd, so that would be almost exactly 2 months after its announced, which is usually when Asus releases their notebooks. :)
     
    1337haxorz, Apr 21, 2009
    #95
  46. xilerate

    xilerate Notebook Guru

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    cool, thnks 1337haxorz
     
    xilerate, Apr 22, 2009
    #96
  47. v_c

    v_c Notebook Evangelist

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    It only looks hard to believe because of the way they've presented it. The highest difference is only 1.5x the 9800, they just make it look much more by stretching the graph.
     
    v_c, Apr 22, 2009
    #97
  48. racerman119

    racerman119 Notebook Consultant

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    was the k series announced the same time the u series was?
     
    racerman119, Apr 22, 2009
    #98
  49. thalanix

    thalanix Notebook Deity

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    ^ both were announced at cebit 09.

    i didnt check to see how the 4770 and mobile 4860 compare, but the 9800GT looks on par to the GTX 260M (112 SP, 550 core, 1375 shaders, 950 mem)...

    if thats the case (and it can do the claimed 5 hours of battery life), then my G50V may be getting an upgrade soon.
     
    thalanix, Apr 22, 2009
    #99
  50. bestbacon

    bestbacon Notebook Evangelist

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    Hope by august they have a version with 1440x900 or 1680x1050 ;O
     
    bestbacon, Apr 22, 2009
    #100
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