Pic Request-W3J or V6J running C.A.D programs

Hi, I'm finding it really hard to choose between the W3J and V6J. I'll be using whichever laptop mainly for C.A.D work (autocad, solidworks, pro engineer etc), with some moderate gaming, web browsing and word processing on the side

If anyone could post a screenshot from either laptop running a C.A.D program then I would be extremely greatful, as unfortunately there are no ASUS retailers close to where I live, so I can't look at them in person.

The dilemma I have is whether to go for the W3J which has the better GPU but smaller screen and potential heat issues with a 7200rpm HDD.

Or do I opt for the V6J which has the bigger, better screen, but a fairly poo GPU for a laptop costing as much as it does.

Any comments, thoughts, suggestions and especially any pics would be greatly appreciated. I just wish it wasn't this hard to choose

James

 

Why dont u go for BOTH...the larger screen AND the GPU....the S/Z96J would fit ure needs perfectly (just bought one for the same reasons) the only differences between the 2 models are:

1- the screen resolution, S = WXGA (1280X800), Z = WSXGA+ (1680X1050)
2- The Z has a built in bluetooth, the S doesn't.

other than that u get a 15.4" widescreen and the same GPU as the W3J (ATI X1600) and since it's customisable u can get what u want and leave out any junk u dont really need...it's also cheaper....the only downside (if u want to call it that) is the looks....i have to admit the W3J looks alot nicer...the 96J's r'nt UGLY..just plain...but it's a power house.

Check them out at powernotebooks.com...excellent reseller with great customer service (they r the PowerPro A 2:24 series).

Enjoy!!

 

Cheers mate, but unfortunately I'm in the U.K (not available over here as far as I'm aware) and don't really fancy importing one for obvious reasons.

The main thing that worries be about the W3J, apart from the heat problems I may have with a 7200rpm HDD, is that being widescreen, it will elongate all my drawings along the x-axis.

Obviously I could adjust the programs window so that it's square, but this is just gonna make it even smaller.

James

 

How about the V6J or V6va, those might be of interest to you?

Also Widescreen is better in my opinion, cos ur eyes can see panaromic compared to looking up and down, hence widescreen was developed.

Ok, so when your running a program window u can expaned it, to full screen, you will have more real estate, why would u wanna make it into a square and loss real estate?

I know u mentioned things may get stretched on the X axis, hence you don't want widescreen, i personaly don't have a widescreem to test it out, but many of us here have been recommending notebooks too people who do that same work as u and we've been recomming widescreen notebooks for more real estate, or a traditional 4:3 aspect ratio screen, the V6J.

So i suggest go to a store, bring an external HD or something, run Auto CAD and take an image and see if it stretched in the X axis, it shouldn't, it should add more white space around it. So check that out.

Thanks,

MysticGolem

 

Thanks Golem, if you look at the title of the thread then you'll see I'm trying to decide between the W3J and the V6J.

Maybe this link will explain what I'm trying to say: http://www.proportable.com/images/screensizeratio.jpg

If you look at the 14" widescreen( the W3J), you'll see that it's actually the height of a 12 inch notebook, just slightly wider. So I don't really see how you're getting more 'real estate' with widescreen?

What I really need are some pics , please!

 

hey J.A.G.,
Just a couple of pointers for clarification,with CAD (and similar programs) the widescreen wont "elongate" your drawing...just give you more space horzontally (and probably a little less vertically)....it's just like looking at the same view from a square frame compared to a rectangular one so think of it as a window...ull be seeing more of the drawing horizontally and a little less vertically ...so i dont see any reason to be worried about the widescreen.

The reason MOVIES are better on widescreens is cause when u watch one on full screen u dont really use scroll bars (vertical or horizontal) so it fills as much of the space on the screen as possible without compromising the ratio...since most movies are made with widescreen in mind when u play them on regular screens there r the 2 black bars above and below and the image is slightly commpressed horizontally...again this implies to movies NOT to the programs you have mentioned.

Sorry no pics availiable right now...but since ure in the UK have u considered zepto? They have around the same specs and configurability as the asus' i had mentioned earlier, here's a link:

http://uk.zepto.com/Default.aspx?page=NotebookSummaryPage&notebookid=O6P2jpCGK2

Hope that helped..

Enjoy!!

 

Hi--

I haven't used any CAD programs, so I'm not sure if this will help, but here's a photo of my V6J with a programming application open. (By the way its a bad picture, the screen looks nicer in person.)

Note how I have lots of vertical room to look at my code, even though there are various panels open surrounding the code window. This is why I chose the V6J, and I'm glad I did. I didn't want to get a 14" widescreen because as you point out it's kind of like having a 12" screen with some extra room on the side. Depending on what you're going to do, that extra room on the side might be helpful or not helpful. For my needs I figured it wasn't helpful, so I wanted a traditional aspect screen.

So, IMO, the thing for you to do is to think about whether vertical or horizontal space is more important to you. If CAD work is anything like programming work, then you might want to go for V6J, because the screen has all this luxurious height... but the machine is still pretty portable. As as already been mentioned, don't worry about stretching. Think of it as the shape of a window in your house or apartment. You can have a wide window or a tall window, and that will allow you to see more or less stuff depending on what you're looking at... but it's not going to stretch anything--just expose more to view.

 

JAG,

I just bought a V6Va and I can tell you the screen is gorgeous and huge, especially for a 15" notebook. For screen real estate, the V6 series' SXGA+ buries the W3's WXGA. I love widescreens and had some misgivings about investing in a traditional 4:3 notebook, but if you want a light machine with an incredible screen you can't go wrong with the V6.

I'm a writer, so I don't have any CAD experience. The V6j has a less powerful video card than the V6Va, but the j has Core Duo. Va notebooks are becoming scarce here in the U.S. as people are buying them up before Asus phases them out in favor of the j. There's also a nice $200 rebate on the Va, although I think you had to buy before 6/4/06 to qualify.

If you want to see some V6 pics, I posted a few here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=57464

 

JAG, yah i know everything you said bro.

Scuba, Pavlova and Jack have all showed you reasons and explanations of what widescreen vs tradition can do for you.

since you seem to be more concerned about height of the screen than gaining extra space on the sides, the V6J or V6va seems to be a better option for you, also the resolution of the V6 series is SXGA+ compared to a 14" with a WXGA res.

A higher res will give you more real estate, plus a slightly larger screen 15" compared to 14" W, would give you more physical LCD space too.

Also since both V6 and W3 are thin and light, you can't go wrong with a V6 series notebook.

Thanks,

MysticGolem

 

Ive mainly used cad software on 4:3 screens and after taking a fast look at the w3j i think its pretty good. On widescreens you can have more toolbars and stuff like that in the sides without it disturbing the work area. On regular screens i feel that you arent able to have so many tools open without disturbing the work area but i havent tested it side by side so dont know for sure.

But if you are going to do some seroius cad work and dificult assemblys i would prefer to connect a 20+ screen but for medium things the w3j screen is good enough.

 

Cheers for the pics Jack, and for everyone elses input. That screen does look mighty fine. However I've started to come round to the idea of going for the W3J.

If working with that size for long periods of time does start to p**s me off , like people have said, I can always jook it up to a bigger monitor+ it has s-video which is handy.

If the V6J came with a better GPU I would have undoubtedly gone for that, shame really, it has to be one of the best looking notebooks around and that would have made it the perfect package (for me anyway).

The only thing that's still bothering me, is the heat outpt I'm gonna get with a 7200rpm. I don't mind it running hot, but the thought of the whole thing overheating and shutting down when I'm just about to finish a big uni project is slightly worrying. A couple of people on here have told me it'll be fine, but knowing that the W3J runs hot with the 5400rpm isn't really helping to ease my mind.

Cheers again

 

when ppl say it runs "hot", i think them mean "a little warmer than we expected/are used to" (plz correct me if i'm wrong) because the temps i'm seeing on the forums are on the normal high range, also take into cosideration the material used to make the laptop...MUCH better heat conduction than regular plastic so ure gonna feel it more than u would on a regular (plastic) laptop.

Ofcourse the fact that it's a power house enclosed in a small-ish case contributes...but i dont think it'll heat up to the point of shutting down or melting (unless ure fan becomes clogged or something), asus is alot smarter than that!!

My advice....if ure gonna be using it for long periods of time on ure desk just get a cooling pad...it'll help alot with the heat and give u some peace of mind!

 

At least regarding hitachi hdd:s (I have a 7200rpm hitachi in my 14.1" zepto znote), their 7200rpm disks have about the same power/heat signature as their 5400rpm ones. That should not be a problem anyway as the hdd area of my notebook is the coolest one... I would assume that other core duo, x1600/7600go notebook models behave in a similar manner.

Edit: Finally, I have had no heat related issues at all, and all temperatures seem to stay way below maximum operational temps for my hardware. I suspect that the limitation is rather what kind of temps you are comfortable with having near your hands and/or legs.