Poll on "Top 5 Requested Features" for future models

I took a few minutes to try to compile the features talked about in the Top 5 Requests for new features thread into a poll so members could vote

Polls are limited to 30 items - so there are a few that didn't make it to the poll - these are not in any particular order

You can vote for as many features as you want

 

Where is the poll?

 

Nice poll lol

 

The forum posts the thread first, then you have to complete the the Poll

where's that D'OH! icon for Homer when you need it ......

and since I did the poll I get to add my "perfect" notebook -the last choice

 

I voted. No more plastic laptops.

 

WTF no option for finger print reader?!?!

i voted thin and light and proper DJ

but i'd also like
-very powerful graphics and proc
-ssds
-finger print reader
-uber battery life (new battery technologies available)

 

I'm hoping they'll produce a thin, powerful 15.4" model in the near future... something LIKE the V1, but thinner and sleeker like the Apple Macbook Pro. I would love to have a computer like that...

 

I voted a little while ago, but out of those options, I'd like to see thinner and lighter (with or without optical drives; if without, would like a full docking station), a port replicator (not USB connected) or docking station would also be really good. I'd love to be able to just lift my notebook up without having to unplug everything. The last thing I'd want to see changed is the fan vent placed onto the back or left side of the notebook. Having it on the right is pretty annoying as my mouse tends to be right nearby.

 

Currently deciding between an Asus and Clevo whitebook for my new laptop. The dual harddrive option that the Clevos offer are attractive. I'd like to see an Asus whitebook offer this.

 

I basically went crazy choosing all those options...who wouldn't want most of those? Especially an eSATA port!?

 

well i forgot the dj feature

but at least if theres no dj, dont put the buttons for it there.
The dj button and booting xp to horse $#@#$ asus live whatever is just an insult to me and the other customers intelligence and a disrespect to our time

 

Remember, it has to justify the cost factor, as well as the market factor.

 

There are several things that perplex me.

1) Carbon fiber is horrible material for laptop construction unless it is used for the LCD screen. The reason being is it is a much poorer heat conductor than metals such as aluminum or magnesium. This meants that it acts almost like a thermos for your overheating laptop.

2) No where on the list of options to vote is in my opinion one of the most dramatic advents for the laptop industry: solid state drives. This upgrade alone makes a dramatic jump in performance.

3) Other options: Draft-N wireless; standard incorporation of ExpressCard slots; and fingerprint reader (this is a feature that right now nobody really knows about but only time will cause this to explode in popularity).

I didn't vote for an eSATA port for external storage - how often do you have to send gigs of data to external storage and even if you do, how much time do you think you will save using eSATA over FireWire or USB2.0 over the span of a year?

 

often if you use an external HDD that supports eSata.

I want more premium 'high quality' laptops that also have higher battery life exceeding 6/7 hrs.

 

Great poll! For me, battery life is very important and I have not been impressed with the battery life on many of Asus' notebooks. Another thing that is very important to me is good speakers that you can actually hear from more than 5 feet away. I have compared speakers on many Asus notebooks to Dell notebooks. On something like the 640m, the speakers are excellent and get VERY loud when compared to the A8's and W3's and W7's etc.

 

I think ASUS should add onsite, accidental coverage warranty options. Right now only certain sellers can provide that option.

 

HOW DARE YOU ?!
(I'm left handed )

 

I want a 13"-14" laptop with an LED display, IPS optional, full aluminum/magnesium case, hard drive drop protection, dvi port, illuminated keyboard, no fan exhaust on the right side, modular bay, better speakers, FN<->CTRL swap, and thinner design with optical/modular battery. Sorted by importance.

Something that wasn't on the list that I find, and I think most people, a little annoying when my battery is running low. The A8 and W3 series came out first without powerful video cards so battery life was fine with the batteries they had. When they upgraded the video cards they didn't upgrade the batteries! If they spent the money to create a high capacity battery for them they would have had more success.

 

More battery life.

 

Ctrl + Fn issue
Audio Dj button for quick play n next songs like Dell's E1705 . I prefer placement of button on the front near touch pad. Learn Dell about how they place those ports nicely .

better screen quality and brightness.

ports in the back, and left side.
Optical drives on the left side

That's it.

 

I'll join the group promoting new battery technology for better battery life. It seems like there are a few options out there, but none are expected to be available for mass production for another year or so at least. While I think that some of the chip maker's future tech ideas sound promising (notably Intel's Robson/Robson 2 & AMD's Fusion), I think notebooks will have to move away from Lithium Ion batteries in order to have any chance at regaining the battery life capacities that they have been steadily losing to more high-consumption hardware since 2003. 5+ hours battery life from one battery while using non-intensive applications (Word Processing, Spreadsheets, Internet Usage, etc.) on a notebook containing a performance level GPU with enabled power-saving features is a benchmark that I think should be attainable within the next three years, if new battery technology is utilized.

 

The light and thin 15.4", that I could get into if it had some good ATI graphics . Also want the modular graphics cards, leave the keyboard FN+CTRL keys alone .

HDD protection is one reason I was looking at a Travelmate 8204...something I wish the Z96JS had. Add an option for FLASH HDD. They are the next big thing, no worries and those suckers could last 20+ years of usuage and some can keep the data in store for 500 years+.

3 hours battery is fine for me...no memory on the battery would be best.

Higher res screens though, WXGA and WSXGA are low res for me - I won't look at any 15.4" with less than a WSXGA+

Cat

 

I'm in the battery group...longer battery life would certainly be most welcomed!!!! especially since I travel often.. would love to 8-9 hrs..which could make a trip across the pond that much more enjoyable...

Also on the list.. led display/flash hdd/lighted keyboard/fan-vent left or back side of laptop/modular bay/s

 

I think you expect Asus to be quality, no matter what notebook from them you buy. I would expect them to be more resistent to wear too than cheaper brands like dell, hp and acer, so in the future they should be more resistant to scratches than eg. the A8Js is. In general it should be Asus that sets the standard, so when you read about keyboard flexing, poor speakers, horrible viewing angles and a few models with battery problems, you easily get an idea of what needs to be improved.

Things i'd like to see in the future as well

- No bloatware like Norton when you get the notebook

- BIOS with plenty of options.

- A muuuch faster website.

- A better way to compare the various models via the website

- An "external" volume control on every model

 

In no particular order, spewing things I'd really really love. And not all of it has anything to do with ASUS, a lot depends on the actual parts being developed.

It was daid before, external volume control. I have a W7j and the volume bumper on front right side is absolutely amazing. Laptops seem like they love to make it hard to change volume/mute, and when on a laptop, often times in public places, being able to quickly adjust volume is very nice. Added to that clicking it in is a quickmute, it dosen't get much better.

My only request to improve on it is set it to Fn+up/dn changes screen brightness, i guess Fn+click could switch the LCD off, but that's not used that often.

Full magnesium/alu casing, hold maybe LCD cover being carbon fiber. carbon fiber really isn't a good material for casing. It'd better than plastic, but magnesium is stronger, light, and manages heat well.

LED lit screens, nuf' said

DJ controls is the fancy word for them i think? The play pause next last stop media buttons? Yeah, I want those.

Personal preference is to 13.3 or 14.1 in screen. 12 leaves the KB too small, 15.4 laptops are huge. Resolution should be WXGA or WXGA+ respectively.

Here is an interesting one if anyone is actually still reading this. What are the capabilities of docking stations these days. I've not kept up on the types of connections/transfer rates and all that stuff, but I got an idea I rather like.
The ASUS GX docking station opens a lot of options. Is it possible/reasonable to have an actual docking station with discrete graphics, as well as all the other snazzy docking station stuff, optical drive (HD drive even) sound card, and all the other necessary I/O ports? Or even go as far as having a built in HDD in the docking station?
Ok, so this is becomming more of a desktop that uses the lappys porcessor/ram/hdd, and depending on the price, may or may not be marketable.

I'd really like that idea, and addtitionally it would eliminate the need for a built in optical drive (personally at least, I dont have much use for an optical drive for everyday use, but it is needed for installing programs/games etc.)

Otherwise, I'd really like to see more slot loading drives. They dont serve any other purpose other than being really, really sexy, so it's not that important, but do they really cost that much more to make?

A backlit KB is something I didn't think of untill I read the poll, and again, it's completely unnecessary, but it'd still be nice.

I think after this I start getting into the stuff ASUS can't do a thing about, and is more about waiting for the technology to become available/priced right.

I want to see more SSDs and hybrid HDDs. Segate is on the right track with thier Hybrid drives, but why only have 128 ram on it? I'd gladly drop another 20 gigs of storage in exchange for 2 gigs of flash.

That or just go with a straight up SSD. Right now they are still a little small and crazy expensive, so I'm thinking it's just a waiting game on that, but I don't see that holding anything back, since, unless I'm wrong, you should be albe to just replace your current 2.5 hdd with a 2.5 SSD later on.

I can't wait to see some actual benefit from the ATI buyout. The FUSION processor. You know, the one with the GPU on the same die as the CPU. The handy little jump in technology that would allow you to reasonably upgrade your graphics card without buying an entirely new laotop. Ok AMD, get to work.

I'd say improved battery, but I think that starts to become a non issue with all the other improvements. The screen takes less power, the HDD takes less power, CPUs should be about to drop in power consumption again, and when a standard laptop today can get 3 hrs on a standard battery, I'd think the same battery could strech to closer to 5 hours.

That was probably more of a brainstorming rant than anything actually constructive, and I doubt, even in time, I'll see all of that on the same laptop (especially for a somewhat reasonable price). But if anyone got through all that tell me what you think. Especially about the docking station stuff. If it's possible, if it's reasonable, or if it's a tarrible idea.

Edit: I forgot someting.... Heat and sound management. I had a Z70Va, it was nice, served me well, except I'm pretty sure it was filled with lava and had a jet engine strapped to it. CPU idled at 70C, GPU was >100C under full load after an hour. and you could hear it across the house. Now, something may have been wrong with my specific unit, but It needed to be replaced. I got a W7j, cpu and hdd idle at 45C, much, MUCH better. It heat's up when gaming, so there is always a tradeoff when under load, it's either going to be warmer, or louder, that's understandable, but for normal usage, I think all laptops need to be cool enough to use on the lap, and quiet enough to not be disturbing in a sibrary/study hall/lecture hall.

 

i predict this time next year or by xmas we'll all be talking about 1080p resolution and blueray or maybe HD-DVD

Everything else will be secondary

 

battery life!

 

I would like to see case cover as solar panel for recharge during daylight uses.

 

[Ballmer]Battery Life, Battery Life, Battery Life, Battery Life.[/Ballmer]

ASUS makes some very stylish laptops - some of their 13.3" and 14" laptops look ever so nice, but they cripple them with horrid battery life. I mean the battery life issue isn't isolated with ASUS, many other manufacturers have the same problem, but why can't ASUS pack a 4-5 hour battery with their machines? It just makes me sick when I think I've found the perfect laptop and then ASUS goes and tells me it's got like 2, maybe 3 hours of battery life if you push it.

What's the point of a small-ish stylish laptop if it's got no battery life to show for it. It doesn't even have to be new battery technology. It seems like Apple and Dell can make their machines run 4+ hours with no problems with current technology.

I wouldn't mind a docking station either.

 

-~4 hours on standard battery, 6-7 on extended primary battery
-Flush surround touchpad
-Matte screen
-Media bay w/2nd battery support (~10 hours on extended primary + 2nd)
-Integrated graphics
-Docking bay w/external PCIe spec support

 

Interesting responses

With 165 voters this poll has some real value I'd think

And it seems very clear that:

1. appearance/design/durability is one of the most important features - better carbon/magnesium/alumin cases got the highest number of votes, with aluminum/magnesium garner 48+% and carbon close behind - ASUS, please get rid of the cheap plastic - no matter how you tart it up, no matter how much lipstick and/or eye candy, plastic is still cheap

2. better cases are closely followed by upgradeable graphics - at just under 48%

3. better screens - with thin LED screens at 41+% closely followed by higher rez screens

4. modular bays were next at just under 38%

5. and perhaps surprisingly illuminated keyboard options was a highly desireable choice as well

6. not on the poll but a highly requested feature separately is battery life - even the most feature laden and cool notebook quickly loses its appeal with poor batt life - especially when there are many choices out there with much better

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last - I'd point out to our friends at Asus that my "perfect" notebook was pretty highly desired - at almost 30% of teh votes - a very thin (.5") and light (4lbs) 15.4" w/LED, carbon fiber+magnesium (like a 15.4" version of a Sharp MM20)

I think its pretty clear what Asus customers want - which was pretty much confrmed by the sales - they want the W3J

a product Asus no longer offers

 

A a very thin (.5") and light (4lbs) 15.4" w/LED, carbon fiber+magnesium (like a 5.4" version of a Sharp MM20) with a lighted keyboard would be awesome. I'd buy it.

 

---> needalaptop: hehehe....oops.... jz***d myself

lol .5"? mighty wishful r we....

i'd be happy with 1.1 or 1.0" thick and i could care less about weight.

-CREATIVE SOUNDBLASTER dedicated sound cards, please!
-all metal construction, wether it be carbon fiber (some1 said it wasnt good for laptop construction because it didnt conduct heat...um it breaths, so it is better at keeping a laptop cool than any other means), aluminum or magnesium. NO PLASTIC!
-lighted keyboards like macbookpro
-fingerprint reader
-no bloatware...ditch the crapwear already

 

LED backlit screens are just about the best thing on the list, and then the magnesium/carbon fiber cases. The illuminating keyboards are also a cool feature, makes it easy to type in the dark.

And yes, the W3J is just about the best laptop I have seen in a very long time. Up the screen res to WXGA+ (Matte is unnecessary, but acceptable as well) and put the keyboard the way its meant to be and then put a backlight under it, and then we have the closest to perfect notebook ever made.

 

built-in pizza maker..anyone?

 

I really want all model to be available in all markets.

The UK is seriously hit with a lack of models - no W7, S96, W3 (discontinued but US sellers still selling them but nowhere to be found in UK), W1 etc etc.

Also we get the A8F, A8JR, A8JC and A8JN from the A8s and thats it!!!!!!

Also - thin and light c.fibre/mag chassis and mod bay in all laptops is what i want to see.

 

number 2 on the list actually affects 6, if there were a way to have hot swappable gpu's that would greatly improve battery life and some of the heat problems that plague the x1600/7600 and up thin and light notebooks..either that or settle for the xg station

i love my W3J but it is definitely a roaster (on the lap) and with LED and backlit keyboard + better battery life (goes with improving heat management) and maybe dvi and esata it'd be perfect

 

I was thinking an espresso maker........

I full docking port is my vote.

 

hmmmm, seems that Intel has been reading our poll here - this is pretty close to the notebook I envisioned in my last poll choice - and it sounds like it includes many of the features most requested:



I'm afraid its a 12.1 or 13.3" screen - which IMO runins it - make it a 14.1 at least - or better yet a 15.4 in a very thin package

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/may2007/tc20070523_272039.htm

 

Is that Vista on there, or? Because it doensn't look like it..

 

It's a very cool looking laptop though..very stylish and thin. Looks as good/better then a MacBook/MBP in my opinion and from what I've seen. Could be good for the fashion people who say that's why they switched to Apple (yes, HP and Sony are fashionable..but not enough for some people). I wonder what manufacturer will be making it? Design is really coming to the forefront for computer makers, that's for sure.

 

If they fit a 8600M GT in this thin type of notebook, i ll be impressed... (there are no efficient cooling solution of this thin, so it is nearly impossible)

EDIT: the Acer Gemstone design team should definitely look at this...

 

A backlit keyboard would definately be awesome...

 

Hey, I know a lot of people think higher resolution is CooL, but, come on, I need powerfull notebook with Readable!!! screen and to be able to play games in Native resolution, so I vote for LOW-REZ SCREEN OPTION.
What for do I need WUXGA 15'' screen when I don't have even a simple high-end graphics option in a notebook like G1S?
If I need more space I will simply buy 22'' LCD and, perhaps, add an XG station for high-rez pleasure. Vote for comfortable DPI people!!!

 

I demand DVI/HDMI outputs!!!!!

 

Five I picked:

1) Upgradeable GPUs
2) Better onboard speakers/mics
3) No fan exhaust on right-hand side
4) More magnesium/aluminum cases
5) DVI ports on all models (even though HDMI would be more helpful)

 

haha sounds like you responded to "Top 5 features on the next G1S"
Though I picked almost the same options.