Something like my W3J

I haven't been paying attention lately but do they have something comparable to my W3J?

 

Asus V2S and Asus F8Sv/F8Sa would probably be the closest things from Asus, all of which can't amount to the aesthetic of the W3J. The F8 series is more of a cross between the old A8 and W3 series, with the only thing coming from the W3 is the bamboo hinge design while the material, battery placement, and ports are similar to the A8. The 8600GT and HD 2600 on the F8 are decent. However, the 8600GS on the V2S is crippled so the x1600 on the W3J wouldn't be so far behind. Both have ridiculously poor battery life.

Otherwise, there's the 14" Lenovo T61p. But it doesn't have the glossy type screen, lacks a card reader and only comes in the 4:3 form factor instead of widescreen.

 

Dell m1330?


Unfortunately, there has been nothing from ASUS that rivaled their M6/V6/W3/W1 line that they discontinued last year.

 

What about the W7S? Smaller screen, I know, but otherwise looks nice & is similar in design to the W3.

I've also looked at the Dell, but I was put off by the manufacturing faults that people have been discovering.

The V2 is ok, but always seemed a bit lackluster to me, I don't know why. I actually like the looks of the F8 better (the black version, to be precise).

 

f8sv-b1 woould be the closest thing with a higher resolution screen. v2s is another good as a luxury notebook but but f8sv-b1 is alot cheaper and more powerfull

 

Anything in the works for bringing the W series back?

 

Well the W series is here. For instance, like I said the W7S, it gets an update soon / W7Sg.

But the W3 is EOL, and I don't think it'll come back.

 

and what's F8 series build quality? is it made from plastic like Asus F3 series or something more durable and stable like in W3J?

 

I don't have clear info about the build materials and quality on the F8... some owners will have to clear that up for you.

 

Its sad they don't make the same quality laptop as they did, but I guess people want the cheapest price so plastic and low quality win.

 

What, you don't like 1" wide bezels and webcams the size of bricks? Weird-O.....

I agree, the lack of quality chassis replacement is disappointing. Everything from them looks like more of the same as of late. Same look, same blah. They all look like the same machine scaled up or down. I honestly don't know what my next laptop will be. Hopefully some of these companies will get their butts in gear when Intel starts getting their new mobile chips out into channels.

 

The problem is cheap bastards. Everybody wants the best but only willing to spend for the worst. I know Asus or someone else one day will make another nice looking laptop.

 

Heheh hope dies the last (is there such a saying in English? I don't know I'm just translating)

besides, I totally agree with your assessment.

 

I still havent found what I'm looking for. Anything on the horizon?

 

Only new models that Asus has announced recently are the G50/70 series gaming notebooks at Computex. Nothing else, but there are rumors here and there about maybe some other new model releases to coincide with the Montevina launch - else they're just be updating the entire product line to the new platform later this summer/fall.

Asus generally releases brand new models in the Spring (the W7 being the only exception that I can personally recall the past 3 years).

 

I think a W7/U6 is closest to the W3J, minus the brushed aluminum and hotswappable bay... The other 14" model (F8, A8) are on the large side, unlike W3J which were very efficient in size.

 

The gpu is too weak for my taste. It's amazing that my W3J is still scoring higher in 3DMark than some of new laptops and the build quailty is rock solid. Too bad the nixed this W3 line.

 

Tough to find stronger GPUs in a 13.3. And the 14" line from ASUS, unfortunately doesn't have something with the same build quality and aesthetics.

 

It really is quite a pity - I remember when the pictures of the F8 came out, we were all excited about the possibility of a new-age W3, but those hopes never really panned out.

Look at the LG P300, really. Its the only thing close to what the W3J was. Nothing Asus makes is near that high quality standard that they had before.

 

I like that but it is not for sale in the US.

 

Thats true too. If you live close to the border, you could drive up there and pick one up at FutureShop (was considering doing that, but I had just gotten the MSI and could not justify getting a new notebook). I went up and looked at it while I was in Vancouver, it is a seriously nice system.