Thoughts on N81Vg-X1?

Hey everyone,

I'm trying to decide on a laptop (link to my FAQ: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=399359)

I liked the looks of a N81Vg-X1 and I was wondering what your thoughts were on it?

Thanks!

EDIT: Sorry, here's a link to it http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220519

 

I too was looking into purchasing this laptop. There is so much more info and reviews out there for its brother the N81Vp.
The only real thing stopping me from ordering this laptop right now is the overall lack of information, and the fear that Asus will release a similar model with the GeForce 220M which would replace the current GeForce 120M graphics. The 220M should prove to offer a decent performance jump.

 

same here - i'm debating between this and the Vp, but I'm leaning more towards the Vp now that the D1 is out.
the disadvantages of the Vg are: slower processor and graphics card and no bluetooth...
but advantages (to me at least) is the CTRL/Fn keyboard layout instead of Fn/CTRL.
There's also that $300 price difference...

for sub 1000, you might want to check out the MSI 15 inch laptops (larger screen, .3 pounds heavier, but cheaper)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152086
or
http://www.jr.com/msi-microstar/pe/MSR_GX620001US/

(they are more or less the same computer, but jr has it really cheap right now)

personally at that price (~900 after rebate), I would say its the best balance of power, price, and weight.

 

That MSI also looks good - I'm confused on its weight. I found one review saying 6lbs and jr.com said 5.6lbs. Do you know which it is?

Also, is jr.com a reputable merchant?
Do you know anything about kokolix.com being reputable or a scam?

Thanks!

 

regarding kokolix:

(look at the creation date)
plus it's not on reseller ratings, so no, don't buy from them.

as far as I know those MSI 15 inchers are about 5.5-5.6 pounds. 6 pounds might be rounded off, or you might be looking at another model (MSI has heavier 15 inchers as well, which are 6 to 6.2 pounds i think)

in any case, the asus 14 inch models (N80/N81 series) are large for 14 inch model - their chasis are almost the size of the 15 inch msi's.

the N8 series are supposed to have really great cooling systems, but I've heard the same about the MSI (although the MSI laptops are supposed to have problems with the touchpad wearing out, its an easy fix - get one of those cell phone screen protectors)

one more thing - you get 3 years MSI warranty at some places, but the ASUS standard is 2 years (with one year accidental)

to sum it up, you're looking at cheaper, larger, slightly heavier laptops with larger screens and slower processors with the MSI.
(as far as I know, if you're willing to go up to 1100, there is an 15 inch MSI with nvidia 9800 - really good for the price, but it might be overkill for WoW - depends on what you plan to play in a couple of years)

 

Hmm, okay, I see. Any idea how the battery life is on the MSI?

Also, here's a question - these come with win vista 32 bit, will they be eligible to/capable of an upgrade to win 7 64 bit?

 

you're looking at battery life of 1 to maybe 2.5 hours max on any MSI/Asus gaming laptop.
The msi in the links above might get around 2 hours, depending on what you are doing.
if you're looking for a good balance of batt life / gaming power, check out:
asus u80v (the version with discrete graphics, ati 4570)
dell studio (you have option for higher capacity battery)

for any win7 upgrade, you get the equivalent version of win7
eg. 32bit vista business -> 32 bit win7 professional

for more info:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/buy/offers/upgrade-faq.aspx