UL80VT or U80V?

I'm a student that is looking for a new laptop. I had my Asus F3 for three years now and it's starting to fall apart. I actually wrote a review three years ago on this website.

I'm looking for a new laptop. I'm thinking about the UL80VT or the UL80V. Money is not a problem for me. I just want something that is lightweight, durable, long battery life and is fast enough for most application and some causal gaming.

U80V seems like the perfect choice but the graphic card is under performing (DDR2) and it doesn't have the same battery life as UL80VT.

UL80VT is definitely the other option I'm looking at. It has the option you can turn off the dedicated graphic card to get longer battery life. That's something I'm looking forward to. However, I don't know if the UL80VT can handle games like Warcraft 3 or maybe Starcraft 2.

I don't really play hardcore games anymore but it's nice to have a unit that can still run decent games.


Which one would you choose?

 

ul80VT
4GB DDR3
64bit OS
switchable graphics
wifi bgn

 

Wouldn't the SU7300 be a bottleneck, especially in RTSs like StarCraft 2?

 

Intel Core2 Duo Processor SU7300 (3M Cache, 1.30 GHz, 800 MHz FSB)
... idk what starcraft 2 will ask for but ill let you know.

 

I'm also debating between the U80V and UL80VT as well. I am replacing my U6S. This is what I think.

U80V
Pros:
- Backlit keyboard
- Bluetooth
- Light sensor for screen and keyboard
- Cool touchpad
Cons:
- DDR2 Memory
- Power hungry T6500 CPU (Prefer the P8400 for 1066FSB & 10watts less)
- Slower GPU DDR2 (Don't game so not big deal)
- Thicker & Heavier
- Average battery life
- No fingerprint reader

UL80VT
Pros:
- Thin & Light
- Long battery life
- Better GPU DDR3
- DDR3 Memory
Cons:
- Slow CPU (Hopefully Turbo33 will fix that)
- No Bluetooth
- No light sensors
- No backlit keyboard
- No fingerprint reader

I'm finding it extremely hard to let go of my U6S cause it's gorgeous, but the 2.5 hour battery life is killing me. I really want a backlit keyboard on the UL80VT. That would make me turn away from the U80V. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks for your response.

 

Yeah, especially with AI's. A beefier CPU is needed for that.

 

can it at least play starcraft 1?

 

Agree, decision would be much easier if the ul80vt had a backlit keyboard. Does anyone think this might be a user replaceable option in the future? Has anyone even found a third party who sells such a thing?

 

lol, a netbook can play Starcraft. Any computer bought within the last 5 years (possibly in the last 10 years) can play it just fine.

 

Blizzard are crafty and great at making their games accessible to as many people as possible, yet polished - not diminished, so while I think SC2 may have more eye Candy than D3, both will prob play fine at Native resolution on the VT - you may just need Turbo on when you do so (ah well.. only 5-7 hours life then, what will you do?)

 

Well, the 'T' stands for Asus Turbo33 feature. I'm wondering if it's a basic Overclocking feature? Does it require activating or does it just kick in when intesive apps are running?

I pulled this chart off of an Asus page from a search of 'Asus Turbo33'. Does it mean a whole lot?

http://event.asus.com/2009/nb/legal_disclaimer/

edit...found this after some digging... http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5357683&postcount=116

 

Here are some info about the UL80VT:

http://translate.googleusercontent....e.com&usg=ALkJrhiCum6CR4I-HvkmLZbVb2tVdiAiKg1

 

Are we going to see higher end versions of the U80v? Meaning better processors and GPU in a further revision?

 

Probably the day after the return option for my UL80vt is up.

What is Asus' history with stuff like that? Do they typically offer higher CPU/GPU options later down the road after a product launch? I know Dells do that pretty regularily.

 

Asus generally has a pretty quick lifespan for model designs. The most popular models might last up to 2-3 upgrades, but most Asus models only exist for a short while and then get replaced by completely different models.

 

a revision b2 is in the works and coming out any day now. read it over on amazon.com

 

The UL80Vt definitely can handle Warcraft 3 at reasonable graphic settings. I have the game installed on the U6S, which has a worse GPU and slightly better CPU. Unless the game features tons of AI, CPU speed really is not an issue.

As for Starcraft 2, its really hard to say since its an unreleased product. However, according to the minimum system requirement Blizzard posted, it seems that the UL80Vt should handle it just fine.

 

really????????
when!!!@!@!@@@!!!!!!
i have ul80vt just because it has bad speaker(location too)!@!@!

 

I'm pretty sure the UL80VT has Bluetooth 2.0. At least that's model they are selling in Taiwan.

I don't get the bid deal about backlit keyboard. I know it looks awesome but is it really that important? It seems like a deal breaker for a lot of posters here but I just see the reasoning behind it.

Also, the Turbo 33 is a great addition for UL80VT. When you turn it on (all you have to do is push a button, no restart or shutdown needed), the PCMark05 score for UL80VT goes up from 3938 to 4678. That's a pretty decent improvement.

The most interesting thing I have seen is that UL80VT actually scores a better 3Dmark06 score than U80V. With Turbo33 on, UL80VT scores a 3801 and U80V only scores 3419. That's a remarkable difference if you ask me.

http://www.eprice.com.tw/nb/t/?prod_id=778&tid=1806

http://www.eprice.com.tw/nb/talk/?prod_id=731&tid=1003&trace=2