Where is the best place (online) to buy ASUS?

I want to buy the A8js when it comes out so a reseller that gets the latest stock fast is a must...even a good preorder list would be great.

Also I would like a quality, fast dependable reseller.

Anyone have any advice?

Thanks!

 

MilestonePC.com for Canada.
NCIX.com also for Canada, specifically Western Canada.
PROPortable.com

All great resellers. NCIX (Netlink) seems like the larger company, although larger isn't necessarily better.

 

I am in the US Seattle specifically

 

The first companies to sell the a8jm in the us when it was released where these :

Newegg.com
portableone.com
zipzoomfly.com
buy.com
milestonepc.com

when the a8jm first reached NA it was for sale in canada only. These companies imported them for the us market from canada.

north american asus is in fremont. All of these companies are in fremont.... um.... no coincidence.

This MIGHT be useful information for the a8js.

I think you will have to be active and on it to get one of the first ones.

 

it depends if you want your laptop customized or not. places like zipzoomfly, newegg, and buy.com will not customize your laptop.

For customized laptops i recommend milestonepc (based in fremont, ca) or btotech (also known as geared2play, based in NY).

 

It is never intelligent to customize an ensemble unit. Nobody charges less than doing it yourself. You buy the ensemble, it comes in a box. If you want to pay someone to put ram into it for you you can.

Normally people figure this out a little quicker....

geared to play and milestonepc dont customize your notebook. they take it out of the box, charge you for a new hard drive put it in, keep your old hard drive or cpu and write you on their christmas list for being not so swift but very generous.

Just so you know >I< will customize your asus ensemble for you. And so will your neighbor larry down the street.

Asus ensembles come one way. Its hard to explain anything if basic math isnt clicking to someone...

 

That's a little bit simplistic. Few of my most tech-savvy friends are eager to dive into the deep inner working of a laptop to upgrade the processor. Most shutter at the thought of removing the keyboard. When a reseller replaces something like that, the person asking for the modification can (usually) be sure that someone who knows what they're doing is opening the computer and not ripping and breaking stuff. If something does break, the consumer doesn't have to worry about it. They also offer their own warranties should something go wrong later since doing a mod on one's own would void Asus'.

~ Brett

 

Ok.

Obviously the world is not filled with rocket scientists.

As long as they know that is what they are paying for, literally nothing and transfering the warrantee to the dealer.

If they understand that and thats what they want then um... christmas list! Its love like that that makes the world go around!

if anyone is intimidated by replacing the HD of a laptop, but theyre willing to spend 1-2k on one anyway theres something wrong there too.

I mean this is the least of my worries lol its just that sometimes people make me shake my head so it wants to fall off.

Its not intelligent. If some people are in a position where they should do something thats not intelligent theres something going on that cant be addressed well in a message board scope.

 

See thats the problem right there..youre talking about yourself. Your basing this entire argument on the fact that you have no problems fiddling with the internals of a laptop and that everyone else in the world should be the same. The reality is that many ppl, even some tech savvy individuals, dont want to do that for fear of breaking something accidentally. I dont understand why its not easy for you to see that. Plus I dont think you pay that much extra really but maybe thats my personal bias.

Also, for a hard drive and ram upgrade, the warranty is not transferred to a dealer.

I dont mean to be overly defensive or even antagonistic to your post. In fact, I do agree with you that every1 should know that there is an alternative to the resellers upgrading your laptop. But I think we all need to remember that when we make reccomendations to ppl, we shouldnt make any assumptions and we really need to try and stay away from our personal bias. Thats the only way were going to be able to give clear, objective advice.

 

When asus decides not to honor their warranty because they modded their laptops they will wish the paid the pros who take over the warranty to do it for them.

 

I think its VERY important to point out to you and the average consumer, that no matter what a dealer says

Ensembles come one way, they arent customized.

My bias is only to educate you and so many people who could be fooled.

The bias of a dealer is obvious. All computer pages have a few places to 'check here if youre ignorant so we can juice you'

I think you can upgrade your hard drive and your ram yourself. Only physically handicapped people should have a problem with it. It is more difficult to change the game in your playstation.

Im going to start a support group.
\
Hehe and sorry if I insulted anyone I mean all I want is for people to take a minute to think. I dont think anyone who thinks it out is going to go that route what can I say.....

I mean.... how else am I going to say it. Non Iq challenging route?

I personally think even suggesting to someone to upgrade their ensemble is a con, attempting to take advantage of someones ignorance. Bordering on dishonest and not something I really want to take part in.

The ensemble comes one way. There is no changing it. That has to be clear, if something says something else it is relating bs right from the outset.

If you are the consumer who takes advantage of the wonderful service of having someone take the 100gb and 1gb out of your laptop keeping it and charging you full retail for more ram and a hd , then you are. Id just want to make sure you were first lol because I dont think most people really are I think most got a little confused somewhere along the line there.

 

Im not your average consumer and I dont need to be educated on these matters. I can take apart and put together my laptop with no problems. I know well how the Asus ensemble system works and I know what im paying for when I pay for it. And i wasnt trying to fool anyone when i suggested some retailers can customize Asus notebooks.

Unfortunately youre still not getting it so ill say it again. Not everyone feels comfortable installing their own RAM/HD let alone replace their CPU. It doesnt matter if you say its easy, it wont magically make it easy for those who find it difficult. If Im talking about this from a personal perspective, I would say "yeah its easy, ive done it many times before". But im not trying to speak from my bias. Not everyone is like you or me. And you probably should start a support page, it could help those out there who are reluctant to fiddle with their notebooks. But the fact is that most people fall into the aforementioned category.

Thats a pretty radical view. And I definitely dont agree, mostly because of the implicit idea that resellers that offer such services are unethical/immoral. I hope that either danny or eddie will have a response for you.

 

even if you can customize it yourself...
first of all, you keep the warrenty
and when you replace a component, what do you do with the old component?
I would much rather pay a extra tip and let them get the component, replace it, discount the price of the older component, and cover the warrenty.
In my case, even if I were to buy the components myself, I'd have to pay a big shipping handling fee cause I live in hawaii. Or.. I'd have to drive to the nearest retailer... some 20 miles away, pay for gas, after making sure the store has what I want, and research to see if its compatible. Then sell the older one on ebay or something...

Its much more convenient, already having everything done when you get it at your doorsteps. Pay a little extra, and you don't have to worry about anything.

 

Stamar, you are making a good point, but in making your point you are being a a-hole.

You don't have to make anyone and everyone that decides to do what you consider ignorant out to be someone of low IQ. You should try to be a little more open minded.

Who are you to decide if someone's action isn't intelligent? A couple bucks lost for the convenience and peace of mind of someone installing a hard drive or ram isn't something that SHOCKING.

Why is it that you feel the need to insult the people you are trying to educate? No one is going to listen to you if you go at it like that. You accused people of being not swift, of low IQ, not rocket scientists, and not knowing basic math.

Stop insulting people and just keep giving good advice please.

 

Aristotle was pretty good at math. In fact, he developed a mathematical theorem proving the existence of a creator. Despite this, I'm pretty sure he couldn't upgrade a harddrive.

Lolz. Aristotle was such a stupid noob. Can't even gut a notebook.

 

I think you can upgrade your hard drive and your ram yourself. Only physically handicapped people should have a problem with it. It is more difficult to change the game in your playstation.

Well, I ran a race the other day and I'm doing a PhD, so I imagine that I'm not "handicapped" or have a low IQ, and I don't like to mess around with my computer. I think the problem is that you're speaking in such absolute terms that it makes people not want to listen to you. Sure, if people are comfortable doing mods themselves and understand the warranty implications, it might make sense for them to do it themselves. But that isn't necessarily the best course of action for everyone.

 

Well, I think that installing RAM and a HDD is very easy.

However, when it comes to installing a CPU and applying thermal paste to a laptop, that is not so easy.

If you want, you can take a look at the ACER forum where, although people were willing to open up their laptops to do this job, many of them had problems carrying it out.

For some of them, it didn't cool as well as it is supposed to, so they did it again and got it right.

How many people here have actually installed a CPU in a laptop anyways?

I haven't.

Just because you can stick in a HDD or a RAM unit, doesn't mean that you can do everything by yourself.

For example, installing an internal wireless card or an optical drive might be a hard task, depending on which laptop you are working with.

The S96J / Z96J has an optical drive that sits there with very small pins, so for example, that would be a hard one to install.


I was looking at how much it costs to buy a barebone and parts to install yourself vs. have it installed, and literally the difference is < $ 100. (About $90 to be specific).

For $90, you don't void your warranty, you don't have to look at a stupid guide to figure out why you have extra screws left, or you don't have to worry about whether or not you did the installation properly.

Is it worth it? Of course!

I think it would be worth it even if the only gain was the warranty, which costs a lot by itself.

 

changing the oil is my car is the easiest thing in the world to me. takes about 1/2 an hr max. but still, i would rather pay someone else to do it for me because i dont want to get my hands dirty, they take my old oil, and i have the money to spend.

some people might look at changing the HD and cpu the same way.

 

Believe it or not, this thread went from a decent question to something completely different, but good in its own right...

The best way to look at it is like this....

1. as long as asus gets the system back in the configuration they brought that model into north america, your warranty is going to be intact without a doubt... unless you've broken a warranty sticker like on the cpu.

2. the difference between say a 1.8ghz and 2.0ghz cpu is nothing - so don't go and waste your money to pay for another cpu to swap yourself or pay a dealer to swap for a charge - because you'll never see the difference and you'll void your warranty right there.

3. hard drive and ram upgrades are easy and certainly can be done with little to no experience in short order..... Comparing an oil change to putting in a new hard drive or adding ram is actually a really good one.... Swapping a cpu could than we considered more like changing the spark plugs or something if you want to try to get the idea........ doing a full motherboard swap would then be something like pulling the engine. There are certain things you can do.... other things you could do and then things you can't. It's those things you "could do" that you need to decide if you should do them or let someone else do them.

Warranty is the least and most important thing you could be dealing with when it comes to a piece of electronics.... Either you're going to need it right a way and often, or never at all...... If you beleive in bad luck - voiding a warranty or not having one or not getting an extended warranty may not exactly be the best choice.... While some will never need it, others will and that's just the luck of the draw. One thing you have going for you is that Asus' systems are great and their motherboards are at the heart of the system and that alone should give you more confidence. I'm not saying a warranty isn't important - because it really, really is. However, there are some brands of electronics that you wouldn't buy without having a great warranty and there are others that you don't even care to check what the warranty is because their built well and have a very low fail rate.... Asus would be the later.

 

Thats cool.

I think you have to analyze the price of the service you provide justin.

I think you do, I dont think you or anyone in this forum misrepresents it.

Changing the cpu, ram and hd, or even the cpu, is giving you the dealer $100-200 straight cash ( based on just setting a 6 hour auction on ebay taking half price, for whoever needs a relative value, who cant figure out what to do with the extra peices) For something, all three upgrades back to back take half an hour maximum.

Thats in the $200-400 an hour range. And the phd student is hopefully studying to be a brain surgeon, then i understand completely. Because just your normal corporate lawyer cant afford a $400 an hour screwdriver operator.

Geniuses do ridiculous things. Its not that I think this is a bad idea. This is a TERRIBLE idea. LOL. Im sure all the people who think this is a good idea have a really good reason to do it. Ive just reviewed all of what you said and considered it carefully and I didnt find a good reason.....

I dont think MOST anyone that thinks it out is going to either. I dont suggest to someone to upgrade their ensemble through proportable geared2play milestonepc whoever because between all of them they represent what is a very poor value.
\

Not to say they are not all great people, and the people who take their service in this area are not smart great people.

You are all great people and I feel so honored to chat with you all. LOL. No really. I have no angle on insulting people.

Im extremely consumer consious. Im buying an ensemble. I looked at that deal and I didnt say no thank you, I said no $%$# you. LOL. And I couldnt in good conscious tell anyone else to do differently, I dont even agree with any of the posters hypothetical situations. I dont like to waste hundreds of dollars, some people do obviously.


UPGRADE THE CPU YOURSELF, KEEP THE PART, DONT SCREW IT UP AND KEEP THE ASUS WARRANTY. WHAT YOU ALSO DONT GET IS THAT YOU ONLY LOSE THE ASUS WARRANTY BY PAYING THE DEALER. dont screw it up. look up how to do it all and do it. Thats the only advice I can give because their really is no alternative in my opinion.

Dont screw it up, dont advertise it. The money you save is actually in the range where you can purchase another warranty lol. Warranty the thing for 6 years. I mean Dont follow my advice just think about it. LOL I have confidence in you if you think about it.


IF any of you ARE physically handicapped, you have arthritis, you have poor vision etc.

ADI is going to make these dealers change the part for you for free, send you back your part charge you absolutely nothing and say thank you. I dont want to sound inconsiderate to people who would have a problem because they do exist a lot of them do. But I want to let them know not to be fooled either. I know exactly where to send an email if anyone is interested send me a pm.
I think I needed to say that based on what I said earlier.

 

We don't offer a good value? Either you misspoke or you just opened up a can of worms. If the question is, what will be cheaper to buy it a certain way or do it yourself..... doing it yourself will be cheaper... However, that doesn't make it a better value. What we offer isn't just experience, but a reputation and knowledge. We don't just sell a computer, but support it, warranty it, have the knowledge to help find the right setup for any given person and pass along our experience with the systems to make sure the customer gets the right system for them.

Now, in terms of customizing the ensembles - if that is indeed what you're talking about... then we're on the same page. We don't modify them and won't offer because in no way are we out to void Asus' warranty and if a customer wants to do that, they can - with someone else. The value of that can't be replaced.. I mean, you're paying for the warranty regardless because it's part of the cost of the ensemble..... but if you void it, it's still something you've paid for..... it would be another story if you got money back if you modified them... Adding ram or swapping a hard drive is something I always felt a customer not only can do, but should do.. because they need to know how to remove those parts if they need to send the system in for warranty work...

 

Well, I admit, I always have my oil changes done by the local Tires Plus...but that's just because I don't want to make an oops and have orange black fluid draining out in an oval pattern in the parking lot. Also, I'm lazy like that.

RAM and hard drives are pretty easy though, you're only a few screws and a lid away. However, I have known a few people who I wouldn't trust with a chunk of granite, nevermind a chip of RAM. These people should pay someone to install their computer components, as they are at a distinct risk of jamming the chip in the wrong way and wondering why their monitors speak Orcish to them.

 

To each their own really.... I'm not really worried about someone who says the value of say a company like ours is nothing, at least in terms of keeping up our customers, but rather where I'd found thought needs to be given is with those who are right on the border... We all know the ones.. the ones who think they know everything, but really don't.. that's a dangerous line to be on and although those people can trick their friends and family into thinking they know everything and they're the "computer genius" everyone reffers to.... Those people are often the ones who really need to consider if they want a computer system which is built, throughly tested, warranted, and serviced by someone with a million times more hours dedicated to Asus systems than themselves --- or do they have what it takes to perhaps build out one of the barebone type systems and make a fun project out of it? No one should worry about those who can admit that know little or are too afraid to want to mess with something as expensive and intregate as a notebooks....... of for that matter, those who really do know what they're doing because it's often those guys/gals who say, "yes I know what to do, but it's really not fun and I'd rather have a warranty" or something like that.

 

I just wanted to comment on this whole debate about having the merchant do your upgrade or not as I was thinking about doing just this.

I do agree the ram is something most anyone can do themselves and maybe should know how for when they want to upgrade it down the line. I built my whole current pc with a little help from a friend and change parts all the time but laptops i have not had any experience with. the whole thing is smaller and more intimidating.

I would do ram in a second but have to say even for the hard drive why would you want to get your laptop with hard drive in it, os and whatever else installed just to take it out and put a new hard drive in and have to reinstall everything even if it is new with nothing much on it let alone later. That is the main thing. Plus as someone said you have to deal with the trouble, shipping etc. of buying a new larger hd and then selling your old one or it going to waste.

The guy made it sound like they charge you full price for the laptop and default parts then charge you again full price for the upgrade parts and keep your parts to make money off. The merchant I configured it with didn't seem like that as the upgrades are just that , and you pay the difference between the new larger hd for example and the one the laptop comes with, nto full price for the new part and get nothing for the one it came with. he was mistaken there. i configured one with upping the cpu, ram and hd and it was only like $100 more then default price which is easily worth the trouble to buy upgrads for those 3 things (cpu, hd, ram) replace them and then try to sell your old parts

As far as the ram, lets use the v6j as an example as it it was one i was considering have a merchant upgrade for me. I forget what ram comes default on the v6j but if its 2 512mb chips to make 1gb then i definitely prefer changine to one 1gb stick and leaving the other slot open for me to upgrade later, otherwise i'd have to up one of the 512's to a 1gb , be stuck with a 512 stick of ram and only have 1.5 total... not as good.

the hdd i already explained why many if not most would just want dealer to do it. and cpu well that is more advanced , more risk of problem and you do at least have to a bios change so that is one most should let dealer do.

the main thing of this debate coming from the one guy is what a waste of money it is and ripoff and that is the key, i would agree with him if the merchant really is charging you twice once for your default parts and then full price for upgrade and keeps your original part. But as long as it is a fair upgrade price then its really not such a bad thing.

Further this thread was supposed to be about where is best place to buy Asus online. Not why ppl shouldn't pay the merchant to upgrade their laptop, make a new thread for that.

Also i think it should have been called good places to buy Asus, by saying best maybe it had all the dealers run in here and who knows, maybe the dealers that dont sell upgraded units has this guy in their employ saying "yeah if you buy upgaded laptop from a merchant you are so dumb and they are ripping you off" hmmmm. And then the whole fake disagreement between the anagonist and one of the non upgraded laptop selling merchants to make it look good, i just dont buy it. i dont trust anything on here. i have merchants pming me out of the blue and basically criticizing me and telling me they stalked me and read all my posts. plus i've seen merchants saying some other really derogatory things on advertisement threads talking about ppl trolling to absorb knowledge. Thats part of what these threads are about and one hand some merchants try to pretend they are helping and educating but then they are worried ppl are trolling for knowledge and will know what they know or find out they are not a merchant they want to deal with, its crazy.

We consumers need to just stick together and watch out for this kind of thing and not have merchants controlling the forums and its threads and be wary of ppl posing as consumers in their employ.

as far as the debate about buying an upgraded laptop from a merchant, i think as long as its a fair price based on what it is as default and getting some credit for those original parts you are trading up for then its fine and is up the consumer what he feels like doing himself or not.

and again this thread was someone i guess asking who is thee best place online to buy Asus which could vary or be opinion. but a list of merchants who carry asus could have been listed and t hen ppl could give their opinions and experiences. merchants should prob stay away from a thread like this at the risk of patting themself on back and worse. unless you are completely unknown and noone is going to mention you and you have to come in yourself to let consumes know you exist as an option then maybe stay away so you dont intimidate ppl who will list you as an option but may want to be truthful about their opinion or experience.

I think many merchants have been listed and their is no one best, as prices and service could vary on different items.

 

Quatre: you make some good points. My arguments were under the assumption that you pay the difference for parts upgraded which is what I am used to. I agree that paying the whole price for 2 parts and getting only one isnt right, but I havent come accross merchants that do that so I cant comment from experience.

Your conspiracy theory argument of merchants having created this whole debate to lure consumers seems a little weak to me. The whole forum system cannot possibly work if everyone said "i dont trust anyone or anything here" because I could equally say "I dont trust you so Im going to disregard your opinion". The environment is one where people try to help each other out, regardless of the fact that most have never met face-to-face. To say "im not trusting any of you, but here is my opinion and you should trust it" is unfair. And there is an obvious expectation of trust or else why would you have taken the time to write a page-long response? So ppl would ignore it? I dont think so.

 

its not everyone on here I don't trust, I guess I was just making a point mostly about the merchants and you got too hung up on that comment and issue.

anyway you were one saying like me that buying an upgraded laptop could be a fine idea for some ppl and not a total ripoff as the other guy was saying which I was mostly agreeing and I actually ordered one with some minor upgrades.

I must say though that I changed my mind somewhat to a more neutral stance on the issue and canceled my order for an upgrade laptop and here is why.

but first why I ordered in the first place. basically I had been researching and agonizing over what to get for some time and just wanted to make a decision. I had decided for reasons disgussed that I wanted to go with the upgrade one and be future proofed with core 2 and add a little hd. I heldoff and even after seeing the argument in this thread about how it was dumb and a ripoff disagreed and still thought it was the way to go for me but before I pulled the trigger wanted to look it over again. when I did I noticed the price of the ram on the configuration I chose actually went up as it fluctuates and the merchant passes that on up or down.

but I had a window still open with the previous price fo $30 less. this helped me decide to just do it before shuttng down the pc and losing that proce as long as it would go through and total would reflect that $30 lower price which it did.

I was glad to be done and pretty happy with my choice as it was actually only $106 more then base price of the laptop.

but then today I started questioning what I was getting for that $106 and it was basically 20 more gb of hd from 100 on base to a 120 as I found out the core 2 processor @ 1.83 ghz wouldn't be any faster then the core duo @ 2.0ghz and I thought possibly even slower being less ghz but was told not really. and the fact that the one stick of 1gb of ram was the same as base config. is that correct that the asus v6j comes with a 1gb stick in one slot and leaves an empty ram slot? I didn't think they would leave one empty and just assume they used 2 512 sticks.

you see as I understand it the main benefit of core 2 is for windows vista and 64 bit stuff. and wouldn't give me much increase in performance or benefit at all really as its just future proofing and mostly for win vista as I understand it. so I couldnt justify paying more for a processor that wouldn't do anything for me now and not until I later when it comes if then or at all buy win vista and install it which will probably require or recommend a clean install wiping out the hd.

still I was a little depressed canceling the order and not getting the upgrade, until I realized well heck if you had to get vista to make use of/get most benefit of core 2 and vista will likely reqiure/recommend clean install wiping hd then why not just wait till vista actually comes out at least and just purchase core 2 duo processor,hard drive and get vista then all at same time.

I would maybe have a local pc shop or authorized asus shop install the new c2d processor and maybe buy the old one or try to dell elsewhere though you can't get much for them supposedly even now. and the hd I would maybe put in myself and then install vista for what would then feel like a whole new laptop.

this will cost me less (even if I do pay a shop to install the new processor later) then upgrading through merchant now plus break up the expense instead of all at once.

the ram in the meantime I could upgrade any time I'm assuming on the base system.

this seems like the way to go at least for me right now as the 2ghz core duo will be faster then my desktop pc. and the base 100gb (on the v6j) is only 20 less then I was willing to pay to upgrade to from merchant and I can keep most stuff on my desktop pc and external hds etc. plus I will get a 160gb hd at that point to installvista on same time I get the new cpu. so that will be a greater hd upgrade in the longrun then just 100 to 120 now. as well I will opt for the 2.0 ghz or higher core 2 with 4mb cache as opposed to the 1.83ghz with 2mb cache I was going to get now.

as a bounus I will have the old cpu and hd to sell.

this seem like the way to go for me but if anyone has any argument for why it might be better to just buy from merchant upgraded let everyone know.

the only thing I can think of is depending on wht you might end up having to pay a shop to do anyway like putting in the new cpu and possibly changing the bios or if you have trouble putting in new hd.

and just the price overall of the cpu and hd plus vista and any install help you pay for may be more then what it will cost to just but a new laptop thenwith core 2 and vista already on it in which case you could just get a new one then but then its like did you buy one now.

and that is the thing I don't really want to wait for asus to release laptops with core 2 laptops already on wich could be as much as 3 mo away maybe more who knows. let alone vista which may be even further off then that and for me I'm waiting for vista to upgrade to core 2. so I'm not waiting for all that to get a laptop.

if asus released core 2 laptop real soon maybe but then there is still the hd and vista factor so I wouldn't jump on it and besides there is no roadmap yet of a core 2 v6.

so I'm not waiting and if its just as much or more to upgrade later then to buy a new on with core 3 and vista and larger hd then, then I then I just get a new one but I doubt.

bottm line is upgrading one now through merchant will cost more then just getting the same parts todo/have done on my own. and again will break up the cost over time, let me get when its actually worth it (vista), and leave me with the spare cpu and hd to sell or whatever.

now just to find best price/deal on a v6j. can get for 70 under retail price that most other merchants sell for and that is prob best I will find.

the other thing to consider on v6j is since I plan on upgrading the processor later anyway maybe get the v6j with the slower processor (1.66 ghz core duo?) which you can get a $200 rebate on and better price then the v6j with 2ghz core duo.

just to make an argument for the other side though and think about it this way. the config I made choosing equal ram as base and 1.83ghz core 2 and 120hd for only $106 over retail seems pretty good because you obviously can't get a 1.83ghz core 2 duo processor and 120 gbhd (5400 rpm btw) for $106
and though that isn't counting what you might be able to get selling the 2ghz coe duo and 100gb hd that may be hard to do and some might not bother.

still that was when the price of the ram I was choosing on the merchants site was $30 less then it is now. plus if you consider the 70 below retail that merchant has the base v6j for. your talking $206 more for what amounts to 20gb more of hd and a processor (1.83ghz core 2) that for now won't be any fatser then the base cpu (2ghz core duo) or have any benefit really right now until vista (even admitted by honest merchant) and even if it isn't really slower, its still less ghz. you could think of it like you are paying $206 for 20gb of hd.

yes it was a little better for $30 less when I ordered and admiitedly makes me second guess if I shouldn't have canceled. but you have to compare it to what you could get base model for and that was $176 less. so for a lower ghz but core 2 cpu I can't make use of or get no real benefit from now, and 20 more gb wasnt worth $176. not even for $106 more then retail price of base model was it worth it? and anyway you really have to count that extra $70 cus bottom line I can get it for that price of $1830 from that merchant even if most others have it for $1900.

 

let me ask everyones opinion.
if you had to choose one which would you get

A. asus v6j base model with 2.0ghz core duo 100gb hd and 1gb ram for $1830 (with plan to buy a core 2 duo of 2ghz or higher and 4mb cache, plus 160gb hd later)

B. v6j upgraded by merchant with
1.83ghz core 2 duo 2mb cache, 120gb hd, and same 1gb ram for $2036 (though when I ordered it was $2006 cus the fluctuating ram was less but have to go by current price though it could go down again) remember this option means no need to upgrade later but might mean having a lower speed core 2 cpu and smaller hd (1.83ghz core 2 w/ 2mb cache and 120gb hd now as opposed to 2ghz or higher core 2 w/ 4mb cache and 160gb later) because of the cost penalty of doing it through merchant (though I'm having trouble justifying the thinking that is more expensive through dealer because it was only $176 more then same merchants price for base model and only $106 more with the cpu and hd upgrade then
most other merchants price of non upgraded model) there is the point though that upgrading later when its actually needed and when the cpu can be made use of, breaks up the expense instead of all at once.

or

C. v6j with 1.66ghz? core duo and same other specs as 2ghz core duo version? 100gb hd? and 1gb ram? same vid card? for as low as $1700 or less? as many merchants have a $200 rebate on it.


personally I think I choose choice C as it is the cheapest to hold over for now allowing more money for the cpu and hd upgrade later.

 

obviously I have to check if their are any other differences wth the lower speed core duo non upgraded v6j but I think its just the cpu. and find lowest price for it but either way its going to be cheapest which if I'm going to upgrade it later anyway is best.

of course there kind of is the option to wait for asus to release a core 2 laptop but that may be awhile and even longer for vista which I think I want to wait for vista to get core 2.

besides I wrote all this from a non activated wm for ppc pda phone on wifi which though smaller more mobile around house in places like on toilet, heh, or in bed it freezes up and needs to be reset every so often. and if I'm using wifi I mine as well use something bigger and more poweful, better overall.

as I have another wm smartphone(no touchscreen) w/ qwerty kybrd activated wth high speed data. and I hope to tether the laptop to whatever phone I have at the time for mobile highspeed on the go.

point is, we kind of don't absolutely need to have a laptop now as my wife was originally figuring on getting one around the end of the year (dec.) and when she might need to use it for work from home, but I wanted to get a head start and figured why wait 2 more mo. just get one now.

leaing towards the lower cpu v6j.

what is model # diff between the 1.66ghz core duo version and the 2ghz version? and again what if any other diff are there?

 

plus I'm kind of set on v6j and no core 2 model/version of it is due. closest thing is he v1j but not same and v1j is much more expensive.

brings up another question. Can one import a v1j from the uk? any difference from american laptop besides power cord? maybe american power cord will ft if the connection on thelaptop side is the same. doesntg seem to be core 2 but prob can up it later. will be expensive to import and then will have to at least buy american ac power cord.

 

You're missing two important points.
Problem:
A: If you do not present the original configuration to Asus (this is the single configuration they bring into the US), they can and will void your warranty.

This gives you two options.
A: Purchase the stock notebook and purchase extra ram or a seperate hard drive seperately (at least not installed in the notebook), and keep any of the stock parts. This would typically leave you with an extra hard drive (which could be used for backups or something realistic), and you keep your warranty ---- it's up to you to decide if that's best for you, but do the math and usually this works out in the long run.

or

B: Get a merchant to swap your hard drive for a nominal charge - they keep the original and you get the swapped one...... and you instantly void the warranty from Asus (which is part of the cost of the notebook to start with). So you're paying for the warranty, but it's being voided. You saved $70 or something from just getting the hard drive swapped out instead of ending up with two, but you at stuck without support or a warranty from Asus and maybe a dealer warranty which is only as good as their name and years in business really.......

So, you could look at it either way, but no one is stupid for thinking one way or the other, however Asus' warranty should be held sacred as you really can't put a price on it.

 

So... Has anyone dealt w/ milestonepc.com's United States office, located in Fremont, CA? Does anyone know if they have a showroom? Do they allow people to place orders online and pick the order up at their office if they live close by to save on the shipping? I've tried calling and emailing, but I don't get a response from them. I tried emailing their stores in Canada, of which I did get replies, but no answers to my questions. All they say is "place an order online".

 

You could always send them a PM if you wish to deal with them. One advantage of ordering out of state would be to not pay sales tax, but if you can pick it up, you may offset that tax with no delivery cost.

 

Justin... I did try PMing them and no reply to that also. The only reason I was considering them was because of the possibility of not having to wait for it to be shipped. I really want to use it now. Otherwise, I'll be ordering from you.

 

They're in the middle of moving their brick and mortar shop so I suspect things are fairly hectic.

~ Brett

 

Brett... I was asking about their Fremont, CA shop not their shops in Canada. I'd expect that they still have people in their Fremont, CA office.

 

Whoops, didn't realize that. Keep in mind any time-zone shifts and try calling them again - someone's gotta be there eventually...

~ Brett

 

your right I did forget about no warranty then if get the parts and do upgrade your self later or habe local shop do the core 2 bios update and install new cpu.

at the same time there is nothing wrong with the dealer warranty from the dealer I had originally ordered from which maybe even in some ways was better then the asus warranty.

point is it seems like if you plan on upgrading to core 2 anyway eventually either do it now through merchant who ca offer a warranty in place of asus or just wait for them to release some.

problem is the model I want in the v6j has no plans on the road map for a core 2 model.

so because of no warranty at all if you upgrade yourself, my ingenious plan to get a 1.66 ghz v6j cheapest possible and then just upgrade to a core 2, larger hd and win vista all when vista comes out.

now sems like my original choice and order of a v6j with 1.83 ghz coe 2 upgraded cpu, larger 120gb hd and 1 gb ram for $106 more then retail for thebase non cutomized/upgraded version from a dealer 2 hr away with warranty was the way to go.

canceled that order and now its $30 more for same config cus the ram went up so I refuse.

sucks but now ill just wait for core 2 asus laptop official releases or for the ram to come back down equal or below.

shouldn't have canceled as I would have had it by now and wouldn't have to upgrade it later, just some more ram.

its just when I started thinking about and reading stuff I second guessed myself and canceled before it was too late.

the only way my idea of a cheaper 1.66 ghz core duo v6j works to upgrade later is if I take it to a shop that does the upgrade an can give me a warranty through them at that point.

 

actually I'm sure there are shops that will do the cpu core 2 upgrade for you to your existing laptop that you bought from them or elsewhere at a previous time as a base non customized model. they just may not warranty a used model just cus they did the upgrade. and it would void the asus one so maybe just wait the year? till that is up. then it doesn't matter and if they do warranty your upgrade they did for you then even better that you had a year with asus warranty on base model and then when that is up get a new on upgraded laptop through shop that does it.

so I think I'm just going to get a base v6j the cheapest I can now, which may mean getting 1.66 ghz core duo version but is fine if I'm going to replace/upgrade that sooner or later.

plus doesn't asus warranty only last a year?

might be that long before vista comes out anyway which is what I'm waiting for to get a core 2 duo cpu and larger hd to be installed. if they can warranty great, if not ill just wait closer to when the year asus warranty is up anyway before doing the upgrade that voids it.

anything wrong with this scenario?

 

found stock v6j for great price of $1727 and get t7200 later from amazon maybe which already has it for preorder.

but now i saw something that there may be a v6j core 2 duo update in Nov/Dec.

i thnk that was speculation cus there has been no word or news on a c2d update for that model. might be replaced b the v1j?

which i am thinking of importing but the conversion rate to usd makes it even more expensive.