the new asus g51

You can always toss in a 1680 or 1920 panel for around $150-$200 . If gaming is your main priority on this machine then 1440x900 will serve you well for running games at native resolution .

 

Do you plan to carry around the G71 alot? Because I kinda have the same concern. I'm hoping it'll be light enough for college and have a decent battery for classes.

 

Is it possible to change that yourself? (ie. "reclock" it?)

 

I'll be carrying it around with me between school, work, and home. I don't think the weight will be that big of a problem while in a backpack. As for the battery life, I just would like it so that way if I end up in a classroom where there is no power outlets available.

You can overclock it back to the stock values, but I personally won't be doing it unless there is very low impact involved, I mean afterall, the had to have downclocked it for a reason, right? Also, at the clocks that it ships with, it would be on par or better than a 9800M GTX, which is still quite decent.

Does this void the warranty? Because if not, I may consider this if the 1440x900 resolution starts to become a bother.

 

Because nothing beats a 1920x1200 screen, IMO.

See what I did there?

 

Higher resolution screens will always have your games looking crisp and sharper.

You can, but I wouldn't be raising the clocks if it's already reaching 90-100+ Celcius.

 

Yeah, well, no offense, but does no good when you're running at 10FPS.

~Ibrahim~

 

I had a 17 in laptop in college the past 4 years (which judging by the G71 dimensions posted earlier it was a smidge smaller) and while you can certainly take it to class it is rather bulky. As a result I really didn't feel like taking it to class everyday (which may have been for the best since from my experiences, most students who take laptops to class look up class notes for the first 10 minutes of the lecture, get bored, and spend the rest of the time idly surfing the web). I do love the 17 inch screen for gaming and watching videos but considering how much I lugged it around to go to the library, trips home, etc. I would definitely have preferred something smaller which is why I'm preferring the G51 over the G71 now. If you do prefer the 17 inch route, you might also want to consider getting a netbook to take around with you around campus.

 

I agree. From what I hear, a 17 incher is tough to lug around the campus every day, and most students learn to take notes with pen and paper so the laptop is really used as a typing/presentation/research machine, not really for direct use in classes. I'm going for the G51 for this reason, once the temps are fixed. A 16 inch should be fine for everything I'll do, and plus this 17 inch desktop monitor I have right now is a bit too large for anything besides gaming, I would prefer a smaller monitor (as awkward as it sounds).

 

That's what I was considering but first I think I'll give it a try carrying the 71 around and if it's really cumbersome I'll get a netbook for like 250$.

 

Fortunately the GTX 260M won't have that problem with any game on the market, even at 1080p.

 

Just stick with the netbook. Anything that is a performance laptop will:
1) Have a fan that's too loud for class
2) Distract you because it's tempting to open up a game/movie.

 

absolutely true. I never bring my computer to class for this very reason

 

So do you think I should even bring the G51 to class? Since I'm probably going into a medical field I'm pretty sure I won't need my laptop for class besides notes and my handwriting is good enough for me. If I am just going to leave my G71 in my dorm then why not just get a much superior desktop?

 

lol that is the most incorrect statement I ever read on NBR.

 

don't bring it. chances are you won't need it anyway. unless you don't care for listening or you have to type a paper for another class, but then why even go to class anyway.

 

why is that wrong? shouldn't gaming laptops have bigger/faster fans because of the heat created by the high performance GPU/CPU?

 

He said performance and not gaming. Even so, most gaming laptop are silent at idle (especially in a public setting). Its not like he is loading up crysis in the classroom and stressing the system (therefore activating the fan). My alienware m15x was very quiet as was my gateway p7811 at idle. Ultimately you make HUGE tradeoffs with a netbook( screen size, performance, keyboard size,etc) so fan noise should not be your deciding factor.

 

If I want to play on low or medium, sure.

25FPS on Far Cry 2, 38FPS on CoD: WaW, 18FPS on Crysis: Warhead, 31FPS on Fallout 3. All of these were on highest in-game settings (minus Crysis which was set to Gamer) with a fair bit of AA involved at 1920x1200. They aren't terrible, but not too good, either. However, some people might be content with medium or low or no AA.

Oh, right, this is a on 9800GT 1GB (identical specs to GTX 260M) at 600MHz/1500MHz/1800MHz, so expect lower performance with the 500MHz/1250MHz GTX 260M included here.

~Ibrahim~

 

So what do you think? Should I get the 17" for class? or get the 15.6" which is a little smaller but definitely worse in terms of specs.

 

whoops sorry double post

 

Seriously all this talk of overheating is getting a bit ridiculous. You don't think this is a case of over exaggeration? I just checked out one of the G51's that a friend got and after hours of operation nowhere on the case is hot and the exhaust coming out the left side is just mildly warm.

I would imagine a company as big as Asus would put their designs through stress tests more than a couple of hours of Crysis or benchmarking that you guys are doing. Has anyone actually gotten a real testing kit to check actual temperatures?

 

Overheating is never bad the first few times. We care about a few months down the line, with dust and everything else getting into those ducts (and the fan). It is definitely a problem, or it was: why else would they underclock it?

Nonetheless, you're right: someone with a temp kit should go in for a "real" look.

~Ibrahim~

 

ok guys for the talk about 17" G71 weight compared to the G51 weight... the G51 on a digital scale with battery weighs 7.4 pounds.. my hp 17" dv7-1262us model is a little bigger compared to g51 and it weighs 7.8 pounds and is a slim 17" laptop. the g71 would have to be bigger than the hp 17" laptop and weigh more, and if it comes with same exact battery at best buy as the g51 you wont get the 2-2.5 hours of battery life more like 1.5 hours if lucky.. the dimensions of my g51 is 15" wide about from side to side and from back to front 10" my hp 17" laptop is 15.6 from side to side and 11.6 from back to front. it has 8 cell battery which gets it 2.5-3.0 hours

if your friend has the g51 and its cool after running it for couple hours yes its true it stays cool in desktop mode or idle mode if your not constantly running anything 3d dx9 or dx10 intensive, out of the box the g51 does not use the powermizer settings like all newer pc gpus and notebook gpus do, due to the old drivers asus included in vista64, and to upgrade to newer drivers you have to modify the .inf file in the nvidia driver set that detects your gpu at a certain address string in windows. Once you do that like I did you can install 185.85 whql drivers for mobile ( i did not try the newer ones that that due to there being two weird different sections you would have to modify the address string for your video card which threw me in a loop confused)..

with the newer drivers the gpu uses the 4 levels of powermizer options while in desktop mode for certain gpu activitys. with that the idle temps went from 62c in desktop mode down to as low as 50c depending on room temps and idle temps on cpu same and system temps..

running DMC4 benchmark install only dx9 mode and dx10 the gpu got up to 99C

i extracted the video bios using gpu-z from the vid card and loaded it up into nibtor 5.0 which couldnt read most of the settings right...

in there it reported that the critical temp for the gpu is 108C so tell me how its normal for 3 of us who proven with screenshots that 90-100c is normal for a notebook gpu (if the temp readings are correct) when the critical cutoff is 108c

that is not normal so it is a concern! for first batch laptops to be official released after june 26th at all best buys..

if it is a true hardware issue they have to do recall for permanent fix different cooler

if they want a quick fix update system bios and update video bios and downclock gpu more or lower voltage more, or turn off shaders which it has 112..

i personally am not here to turn off people from buying the new laptops, im simply here to give my findings on a brand new released product, and usually first releases of something new always has an issue somewhere, and if its not major they fix it with newer system versions or part versions with a revision, if its major they recall it once everyone lets them know! i have emailed asus with the issue, still no replys..

will update here when i do get one!

 

If you wouldn't mind, could you upload the BIOS here?

108C is critical? Hmm...There is still a fair bit to go, but down the line, I can see that being quite possible.

Thanks for all your work, man. We really appreciate it. Hopefully, we can get this sorted out!

~Ibrahim~

 

I thought the chassis' were very similar for the G51 and G71? Doesn't the G51 have a 17" chassis? I'm not expecting that much more weight.

 

yea im pretty sure the g71 shouldnt be extremely heavier than the g51. And yeah the g51 chassis is based on a 17" model

 

i posted a link to bios over in sunny90 review thread

 

skyhawk21, did you do tests before the driver upgrade and then after?

Also, if you can post step by step instructions and which driver you used. Thanks!

 

Ultimately it's up to you. Me personally, I'd rather have the 17-inch with the added power and it only weighs about 2-3 pounds more. Plus, I can get most all of my books in eBook format, so I can use the bigger screen to read them over having to lug the books around.

As far as getting distracted, I see that as a lack of willpower to concentrate on the content of your class. I mean, I have my computer with me when I do my homework, but I know I should work on my homework and end up doing just that. It's up to if you keep yourself motivated.

 

I posted that info over in sunny90's asus 51g review thread!

 

if i were i u would wait wait a month or so to choose between the g51 and g71 so u can check the temps all that stuff

but i would go with the g71 since it has better specs

good luck

 

Thanks, skyhawk21. Found it

 

Also noticed this the other day forgot to mention it...

on Asus support site download section
if you select downloads, then notebooks, then G60 series then the G60VX model that is the same model as the G51 laptop we have....

they have all vista64 bit drivers on there and a first version bios which is version 203 for the G60 motherboard and G60VX laptop that is being released in europe/germany soon if not already.. in the Asus G51 system from best buy we have the G60VX motherboard, and our system bios version is 202 dated 5/8/2009

the bios for the g60vx system on asus is first release 203 version dated 5/29/09

maybe that bios is the one that supports quad cores since the original g60vx over there was suppose to come with a quad or higher cpu and other things..

 

also the nvidia drivers over there for the g60vx are the same exact old ones that came stock on the g51, most of those drivers are stock and installed already on the asus g51, the only difference is the newer bios

 

The G60VX is coming here in the Netherlands with a Q9000 @2.0Ghz and Vista 64 Home Premium

 

You guys are exaggerating with the tems, asus has a lot of experience bulding laptops that generate a lot of heat. A bad design would not make it past quality control.

It is possible but very unlikely.

Learux

 

Honestly, this is an issue dependent upon the student's maturity, the school, and how competitive the program is... not the size or type of laptop you're carrying. I take my 17inch laptop with me to class every day and from my experiences, I've never heard a fan cause a distraction in class and most students have too much respect for the course work, their classmates and professors to think about using it to surf or watch movies.

 

@SSN
do u know how much the g60 is going to cost there?

 

G60VX-JX001K
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 ,16 inch ,640 GB, vpr64

€ 1583,89, including taxes

 

Yesterday, I started putting people on ignore, not all of them for reasons related to overheating, but its an option you may want to consider.

 

@SNN

cant u get a AW m17x for that price?

 

The alienware m17x starts at €1999 with a Q9000, Single GTX260M, WXGA+, 160GB, DVD/RW

yeah I know what you wanna say.. don't!

 

Well post some temps to put our minds at ease.
3 for 3 on high GPU temps have people a little wound up on this issue and yes If I bought this laptop myself (still holding out) and got those high temps on a "gaming" laptop I would be pissed too.Not sure how familiar you are with ASUS laptops but have you heard of the C90s, I could fry eggs on it and the "turbo" fans were such great help
And yes I still am a little sore about buying my C90s so cut us some slack when we see high temps posted, some of us are still a little hurt

 

The G71 will weigh about 1 pound more than the G51 give or take a few ounces.

 

what ???

that in the US is alot cheaper or that i would get the M17x instead of the asus??

 

I understand that you may have been burned before but I think the whole panic thing is a bit played out. Unlike some of the other dudes on here, I'm not trying to play at being an engineer and making statements about temperature based on software readings. That's why I am saying it might be best for those that are so concerned to get a testing kit and get some real readouts. I don't have a kit myself and I don't own this model myself. I'll ask my friend to do some checks but honestly after hours of running yesterday on the Asus power setting the fan was on high but the air coming out was only slightly warm to the touch. I touched every single part of the case and nowhere was hot. Of course these are just subjective tests. If someone with a real kit can get some readouts then I'll go with that data. If it's really running hot then Asus needs to be notified ASAP and hopefully provide a good solution to this issue.

 

on sunny's review thread he said the g51 was around 6.5 lbs so if the 71 came out to around 7.5 I'd be pretty happy

 

OK, yeah we do need someone with a temp probe thingy ( crap, sorry forgot what the hell they are called) to run some more temp tests.
But from what I can tell and what other members have posted It runs much cooler when not gaming ( web surfing and other stuff not to demanding).
This is a "gaming" laptop so that's what worries most people.
Do the temps get high when watching a DVD? Not sure if anybody posted about that.

 

My friend was playing some older DX9 games, but nothing as demanding as Crysis. He's going to download the demo in the next few days to see if that gets things cooking.