N3510 - Couple of comments after 2 weeks of use

I have noted the highlights and lowlights below.

I ordered the machine with 1G, dual DVD and 80GB HDD. I happened to have a Dothan 2.0GHz 'lying' around, and dropped it in. BIOS reports 2.0GHz Dothan 'out the box' Once you have figured how to get the keyboard off (full open screen so it is flat and pop the U-shaped caps that cover the LCD hinge, then remove the whole panel that has the LED's and vol control, be careful not to break the flex cable!), it is a simple matter to remove the heatpipe and CPU. I noticed the heatpipe is attached to a copper plate that cools both the GPU, Northbridge and CPU! Oh and the ATI X300 is built into the base board, so no upgrades possible.

There is no noticable increase in heat, RightMark reports 800Mhz when idling and jumps to 2GHz when under load, for a 6x FID multiplier and VCore of 0.988V. Fan spins up at 2.0GHz although it is not that noticable. I should be getting some 2.5's for eval, I'll have to see if they work in the 3510....

Highlights:-
Great screen
DVD burner
Dual channel DDR memory
My Targus 12V car/air adapter worked with the powertip 3. The unit only supplies 70W, and the shipping AC PSU is 80W, so theoretically I could overload it, but so far so good!

Lowlights
Weight (OK I was coming from a Sony R505GCP - ultralight)
Screen resolutuion could be higher
Small mousepad, seems too small for the rest of the machine
4200RPM HDD. Waiting for the 80G 7200's to start shipping, then I will ghost my HDD and install the 7200. I have a 60GB 7200 on the Sony, and the increase in speed was very noticable
Battery life, averaging 2.5H with max battery
Keys a bit sticky/hard to press
Gets quite warm on your lap, keeps the 'wedding tackle' toasty!

FYI air flow is from the top front, to the exhaust on the back left. The air inlet is the small holes at the front of the machine....

- Tim

 

"FYI air flow is from the top front, to the exhaust on the back left. The air inlet is the small holes at the front of the machine...."

I always wondered where that thing drew air in from. It couldn't be just generating air from no where!!! So you mean the air intake is right next to the speakers? And does that air pass by the HDD or no?

Thanx for putting an end to all the people's question about PCI-EX upgrade!

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N6010: P4M 3.2G, 512MB Dual 333MHz, 60GB 7200RPM, ATI 9700M, 17" WXGA+
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I wish Fujitsu would break out of the XGA mold...that's always a lowlight on their machines for me, other than that I generally always have a great experience with Fujitsu machines.

Thanks for the feedback here!

DigitalCameraReview.com | BargainPDA.com | TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

You should have taken some pictures for us to see inside the machine!

 

I have had this notebook for a couple days now and I can say that it makes a great notebook to take to school and keep around the house for movie watching and web surfing. The LCD on this notebook is absolutely as amazing as I have ever seen. I think it’s even slightly better than the Fujitsu N6010 that I had owned for a brief time (brightness was the same but the color vividness and crispness is just a little better on the N3510). Heat issues are pretty much the same as most people have posted but doesn’t bother me to much (have a three year warranty just incase the heat breaks down anything). It is a little heavier than other Centrino laptops I have owned but the screen more than makes up for any deficiencies. I also noticed that the top glossy cover scratches easily as I noticed about 6 scratches on it (very fine scratches) straight out of the box and from the factory but the black glossiness looks really good so that’s no deal breaker. About the only thing that I can think of that I don’t like are the crappie speakers on it. I have had two other Centrino notebooks that were similar in specs, size and performance but had way better speakers on them. Even the store model that I looked at in a retail store had a blown right speaker. But again this is not a deal breaker as I don’t actually use the external speakers much. I use my Sennheiser headphones for movie viewer. The sound card does provide great sound to my headphones.

The one thing that really bothers me is the keyboard. The actual keyboard itself feels great and feels solid but I have way to much keyboard flex. Most of the flex is right under the right side of the keyboard. I have had at least 6 notebooks in the last 6 years and have never had this much keyboard flex. I think that I may just have an improperly installed keyboard or a keyboard slightly bent out of shape. I think that it could be fixed if I could just find out how to remove the keyboard. Does anyone know any specific step by step procedures to do so?

All in all I would rate the screen 10 out of 10 and the rest of the notebook 7 out of 10. The LCD is so great looking that it makes it worth it to buy this notebook for everyday use. Just an opinion.

Fujitsu N3510, 1Gb Ram, 60Gb 7200RPM HD

 

You have a keyboard flex problem? Myabe it could be a manufacturing defect? I tried one out at a store and i put like a few kgs of pressure onto it but not much flex at all. Quite a solid notebook. And i had the N6010 next to me and the screen of the N3510 definetly displays more vivid and a higher contrast of colours. The only thing bothering me is the weight and heat.

Why is this notebook heavier than other notebooks in the same class? Is it because of its chassis? I was told be the sales that Fujitsu had used "better" materials in the frame of the N3510 which made it a bit heavier. I actually dont believe him. Better materials would be like carbon fibre which would be lighter and stronger. I actually think Fujitsu went a bit cheap with the materials on the N3510 and maybe chose a heavier (and relatively cheaper) material to use in the design of the chassis. That is why i think its so competively priced (here in Asia anyway). Maybe that also brings up the heat issue. Different materials have different heat absorbtion levels. I remember a while back when i was building computers i noticed that cheaper cases would heat up a lot more than more costly cases. The materials used in the two cases defeinetly feel and look different.

Any other opinions?

 

Orangeguy, I don't know if the comparison with the N6 is really valid, since if I am not mistaken they are manufactured at different places (but I could be wrong!)
The N6 is plastic on the outside, I thought the N3 felt more solid, + the back of the screen on my N6 flexes a bit if you apply pressure (well it is 17' after all) but I found the whole screen on the N3 more solid.
Now as for the material which might cause the extra weight. On the inside of the N6 underneath the shell their is a metalic body that all internal components screw onto, and then the plastic body components are attached to that. This could be the reason for the extra weight in my opinion in case the same construction is followed int he N3.

Notice the metal fram around the window opening, this metal body actually extends all thru the inside of the N6:


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N6010: P4M 3.2G, 512MB Dual 333MHz, 60GB 7200RPM, ATI 9700M, 17" WXGA+
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Well i think the lid on the N3510 should be more solid since its made from mag alloy (is the N6 lid mag alloy as well?). But i am not sure about the casing. Does anyone know whether the N3's casing is mag alloy too?

Im not sure that the N3 is constructed the same way, but if the N3 does have that metal frame as well then it should add some weight. Im not sure if i was referring to that frame, In my previous post i was referring the the N3's 'chassis'. By chassis i mean the frame in which the notebook and casing is moulded from. Maybe what you have shown me is part of the frame i was referring to.

In any case, maybe Fujitsu decided strength and durability was more important than weight since the N3 is considered as a DTR anyway. But i also have a query. Fujitsu usually charges a premium on their machines like othe big names on the market. Why is the N3 priced so cheaply compared to their other models? For example, here in HK, an S7011 with a PM 1.6 would cost around US$2000, while the N3 model is only priced at US$1700? As a comparsion, The Toshiba M30 SE still sells for US$1900, with the M45 retailing at US$1800. It seems to me the N3 is not one of their premium models and there must be a reason why it is pricded so cheaply based on Fujitsu's standards.

 

The N3 body is ABS plastic. As for the sale price, the M45 is priced under, along with the Dell 6000, with the Sony a little higher and the Acer 8104 much higher. I think Fujitsu priced right in line with where it should be. This is a more consumer oriented model, they may be trying to price it as such to generate more volume.

Brian

www.BargainPDA.com | www.DigitalCameraReview.com | www.NotebookReview.com | www.SpotStop.com | www.TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

Brian, im still eagerly awaiting the N3510 review. It should be here anytime soon, correct?

 

Actually we hit a snag. I sent the machine to lewdvig who ws going to write the full review and the machine never made it to him in Canada...sigh, so there goes $1500. We have several people here though who want to write full reviews, so we have you covered.

Brian

www.BargainPDA.com | www.DigitalCameraReview.com | www.NotebookReview.com | www.SpotStop.com | www.TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

Oh no, thats terrible news. Was it insured?

 

Ouch. Does the site buy the machines and sell them used, or are the test units loaners from the manufacturers?

 

This one we bought but most are sent to us...I think the shipper made a mistake, so it's unclear who's at fault at this point.

Brian

www.BargainPDA.com | www.DigitalCameraReview.com | www.NotebookReview.com | www.SpotStop.com | www.TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

Mike, about the keyboard, I found a little bit of flex on the right side too, but it just didn't bother me. But one thing that bothers me is their recovery CD. I'd like to partition my HDD after formatting it. But the recovery CD would not let me do that and I guess I'd have to use a third party software like partition magic which I hate. Does any of you know if there's a way to get around this?

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N3510 (740 1.73GHz / 15.4"CV WXGA / 1GB / 7k60 / 56K, 10/100 & WIFI)
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Sort of. Go grab a FREE copy of Knoppix (live linux cd). It has a program called qtparted that will let you repartition your drive. I hear it's more reliable than partition magic, but have no evidence aside from reading posts.

 

Just an update. I took the N3510 back to Fry's where I bought it from because the keyboard was just driving me crazy. I did get another one which is much better. There is hardly any flex on the keyboard on this one so I guess I just had a bad one. Now I'm happy! It's amazing the differences I see with the N3510 I have now versus the one I returned. This one has no scratches on it like my first one did (scratch's on screen and outer case). Plus the mouse pad buttons are more even on my new one (on the old one the middle button was higher than side buttons). I thought I was going to have to go to battle with a Fry's associate but when I got there I immediately asked for a manager and he was extremely nice. I took the new N3510 out of the box before I left to inspect it plus I got some money back for my troubles. Sometimes it really pays to talk to a manager instead of wasting time with anyone else.

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Fujitsu N3510, 1Gb Dual DDR2 Ram, 60Gb 7200RPM HD, Dual Layer DVD Burner, WXGA+
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Could you perhaps perform a full set of battery life results for us under different conditions? e.g. full LCD brightness with wi-fi on..etc!

Thanks!