Asus K53TA Back! $409.99 Newegg

The HP is a good bit faster in the gaming department. It has an HD 6750M vs. the Asus's 6630M.

3DMark06:

Asus 6630M: 6900
HP 6750M: 8843

If I had an extra $100, and was comfortable with a larger, heavier laptop, I'd go for the HP.

- 2GB of RAM
- 1.7" Screen Increase(and higher res)
- 140GB HD
- Slightly better CPU

 

@Voodooi:
Thanks for your advice. I wanted to respond to your advice here but i was a bit long I just opened a new thread with all the details. Here it is if you have time to read it :

http://forum.notebookreview.com/wha...g-laptop-quick-advice-would-very-helpful.html

EDIT:

@Mr.Mischief:
Well the weight difference isn't that much (5.7 vs 6.7 lbs.) but am I mistaken or does the K53TA have 6650M and not a 6630M?

What about refurbished Laptops in general and the warranty...is the 90 days warranty globally? Can it be extended?

 

Yeah, It has a 6650M, apologizes

The 6650M score 7534 in 3DMark06. If this is going to be a mainly stationary unit, I'd go with the HP.

 

Well thanks for advices and now I'm quite sure that both Laptops are worth their money and are on my shortlist. I just have to see if i can get that extra 100$ for the better performance but still also the Asus is also good. I just have some final questions:

-Does this Asus have 2x2gb or 1x4gb ram stick?
I'm asking because of a maybe near future upgrade to 6-8 gb ram.
-Also what about the AC Adapter, 65w or 90w?
I heard that some people did get the weaker one and for high-end games and maybe some overclocking there is not much room. Buying a spare one would be for me just throwing out money cause i really wouldn't have use for it. The same goes to the 2x2gb ddr3 ram sticks cause my other Laptop has 2x1gb ddr2 ram and from what i know it isn't compatible.
-For sure the problem with the OpenGL Games is fixed? I mean that the on-board GPU can be disabled so the 6650M can run older OpenGL Games without problems.

And there would be a more general question about refurbished Laptops in general.
-Is the 3 month refurbished warranty globally valid?

 

-1x4GB
-90 watt
-I believe you're referring to overclocking. Some laptops overclock better than others. I don't think you'll need to overclock either laptop for 99% of games
-Not sure about OpenGL
-I'm not sure on the warranty either.

Try posting those questions in the thread below, they're much more knowledgeable.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/601808-k53ta-best-deal-ever-could.html

 

@Mr.Mischief:

I just posted there...thanks again!

 

5% off ( 434$ only!) and only 4 available!

 

And.....sold out on ebay also

 

Its back on there for 419

 

New link: Asus K53TA-BBR6

 

I paid exactly 100 less than the one listed on ebay... I wonder if someone stockpiled them and is reselling them through ebay?

 

Newegg has them in stock again for $419.99 free shipping.

 

But with CA tax and recycling it is an additional $50 not as good as the 409 original with the 15% business account off (approximate $130 or so in savings)

 

Newegg's eBay store has them: ASUS K53TA-BBR6 AMD A-Series A6-3400M(1.4GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory 500GB HDD AM | eBay

 

For some reason, ebay can charge tax aswell `~. Brought something before in NY and they charge me NY tax .

 

This is a compelling buy even at this price point but the life cycle of tech is hyper-rapid. There is no way to go after more performance after OC's (no mxm, no eGPU possibilities) and this system would be more lacking after trinity (1-2 months) that would make you a very happy camper for the next several years.

 

no one know how trinity do untill some one got a sample
even a 50%gpu boost on the iGPU on llano probably cant beat a 6650m.

 

I picked mine up from the business site with the coupon and for the price, its hard to beat the gaming performance for that kind of cash. In 2 months will it still play the games that I like to play, yes... A competing Trininty system will run 500+ easily with a Dgpu so its really hard to compare this to something that is not out yet...

 

I bought one of these earlier in the week.
My initial skepticism came from the first boot up.
You MUST accept a BING application to be installed, (which openly states it collects and sends your info). There is no option to proceed further into initial logon without accepting those terms. So I do, just to check out the hardware.

Then Windows detects the installed OS as being an illegal copy.

Spit on that, I'm swapping out the HDD anyway.
I pull the drive, install a 7200 RPM 500/64GB Hybrid Drive and an additional 4GB of RAM.
I then commence a fresh install of Win 7 64 Ultimate.

the OS install goes well. But now comes time for the driver hunt.
The Asus site is just terrible for trying to discern which drivers match which hardware.
The automated software refused to run, stating that it would "only work on an asus notebook". I grin as I peer down at the logo...

Eventually with some perserverance and guess work I have all my drivers installed.
However this system is still a bit sluggish.

Do not buy this expecting a $700 system, buy this knowing its priced correctly as a $400 laptop.

 

same, boot up- illegal windows. Pretty funny . The windows from recovery is legit though.

Depend on how you using it, this thing beat alot of $700 system. Of course, time spent cost money as well.

Edit: the factory recovery is funny as hell as well. It do a back end linux type wipe and restore. but when you boot into window, It has more stuff to install and tell you it is update/restoring though it boot in to desktop already. It ask you not to touch the computer. It will restart for around 20 times and finally done with load of bloatware.

I don't really want to critique it. but it is kinda of funny, so I share my thoughts. ASUS does make nice hardware, but their bloat software is hilarious.
i.e OSD. I have touch several brand of machine, but ASUS OSD for brightness and wireless is so fancy it is hilarious. They put a "3D" graphic with a circle ~~
Another one, it come with a sheet of paper (all there is except the laptop and charger), which state that this computer is a refurbished unit; thus some software will not work properly and tell you how to uninstall manually.

I just swap a SSD after like 2minutes so I didn't had time to play with others ~~

 

Simply un-install from the control panel. Crapware is on just about every laptop these days.

Just type in the Windows key provided on the bottom of the laptop. I believe this is a quite rare issue, mine, nor anyone else I've heard of has had this problem.

Seriously? I found the page with all the drivers in under 30 seconds: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- Drivers and Download K53TA

I don't think anyone is expecting a $700 laptop, that's $300 more than this Asus.

 

This is on par with many systems that cost 200 more. Overclocking and undervolting gives patient users lots of options. From extended life to a gaming powerhouse... If you are expecting a $700 system out of the box, no, your not going to get it. If you are expecting $700 performance after putting some effort forward, possibly. The build quality is not that of a 700 machine, but the hardware can get pretty darn close.

 

You seemed to have missed the point of the M$ spyware forced install.

Congratulations, I found the link in 15 seconds, now differntiate the drivers...

Illegal Copy: Newegg reviews indicate this is a common problem.

My concern is for people thinking this was a budget gamer.
Ya I guess it could, if you're into low res and fps...
Its only use to me is it to stream media.

 

not sure y this is not a budget gamer when you can only find significant gaming performance increase for at least double the budget.(560m/460m/640m)

 

Pretty hard to find another computer with discrete graphics in this price range.

As far as the Forced Spyware... ya, that really is a trip. I was pretty shocked myself and did not intend to do a clean install until I got that same indication.

 

Does the OP realize this was $449 in farking august?

-NEW

 

Many laptops have this, not just this Asus. This is the norm nowadays.

I didn't have any issues downloading the correct drivers for my Asus K53Ta when I re-installed Windows 7.

How is this a problem? You simple type the key in and your good to go.

You should consider reading this thread. Many people confirm that this is an excellent 720P gaming machine: http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/601808-k53ta-best-deal-ever-could.html

Which games can this not play at 720P and at a minimum of medium graphics settings?

 

Sigh.

Penny Arcade - M$

 

And your point?

 

in the tech world that is not a deal

 

Everyone else seems to disagree. It was an awesome deal back then, it's still a great deal today.

 

Of course it's a deal.

Refurbished - 409$
New - 449$

I know it may seem as "only a 40$ savings" in your eyes, but being able to play any modern PC game at medium setting out at this very moment is an excellent deal for 409$.

 

If i read correctly in the k53 thread, you get a computer with screen banding and no fixed dgpu option at 449. (and no 1 think there gonna be fix for these)

Now for 409, you get a computer w/o screen banding and fixed gpu option.

 

Lets keep in mind that "Some people" payed the business price... $356... At that price, its even more of a bargain.