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| | Description | 13.3" / HD (1366 x768) (LED) / i5-2410M (2.66GHz) / 4G DDR3 / NV 520M 1GB DDR3 VRAM (Optimus Technology) / 500G 5400RPM / Super Multi DVD / Windows 7 Home Premium (64bit) / 802.11 bgn / VGA / HDMI / Intel WiDi / Bluetooth / 3x USB 2.0 ports / 4-in-1 Card Reader / 0.3 MP / 8 cell 5600mAh | |
| | Product Details | | Product Length: | 13.12 inches | | Product Width: | 9.52 inches | | Product Height: | 1.2 inches | | Product Weight: | 4.8 pounds | | Package Length: | 14.6 inches | | Package Width: | 13.3 inches | | Package Height: | 3.5 inches | | Package Weight: | 7.55 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 29 reviews |
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review: ( 29 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
64 of 65 found the following review helpful:
 Well rounded features with high build quality May 26, 2011
By T. McKendry
I've broken this review into sections with a number rating out of 10 for each. There's a pro/con summary at the end.
===============
Keyboard: 9/10
Excellent size, layout and tactile response. The black on black chiclet keys look sharp, modern and are comfortable to type on. Typing is also relatively quiet and unlike a lot of other Asus laptops, there is very little flex. I love the minimalist look and that there are no superfluous media keys. The keys themselves are spacious and the lettering is slightly over-sized. The only thing missing that would make it perfect to me is back lighting.
===============
Touchpad: 7/10
Performance is smooth and accurate for standard navigation & left/right clicking. The pad is spacious and the left/right click rocker bar works as it should. Two finger scrolling works really well, but the other multi-touch functions (zoom in/out, rotate) are buggy and only work half the time when I try. The chrome left/right click bar looks great, but finger print oils show up after awhile so you'll want to wipe it down regularly.
===============
Display: 7/10
The LED display is bright and colors are vibrant/accurate. However - I was disappointed by the viewing angles when watching video and find that it's necessary to sit directly in front of the screen to avoid degradation in picture quality. Also, the screen is very reflective, which makes it difficult to use this laptop outdoors or in a position where lights are behind you.
I would have preferred a resolution higher than 1366 x 768, but I was aware of this limitation when making the purchase, so no points lost for that. The Asus 'Splendid Utility' that allows you to switch between different color viewing modes (Normal, Theater, Vibrant, Soft, etc) seems useless. Everything but 'Normal' mode looks muddy or discolored to me.
All in all I think the display will be fine for most people but it isn't amazing or something that stands out impressively from the competition.
===============
Audio: 6/10
As with most laptops, the speakers are not very impressive. Audio is tinny and there is very little bass when I listen to music or watch movies. The placement of the speakers in the front of the chassis slanting down doesn't help matters. If you plan on using this laptop for watching a lot of movies or listening to music, you'll definitely want some headphones or high quality portables to use.
===============
Speed and Performance: 8/10
This little champ has handled just about everything I've thrown at it so far. It streams media from my home server flawlessly, with no lag or stuttering in the video. Online streaming via Netflix, Hulu etc also works great. Windows/Menus/Programs/Media Center are quick to open and everything feels very snappy. Photoshop opens quickly and performs well for 4GB of RAM. I encoded a couple of videos using Handbrake and it performed comparably with my core2quad desktop.
Drive access sometimes slows down in explorer if I'm heavily multitasking, but nothing abnormal or excessive. The product description overview says this has a 7200 rpm drive, but it is actually a 5400 rpm drive as stated in the expanded technical description. I will most likely upgrade to an SSD & 8GB of RAM at some point.
There was a ton of bloatware preinstalled. I was actually concerned at first because the system ran really slow after initially booting up and even froze up a couple of times as I tried to remove some of the crap. However, after rebooting & finally getting everything off, I updated Windows to SP1 and everything ran fine after that.
I wish they included a real recovery disk with options to leave off extra programs instead of storing it in a hidden partition as a bundled package. I'm thinking of just doing a clean install with one of my Windows 7 Professional disks and buying a license key before the 30 day activation is up. Although this laptop runs perfectly 95% of the time, there are odd moments where it hangs on something, and part of me thinks it relates to the buggy behavior I experienced while trying to remove some of the bloat. Perhaps some registry changes were made that is interfering. I don't know.
===============
Build Quality & Form Factor: 10/10
Despite the compact size and plastic chassis, this laptop feels solid and well made. I love the black colors and brushed faux metal look of the palm rest and cover. The shiny bezel around the LCD panel attracts fingerprints and dust, but it looks very sleek/modern when wiped down. You can't really see it in the photos, but the plastic around the keyboard has a faint glitter effect that looks cool.
I also love the easy access to the hard drive & memory bays - which is typical with Asus chassis design. This will make future upgrades much less of a hassle.
The laptop is slightly heavier and thicker than I was originally wanting, but it still feels compact and light enough to tote around comfortably. The overall look feels sleek & contemporary, which is exactly what I had in mind for cosmetics.
===============
Webcam: 3/10
The webcam works ok but is very low quality. If you use skype or are big into online video chats, you'll probably want to go with a higher quality, dedicated webcam.
===============
Cooling & Noise: 9/10
I'm amazed at how cool and quiet this laptop runs, especially so because I only see the one side vent on the chassis and the holes in the front where the speakers are (which I assume also provide intake air). The bottom is completely solid w/no fans or vents (which is what I wanted), so I was expecting it to run a little warm while having it on my lap or doing anything more than casual tasks. However, although you can feel warm air coming out of the vent under moderate-to-heavy loads - the rest of the chassis stays cool. I haven't experienced the loud fan issue that another reviewer described in battery saving mode of the previous model.
===============
Battery: 9/10
Battery life is excellent. I haven't experienced the advertised '9.5 hours', but I've only tested under conditions that I would normally be using (browsing, photoshop, streaming online media, etc). I get about 5-6 hours with casual use and around 4 when streaming media or doing something more intense. It's great that they went with an 8-cell battery instead of the usual 6-cell. I'm sure I'd get more if I turned off Wi-Fi and decreased screen brightness.
===============
Summary:
I am really pleased with this laptop and would recommend it to anyone looking for something compact, yet powerful enough to do real work or enjoy streaming media without lag issues. With the compact size and limited ventilation, I wouldn't recommend this for heavy gaming, as I don't see how there could be enough air flow to the GPU - but I think it's fine for casual use or older games with lower gpu requirements.
All in all I think it is a very well-rounded system. Amazon associates 5 stars with an "I love it" description ... which I do ... but there are a few flaws that prevent me from giving it that rating. So a star has been removed for the negative points outlined above, but it's still a great system.
PROS:
2nd Generation (Sandy Bridge) i5 CPU
Long Battery Life w/8-cell battery
1333Mhz RAM (vs more common 1066Mhz)
Discrete Graphics with generous 1GB Dedicated VRAM
Silent & Cool under normal/moderate load
Attractive & Compact Form Factor
Overall Build Quality feels high
Asus Warrenty w/1 Year Accidental Damage is an amazing bonus
CONS:
No USB 3.0
Max Resolution 1366 x 768
No back lighting on keyboard
Reflective Screen
A tiny bit heavier/thicker than comparable 13.3" laptops
Mediocre Viewing Angles
Description says 7200rpm drive, but it is actually 5400rpm
Way too many non-essential programs & bloat preinstalled
Also, NotebookCheck[dot]com has a great write-up of this laptop and it's predecessor, the Asus U30JC-A1, that I recommend checking out.
::: UPDATE 05/28/2011 :::
So I ended up doing a clean install of Windows 7 Pro because I couldn't get boxee or xbmc to install and was sick of the occasional performance lags. After doing a clean install, I would now rate Speed and Performance a 9 or 10. I no longer experience the random hangings or lags in speed ... and all of my software installed without issue. Inexplicably, it also seems as if I'm getting an hour more on battery life, which I don't understand at all.
It could be that my initial efforts to remove the bloatware messed something up with the original configuration, which Asus can't be blamed for - but I still feel the amount of extra crap they had installed was unacceptable.
11 of 11 found the following review helpful:
Nice laptop with some juice May 27, 2011
By Sonniez
Just got this laptop 2 days ago thanks to amazon prime shipping.
I needed a small and light laptop with some juice and purchased this laptop.
Pros:
-Sandybridge CPU, very fast and snappy.
-G520M with optimus. I love this technology, as it saves a lot of battery. You can choose what program to use with the discrete or integrated video card. I've only tested counter-strike source and I got up to 150fps, ranging around 50-70 average on High settings!
-Keyboard looks very nice and clean and feels good to type on
-Not too heavy, something you can carry around with you.
-Build of the laptop is very good, wish they would put the same material thats on the palm rest to the case. (Oil resistance)
-Battery life is VERY good! So far I get around 8 hours (Surfing, Gaming, Install programs, Movies, Brightness at 30-40%)
-Touchpad is good, but clicker attracts oil!!
-Nice and quiet, no vents on bottom, doesn't get burning hot.
Cons:
-Speakers are very dull. No clarity at all, nor its loud. I can live with it but would prefer to have headphones on.
-Resolution is at 1366x768, but it looks fine on at 13" laptop. Viewing angles arent great and can't really see outdoor.
-Finger print magnet on the cover.
-Webcam could be better.
-No USB 3.0
-Not 7200RPM HDD like advertised
-ASUS BLOATWARE
So far I'm satisfied with my purchase, battery life is good, moderate gaming when needed, sandy bridge, build is nice and its not too heavy. I plan to use this laptop for some business work/ personal entertainment. If you can deal with the cons, this laptop is for you!
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
 Surpassed all of my expectations Jul 08, 2011
By I. Mazin
Where to start? I bought this laptop for college next year. My budget was limited (hooray minimum wage jobs!) and this seemed like a good deal for the price, so I thought why not?
I had greatly underestimated this laptop.
This review will talk about what other reviews don't talk about, and that is software. The default install has plenty of bloatware, so I installed a blank install using the product key on the bottom of the laptop. Then it came to install the drivers from the CD Asus supplies you... there were a lot of files. I think in the end I ended up installing nearly all of them.
The Asus-branded software offered is hardly bloatware. Asus Fast Boot is a great feature which lets you install as much crap as you want, and still have the computer start up fairly quickly. The Bluetooth drivers are the best I've seen in any device, period. You can use your computer as a headset for your phone, you can use bluetooth headsets/phones with the computer, you can browse your phone via bluetooth in Windows Explorer (and not in some crappy manufacturer software). It made bluetooth functionality about 50x more useful to me. Scene Switch is great for people who want to use this for both work/school and home. Asus Splendid lets you correct the colors for the display.
So is the display really as bad as people say? Personally I think it's blown out of proportion. The reviewer which gave the screen a 7/10 is fair: the viewing angles aren't the best, though the color reproduction is pretty good. In "Soft Mode" with Asus Splendid, the display's colors look just as good as my desktop's Samsung monitor. I like glossy screens so no complaint about that.
The build quality of the entire package in general is phenomenal, and the keyboard is pure bliss. No backlight though. Oh well.
Performance? Amazing. Even in "battery saving" mode, you have more than enough power to do anything you want, watch 1080p content, etc. Funny story: I ran the laptop on integrated graphics only (I messed up the driver install) and I couldn't tell until I tried opening nvidia control panel, and no such thing existed. As far as gaming, the most intensive game I play is Team Fortress 2. The integrated graphics run it at medium/low, and the dedicated card runs it at absolute max at 20-30fps, and if you turn filtering down to 2x or 4x, you get 30-60 fps. I have AA and AF both at 2x and I don't experience slowdowns.
Speakers are a disappointment. My eee pc (900HA) has better speakers.
So, to upgrade this laptop, I'll also be buying an SD card (for ReadyBoost) and an extra 4GB of RAM. The plan is to be able to run AutoCAD, and also the Adobe Creative Suite. And seeing how it's performed so far, I don't think I'll have an issue with it.
I'm probably going to made a video of this computer for youtube over the weekend, so look forward to that?
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Very pleased Jun 22, 2011
By A proud owner
My old (But insanely trusty) Dell Vostro 1000 only got 6 minutes of battery life, which is unacceptable in a college environment. Like many others I was tempted to buy a PC in the promise of getting a free XBOX 360. I stumbled upon this gem and the specs sold me on the spot. It was delivered in 5 days (remarkable considering my original estimate was 20+ days). I've owned the laptop for about 7 hours, and I think I have enough information to give a useful review.
==First Impressions (Size, Weight, etc)== [10/10]
Like many before me, I must admit that the laptop is deceptively thicker then the pictures convey, and a bit heavier then I had imagined. Still! at 13" and less then 5 lbs, the unit is far from a disappointment. The build quality by far surpasses my previous laptop. Very sturdy, aesthetically pleasing, and relatively compact. The color wasn't my first choice, but it is none the less strikingly elegant. The battery is quite large and adds to the units mental weight, but don't be fooled; this laptop will not be a burden to carry. It would have been nice to have USB 3.0 or eSata in the interface, but the provided interfaces will do just fine. The usual Processor, Graphics Card, and Operating System stickers are all accounted for, but they peel off with the rest of the prepackaged plastic. I was actually kind of saddened by this, as I wanted a way of quietly boasting the units technical prowess. The fact that this unit is 13" and still has a DVD drive is nothing short of a miracle, though I couldn't help but feel the DVD RW was a bit on the slow side. Also, statistically speaking, ASUS computers are least likely to break down versus other leading competitors. Why? Because ASUS makes the majority of the parts in their products, and if you consider that until recently their primary bread and butter was the parts they made; logic would say they probably make good parts if they're still around today.
==Keyboard and Touchpad== [8/10]
I fell in love with the keyboard the minute I used it to name my user login; It was quiet, soft, but firm enough so as not to give way. The keys are nicely spaced, and unlike many of the other reviewers I found there respective locations to be quite acceptable. The only con for this keyboard is that it isn't backlit, hardly a issue worthy of consideration. The touchpad is about what I expected, not surpassing or failing my expectations. Though the buttons are a single bar, they are soft to the touch, and aren't flimsy despite ones impression. Dedicated media & number keys would have been a nice touch, but hardly necessary. Be warned the touchpad buttons are fingerprint magnets.
==Screen== [7/10]
The size and resolution of the screen are great considering the cost of the unit. However, the rumors about poor color quality are unfortunately true; this became apparent after sifting through a few photos that I had downloaded [...]. I never found a lack of brightness, and the overall clarity of the screen was passable. The preset color modes aren't quite up to par, but the brightness presets are nice.
==Sound== [6/10]
The speakers on this unit are particularly well hidden, however the sound they produce is dismal and low. Bass is completely non existent, though that's understandable considering the laptop's size and power limitations. The Altec Lansing logo is visible, but not earned well. A nice pair of headphones is an absolute must with this unit.
==Webcam== [5/10]
The webcam on this unit is acceptable. Nothing more, nothing less. I suppose it COULD be better, but I'm a firm believer in "Its better then nothing", which was the case with my old laptop. So I have no quarrels with it.
==Performance and Speed/Emissions and Temperatures== [10/10]
Finally! A topic that really matters, and one that this unit heavily surpasses. Even with the excessive amounts of bloat ware, the second generation i5 demands respect; with its snappy, and responsive performance. Installs take seconds, load times are made lengthy only by the 5400rpm HDD, which can be easily remedied with a SSD. Most of the reviews talked about the units speed, and decent media streaming options, but were unable to produce a decent gaming benchmark. I installed StarCraft II on this unit, and it plays it flawlessly on medium settings. I got an average of 40-50 fps in 2x 1v1 matches. Granted, it DOES get hot, (about 71 degree to be exact) but that's not uncommon in laptops. The fan is quiet and unnoticeable enough on idle, though it makes itself known at load, its not unreasonable. I'd much rather have a noisy but relatively cool
laptop, as opposed to a quiet but combustible one. If you intend to use this as a gaming laptop, It wouldn't hurt to have a program like Speccy [...]) available to keep tabs on the temperatures; and blowing the fan out once a month with canned air would probably be a good idea as well.
==Battery== [10/10 by default]
As of right now I cannot comment on the battery life, as I have actually not "installed" it yet (i've been running on AC power). Most techies will tell you that prior to its first use, a laptop battery needs to be charged completely over night, then discharged down to a low amount to help "Train it". Now i'm not sure if the rule of thumb applies to this lithium battery but better safe then sorry.
==Overall== [8/10]
For the most part, I've been quite pleased with this laptop. It may lack certain amenities possessed by more expensive laptops, but that's the beauty of this particular unit; it doesn't break the bank. This computer can be summed up in two short words, "No Compromises". You get a computer that (for me at least) has it all. Great performance, great battery, light weight, compact, Good brand & build quality, all for a great price (and in my case, a free XBOX 360!)
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
An excellent laptop - fast, portable, and also a budget-friendly gaming laptop Nov 17, 2011
By Danny Yu
This Asus U30SD-XA1 is loaded with good hardware and is an excellent all around laptop. Fast, dependable, and good for all computing tasks. It's also very capable as a budget-friendly gaming laptop with it's Nvidia GT520M (1GB dedicated graphics memory) and i5 core processor. For games, you'll be able to play most games at the highest resolution (definitely), and depending on the game, medium to high settings.
In this review, I'll go in depth with many of the laptop's features, as well as some of the smaller details, which may make a difference in your purchase or laptop search. A friend was kind enough to let me test out this laptop for this review. Just a fair warning, I do plan on writing a lot, so feel free to jump around!
HARDWARE - Wow, the combination of the the computer parts is a great value and performance. i5 Processor at 2.3 ghz, 4 GB RAM, Nvidia GT520M, 500GB western digital hard drive, bluetooth connectivity, long battery life (somewhere in the 6-8 hour range), each component is of good quality.
DESIGN - Oh goodness, where do I start? This laptop has a lot of fine details, whether it's big or small. Some positives:
+ Extremely sleek overall look. The cover, wrist rest, and mousepad are all very smooth, has a nice feel, and makes the laptop very stylish.
+ The 3 USB 2.0 ports are placed well so that it would not be intrusive.
+ The ventilation is very smart. The bottom of the laptop doesn't have any fans or space. The heat just goes out from the side of the computer. The laptop rarely feels hot or warm. It stays VERY cool.
+ The speakers are placed on the longer side of the laptop, just beneath where the mousepad would be.
+ The battery charger has a sturdy construction and the battery charger's pin is extremely well built. It's also a right angle pin, so there is less worry about an accidental unplug.
~The only drawback with this laptop's design is that the memory card reader is placed curiously below the mousepad. It can potentially get in the way when inserting a memory card. Otherwise, the design is excellent.
KEYBOARD:
- Keyboard is very nice. I like the island style. Also, the feel is soft, but also sturdy at the same time. It's not quite like the Macbook series', in which it feels very cushioned, but it's still a great keyboard to type on.
- There is no flex at all. Other ASUS models have been known to have a little flex in the keyboard, but there isn't one here. It is rock solid.
- Options like the power modes, volume, brightness control, and playback buttons are placed well so that it's easy to use those commands.
SCREEN
- Max is 1366 x 768 resolution. A vivid and relatively good screen. Images, video, gaming looks very clear or bright.
- Nothing too spectacular. Just a good, solid screen.
GAMING EXPERIENCE (Oh my favorite part of this review!)
- This is a great budget friendly gaming laptop. Why pay $1000+ for the ASUS gaming line of computers when this laptop is more than able to play most games? I'm able to play Counter-Strike: Source and Left 4 Dead 2, both maxed out - resolution, anti alis, textures, models, everything maxed out. However, for more heavy graphic games like Crysis 2 or Grand Theft Auto IV [Download], you can definitely play at the highest resolution, but settings will need to be turned down to medium, which is still extremely good.
- Overall, a very smooth gaming experience. The graphics card gives you a lot of potential. To me, a good graphics card is what sets apart a good computer from a great computer.
COMPUTING EXPERIENCE
- Generally, tasks like Microsoft office, internet surfing, loading programs feels fast.
- As usual, there will be bloatware, many of which can be easily uninstalled or disabled.
- A minor detail, but when changing power modes and volume, there is a little cool icon that appears.
MOUSEPAD
- Very sensitive and accurate.
- The right and left click is extremeply low-profile. You have to try it to believe it, but it's so quiet when you use the right click. The left click is a little bit louder, but not much.
- Overall, a very solid mousepad that gives you the option to use gestures like zoom, scrolling. Those do take a little time to get the hang of, but can be useful when you do.
SPEAKERS
I was really hoping the branded "Altec Lansing" would give this laptop some "oomph," but it didn't. Unfortunately, the audio still seemed airy, and did not feel very dynamic nor full. To sum it up, the sound feels flat. I was just expecting more, especially since they were labled Altec Lansing.
PORTABILITY
Weighing in at about 5 pounds, this laptop is still relatively light. Just don't expect it to be netbook-light. For the most part, it's very portable and easy to lug around in backpacks, carrying, etc.
WINDOWS SCORE (up to your interpretation)
Scores at on the scale of 1.0 to 7.9
Processor: 6.9
Memory : 5.9
Graphics: 4.8
Gaming Graphics: 6.4
Primary Hard disk: 5.9
Overall, an excellent laptop that will give you fast, reliable computing power for daily tasks. It's also a very capable gaming laptop, in which you'll be able to play most games at the highest settings, and today's best games somewhere in the medium setting range. Buy with confidence!
P.S. Contrary to other reviewers, the Optimus technology (switching from intel graphics card to nvidia graphics card) is very easy to use. Make sure all drivers are up to date. In the nvidia settings program, you just need to change the setting to ensure all programs are using the nvidia high-performance GPU.
See all 29 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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