VPN: N61JQ-A1
Product ReviewsASUS N61 Series N61JQ-A1 16" Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit NoteBook
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With 6 User Reviews
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 Rating: Review Date: 05/20/10  |
Cons:
Optical Drive is SLOW. ONLY 3 USB slots in TOTAL. Horrible OEM speakers
Pros: Lightweight for a 16" laptop, Bright LED screen, USB 3.0 port, quiet, GOOD video card, Relatively cheap for this performance |
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Rating: Review Date: 05/17/10 |
Cons:
battery life is pretty badscreen resolution a little lowheat exhaust on the side
Pros: Intel Core I7DX11 video card with 1Gb ram500Gb sata 7200 RPM hard driveHD-LED screenUSB 3 Comment:
I bought mine on Thursday and got it here in Ontario by Friday amazing service from NCIX!It is an incredibly powerful laptop with a blazing fast quad core i7-720QM processor that supports hyper-threading, giving it up to eight virtual cores. This processor is a beast for multi-threaded application but it's no slouch when it comes to single threaded processes because it can automatically overclock two cores to 2.4GHz or one core up to 2.8GHz, depending on what you're running. This laptop has other cutting-edge features such as a 1GB DirectX 11 capable ATI Mobility Radeon 5730, and being the first laptop to possess USB 3.0, a super bright 16" LED backlit screen with a smooth surface.Other features are an HDMI output, Expressport, eSata, Bluetooth, wireless 802.11 B/G/N, Multi-card reader, Altec Lansing SRS surround sound which actually sounds pretty good, dedicated volume and power setting buttons, and the top of the laptop looks beautiful.Games run pretty smoothly, I've tried a few games like Battlefield bad Company 2, and Dirt2, getting about 40-60FPS easily on native resolution and high settings for Dirt 2.Slight issues I have are that it gets a bit hot in the upper left corner where the exhaust is, but the laptop stays cool overall, and the screen is only 1366x768, since most people prefer more screen real estate for a 16" laptop such as 1920x1080 which is almost twice as much, but I'm fine with that because I prefer gaming in native resolution with decent FPS (frames per second), so a lower resolution screen is ok, especially for newer games. Also the battery life lasts a maximum of about 3hrs with power saver on and wifi off and about 1-1.5hrs with the entertainment plan, but that is to be expected from a smallish 6-cell battery in combination with this powerful machine. Another issue is that Asus loaded this laptop with numerous bloatware programs that I don't use such as Power DVD, Trendmicro, Office trial, etc, but which I removed easily but it takes a little time. I saw some people complained about the 5DVDs that the initial backup program asks you to create, you can skip that because a partition of the hard drive is locked away but you can access it during boot up and restore your laptop to factory settings from there, don't bother with the DVDs. If you read the manual everything is explained in there.Although there are some minor flaws, there are no other laptops at this time with this much technology for this price.If you're looking for an affordable desktop replacement, look no further, this ASUS laptop bests laptops that cost 300$+ more from the competition. |
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Rating: Review Date: 04/30/10 |
Cons:
-None that I can think of at the time
Pros: -Good video card, runs all the latest games-i7 quad core processor. (automatically over-clocks when needed)-USB 3.0 Port-Nice looking, glossy screen-2 MP webcam-Quiet fans-Good quality speakers Comment:
Probably one of the sexiest laptops Ive ever owned, I would defiantly buy this again. Some people will complain about the glossy screen and theres been complaints about the keyboard flexing but neither of these are noticable. It runs anything i throw at it! |
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Rating: Review Date: 04/16/10 |
Cons:
Short battery life while gaming -- fair trade off for the processor thoughLeft side of keyboard flexesSound is thin (no bass) with laptop speakers
Pros: Powerful processorGreat keyboard sizeGreat resolutionFull number padSurprisingly quietSound is awesome with external speakers or headphones/buds Comment:
Since I am moving from a 4-5 year old dual-core desktop, and a decade old Latitude, I'm blown away by the performance this thing has.Before purchasing, I researched a lot of laptops in the same price range and talked with people who use and service laptops. When it comes to specs, nothing else really comes close in this price range. Every experienced person I talked to had a lot of confidence in ASUS products.I type on a regular keyboard all day long at work and the transition to the laptop evenings and weekends is no problem. Other than the slight flex on the left hand side, the keyboard has a great feel.Touchpad works great, but I DID buy a wireless mouse. I still find a mouse easier when available. There's a handy USB at the back of the right hand side perfect for the wireless mouse dongle/receiver.Don't have an HDMI compatible TV, so I haven't tried that, but it runs newer games at full settings quite well.The trade off for the powerful processor is a short battery life (when gaming) and some pretty good heat. The laptop itself stays cool, but you need to allow some space on the left side at the back for the exhaust. Definitely not a laptop you'd want to set on soft blankets (but hey, you shouldn't do that with any laptop).The screen IS glossy, but that's an acceptable trade for it's durability. You only really notice the glossiness in a bright room, with nothing running on the monitor. I've also found there's hardly any noticeable reflection while something's actually running and, if there is, changing the angle by just degree or two can eliminate any reflection.I don't find that lack of a latch a problem since I won't be hauling it around unless it's in a case. In fact, the lack of a latch means my kids can't break it.Speaker quality is fine by me. It definitely lacks bass, but how much are really expecting from speakers that small? When I'm gaming, I usually wear headphones/buds and the sound is awesome. We've also streamed some TV shows with external speakers and again, the sound was great. With or without external speakers or buds, the sound is crisp.I have an older wireless router, but the laptop grabs a strong signal quickly and easily.If I had to buy a couple more laptops, I'd definitely pick up the same thing again.Also, delivery time from NCIX was good even though we picked the cheapest available. |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/24/10 |
Cons:
- Cheap build quality- Speakers are horribles (not on par with the description)- LCD is so glossy it isn't usable at all. Also, LCD is very low quality and there's no black (it's gray at best).
Pros: - Fast GPU- screen resolution (for gaming)- Core i7- low fan noise- price / performance. Comment:
This is a pretty cheap build laptop from Asus, but with nice specs. One of my USB port is "factory bent" and the LCD hinges are so cheap that the LCD won't stay in place easyly.I can't based on this recommend this laptop. This is not what I would have expected from Asus and while the price is good, the general low quality of the product is disappointing.Bad thing that I can't return this. (I'll sell mine) |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/04/10 |
Cons: sound is horrible without external speakers, no bass whatsoever.no latch on the screen/lidkeyboard has significant flex on the left side and a tinny sound when typing.widescreen display, while 16" and terrific for movies, looks somewhat short or squat. touchpad is large and fantastic, with options to turn off features you don't want.
Pros: well spaced and intuitively spaced keys.extremely quiet running on all power modes.stunning display despite very glossy screen.terrific sound when used with external speakers.beautiful, almost suede-like feel around the keyboard area, and impossible to leave fingerprints.aesthetically beautiful laptop.dvd tray, while not slot load, is very sturdy.Lightweight for a 16" laptop at just under 5 pounds Comment:
The fundamentals of this laptop are there - the display, the hard drive, the processor, motherboard, etc. The beefs I have listed above, are likely all things I will get used to in time, and I know I'm being super picky. The things I am most unhappy with are that the screen is SO glossy (and admittedly I am a fan of matte screens) but this one is so glossy that I could literally apply make up in the reflection. The sound is what was the most disappointing. I wanted a laptop that would sound great on its own without external speakers and I thought that's what I was getting with this one. But I was crushed to listen to this laptop the first time. But then while researching to see if there was a setting I was missing or if other users had the same complaint, I ended up reading that this laptop was MEANT to be used with a subwoofer, and that the speakers that are built in are basically just satellite tweeters. So I plugged in my USB 2 watt Logitech mini's in and WOW!!! what a difference! The sound is fabulous with even just these super basic speakers so I will just have to resign myself to having to use external speakers whenever I "listen" to this laptop. The sounds really is so incredible with external speakers that I have instantly forgiven (and forgotten) ASUS for making this laptop the way they did.The keyboard does not feel very solid, and while it doesn't feel at all defective, there is a bit more flex to it then I am used to. The tinny sound when typing doesn't lend itself to suggesting it's solidity, but I am chalking this up to it just being unfamiliar. The touchpad, will all the defaults in place gets in the way when typing, and wayward thumbs have sent documents I am working on into maximum, minimize and basically all over the place. Takes some getting used to. I have no plans to use this laptop for gaming. Just music and movies, internet and document management, and while unhappy at first, I am warming to this laptop and am sure I will get used to the things I am fussing about now.The addition of the USB 3.0 is a plus, except that there is nothing out there yet that is compatible without being extremely overpriced, so I will have to wait and see how I like this feature. |
I previously owned a 5 year old laptop from another brand.It was indeed a big leap for me, coming from using P-M CPU into Core i7. The processing speed is obviously faster, however, the i7 CPU in this ASUS N61J was not as fast as I thought.You may think it's a year-2010 laptop with potent gaming capability. In fact, you still cannot choose the BEST graphic setting for Half-Life 2. If you do, you only get 30fps. It's not a bad number, but since it's a 2010 laptop and you cannot run the highest graphic settings for a 2004 game? My old laptop gets me 20fps with the same settings!Enough for the rant. lol.Actually, I am in love with this laptop. I like its keyboard (easy to clean, good looking).I like its Screen (LED backlit)I like its Price ( one of the cheapest i7 gaming laptop in the market as of May,2010) I will suggest my friends to also consider ASUS laptops in the future.