I, like most people, had a list of "dream qualities" I was looking for in my next laptop. I had gotten over (as more people should) the fear of the new guy on the block. Asus makes fine, well designed computers, with prices that are about on par with Gateway, but with a quality and design build more comparable to far more expensive brands. They consistently score at or near the top of their class in reviews on reputable consumer tech websites like cnet.com. And the dream computer I had picked out is a beauty! It's also not the one I ended up with.I originally got this laptop to break it in for my Dad. The one I wanted was the ASUS UL30A-A2 Thin and Light 13-3-Inch Silver Laptop 12 Hours of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium). It's a super thin, 13 inch extremely light model, is fast, and has an incredible battery life of around ~10 hours. But my Dad needed a new laptop too, and the next generation of the ASUS UL models promises to feature some simple features that had been left out of the first run (namely integrated bluetooth capabilities, and a nicer, non-shiny palm rest). I needed a laptop right now for classes, and couldn't wait for the models with the new feature set. So, I decided to get something "cheap but nice" for my Dad, and break it in for him, fully ready to trade up to the $800+ model in a month or two.
Now I don't know if I can give the ASUS K60IJ back to my dad! This is a remarkably stylish laptop in person. My previous computers have been getting increasingly smaller with each purchase, trying to get the ultimate combination of size and portability, but the 16" screen on the K60IJ is insanely good, rendering beautiful colors and amazing looking videos. (I rarely have my screen brightness set above 3 on a 20 scale.) It is surprisingly light. I've held laptops that weighed less than this one before, but not many you could touch without spending more than a grand. So, yes it's bigger, but it's also very portable, in my opinion. I take it back and forth to campus with me three times a week, and it doesn't appreciably change the weight of my backpack. It is also whisper quiet (the only time I've even heard it make a peep was when I was burning a DVD), and always cool to the touch, which is great, because heat is the natural enemy of shelf-lives of electronics. It comes preinstalled with Windows 7, which unlike most things, is every bit as wonderful as everybody says it is. And unlike the netbooks and Ultra-thin and lights that have been dominating the market of late, this little sapphire beauty compromises nothing in performance, with a dualcore 2,1 GHz processor, 4 GB of RAM, and a 320 GB HD. She practically flies!
Two things you should note, however, are the fact that in person, this laptop is nowhere close in color to the beautiful blue in the picture. I don't know what kind of "trick" lighting they filmed it under, but I've taken this baby nearly everywhere, and it never looks more than "black with a hint of blue" no matter what the lighting is. Secondly, the battery life, although somewhat generous for one generation back laptops (solidly in the 4 hour range with full battery saving mode enabled), it can't hold a candle to the newbies like the Acer Timeline, or the model I'd been orginally intended to get, the ASUS UL30A, with their 10-12 hours unplugged. But then again, remarkable battery life is just not going to happen for under $500. And, on the nit-picky side: all that shiny plastic, although beautiful, and in the ASUS K60IJ's case, with a lovely embedded cross-hatch texture, collects dust and fingerprints like nobody's business. If you are at all OCD, you're going to need to carry around a cleaning cloth with you, or you will go slowly insane.
Overall, this is an amazingly affordable computer, with very generous specs, and a very nice design aesthetic, all for under $500 dollars (check around, Amazon does not have the best price for this model at present). It's a little early to tell, but I think I'm in love!
The facial recognition security feature is a fun addition. I was also pleasantly surprised that Windows 7 is really cool, interactive and easy to use, without all of the problems of Vista. The touchpad is a bit sensitive and has taken some getting used to for me. However, my favorite part about the Asus is that it is virtually silent! The fan makes almost no perceptible sound. The vents are located on the front and back, not on the bottom like my old Dell. Very smart design feature. The only negative is the laptop finish. It has a high gloss finish which leaves it covered in fingerprints and dust constantly! I keep a small chamois cloth just to wipe it down every other day or so. Other than that it is a really fast, nicely made, well equipped machine. I purchased mine on sale at Best Buy for $499! and I have absolutely recommended it to everyone that I know.It looked like a good laptop at first, but the processor speed is dual core, which is quite evident when running certain applications. In addition, the battery life is terrible. Even if you set the power options to conserve battery life, it will drain in about 2 hours, not 3 hours as advertised.
Next time I will spend the extra money to purchase the Core 2 Dual and a model that allows for longer battery life.
Thanks, others, for your reviews.Okay.. SO I waste a laptop every 5-6 months AND this one lasted me about 15 months now, still counting. FIRST week, laptop suddenly wouldn't turn on and instead of replacing it ASUS made me go through hell with Best Buy repairwhich made me lose all the core programs.. NOT cool. It was OBVIOUSLY A HARDWARE MALFUNCTION WHICH THEY ADMITTED. I bought ASUS hoping those things wouldn't happen. Anyway. VOLUMEdoesn't exist almost. It is kind of pathetic. Battery life is the same. 3 hours max on a great day. Also my charger died about a month ago and I had to replace. However IT is working, and it has outlasted every other laptop with meI have to be honest, I do use them rough.. I will choose my next laptop from Asus, just will make sure the volume works this time, and battery life, and will not buy from best buy and hope no malfunction occurs.. Yes. LOTS of wishes.
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