I had been excited about the ULxxVT series from Asus since they were first announced a couple months ago. I originally purchased the UL80VT back when it was released in October but ultimately returned it due to a very noticeable dead pixel right in the middle of the screen. This was probably for the best as a week with the UL80VT made me realize it was bigger then I needed and I didn't really have much use for the optical drive.Due to my brief ownership of the UL80VT I knew certain things to expect with the UL30VT but I have to say the UL30VT has exceeded my expectations. While I never felt the build quality was bad on the UL80VT it's much better on the smaller UL30VT. Clearly due to the smaller frame everything is quite a bit more solid as there is almost no chasis flex at all. The keyboard is okay. Everything is well spaced although the small right shift key is a bit annoying. Honestly the only thing about the keyboard that isn't great is that it's a bit on the noisy side as its very clackity when you type. I know a lot of people don't like the dimpled ASUS touchpads but honestly I don't think it's that bad and it has tons of multi-functions that really make it a joy to use. The single button touchpad button isn't as firm as on the UL80VT so its a bit easier to press for those who don't just use tapping. The screen is also in my opinion much better then the UL80VT in regards to contrast which I felt was subpar on the the larger model. Viewing angles still aren't great but they aren't on most laptops these days. The hard drive is a bit noisy but it's not really that noticeable.
I know a lot will be made of battery life on these UL models and it should be pointed out that this comes with the 10 hour battery, not the 12 hour one Amazon lists. Even still its a 63whr, 4400mah 8 cell battery that I have easily been able to get 7 hours of wifi web surfing and there still being life left (sorry, I haven't had it long enough to do a full battery test yet). So while it would have been nice to get the larger 84whr battery I don't think I will have had too many instances where I will even need it. Also just to correct another incorrect part of the Amazon listing, the UL30VT weighs 3.92lbs according to my precision scale with the battery installed. Still plenty light for me but I don't know how they got 3.7lbs that is listed here. The UL80VT also has the wrong weight listed in it's listing as it weighed 4.8lbs when I weighed that back in October.
Overall I am very happy I waited for the UL30VT, the idea of creating an overclocked low voltage system is a genius concept that ASUS has executed very well here. The end result gives the user performance equivalent to a regular full voltage Core 2 Duo while still providing great battery life. There is truly nothing else on the market like the VT series laptops and for $799 you get a lot. Sure the larger battery or longer warranty of the A series UL models (this is an X model) would be nice but it would then cost more and lets be honest, it still has better battery life then most systems on the market and almost all consumer laptops only come with a one year warranty to begin with! Given the price I can't recommend this system enough, sure there are a few things that could be improved but for me it's exactly what I needed in a laptop at hundreds less then I was originally expecting to pay.
I've put together some sections where I am going to describe settings and specific control panel functions that work optimally for my uses, and I tell you what to expect when using them...this is a User's Review as much as it is a Review for pre-sales questions and general interest. Hope you like it!
**13.3" 1366 x 768 pixels HD LED Backlit LCD Display-nVidia G210-M 512MB Video+ Intel GMA-4500 Integrated Graphics, SWITCHABLE GRAPHICS ENGINES! RealTek HD Audio! nVidia HD HDMI Audio!
It's not the brightest display(200 Nits by measurement) nor the most defined by contrast, unless you get into the nVidia CP and adjust things...so go to nVidia Control Panel (right click, on the desktop), Adjust Video Color Settings, check "Dynamic Contrast Enhancement", and "Color Enhancement", then hit 'Apply' and BAM! Your LCD will become very, very nice, with deep blacks, browns and blues, while the bright colors themselves will 'Jump Out At You'--you'll think you are looking at a much more expensive computer's display. That's something that anybody can do to enhance the graphic power of the nVidia G210-M 512MB discrete video card output, and it does make a HUGE difference...try it, you'll like it!
The native HD display is capable of rendering virtually any type of content with either of the video settings, as the GMA-4500 Intel Graphics (integrated video, that uses up to 4095MB of system RAM if the computer has 8GB RAM...with 4GB of RAM the video uses up to 1795MB RAM) are capable with HD content. It's just the nVidia card, however, that you want to use (whenever possible, ie not on battery) that fetches up 30-40FPS+ with Call of Duty: World at War for example! Yes, this notebook is a gamer's delight, to a point...don't expect 70+FPS in deep battle scenes with heavy, hard detail settings, but it is adequate for playing virtually any of the current crop of 1st-person shooter games...Crysis, literally any game available right now. It's that good!
When on AC Power, PowerGear4 Hybrid set on High Performance and Turbo Boost, fire up any game you want and the UL30Vt-X1 springs to life, loads the game rapidly, enter your control panel Option settings and you're off and running, full screen if you want...this is a fantastic nVidia graphics engine, and it will do the job. I also have had xlnt results playing HD video/audio content.
Do you like Hulu content, the online TV that displays programs/movies in HD? This is one notebook that will not disappoint Hulu fans, so let's get cranking! Open up "The Dresden Files", for example, the Canadian Sci-Fi/Suspense Thriller from 2004-2007 that Hulu has all the archives of, choose Full-Screen Mode in the controls on screen, and WHAM! You're watching full HD video at 1366 x 768, and the UL30Vt-X1 will come through stutter-free, without any problems at all. The CULV CPU, the 1066mhz DDR3 RAM, and either of the graphics engines will do the job. You can count on this computer 100% with any type of video content, either online, HD movies from DVD's, or even BluRay discs can be played (with a player, of course) at full screen resolution. This video Rocks!
It helps if you have the latest, and greatest Flash Player Beta 10.1.55.xx installed, but that's optional as is a browser other than IExplorer (I've been using Google Chrome). The sound is xlnt also, coming from Altec Lansing speakers which are positioned in the chassis front edge, left and right, for true SRS Surround Sound action via the RealTek HD Sound Manager. You can access the manager's controls by clicking on the System Tray's hidden icons, RealTek HD Sound Manager, double-click on it and choose from 30-or more different sound effects! Here's a couple I found to be optimal:
RealTek HD Sound Manager: Set it to Stereo for headphones, then check "Headphone Virtualization" if you use headphones like I do 90% of the time. In Sound Effects, click on "Rock" which will enhance the sound just enough to put a slight EDGE on the drums, cymbals, bass is enhanced, and mids are subdued with voices accentuated perfectly. Click on "Living Room" for the Environment which stops any acoustic 'echo-effect' which many of the other choices will do. Then go to the last panel there, Default Format, and choose the Hz: I found that 24-bit 96,000Hz are perfect for this system, which is set OEM @ 24-bit 48,000Hz, just not enough Hz for my ears! TRY THOSE OUT! You will thank me a bunch, those are great settings for headphones every time!
As for the speakers, they sound great with the same settings turned up to at least 70%... That's right, they will NOT distort at those settings I've listed above, which is what you want every time not a bunch of unnecessary sound effects. Experiment all you like, I did, but you'll come back to those settings I just listed as they are pretty pure, nicely enhanced music settings without bringing too many special effects to the party.
**Keyboard, Special Fn Controls, PowerGear4 Hybrid (Power and Energy Saver Settings), GraphiX Boost Button (Switchable graphics!), HDMI Port Viewing!
This is a fantastic chiclet-style keyboard with about a 1.5mm reach per keystroke, so it's TIGHT and nice, just like your best girlfriend is, right? I mean who wants a weak pulse that doesn't squeeze, not I! The keyboard does not flex, as it's structured over a metal frame, that has a couple fans and some acoustic things underneath it when you take it off to check it out (don't tell Asus, but we got the take-apart directions!), so if you like chiclet-style you'll love this one 110%! There are some special functions, so let's get into them and let's see how she performs and works for us.
The Function Key, just below the Shift Key of course, performs a bunch of nice things for us, and here they are:
Fn F1 = Computer Put To Sleep
Fn F2 = Computer WiFi and BT Controls (Bluetooth)
Fn F5/F6 = LCD Brightness UP and DOWN
Fn F7 = Turn Off LCD Display (!)
Fn F8 = Turn On, Off, External Display, or Projector
Fn F9 = Turn Off/On Trackpad (VERY IMPORTANT!!--YOU'll use it a lot!)
Fn F10 = Audio Defeat (all audio, speakers, headphones all of it!)
Fn F11/F12 = Speakers/Headphones Volume UP or DOWN
Fn Space Bar = PowerGear4 Hybrid Energy Saver Settings, Power Settings
Fn Pause, Break = For Use In BIOS
Fn Prt SC/SysRq = Print Screen, System Rq
Fn Insert/NumLk = Insert and Number Lock
Fn Delete/ScrLk = Delete and Screen Lock
Why did I just list all of those? Because nobody else has who has done a review yet, that's why, and people want to know these things! People who don't own the computer yet..! And there's no owner's manual to speak of either with the UL30Vt-X1/A1, it's a pathetic thing that's a generic "Notebook PC User Manual". That's why I listed everything of importance that the Fn Key strokes will accomplish, and besides, it's my review, and I get to write what I Want!
Next we've got Switchable Graphics, and the Asus P4G Hybrid Switch/GRAPHIX BOOST BUTTON, which is at the left, top corner of the keyboard surface, not on the keyboard of course...Click it once, and click it again, and you cycle through the three possible choices therein:
1) Auto Detect Mode The computer detects whether you are on Battery Power or AC Power, and adjusts the video output accordingly...battery gets Integrated Intel GMA-4500 graphics, AC Power gets nVidia Graphics, every time!
2) Power Saving Integrated Graphics The computer detects nothing! You are on Integrated Graphics no matter if you have it on Battery or AC Power, you are stuck with it!
3) High Performance For you performance phreaks, here you go! It's the setting which gets you nVidia Discrete Graphics on battery or AC Power, it doesn't matter you get HIGH PERFORMANCE!
***Now there's been discussions about the P4G Hybrid Switch/Switchable Graphics button in the various forums that support this computer, and I'm going to explain a couple things that you need to know, and how to avoid thinking your computer is broke to boot! This is a discrete switch, and it does NOT work all the time. Along with Turbo Boost, there are caveats to operation, which I will get into real quick-like for owners, and for prospective buyers both.***
I'll try and make this clean, clear, short, and sweet, but I may have to repeat myself a couple times, so don't mind the dialog...If you notice that the switchable graphics switch is OFF, and is not working it's probably because you have selected Energy Saver preferences that are not allowing nVidia Graphics to load, so here's how you solve this issue if you want nVidia back! Restart the computer, and immediately begin tapping F2 fully, every 1/2 a second or so, not stacatto-like, but 1/2-second intervals...That will get you into BIOS, which is where we need to go!
Once into BIOS use the arrow keys to cycle over to the Final Screen, (rigtht side of the choices, all the way RIGHT!) the DEFAULT Screen as it is known, where you set User or Manufacturer Values to use. SELECT "LOAD MANUFACTURER DEFAULTS!" After you do that, exit BIOS and SAVE the Values... Hit F10 once, Return, and WHAM! You're out of BIOS and the computer will load Defaults from Asus Gods! (not kidding!) It will take awhile for the computer to return to the desktop, don't think it's broken, it's NOT! Log on normally, and once the desktop stabilizes, it will take a few seconds as opposed to the normal Fast Boot Routine...then Right Click on the Desktop!
Voila! nVidia Control Panel Returns! It should be in the selections that keystroke generates, and THAT is HOW you get back the MISSING SWITCH, and the nVidia Control Panel if it ever happens to you, so that is down, dirty, done.
Next time you restart the computer, or shut down then restart, go back into BIOS again, ie hit F2 as above while the computer is offline, after Restart or Power Command is given, until BIOS Screen shows. Go back to the Default screen, the last BIOS Screen you can load, this time use the arrow key to select "Load User Defaults", then Exit BIOS...then F10 again, Return again, and KABAM! You're out of BIOS, and the computer will start up normally, Fast Boot is again enabled (if you have enabled it or it's at Default), and the desktop quickly appears. CHECK AGAIN... Right Click on the Desktop! Does the nVidia Control Panel appear as one of the choices? Yes? Good! All is Well in Asus Land now!
That is how you reset Power4Gear Hybrid Controls and nVidia Control Panel! Got IT!? Good, now let's get onto some more interesting topics, but that is how we get things back to Square No. 1 with the Control Panels.
**Next topic, the HDMI Port, which is on the left side of the computer, next to the USB Port there. All you have to do to enable HDMI is insert an HDMI Cable, select the correct HDMI port setting on your HD TV, insert the HDMI Cable into the HDTV's HDMI Port, and WHACK! The Asus UL30Vt'X1 Desktop is on the TV! If necessary hit Fn F8 to dismiss the desktop altogether on the computer, just remember to hit Fn F8 again when you dismiss the HDTV and take the HDMI cable out of the computer/HDTV! Easy!**
***Now some folks have complained about the computer's Trackpad, and I for one don't have any problems with it. There is NEW SOFTWARE out for the trackpad, which was released the week of February 28, 2010 at Asus Central, so go to Support at the Asus web site, enter the UL30VT as your Support Model Choice, select "All" to select software, firmware, and utilities, and hit Return! That will transport you to the software web pages for this computer, where you can download the new Trackpad Drivers if you want them, if you need them, or if you just have to have the latest of everything with this computer. I don't need the new software, but some do, so there you go.***
As for the trackpad being a pain, and dragging or erasing letters and numbers when you are typing fast, like I do: TURN IT OFF! That's what I do, when I am typing madly, and that ends the problems of the "Trackpad Blues"!! So hit Fn F9 and SLAM! Done Deal, trackpad is disabled so you won't be bothered with it, and that's the end of the story. When you want it back, Fn F9 =RETURN OF THE TRACKPAD! Simple In, Simple Out!***
***That's the story there, so let's get into a look at the Energy Saver Control Panel, and how that works, that is P4G Hybrid all over again, sorry about that, it's redundant in the computer too!***
P4G Hybrid is chosen by the keystroke Fn Space Bar = 4 Modes of Energy Saver, preferences that are OPTIONAL, you don't have to use these settings, or you can MODIFY THEM in the Control Panels area of the operating system! That is what I have done with ALL of them, because the arbitrary controls didn't suit me, but nonetheless I am going to pretend I didn't for this review, and I'll tell you what the controls do, and what to expect...
**Battery Saving Mode: The processor will cycle to no more than 60% full power, down to as little as 5% available power. The screen will dim to approximately 60% brightness. The hard drive will go to sleep quickly, as quickly as in 5 minutes of non-use. The display will DIM to 30% if not used. Now, the freaky part, the Desktop Will VANISH, the one you were looking at before you selected this mode will! If you have been using Gadgets, they will VANISH! A new Desktop Wallpaper will appear and your custom or normal wallpaper will disappear also! WHY does it do all this? To save POWER, that is why!
Battery Saving Mode is one I use often, and I've customized it to my way of looking at the control panel now, but other than my customization it's still selectable by Fn Space Bar=Battery Saving. I've also customized the settings in the control panel itself, apart from the operating system control panels! That is correct, the OS Control Panels can be customized, just like the Control Panel itself can have certain settings changed, just make certain that they do NOT conflict with what you have set in the OS Control Panels!! ****IMPORTANT!!****
**Entertainment & Quiet Office Mode: The Processor will be set about about 1000Mhz, and the normal settings will be Moderate. Display will dim, etc...these two settings I don't use much, so will let the user discover more about them, but they are available by Fn Space Bar selection...take it from there.
**High Performance Mode: Everything is optimized here. The CPU will be @ 100% power for minimum and maximum speed, maxxed out. The screen will be @ 100% brightness. The HD will be set at NEVER in terms of sleeping. The screen will dim during period of non-use, but not to 30%, just a little dimmer than 100%. Now, the tricky part...
****HIGH PERFORMANCE TURBO MODE****
Click on the word TURBO, and it turns RED, but only after a RESTART! That is correct, to enable Turbo function you must restart the computer, and after that it is enabled UNTIL YOU DISABLE IT MANUALLY in the control panel once again! TURBO MODE=+33% CPU or shall I say, it is overclocked to 1733Mhz! That is correct, the computer overclocks from 1.3Ghz to 1733Mhz upon being restarted and it will STAY THERE ONLY IN HIGH PERFORMANCE MODE--will stay there until it is deselected, the computer is restarted once again, and BAM! Back to 1.3Ghz.
Do not worry about the overclocking--it is a good thing! The computer is FASTER, it is capable of editing video, audio, etc...you can use it like it has a 2Ghz CPU in it at that point, because it is practically there. So that's a nice surprise for owners of the UL30VT series. The performance is very adequate for a computer that is normally just saving energy @ 1.3Ghz or less, for long battery life and run time, low wear and tear on everything in general. Now a word about the CPU in general, and how this computer performs with a popular utility.
I used Everest Ultimate to do some comparison tests of the CPU, the memory, the video card, and this is a surprisingly adequate machine, especially using Turbo Mode and High Performance in P4G Hybrid Control Panel. I found that the computer was the equal or better than many faster machines, some with the word AMD before their Quad Core CPU's and at speeds up to 3Ghz, so it was a surprising statement. Everest revealed a bunch of secrets of the computer so let's look at some of them of interest:
Field Value
CPU Properties
CPU Type -Mobile DualCore Intel Core 2 Duo, 1733 MHz (6.5 x 267)
CPU Alias Penryn-3M
CPU Stepping R0
Instruction Set x86, x86-64, MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1
Original Clock 1300 MHz
Min / Max CPU Multiplier 6.0x / 6.5x
Engineering Sample No
L1 Code Cache 32 KB per core
L1 Data Cache 32 KB per core
L2 Cache 3 MB (On-Die, ECC, ASC, Full-Speed)
Multi CPU
Motherboard ID ASUSTeK Montevina
CPU #1 IntelGenuine Intel(R) CPU U7300 @ 1.30GHz, 1733 MHz
CPU #2 IntelGenuine Intel(R) CPU U7300 @ 1.30GHz, 1733 MHz
THAT is my computer in overclocked mode, so you can see that for yourselves. It described the CPU as being a Penryn-3M, a most capable mobile C2Duo CPU, and the motherboard from Asus is called Montevina! You can see the CPU has 3MB of L3 Cache at full speed on die (whatever speed the computer is operating at), a good thing again! The more L3 Cache the more information the CPU can cache at speed!
This is more from Everest Ultimate, and I hope it translates into the format here, but if it does not I'll edit it out...never tried it before! You can see here that the maximum memory amount is 8GB! And indeed I have installed 8GB of fast Crucial DDR3 1066Mhz SDRAM in my UL30Vt-X1, and it just flies...it's a bird all by itself now, and is a very capable multi-tasking machine now with 8GB RAM! Here's the readout on my computer in terms of the chipset:
North Bridge Properties
North Bridge Intel Cantiga GS45
Supported FSB Speeds FSB533, FSB667, FSB800, FSB1066
Supported Memory Types DDR2-667 SDRAM, DDR2-800 SDRAM, DDR3-667 SDRAM, DDR3-800 SDRAM, DDR3-1066 SDRAM
Maximum Memory Amount 8 GB
Revision / Stepping 07 / B3
Package Type 1363 Pin FC-BGA
Package Size 2.7 cm x 2.5 cm
Core Voltage 1.05 V
In-Order Queue Depth 12
Memory Controller
Type Dual Channel (128-bit)
Active Mode Dual Channel (128-bit)
Memory Timings
CAS Latency (CL) 7T
RAS To CAS Delay (tRCD) 7T
RAS Precharge (tRP) 7T
RAS Active Time (tRAS) 20T
Row Refresh Cycle Time (tRFC) 104T
RAS To RAS Delay (tRRD) 4T
Read To Precharge Delay (tRTP) 5T
Four Activate Window Delay (tFAW) 20T
Write CAS Latency (tWCL) 6T
Refresh Period (tREF) 7.8 us
Error Correction
Memory Slots
DRAM Slot #1 4 GB (DDR3-1066 DDR3 SDRAM)
DRAM Slot #2 4 GB (DDR3-1066 DDR3 SDRAM)
Integrated Graphics Controller
Graphics Controller Type -Intel GMA 4500MHD
Graphics Controller Status Enabled
Graphics Frame Buffer Size 32 MB
PCI Express Controller
PCI-E 1.0 x16 port #2 In Use @ x8 (High Definition Audio Controller [10DE-0BE3] [NoDB], NVIDIA GeForce G210M [10DE-0A74] [NoDB])
Here is one familiar quotient out of Everest, called PhotoWorxx, which compares the computer with a lot of very powerful machines, standards in their own class, and it came out surprisingly strong! You can see that the UL30VT came in 12th in this field of contestants, an amazing feat to me anyway...these are partial results, condensed to save space...more than 50 computers were ranked and this one came out 12th!
--------[ CPU PhotoWorxx ]----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4x Core i7 Extreme 965 HT 3333 MHz Asus P6T Deluxe X58 Triple DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 CR1 35393
8x Xeon E5462 2800 MHz Intel S5400SF i5400 Quad DDR2-640FB 5-5-5-15 25575
4x Phenom II X4 Black 940 3000 MHz Asus M3N78-EM GeForce8300 Int. Ganged Dual DDR2-800 5-5-5-18 CR2 19168
4x Core 2 Extreme QX9650 3000 MHz Gigabyte GA-EP35C-DS3R P35 Dual DDR3-1066 8-8-8-20 CR2 17431
8x Opteron 2378 2400 MHz Tyan Thunder n3600R nForcePro-3600 Unganged Dual DDR2-667R 5-5-5-15 CR1 15896
2x Core 2 Duo E6700 2666 MHz Abit AB9 P965 Dual DDR2-800 5-5-5-18 CR2 11922
4x Core 2 Extreme QX6700 2666 MHz Intel D975XBX2 i975X Dual DDR2-667 5-5-5-15 11706
8x Xeon L5320 1866 MHz Intel S5000VCL i5000V Dual DDR2-533FB 4-4-4-12 9621
4x Xeon 5140 2333 MHz Intel S5000VSA i5000V Dual DDR2-667FB 5-5-5-15 8626
2x Athlon64 X2 Black 6400+ 3200 MHz MSI K9N SLI Platinum nForce570SLI Dual DDR2-800 4-4-4-11 CR1 7653
2x Core 2 Duo P8400 2266 MHz MSI MegaBook PR201 GM45 Int. Dual DDR2-667 5-5-5-15 7534
2x Core 2 Duo 1733 MHz Asus Montevina GS45 Int. Dual DDR3-1066 7-7-7-20 6896
8x Opteron HE 2344 1700 MHz Tyan Thunder n3600R nForcePro-3600 Unganged Dual DDR2-667R 5-5-5-15 CR1 6622
4x Phenom X4 9500 2200 MHz Asus M3A AMD770 Ganged Dual DDR2-800 5-5-5-18 CR2 6532
2x Athlon64 X2 4000+ 2100 MHz ASRock ALiveNF7G-HDready nForce7050-630a Int. Dual DDR2-700 5-5-5-18 CR2 6419
2x Pentium EE 955 HT 3466 MHz Intel D955XBK i955X Dual DDR2-667 4-4-4-11 6058
****Battery Run Time, Theoretical and Practical****
The utility that I like to analyze batteries with is called EmBatPower Battery Utility, and it's a legitimate contender for one of the most esoteric battery utilities that I know of, yet its accuracy is XLNT, so bear with me as I list some attributes of the OEM battery, how I describe it generally, and what kind of use I've been able to get out of it in the first 3 weeks of ownership, after Leveling the Battery, which is to discharge it down to its reserve status, then charge it fully.
The battery is made by Asus, and it's called a UL50-44, Its design capacity for charge is 61,600mWh or 4400MAH converted to MAH. My particular battery will charge up to 60,732mWh, about 99% of full design capacity, a commendable figure considering battery science is inexact in general, but that's very good! Fully charged, the voltage of the battery is quite high, @ 16,583mV, or 16.58V actual voltage. Asus tells us in advertising that we can expect up to "11 hours" of battery run time with this 4400Mah, 61,000mWh battery, which I find incredibly WRONG in actual use. I have used the battery extensively in the 3 weeks I've had the computer, discharging it no less than 15 times thus far, full discharges down to where the battery goes into Reserve Mode, and the computer Hibernates, this at about 4% of capacity to protect the computer and the battery.
During my tests I have had enabled typical things that most people would also have enabled, and I did not turn off key functions, so these are real world averages and they are quite different from Asus '11 hour run time' scenario. That just isn't possible with normal use, and here that is graphically put:
Run time with BlueTooth & WiFi, ON, iTunes ON playing music constantly without break: Discharge down to 4% battery to Hibernation each run:
Run 1) 6 hours 14 minutes
Run 2) 5 hours 45 minutes
Run 3) 5 hours 57 minutes
Run 4) 6 hours 06 minutes
Run 12) 6 hours 11 minutes
Run 14) 5 hours 37 minutes
Run 15) 5 hours 58 minutes
Then for runs 7-10 I charted run time with iTunes OFF, BlueTooth Off, and WiFi On:
Run 7) 7 hours 05 minutes
Run 8) 6 hours 58 minutes
Run 9) 7 hours 11 minutes
Run 10) 6 hours 45 minutes
Finally, I tried my best to eek the most battery run time possible, with WiFi Off, BlueTooth Off, and iTunes Off, with the computer virtually idling but a work script writing to disk in Microsoft Word until the computer went into Hibernation:
Run 5) 7 hours 45 minutes
Run 6) 7 hours 49 minutes
There you go, the average for all of that is in the mid 6-hour range, and that is where a user should expect to get out of this battery with normal things going on, nominal settings...not bare bones virtually everything turned off and the computer idling!
I haven't addressed WiFi or BlueTooth, but those are XLNT also! Range is top-notch in both. It has "Intel 1000BGN" WIFI, note the "N" there, 2.4Ghz "N" mode for network Gurus. I've neglected some things, I know, but I also covered a lot of techno-stats and info, so I hope I didn't lose anybody doing it!
With all of the positive things going for this notebook, plus it looks fantastic in black--don't let anybody kid you it doesn't because it does, this is a winner! It earns the Wavey Davey Ultimate Performance Gold Award, because it does things that a much faster, larger, more expensive notebook might do, but for a pittance. Get yours before they are all gone, and it will be soon enough! Black is indeed beautiful in the UL30Vt-X1!
"There is no substitute for quality," Gottlieb Daimlier said around the turn of the 20th Century, and he founded Mercedes-Benz automobiles...I say the same thing about this super-performing machine. There is no substitute for this Asus, it's the hands down winner in the small notebook class, bar none!
Buy ASUS UL30Vt-X1 Thin and Light 13.3-Inch Black Laptop (11 Hours of Battery Life) Now
Over the past 3 years I've owned a few ASUS laptops, and have not been disappointed by a single one thus far. Not only are their products great for the price, but ASUS has always given me top of the line customer service which definitely matters with laptops compared to a desktop PC which are somewhat easier to self-service.The UL30VT in my opinion is the perfect all around package for any type of user. Whether you may be a business user or a multimedia-phile, all the bases are covered with the UL30VT while offering advanced graphics power in a thin and light package that is easy to haul around.
KEYBOARD 10/10
I instantly fell in love with the keyboard on this unit. Being a 13.3 inch laptop with a widescreen display, the keyboard is nice and spacious, giving just the right amount of tactile feedback for my personal preferences. The keys are a bit louder than I would like them to be, but the overall experience of typing on this unit is fantastic. The chiclet keys, spacious layout, and overall comfort with the large and not-too-hot palm rest make it an absolute hit. Only thing that this unit would need is backlit keys to make it better.
SCREEN 6/10
With the release of LED backlight technology in LCD screens, you would think that the display on most of these units would pop out at you, but not so in this case. Over a few hours the screen doesn't necessarily burden your eyes with extra strain, but the viewing angles from top to bottom are horrid at best. Left to right angles are more forgiving, offering an approximate viewing angle of about 160 degrees. Quality of high motion video on the screen is up to par, but overall the contrast, color saturation, and missed marks on blacks make it quite uninviting at times.
GRAPHICS POWER 8/10
For such a sleek and compact unit at the listing price at Amazon for 799 US, you can't really beat it. With Turbo33 Mode on and utilizing the G210M, i have been able to play single and multi player Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare without a hitch at its native resolution. Granted i did do some extra modifications in the BIOS of the laptop (albeit not much), it definitely exceeded my expectations for what i paid. Flash and Silverlight video are almost flawless with some extremely minor hiccups, but overall the streaming and native multimedia experience on this laptop is superb.
Hooking the laptop HDMI to a 1080p 50" LCD is impressive nonetheless, and watching any sort of content makes it a joy to have. As usual, Fn functions work flawlessly on this laptop as well making it a great Home Theater option for those people without a dedicated pc/nettop with their setup.
BATTERY LIFE AND HEAT DISPERSEMENT 7/10
So far utilizing integrated graphics and the battery saving profile of the packaged ASUS software, I've been able to squeeze out about 8 hours max with constant media streaming and wifi surfing. To be honest, this was a little higher than I expected with the lower included 4400mah battery and the advertised 12 hour longevity. In real world usage, I would say that its safe to assume you'll get around 7 8 hours with normal usage. Gaming on another hand is a battery drainer as usual, leaving me topped out at 3 hours playing Call of Duty over wifi. I have not gotten a chance to try DVD or Bluray drainage, but I would suspect it would last you around 4 5 hours max.
Of course like any CULV, this unit doesn't require the use of loud fans, as well as not being as hot as other Core 2's and Quads. Heat on the palmrest never even bothered me as well as having the laptop on my lap for casual surfing, but with the discrete nvidia graphics, things tend to get a little worse, but plenty bearable.
OVERALL 8/10
I don't use any kind of system with my ratings, its just what my personal connotations of each aspect of the device give me. I would highly recommend this laptop to anybody, whether you be a highly mobile road warrior, or a lecture bearing college student. With the spacious 500GB laptop, it should serve any purpose well and then some. Now granted the HDD is partitioned into two sections: 116 for the Operating system, and 334 for data, so this is something to be aware of if you plan on loading a lot of hard disk hogging software.
In my opinion, this unit should have an option with the higher capacity battery. I would personally consider this a hit device and eliminate the other UL30 models as having switchable graphics is definitely a must for the small price difference. If you're arguing between the new VT model and other UL30 series models, the small price jump is definitely worth it even if you don't plan on gaming or graphics developing. Having the extra oomph just in case never hurts, as I'm sure some multimedia that you may want to watch in the future will definitely benefit you, even if it is a little.This is just a quickie review since I've only had the machine for 6 hours.
Out of the box there's manuals, warranty card, AC adapter, back-up DVD's and the laptop.
The machine comes with a 1 year ADH (accidental damage & handling) warranty which you must activate within 60 days by sending in a warranty card. Other models come with 2 year parts and labor warranties, but this model comes with 1 to cut costs. Speaking of which, another area where they cut costs is the battery. It's a 4400mah battery that is stated to achieve a 12 hr run time. I'm seeing about 10 hours of battery life in power saver mode, still a great amount. The last thing I that bugs me is the wireless card. It's Intel, but it's only a 2.4Ghz card. I have a dual band router and would have liked to take advantage of 5Ghz. But at least it works fine and doesn't seem to have any issues like others seem to have experienced on other models (UL30A).
That's the end of the negative stuff. Everything else is to be great so far.
Build Quality (9/10)
I'm comparing this machine to a Sony Z750D which my fiancé uses. The materials on the Sony are better but actual build quality is very similar. No squeaking or sharp edges anywhere. The machine feels very solid and sturdy. The keyboard has very minor flex and is very comfortable to type on. One thing some may find awkward is the placement of the "home" button which is right next the "backspace" key. Those of you concerned with this aspect need not worry.
Graphics Performance/CPU performance (8/10)
With the CPU overclocked to 1.73GHz paired with a NVIDIA G210M video card, the laptop has no problems handling everyday tasks such as word processing, email and internet. The machine also has no problems handling HD content. Games such as L4D2 and Counterstrike Source run great as well. More in depth benchmarking can be found elsewhere on the net.
*edit* Let me add that I'm comparing this machine to the Sony Z which has a much faster processor. That being said, this machine is still fast and can hold its own. The addition of the Intel SSD makes this a 9/10 but since not many will add an extra HD like this, I took the 500GB into consideration.
Heat Management/Acoustics (9/10)
The laptop never got hot to the touch even during stressful games. You can go for hours on end with this machine in your lap without discomfort. The noise of the fan never became an issue. It is even quieter than the Z750D in that aspect. However, I must add that I am using an Intel G2 SSD. I switched out HD right when I received the machine. So take that into consideration as the traditional drive is a bit noisier.
Hope this helps.
Want ASUS UL30Vt-X1 Thin and Light 13.3-Inch Black Laptop (11 Hours of Battery Life) Discount?
I am adding a new comment:I have a little buyers remorse due to the difficulty of updating drivers for the graphics card. There are applications that will not work because they say I need to install a newer driver, but due to the graphics switching, updating drivers doesn't seem to be a reasonable option. The ASUS website is pretty bad for support.
[I have lowered the review to 4 stars due to the lack of a true installer for Windows 7. This means that I am unable to use the Windows 7 Recovery Media since one of the files on the my Drivers & Utility CD seems to be corrupt. The recovery media requires the Utility CD, forcing me to abort the reinstall of the OS in a bad state. If I didn't have an unused upgrade license to Win 7 Professional, my machine would have been left in limbo
If the Driver CD works, I imagine it is a very simple process to restore the OS.
Still a very nice machine. It is unlikely that many of the Driver CDs will have the same problem, so this likely won't affect many. Nevertheless, there would have been an easy workaround if there were a real Win 7 installer disk.]
My UL30Vt-X1 arrived on Friday, December 4. I have used it quite a bit since then. I give it 5 stars because it delivers a lot for the price in a nice package.
My wireless has been great. I know some were concerned about this. I have had no problems whatsoever. The screen looks good, though the viewing angle vertically is extremely small.
There is less 3rd party software on the laptop than came with my HP and Dell laptops, which is a good thing. Most of what comes preinstalled are ASUS utilities. These utilities tend to have no documentation. I Googled some to find out what they were. I went ahead and registered the Trend Micro antivirus that came with it and will use that for the free 60 days before installing Avast.
I like the Fastboot utility. It allows you to manage what starts immediately at startup for quicker booting. I assume that everything still starts up eventually, but some are delayed to allow you to get control of the OS first.
It is light and feels good when I carry it. It stays cool on my lap. The speakers also do a good job compared to what I expected. I haven't carried it around outside yet, so I can't yet vouch for its ultraportable-ness.
I'm still trying to figure out the implications of the warranty card. It says that you get another year of the accident warranty if you submit the card within 60 days. Does this mean my warranty for hardware failure would end in a year, but if hardware fails and then I decide you pour water on the machine, I could then get warranty coverage during the second year?
The video mode button is very convenient. Turning the turbo on and off is not as easily done. It requires going into an applet and clicking on a button (and then rebooting). I would like to see a one click method of overclocking (though rebooting would still be required). Perhaps something in the system tray could offer this.
I was sad when I found out that only black would be available for the UL30Vt at first. I thought the silver version had an incredible profile and black is so business world. The machine looks quite nice, but is a bit drab. The blue function labels on the keyboard help some, as does the subtle speckles in the palm rest. Finger prints are as bad as you can imagine.
I am not yet comfortable with the keyboard. I feel I have to hammer the keys to get them to register at times. Especially the space bar. The spacing is good -I have had no problems touch typing, apart from the 40 unregistered space bar hits in this review. Regarding key placement, my only complaint is that it is not easy to increase the volume with one hand due to the distance between the F12/volume increase button and the Fn key that needs to be pressed with it. My hand spans that distance uncomfortably.
The tracking device is a mixed bag. The stickiness is good for letting you know your finger is in the correct location, but it takes practice to get two finger scrolling down pat. I am improving, but it still can be a chore. I modified my 2 and 3 finger clicks to be right click and maximize respectively. I was disappointed that the maximize would only maximize. Doing it for a maximized window would not un-maximize it. Hopefully a driver upgrade could fix that if I complain to the maker. I do not like the trackpad button. It seems a blatant example of compromising function for form. Even that doesn't work well as it has a gift for collecting fingerprints that look even worse then the fingerprints on the chassis. I find myself wiping down the palm rest and mouse pad a lot, but it does look nice wiped down.
I haven't had a chance to test the battery because I have been indexing around 230GB of PDFs that I copied to my hard disk and want to get that done as soon as possible.
This grade may be inflated because of how much I hate my most recent portable laptop before this from HP.
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