And I once again like it a lot. The new machine brings updated hardware, with Intel Ivy Bridge processors and Nvidia Keplar graphics, plus a couple of improvements and additions to its successor. All these while it keeps the parts that were appreciated on the G74SX, like the aggressive design and the matte body and screen.

I got to test the most powerful version of the Asus G75VW, one that’s going for 2000+ bucks in stores. Even so, this is not the most powerful gaming notebook you’ll be able to find in the next months, but brings good value for the money, making it one of the devices you should at least consider if planning for a new gaming laptop this year.

The review below will tell you a bit more about all the important aspects of the G75VW, so read along.

Asus G75 - the updated 2012 17.3 inch gaming machine

Specs sheet

First though, let’s have a look at the specs:

Once again, this is going to be the top config Asus is offering for their G75 line, at least for the first part of the year. Of course, the SSD, the 3D screen, the Blu-ray unit and those 16 GBs of memory don’t come cheap, but the base G75 is going to be decently priced at about $1500, while still offering a quad-core processor and the same Nvidia GTX 670M graphics chip.

Asus G75VW video review

The clip below will tell you a bunch of things about this Asus gaming machine, but you should read the rest of the post as well, there are details in here that weren’t actually included in the clip.

Design and exterior

Like a true member of the ROG (Republic of Gamers) family, the G75 inherits the aggressive design and the matte black body, with a ROG logo on the hood. However, the are subtle changes from the previous G74 family, as the new G75 is slightly slimmer, mainly a merit of the new screen hinges. There was one massive screen hinge on the G74, there are two smaller ones of the new line, but they are stiff and solid enough to keep the screen in place.

On the outside, you get the black rubbery plastic we found on the previous ROGs. It looks good and I definitely rather have that then the glossy finish of most other gaming laptops these days, but even so, it will catch smudges in time and once it does, cleaning them will be a pain.

Aggresive design and new screen hinges

The bottom is also covered in plastic and has panels that allow you to quickly access the memory, the two storage bays and as an addition, the cooling fans. The entire hardware architecture has been redesigned, the system now sucks fresh air from the front/underneath and spits it through those grills on the back, with the help of two big fans. Each of these fans now has a filter that will retain most of the dust, a filter you can easily access and clean periodically, keeping the entire cooling system in better shape.

As a slight downside for the G75, you no longer have a thumb-screw holding in place the back panel, and removing it will be a bit more difficult, like the clip below proves, but since you’re not going to open this that often, it’s definitely not a deal breaker.

The back of the G75, where the exhaust grills are placed, has also been redesigned, and the vents are now split on each side of the machine.

Redesigned back, with split exhaust grills

The side edges are now dressed in this silver plastic and the contrast with the rest of the black body is actually aesthetically pleasing. The ports and the features present here are more important though, and you can see them in the pics below. USB 3.0, Thunderbolt, HDMI are just some of the ports you’ll get on the the G75.

Left side

Right Side

There’s also an optical unit of course, a Blu-Ray Writer in our case, but the cheaper configs only get a DVD-Writer or a Blu-Ray Combo.

Blu-ray burner on this top config

Opening the lid, you’ll notice that almost nothing is changed from the previous generation. The rest pad is spacious and covered in this rugged plastic that feels good, but once again will be difficult to clean if it gets dirty.

The area around the keys is made from aluminum, ensuring that the entire keyboard does not flex, while on top there’s a grilled surface. In fact, there’s only one tiny aspect changed on the G75, and that’s the fact that the aluminum cover around the keyboard is a bit accentuated beneath the arrow keys, like you can see in the pictures included in this post.

Aggresive and beautiful, a true ROG member

Keyboard and Trackpad

On a first look, the keyboard and trackpad seem identical to the ones on the G74, with one exception: the keyboard is now backlit.

The white illumination can be adjusted (there are three levels) and I’m sure many will love this new feature. Of course, you still get light bleeding beneath the keys when watching the laptop from an angle, which I found a bit frustrating, thus using the laptop with it OFF for most of the time.

Backlit keyboard, but with light bleeding issues

However, I did feel like the keyboard was not as good as on the G74. I might be a bit biased here, as I’m used to the keyboard on my Lenovo X220 and expect a similar typing experience from all the other laptops i get to test, but the keys seem a bit flimsy and shaky on the G75, like with most other Asus keyboards tried in the past. And yes, you’re probably not going to use the keyboard for typing that much, but as a gamer, you need to be sure it is accurate and responsive enough.

Also, the backspace on this keyboard was flaky, noisy and didn’t react as expected when hit on its sides, but I think this is an issues with my test unit, as it saw some action lately and reviewers aren’t always that careful with the toys they get to play with.

The trackpad however is flawless. Spacious, accurate, smooth and with dedicated click buttons; if I was to choose the best trackpad I ever saw on a laptop, this is probably the one.

All in all, the keyboard and trackpad combo aren’t bad at all on the G75. I enjoyed the layout, the fact that the arrow keys are slightly separated from the rest of keys and the back-lightning is for sure something most of you would like. However, I was hopping for firmer keys and a better feedback, while the experience provided by the G75 is only average.

Overall good keyboard-trackpad combo

Screen

There are a bunch of display options you can choose for the G75, all with matte finishing. I got to play with the top option, the Full HD 120 Hz 3D capable screen. We’re talking about a TN panel, but with an extended color gamut, great contrast and decent viewing angles. Of course, you’re not going to get the viewing area of an IPS panel, but as long as you properly adjust the screen’s angle, you’ll have absolutely no problem with the G75.

An excellent non-glare display

The hinges are smaller, like I said above, but they are stiff enough to keep the massive display in place. The screen doesn’t bend back a lot on its back, but that’s not really an issue, as this is a laptop you’ll use on a desk 99% of the time.

With this 3D screen you also get a pair of Nvidia 3D glasses, the 2012 improved version, which are slightly larger than the ones I tried in the past and also significantly brighter, thanks to this piece of tech called 3D LightBoost.

Now, I can’t say I noticed massive improvements, but I’m not a big fan of 3D goggles anyway, as tears tend to burst out of my eyes after just minutes of using them. The same happened with all the 3D laptops I’ve tested in the past, so I don’t know, probably 3D on small screens isn’t something my eyes are comfortable with.

Improved Nvidia 3D Goggles are included for the top config

Hardware and performances

The G75VW I’m testing is the top config Asus will have in stores at least in the first part of the year, with a quad-core Intel Core i7-3720QM processor clocked at 2.6 GHz, 16 GB of DDR3 memory, Nvidia GTX 670M graphics with 3 GB of dedicated memory and 256 GB SSD + 750 GB 7200 rpm HDD storage. So it’s a beast!

All these allow it to fly through everything you’re going to push at it, including all sorts of multimedia content, video or photo editing software, 3D rendering programs or virtual machines.

I’ve run a bunch of synthetic tests and the results are below. One thing to consider though is that this device isn’t yet running on completely mature drivers, so in a month or so, the scores might get even better.

All in all, when compared to last year’s G74, the G75 is way faster. Plus, that SATA III LiteON SSD is also a massive hit, with very good write and read speeds in our tests. Now, I don’t know how much Asus is going to charge for it and how reliable LiteON SSDs will be in time, but in terms of speed it’s definitely top notch.

Running games

This is of course a gaming laptop and by the scores above, it’s a damn fast one. The new hardware platform provides 20-25% improvements over the old platform on the G74SX I tested last year, although those synthetic tests aren’t really on par, since the G75 uses a SSD drive for storage and the G74 did not.

Thus, what really matters is how fast this machine performs in games. I’ve tested a bunch of them, all running in native 1920 x 1080 px resolution, all with details set to the highest possible levels. The results are in this picture below. Once again, the drivers aren’t really mature right now, I was running Nvidia 290.69 drivers on this test unit, the latest available right now, when this review is being put together.

Runnign games

Basically, all the tested games managed to run smoothly as long as 3D was OFF. With 3D ON, fps dropped to unplayable levels in some cases, but don’t forget, all these results are registered with Fraps, and this piece of software alone causes the games to drop a couple of frames.

The clip below will also show you some benchmark results and a small part of my gaming experience with the Asus G75VW.

Noise and heat

There are a bunch of fans inside this laptop, so there’s always a constant roaring you’ll have to accept, even when the computer is idling. When running games or any other types of intense apps, the fans will get a bit louder, but overall the noise levels will never become an issue, as long as you understand that you can’t really have a nearly silent gaming machine these days.

And while decently quiet, the cooling system is also effective. Hot air goes out of the exhausts on the back and the bottom back part gets quite hot when pushing the machine. The top middle area above the keys also gets warm, but those are all outside the “working zone”. The palm-rest and the entire keyboard area stay cool all the time and that’s what really matters.

The G75 runs cool: left is on idle, right after playing some games

Also, the components inside don’t get that hot. After a couple of hours of gaming, the average temperatures registered for the CPU and graphics settled at about 60 degrees Celsius, which is actually very good for a gaming laptop. However, since this is a test unit, I could not conduct more robust Full-load tests to see how hot the platform is going to get when both the CPU and GPU are working at 100%.

Speakers

The speakers are alright and Asus decided to bring back the 2.1 audio system on their G series, after they dropped the subwoofer on the previous G74. Now, there is one of the bottom and two speakers placed towards the back.

An integrated Subwoofer beneath

Still, do not expect wonders. My ears are not a standard for sure and you’d better go and listen to the G75 yourself, but I can’t say I was impressed.

The sound coming out of this machine is definitely alright for a laptop, but there’s only so much you can get from an integrated woofer. So, you’ll have to connect a pair of external speakers for improved sound quality or a set of good headphones and Asus claims that their G75 offers 5.1 audio output via the 3.5 mm jack. Couldn’t test it though as I lacked an appropriate sound system around the house.

Battery life

There’s an 8 Cell 74 Wh battery inside this machine and that’s enough to push the Asus G75 for about two and a half hours, during average daily use, with Quiet Office mode selected and the screen dimmed to 50%. Of course, you can stretch the battery life to up to 4 hours for very light use, but on the other hand, when running games, the G75 will run out of juice after about one hour.

The battery takes about 3 hours to fully charge and the power brick is massive, but I was expecting that from a beast like this gaming laptop.

A massive charing brick

Connectivity, Webcam and other aspects

Connectivity wise, there’s little you might ask from this laptop and it can’t provide. From Bluetooth, Wireless N and Gigabit Lan, to USB 3.0, HDMI and Thunderbolt ports, they are all present on the G75. And in fact, DisplayPort seems to be the only connector that’s missing, but I doubt that’s going to be an issue for most of you guys.

There’s an HD webcam on this machine, according to Asus, but I didn’t get to test it too much. Will do fine for chatting on Skype, Google Talk and similar programs, although the overall image quality gets a bit poor in dim light.

As for the Software, Asus bundles this laptop with a decent amount of crapware and its own programs, most of them actually things you should uninstall, but there are some that might be useful, like Power4Gear or Asus’s WebStorage app.

Prices and availability

The Asus G75VW is going to be available in a bunch of different configs and it’s already present in stores in the US and Western Europe.

The base version starts at $1499 in the States and for that you’re getting a Core i7-3610QM processor, 16 GB of RAM, Nvidia GTX 660M graphics, 750 GB HDD and the standard Full HD display.

For the GTX 670M version you’ll have to pay around $100 extra, while for the top config listed here, with the faster processor, Blu-ray Burner and 3D screen you’ll pay $2000+ .

Of course, prices might drop with time. See this link for up-to-date prices for the Asus G75VW line.

The top config goes for $2000+

Wrap up

In the end, the Asus G75 is for sure an impressive laptop, especially the G75VW top-config I got to test here. When compared to last year’s G74, it’s significantly faster, while still running cool and quiet. Asus also made a couple of changes, making the whole thing slimmer, adding a backlit keyboard, a 2.1 sound system and a Thunderbolt port. However, I do feel that some aspects could still be improved and I’m looking especially at that keyboard.

The Asus G75VW is going to have some tough competition, with the MSI GT70 as its main rival, especially since that one has a SteelSeries keyboard and very good speakers (can’t say that they are better than the ones on the G75 though). The two are pretty much on par though and since I did not get to test the GT70 yet, I can’t say which one of the two I would pick (still, I’m definitely not a fan of the shinny body boosted by that MSI).

Of course, if you want even more power from your gaming machine, there will be faster options available from the likes of Alienware, Sager or Clevo, but not in the same price range.

Asus G75 offers good value for money and that's what most buyers are looking for

Cause all in all, that’s where the Asus G75 wins the game: it provides excellent value for the money, while being an overall solid and powerful machine. And for most gaming enthusiasts out there that are looking for a portable rig, that might be just enough.

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

Similar posts you might enjoy

• Asus K55VM review – a powerful all-round 15.6 inch laptop
• Asus N55SF review – multimedia at its best, with gaming on top
• Asus G74SX review – new gaming laptop, more powerful than ever
• Asus K53SV review – multimedia and office performance in one
• Asus N55SF reviewed- proper blend of multimedia and gaming

First of all, this is a freshly launched laptop that’s not yet available in stores, so I did test a pre-release unit, which means that benchmark results might get even better as drivers mature. Except for that though, this unit is identical to what you’ll be able to buy in store. The new Asus K55 series will house a bunch of different laptops built on different configs, but all have an Intel Ivy Bridge processor and an Nvidia 6XX graphics chip as a foundation.

The K55VM is going to be the most powerful config and it’s still going to be quite affordable. Our test unit comes with a quad-core Core i7 processor and good graphics, and these make the K55VM much faster than last year’s Asus K53SV, which we also reviewed here on this site.

Overall, this is a solid machine. Of course, it still has its drawbacks and most of you guys might not really appreciate the bulky body and the poor screen, but hey, you can’t have performances, silhouette and a good price together. Not yet at least.

If you’re interested in buying a good all-round laptop with a bit of extra power, the Asus K55VM is definitely a device you should at least consider. Read the review below to find more about it.

Asus K55 - the powerful all-round laptop we could all afford

The specs

Video review

Design and exterior

One thing is for sure, the K55VM is a solid laptop. On the other side, it is quite massive and bulky, plus a bit heavy, or at least that’s how i feel. But it may be because I haven’t touched a 15.6 incher in a while. Still, keep in mind that this is not really the kind of laptop to log around.

The case is made from textured plastic and it feels good. The bottom is also covered in plastic and you get an easy to access bay for upgrading memory and HDD.

Opening the lid, you’ll notice some silver aluminum on the palm rest (haven’t seen it in this price range in the past) and matte plastic around the keys and the screen. Overall, while the entire thing isn’t exactly stylish, it’s not bad either, and the entire case screams reliable, which in the end is actually more important than looks.

Keyboard and trackpad

Asus changed the keyboard on their new mainstream laptop. It wasn’t bad before but it is actually better now, as the keys are softer and the overall feedback is decent. Still, they are not stiff enough to ensure that perfect feedback and there’s no click that could tell you if the hit was indeed registered or not. However, I had no problem writing a couple of thousands of words using this keyboard and the experience was alright, once I got used to the overall feel.

A decent keyboard

The trackpad is new as well and it’s massive and slightly positioned towards the left part of the laptop, like it should be. You’ll notice from the picture that we have one of those clickbale trackpads in here and unlike many other I’ve tried, this actually works.

It’s not a MacBook like experience, but it’s close. Plus, you’ll hardly going to have to click the touchpad anyway, since multitouch gestures and taps are working just the way they should.

The trackpad is accurate and comfortable to use

Screen

The screen is probably the only thing I resent on this laptop. It’s not awful, but we’re talking about a rather poor 15.6 inch 1366 x 768 px panel with average viewing angles. And I don’t know about you, but 720p resolution on a 15.6 incher, that’s not something I’d go for these days.

However, there isn’t any option for a higher res display on the K55 line. If you’ll want that, you’ll have to go for the next laptop in Asus’s line, the N56.

Rather poor screen: HD ready resolution and narrow viewing angles

Hardware and performances

The Asus K55VM is going to be available in a bunch of different configs, I got to test the fastest one, with a Core i7-3610QM quad-core processor and Nvidia GT 630M graphics.

Overall, the new platform is 20-25% faster than the previous platform on the K53SV, as this post comparing the i7-3610QM and i7-2630QM benchmark results proves.

The scores are also available below and as you can see, those are some high numbers, especially since the 750 GB HDD inside this laptop is a bottleneck, as it’s a slow 5400 rpm unit.

The system is snappy in everyday use, can handle multitasking, can play all kinds of video content at ease and can also handle games. Of course, since it has hybrid graphics, there’s also Nvidia’s Optimus on board, switching seamlessly between the integrated and dedicated graphics chips when needed, thus preserving battery life.

As for the games, I couldn’t actually test many of them, but this laptop can handle titles like Battlefield 3, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Fifa 2012 or even Crysis 2, all on native 1366 x 768 px resolution, with details set around medium. Should handle high details in most cases as well, but I’d rather have some extra fps for a smoother gameplay. The video review will show you a bit of the gaming experience you can get with this machine.

Overall though, this is fast. Faster than most of you guys will actually need and if you’re after a powerful machine on a budget, you’re probably at the right door.

Noise, heat, speakers and others

There is a fan and a spinning hard-drive inside this unit, so this is not a noiseless machine. However, most of the time the fan is pretty quiet. Once you start to push the system (like playing some games), it will become active and a bit loud, but as long as you’re playing a game or watching some movies, the speakers should be able to cover the noise. If you’re using the laptop in a quiet room though, the fan blow will be a bit annoying.

As for the heat, the bottom-left side gets warm when playing games, but it doesn’t get hot. That massive cooling fan on the left edge probably helps and overall this is going to be cool enough to use on your lap or on your bed (you know, not the recommended flat surface) if you want to.

The speakers are loud enough, but I was actually expecting a bit more in terms of overall sound quality, knowing that Asus laptops tend to impress on this front. It’s not the case here, at least that’s what my ears are telling me, as the sound quality is just average.

There's an Altec lansing mark-up on the speakers, but the sound quality ain't impressive

Battery life

With the new hardware from Intel and Nvidia, we should expect decent battery life out of the K55 line. The K55VM features a 50 Wh battery and that allows nearly 3 hours of daily use, with Wi-Fi, screen at 50% and Balanced mode selected.

If you’ll try to run games, you’ll only going to be able to do it for a little over an hour, but for watching a 720p clip the K55VM can stretch to about 4 hours of life on a single charge.

And all these numbers are actually quite good, considering the battery ain’t huge and inside there’s a quad-core Core i7 processor and dedicated graphics.

Pricing and availability

The K55 is a mainstream series and as a result these laptops need to be affordable, so everyone should could buy one. And that’s indeed the case.

This test config, with the Core i7-3610QM quad-core processor, 4 GB of RAM, 500 GB HDD and Nvidia GT 630M graphics should go for about 750 euros over here in Europe, so about 800-850 bucks in the States.

But less powerful configs part of the Asus K55VD series are going to start at about 550-600 dollars, which is actually very good, considering all the K55 laptops are built on the latest Intel Ivy Bridge and Nvidia 6XX hardware.

Wrap up

In these last years, I’ve tested many Asus devices and I got to see how they evolved year after year. The K55VM is as well a significant improvement over the K53SV line, bringing a solid and decent looking case, good keyboard and trackpad, plus excellent performances and battery life.

The speakers are a bit under what I was expecting and the screen is limited at HD Ready resolution, but I’m pretty sure the average laptop buyer can live with these slight issues. Especially since the Asus K55 series is aggressively priced.

Asus K55VM - a solid pick if you're looking for an affordable, powerful and sturdy laptop

Of course, the K55VM will face some proper competition, coming from Acer, HP, Dell and the other big brands, with some devices perhaps better priced than the K55 for the same config. We’ll know more in a couple of months, but judging by previous years experience, the Asus machines have a good chance of becoming popular, as they usually offer a good price/features ratio. And that’s actually what most buyers are looking for in this class.

That’s about it with our review of the Asus K55VM, the most powerful config in the new K55 Asus line. If you have any questions though, feel free to add them below, I’ll do my best to answer if I can.

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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• Asus G75VW review – for sure one of the best 2012 gaming laptops
• Intel Core i7-3610 QM benchmarks – plus comparison with Intel Core i7-2630QM
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• Asus G74SX review – new gaming laptop, more powerful than ever
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Till then, since the NDA has now expired, I’m going to show you some benchmarks for the Intel Core i7-3610QM processor and I’m going to compare them with what I got on the Asus K53SV I tested last year, with an Intel Core i7-2630QM .

In both cases we also have Nvidia dedicated graphics on board, with the 630M chip for the new K55 and the 540M chip for the older K53, but if you’ll put the two one next to the other, you’ll notice that they are not that different in the end.

So, I’ve ran a couple of synthetic tests, plus tried a bunch of programs, games and types of multimedia content on these devices. Both were fast, but the 2012 Asus K55 is quite a major step forward over last year’s model, as in fact the Ivy Bridge line seem to offer significant performance improvements.

First though, let’s have a quick look at the two platforms compared:

And now, here are those results I was talking about, for the Intel Core i7-3610QM powered K55 (plus Nvidia GeForce 630M graphics, 6 GB RAM and 750 GB 5400 rpm HDD), in the pictures below:

So we get two very similar CPUs, but the new Ivy Bridge Line is built on the 22 nm Lithography and as a result, can run at a higher frequency, while eating basically the same amount of energy.

As for the comparison with last year’s Core i7-2630QM Sandy Bridge processor, here are the scores below:

Quad Core i7 Sandy Bridge vs Ivy Bridge

So, we’re seeing 20-25% better scores for the 2012 K55 over the 2011 K53 and that’s a massive year-over-year improvement.

Still, these are just synthetic tests and what’s more important is how the two platforms perform during daily use. I’d say both are fast enough, with the new one on the K55 slightly better for games. However, the K55 runs cooler than the older K53, thus will be more comfortable to use. Plus it tends to run for a bit longer, which means that the new platform is slightly more efficient; the gap is small though.

All in all, Intel seems to have done a great job with their Ivy Bridge processors, at least when comparing top options like these two quad-core Core i7 CPUs. Seeing these results just leave me wondering about AMD and their future, cause while this year’s Intel line might be top-notch, the lack of real competition is never a good news.

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

Similar posts you might enjoy

• Asus K55VM review – a powerful all-round 15.6 inch laptop
• Asus G75VW review – for sure one of the best 2012 gaming laptops
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• Asus G74SX review – new gaming laptop, more powerful than ever
• Asus K53SV review – multimedia and office performance in one

Asus also went for a different design on this one and while the previous generation was covered in aluminum, this one is made from plastic. Based on early opinions posted online when Asus first showcased the N55 at Computex, many resented the change, and there’s a reason for it.

Still, you will find below that the N55SF is an overall solid multimedia notebook, with gaming abilities. The unit we got to test is a sample (99% identical to the end version, based on what our friends at Asus say), as the final product is not yet available in stores, but should be quite soon and with competitive prices.

Carry on with the rest of the post, a review of the N55SF multimedia laptop, for all the details on this machine.

Asus N55SF - a multimedia laptop with excellent speakers and enough power even for games

Specifications

Let’s start with the specs sheet first though, so we’ll know what we have in front of us:

• 15.6 inch display, 1600 x 900 px resolution, non-glare finish
• Intel 2nd gen Core i7-2630QM quad-core processor clocked at 2.0 GHz, with TurboBoost (up to 2.9 GHz) and HyperThreading
• Nvidia GeForce GT 555M graphics chip, with 2GB dedicated video DDR5 memory
• 4 GB of DDR3 RAM
• 2.5″ 640 GB HDD, 5400 rpm
• Blu-ray combo optical unit
• 2xUSB 2.0 and 2xUSB 3.0 slots, HDMI, VGA, card reader, HD Webcam
• Bang & Olufsen ICEPower speakers with external subwoofer
• Wireless N, Bluetooth 3.0, Gigabit LAN
• 6 Cell 56Wh 5200 mAh battery
• measures 379 x 261 x 35 ~37 mm (14.9 x 10.3 x 1.4~1.5 inch)
• weighs 2.7 kg (5.95 lbs) – with battery included

Asus plans to offer this one in a bunch of different configurations, and you’ll be able to choose between different types of screens (from 1366 x 768 px to Full HD resolution, glossy or matte), processors (Core i3, i5 and i7 Sandy Bridge CPUs), storage options (5400 rpm, 7200 rpm HDDs and hybrids) and optical units (DVD writer, Bluray combo or writer).

However, I find the configuration listed here the most balanced, although I would have enjoyed to have 8 GB of memory inside and a better storage drive.

And a professional picture

Design and exterior

For many, this might be the N55SF’s biggest drawback. I too have to admit that I considered it quite ugly when I first saw it, and that’s because of the glossy plastic hood that will scratch and get covered in smudges just seconds after you’ll get your laptop out of the box.

But if you can cope with this and plan to mainly use this baby on your desk, those shouldn’t be that much of a problem.

Sober and classy looks

As for the shape and design, there’s not much setting this one apart from the crowd. The N55 ain’t bigger or thicker than most other 15.6 inchers and its marginally more compact than the N53SN.

The case is a bit dull-looking though, despite having that chromed stripe around the screen for some extra style. Still, after using it for these last days, I got to appreciate its rather sober and classic design. Not enough to make me a fan, but enough to not consider it ugly anymore.

The lid cover is glossy

Opening the lid, you get a proper sized palm rest made from matte plastic (which feels quite nice), but being black it’s not a stranger to smudges either.

The palm rest and keyboard surface are completely flat and this, combined with the fact that the laptop is 1.4 inch tall on its front part and the edges are rather sharp, makes typing a bit uncomfortable for your wrists.

Not bad once you open the lid

Above the keyboard there’s a metal punctured area that covers the speakers and the screen is surrounded by a narrow glossy plastic bezel, with an aluminum band below.

The clip down under will tell you more about the exterior and the looks.

All in all, if it wasn’t for that glossy lid cover and the rectangular body with sharp edges, I’d have nothing bad to say about the casing of the N55SF or its overall build quality.

The pictures below will tell you more about the ports as well.

Front: cooling vent, status LEDs and card-reader

Left: Kensington Lock, Big cooling vent, VGA, LAN, HDMI , 2 x USB 3.0 slots

Right: Headphone, mic, 2 x USB 2.0 slots, optical unit, subwoofer 2.5 mm jack

Battery and screen's hinges on the back

Bottom: battery and bays for accessing GPU, memory and HDD

I like that they put the headphone jack on the front, but USBs are rather cramped on both sides. Still, they needed the space for the optical unit, the cooling vent and there was no way to have those on the back, as they went for a screen that can lean back a lot.

Also, I like the two USB 3.0 slots, a must for any laptop these days and the fact that they come with this thing called Charger+ , that allows you to fast charge USB connected devices even when the notebook is turned OFF.

Keyboard and trackpad

The keyboard on the new N55 is pretty standard for a device in this class. Not really a big fan of the fact that it includes a NumPad, but seems like all 15 inchers offer one these days.

As you can see from the pictures, we don’t have a chiclet keyboard here, but rather a more classic one with flat keys. They are proper sized and there is enough space between them for comfortable typing. In fact, the keyboard is pretty much identical to the one we found on the N53SN, but the keys are now covered in a silver coating, which only looks like aluminum.

Overall there’s not much flex on these keys and travel is just perfect, but they feel a bit wobbly on my test unit. Still, while I wasn’t fond of the keyboard at start, I got used to it quite fast and had no problem actually putting together this review using it.

Not a bad keyboard, once you get used to it

Plus, Asus added an extra column of multimedia keys on the left side. They are stiffer than the rest of the keys so you won’t be able to press them by mistake, but they kind of make the whole thing a bit cramped. I for one would have loved if they would have kept those keys separated on top of the actual keyboard. Also, the power button is part of the keyboard as well and placed in the top-right corner.

And then there’s the layout. Once again I got to test the European version of this laptop, which comes with a bigger Enter and a smaller left Shift, and that’s a bit frustrating. The US version however will come with a proper sized Left Shift, so better get yourself that version and the headaches. Plus, I find the arrow keys too narrow for comfortable everyday use, which is a problem if you plan to use the laptop for gaming.

Extra multimedia keys, left Shift key, big Enter and Power button on the right-top corner

As for the trackpad, it’s made from the same soft plastic as the palm-rest and feels comfortable. It’s also proper sized, as you can see in the picture, supports multitouch-gestures and comes with a big and easy to press click button (still, a solution with independent click buttons would have been better, like on the Asus G74SX).

On the other hand, the trackpad is responsive, but can be a bit imprecise sometimes (mainly when trying to perform gestures), thus I do advice to get a proper mouse next to this laptop.

Proper sized trackpad with single click button

Overall, we can say that both the keyboard and the trackpad are quite OK, despite both having their own deficits.

Display

The N55SF comes with a 15.6 inch display. The one we got to test offers 1600 x 900 px resolution and a non-glare finish. It’s not a 3D screen like we saw on some of the Asus Gaming laptops, but it comes with great contrast, brightness and viewing angles. And colors are not shabby either.

Nice viewing angles

Of course, you will be able to choose between different types of screens on the final version of the N55, but I feel like this one is the best pick, as my eyes don’t really deal well with Full HD resolutions on a 15 inch display.

Oh, and even though the viewing angles are quite good on this laptop, the screen can also be leaned back almost horizontally, which will allow you to adjust display’s inclination in whatever conditions you might be. That’s more important to have on portable notebooks; we don’t mind having it here of course, but this is a device you’ll keep on your desk 99% of your time, so I doubt it will come in handy that often.

The screen leans back a lot

Hardware and performances

There will be many different versions for the N55SF when it will finally hit the stores. The one we got to test offers almost the top configuration, with a Core i7-2630QM processor and Nvidia GT 555M graphics card with 2 GB of dedicated memory, plus 4 GB of RAM and 640 GB HDD.

Of course, you can add more memory (up to 16 GB) and a better storage drive, as this one was a cheap 5400 rpm HDD. And I advice you to do so, performances should definitely improve with a hybrid HDD or 8 GB of RAM. You can easily upgrade those, there’s a bay on the back that allows you easy access to them and we’ll tell you more about this in a later chapter of the review.

So, the N55 packs one of the most powerful processors available for laptops right now and a capable graphic chip as well. Of course, the GT 555M can’t go neck in neck with cards from the GTX mobile line, but still allows you to run all sorts of multimedia content, process video and even run most games (more about these below).

Powerful graphic chip and Optimusd

The great part is that you get Nvidia’s Optimus technology on this configuration and the laptop will only use the powerful graphic chip when it has too, otherwise it will take advantage of the integrated graphics on the Core i7 processor, saving a lot of battery life as a result.

You can find below some benchmark results.

Of course, the laptop runs Windows 7. Our version came with Home Premium 64 bit and Asus also bundles this thing called Instant-On that should resume the laptop from hibernation in only a matter of seconds, which is a nice feature, but I for one didn’t use it that much. Plus, I consider it more useful on mobile devices than on such rigs you’ll hardly carry around anyway.

They say the laptop will resume in just 2 seconds, but it took like 15 on our test unit, so maybe with an SSD on board… Yes, it’s faster than on the average notebook, but I still call for marketing gimmick here over a detail you never missed before (or at least I haven’t).

Running games

Paired with a Full HD display, the GT 555M would have probably been brought to its knees by some of the modern games available out there.

The Asus N55SF can also handle the latest games

With the screen it gets though, it manages to play at standard resolution (1600 x 900 px) pretty much all the titles we tested, with some exceptions and as long as you’re willing to trim down details a bit in some cases. See the results we got below.

For a laptop not meant primarily for gaming, I feel like the Asus N55SF did handle well this task, don’t you think?

Upgrading hardware

The clip below shows you how to upgrade memory and the storage drive on the Asus N55SF. You only have to remove that back panel hold in place by a couple of screws and you get access to the two memory modules and the one HDD drive (too bad there’s only one though).

— clip will be added soon —

Also, there’s another bay there on the back that allows access to your graphic card, however I don’t really know why, as you only get to see the cooler on the memory chips. There’s a “do not open” sign on this bay, so it’s probably made for service use only? But why would they add a dedicated bay for that? Initially I thought it’s meant to allow graphics chip upgrade, which looks like it’s not soldered to the motherboard…

Anyway, I’ll check with the guys at Asus for more details on this one.

Speakers

If you’d ask me what’s the one thing that sets the N55 apart from all the other laptops in its class, I would definitely mention its audio system. Asus laptops usually come with above average speakers, but the ones on the N55SF are borrowed from its exclusive kin, the NX90, and made together with the guys at Bang & Olufsen.

Thus, behind that silver grill on top of the keyboard hide two 32mm speakers, something you won’t find on any 15 inch laptop, or on many 17 inchers for the matter. However, there’s one more thing: the N55 also comes with an external subwoofer you’ll have to connect to the laptop if you want to benefit from its full audio possibilities.

The best audio system you can get on a laptop these days

Yes, having an external subwoofer might not be the most comfortable option, but there’s a reason why Asus had to go for this approach; because they couldn’t place those big speakers inside the laptop and isolate them from the rest of the components, especially the electronic parts on the motherboard, Asus had to cut most of the low-frequency sounds that can be outputted on those internal speakers. Otherwise, the amount of vibrations caused by the bass inside the chassis would have affected the system’s overall reliability in time.

Thus, even though the speakers are identical to the ones on the NX90, they’ve been snipped. That’s why when using only the speakers alone, the sound quality is good, but rather dull and stuffy. However, when connecting the external subwoofer (via that 2.5 mm jack), audio quality jumps to another level, as the speakers are only used to output medium and high frequency sound, while the woofer takes care of the low-frequency signal.

In the video below i’ve tried to show you the differences between using the laptop with and without the subwoofer connected, but since I don’t have the best mic on my camera, you won’t actually feel that much of a change. So I advice you to go ahead and check this out in person is showrooms if you’re interested.

Still, there’s one thing to add: even though the audio solution on the N55SF is excellent for a laptop, you will still get better sound with a dedicated speakers set or a high-quality pair of headphones. So don’t expect miracles here, there’s still so much you can get from two 32 mm speakers and a rather tiny woofer.

Noise and heat

Once again we get to this part of our video review where I’ll have to ask you to take my word on the matter, as I do not own the required equipment for accurately testing heat or sound levels. Hopefully, somewhere in the near future…

Temperatures during daily use

Still, I’ve added a temperatures diagram got after using the N55SF for a couple of hours, while performing various operations, including playing games and running benchmarks. You can see that internal temperatures get to almost 90 degrees Celsius (when running 3DMark 11 Extreme test) and they lower to around 45-50 degrees on average when idle.

The exterior doesn’t get too hot though, except for the left bottom side where the heating exhaust vent is placed. Also, the top area gets quite worm when playing games as well, around the X-C keys. Besides these though, the N55SF rests pretty cool, even when stressed.

As for the noise, I can’t say that this one is the quietest laptop I’ve tested, as the fans are active even when in idle mode, but the good part is that it doesn’t get too noisy under load. In fact, I’d say there’s not much of a noise difference between idle and heavy load on this one and you’ll only be bothered by this aspect when using it in a quiet room, without the speakers or any headphones.

Battery life

There’s a 6 Cell 56Wh 5200 mAh battery on this laptop, but there’s also some powerful hardware inside. Luckily, we also have Optimus to save the day and that’s why we managed to get an average or around 3 – 3.5 hours of battery life on our N55SF test unit, with the given configuration, during everyday use with Wireless ON, Power4Gear Balanced profile and screen dimmed at 50%.

You’ll get better for units with a less power hungry processors or an SSD. And of course, the autonomy can range from between a little over an hour, when playing games, to above 4 hours if you’ll use it for light activities, with Wireless OFF and Power Saver mode activated.

Prices and availability

For the time being, the Asus N55SF ain’t yet available on the market, but should hit the stores by early or mid September.

We don’t have any exact details on prices, but expect them to start from around 700-800 bucks for the lower versions and get to $1000-$1200 or above for the top configurations like this one. I’m sure though you’ll find the prices quite good when compared to the main competitors, as Asus laptops tend to get excellent price/features ratios lately.

In the last years, Asus also improved their Client Service and Warranty services, and that’s also one of the reasons for their growing popularity on established markets like the US and Europe.

We will update this section once we know more, so stay tuned.

Wrap-up

Overall, this ain’t a bad laptop, not at all. In fact, if looking for a powerful and multi-valent 15.6 inch notebook these days, you’ll hardly find many better (if any?), especially for a similar price. Of course, it has its flaws, like the glossy and dull-looking exterior (still, that’s only based on my taste), or the rather odd designed keyboard and multimedia buttons, but all these are actually not that bad and there are also tons of strong points to compensate them.

After using the N55SF in the last days as my main computer, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t mind having it on my desk for good.

And while I’m not necessarily impressed by its strongest point, the speakers that outmatch all the competitors, I do appreciate its build quality, the screen and the configuration.

One of the best multimedia laptops on the market, that's the Asus N55SF

Pros:

• solid built and overall not that bad looking (not a fan of its look either though)
• powerful configuration
• excellent screen, matte and with just the perfect resolution for its size (15.6 inch – 1600 x 900 px)
• overall comfortable keyboard and trackpad, although not flawless
• excellent audio system for a laptop
• solid everyday performance and can even handle well games
• proper price

Cons:

• the glossy lid cover is a fingerprint magnet and that black matte plastic on the interior is no stranger to smudges either
• keys are a bit wobbly
• not a fan of the multimedia buttons integrated within the keyboard on its left side
• the sharp edges and tall front side makes typing a bit uncomfortable for your wrists

Asus also offers the smaller N45 and the bigger N75SF relatives of this series, but I feel like this one hit the right spot for potential powerful laptop buyers right now. That’s why I’m sure we’ll hear from the N55 a lot in these next months, as it has the potential to become a bestseller.

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

Similar posts you might enjoy

• Asus G74SX review – new gaming laptop, more powerful than ever
• Asus K53SV review – multimedia and office performance in one
• Asus G75VW review – for sure one of the best 2012 gaming laptops
• Asus N55SF reviewed- proper blend of multimedia and gaming
• Asus G74 gaming notebook reviewed and adored

This post is a review of the Asus G74SX 3D model (the 3D appendix means it has a 3D screen of course). At the time we’re writing this post (June 15th 2011), this model is not yet available on the market so we are testing an early review unit, a sample if you like to call it this way. It is however an exact replica of what you’ll see in shops in a month or so, but performances on the final product should be a little better, as we’re still having some drivers issues right now on this test model. We’ll get into details further down.

Let’s proceed with the review in the article below, where we’ll take you through most of the important aspects of this laptop.

Asus G74SX - the new 17.3 inch ROG gaming notebook

Specification sheet

First though, let’s have a quick look at the specs, so we’ll now what to expect here:

• 17.3 inch display, Full HD 1920 x 1080 px resolution, 3D ready (120Hz refresh rate)
• Intel 2nd generation Core i7-2630QM quad-core processor clocked at 2.0 GHz, with TurboBoost (up to 2.9 GHz) and HyperThreading
• Nvidia GeForce GTX 560M graphic chip, with 3GB dedicated video DDR5 memory
• 16 GB of DDR3 RAM (4 x 4 GB module in quad-channel)
• 2x HDDs on this version, 500 and 750 GB, 2.5 inch drives at 7200 rpm
• Blu-ray combo optical unit
• 3xUSB 2.0 and 1xUSB 3.0 slots, HDMI, VGA, card reader, Webcam
• Wireless N, Bluetooth, Gigabit LAN
• 8 Cell 74Wh battery
• measures 420mm x 325mm x 20.9~62.0mm (16.5 x 12.8 x 0.8~2.4 inch)
• weighs 4.28 kg (9.42 lbs) – with battery included

So pretty much all the things you would need on a powerful notebook these days. However, there’s more about a laptop than specs…

Design and exterior

Designed inspired by stealth aicrafts

I’ve yet to meet someone who did not appreciate the extravagant design of an Asus ROG laptop, inspired by the American F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter (or at least that’s how it seems).

The body of the G74SX is massive, but looks and feels great. Entire case in covered in some black smooth plastic finish that should be quite reliable and deal OK with fingerprints, smudges or dust. Same finish is used inside as well, for palm-rest and the bezel around the screen, while the area around the keyboard is made from some dark-purple colored aluminum.

Entire body is massive and breathes quality, even the screen’s redesigned and now massive hinge feels built to last and for a good reason: it has to bear the weight of a 17.3 inch display.

You will notice that the G74 suffered a slight redesign over the G73 series, with most changes concentrated towards the back, where the cooling vents are now bigger and should be more efficient (you’ll see if it is so below).

Redesigned cooling vents on the back

Notice that on the bottom you get a square battery on its top-right side and a big panel for easy accessing memory and hard-drive, but not cooling vents at all like you had on the G73 series.

Bottom panel

You can have a look at the sides ion the pictures below.

Left side: Kensington lock, 2xUSb 2.0 slots, Blu-ray unit, headphone and microphone

Right side: card-reader, USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 slot, VGA, HDMI, LAN, PSU

Also, the G74 seems sleeker than it was before, but that’s not really the case, the body is pretty much similar to the one on the G73, with some minor design changes; we’re still talking about a huge 9 pounds laptop that should never be lifted off your desk unless you plan to hurt your back. Yes, Asus offers a special carrying bag for it in the pack, but I’d only use it if I really really had to.

You’ll notice that the bezel around the screen is quite thick and there seems to be enough space in there for a bigger 18.4 inch display. Still, Asus kept the older 17.3 inch format and that’s not really a problem, as this screen is absolutely phenomenal. More details about it in the dedicated chapter below.

More details about the exterior of this laptop are available in the clip below:

Keyboard and trackpad

The trackpad is slightly different from what we had before, as it is wider and taller and is not deepened into the palm rest like it was on the G73. You also get two separated click buttons which are actually very comfortable to use, being easy to press and noise-free.

Overall, trackpad feels responsive and accurate, and while we first had some problems with multi-gestures, we got them sorted with some new drivers from Asus’s website. The only problem I had with it is actually the lack of some palm-rejection abilities and this can be frustrating when using it for typing, but I’m pretty sure this small issue can be solved in the future with an appropriate TrackPad software.

Redesigned keyboard and trackpad

The keyboard was completely redesigned. First, you’ll notice that keys are now divided into two different sections, with the NumPad area being separated from the rest by a larger space and the arrow keys being better emphasized and spaced from the other keys around them. Keys also seem more square than before and overall the keyboard is very comfortable, with just enough flex and run, plus almost no noise. And of course the entire keyboard is illuminated; you can adjust the illumination level with FN+F3/F4 keys.

Display

When I first turned ON the Asus G74 I was staggered by the colors and the blacks of its display. It was even better than my Dell desktop display with an IPS panel. I haven’t tested the G73s before, but based on some opinions of my colleagues who did, the screen on this one seems slightly better.

Of course, the display on our test unit is the top-model you can get on a G74, with Full HD 1920 x 1080 px resolution, non-glare finish and 120 Hz refresh rate (3D ready). When the G74 will hit the stores, you will be able to choose between a couple of different display types, but no matter how much this option will cost, I strongly advice towards picking it.

Viewing angles

Like I said, Brightness and Contrast levels on this one are top notch, as well as color reproduction, so I’m guessing we have a superior TN panel with some extended Color gamut. I really wish I’d had the technology to measure the output of this screen but unfortunately I do not, so you’ll just have to take my word on this and also see the clips here on this review for more details about it.

Massive display with a redesigned hinge

Viewing angles are also very good and the display does not lean too much on the back, but since this one is meant for desk-usage, that’s not a negative aspect, like it is with portable laptops you use in bed or on the sofa and where a screen able to tilt all the way to the back would be required.

The laptop also comes with a pair of Nvidia 3D Vision glasses so you can enjoy 3D content on it, whether movies or games. You can easily turn 3D OFF permanently or in games if you want from the Nvidia Control Center.

There's a 3D ready 120Hz screen on this one, a a pair of 3D Vision glasses included

Hardware and performances

We’re going to take a quick look right now at the hardware specs and the performances of this device. The clip below should tell you more about the screen, hardware and specs:

IMPORTANT: I once again must tell you that we’re testing an early release model and dedicated drivers are still in their early days or completely missing. Also, the device was running on an older BIOS version not completely optimized for this hardware. Thus, I’m pretty sure performances will get better on the final release, especially after a couple of months from launch, when drivers will get just enough time to reach maturity. With these in mind, please read the following lines.

Like I said, you get a Core i7-2630QM processor on this one 16 GB of memory in quad-channel and two HDD storage units. Both are standard 7200 rpm drives and they are not connected in RAID 0, so adding an SSD for the OS can greatly improve ratings on this one.

In terms of graphics, you get an Nvidia GTX 560M graphic chip inside, with 3G of dedicated DDR5 video memory. This is the fastest mobile chip from the new Nvidia 5xx line yet to become available, but it is still slower than the older Nvidia GTX 480M and 485M, the new ADM 69xx series and of course, the SLI/Crosffire solutions. Still, it is a fast graphic chip that can provide solid performances, superior to the GTX 460M we had previously on the Asus G73 laptops.

All the tests were run with a moded .INF versions of Nvidia’s Forceware 275.33 drivers, as Asus has yet to release any dedicated video drivers for this notebook (their latest release is Forceware 268.37).

Below you can see some of the results we got on this machine:

• Windows 7 rating: 5.9 , but with an SSD drive you can easily boost that to 7.2, as the lowest mark is given for the standard hard-drives
• Encoding a 14Mbps 812 MB .MTS video file to 1080P Youtube file in PowerDirector 9 took 21 minutes 34 seconds

Windows 7 rating is dragged down by the HDDs inside

Synthetic tests

We also ran a bunch of different synthetic tests and you can see the results in the gallery below.

There’s little difference in terms of hardware between the Asus G74SX and the Asus G73SW, as the first comes with the better graphic chip (GTX 560M versus GTX 460M). So, we should see slight 7-10% better scores in graphic intensive tests for the new model, but like I said, results on this one are surely affected by the lack of mature drivers right now. Comparing what we got here to the scores got on the Asus G73SW in this test from Annadtech, we see mixed results, with a slight advantage for the G74 in graphic tests and a slight advantage for the G73SW in CPU intensive tests, probably because of the immature BIOS available on the G74.

I also ran a mini-stress test so I could see if the same problem encountered on the G73SW was present here. Running prime95 and Furmark simultaneously made the CPU throttle on that G73. Same thing happens on the G74 almost instantly, thus this hardware problem was not solved on the new line. Print screen below proves it.

Stress test makes the CPU throttle

I doubt this will have a huge impact on your everyday experience with the G74, but it might when running intense CPU applications.

Running games

Of course, what’s more important for a laptop as this one than its performances in games? That’s why we ran a couple of different games on this one and you can find our results below. Notice that I’ve used FRAPS to record FPS in all these games and it is known that FRAPS usually dwindles performances, so without it we would have probably got 1-3 extra FPS over the posted results.

Call oF Duty: Black Ops

NFS: Shift Unleashed 2

And here are the actual results (all games running at native 1920 x 1080 px resolution):

Annon 1404

COD: Black Ops

Crysis 2

Dirt 3

Fifa 11

NFS: Shift Unleashed 2

Bottom part, you can run well all the games we tested here on highest details in native Full HD resolution, but activating 3D mode will force you to cut off some of the details to keep the games playable. The clip below also shows you some of the games I’ve tried and how well they ran.

Upgrading hardware

You will notice in one of my clips below that upgrading memory and storage drives on the G74SX is fairly easy. You have a big panel on the back of the device and you can access there the two hard-drives and the 4 memory slots. I do recommend of course getting an SSD for the operating system, like I said, you’ll really feel the difference.

Easy access to the two hard-drives and 4 memory slots on the back

Also, you’ll notice that you get easy access to all the 4 memory slots, which did not happen before on the G73 lines.

Noise and heat

One of the biggest problems for the Asus G73SW was the fact that it overheated when pushing the graphic chip to its limits, like playing modern titles on Full details for a bunch of hours.

The new cooling system really works

The redesigned interior and back chassis of the G74 was meant to solve these problems and allow better air flow, thus a cooler overall platform. And we can say that they managed to do that, despite fitting a faster, thus potentially hotter, graphic chip inside. Below you have some HWMonitor temperature scores from the G74, one in idle mode after lightly using it for a couple of hours and the other after some heavy gaming.

Idle temperatures

When playing games like COD: Black Ops for a longer period of time, you’ll notice that the back part of the computer gets warm and there’s a lot of hot hair coming through those vents, but that’s what should actually happen. On the front face, the area just above arrow keys, next to the Enter and Backspace keys, will get quite hot, but nothing actually bothering. Once again, I wish I had a method of recording exact temperatures on this laptop but unfortunately I lack the required tools, so once again you’ll just have to take my word on it and read the results from HWMonitor.

Temperatures after playing BlackOps for a couple of hours

As for noise, it is not a problem at all. Sure, the fans inside get active when running games or other intense applications, but they are not loud and will not bother you at all.

Speakers

You get stereo EAX Enhanced stereo 2.1 speakers on this Asus. So a mini sub-woofer is included as well and everything is placed above the keyboard. They are loud and sound quality is definitely very good, as the G74 incorporates different technologies designed to enhance audio quality, like THX TruStudio which allows the user to set-up different audio profiles for different types of applications.

Of course, you can only get that much from a laptop sound system, thus for the ultimate audio quality, you can always connect your home system to the laptop, as it is capable to offer 5.1 audio signal via the headset jack.

Battery life

There’s an 8 Cell 74 Wh battery inside the Asus G74SX 3D. However, considering the hardware inside and the big display, you will get around 2 hours of life during daily use with screen dimmed towards 50%, with up to 3 hours in light Office and browsing mode. Of course, when dealing with games, battery life will drop to around 75-80 minutes of life, based on what you’re running.

8Cell 74Wh battery would offer around 2 hours of life during everyday use

Definitely this is not a portable laptop, it should stay on your desk connected to its huge power brick. This review unit came with a 155Wh charging brick and I believe the same one would be found on the final release. But having the ability to run your basic tasks plug0free for a couple of hours is definitely a nice addition to the package.

Other aspects

There are a bunch of other aspects we should mention about this laptop. First, it comes with top notch connectivity, including Wireless N, Bluetooth, Gigabit LAN and USB 3.0 slot.

Also, you get an optical Blu-ray combo unit that might come in handy for installing games or running some Blu-ray content in 3D.

You also get a 8-in-1 card reader and a webcam on top of the screen.

Should also notice that above the keyboard you only get two buttons right now, one for powering the laptop and one for launching Quick Express. All the multimedia buttons found on the top-right side of the keyboard on the G73 line are now gone.

Prices and availability

As we said above, Asus plans to have the G74SX in stores worldwide during mid July, so in about a month’s time.

In the meantime, some shops already have this for preorder and they claim they’ll ship units by late June – early July, so pretty soon. We also have details on prices for the US market. You get basically the following configurations:

• Asus G74SX-XA1 – for $1499 you get 12 GB of memory, non-3D Full HD display, 750 GB single HDD, DVD-RW unit
• Asus G74SX-A1 – for $1749 you get 12 GB of memory, non-3D Full HD Display with a glossy finish, Blu-ray combo unit
• Asus G74SX-3DE – for $1979 you get 12 GB of memory, 3D 120 Hz Full HD display with a matte finish, Blu-ray burner unit and on pair of 3D Vision glasses

All the other specs are pretty much similar, including the Core i7-2630QM processor, Nividia GTX 560M graphics, 2 x 750 GB 7200 rpm hard-drives (for the last two options), illuminated keyboard, Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit OS and two year warranty. Plus a backpack and a special mouse.

However, BestBuy also offers an Asus G74SX versions of only $1199. However, that one comes with only 8 GB of memory, same standard HD display, 2 x 500 GB HDDs and a poorer Nvidia GTX 560M graphic chip. While the one on the more expensive versions is a 192 bit chip, this one is only an 128 bit one, thus performances will be lower. Still, the price is significantly lower as well.

Personally I would go for the more expensive version for that magnificent non-glare display, even though I would have loved to have a non-glare non-3d option as well that could have helped saving some money. Still, prices are quite good and that turns the balance even more towards the G74SX line right now, when compared to the G73SW (which was in fact similarly prices and has now been discontinued anyway).

Wrap-up

Asus ROG laptops have been well received during the last years, mainly because they offered solid performances and a sturdy reliable body for an affordable price tag. Affordable for a gaming laptop of course, when compared to other devices from Alienware, Clevo or Sager. Yes, the Asus notebooks are for sure not the fastest, but for the average gaming enthusiast looking to dump their desktop units for a portable computer, they are just the thing to get.

Teh G74SX is a nice addition to the ROG line, fixing many of the faults of the previous generation

The G74SX 3D continues this story. With it, Asus kept the good parts, improved some of the faulty ones (like the overheating problems, bad screen hinges and cramped keyboard) and upgraded the hardware inside to improve performances. Once again they did not put the most powerful hardware available at the moment in their G74, but I feel like they did enough: this laptop allows you to run smoothly every modern game, even in 3D mode. Yes, in some cases you might have to get details from Very High to only High, but I for one can live with that and rather buy this sub $2000 laptop than pay 50-100% extra for the top notch mobile configurations that can offer improved performances I won’t even need most of the time.

The clip below also contain some of my final conclusions on the review unit:

Pros

• aggressive design
• solid build quality
• redesigned keyboard, trackpad and screen hinge
• redesigned air vents on the back meant to improve air-flow
• powerful hardware and solid performances
• can decently run every modern game on native resolution and with detail towards max
• amazing Full HD 3D display
• doesn’t get too hot or too loud
• Blu-ray combo unit included
• good speakers
• decent battery life for such a monster
• good price for its features

Cons

• heavy and bulky
• our early test unit lacked proper drivers, but that should be solved by the time the device hits the stores
• we encountered some throttling problems when stressing the CPU (inherited from the G73SW)

This is why the Asus G74SX is a laptop we would definitely recommend these days if on the market for a solid gaming laptop.

Of course, there’s one more question: would it be a smart choice to replace your older G73 laptop with this new one? If money are not a concern, than definitely yes. Otherwise, this really isn’t significantly faster than any of the G73s available below, especially if you compare it to the G73SW that is pretty much similar in terms of specs, but has a slightly slower graphic chip. So I’m not saying the G74 is not worth the upgrade, it definitely is a solid machine, just ask yourself if you really need the slightly better performances and if you really want to pay the upgrade fee for them (which can be quite expensive, considering you would have to sell your old unit and then buy a new G74 that will cost hundreds of dollars on top of what you’ll get on your G73).

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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In the following lines we will therefore talk about the best protective cases and covers available right now for the new Kindle 4 and Kindle Touch.

Before getting down to the actual list, you should know that there are many cases and covers that actually fit both e-book readers, giving that they have roughly the same product dimensions, but there also a couple of accessories that only work on one of the two.

We will therefore firstly review the few covers that can be fitted on only one of the two new generation e-readers and after that we will take a quick look at the most interesting accessories for both the Kindle 4 and the Kindle Touch.

Official Kindle 4 Leather Cover

Available in black, brown, green and purple, this cover is sleek, light and very elegant. Being designed especially to fit the new Kindle 4, the accessory offers a high level of protection against scratches and contact with hard surfaces, but also versatility and functionality. The cover is designed to fold back, meaning that you can easily read on your device without taking it out of the cover.

This leather cover is elegant, functional, versatile, but also pretty expensive.

The Kindle Leather Cover is temporarily out of stock, but that should change soon enough. In terms of pricing, it is not extremely affordable, but you can’t say it is expensive either (39.99 dollars on Amazon).

Official Kindle Lighted Leather Cover

Extremely similar to the cover mentioned above in terms of design and materials used, this Kindle 4 cover comes with built-in LED light for comfortably reading anytime and anywhere. The high-quality light adds brightness to the Kindle’s eInk Display, but not glare, which means that you will have no trouble in using the e-book reader at night. It also has to be mentioned that the cover doesn’t require any batteries, being able to draw power directly from the Kindle.

As you might expect, this very functional and elegant cover is not very cheap, being available right now for 59.99 bucks. It is also pretty bulky, weighing in at 4.8 ounces, which will almost double the total weight of your device.

This cover comes with LED light for reading at night and is available for either the Kindle 4 or the Touch.

Official Kindle Touch Lighted Leather Cover

Basically the same cover as the Kindle Lighted Leather Cover, this is especially designed for the Kindle Touch and is a bit lighter than the other similar accessory. It also comes with built-in LED reading light, it doesn’t require any batteries and is just as elegant and sleek as the other cover.

The Touch Lighted Leather Cover is available in black, brown, green and purple and goes for 59.99 dollars.

Belkin Verve Tab Folio for Kindle Touch

This ‘’made for Kindle Touch’’ folio impresses in terms of dimensions, being consistently lighter and thinner than the covers already mentioned in this post. While it is stylish and also pretty functional, coming with a very nice magnetic enclosure, you can’t help but fear it will not provide the same protection level as the covers made from real leather. The cover is available in black and purple and can be pre-ordered for $29.99.

This folio from Belkin is made specially to fit the Kindle Touch.

Built Kindle and Kindle Touch Neoprene Envelope Case

The first case that can fit both the e-book readers and the first one that is actually shipping right now is this very stylish and playful accessory from Built. Available in black, but also in an original ‘’scatter dot’’ design, the case features a nice sleeve made out of neoprene and a front flap with Velcro closure. While not as elegant and as distinguished as the other covers so far, this case should come with a high level of protection, both in terms of screen scratches and contacts with hard surfaces.

The case can be opened and closed extremely fast, but it is pretty heavy, weighing four ounces. In terms of pricing, Built’s accessory is available right now for $29.99.

This envelope case comes with a playful design.

Marware Atlas Kindle and Kindle Touch Cover

This stylish cover is extremely light and thin and comes with a very soft and nice exterior lined with microsuede. The cover features corner straps for holding your device in place, but also a built-in interior hand strap for improved grip and hold during usage.

Available in black and charcoal for you guys and pink and beige for you gals, the cover goes for the pretty affordable price tag of 29.99 dollars.

The Marware cover comes with a nice design and a good quality-price ratio.

Timbuk2 Kindle and Kindle Touch Slim Sleeve

With a very slim profile, but not a very sophisticated design, this Slim Sleeve from Timbuk2 is made out of foam and should provide a decent level of protection for your e-book reader of choice. Being TSA (Transportation Security Administration) friendly, the Timbuk2 accessory is available in two color schemes, with a black, gunmetal and red combination or only black and gunmetal. In terms of pricing, it is pretty much as cheap as it gets, with a $24.99 price tag.

The Slim Sleeve from Timbuk2 is light, but not very fashionable.

Marware Eco-Flip for Kindle and Kindle Touch Cover

If you want a more premium cover for your e-reader or tablet today, you probably already know that the Marware accessories should be on top of your shopping list. With an eco-friendly leather exterior and a soft microsuede interior, the Eco-Flip looks and feels very nice, but also offers a high level of protection.

The cover is functional as well, featuring a built-in interior hand strap for improved grip and hold, but also a couple of thin pockets for storing ID or credit cards. While being a bit bulky, at a 4.5 ounces weight, this cover is classy and elegant, but also pretty affordable (available for 34.99 dollars at Amazon).

The Marware Eco-Flip is probably the ''most premium'' cover for Kindle and Kindle Touch right now.

Belkin Portfolio Sleeve for Kindle and Kindle Touch

The last protective accessory we are going to review in this article is actually the cheapest of them all.Available for only 19.99 dollars, the Belkin Portfolio Sleeve is not very light, nor extremely elegant, but should be durable nevertheless.

With a neoprene exterior especially designed for extra protection and gripability, the cover is unfortunately only available in black. However, Belkin’s accessory offers plenty of space for holding notes, receipts or other small pieces of paper and also comes with a dual zipper closure system, which is at the same time functional and easy to use.

The Belkin sleeve is clearly the most affordable Kindle and Kindle Touch cover.

Wrap-up

While choosing an e-book reader has become more difficult than ever after Amazon’s new Kindle 4 and Kindle Touch’s releases, you may also find yourselves pretty puzzled when trying to choose the perfect cover or case for your device.

With excellent quality-price ratios, functionality, elegance and versatility, all the protective accessories mentioned above could be great choices for any technology enthusiast. All of them will practically make your e-book reader unbreakable and ‘’unscratcheable’’ and the difference between these covers and cases will probably be made by the small and subtle details and touches of originality.

And whether you will go for one of the lighted covers, the slimmest or lightest of them all or simply the most affordable of these, one thing is clear nevertheless. You will not regret your choice and you will make your e-reader better, stronger and more fashionable! 

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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While there is still some time before the Fire will actually start shipping, there are probably many of you who have already pre-ordered the tablet and think about how to ‘’treat’’ it. In the following lines we will take a look at some of the most interesting covers, sleeves and folios especially designed to make your precious Kindle Fire more fashionable, but also safer against scratches or bumps.

The list is far from being complete and we expect more and more similar accessories to be made available by mid-November, when the Fire will start shipping, but these should remain nevertheless on top of your shopping lists, along with the actual tablet.

Official Kindle Fire Zip Sleeve

It is a known fact that the best and most reliable accessories for tablets are the ones dubbed ‘’official’’ and this zip sleeve is no exception from that rule. Available in five different colors, coral, blue, charcoal, graphite and lime, the Zip Sleeve is simple, stylish and lightweight. The zipper makes for a clean and very convenient closure system, which is a thing we like, but on the other hand the accessory is pretty basic forits price ($29.99).

The Zip Sleeve is basic, but functional and elegant.

Kindle Fire MicroShell Folio Cover

While the Zip Sleeve promises to protect your device from scratches first and foremost, this folio cover is perfect for any kind of impact that your tablet should encounter. Made from hard polycarbonate, the Marware cover is practically unbreakable. Surprisingly, this accessory is not very heavy, weighing only 3.7 ounces, and is extremely functional, being able to also work as a stand for viewing. The Kindle Fire MicroShell Folio Cover is available in three different colors (grey, pink and white) and goes for 39.99 bucks.

The MicroShell Folio Cover is made from a very strong material.

Verso Kindle Fire Cover

If you want a cover that will make your tablet fashionable, distinguished and sophisticated, the Verso Kindle Fire Cover should be the ideal choice. With a sturdy and solid exterior, but a soft, microfiber interior, Verso’s cover protects your device while making it look like an ancient and mysterious book. You also get a full pocket inside the cover for holding receipts or other documents. The Verso Kindle Fire protective accessory is pretty light and sleek, but also expensive, going for 39.99 dollars.

The Verso Cover is by far the most distinguished and elegant of them all.

Marware Eco-Vue for Kindle Fire Cover

While being considerably heavier than the other accessories so far, this cover is probably the most ‘’complete’’ of the four. Sturdy and solid, yet elegant and fashionable, this Kindle Fire cover comes with a pretty convenient elastic strap, designed to hold the lid open or closed. The eco-friendly leather exterior is smooth, but also durable, while the soft microsuede interior adds protection, but has a premium look and feel as well.

Even though the cover is not very affordable,going for 34.99 dollars on Amazon, it feels like it deserves your utmost attention, offering at the same time build quality, convenience and sustainability. Also, it is supposed to be made from recycled and recyclable materials, which we know is a very important thing for some of you.

The Marware Eco-Vue cover is eco-friendly and functional.

Timbuk2 Kindle Fire Slim Sleeve

While it may not be as elegant or fashionable as some of the other covers, the Timbuk2 Slim Sleeve is extremely light (only one pound) and easy to transport. The design is playful and ingenious and the black-gunmetal-red color scheme will probably attract interest from teenagers and kids. Despite its lightweight, the sleeve should be pretty good in protection terms as well, being made out of high density foam and therefore resistant to contact with hard surfaces.

And if these details don’t make you interested in Timbuk2’s accessory, you should also know that the sleeve is pretty affordable, going for 24.99 dollars on Amazon.

The Timbuk2 Sleeve is not very elegant, but light and affordable nevertheless.

Belkin Verve Tab Folio For Kindle Fire

Available in purple, black and ‘’sunset pink’’, this elegant folio is pretty sturdy and strong, but also kind of heavy. On the other hand, the faux leather finish should provide you with probably the highest durability level possible for your Kindle Fire. The magnetic enclosure is pretty nice and functional and you also have integrated holes for the two speakers on top and the connectors at the bottom, meaning that you can charge your tablet, but also listen to music while the 7-incher sits protected and peaceful in the folio cover.

The Tab Folio, which features a secure inner pocket as well, can be pre-ordered from Amazon for 29.99 dollars, a pretty fair price if you take a look at the accessory’s functionality and design.

This folio comes with a very good quality-price ratio.

Timbuk2 Kindle Fire Envelope Sleeve

Pretty much similar to the Timbuk2 Slim Sleeve in terms of materials used and functionality, this cover comes with a unique envelope design. While for some the overall look might be a bit tacky or uninspired, the sleeve offers easy access to your tablet at all times, but also a very high protection level, with an original seam construction for better impact absorption.

The all-black exterior makes this accessory more elegant and classical-looking than the previous slim sleeve, but the lightweight is still there, with the accessory weighing only one pound. This Timbuk2 sleeve is pretty affordable as well,being available for only 24.99 dollars.

This Timbuk2 sleeve comes with a unique design and at a great price.

Marware C.E.O. Hybrid for Kindle Fire Cover

We saved for last probably the most impressive Kindle Fire cover available right now. With a nice and elegant agenda design, this C.E.O. Hybrid from Marware is clearly the strongest protective accessory you could get for your Kindle Fire at the moment, but also a functional stand.

Available in four different colors (black, brown, green and pink), Marware’s cover is pretty heavy, weighing in at 6.1 ounces, but somehow is not at all bulky. The built-in interior hand strap improves significantly the grip when actually using the tablet, while the high-grade elastic strap is designed to hold the lid open or closed during transportation.

This cover is not very eco-friendly, being made out of genuine leather, but on the other hand is as strong and resistant as it could get. It should also support your Kindle Fire in two different angles when used as a stand and all in all it is the perfect accessory for increasing your tablet’s functionality and versatility.

As you might expect, Marware’s hybrid is not very affordable, but you couldn’t say that it is expensive either, being available for 44.99 dollars.

The Marware C.E.O. is the strongest, heaviest and most versatile Kindle Fire cover.

Wrap-up

These are pretty much all the affordable, functional and/or good-looking cases, covers and folios for Amazon Kindle Fire available on the market right now and you must say that this is a pretty tight and impressive list.

There are accessories for every taste and need out there, whether you appreciate original design, elegance, functionality or versatility. Neither of the covers and folios presented here is dirt cheap, but on the other hand all come with pretty decent quality-price ratios.

All in all, it would be extremely difficult to recommend only one of the products mentioned above, giving that all of them come with their own list of advantages and disadvantages and pretty much each of them is targeted towards different people with different needs. Therefore, you should first consider what you actually expect from an accessory of this kind and only after that should you decide to go for one or the other.

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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Lacking most of the features that make tablets so great, but impressing in terms of portability and price, it is no wonder that so many technology enthusiasts right now own or plan to own an e-reader.

And after the latest generation Kindle’s release, it is no longer a problem of whether to get an e-reader or not, but rather which one to choose. You have the old Kindle 3, which has been discounted and is still extremely functional, the new Kindle 4, the cheapest and lightest e-reader right now, and the Kindle Touch, with an exciting new interface.

In the following lines we will take a short comparative look at the old Kindle 3, now marketed as the Kindle Keyboard, and the Kindle 4, trying to find out which one of the two is actually better and more suitable for your needs. Stay tuned for the written article, but also for an exclusive video comparison at the end of the post.

Design and display

The biggest difference between the new and the old Kindle is probably the design. While the Keyboard comes with a pretty old-fashioned and classical look, the new Kindle 4 is more elegant, more classy and, most importantly, lighter and more compact.

The Kindle 4 (on the left) and the Kindle Keyboard (on the right)

And if you thought the Keyboard was portable, at a 8.5 ounces weight, the new Kindle, weighing in at 5.98 ounces, is light as a feather and will become your perfect travel companion. The new Kindle is also shorter, lacking the keyboard and featuring instead a cool and nice 5-way controller.

In terms of display, we can’t seem to notice any difference between the two, both devices sporting the same 6-inch E Ink screen with 800 x 600 pixels resolution and a 16-level gray scale.

Hardware and features

While both these gadgets are basically intended for the same purpose, reading e-books, there are a couple of subtle, but important differences in terms of features. First of all, the Kindle 4 lacks the speakers and the microphone jack that are featured by the Kindle Keyboard, meaning that you don’t have audio support anymore and you can’t play music or audiobooks on the new generation e-reader.

The Kindle Keyboard is the only one of the two with audio support.

Secondly, while you can browse on both the Kindles through wireless connection, only the Keyboard comes with optional 3G. There is also the problem of the battery life, which is satisfactory on both devices, but is clearly better on the old Keyboard.

The third generation e-reader could go for up to two months with light use and wireless off, while the new Kindle 4 can only last up to a month between charges.

Finally, in terms of storage space, the Keyboard is yet again superior, featuring 4 GB of internal memory. The new Kindle 4 only comes with 2 GB, but this is actually more than enough, giving that you will still be able to store around 1,400 books on your device.

The Kindle 4 is more compact, but the Kindle Keyboard is more functional.

Software and interface

While in terms of hardware the differences are subtle, when it comes to the interface things are pretty far apart. As I already mentioned, the Kindle 4 lacks the keyboard, which is a good thing in terms of design and weight, but a pretty bad thing when it comes to the device’s functionality.

The virtual keyboard of the Kindle 4 is far from being perfect for a 21st century gadget.

While on the Keyboard you could surf the web pretty easily and post comments on websites and blogs, the new Kindle 4 is an e-reader and that is pretty much all. It is true, the 5-way controller allows you to write in theory, but the actual writing process is difficult and annoying. You have to select each letter individually from an on-screen keyboard, which is far from ideal.

In terms of apps supported on the e-readers, you get access to millions of books, newspapers and docs on both devices (including PDF files), but only the Keyboard also allows you access to music and audiobooks.

Pricing

While the Keyboard comes with more features and with extra functionality, the new Kindle 4 has its own ace up its sleeve, the price. The fourth-generation e-reader starts at 79 dollars (the ad-supported version) and is also available for 109 bucks, without ads, in an internationally available version.

The Kindle Keyboard is itself pretty affordable, starting at 99 dollars (the Wi-Fi only version with ads), but that’s the US version. The International version goes for $139, and if you want the 3G enabled Kindle, prices for those go for between $139 to $189, based on where you need it delivered.

Check out the links above for more details about each tablet, plus pictures, reviews for buyers and the option to buy them yourself.

It is pretty difficult to state which one of the two devices is actually better.

Wrap-up

Without beating it around the bush, it is very clear that both these devices have their strong, but also their weak points. The old Keyboard is far better for browsing, offers audio support, optional 3G and more storage. On the other hand, the Kindle 4 is lighter and more compact than ever before and also comes at the best price possible.

All in all, it is almost impossible to say which one of the two is the better overall device because they are both great and also because they pretty much have different targets. If you only want to read e-books and you are looking for the best deal on the market, the Kindle 4 is clearly the perfect device for you, but if you also want to type on your device, listen to music and you don’t have a problem in spending an extra buck, the Keyboard remains the ideal choice.

If you want to compare the Kindle with some other good ebook readers, also check my Kindle vs Nook vs Sony Reader post here on the site.

For more details about the two, don’t forget to check out the following video:

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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However, the old Amazon Kindle is still available for sale and is actually expected to continue selling, being rebranded as the Kindle Keyboard. The third generation e-reader should still appeal to some of you technology enthusiasts for a couple of reasons I am going to detail in the following lines.

We will therefore take a look at the things that still make the Kindle Keyboard special and competitive, but also at the prices and the full features of the e-reader. Finally, you will have the opportunity to check out an exclusive video, where you can take a better look at this very popular gadget.

Design and build

The Keyboard’s biggest problem, compared with the new Kindle 4 and the Kindle Touch, is probably the design, which is pretty old-fashioned. The Keyboard is also quite heavy in comparison with the new e-readers, weighing in at about 8.5 ounces.

The Kindle Keyboard is still a good and reliable gagdet.

In terms of product dimensions, things are still pretty competitive nevertheless. The Keyboard measures 7.5 x 4.8 x 0.34 inches and is fairly compact and portable overall. The e-reader is also fairly sturdy, giving an impression of durability and reliability.

Display, hardware and features

The Kindle Keyboard sports a 6-inch E Ink display with proprietary waveform, font technology, 800 x 600 pixels resolution and 16 shades of gray. This is pretty much identical to the screens featured by the new Kindles and is still the quality standard for e-book readers nowadays. The Kindle cannot display colors and can only support static content, but when it comes to reading, no matter what the lighting conditions should be, you can expect a clear and crisp image.

In terms of on-device storage, the Keyboard comes with 4 GB of internal memory, which should be enough for holding up to 3,500 books. You also get free cloud storage for all Amazon content, meaning that if you delete something from your device, you can have easy access to it again.

Other features include Wireless connectivity and optional 3G, but also audio support, which is nowhere to be found on the new Kindle 4. Therefore, aside from reading e-books, you can also have access to audiobooks and other mp3 files on the Keyboard.

Software and battery life

The Kindle Keyboard comes with access to literally millions of books, newspapers, audiobooks, magazines and docs, including public library books, which you can borrow directly on your e-reader. For most of the books you will have to pay a fee, which varies from case to case, but there are also over two million free, out-of-copyright, classical books.

The Kindle Keyboard is heavier and bulkier than the new Kindle 4, but it is also more functional than the new generation e-reader.

The e-reader also features a pretty basic, but functional experimental browser and a Qwerty keyboard, which is actually the biggest difference between it and the new-generation Kindles. On one hand, this makes the device bulky and heavy, but on another hand, it makes it better for writing text and browsing.

As for the battery life, this is probably as good as it could get on a gagdet of this kind. The Kindle Keyboard is therefore able to run for up to two months between charges, based on a low use, or for about three weeks, based on average use and with wireless permanently on.

Pricing

While in terms of features, quality and reliability, things have stayed the same for the Kindle Keyboard, its price has actually dropped in order to attract customers. The third generation e-reader now starts at 99 dollars, for the wireless version which includes Amazon’s ‘’special offers’’ and ads.

If you don’t want to be bugged by ads, however, you can go for a more expensive, 139 dollars version, which also features only wireless connectivity, but ships Internationally, to more than 100 countries.

If you also want 3G on your device, you will either pay 139 bucks (with ads) or $189 (without special offers – International version).

Wrap-up

While the Amazon Kindle Keyboard is not a wine and it doesn’t get better over time, we can’t say that it gets worse either. The basic e-reader is still the same reliable, portable and functional device as a year ago and, with a more affordable price tag than ever, should still attract some customers.

It is not as light and compact as the new Kindle 4 or as stylish as the Kindle Touch, but it is probably the best of the three when it comes to the interface and typing and it also comes with audio support.

All in all, if you have it, we don’t see any reason of giving it up or replacing it, while if you don’t have it and you decide to buy it, you will probably not regret your investment.

Don’t forget to also check out the following exclusive video clip presenting the Amazon Kindle Keyboard:

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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The new Kindle and Kindle Touch joined the old Kindle, renamed ‘’ Kindle Keyboard’’, and together they form a very strong, united and interesting family of e-book readers. All three products have their strong and weak points, but considering the competition you will probably be pretty satisfied with any of the three devices right now.

In the following lines we will take a quick look at these e-readers’ features, prices and technical specs, in order to establish each one’s advantages and disadvantages, but also to determine, if possible, which one of the three is the better choice for technology geeks at the moment.

Amazon Kindle reader

The new Amazon Kindle is the 4^th generation of the popular ebook reader and, while it comes with some not very impressive features, it has a great advantage. Scratch that, because it actually has two advantages, come to think of it.

First of all, the new e-reader is considerably lighter and more compact than the old one, weighing 5.98 ounces (170 grams) and measuring 6.5 x 4.5 x 0.34 inches. The second strong point is of course the price tag of only 79 dollars. This is however for the ‘’special offers’’ version of the new Kindle, but you can also get the model without ads at 109 bucks.

The 4th generation Amazon Kindle is cheaper than ever before.

In terms of storage space, it comes with 2 GB of internal memory, as well as unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content. The display is the same old 6-inch E Ink Pearl (slightly improved, though, according to Amazon), but the keyboard has disappeared. Instead of it, you have a 5-way controller, which, while being good-looking, is not very functional and will make typing on this device a pretty complicated procedure.

Amazon Kindle Touch

The second freshly released Amazon e-reader is the Kindle Touch, which also comes with a 6-inch E Ink display with 600 x 800 pixels resolution. However, this is actually a touchscreen, which cancels the Classic Kindle’s biggest problem (typing). The Touch also comes with access to audiobooks, a feature that, unfortunately, is nowhere to be found on the new Classic Kindle.

When it comes to product dimensions and weight, the Touch is pretty light and compact, even though not as light and compact as the Classic Kindle. It weighs 7.5 ounces and measures 6.8 x 4.7 x 0.4 inches.

The Kindle Touch is heavier, but features a better screen and interface than the classic Kindle.

The interface is nice and responsive and the browsing experience is slightly better than that of its lower end sibling. In terms of storage space, the Touch comes with 4 GB of internal memory, which is double than what the Kindle has to offer, while when it comes to battery life, things are as productive as they can possible be.

The Touch can therefore last up until two months based on light use and with wireless off. And because we have mentioned the wireless connectivity, let’s also say that the Touch is also available with optional 3G.

In terms of pricing, the Touch is, as you might expect, more expensive than the Classic Kindle, but overall it’s itself a bargain. You can get the touchscreen e-reader in two different versions, one that offers Wi-Fi and starts at $99, and the other that also adds 3G on top and starts at $149. The listed prices are for ad-supported versions, so you’ll have to deal with some ads, not that many and not intrusive. If you don’t like ads, you can buy the standard versions that will cost your around 40 bucks extra in both cases.

However, you should know that the Touch Kindle will only sell in the US for the time being.

Amazon Kindle Keyboard

Even though Amazon has released two new and very nice e-book readers, that doesn’t mean you can’t get the old Kindle version as well, if you get nostalgic. This older model, which is now known as ‘’Amazon Keyboard’’ is basically identical with the new Kindle, except for the keyboard.

The older Kindle Keyboard can most definitely still draw some attention.

Of course, the old Amazon Keyboard is heavier and bulkier too, but on the other hand it does come with 4 GB of internal storage space, a better battery and audio support. In terms of pricing, this has been recently discounted and goes right now for between 99 dollars (the Wi-Fi with special offers version) and 189 bucks (the 3G model with no included ads). The standard versions, those without the ads, also ship internationally.

Wrap-up

No matter how you look at it and how critical and skeptical you want to be, the new and refreshed line of Amazon Kindles is extremely competitive and is bound to be a great success. The classic Kindle is the most affordable gadget you can get on the market right now and, while it offers less features than its siblings, I am sure that technology enthusiasts on a budget will love it.

The Touch offers a better all-around experience and probably the maximum you would hope to get from a basic device like an e-reader, while the old Amazon Keyboard, even though it could be considered an old-fashioned and obsolete gadget, has the perfect quality-price ratio to get its fair share of customers.

All in all, it’s pretty difficult to state which one of the three e-book readers from Amazon is better right now. However, the winner of a theoretical battle between the Kindle Classic, Touch and Keyboard is not one of the three devices, but us the technology fans which will have trouble picking up one or the other because they are oh so similar and oh so great.

For further details about the Kindle eReaders, you can check out the following video preview:

©2012 Mike's Quarter - technology and cool gadgets blog. All Rights Reserved.

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