You can get brand new Dells for around the same price

cgerhold wrote:Clear is Terrible I had their service for about 16 months in the Portland area, and they constantly would flag me for excessive bandwidth. Unlimited my ass. Horrible customer service, terrible support, and on top of all that, they lied when they registered our account.

Our apartment was originally not in their coverage area, and so the sales rep that signed us up, used his personal address as our service address.

I would never recommend anyone ever use Clear for internet service.

I love WiMAX, but I loathe Clear. Absolutely agree with everything you said. I've subscribed to them in three markets over the past six years. (I'm a slow learner, I guess, but the alternatives seemed even worse...)

My experience? Salespeople who are astonishingly good liars and absolutely untroubled by any sort of ethical code, a port-blocking and bandwidth-throttling policy that isn't mentioned in the contract or by the support reps, and the most twisted account termination process. I'm convinced that Clear makes this so painful that many customers will simply pay out their contract rather than endure the cancellation trials.

Nice laptop, though!

If Clear is ALL 4g Sprint, it's terribly slow.

I'm in a full signal area (Orlando)and 4g is much slower than Verizon's 3g. No commercial, I'm on Sprint now, and hate it speed wise.

colbytitus wrote:You can get brand new Dells for around the same price

Not only new ones but if you going to go referb you can get much better deals at dell outlet too. The new dell 15r are $399. I got a blue referb for $644 shipping and tax. Mine had the i5-520m a 7200rpm hard drive, 6gb memory, bluetooth, 2.0 webcam, 5450 own graphic card, 1080p screen, surround sound, back-lit keyboard. Oh and 1 year warranty not this crap of 90 days.

Bottom line this deal is just ok at best. The wimax is what makes it ok but don't most phone companies give you a card down a days? I have see i5 at dell oultet for the same price if not cheaper and you get the one year warranty.

Not interested in paying for WiMAX. I assume this computer is WiFi compatible for normal hot spot use. Anybody have the skinny. If yes I am buying one

sdc100 wrote:The specs look pretty good but the screen is only 15.6" yet it has a numeric keypad. The keys must be pretty cramped. That was a pretty bad design. They should have used a full size keyboard and let those who enter a lot of numeric data buy a USB keypad.

That would be my main concern, too. It looks awful cramped...

janney11 wrote:Not interested in paying for WiMAX. I assume this computer is WiFi compatible for normal hot spot use. Anybody have the skinny. If yes I am buying one

Specs say 802.11n, so yes, it's WiFi.

janney11 wrote:Not interested in paying for WiMAX. I assume this computer is WiFi compatible for normal hot spot use. Anybody have the skinny. If yes I am buying one

Yes. Description states 802.11a/b/g/n connectivity. That covers all your standard wifi bases. Go get it!

Only 2 USB ports...FAIL!

(can that be true, pictures look like it has 3?)

And USB 3 is out now, will make a HUGE difference for most of us.

I bought this laptop at bestbuy about 5 months ago and i have no complaints. I get about 4-5 hours of battery life if i am just surfing the web.

Horseradish wrote:That would be my main concern, too. It looks awful cramped...

its really not cramped the computer feels a bit wider than others.

I wish my 10 year old Compaq 1215 US laptop would die so I could buy something new.

Great write-up!

-Stephen King

ceschker13 wrote:Great write-up!

-Stephen King

Seriously, the Body is a Great Story, and the Movie "Stand By Me" is a great film. I still get a little emotional at the ending as River Phoenix's Character fades away.

This is just a Great Movie...

stevec5000 wrote:No you can't. Clear is only available in a few areas and Sprint doesn't have wimax.

That's just plain wrong. Sprint's 4G service is WiMax. That's no secret. Check out this link for more information.

https://developer.sprint.com/site/global/home/4g/4gwimax.jsp

but you are right about one thing...the service is only in select major cities. I'd just checking out their coverage maps for more info.

http://coverage.sprint.com/IMPACT.jsp?mapzip=&covType=sprint&returnUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fshop2.sprint.com%2FNASApp%2Fonlinestore%2Fen%2FAction%2FDisplayPhones%3FINTNAV%3DLEG%3AHE%3APhones&language=EN

Looks like a pretty nice laptop, but when I travel, esp. vacations, I like to dump my video camera to my laptop and do a little light video editing. ALL of my camcorders use Firewire to transfer video and all the laptops I see on the market these days, including this one, there's no firewire port (like the one built-in to my old Toshiba laptop) and no PCMCIA or PC-CARD slot to plug in a Firewire adapter. What are you supposed to do for external connections these days? USB 3 is virtually non-existant and USB 2 is a joke for video (and not supported on most serious video cameras!)

Horseradish wrote:That would be my main concern, too. It looks awful cramped...

I have a 15.6" Acer with the numeric keypad and it's very comfortable. There's so much wasted space on desktop keyboards.

My main concern is going with another enormous laptop... anything over 14" (and >5 lbs) is pretty ridiculous if you plan to travel with it, as many others have commented. It's a good size if it's just going to sit on your couch or desk.

I have this exact laptop... bought it at best buy 4 months ago for like 700... very powerfull, runs cool, fast start up and sleep, good sound and graphics... mousepad is awesome after you get use to the two finger scrolling

tmdwo79 wrote:What is the graphic card of this laptop? And how can I extend period of warranty?

Makes me wonder, too. When I was looking at UMA graphics in a laptop a while ago, it didn't look so good. UMA stands for Unified Memory Architecture, which means the system memory is shared with the integrated graphics.
So, if there's 4GB of system memory and the graphics uses 512MB for its frame buffer memory, your system memory will report 3.5GB. And the card can't be removed, most UMA graphics are soldered onto the board meaning you can't upgrade the card Trying to find if this is the case here.

But even so, as an ASUS it's a great price.

ommusly wrote:I think this laptop doesn't have ASUS Infusion Technology. I will consider an ASUS A52Jt-XE1 instead.

DezertRat wrote:So, you're going to spend $150 to make sure the paint doesn't come off? That sounds like a reasonable cost... (NOT)

That $150 also buys a 1GB discrete video card (Radeon HD 6370 1GB), faster processor (480M vs. 460M), the full one-year warranty including accidental damage protection.

The tradeoff is that the nicer one on Amazon that he mentioned (http://goo.gl/BKdzT) doesn't include WiMax, and the hard drive is 500gb instead of 640gb. Still, for the discrete video card, I think the Amazon one is definitely the better deal.

I'm looking for something to travel with, and am currently thoroughly confused about what the differences are between laptop, netbook and notebook - and are those terms standardized?
This looks good, but I think maybe the weight might be more than I want to haul around, so hoping there are lighter ones available.
Thanks for any enlightenment.
~granny

I think this has a Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor but I'm not sure because Woot somehow manages not to post such an essential piece of information about it.

How hard is it to get the actual tech specs? Must be reasonably hard, I guess.

cybercrone wrote:I'm looking for something to travel with, and am currently thoroughly confused about what the differences are between laptop, netbook and notebook - and are those terms standardized?
This looks good, but I think maybe the weight might be more than I want to haul around, so hoping there are lighter ones available.
Thanks for any enlightenment.
~granny

No, those terms are not standardized and don't mean much anyway. Look at the actual measurements. For instance, if you want something to travel with, you want a screen size of 12.1" or less. This is a huge machine (15.6") by comparison.

First, I'd almost buy one of these just for the movie reference. I'm so sad for all the people out there who don't get what it refers to.

Second, 5.5 lbs is now ultraportable? What does that make my Inspiron at 3.2 lbs, which was always too heavy for me to lug around campus? Sorry, woot. Fail. It's not ultraportable unless I can wave it around in one hand (and I do mean me, specifically, the one with the severe rheumatoid arthritis and replaced shoulder joint - my wavin' around capability being considerably less than most people's)

Aside from the slick attempt to pass something that weighs more than the average Upper East Side dog as "ultraportable" this looks fairly decent, specs-wise.

I build my own systems and Asus is my go-to for motherboards and certain peripherals. Not sure how they do on laptops, but I trust the company and can vouch that their customer service is great.

Does this have any dedicated video memory? Or is it all shared graphic memory?

orenelrad wrote:I think this has a Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor but I'm not sure because Woot somehow manages not to post such an essential piece of information about it.

How hard is it to get the actual tech specs? Must be reasonably hard, I guess.

Right in the description: "Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor features a 3MB L3 cache and 2.53GHz processor speed". Sounds pretty specific to me.

orenelrad wrote:I think this has a Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor but I'm not sure because Woot somehow manages not to post such an essential piece of information about it.

How hard is it to get the actual tech specs? Must be reasonably hard, I guess.

You may want to read Woot's good one day one deal description again because Woot posted Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor 3 times: 1st it is in the 4th line from the Top, 2nd it is listed in the Features, and 3rd it is listed below that in the Specifications.

I did my homework. Best Buy has same specs, but with i3 processor, for $549 - but then add tax, etc. FYI: the i5 processor is much better at multi-tasking and what I was hoping to get originally.
So I am packing up the one I bought yesterday and cancelling the Toshiba I ordered earlier this week. (hedging my bets...)
No going back now! Only concern is the reduced warranty and how long before mine arrives.
But, I trust everyone who said the ASUS is a top-notch unit, so I'm not worried - just anxoius to start using this monster!
If you are considering a new laptop, jump on this one before they're gone.

I can guaranty that it will have 2GB and 2GB and that will need replaced with 4GB and 4GB. EVERY manufacture does this either to save a nickle or because they have sides deals with ram makers. I am a 20 year PC tech and I have never opened a laptop to find an empty socket. Even back when 16GB was lots of ram. The slots would be filled with two 8GB sticks.

First, da RAMz ~

System Memory (RAM): 4GB
System Memory (RAM) Expandable To: 8GB

If that means it's got one 4GB DIMM and room for another, that's sweet. If it means it's got 2 x 2GB and you gotta fully replace to upgrade, that's lousy.

Can't tell for sure but based on their wording I'd be miffed if it wasn't the former. Though by no means surprised if it's the latter. Did a quick Gwaggle, came up with bubkiss.

Next, da power ~

Battery Type: 8-Cell
Battery Life: Up to 6 hours and 33 minutes

Ha, 6.5 hours my Aunt Fanny. (Sorry to use your name in vain Aunt Fanny.) Not with a 2.53 proc, a 15.6" LCD and a spinnin' HDD. If you're going to actually do anything on it I'd count on considerably less time. 8-cells is pretty big but it's a honkin' laptop.

Speaking of which, 5.5lbs = Ultraportable?? Not exactly an industry standard term now is it.

And while we're on the subject of being a husky young refurb, 1366 x 768 rez is a deal breaker for me (on a 15.6" LCD). Even on a 14.1" I say 1440 x 900 is what's good. Different pixels for different folks.

No offense to teh Wootz. It's a capable machine, that's for sure, definitely my kinda unit from a power stand point. My lappie spends most of its time on my desktop hooked up to a bunch of distinctly desktop peripherals.[/quote]

stevec5000 wrote:Doesn't matter since Clear is only available in limited areas and already too slow to use in a lot of those areas anyway. Read the reviews on dslreports dot com.

I dunno, I'm digging the speed I get near downtown Memphis:

Just got an ASUS gaming notebook recently which looks similar to this (minus the GPU) and I absolutely love it. The build quality is excellent, the full-size chicklet keyboard took some getting used to but now I'm hooked. The trackpad is one of the best I've ever used. The screen, while glossy, still looks great from a number of viewing angles and lighting conditions. I've never had to strain to see anything.

Never had any experience with ASUS outside of their (excellent) motherboards & components before, but I would definitely recommend their notebooks.

Word of caution though for what it's worth; I bought mine refurb through Newegg and it showed up DOA. Fortunately Newegg's return policy covered it and I had a new one within 2 weeks. I know woot's return policy is mostly "talk to the manufacturer", and I've heard ASUS RMA's can take a while.

Noticeably absent from both the specs and the discussion is Bluetooth. Is that not a shortcoming?

sdc100 wrote:That's what SHE said.

Awesome. Spot on!

For those asking about the "graphics card"...

This laptop uses an Intel Core i5-460M. Here's Intel's page: http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=50179

Several of Intel's i3/5/7 series processors have built-in graphics, including this one. They also have "turbo boost" mode which allows them to essentially self-overclock if the processor is operating within certain parameters of power draw, load, temp. etc. The top Turbo speed of this chip is 2.8 GHz.

While the built-in graphics are not strong enough for high powered gaming, it's enough for watching video (including HD) and gaming where the most advanced video cards are overkill.

Having the processor and graphics on the same chip and using shared memory reduces the cost and power draw of the entire system. However there are trade offs -- no such thing as a free lunch. In this case, the power of the graphics engine.

As I said earlier, this laptop has very good specifications for general use, but would not make someone heavy into advanced gaming happy.

(Think of it this way, if this was a gaming console the graphics engine would be on par with the Wii, not the PS3 or Xbox360. Plenty for most games, but the most complex would be bogged down.)

This may have already been posted, but PC Magazine rates this computer as having a "strong" video system. So, again, plenty of power for most users, but heavy gamers (which might spend $1500+ on a laptop) would pass. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2371432,00.asp

brucecornelius wrote:Noticeably absent from both the specs and the discussion is Bluetooth. Is that not a shortcoming?

No Bluetooth(BT)? This is not really a negative issue in most cases. Bluetooth offers a rich set of services, with more secure connections, a shorter range and lower power. Each of these is a good thing, but in the real world, Bluetooth is an uncommon choice.

Let's reframe the BT issue. What peripherals do you currently intend to connect? Do you own them now, or do you intend to buy? In most cases BT is not well supported, but every person has a unique mix of needs and existing assets and requirements.

I have several machines, because of the nature of my work, some with Bluetooth, some without. The only things I typically connect to with BT is a GPS unit and synching my Blackberry. Everything else is either WiFi, USB or a proprietary connection. I work quite well without BT.

A Bluetooth headset can be handy, but few folks use one, and battery life can be an issue. There are Bluetooth mice, keyboards and printers. They are handy, but they typically cost more than RF and
802.11x devices that offer identical functions.

But what do you currently own and wish to connect? In my case, my printer is networked and available, and is 802.1g capable. Bluetooth adds no advantage. If I was tethering my laptop to my phone, that would be a plus, but every where I need it, I have 802.11 WiFi.

My external keyboards and mice use RF. I like the Logitech devices, especially the "unified" RF adapter which fits in a USB port and is a low profile, 1/4" plug. I leave it snugly connected when I travel.

I also have Bluetooth USB adapters, transceiver devices, to plug into other machines. From NewEgg, they cost $15-$30. They are also low-profile BT USB plugs. I can pop one on a laptop and leave it in place, so even a non-Bluetooth machines can add that capability for just a few bucks.

In summary, I don't find Bluetooth compelling in the marketplace. In the few cases I need Bluetooth, I can add it. In my decision matrix, having it is a plus, but it is way down on the priority list.

BT technology is well thought out and technically sound, but in the market, BT was costly and slow to adapt. Hence other devices IR/RF/WiFi filled that niche. Even today it is hard to find Bluetooth devices and they often cost more. In practice, BT is rarely needed, though your circumstances dictate your needs.

Just curious to see if there is any warranty offered or how comfortable we are buying a refurbished laptop ?

I had this exact model. Worked like a charm up until 3 months in, when I woke up to find my HDD had completely crashed. Like, corrupted-sector-on-half-the-drive bad, out of nowhere. Took care of the laptop, too, so improper care is out as a cause. Not sure if it was just a fluke, but that's my experience.

borntohunt wrote:Thanks, I searched on Asus U52 and it was the 1st item I clicked on, then clicked on U52F to get to the support download web page:


http://support.asus.com/download/download.aspx?model=U52F&os=29&SLanguage=en-us

Thanks, I couldn't get my browser to get me the link--it was frustrating. Maybe I need a different browser.

So you wouldn't spend your money on this but spend twice as much money on an apple with half the specs. Give me a break!

colbytitus wrote:You can get brand new Dells for around the same price

And Dell is the worst piece of crap out there....

There are better deals than this one....But have to know what you are doing.....