The performance of this laptop is pretty decent. I love the CUDA and I’m so happy with the NVIDIA. It is also a great video laptop because of its excellent sound system. I am very happy with my purchase.
This laptop from ASUS is really superior to many others in the market. It offers a lot of interesting and exciting features. The Express Gate OS grants instant access to the internet, music and videos, Skype and others within seconds. Excellent display on a HD widescreen with LED backlit screen.
Build quality is standard ASUS, which means it’s good but not necessarily great. Like Dell XPS (Waves Maxx) and HP (Beats Audio), ASUS is now sporting speakers from a well-known brand, in this case Bang & Olufsen. I’ve heard some really good home theater setups with B&O speakers, so my expectations were high. Could this notebook finally be ASUS’ breakout midrange offering that would address most of my previous complaints? I won’t spoil the review just yet, so let’s start by looking at the components and specifications. The list will be strikingly familiar if you read the XPS or B5310M reviews.
The specifications of our review unit of the ASUS N53JF (N53JF-XE1) are as follows:
• 15.6-inch 720p (1920x1080) glossy panel with LED backlighting
• Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel Core i5-460M dual-core processor (2.53GHz/2.8GHz Turbo Mode)
• Intel HM55 chipset
• Switchable graphics via Nvidia Optimus technology:
o Nvidia GeForce GT 425M w/ 1GB DDR3 video memory
o Integrated Intel HD graphics
• 4GB DDR3-1066 dual-channel RAM (2x 2GB)
• 500GB 7200RPM Seagate hard drive (ST9500420AS)
• Atheros AR9285 802.11b/g/n Wireless LAN
• Blu-ray reader/DVD burner combo drive
• 1-year global limited warranty w/ 1 year accidental damage coverage
• 6-cell Li-ion battery (48Wh)
• Weight: 6.5 lbs.
• Dimensions: 15.6” (L) x 10.6” (D) x 1.65” (H)
• MSRP: $1,049
If you compare the above table with the Dell XPS 15 and Clevo B5130M, there’s a ton of overlap. The LCD is reported as the same model Dell shipped us in the XPS 15, though the performance characteristics are actually quite different. ASUS uses the GT 425M as opposed to the 420M in the XPS, which means 12% higher core/shader clocks but the same memory bandwidth; the i5-460M is also clocked 5% higher than the i5-450M.
The N53JF is actually slightly heavier, wider, thicker, and deeper than the XPS 15, which in turn is slightly larger than the Clevo B5130M. Pricing is competitive with the other options, and without the 1080p LCD we can almost eliminate Dell from the running. ASUS also takes a multimedia slant by including a Blu-ray combo drive, which pairs up nicely with the display. A single USB 3.0 port and an eSATA combo port round out the connectivity options, again maintaining the status quo with the other laptops.
