Communication:Modem, Gigabit LAN and WLAN
CPU Type:Intel Core 2 Duo T7200 2.0GHz
Graphics Card:ATI Mobility Radeon X1700

Memory Size: 1GB DDR2
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
Optical Drive: DVD Super Multi
Part#: 90NL0A2332914CAL600Y
Screen: 15.4″ WXGA
Video Memory: 256MB VRAM, up to 512MB Hyper Memory

The reason I decided to purchase Asus F3Jp was that it was in my price range and it had great reviews. It met all the specs and even had its own dedicated video card. I have only played one game on it, Anarchy Online… and it played great. It ran flawless on the maximum settings.

Many people criticize this laptop because it runs Windows Vista. When I first booted it up, Windows Vista was using 700MB of my 1024MB of RAM! This is why my choice to add in an extra gig of ram was a great idea. It ran slowly the first time I started it up. When I added the extra ram, it worked great. I have not run into many problems with Windows Vista, and my network printer installed very easily. It was also easy to connect to my Windows XP computer over the wireless network and download all my shared pictures.

The notebook has onboard audio and speakers, which doesn’t sound that great. I had to turn the volume up all the way to watch a Netflix movie. I decided to hook up some speakers I had laying around to improve the quality. That is the only problem I have seen with this laptop.

 I also decided to get a keyboard off of eBay from a seller in Hong Kong for $10 + $5 s/h. This was an investment that everyone with a laptop should make! Not only does it make the keys easier to press, it protects the keyboard from dirt, grime, and some spills. Of course, I try not to eat or drink over my new laptop, but we all know how that goes.

The keyboard feels very nice when I type on it with my keyboard cover. It wasn’t bad before, but that just made it a lot better. The touchpad it came with is easy to use and has some nice features which I like. You can scroll vertically or horizontally on the touchpad by sliding your finger on the edge. This makes it a lot easier to use and read things on the Internet.

The laptop itself came with several accessories which saved me the time from buying. The first one is a case. I already had one, but I like the one Asus included a lot more. It also came with a little dinky Logitech USB mouse relabled as an Asus mouse. It also came with a cable tie. I don’t use that for my laptop because I move it between the desk and the couch.

The battery life isn’t bad, but it’s not amazing either. The specs said up to 4 hours… that should be if you aren’t using it. On battery saving mode, I can get anywhere from 2-3 hours depending on what I’m doing. It should have come with a 9-cell battery rather than a 6-cell battery. I’m still debating as to whether or not to get a new 9-cell battery off of eBay for $100 + $25 s/h. Battery saving mode limits the processor to 50% and dims the screen. That doesn’t really bother me and it still works very quickly.

So to sum things up:

Pros: Fast, Reliable, Comfortable, Touchpad, Came with a Mouse and Bag, Fairly Cheap

Cons: Bad sound quality, Could have come with a 9-cell battery

Other: I’ve heard Asus’ support isn’t that great. I haven’t had any problems that I’ve needed to contact them for yet though, so I don’t have any experience with that.

Sure, I could have gotten a cheap HP, Dell, or some off brand and saved some money, but I want my laptop to last for a long time. Even when I do decide to get another newer computer, I’ll still probably have a use for this one. I don’t want to buy something that’s going to have failed components within the first year or two. Asus is also one of the few manufacturers that makes their own computers. This has to say something. Most companies just rebrand laptops from certain manufacturers. Most of Asus’ laptops also include video cards, which is a major plus. This makes the laptop actually capable of playing many mainstream games. If I had to purchase a laptop again, It’d definately be an Asus for the quality.

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