How we score. The Engadget Score is a unique ranking of products based on extensive independent research and analysis by our expert editorial and research teams. Empower your gaming potential with the full throttle power and portable performance of the G Series from ASUS, part of the prestigious Republic of Gamers that is committed to delivering innovative and best performing PC solutions for gamers. Empower your gaming potential with the full throttle power and portable performance of the G Series from ASUS, part of the prestigious Republic of Gamers that is committed to delivering innovative and best performing PC solutions for gamers. Printshop mail suite 7. ASUS CopyProtect, ASUS Data Security Manager, Adobe Reader 8.0, CyberLink Power2Go 5, Drivers & Utilities, Nero 7 Essentials, Norton Internet Security 2008, ASUS Direct Console, ASUS Live Update.
eBay Laptops and Netbooks
When it comes to choosing a laptop or netbook, eBay's inventory is extensive. This holiday season, you can pick from a range of brands such as HP, Dell, Lenovo, Asus, Acer, and many others, excellent if the tech enthusiast in your family is partial to one or two brands in particular.
Is There a Difference Between a Netbook and a Laptop?
What is the difference in a netbook and a PC Laptop? Technically the difference is size and weight. When the portable computer first came on the market, 'laptops' were larger, had more features, and weighed more than 'netbooks.' However, thanks to advances in technology, components are now smaller and lighter than ever. Still, a netbook generally tends to keep a screen size of around 11 inches and under.
Operating Systems
![Asus Asus](https://htforum.com/forum/proxy.php?image=http:%2F%2Ffarm4.static.flickr.com%2F3423%2F3841294172_b8f05bd0e2_b.jpg&hash=b2c5ec22661683dde6f5fe378ea98e95)
One of the first things to look at before you pick what personal computer you want is the operating system. It's what allows the hardware to communicate and operate with the software. Often a computer's OS will fall in more than one of the following types: GUI (Graphical User Interface), Multi-user, Multiprocessing, multitasking, and multithreading.
Graphics Card
Does your college student plan to play games? Watch movies? The installed graphics card is essential for the visual effects people will enjoy while playing video games and watching movies. Since you do not know what the future holds, consider getting a graphics card that is upgradeable.
Memory
How much is enough? When it comes to netbook memory, the rule of thumb is to have more RAM than the minimum requirement of the applications and the OS the computer uses. In fact, it's ideal to have at least the highest recommended requirement. For example, if the minimum RAM required is 8GB and the maximum is 16GB, you will want at least 16GB and if feasible more than 16GB of memory.
Battery Life
If this machine will be for work on the go, you need to ensure the battery will last long enough to finish a project. Battery life varies from system to system. For those that plan to stay plugged in most of the time, it's not that big of a deal, but for those who want to go cordless, it's a vital feature.
Ensure your Christmas morning is everything your family dreamed of by shopping for deals on coveted gifts like PC Laptops and Netbooks, Video Game Consoles, and more.
For informational purposes only. eBay is not affiliated with or endorsed by any brands.
Editors' note: This review is part of our Winter 2009 Retail Roundup, covering specific configurations of popular laptops that can be found in retail stores.
Asus G50vt-x5 Specs
The $949 15.6-inch Asus G50VT-X5 certainly looks the part of a gaming laptop, with splashes of color, lights everywhere, an extended keyboard, and a small secondary OLED display. Fl studio full version crack. Its components back up those appearances, too, with a 512MB Nvidia GeForce 9800M GS graphics card and adequately powerful 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7450 processor--a good set of components for a sub-$1,000 system. The 17-inch Gateway FX P-7805u is still our pick for a mainstream gaming laptop, but if you have a good reason to get a slightly smaller display and don't mind the flashy design, the Asus G50VT-X5 is a great way to play games on a budget.
Price as reviewed / Starting price | $949 |
Processor | 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7450 |
Memory | 4GB, 800MHz DDR2 |
Hard drive | 320GB 7,200rpm |
Chipset | Mobile Intel PM45 Express Chipset |
Graphics | 512MB Nvidia GeForce 9800M GS |
Operating System | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) |
Dimensions | 14.8 inches wide by 10.4 inches deep |
Height | 1.6 inches |
Screen size (diagonal) | 15.6 inches |
System weight / Weight with AC adapter | 7.4/8.8 pounds |
Category | Mainstream |
One look at the laptop's lid and you can tell this isn't a business notebook. It has a glittery black-and-brown design, with a lightning/flame accent on the lid and beams of LED lights going up each side and across the middle. The lights are controllable to a degree; the side beams can be shut off entirely, but the middle beam and emblem never shut off unless the system is asleep or turned off. If you sleep in the same room as your computer, this might keep you awake at night.
Above the keyboard is a small OLED display that can be set to alert you of e-mail or IMs, give you a heads up on battery life, show memory and CPU usage, or display a custom greeting. To the right of it is a series of touch-sensitive controls for shutting off the touch pad (and its frame of LED lights), quickly changing performance settings depending on what you're doing (office, entertainment, high performance), and launching a console with controls for system overclocking, settings for the laptop's LED lights, and what's shown on the OLED display.
There's also a control to start up a secondary Linux-based OS called Asus Express Gate. This lets you get faster access to the Web, Skype, and IM, as well as music and photos on the laptop without waiting for Windows to boot--although we find that consumers rarely use these pre-Windows environments.
The keyboard on the Asus G50VT-X5 is a decent size, but the separate number pad (increasingly common on 16:9 15-inch laptops) is cramped. The nearly-standard row of media-control buttons are absent, which is an odd omission for such a flashy laptop.
Asus G50vt-x5
The 15.6-inch wide-screen LCD offers a 1,366x768 native resolution, which is the 16:9 equivalent of the standard 1,280x800 resolution of most 15-inch laptops. Download prolific usb to serial comm port. These wider 16:9 displays are great for HDTV-style content, although 1080p video will have to be scaled down. Gamers taking advantage of the high-end GPU will also have to dial down their resolution to match the screen.
![Asus g50vt a1 Asus g50vt a1](/uploads/1/3/3/2/133276620/347714832.jpg)
Asus G50VT-X5 | Average for category [mainstream] | |
Video | VGA-out, HDMI | VGA-out, S-Video |
Audio | Stereo speakers with subwoofer, headphone/microphone jacks | Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks |
Data | 4 USB 2.0, SD card reader, eSATA, mini FireWire | 4 USB 2.0, SD card reader |
Expansion | ExpressCard/54 | ExpressCard/54 |
Networking | Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi | modem, Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional WWAN |
Optical drive | DVD burner | DVD burner |
We were happy to find both HDMI and eSATA ports without sacrificing a USB port or FireWire. This fixed-configuration retail model does not come with Bluetooth, however, so you'll need a USB dongle if you're going to use a Bluetooth wireless gaming headset or mouse.
Asus G50vt-x5 Specs
For PC gaming on a reasonable budget, we still prefer the Gateway FX P-7805u for its bigger screen and better benchmark scores (thanks to a faster processor and more onboard GPU memory), but the Asus, which has a 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7450, is still a strong performer and one of the only 15-inch gaming laptops currently available. Both of these systems are faster than the numerous Intel Core 2 Duo T6400-powered laptops available one price-tier down (ranging from $600-$899).
In Unreal Tournament 3, we got 91.6 frames per second from the Asus G50VT-X5 at 1,280x720. By way of comparison, the Gateway P-7805u gave us 120.8 frames per second in the same test (with the resolution tweaked to 1,280x800 on account of its 16:10 display). That means both systems could handle newer games with graphics options turned to medium or high and still maintain a 30-plus frame rate.
The G50VT-X5 ran for 3 hours and 2 minutes on our video playback battery drain test, which is competitive for a gaming system, and decent for a 15-inch laptop. But this requires an extended-life nine-cell battery that sticks out significantly from the back of the laptop.