The G74SX-A2, the newest entry in the Asus Republic of Gamers line-up, offers a lot productive features and fun entertainment posibilities. It's a good gaming laptop. And if its chassis' imposing form factor doesn't impress you, how about it's backlit keyboard, 1080p screen, stealthy cooling system, and dual hard drives will. Its Core i7 CPU and Nvidia GTX GPU is simply awesome, holding its own against some of the best gaming laptops around.
There's nothing small about the Asus G74SX-A2, from its big 17-inch screen (2.4 by 16.5 by 12.8-inches, HWD) to its over-sized keyboard. Its 9.7 pound weight is on the similar level with other good gaming laptops like the 9.8-pound Alienware M17X (Sandy Bridge), but nowhere close to the backbreaking 13.3 pounds of the AVADirect Clevo X7200 . However, the G74SX-A2 isn't built for portability outside of changing its resting location in your house. More portable gaming laptops can be seen with Alienware's M11x series. There's a solid hinge that runs along the back edge of the G74SX-A2, which provides a more stable base than a lot of the other gaming laptops.
The 17.3-inch screen is simply beautiful , displaying in a 1920 by 1080 resolution. This high definition widescreen is perfect for movies, and thanks to the Nvidia GeForce GTX 560M graphics card you'll be able to crank up the graphic setting on any game you play without missing a pixel. A Blu-ray (Blu-ray player/ DVD +/- RW) drive also means that you'll be able to enjoy your hard disk movies in full 1080p as well. A combination of THX TruStudio and EAX Advanced HD 5.0 sound creates one of the best audio set-ups you'll find on a laptop, offering particularly rich bass. The only problem we ran into while testing the laptop was some very soft speaker hiss, which was most noticeable at high volumes.
The Asus has a thick wedge-shaped profile that puts the keyboard and palm rest at a 5-degree slope—far more comfortable than the flatter designs seen on the Alienware M17X (Sandy Bridge) and AVADirect Clevo X7200. The keyboard is extra wide with large chiclet-style keys and over an inch of separation between the keyboard and full-sized numeric keypad, with the four arrow button nestled in between. The keyboard also has over-sized shift and control keys, making it dead simple to use a macro or keyboard shortcut without accidentally hitting a wrong button. The keys are framed by brushed aluminum, which is cool to the touch, and combines with the soft-touch rubberized coating of the palm rest for a comfortable experience, even during long gaming sessions. Asus packaged a gaming mouse with our review unit, which has a button switching between different DPI settings (mouse sensitivity), and integrated forward/back thumb buttons. The wired USB mouse has the simliar soft-touch rubberized coating that the lid and palm rest of the G74SX-A2 have, and faint blue accent lights glow from within the mouse. If the mouse is not available, the extra big multitouch trackpad is also good, letting you scroll, zoom, and rotate with two fingers. The right and left mouse buttons are quiet and soft, with the same soft-touch coating as the rest of the palm rest.
Specifications
- Type:Gaming, Media, Desktop Replacement
- Processor Name: Intel Core i7-2630QM
- Operating System:Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
- Processor Speed:2 GHz
- RAM:16 GB
- Weight:9.76 lb
- Screen Size:17.3 inches
- Screen Size Type:Widescreen
- Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce GTX 560M
- Storage Capacity :910 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11n
- Primary Optical Drive: Blu-Ray Disc
When you find a good gaming laptop utilize powerful components like this, temperature tends to get hot. Asus has addressed this problem with a combination of strategies to keep the system cool. 2 big vents run along the back of the laptop, providing a lot of airflow in and out, and pointing the blowing air away from the user. Two large fans cool the processor and the graphics card, and each is independently operated so that the fans are only used when cooling is needed. They are quiet, and even while running gaming tests that make other systems hum and vibrate from fans in overdrive, the G74SX-A2 stayed quiet and cool.
On the bottom side of the laptop, you'll see that Asus has gone out of its way to make upgrades simple, with their Easy Upgrade Panel providing access to RAM and drive slots. You do not need a jeweler's screwdriver set to open this panel, as it is secured with a simple single screw latch that can be opened with a coin.
Good Gaming laptops are built for intimidation as much as for performance, and the feature set on the Asus G74SX-A2 certainly does that. The G74SX-A2 packs two hard drives: a quick 160GB solid-state drive (SSD) and a larger 750GB 7,200rpm spinning hard disk. This dual drive set-up provides faster performance in programs stored on the SSD, but retains the big storage space offered by a traditional hard drive; the AVADirect Clevo X7200 used a similar dual hard drive. However, the combination storage capacity of 910GB isn't enough to top the 1.5TB drive found in the Alienware M17X, but it's larger than the drive found in the Asus G73SW-BST6 , which features a 750GB hard drive alone.
The Asus G74SX-A2 offers a mixture of ports and connectors, located on either side of the laptop. On the right, you'll find a Gigabit Ethernet port, HDMI and VGA video outputs, and a card reader supporting several memory formats (SD, MMC, MS/Pro). A USB 3.0 port offers high speed data transfer, and a USB 2.0 port is also available for connecting other peripherals that don't require 3.0 speeds. On the left hand side, there are another two USB 2.0 ports, as well as a slot for a Kensington Lock and jacks for headphones and a microphone. Internally, the Asus G74SX-A2 is equipped with 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 3.0 (for wireless peripherals).
The Asus G74SX-A2 comes along with a 2GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-2630QM processor. It's the same CPU Asus has used in other gaming systems, like the Asus G73SW-BST6 and G74SX-BBK7, but combined with 16GB of RAM and a super quick hybrid SSD/ 7,200rpm spinning drive for even faster performance.
The real attraction of the G74SX-A2, however, is gaming and it doesn't let us down. Equipped with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 560M GPU (3GB), the G74SX-A2 is able to deliver. You should be set no matter what game you want to play—so long as you keep the higher-end games at medium settings.
While most high-performance gaming laptops will stay tethered to an electrical outlet whenever they are used, the Asus G74SX-A2 still provides decent battery life. The Asus G74SX-A2 may not take you through a cross-country flight, but it will outlast most other gaming laptops if your LAN party gets hit with a minor blackout.
The Asus G74SX-A2 brings plenty of gamer-friendly stuff to the table, like a quick and spacious dual-hard drive set-up, a made-for-gamers keyboard, and a processor and graphics card that will handle any game you want to play. While it may not come with a hex-core processor like the one found in the AVADirect Clevo X7200, the Asus G74SX-A2 should still satisfy most gamers and go a little easier on your budget. If you have an extra $200 plus on hand, the Alienware M17X (Sandy Bridge) will provide the best performance for the price. If not, the Asus G74SX-BBK7 costs $700 less and offers up similar gaming performance, but you'll be sacrificing some future-proof components. Do visit Pinjaman
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