The G51J is the latest 15-inch gaming notebook from ASUS, sporting the new Intel Core i7 mobile processor and Windows 7 operating system. This notebook shares a lot of features with the previous G51VX, with only a hardware refresh to support the Core i7 processor. With a starting price of $1,499, it is priced $200 below the previous version ... which is a huge plus for buyers on a budget. Check out our full review to see how this Core i7 update performs.
ASUS G51J Specifications:
- Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
- Intel Core i7-720QM (1.6GHzGHz, 1333MHz FSB, 6MB Cache)
- 15.6" WUXGA FHD LCD display at 1920x1080
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260M 1GB GDDR3 memory
- Intel 1000AGN Wireless, Bluetooth
- 4GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM (2GB x 2)
- Two 320GB Seagate 7200RPM Hard Drives
- DVD SuperMulti
- Webcam, Altec Lansing speakers, Backpack, Razer Copperhead USB mouse
- 120W (19V x 6.32A) 100-240V AC Adapter
- 6-cell 53Wh 11.1v 4800mAh Lithium
Ion battery - Dimensions (WxDxH): 14.6" x 10.3" x 1.3-1.6"
- Weight: 7lbs 8.2oz
- 2-Year Global Warranty/1-Year Accidental damage
- Price as configured: $1,499
Build and Design
The design of the G51 is very gamer-inspired. The outside graphics are futuristic and cool, without being too over-dramatic for the casual gamer. At first glance the new design almost looks like the edges are scratched into the glossy surface, but upon closer inspection that is just the design of the artwork as it branches out to the top and bottom. The inside of the G51 has a more back-to-basics look with a rubberized black palmrest, black backlit keyboard, and glossy black trim around the display. I personally think the design could have been helped by using more rubberized paint other surfaces around the notebook, since it had an excellent soft texture.
Build quality is above average, with sturdy plastic used throughout the notebook, but there are some areas that could see some improvement. The screen cover feels very durable, and protects the screen against any distortion from impacts to the back cover or flexing the screen side to side. The palmrest and keyboard have absolutely no flex at all, which is something you need if you are going to be playing high-stress games and occasionally taking out some of your anger on your computer. The newer design of the G51J compared to the G51VX doesn't have the same paint overspray issue, since the side colors are solid for each piece of plastic.
Users looking to upgrade components inside the notebook will find it very easy, thanks to a single panel giving you access to all user-replaceable components. The only "warranty void if removed" sticker is covering one of the screws used to tension the processor heatsink, meaning that if you want to change out the processor or graphics card you will be forfeiting your 2-year warranty. Considering this notebook offers one of the faster notebook processors right now, the need to tinker with the processor should be minimal.
Screen and Speakers
Considering that this notebook will be used for gaming, an excellent screen is a must. The display on the G51 looks above average with good color saturation and better than average viewing angles. The glossy surface helps make the already good looking colors "pop" out at you more than they would on a matte display, as well as improving the looks of dark colors. ASUS provides a quick and easy way to switch color profiles with the screen, and each one is significantly better than the unaltered one. They really help tone down the harsh blues while bumping the other colors slightly. While gaming I didn't notice any lag or abnormal backlight bleed in dark scenes. Vertical viewing angles were very good, offering a broad sweet spot before colors started to invert if you tilted the screen forward or back. Horizontal viewing angles were excellent, keeping colors accurate, albeit slightly washed out, at very steep angles. Backlight brightness was more than adequate to be viewable in a bright room, but unless you stick to a shaded area underneath a tree, it won't be viewable outdoors.
The Altec Lansing speakers sounded nice, but given the overall size of this notebook we had hoped for a subwoofer as well. Audio from the speakers consisted mostly of higher frequencies, with some midrange coming through. Bass was lacking, but without a subwoofer that is normal for most notebooks. As a gaming notebook I think headphones should be required, especially surround sound-enabled headphones so you can hear your surroundings and react accordingly.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The keyboard was comfortable to use, and really helped solidify the overall look of the notebook. The keys and inner trim were all matching black, with white lettering that lights up when the backlight is enabled. The individual keys were easy to press, and felt very solid with very little wiggle if you moved your hand around the keyboard. Support was very good, with no flex noticed in the primary typing region. Compared to the previous ASUS G51 notebook in for review, the tray has been improved, with it no longer having play inside the bezel. It can no longer be pushed to the bottom and popped out using only your fingers.
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The G51 includes a large Synaptics touchpad with a very smooth barely- textured surface. The speed of the touchpad is excellent, with it able to smoothly pickup slow and steady movement, or quick targeting movement. No lag was noticed what-so-ever. X and Y-axis speeds were matched, allowing you to draw near perfect circles with your fingertip, instead of ovals. The touchpad buttons were easy to trigger, but didn't give as much feedback as longer throw buttons.
Ports and Features
Port selection was pretty good for a 15" notebook, with four USB ports, an eSATA connection, HDMI and VGA out, FireWire 400, LAN, and three audio jacks. The expansion ASUS included an ExpressCard/54 slot and a spring loaded SD-card reader. ASUS also found a creative use for the ExpressCard blank, turning it into a handy storage card holder. Considering that most of us will keep that blank card in the slot most of the time, it now becomes a handy storage device.
ASUS is always big on including freebies with retail notebooks. The G51J-series is no different, with a comfortable green gaming backpack and Razer Copperhead Gaming mouse. The included backpack is very comfortable, with more than adequate padding around the shoulders, and a nice gel-padded carrying handle. I don't think too many users will be replacing this backpack since it looks great and feels great. The Copperhead mouse was nice to see, since it is significantly better than most freebie mice, and is perfect for gaming enthusiasts who just so happen to be the primary target audience of this notebook.
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Performance and Benchmarks
ASUS included some fairly impressive components in the G51J-series notebook, including an Intel Core i7 720 processor, NVIDIA GTX 260M graphics, dual Seagate 7200.4 hard drives, and newer DDR3 memory. One special feature of the Core i7 720 that we were dying to test is its ability to go into a super overclocking mode, pushing its clock speed from 1.6 to 2.8GHz. This sounds like a huge jump, but in our tests we found only small improvements ... if any. The first indication that the Extreme Overclock mode was not working as well as we had hoped was running wPrime, where we only saw a change of less than one second. Other benchmarks showed a similarly modest performance boost.
wPrime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):
PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):
3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):
HDTune storage drive performance test:
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With the overclocking mode enabled, we didn't see any significant jump in framerates, and in some games we actually saw a drop. Left 4 Dead stayed between an average of 68 to 73FPS in each test run of the same level as indicated by FRAPS. Enabling or disabling the overclocking feature didn't show any continuously reproducible gain. While running Batman: Arkham Asylum we actually saw a drop in average framerate, going from an average of 30 FPS down to 28FPS.
Multimedia performance was excellent as expected, with ample processing power to handle decoding 1080P videos at the same time with barely breaking a sweat. With the Core i7 handling 8 threads at the same time, there was always available overhead to run multiple background tasks without any lag.
Heat and Noise
With so many powerful components inside of a 15.6" notebook we knew things would be riding on the warm side. In our tests we found the ASUS G51 to run pretty warm on the bottom section near the processor and GPU. The peak temperature was directly on top of the processor, with the surface scanning at 106F with our IR-gun. Under very low-stress usage this area stayed within reasonable levels, but it was always the hot spot while gaming. Another hot area that couldn't be avoided was the exhaust vent, acting as a very toasty hand warmer in a cold house. While gaming the exhaust temperatures were well in excess of 130F. Noise levels were very quiet under normal activity, with the fan occasionally spinning up to bring fresh air into the system. Under stress, depending on the system load, the fan would stay on constantly, and occasionally ramp up to a high speed that was pretty loud, but moved quite a bit of air.
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Battery Life
The ASUS G51J was not a super-efficient notebook by any stretch of the imagination thanks to a Core i7 mobile processor, NVIDIA GTX 260M graphics, and two 7200RPM hard drives. The G51J managed 1 hour and 32 minutes before turning off in our test with the screen brightness set to 70%, wireless active, and Windows 7 set to the "balanced" power profile. The previous G51 we tested with the Q9000 processor and similar configuration managed 1 hour and 26 minutes. Power consumption during the test was between 28 and 33 watts, quite a bit higher most notebooks we test. The Gateway P-7805u, which is a 17" gaming notebook that had similar levels of performance managed 3 hours and 29 minutes under the same test.
Conclusion
The ASUS G51J has a few solid improvements over the older G51VX, most notably the shift from the Intel Q9000 to the Intel Core i7-720QM processor. This change shaved roughly 5 seconds off its wPrime score alone. 3DMark06 performance went up as well, but we didn't see that much of a boost in actual gameplay. PCMark05 is also down, but it is hard to say if it was related to hardware or operating system differences. Overall users who are interested in purchasing this notebook should look at one item; the price. With specifications improving or staying equal, ASUS dropped the price $200, from $1,699 to $1,499. The only items lost were the previously included Eee Stick controllers, which were probably not used many users, if any.
Pros:
- Improved keyboard tray design
- Speedy Intel Core i7 processor
- $200 price drop compared to previous model
Cons:
- Too much hype in the 1.6 to 2.8GHz overclocking feature
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