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Asus have a reputation for creating great gaming laptops, and today we are revisiting a machine that has been available for a while now … the Republic Of Gamers G74SX complete with 8GB of DDR3 memory, Nvidia 560M graphics and Intel Core i7-2360QM processor. With a 17.3 inch screen running at full HD resolution of 1080p, 1.5TB storage, BluRay drive and THX TruStudio surround sound, is this still a good buy in 2012 ?
Asus are facing some stiff competition in this sector in 2012, with a raft of Alienware machines targeting the hard core gamer. Surprisingly, the G74SX machine is actually priced very competitively in today's market, with Amazon stocking it for £1,589.94. This is obviously still a lot of cash to spend on a laptop, but it is worth bearing in mind that some of the Alienware high end gaming machines cost well in excess of £3,000.
Upon looking at the specification list, the only concern I have is the lack of Solid State Drive. It is certainly nice having 1.5TB of storage when on the move, but I would much rather have a 128GB SSD drive for Windows Boot, and a 750GB set for storage.
I have gotten so used to a primary Solid State Drive that it always surprises me just how slow a machine can feel without one handling the OS duties. Today we will find out just how this machine copes with a variety of games running at the native resolution of the panel, as well as some synthetic and real world tests. Is this worth the money?
Specifications:
- Display: 17.3″ Full HD 16:9 Full HD 3D (1920×1080 120Hz) LED Backlight
- CPU: Intel® Core i7-2630QM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M
- Storage: 1.5TB
- Memory: 8192MB
- OS: 64bit Windows 7 Ultimate
excellent machine, better than their smaller lamborgini system. I tthink it still uses the older 460 graphics.
They make great laptops, but I read some driver issues on some of the forums for their SLI machine? a lot of people complaining. this one looks ok.
Excellent, looks very nice indeed. I like the CPU they use. I bought an ACER with core i5 and its really quick. I need to try a solid state drive. does it really make that much of a difference though for general light use?
I miss the days when 1920×1200 was the resolution for high end laptops. 1080p is a step down. Still, looks like a good laptop. Thanks for the detailed review.
I agree. however I think a lot of people seem to want 1080p due to HD media display.
Yes, cool, quiet, under powered G74. Don’t complain about the lack of an SSD. Buy your own and pay 1/3 less than Asus would charge. Instead, complain that they are still not offering an anti-reflective screen like their competition. Complain that they botched the zero key on the keypad (but nice job hiding that in all of your pictures). Complain that the screen is only 1080P instead of 1900×1200 AND IPS as it should be for this price. (Come on! $200 tablets have better screens than these laptops!) Complain that they are only using a GTX560M when their direct competitors, MSI, are using matte screens, and the GTX570M, and as of this week, even the GTX580M! The Asus G75 can’t come out fast enough to fix these problems!
Matte screens suck. Only useful for business men, who wont want a g74.
Get a clue.
1200p isnt a size most people want anymore. Not ideal for hd media and when they supply a bluray player it makes sense to opt for 1080p
Purchased this product on Thanksgiving for a good %30 discount!
Man this was a steal. I must say this is was an extremely great purchase on my part. Although I would not pay the $1899.00 price that its currently selling for, only due to my budget…
Anyways, I am well aware of the trackpad issues, however, my particular product has not shown any signs of any issues whatsoever. I cant say anything bad about this product. Its simply amazing. I mean…3GB graphics card. If you are a gamer as I am, this is more than enough to satisfy your experience. Definetely better than Alienware.
Anyways people, my only recommendation is to wait until Xmas or something until the price drops back down for sales, otherwise, if you are willing to pay the $1899 for this product, you will not be sorry.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00542SUD8/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=emjay2d-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00542SUD8