1557G Notebook Review. - Page 9

hrm . i have the same question stealthy. is there a quality difference between the two, or do companies really just push the intel cards because of the whole "centrino" marketing deal?

im almost ready to let go of the cash for the ZForce F2, but is it really a hastle to turn the b/g wireless card on and off without the button or is it bareable? I don't care about the whole "centrino" marketing deal, I just want to get something that works well. I don't really care about the button..im more of a "do it your self" kinda guy when it comes to those sort of things.

well i just called in and ordered my f2 today!! i decided to go with the enGenius b/g card because ABS said the intel cards were delayed until march!! i couldnt wait that long..Thanks to Devast, X, and Dej for being influential in this hard decision..and to everyone else for great info..this forum rocks!!!

While at first I was considering a Sager NP4080, the AOpen 1557GL barebones system has really caught my attention (partially because a local computer store can get one in for me, plus the extra components I need). All I really need to know is whether or not the AOpen is a durable machine (not that I plan to drop it, but I don't want a "cheap" feeling notebook either).

The main reason I'm considering this one, is due to the fact that if I do happen to need a long-lasting battery down the road, I've got it with the AOpen (using the Pentium-M processor). If I went with the Sager, I'd be stuck on the off-chance I needed more than 2 hours of power away from an outlet.

Hmmm....using a Sager kinda fells like piloting an EVA...when the cord is cut, it's a race against time.

ROFLMAO! That is SOOOOOO true (and yes, I love anime).

I wish intel would stop delaying everything .

Hey two questions for those who also have the 1557 notebooks.

1. Do you guys also take out the battery for extended amount of time of AC usage to extend the battery life? Is it worth the inconvenience of losing a leg of the laptop making it seem like a wobbly table when typin on it?

2. What programs do you use to regulate power theme (I'm using SpeedSwitchXP) and monitor battery life (for me its native WinXP rite now)?

I don't take the battery out, but I would like to know how to best treat the thing. I run without being plugged in much of the time.

Well the basic idea with these li-ion battery is that though they have very lil memory effect, they still have about a life of 600-800 charges. Now, these batteries will discharge over time, and even faster when the temperature is higher. So basically when its in the notebook it will discharge faster because of the heat from the components.

To top it off, the notebook will automatically start to recharge it after it reaches a certain level, for the 1557Gs I believe is is 95%. So this means that when you have it plugged into an AC adapter, the battery is slowly discharging, then it will automatically recharge when it has less than 95% of its capacity left. This rate of discharge and charging will then only accelerate as the life of the battery dies down and discharges faster. You see this vicious cycle?

Also remember with these batteries its not the same as ni-cad or ni-hm, because for these its best not to recharge when its at 0% but about 10-20% to maximize life. So its really hard to say whether its better to leave the battery in or not. I mean the battery is on the far corner from the main heat sources, but then again natural discharge still occurs. I just wish the laptop allows me to set the level of auto charging so i can set it to around 80% or so instead of 95%.

Got my 1557 with SOLID mouse buttons.... Only difference between this and the first 1557 I ordered is it now has a shiny ABS plate where the "notebook" plate used to be. Would have been nice if the entire plate was reflective, but its a definate improvement, as I don't feel the need to cover it up with a sticker or something.


there's a 14" sony vaio that comes with sxga+, forget the model, but they usually carry it at bestbuy... When I saw sxga+ on it ,I decided its easy enough for me to read, and figured sxga+ on a 15" would be even easier. Personally, sxga+ on a 15" is really the perfect resolution for me. Other resolutions I considered were wsxga+ on a 15.4 and uxga on a 15" which both seemed a bit small for me. smaller text of a higher rez screen may not be an issue for you if you don't mind fiddling with the fonts and changing windows' DPI setting. But sxga+ for me is the smallest I can handle without having to tweak settings.

1. nope... I keep it in all the time, never read anywhere that it was better to take it out. Also never noticed "charging after its fully charged/slowly dropping to 95%" thing you mentioned.
2. speedswitch xp here too, dynamic switching for plugged, max batt for battery.

From what I remember reading about lithos... its best not to ever fully discharge them.

Bad review of ABS tech support

thread link
Actually I was going to buy F2 from them. But after I read the user forum from abs website and reviews from the pricegrabber. I think their tech support really sucks.

Does anyone know what motherboard the f2 has? I'm trying to use motherboard monitor, but apparently I have to know what motherboard my f2 has.

pennster, I would avoid drawing a conclusion about a company's tech support based on what a few people have to say... now dell on the otherhand, there's a mountain of evidence that their tech support sucks. btw, I'm not affiliated with abs in any way (other than having recently bought a zforce f2 from them). Pricegrabber has about a dozen reviews on them... I'd look at resellerratings.com for a much better idea of the company (see my reply to the thread you linked to).

Hello! I am from Taiwan. I use an Aopen 1535 and I love it.
It's a PIII with 15.1 svga+ screen. I am also in the market of a Centrino nb with decent 3d chip. And I am considering a 1557.

But there's another Centrino notebook that caught my eye.



http://www.arima.com.tw/computer/notebook.htm

It's from another OEM/ODM: Arima.

It has Centrino/ATI 9600/15.1 SVGA+.....

Almost identical to the Aopen 1557, but lighter and thinner.

It uses the latest 9.5mm cd/dvd drive which makes it thinner than most all-in-one notebooks.

It's available in Taiwan now, I am sure it'll be available in US soon from some vendors.

By the way, the price of the Arima in Taiwan is similiar to the 1557 in US.

More info here:
http://www.whatlaptop.co.uk/forum/to...&TOPIC_ID=3332

By the way, this is a great forum, just what I need for my notebook-related info.

And I am glad to know some people in US accept the idea of buying a notebook which's not a "big name" like HP or Dell.

Actually, whether it's a HP, Dell or a ABS, they all came from Taiwan or China. By the way, Arima used to make NB for Compaq/HP/NEC.

sorry to go off topic but can any of you guys with a 1557 send me a bios revision other that a1a? as can be seen here http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=19420 I think flashing the bios has disabled my lcd and I'm really getting desperate to het my laptop up and running!

Well, as I hinted at in another thread, I've now purchased my AOpen 1557GLS notebook, and my initial impressions are extremely positive.

I bought the unit as a barebones kit, so I did get to experience the fun of getting all the components in there (the keyboard was indeed the hardest part -- after finding out where the CPU socket was). Here's what I have:

- AOpen 1557GLS barebones notebook (SXGA+ display)
- Intel Pentium-M 1.4GHz
- 512MB Micron PC2700 DDR memory (1 SO-DIMM)
- 40GB Fujitsu 5400rpm HDD w/8MB cache
- Intel Pro/Wireless 2100 802.11b MiniPCI card

While I haven't done any gaming or battery life tests, I am quite impressed with the display -- nice even backlighting (unlike a friend's Dell), good contrast, and great viewing angle. Once I try playing a game or watching a DVD, I'll be able to comment on response time and such.

Now to find those hacked ATI CATALYST drivers and see what this machine can really do.

Good luck on your exploits, and keep us posted.

Not a problem -- I've already taken quite a few pictures of the notebook, and will post them as soon as I write captions for all the pictures.

Anyone know the differens between 1557gl and 1557gls?

GL = 15" XGA display (1024x768)
GLS = 15" SXGA+ display (1400x1050)

That's the only difference.