Probably been posted before, but I thought I'd let everyone know again.
Saw them all today. Brief, noncoherent impressions:
Favorite: Asus W1, $2399. Butt expensive, but had the best overall looks and build quality. The WSXGA+ screen is a must, and it was the best screen of them all. Screen wasn't as bright as I thought, though it was plenty good. Contrast, vibrancy of colors, and viewing angles were all better than the dell ultrasharp wsxga+ 1680x1050 that I am typing on right now. But I'm not sure about the brightness. W1's sound was good, higher quality than this inspiron 8600's, but probably not as much raw maximum loudness.
The one I came for: M6BNE: 1280x800 ain't going to get it done for me. Not after being used to 1400x1050 and 1680x1050. Screen wasn't as bright as I'd thought. I do not feel that this screen that everyone has been saying is so awesome is all that awesome. My dell inspiron 8600's screen is a samsung screen, and I think the M6BNE's screen had probably better colors, but not as bright as the ultrasharp. I did not get to see one with 1400x1050, which is what I really wanted. Build quality was better than my dell, and the keyboard was so-so. Had some flex, more than the W1's. It was pretty light, noticeably lighter than the W1, but not by much. Just enough for me to notice. It's not thick, and it is quality. The lids on the W1 and the M6BNE were sturdy, but nowhere near as sturdy as my inspiron 8600. My inspiron 8600 is heavier than both of those, but not by as much as I had thought now that I'm back home. There is no LCD rippling when pressing on my inspiron 8600 lid, but there wasn't on the asus models either, but it still gave more. The thinkpad T41 that I have had's lid puts all these models to shame. Rather, it's more like the T41 is exception good regarding the sturdiness of its LCD back cover, rather than the asus being bad
Final conclusion, with more finality to be added later:
There is no perfect notebook.
The Asus notebooks are plenty fine, but honestly, I think the T41 is made better. The keyboard is better, and I actually thought the T41 screen 14.1" nonflexview that I've used was on par with the Asus screens and this dell ultrasharp, although I agree it's not quite as bright. I was really after better viewing angles, and my T41 it turns out was alright after all.
The T41 kept popping into my head as I checked out the asus, as well as the inspiron 8600. The T41's keyboard is way way way better than the Asus, and not even in the same world as the inspiron 8600's (which is the worst of them all). And the 14" T41 is quite a bit lighter, but of course you lose some ports and stuff that would be nice to have. The dell 8600, which is actually quite a bit cheaper if you buy it at the right time, is certainly no slouch and I feel has the best bang for the buck. If bucks are not a problem, the W1 and the T41 would give you the most pure bang. After seeing these laptops in person, the M6bne is OFF my list now b/c I'd frankly rather have the dell inspiron 8600 at $300 cheaper than the M6bne. I think I'd rather have the T41 over the W1 as well. Slightly different laptop categories, I know, but I just wanted think and light 14 or 15.4" laptops. The W1 does not bring enough to the table with its added weight over the T41 to dethrone it. And I just sold my T41. Now I wish I hadn't. Idiot.
Saw them all today. Brief, noncoherent impressions:
Favorite: Asus W1, $2399. Butt expensive, but had the best overall looks and build quality. The WSXGA+ screen is a must, and it was the best screen of them all. Screen wasn't as bright as I thought, though it was plenty good. Contrast, vibrancy of colors, and viewing angles were all better than the dell ultrasharp wsxga+ 1680x1050 that I am typing on right now. But I'm not sure about the brightness. W1's sound was good, higher quality than this inspiron 8600's, but probably not as much raw maximum loudness.
The one I came for: M6BNE: 1280x800 ain't going to get it done for me. Not after being used to 1400x1050 and 1680x1050. Screen wasn't as bright as I'd thought. I do not feel that this screen that everyone has been saying is so awesome is all that awesome. My dell inspiron 8600's screen is a samsung screen, and I think the M6BNE's screen had probably better colors, but not as bright as the ultrasharp. I did not get to see one with 1400x1050, which is what I really wanted. Build quality was better than my dell, and the keyboard was so-so. Had some flex, more than the W1's. It was pretty light, noticeably lighter than the W1, but not by much. Just enough for me to notice. It's not thick, and it is quality. The lids on the W1 and the M6BNE were sturdy, but nowhere near as sturdy as my inspiron 8600. My inspiron 8600 is heavier than both of those, but not by as much as I had thought now that I'm back home. There is no LCD rippling when pressing on my inspiron 8600 lid, but there wasn't on the asus models either, but it still gave more. The thinkpad T41 that I have had's lid puts all these models to shame. Rather, it's more like the T41 is exception good regarding the sturdiness of its LCD back cover, rather than the asus being bad
Final conclusion, with more finality to be added later:
There is no perfect notebook.
The Asus notebooks are plenty fine, but honestly, I think the T41 is made better. The keyboard is better, and I actually thought the T41 screen 14.1" nonflexview that I've used was on par with the Asus screens and this dell ultrasharp, although I agree it's not quite as bright. I was really after better viewing angles, and my T41 it turns out was alright after all.
The T41 kept popping into my head as I checked out the asus, as well as the inspiron 8600. The T41's keyboard is way way way better than the Asus, and not even in the same world as the inspiron 8600's (which is the worst of them all). And the 14" T41 is quite a bit lighter, but of course you lose some ports and stuff that would be nice to have. The dell 8600, which is actually quite a bit cheaper if you buy it at the right time, is certainly no slouch and I feel has the best bang for the buck. If bucks are not a problem, the W1 and the T41 would give you the most pure bang. After seeing these laptops in person, the M6bne is OFF my list now b/c I'd frankly rather have the dell inspiron 8600 at $300 cheaper than the M6bne. I think I'd rather have the T41 over the W1 as well. Slightly different laptop categories, I know, but I just wanted think and light 14 or 15.4" laptops. The W1 does not bring enough to the table with its added weight over the T41 to dethrone it. And I just sold my T41. Now I wish I hadn't. Idiot.
