Asus UL80Vt Thin-And-Light Notebook Review
Design and Build Quality
Most of what we would normally say here was well covered in our review of the UL30, but we will point out a few of the UL80Vt's primary design attributes again for good measure. For starters, Asus has given this machine its typical glossy black paint job on the inside, and the right side of the palm rest is covered almost entirely by stickers. We're not big fans of stickers being plastered on our machines before we even buy them, but hey, it is what it is.
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There's also a traditional dimpled trackpad (which has a texture that we're not too fond of), but unlike some of Asus' previous machines, this one does have a multi-touch surface. That means that two fingers rubbed down together on the pad can pull a webpage down, while two fingers moving to the side moves pages horizontally. This is an awesome addition, and in our opinion, should be on every computer that ships today. Having a multi-touch pad easily increases productivity on a notebook, and when some of Asus' own netbooks have one, there's no excuse for any other machine to skip out.
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The hinge and build quality both mimic that of the UL30, which is to say that both are top notch. The lid holds where you place it, and the overall feel of the machine is sturdy. The full-size "chicklet-style" keyboard is fantastic. Typing was a real joy, there was little to no flex present, and we experienced very few typos in adjusting to it. Frankly, it's one of the best keyboards we've seen on a sub-15" notebook.
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Around the edges, you'll notice a DVD Super Multi Drive, which is something you likely won't see on a 13.3" machine (or smaller). There are also three USB 2.0 sockets, Ethernet, an SD/MMC/MSPro card slot, VGA/HDMI outputs, audio in/out and an AC socket. Not too many ports, but just enough to consider it well-specced.
Click To Enlarge
There's also the 14" glossy display, which manages to capture a great deal of reflections, particularly in sunlight. The real stunner on this machine, however, is the cool-as-ice top lid. It's a sleek aluminum, dark in color, and amazingly smooth to the touch. Frankly, it oozes class, and we think it's one of the nicer lids we've seen on any machine in recent memory.
Click To Enlarge
;)
Click To Enlarge
There's also a traditional dimpled trackpad (which has a texture that we're not too fond of), but unlike some of Asus' previous machines, this one does have a multi-touch surface. That means that two fingers rubbed down together on the pad can pull a webpage down, while two fingers moving to the side moves pages horizontally. This is an awesome addition, and in our opinion, should be on every computer that ships today. Having a multi-touch pad easily increases productivity on a notebook, and when some of Asus' own netbooks have one, there's no excuse for any other machine to skip out.
;)
;)
Click To Enlarge
The hinge and build quality both mimic that of the UL30, which is to say that both are top notch. The lid holds where you place it, and the overall feel of the machine is sturdy. The full-size "chicklet-style" keyboard is fantastic. Typing was a real joy, there was little to no flex present, and we experienced very few typos in adjusting to it. Frankly, it's one of the best keyboards we've seen on a sub-15" notebook.
;)
Click To Enlarge
Around the edges, you'll notice a DVD Super Multi Drive, which is something you likely won't see on a 13.3" machine (or smaller). There are also three USB 2.0 sockets, Ethernet, an SD/MMC/MSPro card slot, VGA/HDMI outputs, audio in/out and an AC socket. Not too many ports, but just enough to consider it well-specced.
;)
Click To Enlarge
There's also the 14" glossy display, which manages to capture a great deal of reflections, particularly in sunlight. The real stunner on this machine, however, is the cool-as-ice top lid. It's a sleek aluminum, dark in color, and amazingly smooth to the touch. Frankly, it oozes class, and we think it's one of the nicer lids we've seen on any machine in recent memory.
;)
Click To Enlarge
