What do you think of the new Asus Vivobook 550cm and should I buy?

[nightale]

Hey guys,

Here's the specs :
ASUS 15.6" Touchscreen Ultrabook - Black (Intel Core i7-3537u /750GB HDD/24GB SSD/8GB RAM/Windows 8)
Model #: S550CM-BS71-CB

While my knowledge of desktop computers is pretty good, I must admit I don't know much about the laptop world...

But this one seems like a good deal. For 50$ more than the i5 non touchscreen version, I might go with this one boasting an i7 (I know it's not that useful for what I need) and touchscreen capabilities for the new windows 8.

I can have it at 850+ sale taxes in canada (near 14%) and I don't intend on buying any extended plan to protect my purchase as they are ridiculously priced (near 25% of the laptop value).

So what do you guys think? I'll use it mostly for work (office suite) and for some occasional gaming. Will the machine handle some games at a decent rate? Benchmarks for gt m635 are limited....

Here are the full specs :

Display
Screen Size 15.6 Inches
Native Screen Resolution 1366 x 768
LED Backlit Display Yes
Touchscreen Display Yes
3D Capable Display No
Processor
Processor Type Intel Core i7-3537u
Processor Cores 2
Processor Speed 2 GHz
Processor Cache 3 MB L2
Storage & Memory
Hard Drive Capacity 750 GB + 24 GB (Solid State)
Hard Drive Speed (Revolutions Per Minute) 5400 rpm
RAM Size 8 GB
RAM Type DDR3 SDRAM
RAM Speed 1600 MHz
RAM Slots 2 (0 Available)
Optical Drive DL DVD±RW/CD-RW
Built-in Memory Card Reader Yes
Memory Card Reader - Compatible Memory Type SD
Graphics
Graphics Chipset GT 635M
Video Memory Configuration Dedicated
Dedicated Video Memory Size 2 GB
Wireless Display (WiDi) Capable No
Audio
Speaker Wattage Not Applicable
Integrated Microphone Yes
Microphone Input Yes
Digital Audio Output Yes - Optical
Hardware Volume Control No
Inputs & Outputs
Webcam Yes
Keyboard Language Bilingual
Numeric Keypad Yes
Backlit Keyboard No
Type of Pointing Device Touchpad
Number of Touchpad Buttons 2
Type of Modem Not Applicable
USB 2.0 Ports 2
USB 3.0 Ports 1
VGA Output Yes
HDMI Output Yes
HDCP Compliant No
IEEE 1394 Input/Output No
eSATA Port No
ExpressCard/34 Input No
ExpressCard/54 Input No
IR Receiver No
Other Input or Output Ports None
Networking
Ethernet Port 10/100/1000
Integrated Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n
Integrated Bluetooth Yes - 4.0
Power
Approximate Battery Life Up To 5 Hours
Battery Type Lithium-Ion
Battery - Number of Cells 4
Battery - Capacity 2950 mAh
Energy Star Qualified Yes
Software
Pre-loaded Operating System Windows 8 64-Bit
Operating System Language Bilingual
Loaded Software ASUS Win flash; ASUS SmartLogon; ASUS Life Frame III; Virtual Camera; FancyStart; Power4Gear Hybrid; Fast Boot; GamePark Console (JPN image not installed); Asus WebStorage; eManual; E-Driver; ASUS Super Hybrid Engine; ASUS AIRecovery; ASUS Color Enhancement (ASUS Splendid); ASUSDVD player v9
Physical Features
Colour Black
Laptop Thickness (closed) 2.1 cm
Laptop Depth 26.6 cm
Laptop Width 38 cm
Laptop Weight (including battery) 2.65 kg
Warranty Labour 1 Year(s)
Warranty Parts 1 Year(s)

PS : pardon my english if I made any mistakes 😉

Regards,
Max

 

[Cheesevillage]

Benchmarks for GT 635 m are on http://www.notebookcheck.net/

Currently running the s46cm. I wish I had a touch screen -- this seems like a nice product.

Only issue I see if your lack of warranty coverage. Stop looking at it as some percentage of the total cost: a pretty looking brick in 1.5 years is of no use to you.

Hope this helps!


-Cheese

 

[nightale]

Hey Cheese, thanks for the feedback and for the benchmark of the video card.

In regard of the warranty, it's 319.99 + sales taxes for a 3yr plan at bestbuy which is a crime IMHO. Quebec residents are protected by a "legal warranty" which states that "The Consumer Protection Act provides a warranty on the goods you purchase or lease: they must be usable for normal use for a reasonable length of time.".

But yeah.... it's taking a risk that I will have a useless brick in like 13months lol... I'm pretty sure we can argue that 2 yr is a reasonable lenght of time for a near 1000$ laptop, but yeah, that kind of legal extra coverage isn't hassle-free.

 

[Cheesevillage]

I think NCIX has three year coverage for $170. Not sure how well/if it works but I would look into that.

Got my laptop from London Drugs (also Canadian!): it came with two years Asus warranty and they let me add another two for $160.

I can definitely see where you're coming from on $320 for warranty. I'd say shop elsewhere.


-Cheese

 

[nightale]

Just bought it and my warranty was extended with my credit card provider for a total of 3 yr.

I'll post a review when I'll get used to windows 8. I definitely need a start button software add on 😛

Max