ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

I've been using this machine for a few weeks.

It's a great machine, but don't plan to travel a lot with it. It's big, bulky and heavy. Ditto for the power supply.

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

After a wonderful experience with my Macbook Air (so much faster and easier to use than any Windows machine I ever owned), I was wanting to buy one or a MacBook Pro for my wife. However, she likes large 17" screens and was not a fan of the trackpad of the Macbook Air, which requires you to memorize gestures for scrolling (two fingers), right clicking, etc. So I started looking for Windows machines that have SSDs. I've had back luck with HPs before, and the reviews were not so good, so those were out. ASUS makes motherboards and has a reputation for high quality, so this one was high on the list. The other one I seriously considered was a Dell with SSD.

The big advantage is two bays of hard drives with one being an SSD fast drive. So you can install your programs on the SSD and your data on the large mechanical drive. Of course, all the programs and windows itself default to putting everything on the C drive so it took a lot of setting changes and library changes to get things to save to the D drive. It is nice that they give you a backback carrying case.

The biggest disappointment has to be the speakers. They direct the sound to the rear and sound like a speakerphone. Also, the left mouse button sticks a bit, and I'm hoping that is just a matter of breaking it in. Also had the control button stick on at one time. There is a useless widget in the top right that shows you when the processor is in turbo mode, but easy enough to delete that.

All in all, the machine is as expected.

It took me about a day and a half to get things how I wanted. First had to burn recovery disks because they don't give you any.

Installed Firefox, Chrome, Java, Office, iTunes, then tried to copy the music over using homesharing (you can't copy music from the iPhone to a new iTunes as far as I can tell, other than stuff you bought from iTunes). It kept coming across songs it couldn't copy and would just stop. I retried and ended up with multiple copies of songs.

I installed Carbonite and tried to use that to back up files and iTunes but their interface is not so good and it is slow.

In the end, what worked out best for copying files and iTunes was to use an external hard drive. I wish I wouldn't have read iTunes recommendation to use homesharing.

I did a lot of research on virus scanning software. The computer has Trend Titanium preinstalled and B&H ships you something else, a 6 month trial. The program B&H ships you was rated better than Titanium, so I uninstalled Titanium. I looked at CNET's reviews for both user ratings and editor picks for Antivirus, and decided on Unthreat Free that uses the Vipre engine. So that was more software to download.

There is also some bloatware that I got rid of. What really bugged me is that they put 30Gigs of recovery junk on the SSD. Why not give me disks? I tried repartitioning things but apparently Windows wants to be first on the drive. The only way to get rid of this would be to reinstall Windows. Of course, they don't give you any Windows disks, which is frustrating. All manufacturers seem to do this, so don't use this as a basis of comparison, just know that your SSD is not as big as advertised, at least not in terms of usable space.

The reviews by the major review sites were pretty much correct. It is large, fast, has a heavy power adapter, has a nice screen and nice large lighted keyboard. Impressive specs, quality manufacturer, unimpressive speakers.

I am always excited to buy a new computer then get slightly disappointed as I set it up and install software. I end up re-buying software that I had previously bought and it doesn't do much more than old versions did, they just change the location of menu options so it is hard to figure out how to find the functionality that you know is there, and add features that you will never use. Why not use the old versions? Windows 7 will not work with them unless I upgrade to Professional. Might as well just get the latest versions (nice way to get people to buy software they already paid for). Of course, this is the fault of the software developers, not of the computer manufacturer.

So what will it do that my old computer could not do? Boot up quicker, thanks to the SSD. That is the main advantage. However, it is slower to boot up than my Macbook Air, heavier, and has worse battery life. It will be fine for my wife but I will never go back to Windows myself. If you have to have a Windows machine, and want a quality name, high speed and good graphics, and don't need portable or good battery life, this is a fine choice.

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

Very good desktop replacement

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

I wouldn't consider this computer a 'battery laptop' because it is fairly bulky and with its power needs will drain the internal battery quickly. But what I wanted most was a plug-in computer to 'fly' airplanes in my living room easy chair late into the night. And for my purpose - this comnputer really delivers!

The O.S. is on the SSD drive and the computer boots up very fast. I loaded FSX and all of my associated accoutrements on one of the existing partitions of the rotating mechanical drive. I use three USB ports for external FSX controls and a bluetooth mouse. (Note that the mouse supplied with the computer is only a USB plug-in).

FSX starts up quickly to the menu screen (from 20 to 25 seconds) the first time after booting up. On subsequent start-ups the menu appears much quicker in as little as 6 seconds! With FSX third-party scenery extensions and airplanes I set the display to 1920x1080 and the various scenery sliders are set from one half and greater of the maximums allowed. The result in all of this is typical average rates of 50+ frames per second.

Although not an issue in my FSX simulation, I am an excellent touch typist and before purchase was wondering how the keyboard would feel. I was pleased to find that although the keys aren't physically full travel, the feedback and feel was excellent and didn't hinder my typing speed at all.

Here are some additional features worth highlighting. The screen is very sharp and bright. The keys are backlit around the edges and the intensity is adjustable. The computer's casing and appearance is - well - luxurious looking. The fans - I can't really hear them running. And also, if you are a gamer and go to other places to play, the computer comes with a black, nice looking, and quality backpack - a real surprise.

As the computer is delivered here are Windows comparison specs that can be really helpful, but yet which I've never seen published elsewhere. Processor-7.2 RAM-7.8 Graphics-7.2 Gaming Graphics-7.2 Primary hard disk 7.6

Because of its graphics speed I'm now considering moving my Photoshop program to this computer for my efforts in photo manipulation.

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

I use this one with Ps, Ai, Lr, Ae, 3dsmax and so on mainly for media postproduction editing and so on. It's plain and simple this is one [*] mashine. Love exterior (rubber based paint or something feels good) ,comes with best laptop bag i've used so far ,love mouse , 10/10 . Abit heavy but what you expect with 17" .Powerfull fast portable workstation

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

Use Autocad, Revit, and Inventor Fusion. Handles all files with little hestitaion. Am getting spoiled with the graphics desplay.

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

I'm very pleased with the quality and power of the ASUS G74SX gaming laptop.

I would suggest ASUS to make the mousepad smaller or place it where it cannot affect typewriting.

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

I was looking for a high quality fast machine to do video and picture editing. I am not much of a gamer but thought the great graphics of this machine would be excellent for these tasks and I was correct! Lighting fast boot and execution of multiple complex tasks.Don't let anyone borrow the computer though, you'll never get it back from them once they understand how computing is supposed to be.

I am not sure if the upcharge for the SSD is for everyone. I wanted to try this technology since I do think it will be the future, but it is still 8x more than a traditional drive of the same capacity..it is fast though!

Comments about ASUS Republic of Gamers G74SX-DH72 17.3" Notebook Computer:

Bought this laptop mainly for video editing. Extremely fast with the 160SSD for all my programs. 750Gig HDD for storage. OS is fast on start up. Installed my NLEs such as Sony Vegas Pro, Adobe Premiere, Adobe After Effects, Edius and runs smooth as silk, again, programs opens up lighting fast! Cant go wrong with SSDs. Comes with a laptop bag and gaming mouse, great package altogether. This is my 3rd ASUS and never disappoints, my other two are still running strong. Will install games in the future but i can guarantee they will all run like a slice of butter. I really wish they kept the eSATA plug but the USB 3 works super fine. As far as power, i always keep this plugged when i use it and its common sense that the higher the specs the more it will eat up your battery. Runs cool as well because of its rear heating vents. The only brand i will trust for laptops, ASUS!