As was the case with ASI’s IQ17-D2, we can honestly say that the Asus G51J is a solid foundation for the company to build upon. But unlike ASI’s endeavor, the G51J is potentially open to future processors. We can hardly wait to see if Asus is able to adopt near-term updates, such as Intel’s upcoming 32nm Arrandale processor core and to-be-announced mobile versions of AMD’s most-recent graphics technology.
Yet, buyers don’t have to wait for the huge power-saving performance boost we expect to see early next year, because the G51J provides excellent value today. For less money than remaining samples of MSI’s now-discontinued mid-market mobile game system, Asus provides a more efficient GPU and this year’s latest CPU technology. Here’s a quick recap of its specific performance advantages:

The G51J’s performance average is good, but it’s also important to note that its average was reduced by a few losses in games that even the mighty Eurocom D900F couldn’t run smoothly. And therein is the problem: desktop gamers accustomed to moderately high details and resolutions probably won’t be happy with anything less than a desktop computer.
But many professional gamers are accustomed to using low resolutions and/or graphics details to eliminate “stuttering,” which begs the question of how much graphics power they really need simply to be competitive. Gaming legend Johnathan “Fatal1ty” Wendel even used many of the mainstream products he endorsed, shunning the high-cost gear fussy users typically demand for enhanced visual realism. Thus, while none of our recent notebooks stood up to graphics-quality standards to which high-market desktop gamers have gown accustomed, all three could be viewed as competitive gaming solutions. This level of adequacy can’t be touched by typical integrated-graphics competitors, not even those with the latest “high-performance” integrated graphics engines.
Dividing relative performance from the chart above by relative price further defines the performance value of Asus’ mid-priced notebook.

Asus’ G51J-A1 offers two-thirds the performance of Eurocom’s high-end D900F, but costs only one-third as much, giving the G51J a solid 50% value lead. However, more pertinent to the mid-priced market is the G51J’s 15% value lead over previous-generation technology. The G51J also has twice the storage capacity of its older competitor, but loses 120 pixels of vertical-screen resolution. Features that are well balanced against the previous-generation product, new technology, and more-than-adequate performance make the G51J a good value for those who must buy now--especially for holiday shoppers. Meanwhile, we wait with bated breath for even greater improvements in CPU and GPU technology that are expected to come soon after the holiday rush has subsided.
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- Big Gaming On A Smaller Scale?
- Asus G51J Details
- Internal Components, Software, And Accessories
- Test Settings
- Benchmark Results: Crysis And Far Cry 2
- Benchmark Results: Clear Sky And World In Conflict
- Benchmark Results: Audio And Video Encoding
- Benchmark Results: Productivity
- Benchmark Results: Synthetic
- Power, Efficiency, And Battery Life
- A Good Value, A Great Starting Point
Was it only that long ago? It feels like forever.
WRONG!!!
That circular 'vent' does not go through. It is not used for cooling, it is only aesthetic.
The intake vents are those slits around the RAM , the 2 hard drives bays and around the video card. Thus leg position is NOT important. The cooling system is very good.
That said, the Asus G51 series is by far the most common gaming oriented laptop as its performance is stellar for the price
A better cooled system would be the Alienware M15x or the Clevo W860CU (both also 15"). Clevo also offers a comparable 17", the W870CU
Good cooling means that each heat producing thing has its own fan and set of fins/heatpipes (which takes a larger notebook)
Microcenter i7 920 = $200
250GB 7200 RPM = $65
Total = $2024
So, then does this notebook have good cooling for it's size? It is having to dissipate quite a bit of power when both the CPU (45 watts TDP) and GPU (75 watts) have their pipelines full. Yes it can run hot internally, but the underside of the case stays out of roasting-balls and/or pubic hair range because the motherboard is screwed into the laptop from the underside of the keyboard instead being attached to the bottom of the case.
I do agree that a second fan would be an awesome improvement, or have the one replaced with one that can move more air.
I would venture that few laptops can dissipate that much heat as well as this one of this size. One that may have better cooling would be the HP envy 15, and some of the exotic laptops.. imo
This slider I suspect is NOT spring loaded but the left slider IS.
I have the G50VT (predecessor), and this is the case with mine and often the battery has been dislodged in my computer case as I walk from class to class, cutting power to the RAM when in sleep mode.. I ended up taping my battery in with scotch tape! Worked like a charm.
http://s909.photobucket.com/albums/ac295/danwat1234/g50vt/
I venture the guess that this issue has not been fixed.
My HP laptop is built the same way, and it hasn't caused any major problems... just be careful how you carry it!
That said, those latches do look pretty weak, so you do have a point.
Scotch-taping the battery down the way you did is also overkill - taping the latches into their locked positions would have sufficed.
1.) The "Fake" intake is the real main intake. If it's blocked, there's enough space between the fan and the hole to draw air from other places such as the slits over the RAM.
2.) The bottom doesn't get hot, but you can almost roast vienna sausages from the side outlet.
3.) In the photo, the battery is unclipped on one side. It is a design feature to make battery removal easier. It did not affect testing.
the real thing is desktops are still better for gaming...who agrees with the article and me there?
I will back up this post as well. I have an Asus laptop with the same cooler design. If you actually take it apart, you're realize that the giant circular 'intake' at the bottom doesn't actually go through anything. I'll admit, it's a little misleading when your laptop has a giant circular grill looking thing at the bottom lined with mesh and it ends up pretty much doing nothing.
Nvidia GeForce GTX 260M 1.0GB
Six-cell 11.1V 4800mAh
15.6" LED Backlit 1080p (1920x1080)
For $1500, you might as well spend the $100 for the MSI model. However, MSI, ASUS, and Eurocom represent some of the best companies in laptops. Its league all its own.
The Asus would be 1920x1080.
The Eurocom would be 1900x1200.
The MSI would be 1680x1050.