Laptop reviews: Asus UL80J-BBK5 and the Sony VAIO VPCF12AFM/H

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Today we'll look at two excellent laptops that could replace your desktop computer, the Asus UL80J-BBK5 and the Sony VAIO VPCF12AFM/H. As always, which one you choose will depend on what you value most, with questions of portability, power, performance and price all coming into play.

Asus' UL80J-BBK5 is a 14-inch laptop configured for retail sale. It comes with all the standard features one would expect in a mainstream laptop, as well as decent performance. The UL80J-BBK5 is available for $749.99 and it comes with a one-year warranty.


The UL80J-BBK5 is powered by a 1.2 GHz Intel Core i3-330Um processor with 3 MB of L2 cache. This multi-core processor does come from Intel's newer generation of chips, but it gives the UL80J-BBK5 performance that lags behind some similar laptops. Why? The i-3-330UM is an ultra-low-voltage processor, and it is not the same as the standard i3 processor found in many competing devices. 

The advantage of a ULV processor is that it supposedly conserves energy, thus increasing battery life. Therefore, the UL80J-BBK5 has decent performance on its own, but not as good as other laptops with the standard i3 chip. Everyday tasks such as Internet surfing, document editing, multimedia viewing, and more are not a problem, and the multiple cores of the processor help with running more than one application at a time. Additional multitasking help comes in the form of 4 GB of DDR3 SDRAM.

Graphics are supported by an Nvidia GeForce 310M card that allows for gaming. A good amount of storage space is available through a 500 GB hard drive.  As mentioned before, the ULV processor helps with longer battery life, and the UL80J-BBK5 offers a suggested life of over five hours on a full charge. That's good for a mid-sized laptop, especially for users who travel a lot and spend time away from an electrical outlet. Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Edition 64-bit is the operating system that comes pre-installed.

Other features of the UL80J-BBK5 include a DVD drive that can be used to watch DVDs or listen to CDs. An integrated 0.3-megapixel camera with facial recognition technology is also included for video chatting. To connect to fast wireless networks, there's 802.11n Wi-Fi. Finally, should you need to transfer data from other devices such as digital cameras, the UL80J-BBK5 comes with a 5-in-1 media reader. The reader supports formats such as Memory Sticks, SD cards, and more.

The look of the UL80J-BBK5 is pleasing. It sports a dark color scheme with some brushed aluminum thrown in. If you cannot stand fingerprints, keep a cloth handy, as this is one laptop that collects them in a hurry. The UL80J-BBK5 is very portable and slim. It measures 13 inches wide by 9.5 inches deep by 1.1 inch thick and weighs 4.4 pounds. The 14-inch LED backlit display has an HD resolution of 1,366 x 768. The display offers good graphics, but nothing out of this world. The integrated Altec Lansing speakers provide decent sound, although using headphones is recommended when watching a movie for better volume.

The keyboard is spacious and employs chiclet-style keys that give good feedback and are easy to type on. The touch pad is also spacious and responsive. The only negative in terms of the touch pad would be that it smudges easily. Rounding out the UL80J-BBK5's design is its rather standard connectivity. The left side features a VGA port, a HDMI port, two USB ports, and microphone and headphone jacks.  The right side features the DVD drive, the media reader, a third USB port, and an Ethernet port.

The Asus UL80J-BBK5 is not a bad mainstream laptop by any means. It may be priced a bit more than some competing laptops that have better performance, but its ULV processor does well enough through most tasks. The UL80J-BBK5's slim design and feature set also make it an attractive choice for a do-it-all laptop. 
     

Next: Sony VAIO VPCF12AFM/H >>
 

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