I am one of the closest things Asus has to a fan-boy without (as this review demonstrates) actually being one, so if I'm giving this notebook 1 stars, and recommending against buying it, something's up. It started out as the trackpad. Now, it's that and more.
Whenever I'm in the market for a product, I'll buy an Asus model if they make one. So, when I was looking for an i7 notebook, it was only natural that I'd get this one. It's i7 fast. While I wish the hard drive were larger, 500Gb is nothing to sneeze at. Nice screen. Fingerprint reader, if I ever decide I want to try it. But then there's that *&%&*% trackpad.
It's hard to type a full paragraph without the cursor jumping around the page at some point. It's bad enough that I wish I'd never bought this machine. I'm getting really good at using Ctrl-z to erase the messes the trackpad makes.
* It's not the driver. I've tried three different ones at all range of settings, all with the same results. Right now, I'm back to the original with Smart Detection as great as I can make it, and the cursor has still been jumping around nearly a dozen times (with me having to go back and make corrections) as I type this review.
* I don't think it's me. As I've said, I've got a bunch of Asus notebooks and netbooks.
* I don't think it's this particular machine because I've searched the Web to find others with the same complaint. If I turn off the trackpad and use a mouse, everything is fine, but if I wanted to turn off the trackpad and use a mouse, I wouldn't have bought a laptop.
* This machine has been back to Asus TWICE and each time it has come back as jumpy as before and now the left button sticks under the top (bad alignment) unless it's pressed just right. I'd send it back again but I just sent it back for that problem and it came back the same way.
I'm sick and tired of pressing Ctrl-Z and Ctrl-Y to recover after the cursor goes off on its errant way.
I tried the *free* utility Touchpad Blocker, which locks the touchpad for a short period (from 0.1 sec to 3 sec; I like 1 sec) after a keyboard key is pressed. At one point it got me to upgrade my review to 3 stars, but do you know the joke about Sam the Tailor? (Credit: I cut and pasted the text from iamlearningdisabled dot com and tweaked it a bit.)
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A guy goes to Sam the Tailor to have a suit made. He comes back and....
"This suit doesn't fit me at all!"
"What's wrong with it?"
"Well, the right sleeve is too long"
"So, raise your shoulder and it will be fine". He raises his right shoulder.
"But the left sleeve is too short!"
"So, hold your arm like this and it will be fine!" He holds his left arm in that position
"But it's too big in the chest!"
"So arch your back and stick out your chest and it will be fine". He arches his back and sticks out his chest.
He pays.
He's walking down the street: One shoulder raised, one arm crooked, back arched, chest out.
Another guy stops him and says "You poor man! Who is your tailor?
"Sam the Tailor. Why?"
"Because if he can fit you, he can fit anyone!"
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Well, this machine must have been contracted to Sam the Tailor...and I'm tired of it. In fact, I'm SO tired of it that after I get the X202E up and running, this machine is going back too Asus again...and yet again, until they get it right! I'll keep you posted.
I try to keep reviews balanced. *IF* (that means a BIG "if") you would be content to never use the trackpad (that is, use a mouse, instead) 4 or 5 stars would be appropriate. It's an i7 and runs like it. The overall Windows score is limited by the graphics. But, if the trackpad matters at all, stay away!
Misc items from my original review.
Yes, it DOES NOT have a DVD drive. Other business models do, but this one does not, as can be seen on the Asus website. I'm guessing it's to keep the size and weight down, which is why I chose this model.
Battery life is mediocre at under 3 hours, but such is the price of an i7 processor, I guess, and that's what I got this machine for...its speed. If I need more battery life, I'll grab a netbook.
I could go on, but with the trackpad behaving the way it does and a "Don't buy!" recommendation, is there a point to it?
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I have had no problems with this computer. It is very fast, light and I am enjoying it. Sorry that I am not a tech person, so someone else will have to tell you those things. I sure can say that I like ASUS products.Best Deals for ASUS B23E-XH71 12.1-Inch Laptop (Black)
Think the only thing i didnt like about it is its a little heavy 4a little computer have a 10" single core internet labtop & its light as heck guess thats what u get when u actually pay for a real processor.Honest reviews on ASUS B23E-XH71 12.1-Inch Laptop (Black)
First, everyone giving one-star ratings for the lack of an optical drive is obviously being unfair. This laptop is not marketed as having one. Do some research next time.The performance on this laptop is top-notch, as should be obvious by the i7 processor and 7200RPM HDD. An SDD would obviously be faster, but then you'll have to settle for a lot less space. The battery life is decent, nothing impressive; but that's to be expected considering that this is quite a powerhouse for its size.
I think 12" screens are optimal for laptops. 11" and below are too small, and 13" and above are too big. This is compact and light, but also comfortable enough to type on.
But there are issues I have with the trackpad. I do not like that they do not have side-scrolling via the edge of the trackpad. You have to use two fingers to scroll. Side-scrolling is so much simpler, and I don't see why ASUS would switch to a trackpad vendor that uses such stupid scrolling methods.
Also, the placement of the headphone and microphone jacks is absolutely ridiculous. It's positioned right where the edge of your left palm will rest while typing on the keyboard. It's extremely uncomfortable, and I'm not sure who is the moron who designed this placement, but I hope they're out of a job today.
I'm on the fence of giving it three stars, but I have to give it four because it's next to impossible to get a powerful Windows 7 laptop these days. Everything is just moving more and more into Windows 8, and I don't want to put up with that. This is a fairly good machine for the price despite some stupid design choices.
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