ASUS G1S 15.4″ Gaming Notebook

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by Rob Williams on October 15, 2007 in Systems

Despite having a number of models available, ASUS is still not a name that’s synonymous with notebooks. But one thing is certain, they don’t push out poorly designed products. We are taking a look at a perfect example of what a quality notebook should be, with the G1S gaming series.

Page 5 – Final Thoughts



Whenever we receive a notebook for review, we have it at most for two or three weeks prior to it being sent back. That wasn’t the case with the G1S, however. In all, I’ve been using the notebook periodically for the past 75 days, 19 of which it was used as my primary computer, due to travel.

After spending an extended length of time with the G1S, I highly recommend this notebook without reservation, whether you’re a hardcore gamer or just a gear freak.

Naturally, no notebook suits everyone, and the G1S is no different. It’s a product that is geared for consumers who want a notebook designed for gaming, but are not willing to pay upwards of $3,000 or more for a top-end offering. The G1S however, retails for a comfortable $1,750, which is in-line with competitor’s offerings (a similar Dell machine priced up to be $1,722).

As you can see from the benchmarks on the previous page, the G1S is completely capable of gaming… a good thing since that’s it’s primary focus. I even had the opportunity to attend AsylumLAN 29, in Evansville, IN, back in August and used this notebook there. Throughout all of the Counter-Strike sessions, it performed very well. Throughout one evening, the game froze for a split second only once, which is something that can just as easy happen on a desktop machine.

That said, I do recommend turning down the graphics settings if a LAN party is in your sights, or multiplayer in general for that matter. Enhanced cooling might be appropriate as well, such as a laptop pad, as the laptop will get hot after long use. Bigger gaming laptops combat this by having bigger fans/heatpipes and a larger chassis, but since the G1S is designed to be portable, anything you can do to give it a little extra breathing room will help.

Gaming aside though, this is still a stellar notebook for getting things done. It features a fast processor, 2GB of ram and a gorgeous LCD capable of 1680×1050. The screen proved to be one of my favorite features… I have no single complaint. It’s bright, offers a high resolution that allows for great workflow and produces rich colors. Consider the fact that this 15.4″ screen uses the same resolution of most 20″ – 22″ desktop monitors. The result is ultra-crisp image quality.

Then we come to the bling factor. The faux carbon fiber look might not appeal to all, but it has a great track record around here. Not a single friend of mine didn’t love the overall look of the laptop, and many of them expressed desire to own one of their own.

In creation of the G1S, ASUS doesn’t seem to have skipped over anything important. They’ve developed a solid gaming offering that covers all of the bases… and even throws in some features that most people don’t expect, such as HDMI support.

The notebook bag that ASUS includes is essentially a well-padded backpack that features lots of pockets and comfort. During the time I had with the notebook, I took it with me on three trips out of town, and even after all of the being thrown around, it still looks great. It’s a great addition to the entire package that ASUS has delivered and beats out standard laptop bags for gamers, no question.

We don’t give number ratings to notebooks we’ve evaluated, but we do give our an Editor’s Choice, which this laptop readily deserves. It’s a solid notebook for gamers, offers a great CPU, more than sufficient RAM, a gorgeous high-resolution LCD, great peripheral support and a very capable/comfortable notebook backpack, all at a price that is directly in-line with the rest of the competition.

While ASUS produces quality products, their customer service has never been well-known as being one of the best in the business. In fact, throughout all of the ASUS products we’ve reviewed in the past, there have been many comments about how lackluster their support is. The most common issue is getting a reply from the technical support promptly. The same can be said for a lot of notebook makers (I’ve been dealt many headaches with Dell), but ASUS no doubt needs to step up their service if they want to truly saturate the North American market with their notebook products.

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Rob Williams

Rob founded Techgage in 2005 to be an 'Advocate of the consumer', focusing on fair reviews and keeping people apprised of news in the tech world. Catering to both enthusiasts and businesses alike; from desktop gaming to professional workstations, and all the supporting software.

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