ASUS Zenbook UX31A Ultrabook (recertified): Core i5-3317U 1.7GHz, 13.3" IPS FHD LED (1920x1080), 4GB Memory, 128GB SSD, Win 7 $618 + Free Shipping

Quote from monkeysez : The screen is bright and has nice wide viewing angles. I have no complaints on the screen. You do have to push harder on these keys than on other ultrabooks I have tried. But all in all, you get used to it.

I wish that was the case, I really liked the laptop otherwise but it's a known issue that the solder on they laptops are hit and miss.

im in the market for an ultrabook..someone talk me into this! the resolution is sooooo hard to resist!

Quote from monkeysez : The screen is bright and has nice wide viewing angles. I have no complaints on the screen.

Thanks. Repped. I am reading the amazon reviews and there are way too many negative reviews. I am now second guessing myself whether I should buy this laptop or not...

Quote from sonerb81 : Sudeh, Can you talk a little bit about the screen, the keyboard and the touchpad? I would especially appreciate your input regarding the screen. Are the viewing angles great as it should be on an IPS screen? Does it ever look like colors fade when you tilt the screen? I currently have an Asus 13" laptop (UL30A-A2) that weighs 3.7 pounds with ultra low c2d processor and 1366x768 screen resolution. The viewing angle on that laptop is HORRIBLE. I can't find a position where there is 0 color fading. So, the main reason why I am tempted to buy this deal is the screen. Please let me know. Thanks!

The screen is amazing. You could duct-tape it to a typewriter and still have a better laptop than most people. I was about 170 degrees off-screen while my wife was watching youtubes and it still looked nice. Not as nice as dead-on, of course, but still very nice. 1920x1080 on a 13.3" was a bit concerning, but in my whole 1 day worth of experience, it's not an issue at all. Tons of real-estate and all the fonts are readable.

The touchpad is big and even the button-areas are touch-sensitive. I find myself doing a lot of "two finger" stuff since I usually rest my finger on the left-button while I move around the touchpad. It's probably just a bad habit but when the button is capacitive too, it makes for some annoyance. I haven't run into anything unusual though, although some people complained about jittery or jumpy-ness. The keyboard is nicely spaced, but the keys are a lot more shallow than my laptop. I haven't had trouble typing on it though, it's just a different feel.

Really dont want to let this one go but im going to hold off after reading some of the problems these units have. No experience with Buy.com returns so dont want to risk it. If this was Amazon would be a different story!

Remember that some credit/debit cards (Visa Signature) will extend your warranty by a year.

Good price. Sure beats paying 3x the amount for a "retina" macbook pro

I'm tempted to sell my Alienware m11x Sandybridge i3 to get this one, but couple of concerns.

OP - how is the battery-life in real-world usage? Let's say screen brightness about 30-50% with wifi on and just surfing the web? I see 5hr battery life listed but I'm curious if that's optimal or real-world type usage? With above settings, I can get 7-8hrs out of my m11x.

- How easy is a clean install? Some laptops have proprietary software and drivers for special buttons and hardware that a clean Win7 install and just simply installing drivers doesn't get you full function back? How is bloat-ware with stock Asus WinOS?

TIA

Quote from sudeh : The listing looked like Joe's Shady Scam Shack typed it up too. I figured, even if it arrived and it was a case of refurbished Men's UX31A Jockey Underwear at least I could send it back to Buy.com and just be out the cost of shipping. Turns out, I couldn't be happier (aside from not getting the better SSD) Depends if they're Crunchy or Puffs.

how is battery life buying recerts? anyone have experience?

Actually buy.com's return policy is pretty good

Quote : Orders Shipped by Buy.com Buy.com will always provide shipping labels to return items at no cost to you if you item you receive is: • Defective • The Wrong Item • Damaged in Transit If you believe that your item should be returned to us at no cost to you and you are unable to receive a shipping label when processing your return merchandise authorization online, please contact us and we will be glad to review the issue with you. If you return an item using a shipping label provided by Buy.com and your item does not meet the conditions required to receive free return shipping, you may be issued a refund for your return minus the cost of the shipping label. If a replacement was requested in a case like this, a refund may be issued instead to accommodate this charge.

Quote from teaberry : I'm tempted to sell my Alienware m11x Sandybridge i3 to get this one, but couple of concerns. OP - how is the battery-life in real-world usage? Let's say screen brightness about 30-50% with wifi on and just surfing the web? I see 5hr battery life listed but I'm curious if that's optimal or real-world type usage? With above settings, I can get 7-8hrs out of my m11x. - How easy is a clean install? Some laptops have proprietary software and drivers for special buttons and hardware that a clean Win7 install and just simply installing drivers doesn't get you full function back? How is bloat-ware with stock Asus WinOS? TIA

I was installing all sorts of apps, downloading, running windows updates, etc. I got about 4 hours of life (and the screen wasn't turned down very much). Sorry, that's not too scientific but I've only had it a day.

I was thinking about a clean install, but I'm currently running with what they gave me. I uninstalled the annoying stuff (Bing bar, Asus eTutor, etc) immediately. The rest doesn't seem horrible (yet), but I can't really comment on how easy it is to get all the drivers up and running again. Someone on the NotebookReview Forums [notebookreview.com] looks like they tackled it though.

i dont need it, but i shop around for laptops a lot for fun. with cashback from 5-10% at various places, (notskinnywallet and discover) I'd pick my preferred CB program, pay with a CC that extends warranty, and be all over this!

Great specs (especially the screen) for my needs but the scary reviews on amazon just changed my mind on buying this laptop. I still repped the OP because it's a very competitive price considering the specs.

1080p on 13.3" screen? isnt that overkill?