Performance: Synthetic 3D, Game Benchmarks – Conclusion
Performance – Synthetic 3D
Just to be clear, we will be using the results of the ASUS N56VM with the GT 630M enabled. Intel HD 4000 is surprisingly competitive, but overall, the 630M is an improvement.
Let’s jump right in to 3DMark 06 and 11.
Synthetic performance is robust for the GT 630M, placing it above older Nvidia discrete solutions and, of course, Intel HD 3000 (found in the HP dm4t). This is not really even a mid-range part for the 600 series, yet it is capable of playing even recent 3D games. Speaking of which…
Performance – Real-World Gaming
So, how does the ASUS N56VM with its GT 630M work in real gaming? Let’s have a look, starting with Dawn of War 2: Retribution.
The results here are fairly tight because the game is a bit CPU-bound, particularly at these settings. Every laptop here provides a playable experience, but the ASUS N56VM is the quickest and smoothest, beating even the Alienware M14X with its GT 555M and Sandy Bridge quad-core.
Now let’s consider Just Cause 2.
Here we see the Alienware M14x regain its footing as the dominant gaming laptop thanks to Just Cause 2’s GPU-bound gameplay. Still, the N56VM is more than capable of providing a playable experience, particularly when you consider that the benchmark we use is about the most demanding you’ll find in the game.
Finally, we take a look at Battlefield 3, which is among the most demanding games on the market today. Can the ASUS N56VM hang? Let’s find out.
Yes, the ASUS N56VM can hang in this game, providing a playable experience at medium detail. The M14x is faster (as you’d expect) but playable is…playable. I think this may be quite surprising to some users – Battlefield 3 is considered a difficult title, but it’s workable at medium presets and still looks better than 98% of new games sold over the last year.
Performance – 1080p Gaming
Let’s wrap things up by looking at 1080p gaming. This is the native resolution of the ASUS N56VM and, obviously, it’s much more demanding. Since only the Dell 15z has been tested at this resolution, we’re going to throw in the recently reviewed ASUS G75 gaming laptop for additional context.
As you can see, increasing the resolution to 1080p changes the performance picture dramatically. Suddenly the N56VM’s hardware is rather inadequate for the task at hand, with only Dawn of War 2: Retribution remaining enjoyable. Just Cause 2 is nearly there, but Battlefield 3 isn’t even close.
It’s a shame that gamers can’t take full advantage of the 1080p resolution, but that’s the reality of modern graphics hardware. Let’s hope that GPUs can, eventually, solve this problem.
Conclusion
The ASUS N56, despite its much different exterior, is a spot-on modernization of the ASUS N55. It has the same positive traits of that outgoing model. The display is matte and of good quality, performance is well-rounded and the design is robust. ASUS has even improved on the formula by adding a better keyboard and touchpad and increasing the use of high-quality materials, resulting in a better overall user experience.
Such changes are not just a nice bonus. The N56, like the laptop it replaces, is priced in a market filled with competitors like the HP Envy, Dell XPS 15z and Sony Vaio S 15.5", products that offer solid hardware and plenty of refinement. This new laptop is a viable competitor for top honors among this crowd. There still could be some improvements in general refinement, but the overall package is hard to ignore.
Part of that package is the 2-year warranty provided by ASUS. We don’t normally comment on warranties because they’re usually similar, but this one is different. It’s a free 2-year warranty against defects as well as a 1-year accidental damage warranty and a 30-day “zero dot” display warranty. ASUS has a reputation as one of the more reliable brands in the business and it’s using the reputation as leverage to sell its laptops as the trustworthy choice.
If you want a powerful multimedia laptop the N56 should be on your short list. It’s admittedly expensive, but no more so that similar competition. Also, if ASUS acts as it has in the past, there will be a base-trim model available within a few months offering an entry-level Ivy Bridge quad or an Ivy Bridge dual-core. This hypothetical PC would be a great value.
I would buy this damn asus
I would buy this damn asus for the 1080p screen alone 😀
No thunderbolt and are the
No thunderbolt and are the graphics drivers on the Intel HD side genaric Intel HD graphics drivers? What about Opencl, will I be able to use opencl to utilize the the intel GPU for general purpose compute, while using the GT630M for graphics? Any opencl Benchmarks for the computer would be helpful. Ask ASUS these questions if you can not answers any of the questions yourself. Ask the gaming engine people if they plan to take advantage of opencl to increase the performence of games in laptop computers that have an Intel GPU pared with a descrete GPU, by utilizing both GPUs at the same time?
Great review :]
Great review :]
if it can just pull the price
if it can just pull the price down below $999, it will be a really good piece to buy. by the way Great review.
Is there an estimate for
Is there an estimate for release date (North American) ?
What is the battery life like
What is the battery life like for normal day to day use? gaming? watching movies?
It has no WebCam?
Otherwise
It has no WebCam?
Otherwise looks like a good candidate to replace my current older ASUS X5DIN
when will i get these n
when will i get these n series laptops in India at cheaper rate and DOS based also
got mine. the screen is NOT
got mine. the screen is NOT 1080p
It’s max resolution is 1366×768
it does have a webcam and is pretty good but I swapped my SSD into it soon after I bought it (literally 2 hours or so later)
keyboard is quiet and comfortable.
The touchpad is similar size to that of a MBP and about double the size of my ASUS f3gs which takes some getting used to.
Comes with the general ASUS BLOATWARE but its a great laptop after a quick clean install of win7.
it’s not the same fullhd
it’s not the same fullhd model.
I like your review. I just
I like your review. I just have a quick question. I just got this laptopn and ai have a 120 GB SSD. I was planning to install the SSD as a boot drive and keep the HDD for data. Can I do what I am describing? Is there an additional bay on the laptop for the SSD keeping the HDD?
Just bought one of these
Just bought one of these (here branded as R501VM) in Australia for A$1,200. Full HD Version. I have swapped the crappy HDD with a SSD, upped the RAM, installed Windows 8 release preview and threw the disk full of ASUS’s usual crapware in the bin.
In my view the machine is excellent value. I love the form factor and keyboard. I hate the touchpad but this is not a big issue for me: I use a mouse and disable it. The two year warranty is a bonus and having owned ASUS laptops (including the predecessor N53SV) for the last few years I am looking forward to their great after-sales service should I need it.
Sam’s has a US version of the
Sam’s has a US version of the N56VZ with the 3610 i7 processor for $899 – no blu ray and lower res screen but a 7200 rpm 750GB hard drive. Anybody know where else to purchase (preferably in US or Canada) with a high res screen and blu ray?
Good review, i went to buy
Good review, i went to buy one for me =)
Just want to overclock the only bottleneck: Graphics. Dayym dat 630m (really 540m) has some gpu clock Lock :/ cant get over 810mhz . could even undervolt it to allow higher locks while lovering temerature w lower volt. but dont know how get over dat lock..
Purchased this model recently
Purchased this model recently (here branded as R501VM also (New Zealand))
http://www.elive.co.nz/asus-r501vm-s4142x-i7-laptop-SY04931.php
Packaging was excellent
All items in box – check
Remove laptop from sleeve and open and notice keyboard is a foriegn version (European? – unsure)
Packaging clearly stated for New Zealand but US/English keyboard was not installed….Asus quality control??
Went ahead and powered on, no issues, standard setup went well. Screen is 1920-1080 FHD – awesome and bright!
The software preinstalled was excessive (as others note)
Worse than my 3 year old HP (current laptop about to die) running at about 113 processes….. amazing.
Retailer is issuing refund as their supplier only has the foriegn keyboard version.
This is the exact version of a laptop am after (prefer 8gb ram and better HDD – would get a SSD – fresh OS install) – for general web surfing/ light gaming so will try another retailer (online as no brick and mortar store sells these in NZ).
Felt like an excellent laptop for the 15 minutes of use, the additon of backlit keys is a boon as well as Bluray drive… very hard to find in one unit (in NZ anyway).
Really good review, very in
Really good review, very in depth and covered all the important points and thanks to this review I have now purchased this laptop =D Thanks!
I found the N56vm on Amazon
I found the N56vm on Amazon for $899. I ordered it to replace my VAIO F series 16inch model from about 4 years ago. Hope at $899 it’s a good value. My VAIO was no slouch and still runs great. But it’s running Vista (you heard me right Vista) and a Centrino processor. Hope I gain something in the switch to the N56.
I bought it last week for 999
I bought it last week for 999 euros from Germany. Everything is beyond my expactations – very nice. However, there is one issue, it makes noise while working. It is not the fan noise. It is like as if I have just inserted a CD and it tries to read the CD. Or it is like the noise you hear while waiting after you just power the laptop on. Do you also have this problem? Or is it a problem?
I have no noise after
I have no noise after startup. I do have times where my startup will take 3 minutes. Usually it is around a minute or so. Putting in a Samsung 840 pro next week. Hopefully that will fix it. Otherwise, extremely cool laptop. Easily a desktop replacement.