ASUS U30JC-A1 with NVIDIA Optimus Review

BY: Kevin O'Brien, NotebookReview.com Editor

PUBLISHED: 4/5/2010 REVIEWER RATING: 4.0 stars

The U30JC is the latest 13-inch notebook from ASUS offering the new NVIDIA Optimus switchable graphics. Offering the best of both worlds, Optimus allows seamless switching between the Intel GMA HD integrated graphics and the NVIDIA GeForce 310M dedicated graphics. For the average user this translates into great gaming performance and excellent battery life when your priorities are writing term papers or taking notes in class. Check out our in-depth review to see how the notebook performed in our tests.
ASUS U30JC-A1 Specifications:

Intel Core i3-350M 2.26GHz processor (3MB cache)

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

13.3-inch glossy LED-backlit 16:9 display (1366 x 768)

Intel GMA HD integrated with NVIDIA Optimus (GeForce 310M w/ 512MB DDR3)

4GB DDR3 800MHz RAM (2GB x 2)

320GB Hitachi Travelstar 5K500.B hard drive

Intel Wi-Fi Link 1000BGN Wi-Fi, Atheros AR8131 Gigabit LAN

8-cell 15V 5600mAh 84WHr Battery, 19V 65W AC Adapter

Limited Two-year Global Warranty

Dimensions: 13.12" x 9.52" x 0.8"-1.2" (W x D x H)

Weight: 4.81 pounds

Price as configured: $899

Build and Design
Compared to the UL30A-A1 we reviewed in September 2009, the U30JC looks similar but seems to have gained a little weight. The profile has changed from thin and sleek to rather average with the inclusion of an optical drive. The increased chassis size might also be related to the dedicated graphics card but that wouldn't have affected the notebook size as much. The color scheme is darker gunmetal-grey instead of bright silver, a slight change from the UL30A. Inside the palmrest shares the same brushed metal finish as the lid and the keyboard surround painted plastic. Just like the UL30A, the screen bezel is glossy black. The keyboard is a Chiclet-style model, with matte black keys and silver lettering. I think the design looks excellent, and appeals to both average consumers and business professionals. The finish is also designed to look great over time, with the aluminum cladding resisting smudges and scratches.

One aspect of a notebook's design that is sometimes overlooked on models with extended battery life is the battery itself. ASUS managed to fit a flush mount 84Wh battery into the back of the chassis. It sits flush with the rear of the notebook and doesn't stick out from the bottom on the bigger U30-series. For many consumers, this means form-fitting slip cases will be easier to fit into and the notebook has a more polished look.
Build quality is above average, and the overall construction feels pretty solid. The bottom of the notebook has one soft spot, where a panel has some mild flex, but besides that there is very little flex anywhere on the notebook. The aluminum screen cover does a good job of protecting the screen from impacts, showing little or no color distortion as you press firmly on the back of the screen. Inside, the palmrest and keyboard have excellent support, having no flex at all. Another surprising quality is the very strong screen hinges, which have no wiggle and actually show a good deal of resistance.
Users looking to upgrade some components will like that there are still two access panels on the bottom. Likely because of space or strength concerns, the panels are only sized for RAM and HD access, but it is better to have them than not.

Screen and Speakers
The screen offered on the U30JC is a 13.3-inch LED-backlit 16:9 WXGA panel. The display rates slightly above average, with good color saturation and contrast thanks to a glossy surface. Black levels are good with no apparent backlight bleed at high brightness levels. However, the viewing angles don't shine with this panel. Vertical viewing angles show a lot of distortion with as little as 10-15 degrees movement forward or back. Horizontal viewing angles are better, but still show signs of mild color inversion past 45 degrees. Backlight brightness levels were very good, even at the 70% level we like to use for battery tests. At 100% brightness, we recorded a value of 208cd/m2 with our light meter. Comfortable viewing levels in the office were 70-75% and 50-60% at home.

Most thin and lightweight notebooks sacrifice speaker location for other more important aspects of the design. The ASUS U30-series offers lap-firing speakers, which sound tinny at best, muffled at worst. When you have the notebook sitting on a stand or a flat desk surface they sound average compared to other notebooks of this size, but once you put it on your lap or a soft surface they are completely muffled. Headphones are highly recommended for this notebook.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The ASUS U30-series offers a large Chiclet-style keyboard that is very comfortable to type on. The palmrest seems to be perfectly-sized even for my large hands with a soft edge on the front that prevents pressure to your wrist. The keys are very responsive with a nice springy action on each press. The individual keys appear to be almost flat, but a straight edge over the surface shows a very small cup to the center of each key. The texture is a rough matte finish, and doesn't attract finger prints or smudges.

The touchpad is an ELAN model, built into the palmrest, offering limited multitouch capabilities. The included drivers support two-finger scrolling for horizontal and vertical movement, but nothing else. I actually found it almost too responsive, scrolling both vertically and horizontally at the same time as you moved down a page. Disabling the horizontal scroll seemed to improve things in that regard. The touchpad worked quite well, having no discernable lag and equal speeds on both axis's of movement. The dimpled surface felt smooth and once it had some oils from my hand built up on it, allowed fingers to glide across it very well. The touchpad button is seesaw style, with a fixed center pivot point. Each side took a moderate strength push to trigger, with a small click given off when pressed.
Ports and Features
Port selection was good with three USB ports, HDMI and VGA out, LAN, and audio in/out. The notebook also sports a spring-loaded flush-mount SD-card slot, handy for expanding storage without needing to remove the card when putting the notebook in a carrying case. For users who still need an optical drive for burning media or loading software, the U30JC offers a DVD-burner.

Front: Activity lights, SDHC card-slot

Rear: Battery

Left: Kensington lock-slot, VGA, HDMI-out, two USB, audio jacks

Right: Optical drive, one USB, LAN, AC-power

Performance and Benchmarks
The ASUS U30JC performed remarkably well in our tests thanks to the Intel Core i3-350M processor, Intel GMA HD integrated graphics, and NVIDIA GeForce 310M dedicated graphics. Overall system performance was very good in both graphics modes. In fact it produced almost identical PCMark05 scores in each mode, and with application specific GPU settings you didn't have to worry about always toggling the graphics mode. Under the NVIDIA control panel, the user can narrow down 3D-specific applications and choose either the default global setting, integrated graphics, or dedicated graphics. The global setting is useful if you want to lock it in one specific mode by default.
wPrime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 comparison results against netbooks @ 1024 x 768 resolution (higher scores mean better performance):

CrystalDiskMark hard drive performance test:

Gaming performance was very good with the NVIDIA GeForce 310M dedicated graphics. We used Left 4 Dead 2 to get a feel for real-world performance, playing through one level with the resolution set to 1366 x 768 with high-detail settings. If the system only offered Intel GMA HD graphics, users wouldn't see anywhere close to this level of performance.
Asus
1001P Performance

Heat and Noise
The U30JC handled its thermal load very well with the increased chassis size compared to the UL30A and vocal cooling fan. Under a full CPU and GPU load with the graphics card locked into dedicated mode, the U30JC didn't form any hot spots and kept temperatures around 85 degrees Farenheit. The cooling fan was very audible during this test, but under normal use, spun at a slower speed. The difference between these two primary speeds would be comparable to a loud whisper and a soft whisper that you can barely hear.

Battery Life
Battery life is one area where you can see the strength of a notebook with switchable graphics. Systems with a purely dedicated graphics card are always operating at a higher power consumption rate, which is bad for battery life. Switchable graphics allows the notebook to scale down when it doesn't need higher performance. We tested the U30JC in both graphics modes with the wireless active, screen set to 70% brightness, and Windows set to the balanced power profile. In dedicated graphics mode, the system stayed on for eight hours and 15 minutes and set to integrated graphics mode the system stayed on for seven hours and 35 minutes (no those numbers aren't switched around). While set to integrated preferred in the control panel the notebook actually consumed slightly more power than when it was set to dedicated preferred without the graphics being stressed. When we stressed the GPU using the dedicated graphics while on battery power, the power consumption spiked upwards of 35 watts and took the estimated time remaining down to just over two hours. This was while playing Left 4 Dead 2 at the same settings level as in our performance test.
Conclusion
Overall the ASUS U30JC is a solid sub-$1000 notebook with good performance, very good battery life, and an appealing design aesthetic. Compared to the UL30A, the U30JC is larger with the onboard optical drive, which gives it a taller and thicker appearance. The color is a dark shade of silver, and uses brushed metal inside the notebook instead of the painted plastic that the UL30A offered. With a current retail price of $899 and online sale prices as low as $870, the U30JC-A1 is a good value. System performance is great with the Intel Core i3-350M processor and NVIDIA GeForce switchable graphics, and when you aren't looking for high performance, battery life is just as great. In the 13-inch laptop category, the U30JC is easily one of my favorites.