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ngetal · ‎01-10-2012

Hi,

I'm looking to buy a new G74 as I read very good things about it. My only problem is the screen.
I want to use it as both a game machine and a regular-use one (lots of browsing, reading, coding) which involves dealing with text all the time.

This is why I would like to stay close to the 90-100 dpi range and that would mean the HD+ 1600x900 display for the G74.

I've got two problems with this:
- it seems to be very hard to obtain in the UK or Ireland (where I live)
- I have read some very disappointing comments about that screen around here

I'm not sure what BestBuy is but as I suppose it's a US thing I don't think that's available this side of the ocean and I'm not looking for that. I'd like to have mine with 3gigs of vram and all the good features but with the HD+ screen.

Unfortunately I haven't found any extensive model/spec list available and the asus site isn't very helpful either - especially when compared to Dell's where you can customize and order an Alienware...

This is why I came here to the experts 🙂

So all in all, I'd like to know:
- if there's a model available with good HW but with the HD+ screen
- if all HD+ screens in G74s are unbearably bad

As I don't want to use it with an external display I'm absolutely sure I will not buy a laptop with full hd on a 17 inch screen.

I also had a look at the Alienwares, does anyone know if they are up to par with the G74? As I saw they only have a maximum of 2 gig vram with the 560M - but they can be ordered with the lower resolution screen although I don't know about its quality either as every single magazine and website reviews the ful hd models...

Thanks in advance!

dstrakele · ‎01-10-2012

I say don't limit yourself - go with the HD 1920x1080 screen. I like mine. You can always run it at a lower resolution.

G74SX-A1 - stock hardware - BIOS 202 - 2nd Monitor VISIO VF551XVT

ngetal · ‎01-11-2012

dstrakele wrote:
I say don't limit yourself - go with the HD 1920x1080 screen. I like mine. You can always run it at a lower resolution.

Thanks, but I'm serious about the HD+. I wouldn't like a 17 inch screen with full HD as I definitely want to run stuff in the display's native resolution. I have 22" displays at work running full HD and I find even these a little small for reading.

PILGRIM · ‎01-11-2012

Hi, ngetal.

Why do you prefer the HD 1600x900 screen over the HD 1920x1080? Is it any better?..
I'm not sure you can find a 1600x900 screen, if you're looking for a 17" laptop like the G74.
The native resolution for the G74 is 1920x1080 (which is much better than the 1600x900, IMO).

As for the text size, you can just re-size it in the Control Panel > Display according to your preference.

ASUS G74SX-3DE

BrodyBoy · ‎01-12-2012

@PILGRIM: I can take a bit of a stab at that! There are actually quite a few 17" laptops with 1600x900 display panels....Asus calls them "HD+" and uses them in many of their models, including some G74 configurations. I have another 17"Asus laptop with a HD+ display...I'm typing on it right now.

I actually find 1600x900 to be a preferable resolution for text-based work. Font sizes and screen layout are just more comfortable on the eyes than they are at 1920x1080. While you can, of course, change font sizes on any screen, that doesn't re-size all the on-screen components, often resulting in an awkward display layout. And changing resolutions isn't a good option, since any panel's image quality is nioticeably better at its native resolution.

So I certainly understand ngetal's points and what he's looking for. Unfortunately, the 1600x900 display used in the HD+ G74s is not nearly as nice a panel as the Full HD option. It has awful viewing angles and tends to have a bluish color bias. Settings can help some of that....but not the viewing angles.

It would be great if Asus used a 1600x900 display comparable to their Full HD panel. (I'd buy one and put it in my N73!) But apparently they don't.

So the only options, @ngetal......if you want a G74 but you don't want a 1920x1080 display: (1) find and buy a HD+ configuration and live with the screen's limitations, or (2) buy a G74 configuration that otherwise suits your needs, and retrofit it with a good 1600x900 LCD panel.

ngetal · ‎01-12-2012

@PILGRIM: BrodyBoy's explanation is exactly what I'm thinking. Using the native resolution is important when using LCDs and as current user interfaces are pretty much pixel-based, there's no universally good way to change the size of all UI elements across your system if things look too small. As I want to use this laptop for everyday & work-related text 'processing' I would like the DPI value of the screen (which basically equals (dimension in pixels) / (dimension in inches)) close to 90 which is the default in Windows.

As I know the HD categories are the following by the way:
- HD: 1280x720 (720p)
- HD+: 1600x900
- Full HD: 1920x1080 (1080p)

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_display_standard )

ngetal · ‎01-12-2012

BrodyBoy wrote:
It would be great if Asus used a 1600x900 display comparable to their Full HD panel. (I'd buy one and put it in my N73!) But apparently they don't.

So the only options, @ngetal......if you want a G74 but you don't want a 1920x1080 display: (1) find and buy a HD+ configuration and live with the screen's limitations, or (2) buy a G74 configuration that otherwise suits your needs, and retrofit it with a good 1600x900 LCD panel.

BrodyBoy I couldn't agree more with you.

I also thought about the retrofit, but although I consider myself being capable of such a repair, I don't know how hard would it be to find a good quality compatible screen. I own a Thinkpad now and I changed quite a few parts in it myself (including the screen) but I had the exact part numbers and a service / hardware maintenance manual to do that.

Do you know where such a service/hw maintenance manual would be obtainable from? Also do you think there are compatible screens avaiable in the market?

BrodyBoy · ‎01-12-2012

ngetal wrote:
Do you know where such a service/hw maintenance manual would be obtainable from? Also do you think there are compatible screens avaiable in the market?

I don't know if the "official" service manual is available online somewhere....I haven't really hunted for it. But I've disassembled the G74 many times, and...as laptops go....it's a pretty easy one to work with.

So I don't think the physical replacement would be difficult. The key would be finding a compatible display that's worth the trouble. It seems like there MUST be something out there, but I'd have to do some research before I could reference any options.

PILGRIM · ‎01-12-2012

@BrodyBoy and ngetal:

..and so I sat corrected and informed. Thanks for the info, guys..:)

But ngetal's issue is still not addressed (assuming he's still opting to buy the G74),
since he doesn't want an external monitor with it. Maybe scour for a different brand?..

ASUS G74SX-3DE

ngetal · ‎01-12-2012

@PILGRIM: we were not posting about an external monitor but replacing the diplay panel itself 🙂

So it seems I either:
- look for another brand, like Alienware - although as I read around their 1600x900 screen has sort of the same problems
- or get a G74 and if I'm not satisfied with the screen (be it the HD+ or the full HD) I get a replacement display panel

The ideal case for me would be an at least acceptable quality, matte 1600x900 screen. I found such replacements on 2 websites:
http://www.laptopscreen.com/English/model/ASUS/G74/
http://www.screencountry.com/index.php?section=products&model=G74&brand=ASUS&size=

They actually seem to be the same company. As I looked for reviews about them on the web I found forum posts pro and kontra, participants accusing each other of being either from the actual company (who wrote good reviews) or from competitors (who wrote bad ones).

I'll try to look around here on the forums if there is a reliable source of screen replacements and if these sites are among them. Has any of you had any experience?

Also, I read on these sites that a replacement screen should have the same resolution as the original one, is this true in all cases? Or are the screens of the different G74s interchangeable?

New G74 screen dilemma