A new line from the Asus camp, this notebook is a part of the Desktop Replacement Notebooks, those which are on a mission to make Personal Computing obsolete, and replace it with Mobile computing. Lets find out what it has to offer.

DESIGN
The ASUS C90S is strong and firm, but with its weight being a bit over 3 kilograms, it is a bit heavy in comparison to other notebooks available. There is a slight problem with the body making occasional creaking noises, but that can be neglected considering the price at which it retails. The modem, LAN port, VGA port, S-Video and HDMI ports line the left flank of the notebook. It is equipped with a set of worthwhile connectivity options like Bluetooth,eSATA, HDMI etc. A 1.3 megapixel webcam is provided for all your video conferencing needs. A 15.4\" WSXGA+ Widescreen LCD display, which supports a max resolution of 1680x1050, is just average. The problem with the screen is that it tends to be an eye-sore when a lot of background light is present, due to high reflectivity of the display.

PERFORMANCE

The laptop boasts of a formidable configuration comprising of Intel Core-2-Duo E6600, 8600M GT, 160GB 5400 rpm hard disk and 2Gb RAM. It has enough power for all recent games @ medium-high, and nearly all the business applications that you can think of. It scores a respectable 3209 3DMarks 06, and 5173 in PCMark 05. The scores could have been higher, had the graphics processor been more powerful.

CONCLUSION

The ASUS C90S is a sure-shot steal, regardless of the poor screen, and an average graphics system. The configuration is definitely a big plus, and so is the pricing. Just be careful of the fact that the laptop doesn't have a good battery -- it tends to dry up in about an hour of full load.