Asus K53SV-B1

ASUS K53SV-B1 Review

The ASUS K53SV-B1 is a handsome machine well suited for mainstream users. It offers plenty of power for day-to-day use, and when put to the test with video and games, its Intel Core i7 and Nvidia GT 540M graphics processor ensure that this system can handle itself. But at $969, is the K53SV a stud or a dud?Understated yet handsome, the lid on the K53SV features a subtly textured horizontal pinstripe pattern that makes the silver ASUS logo pop and helps minimize--but not eliminate--fingerprint smudges. The mocha color continues onto the ASUS' sturdy, scratch-resistant brushed-aluminum deck, where it blends nicely with the unit's black full-size keyboard. Such a liberal use of dark colors would be overwhelming if not for the silver treatment on the system's power and touchpad buttons.At 15.1 x 10.1 x 1.4 inches and 6 pounds, the K53SV certainly is light enough to move from room to room but not for travel. This machine is a bit more portable than Dell's XPS 15 L502X (Sandy Bridge), which measures in at 15 x 10.4 x 1.5 inches and 6.6 pounds with its nine-cell battery. However, the HP Pavilion dv6t weighs just 5.8 pounds, and it has a brushed-aluminum lid and sleeker lines.ASUS boasts that the K53SV comes with an IceCool palm rest, but the entire laptop kept its cool in our testing.