First Impressions of the Asus Q504UA Notebook
After 5 plus years of abuse, my HP laptop finally bit the dust. Well, that’s not entirely true. To be precise, one of the hinges snapped in half. So the computer actually still works, it’s just not very portable anymore.
After doing some research into what it would take to repair the old HP, I decided that it was not worth the required investment to repair. So, I began shopping.
Limited by Budget
Unfortunately, due to the sudden nature of my need to make this purchase, my budget was limited to approximately $800. On top of that, I needed a replacement machine that would come somewhat close to the performance of my previous computer, which had an Intel I7 processor and 8 GB of RAM.
After multiple trips to Best Buy and countless hours reading blog posts and laptop specifications, I decided to give the Asus Q504UA a try.
You Had me at Chrome Hinges
It really is a beautiful machine for the money, the silver color is stunning and the back-lit keyboard is a nice touch. One of the first things that I was drawn to visually was the beautiful chrome hinges. They look very sturdy and appear to be well engineered.
I was a little skeptical about the downgrade from an I7 to an I5 processor, but so far I see no difference in performance. If anything, the Asus seems to be slightly quicker. Could be due to the 50% increase in RAM — from 8GB to 12GB, and the Asus is expandable to 16GB.
Windows 10 Not an Issue
Regarding the OS, I was already accustomed to Windows 10 because I upgraded the HP from Windows 7 to 10 last year.
Touchscreen and Convertible
This laptop features a touchscreen monitor and it is convertible, which means that the screen can be rotated to use in different positions.
For example, the screen can be rotated 180 degrees and stand up in what is known as “tent mode”. This is good for using the laptop as a tablet. The screen automatically rotates and there is an onscreen keyboard that automatically opens when it is needed.
Touchscreen only mode is similar to tent mode, except that the physical keyboard lays flat on whatever surface it is sitting on. The keyboard automatically deactivates itself when rotating the screen to avoid unwanted keyboard activities.
Probably my favorite position for the laptop is the tablet mode. When I am not using it in normal mode, I like to use it as a tablet. The touchscreen interface is nice. Although, I do not really like Windows 10 mobile interface, so I disabled it and use it in desktop mode.
Summing Up
After an unexpected mishap with my HP laptop, I found myself in search of an affordable and powerful replacement. The Asus Q504UA has proven so far to be a very capable replacement.
