The good: Unique, easily recognized design; strong security features; powerful graphics performance; swivel Webcam; excellent bundled accessories; HDMI connectivity.

The bad: Expensive even for a powerful machine; exceptionally heavy for a 15.4-inch portable.

The bottom line: Not just in name only, the ASUS Lamborghini VX2 has the same luxurious feel and speedy performance as its namesake. Unfortunately, it's priced high even for a performance powerhouse and feels like it weighs a ton for a 15.4-inch portable.

Read full review of the Asus Lamborghini VX2 »

By Darius Chang, CNET Asia
May 28, 2007

Not many people can afford a Lamborghini sports car. Actually, not many can afford the Asus Lamborghini VX2 notebook, either. Priced at S$4,688 (US$3,379.47), it is significantly more expensive than most gaming level portables like the Asus G1 and G2, as well as powerhouse models like the Dell Inspiron 9400. However, price aside, this update to the Asus VX1 exudes pure power and speed, and is one of the few portables in its generation to sport a Draft-N wireless radio. Asus has also bundled several high-end extras like a leather notebook briefcase, Bluetooth Lamborghini mouse and a leather Lamborghini mousepad to sway the consumer.

	The design is understated with the use of leather around the keyboard area. (Click for larger image)

Design
When we first lifted the Asus Lamborghini VX2, we thought we had a 17-inch portable in our hands. Coming in at over 3kg, there is no doubt this notebook is more comfortable in the front seat of a car than on the shoulder. Fortunately, the VX2 has a sleek profile with a 363 x 263 x 38mm footprint. Unlike the car hood design on the top lid of the VX1, this Asus sports a more conventional exterior with a glossy yellow or black paint job. But like most things glossy, the body picks up fingerprints, which may be why Asus has bundled a micro fiber cleaning cloth to wipe off.

Ostentious this notebook is not. Besides the Lamborghini badge on the top, the only other indication of its sport car inspiration is the hubcap design at the bottom. For a touch of luxury, the palm rest and keyboard borders are covered in stitched leather, which feels more comfortable than the usual plastic or metal base.

Utilizing a latchless design with strong hinge action, it allows for a swivel 1.3-megapixel Webcam that sits atop the transflective widescreen display. In a departure to the norm, the indicator lights use bright white LEDs instead of the more conventional red or blue lamps. This may look pretty in the dark, but it's also murder on your night vision in dim environments.

Features
Positioned as a power user's notebook, the Asus VX2 distinctly lacks the bells and whistles present in business and entertainment machines. No remote control, no shock-mounted harddisk. A row of application shortcut keys above the full-size keyboard are mapped to the wireless functions, touchpad disabler, display and power-saving modes. There is also a multimedia button that pulls out Windows Media Center but, due to the limitations of the Vista OS, is not coupled with a preboot function. Other extras are the fingerprint sensor straddling the touchpad buttons coupled with a Trusted Platform Module security chip, making sure your data is safe from hacking attempts.

The 15.4-inch widescreen display is of the transflective variety, which makes movie viewing off the harddisk or DVD Super Multi drive an immersive experience. The display is also capable of a maximum resolution of up to 1,680 x 1,050 pixels. However, using the notebook outdoors or under bright lights results in distracting reflections off the screen, a bane of transflective display technology. The graphics chipset is the high-end Nvidia GeForce Go 7700 with 512MB of video memory, one of the fastest in town.

The speaker design is a little misleading, giving an impression of large speaker bars flanking the keyboards. But on closer inspection the actual horns are a lot smaller, though sound quality is still generally good for a portable but lacking bass. Fortunately, the headphone jack is S/PDIF-compatible, allowing you to hook up a digital line to your favorite audio setup.

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