TechRadar Verdict
Lots of power and features, but it really is big and expensive!
Pros
- +
Fantastic design
- +
Great audio
- +
Interesting usability
- +
Power on offer
- +
Wealth of features
Cons
- -
Average performance for the money
- -
Audio isn't ear-shatteringly excellent
- -
Screen is a little dim
- -
Portability
- -
Ultimately doesn't ooze value for money
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Every company has its 'hero' products, such as Asus' NX90JQ. These hero laptops usually boast cutting edge design or power (or both), cost an enormous amount of money and – most importantly – boost the brand awareness of the company.
Take Dell's Adamo XPS laptop and Sony's X-Series as examples, both of which happen offer class-leading portability.
But with the NX90JQ, the Taiwanese electronics giant has gone a different route – in this case creating a multimedia monster targeted at those after a premium sounding product and who aren't bothered about the matching price tag.
And at around £2,500 the price tag is a heavy one. But with the NX90JQ you do get bang for your hard-earned buck. There's the much touted Bang & Olufsen (B&O) speaker system, high-end components, an impressive features list and a gorgeous polished aluminium design.
Some could correctly argue you can get this kind of performance elsewhere for less cash, and they'd be right. MSI's excellent GX660R offers a very similar experience, including dedicated speakers, while the Acer Aspire Ethos 8943G should also be considered. But neither offers quite the swagger or beauty of the Asus NX90JQ – even if the laptop fails to deliver in certain areas.
