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As has been the case with a growing number of Asus notebooks, their stylish looks suggest you'd have no problem getting them out in front of Sony Vaio or Apple Ibook owners.
Subtle application and multimedia buttons meld seamlessly into the chassis edge, while a cylindrical hinge steadies the bright 14.1 widescreen LCD screen and hosts a glowing blue power button.
The keyboard letters are futuristically designed and even the trackpad looks like it's been lifted from a Blade Runner gadget.
However, while it looks sharp, its performance isn't quite as cutting edge.
Instead of the new Intel Core Duo processor, Asus has stuck with a single-core Intel Pentium M 750 (1.86GHz) processor.
This, combined with the 512MB of DDR2 Ram and 64MB ATI Mobility Radeon X600 graphics give us an idea of who this notebook is aimed at; occassional mobile users wanting steady performance in Windows and multimedia tasks.
In Sysmark 2004 SE the W3V achieved a score of 150, indicating it will have no problem running the majority of applications, but will probably struggle with more intensive packages such as Photoshop and video editing tasks.
We weren’t expecting wonders on the graphics side, and the 1,069 clocked up in 3Dmark05 confirms that this notebook is not one for gamers.
The 80GB hard disk is becoming synonymous for notebooks of this size and price, as is the double-layer, dual-format DVD writer and the W3V houses both.
Asus has kept the rear portion of the chassis clean with all ports and sockets woven into the edges.
Here we find the usual suspects, plus three USB2, one mini Firewire, TV-out and a memory card reader.
One low point is the flexibility of the LCD screen. Even the slightest knock sends the liquid crystals into spasm, a downside we thought we'd seen the back of.
There's a nice instant-on feature, though, which gives access to multimedia files in about 10 seconds from pressing the media button.
Priced at £1,249, the Asus W3V would suit business users who don't want a super fast notebook or students who want something to carry to lectures.
It's weight is a fairly average 2.6kg, which is portable, but by no means the lightest available. If you want more power you'll have to sacrifice the lightweight design, where the Gateway 8550GB would be a good choice.
See also:
Well built, but neither a desktop replacement nor a truly mobile PC 24 Jan 2006
We guide you through the things to consider when buying a notebook 15 Feb 2006
All Notebooks & Tablets PCs
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