Asus W7 or Sony Vaio SZ

[WW2Planes1]

Trying to decide on a notebook to supplement my desktop.

I want something portable (I'm a college student, and I'd like to be able to do work outside of my apartment from time to time), but
I also want something with reasonable gaming capabilities: It's a lot easier to take a notebook to in informal LAN party than it is to take my whole desktop.

in terms of numbers (or specs) here's what i'm looking for:

-12-14" widescreen (not attached to the widescreen, but it's harder to find one without)
- 5lbs give or take (5.5 is absolute highest, but only with a really good battery life)
-3hrs+ battery (whatever notebook i get, i'll get the extended battery. this shouldn't be a problem)
-80GB hard drive, 60 is OK, I've got my desktop for storage space, don't need a whole lot on the lappy.
-GPU- DEDICATED ONLY unless the integrated solution is insanely good (which it won't be)
-1GB RAM- absolutely a must for XP, heard Vista is even worse. 1 stick is better, but not required.

what I don't need:
-massive hard drive
-Vista (but I don't particularly care, I'll take whatever the notebook comes with)
-fast CPU. the laptop will almost certainly be GPU limited for games, and I'm willing to sacrifice a little speed in favor of $$. Again, got the desktop for any serious processing.
-useless stuff that just costs money and drains power

Anyway, after much consideration, I'm looking at either the Asus W7 or the Sony Vaio SZ, both have:
Intel Core/Core2
Nvidia 7400
13.3" widescreen 1280x800

but, the Vaio has intel integrated for battery saving mode.

Pros/Cons of each:
Asus:
Cheaper than the Vaio ($1400 @newegg$1400 @newegg)
all black (Vaio has silver hand rest)
but:
poor battery life (~2.5hrs w/ standard battery according to most reviews)
runs hot

Sony:
awesome batt life up to 4 hours w/ standard batt, 6+ w/ extended
light just 4lbs w/ standard batt (Asus is 4.3)
but:
more expensive ($1515 for identically configured model to asus)

so, i'm looking for deal breakers. The sony is more expensive, but not extremely so, and i'm leaning towards it right now. I really want to know things they don't really tell you in reviews like:

How will the notebook hold up? Which is built better, the asus or the sony?

Which company is easier to deal with when something does go wrong? I don't plan on getting an extended warranty or anything, but they do get something.

Also,
does anyone have any other suggestions for a laptop that would fit my needs, but maybe be a cheaper or more powerful?

Thanks

 

[alimoalem]

for your needs i wouldn't go with either, but between the two i'd go with the vaio

this Asus seems more appropriate

 

[zasquatch]

I faced the same decision not long ago. I didn't think I'd be able to live with the SZ keyboard and when I looked at one in the store the whole machine seemed cheaply built, so I bought the W7J. But another knock against the Asus is the max memory of 1.5 GB. It runs Vista quite well though with 1.5GB and even did well when I got it and had only 1GB.

The W7 seems really well built, the keyboard and screen are very nice, and the battery life doesn't bother me because I'm plugged in most of the time.

If you haven't already you should check out the Sony and Asus forums at notebookreview.com.