Best specs but worst customer support from Asus. Review on Asus R558UR

Ease of use: If every part of the laptop works properly(that is IF you are REALLY lucky) then it's a very comfortable laptop.

Quality and Durability: Asus testing team lacks even the basic hardware tests(IMO) before delivery so it's only your luck and not Asus's delivery that provides the quality. In ideal case scenario, the performance quality of the laptop is quite good(with additional RAM upgrade>8GB), but it is very light and mostly made up of the plastic body so it needs constant handling with care.

Value for money: The hardware sure it is, but if by any bad luck you get stuck with a hardware issue in Asus then forget that the service center will return it to you before a month or two. As the product has been disowned by Asus and they don't even have ANY spare parts for this laptop in the entire country.

Service & Support: Yes, you guessed it right, they are the worst due to the following reasons:

1. Their policies are completely biased towards the company and do not give anything to the customers. Like If temporary replacement if repair is taking time or for the matter providing a correct estimate date of the repair. Their constant reply is "Will be done in next 2 days", which always gets pushed to next week.

   
   




2. There is no complaint hierarchy in the company and no competent person to own up to the delivery of the service. No amount of calls or emails even to the highest official will get a simple reply(and I am not exaggerating really).

   
   




3. Somehow there's no QA process in the customer team as they clearly just drop your call if they can't answer the question. Happened with me thrice.

   
   




4. There is no way or a person that can track the transit and real-time delivery position of the ordered parts needed for the repair. Plus the rest of the upper management is DEAD. They only have active manufacturing plants in CHINA which is manufacturing good quality boards and all but that's it. There is no regulatory and management body in the company.

   
   

Technical Review:

#PROS: 1. Great build plus light weight.

1. Amazing specs in this price segment.

   
   




2. Great(not outstanding) performance.

   
   

4.Looks great.

1. With no heavy usage gives 3 hours of battery life(while watching Full HD movies plus heavy browsing{lets say 7-8 chrome tabs opened at the background} and a couple of other applications in the background, the battery lasts for 2 to 2.25 hours.

   
   




2. Screen brightness is also good(other brands give better performance in the same specs but they are pricey too).

   
   




3. Speakers quite loud too(great performance there as well).

   
   




4. The mouse pad is alright(could have been made a lot better) with the multi-touch feature.

   
   




5. DDR4 RAM.

   
   




6. LAST BUT NOT THE LEAST: It's cooling system design(exhaust-less).

   
   

#CONS: 1. To get the best performance you need to upgrade the RAM for sure.(No one even in Asus knows exactly how much RAM can be added to the second slot [as one slot is soldered fix with 4GB RAM and only another one is free for upgradation]. I tried total 12GB RAM(second chip of 8GB).

1. The keyboard is NOT good. Takes a lot of time to get used to.

   
   




2. Screen quality could have been better. Lenovo has better options in the price range of 45-55K range.

   
   




3. BUY from AUTHORIZED & REAL outlets of ASUS. I bought from Asus showroom in Nehru place and still got duped(I think).

   
   




4. No CAPS or NUM Lock LED indicator on the system.

   
   




5. Even with these specs BOOTING, time is quite high fresh laptop takes more than 3mins. Increases with more applications.

   
   




6. The charger is very delicate in comparison to DELL/LENOVO/TOSHIBA chargers.

   
   




7. Hardware starts acting up in the room temperature of 40-45Celcius(which is common temperature during summers in Delhi).

   
   




8. The laptop doesn't support any other windows below Win10 64-Bit. No drivers are available for previous windows versions.

   
   




9. Last and the worst: ASUS has WORST AFTER SALES SERVICE. If you are lucky enough to get a perfectly assembled notebook then it's fine otherwise doesn't even bother going to the service center.

   
   




10. Asus has stopped manufacturing this laptop completely(even grayed out the notebook on its official site) hence if any part is faulty it going to take forever to get a replacement part for weeks from Asus.

    
    

Personal Suggestion: Since its just an electronic device it is bound to get glitches sooner or later and that is when the real experience(good or bad) begins. It is not worth it if the company can't even own up to their own firmware flash upgrade issues, forget that they can help you with actual technical issues. SO it's better to go for REAL brands who are actually trying to remain in the market by building their customer base.

For reference:

Case Number: A170454235

Registered Mobile:+91-9540780086