ASUS N55SF, N75SF multimedia laptops are back... in piano black

If your laptop spends more time spinning Netflix hits from yesteryear than yomping around campus, you'll probably love these new offerings from ASUS. It's launching the 15.6-inch N55SF and 17.3-inch N75SF laptops -- depending on budget, you can select an Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 chip and a variety of displays that go up to 1920 x 1080 on the high-end units. Each model gets a HD webcam, instant-on (which picks up where you left off in under two seconds) and USB Charger+, a USB port powered directly from the battery for hasty, direct charging. The company is pushing these as multimedia machines, bundling in Bang & Olufsen's ICEpower tech and a standalone SonicMaster subwoofer as standard -- the latter isn't recommended for those frequenting the library, of course. 15-inchers will arrive later this month, with pricing to start at around €1,100 / $1,500; meanwhile, the larger ones will arrive in early October and begin closer to €1,350 / $1,800. Oh, and we've got some press shots to whet your appetite. They're below.