How to Customize Asus Laptops
By Richard Kalinowski
Asus offers a wide variety of laptops, ranging from affordable low-end models to somewhat pricey custom-built machines. If you can't afford to get a laptop custom built, you can customize a cheaper Asus laptop for a modest price tag. If you know how to customize your Asus laptop, you can actually end up with a unique looking, highly functional end result without spending hundreds of dollars on professional customization.
Attach an external hard drive to your Asus laptop. One of the most important custom features that many consumers want is a custom, expansive storage drive for digital photos, music and videos. Luckily, you don't need to pay exorbitant amounts of money for a professional installation. Hard drives themselves are relatively inexpensive, but installation costs can be high, especially for laptops. An external USB hard drive costs around $50 to $100 and allows you to expand your Asus notebook's memory by simply plugging in the drive to any open USB port.
Customize your keyboard with inexpensive vinyl character overlays. Many online retailers sell small vinyl stickers that let you add foreign characters to a standard Asus keyboard. Using the language settings available on the Windows operating system that comes standard with every Asus laptop, you can add extra characters to your keyboard and switch effortlessly between the two. This is much cheaper than purchasing a brand new, custom keyboard for your bilingual computing needs, often running $15 or less. Additionally, you can also use vinyl overlays to simply add extra color or fonts to a standard English keyboard.
Apply a vinyl skin to your laptop's exterior. A custom appearance is easy to obtain with a fresh skin, as explained by Best Laptop Gaming. You can get a professionally printed skin from a number of online retailers for upwards of $10 (see Resources). You can also make your own skin. All you need is a piece of a printable, static cling vinyl. Static cling vinyl is available from most office supply stores. Just print a photo directly to the static cling and then cut it to fit your Asus laptop. Vinyl skins do not require adhesives and are removed easily, offering repeated customization opportunities.
Use external devices to customize your laptop's functionality. Webcams, external mice and other accessories let you get more out of your Asus laptop. Most external devices work with simple USB connectivity, and many devices are available in compact sizes with small clips that let you attach them to your laptop.
Writer Bio
Richard Kalinowski began writing professionally in 2006. He also works as a website programmer and graphic designer for several clients. Kalinowski holds a Master of Fine Arts from Goddard College and a Bachelor of Science in education from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.