You already know the stats so I am just going to talk about my experience. Thus far, I am completely satisfied with it right out of the box. For the average consumer, there is no need to upgrade the RAM or to a full SSD but if you feel the need to its a fairly easy task. So far I have done no upgrades and performance has been amazing. I do however plan to upgrade both later this fall.

Other reviewers have noted trampolining on the keyboard but I think they are making a big deal out of nothing. I see no issues with its construction and feel its solid.

Touchpad is interesting. The gestures work great but I did notice issues with two finger scrolling and pinch to zoom. I had to stop using Firefox as the scrolling is terrible but Chrome and IE work just fine. Pinch to zoom also has more issues in Firefox but none work flawlessly. There is a little lag and sometimes it doesn't pick up that I am trying to zoom in or out. Aside from that, the experience has been great. I think with a little tweaking (drivers), it will get better.

Display is pure perfection. thats all I have to say.

Computer comes with bloatware. Ironically some is good to have such as the ASUS shortcuts for volume/back lighting/display/etc that are on the F-keys. I gave it a 7 because while it is nice to have them, overall it could have been done much more seamlessly.

After all that its still one of the best laptops on the market... and I mean Mac or PC. I am still shocked with how thin and light this is when you think about all that is packed inside. With the ease in upgrade-ability, integrated graphics and standard powerhouse offerings, its a no brainer.