Pretty much the same old specs you’ve come to love/hate – Atom, weak GPU, low RAM, smallish HDD, no optical drive and WiFi. But this one is very thin and well constructed.
Seriously, it’s not quite Macbook Air thin but its close enough.
If you are looking for a netbook – good for you! You skipped all the trash that came out last year and you have this or Toshiba’s N200 to choose from.
I am not too sure how I feel about this. If you need something low power and tiny, Acer’s new AspireRevo computer fits the bill.
But a couple of concerns come to mind:
Nvidia’s April Fool’s press release mentioned running Photoshop on Ion. GPU power supporting Atom for heavy lifting is cool, but unless they are working on postage stamp sized images, I see memory (and the scarcity of RAM in these net-tops and netbooks) as the key limiting factor.
This would make a lot more sense in a netbook. Has Intel got Acer scared to release one?
I’m not a fan of IGP solutions but sometimes it’s all you can afford.
AMD’s 3200 IGP is getting good reviews, comparing nicely to the 3450 and 9300m dedicated GPUs. For $600 CDN this looks like a nice spec.
Acer Extensa EX5430-585
Because I have a serious crush on their version of Gateway’s P-7811FX gaming notebook.
As you probably know, Gateway and Packard Bell were consumed by Acer a few years back. Packard Bell had been languishing under the rudderless NEC Corporation – a company that can not decide what exactly it does from one day to the next. I really expected Packard Bell to go the way of Commodore – a curious footnote in the PC history books like Wang and Olivetti.
But Acer has big plans for Packard Bell – its going to be the hip brand in Europe. Wow. Can this be done? Is it a sign of insanity to even attempt this? You could easily answer yes to either of these questions – but I like how Acer has started.
Delivering gaming products through the Packard Bell iPower line is a good idea. These computers are essentially identical to the well received FX series from Gateway. The FX series really put Gateway back on the map.
This is marketing 101 – get the ‘influencers’ interested in your brand and saying good things about it. That is exactly what has occurred in North America. Gateway’s FX notebooks routinely sell out at Best Buy because they offer terrific performance at a fraction of the competition’s price. Even if you thumb your nose at the brand, you can’t say anything bad about the specifications delivered for the price. The success of the Gateway P-6831fx, P-6860fx and P-7811fx prove this.
Acer’s buying power easily trumps whatever goodwill and gamer cred Alienware and Voodoo have earned for their owners (Dell and HP). Now they will put this to work in Europe.
And boy are the Europeans ever lucky. Look at the specs delivered for 1400 Euros:
I’ll be leaning on my family in Europe to send me one when this notebook launches in October.
I have never experienced anything like this, but if you live in Australia and are considering an Acer you should read this. It seems the problem is with the contractor Acer hired to repair their computers. Enough negative attention and this will change.
Many people have preconceptions about Acer quality and something like this won’t help matters.
What’s with all the Acer reviews lately? As a value-conscious consumer with a weakness for technology I am drawn to a good deal. Have a quick look at what Staples is selling for $697.00 CDN (while supplies last).
Hardware Highlights:
Turn off the lights and this is what you see... it isn't as cool though
Based on specifications, this looks like a bargain but sometimes looks can be deceiving.
Read the rest of this entry »
Other than the Ferrari 4005 WLMi that I reviewed years ago, I’ve never had an Acer notebook with what I would deem a proper keyboard. Now, a goofy key arrangement such as the layout of the current Aspire 6920G keyboard is one thing but the sponginess inherent in your keyboards is at the point now where I wonder if this isn’t some joke perpetrated against consumers. You could only make such terrible keyboards on such a consistent basis if that was in fact your purpose all along. It takes a concerted effort on the part of many bright people to make such lousy human/computer interfaces when most of your competition seem to have figured this out. We are victims of your hunt and peck conspiracy.
I am only half kidding. Here is a review from a couple years ago – the Aspire 5112WLMi. The 6920G is even worse. In fact some key presses do not even register.
Moral of the story? Try before you buy!
Gateway has been on a roll since being acquired by Acer last year. Acer’s aggressive pricing for decent specifications combined with Gateway’s newfound sense of style makes the Gateway M-6864FX its $750 to $999 street price a notebook of interest.
Hardware Highlights:
My review of this fine little netbook is up. Please head on over to the Tech Report for the details.
Next up is the Asus Lamborghini VX3 and Gateway M-6864FX. Stay tuned!
Every year as back to school season approaches Best Buy teases consumers into their stores with loss leader notebooks. Usually they sell out pretty fast. It probably isn’t the typical PC users that buy them, but rather tweakers who are looking for a decent kit to experiment with. What kind of experiments? Linux distributions and other hacked OSes.
I thought it would be cool to pick one up when my monthly Best Buy Credit Card statement arrived with a ‘$50 off any notebook’ coupon attached. This years Best Buy attention grabber is priced at $399 CDN ($349 after coupon).
What does $350 get you these days?
