Acer Aspire One Netbook Specifications. Acer Aspire One review: the first Acer netbook Additional keys and indicators
Acer netbooks: overview best models
At the same time, you will hardly surprise anyone with a reader today, moreover, the cost of a good electronic reader is close to the cost of a tablet computer or even a laptop.
Acer netbooks bring joy
It is about the latter that will be discussed in our review today. there is whole line The reasons why a device in a netbook form factor can be considered one of the best options for a New Year's gift, we will not list all of them, because such a task is not worth it, better take a look at the line of Acer netbooks, and everything will become self-evident. Let's make a reservation right away that it will not be considered a single the lineup, and several devices, quite different in functionality, configuration and internal architecture, in order to cover the widest (as far as possible within one review) range of devices.
Acer Aspire One 725
We'll start with a netbook, for the simple reason that this device is the most popular among users, and I must say that this popularity is well deserved. This netbook can be called a compact, cute mule, among the fellow netbooks, which are often leisurely donkeys.
Acer Aspire One 725
Built Acer Aspire One 725 based on AMD APU Fusion platform. The Fusion APU series is specially designed for use in netbooks, notebooks and all-in-one desktops. Thus, it is easy to guess that installing a processor of this series on a netbook makes the latter a rather powerful and functional device.
To be precise, the CPU on the Aspire One 725 is a 1GHz dual-core C-60 with Turbo CORE overclocking up to 1.33GHz. The Aspire One 725 also carries 4 GB of DDRIII RAM and a 320-500 GB HDD.
The implementation of graphic solutions netbook. As a video card, the Aspire One 725 is equipped with an integrated AMD Radeon HD 6290 Graphics with 256MB of dedicated memory. Thus, this netbook is not just a portable device, but also a good solution for lovers of computer games, because with this graphics equipment even simple 3D games will run on it without brakes.
The Aspire One 725 case makes a good impression
In addition, you cannot ignore the visualization solutions used in this netbook. The Aspire One 725 is equipped with an 11.6 inch Acer CineCrystal LED TFT LCD display with a resolution of 1366x768, which features wide viewing angles, image clarity and color depth. In addition, in certain configurations, the netbook is equipped with a NON GLARE matrix, which improves image clarity and makes the netbook more suitable for use in open spaces.
The ergonomic, full-size island-style keyboard allows you to work with text or graphics for a long time without knowing fatigue.
Of course, if you consider the Aspire One 725 netbook as a New Year's gift, you cannot ignore the appearance. Perhaps only one thing can be said here: the design of the device is made with a plus. The body of the netbook is made in two colors: strict black and quite playful blue. The lid of the laptop has a glossy finish, while the wrist area is made of matte material, which creates a certain contrast and, moreover, the matte surface of the interior of the device is not so easily soiled, there are practically no fingerprints on it, so the netbook will always look neat.
In terms of functionality, the Aspire One 725 holds a good mid-high level. This is exactly the case when the manufacturer's declared characteristic - "devices for daily everyday tasks", is fully justified. Working with text, images, surfing the Internet and using multimedia functions - there are no problems with anything. The netbook works quite quickly, while there is no strong heating or noise from it. The Aspire One 725 has support wireless networks Wi-Fi 802.11b / g / n and Bluetooth 4.0 + HS.
Acer Aspire One 725 interfaces and connectors
Of course, do not forget that one of the most important characteristics of a device such as a netbook is mobility. The Aspire One 725 is equipped with a four-cell 2500m / Ah Li-Ion battery. The battery life is slightly less than 6 hours.
Thus, we can summarize: the Aspire One 725 can be a rather serious New Year's gift for a person looking for a powerful enough, mobile device that could always be taken with you, but at the same time not lose functionality due to the form factor.
Aspire One D270
The netbook is next in line. Consideration of this model should be divided into two groups, since the design of this line of netbooks is divided into two different branches: some of the devices have a fairly strict appearance, enclosed in monotone color cases, and some have a cheerful design, with colorful bubbles on the lid. and touch panel. Unfortunately, there is no room here for such a detailed analysis, and there are no differences in the hardware part of netbooks, so in support of the spirit of the holiday, we will just hold in our minds a netbook in a colorful, cheerful case, and, accordingly, consider it as excellent a gift for a cheerful girl who easily walks through life with the conceptual Aspire One D270 under her arm.
The cheerful Aspire One D270 lives up to the holiday spirit
To make the life of our imaginary heroine seem even more cloudless, and the work of the netbook remained stable and fast, the manufacturers equipped it with an Intel Atom N2600 processor with a frequency of 1.6 GHz. The amount of RAM in the netbook is 2 GB. When looking at such indicators, of course, there is no particular admiration, but they are quite sufficient for stable and generally fast system operation. In addition, it is worth remembering that in this case we are talking about a device that has been on the market for a long time, i.e., quite well-established and has already proven its viability. Hence, the Aspire One D270 has a decent number of grateful users.
The device is equipped with a rich set of interface connectors: on the left side of the netbook there are USB 2.0, HDMI connector, VGA port, standard RJ-45 and a connector for network adapter... Right: 5-in-1 universal card reader, standard audio jack, microphone input and two USB 2.0 ports, in the very corner there is a Kensington Lock slot. The front and back faces are free of any interfaces. On the top panel, above the screen, a webcam peephole with a resolution of 0.3MP is blackened, giving standard features video communication.
The Aspire One D270's keyboard is pretty ordinary
The Aspire One D270 features a 10.1-inch LED-backlit screen with Intel GMA3600 integrated graphics. The maximum screen resolution is 1024x600 pixels. The resolution, frankly speaking, is not the maximum, but what cannot be taken away from the netbook is the excellent viewing angles. When tilting left and right, the image does not fade or distort. The same is with the downward deviation. The only visible distortion appears when you deviate along the vertical axis upwards, which is characteristic feature for all devices in general.
Another argument for the Aspire One D270 as a more acceptable gift for a girl is the size of the keys. Frankly, they are not large, especially the arrow block, so the keyboard is not the most comfortable for male hands, but just right for the light fingers of our hypothetical user. But we have no complaints about the Aspire One D270 touchpad. The matte surface is pleasant to the touch, the cursor responds clearly to touch. The vertical scrolling touch strip does not freak or skip. The touchpad buttons are merged into a single key, pressing is firm, perceptible, but without a loud click.
The battery life of the Aspire One D270 is slightly less than previous model, but also quite decent - 5 hours in moderate use, i.e. viewing images, working with text, surfing the Internet and other simple tasks.
Appearance - the undeniable advantage of the Aspire One D270
Thus, we have before us a nice little netbook with a full set of necessary functions and a fairly long life cycle disconnected from the power grid.
Acer Aspire One 756
A netbook is a fairly “dark horse” and, oddly enough, not so many users can boast of knowing it. The strangeness lies in the fact that this netbook comes in a sufficiently varied configuration, which should arouse interest among those who like to experiment with hardware. At the moment, the Acer Aspire One 756 laptop is available in the following configurations: based on Intel Celeron 87.887 processors with a clock speed of 1.4 GHz. 4 GB RAM, expandable up to 8 GB via two SO-DIMMs, or 2 GB RAM.
Acer Aspire One 756
The volume of the drive can also be the difference of either a 320 GB HDD or a 500GB HDD.
The exterior of this laptop is quite austere, despite the fact that it comes in four different colors: black, blue, red and silver. The dimensions of the Acer Aspire One 756 are 285 x 202 x 20.95-27.35 mm, and the weight is 1.38 kg. The figures are quite common for an 11.6-inch device, but quite adequate for a device that is always with you.
The netbook is equipped with all the connectors and interfaces necessary for fruitful work, such as a reader and writer for SD and MMC memory cards, stereo speakers, a microphone, a web camera that allows recording video with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels (like the One 725, this netbook can be equipped with NON GLARE matrix), communication modules, RJ-45 and wi-Fi module supporting work in networks of the 802.11b / g standard.
Acer Aspire One 756 has good screen performance
This model would be quite suitable for a prudent user who perfectly understands the purpose of a netbook, its functionality and capabilities.
Packard bell dot s
And for a snack we were left with a very interesting model Packard Bell dot s. In general, Packard Bell devices have always enjoyed particular interest among casual users. It seems that the situation is absolutely the same with this device. Packard Bell dot s is perfect for those who want to emphasize their own individuality without falling into an absurd addiction to flashy tones and kitsch design.
Packard bell dot s
The lid of the netbook seems to be chaotically excised with transverse textured stripes. Regardless of the color of the cover, and it can be black, white or purple, the body of the netbook is made of black plastic. On the one hand, it seems that there is nothing supernatural in the design of the netbook, but at the same time it is obvious that the device has a certain charm and appeal.
Like previous netbooks, Packard Bell dot s comes in two different trim levels. Choosing the younger model of the Packard Bell dot s netbook, the user gets a device equipped with a 10.1-inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 type WSVGA and LED backlighting, a 0.3-megapixel webcam, an Intel Atom N2600 processor, a hard drive with a capacity of up to 320 GB and full-size keyboard. The touchpad of a netbook would be more correctly called a multi-touch control panel. Packard Bell dot s carries wireless adapters bluetooth communication 2.1 (or Bluetooth 4.0 optional) and Wi-Fi 802.11b / g / n, HDMI port plus a six-cell battery that provides up to 8 hours of battery life.
Packard Bell dot s design is familiar to many casual lovers
It is also worth noting the presence of a full-fledged Ethernet port and a multi-card reader.
The older Packard Bell dot s model has the same external ports and interfaces as the younger model, but the internal architecture is somewhat different. The older model is built on the basis of the Intel Atom N2800 processor with a clock speed of 1.86 GHz and 2 GB of RAM, against 1 GB of RAM in the younger model. This configuration is naturally more powerful.
Intel GMA 3600 acts as a graphics system in the senior and junior configurations.
Packard Bell dot s configuration is sufficient
As mentioned above, Packard Bell dot s will be an excellent gift for a casual user in the best European traditions.
Outcome
Summing up all that has been said, we can only note that by turning to Acer netbooks, you can safely solve the problem of a New Year's gift for people of completely different social status and status. The presented lines are able to satisfy the tastes of almost any user.
Indicators such as mobility and performance will always be appreciated by users, and Acer's products fully meet both these indicators, and what is important, does not require ultra-high financial costs, since each of the devices presented can be attributed to the segment of budget models, despite the high quality of products ... It is also worth noting the large number of possible configurations, which not every manufacturer provides today. For example, the Aspire One 725 and Aspire One 756 netbooks are available not only with different drives and processors, but also with different screen finishes (matte anti-glare or "glossy").
- Netbook Aser Aspire One (AOA110-Ab)
- Case
- Battery (2400 mAh)
- Power adapter
- Description, quick start guide
- Recovery DVD (Linpus)
Russia, according to the latest data, is recognized as the leader in the growth of Internet users among European countries, it is not surprising that more and more companies are striving to introduce users to the "global web". It doesn't matter what kind of device it will be: a phone with a built-in browser or an iphone / ipod touch with one of the most convenient mobile ways to surf the net.
Laptop manufacturers are also interested in this sector, they want to become a guide for buyers to the world wide web, a kind of guiding star, providing a device that is always connected to the network and guarantees a pleasant pastime. This device could be a netbook.
4 months have passed since the release of Artem Lutfullin's material. During this time, the market, including the Russian one, was replenished with several models of netbooks from different manufacturers... Yes, and the very concept of "netbook" stuck with small devices the size of a book, the main purpose of which is to work on the Internet and with text, as well as moderate use of multimedia capabilities of the device.
The differences between the models on the market are not very large. Basically, they relate to different amounts of RAM, information storage (HDD or SSD), as well as the operating system installed in the netbook - often Windows XP or one of the Linux subspecies.
The founder of the Asus EEE PC 70x series showed two important points: the screen size should be more than 7 inches, and the resolution should be 1024x600 or higher, the keyboard installed in the Asus EEE PC 70x was also very small, it was simply inconvenient to type large text on it.
Asus continued the EEE PC series with the 900 and 901. The first of them was not much different from the netbook that Artem described in his article: only the screen size and, accordingly, the resolution increased; the keyboard has not changed - the size of the keys remains the same. The next model, 901, had a very important innovation, namely the Atom processor, which later became the de facto standard; other manufacturers released their devices on this particular processor (with rare exceptions).
Competitors soon followed suit with Asus and presented their netbook models: MSI U90 and Acer Aspire One. Models with 10 "" screens, Asus EEE PC 1000x and MSI Wind (U100), are starting to appear on the market, but we will not touch on them today, the dimensions, and most importantly, the weight of these devices is slightly larger, which means a different level of compactness.
Let's move on to the Acer Aspire One.
Positioning
The presentation of Aspire One, which I was able to attend, was aimed at clarifying the positioning of the device, explaining the differences between this netbook model from competitors.
Acer emphasizes its interest in properly presenting its new device. The company really doesn’t want the Aspire One to be on the shelves alongside “big laptops” and recommended to those buyers who do not have enough money for a full-fledged laptop. Acer is keen to achieve a correct understanding of the essence of the device: an additional element in home network, not a replacement for a desktop computer or laptop. Store sellers or, in extreme cases, resources like mobile-review play an important role in the product-customer relationship.
The netbook as a class and the Aspire One in particular is a device, a faithful assistant, which is always at hand and at the same time light and compact, has a larger screen than modern phones, PDAs and communicators, and allows you to satisfy all your needs related to working with the Internet. The Aspire One is built for communication, work, study, entertainment and storage. As a consumer product, this device can become the very first computer in the family and introduce the user to the Internet, multimedia and office editors, or become a second computer, functionally located between the PDA and the main computer / laptop in the family.
Possible configurations
The laptop will be delivered in two configurations: senior (index 150) and junior (110, which we tested).
110 : Screen 8.9 "" CrystalBrite WSVGA (1024x600), Intel Atom N270 processor (1.6 MHz), 512 MB DDR2 RAM (soldered into the motherboard), 8 GB SSD, LAN 10/100, Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g, Linux operating system (Linpus Lite).
The RAM can be expanded by purchasing an additional bracket and installing it in the slot yourself (you can get to it only by disassembling the entire laptop), while the warranty is not lost. But NAND-flash with a capacity of 8 GB, on which the system in the younger model is installed, cannot be easily replaced with a full-fledged HDD - the layout of the devices will not allow doing this. On the Internet, some craftsmen were able to connect the HDD, but it looks unpresentable, but users who like to dig and find non-standard moves, while sacrificing their appearance, nevertheless, will always be found. If you really want to increase the capacity, you can buy an SDHC card and insert it into a special Storage Expansion slot, the system will automatically expand your system space at the expense of the card. A good option, considering that SD cards cost a penny these days - for 1,800 rubles you can buy a 16 GB media.
Model 150 has the following configuration: Screen 8.9 "" CrystalBrite WSVGA (1024x600), Processor Intel Atom N270 (1.6 MHz), RAM 1024 MB DDR2 (of which 512 MB is soldered to the motherboard, the second 512 MB are installed as a bracket), 80 GB HDD, LAN 10/100, Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g, Windows operating system (Home Edition).
Both models come with lithium ion battery with a capacity of 2400 mAh, which is enough for 2.5-3 hours of operation. It takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to fully charge.
A high-capacity battery will also be produced - its charge, according to preliminary information, will last for about 7 hours of operation. Estimated cost - 3000 rubles. It is also possible for future Aspire One configurations to include a high-capacity battery.
As you may have noticed, none of the configurations implements Bluetooth - the manufacturer believes that there is no urgent need for the module, but if the user really needs this type of data transfer for his needs, he can buy it in the form of a USB stick.
In the future, it is planned to release a configuration with installed module 3G or WiMax. This will be carried out in an alliance with one of the telecom operators, tentatively before the end of this year.
A configuration with a 3G module will be more expensive by about 1000 rubles.
Equipment
In a colorful box you can find: a leather case. a substitute, a compact power adapter and the netbook itself. In addition to a short and detailed description, there is also Recover Disk for Linux.
The cover is the most ordinary one, designed only to avoid scratching the glossy surface of the netbook when carried in a backpack or bag.
For comparison, the Asus EEE PC 701 adapter
The adapter is really very small, this size should be expected rather from a charger for mobile phone, but not for a laptop. If you are going on a trip and need to grab a charger as well, you don't have to worry about having to constantly carry something bulky with you.
Design, dimensions
After using the Asus EEE PC 701 for ten days, the Aspire One fell into my hands. Subjectively, I like the Aspire One better. Glossy surfaces, mercilessly overgrown with fingerprints, however, give a more austere look to the device. The matte and rough material from which the EEE PC 701 is made leaves the impression of a certain "budget", an inexpensive device, in the development of which you had to save a lot.
There are four body color options: Golden Brown, Coral Pink, Shell White and Sapphire Blue. The first to go on sale were models with white and blue body versions. Pink and brown netbooks will arrive later this year.
The back surface of the cover (half that with the screen) and the area around the keyboard, including the touchpad, are painted in color. The blue and brown models have a black-painted keyboard and side edges; in the white and pink models, these elements are colored white. Regardless of the primary color, the screen bezel remains black.
The Aspire One netbook does not have any right angles; all the lines of the case are rounded. As a special design element, the designers emphasize the orange rings located on both sides, next to the hinges. However, this step is not repeated anywhere else, except in the design of the Recovery disc.
The dimensions and weight of the device are still one of the most important parameters of a netbook. The Aspire One is moderately compact and light: physical parameters are 249x170x29 mm, weight - 977 grams. Naturally, the model 150, with an 80GB hard drive, will weigh a little more; the dimensions of the device will also increase when a high-capacity battery is installed.
The difference in size with the Asus EEE PC701 is not so great, but the extra space is used to increase the keyboard buttons. We'll talk about this later.
The Aspire One will easily fit in bags of various sizes, but if you are used to carrying a backpack with you, then most likely you will not notice the presence of a netbook in it.
Body, build quality
The plastic of the case is painted with sufficient quality, no scuffs or scratches appeared during use - the coating inspires confidence. But the outer side of the netbook lid is constantly collecting fingerprints due to the gloss. The interior around the keyboard is painted in the main color of the device, but interspersed with glitter.
The build quality raises no objections. The body parts are tightly fitted to each other, I did not notice any backlash, sagging or wobbling.
Cooling system, heat dissipation
The cooling system in the Aspire One is active - the fan in the lower part of the case only starts working when the system is under heavy load (when running demanding applications).
The case practically does not heat up, if you hold the netbook on your lap, there is no discomfort.
Control elements
The arrangement of elements is quite standard for laptops: on the left side from top to bottom there is a socket for connecting a power adapter, an external display (VGA) output, a small hole in the cooling system, an Ethernet port, 1 USB and a Storage Expansion slot for expansion internal memorythat supports SD \\ SDHC cards.
On the right side there is a Kensigton Lock connector, then a card reader that supports SD, MMC, RS-MMC, MS, MS PRO, xD standards, below - two uSB port 2.0, 3.5 mm audio output and microphone input.
On the bottom of the netbook, in the right corner, is a slider that activates Wi-Fi.
On the front panel, in a small recess, there is an on / off button with a built-in indicator (the indicator lights up green when the netbook is working, blinks orange in standby mode and lights up orange when charging).
Above the display is a Crystal Eye video conferencing camera with support for 0.3 megapixel resolution. A little to the left is a small hole - this is a built-in microphone.
The speakers are located at the bottom of the case, in the lower part. Their volume is average, for background sound it may be suitable, but for a more dense listening to podcasts, music and movie soundtrack, I recommend using headphones.
The operation indicators are located on the elongated cylinder located at the very top of the lower half of the body. When the cover is closed, the cylinder is outside, so that the indicator lamps remain visible. The first of them notifies about the battery charge, the second flashes in time with the operation of the disk drive, the next two indicators light up when Caps Lock and Num Lock are activated, respectively.
Screen
The TFT-display has a diagonal of 8.9 "" (195x114 mm), it has a good brightness indicator, uses the proprietary Acer CrystalBrite technology and is equipped with LED backlighting, has a resolution of 1024x600 pixels and supports 262K colors.
Thanks to the increased resolution, there is no need to use horizontal scrolling when browsing Internet pages.
Horizontal viewing angles do not cause any complaints, but vertical ones could be better. However, you won't have to look for the optimal angle for a long time - it is enough to flip the lid of the netbook as far as possible (which is 155 degrees), in this state the colors are not inverted.
Keyboard
Keyboard Aser Aspire One
Keyboard Asus EEE PC 701
The keyboard includes 84 keys with a travel of 1.6 mm. Their implementation in the Aspire One surpasses that in the Asus EEE PC 701 in all respects, primarily due to the size of the buttons (89% of the size of a standard keyboard), which allows you to type large texts without much stress. This article, like several others, is from the Aspire One. You quickly get used to the layout of the buttons. It is not very convenient to use only cursors - the buttons in the lower right corner are very crowded, and the finger often touches Pg Dn or Pg Up, which are very close to each other.
Many may find it inconvenient to apply symbols to buttons - Cyrillic and Latin have the same color and size, and only numbers (activated with Num Lk) are blue. Personally, this circumstance does not bother me at all.
In the top row are F-buttons, half of which, using the Fn modifier, allows you to put the netbook to sleep, switch between the built-in and external display, mute the sound, and more. You can also use the Fn key and cursors to change the sound volume and screen brightness.
The touchpad in the Aspire One is horizontally extended. Despite the low height, vertical scrolling works even though the bar is not applied to the surface. The keys are located on the sides of the touchpad, and not under it, as is often the case. Using them, it seemed to me, is not very convenient, however, you can get used to their work.
Platform, performance
So, we have come to the most controversial, even twofold aspect of the Aspire One.
The point is that all attempts to make the work with the netbook comfortable are aborted “thanks to” Linpus Linux Lite installed on the tested model.
Acer tried to make the interface intuitive by dividing the "desktop" into 4 zones, including the main motives future work on the Aspire One.
Let's briefly go over the contents of the sections:
Connect
Reviewer - Mozilla Firefox web browser version 2.0.0.14 (update to version 3.0 in the usual way can't)
IM - a program for communication that supports the protocols MSN Messenger, Yahoo mesenger, Google Talk, AIM (Skype support is missing, although it was promised, ICQ support is also expected "soon")
Email - mail client with support for up to 5 accounts. Also contains a contact book and a calendar.
RSS feeds - a simple program for reading RSS-subscriptions
As you can see, the manufacturer tried to implement most of the popular Internet services, but due to flaws and a rather unfriendly shell, the customization possibilities are nullified.
The biggest surprise for me was the lack of Skype support in the applications, despite the fact that its presence appears in almost every brochure. The lack of ICQ is explained by the unavailability of the protocol for the Linux platform, but it is not clear how the application can be updated.
For example, here is a description of how you can update your installed Firefox to version 2.0.0.11 (quoted from the user manual):
- Go to http://rpm.pbone.net
- In the search bar, search for Firefox
- Select Fedora 6 from the search results
- Once downloaded, run the rpm -Uvh firefox-2.0.0.11-.1.fc6.remi.i386.rpm package
By standard means, through a browser, this procedure cannot be carried out.
In case of updates for the installed software, you will probably have to use the method presented above. Why it is necessary to complicate everything so much - I do not understand. Most likely, these are the limitations of the operating system.
Work
Text editor.
Spreadsheets are standard three applications from the office suite OpenOffice 2.3.
Presentations.
The calendar is the same calendar included in the mail program.
Contacts - a contact book also from the mail program.
Calculator - can be displayed as in simple formand in engineering.
Notes is an application for composing small notes.
Entertainment
Media Master - multimedia player
Photo Master - image viewer
Games - 11 easy games
Webcam - video recording from the built-in camera
Painter - analogue of Paint
The system does not have audio and video codecs installed, which makes watching your favorite videos, trailers, and listening to musical compositions almost impossible. The method of installing codecs is a bit similar to the Firefox update process that I gave above, with the only difference that the codecs still have to be written.
Files
My documents
My music
My images
My videos
My downloads
My files
The last item launches a simple file manager, the rest - links to the corresponding folders.
An unpleasant feature of the shell is the inability to add shortcuts to your programs. That is, if you download Skype and install it yourself, then you will have to run the program using the command line, which, you see, is very inconvenient.
All restrictions boil down to the following: if you are not satisfied with the possibilities provided by the firmware (and this is what happens in most cases), then you will have to start "dancing with tambourines" or immediately "demolish" the local Linpus and install a more familiar OC.
Personally, I finally decided to install a light version of Windows. However, the method I tried on the EEE PC 701 didn't work with the Aspire One. I gave the device to Artyom Lutfullin, he managed to adapt the netbook to Windows. True, according to Artem, in this configuration (110) Aspire One noticeably slows down, subjectively, the work is even slower when compared with the installed Windows OS on the EEE PC 701. However, this is a topic for a separate conversation. In the near future, expect new materials on netbooks on our website.
Setup menu
This menu contains the following items:
Screen - allows you to choose a way to display pictures from different displays (external, internal).
Energy center - power management when operating on AC or battery, selection and configuration of three profiles: "performance", "balanced" and "energy saving", as well as the ability to create your own profile.
Network Center - connection manager for setting up and creating an Internet connection. Allows you to select an encryption method, set a password, configure DNS and TCP \\ IP addresses.
Sound - volume control of sound and microphone.
System - basic information about the system.
date and time - setting the date, time and time zone.
Touchpad - adjust the sensitivity of the touchpad touchpad: touches and scrolling.
Live Update - service for updating system components.
a printer - search and configuration of connected printers.
Input language, Keyboard - add and manage different keyboard layouts.
User and password - setting a password.
Conclusions. Perspectives. Competitors
The fact that netbooks have found a buyer has already been shown by high sales of the Asus EEE PC 701, as well as the excitement with which every new model is expected to be released. The main competitors offer devices with a screen diagonal of 8.9 inches, they have not so many differences from the Aspire One. In this case, I advise you to look first of all at the size of the buttons, the convenience of their use for you personally - try typing a small text in the store.
I also advise you to talk to the seller before buying and personally test the operating system installed on the netbook. Even in a short time, you can understand how easy it is to communicate, how easy it is to make updates and other important points.
In the wake of the increasing popularity of netbooks, Acer plans to sell an impressive number of copies. The main motives for the promotion will be the popularity of the Acer brand and the huge successful experience in the production of notebooks. It is planned to launch an advertising campaign in conjunction with one of the Wi-Fi providers, this will happen closer to autumn.
The Aspire One is on sale now. Acer has set the following recommended prices: 11,990 rubles for the younger model and 14,990 rubles for the older one.
The price is quite competitive for both the junior and senior models. Nevertheless, I would recommend turning your attention to the second option, since the familiar Windows turned out to be more user-friendly than Linux Linpus. Acer has launched a special website that promises to have programs for Linpus, but at the time of this writing, nothing has appeared there. Three thousand rubles, which are asked for the older version - read twice the amount of memory and the installed operating system from Microsoft - is not such an impressive amount for additional comfort.
If, as a result of this article, you have not decided whether you need a netbook, namely the Aspire One, then I recommend you wait for the next article, which will consider the offers of competitors that are available for free sale in our country.
After the Centrino took over the mass market, it might seem that in terms of configuration, all modern laptops are twins. Although some differences, of course, are always there (the most important is the size of the LCD screen), but in general, even laptops of different classes offered the user approximately the same set of options. Plus or minus an additional graphic controller, plus or minus a TV tuner and a web camera. But with the advent of netbooks, it became clear what a really close configuration is - almost all netbooks on the market have such a similar filling that you often don't have to look at the table of technical characteristics of the new model. Although the performance different models is not the same, but as our previous tests have shown, only the speed of the ROM is important - the rest of the subsystems are completely identical. And who of the users will pay attention to the 10-15% difference in certain tests and understand its reasons? After all, netbooks are aimed at the mass user and are positioned on the verge of consumer electronics, in close proximity to communicators, e-books and other similar devices. In other words, the majority of netbook buyers are not the kind of people who would make a buying decision based on percentage of advantage in performance tests. Here completely different factors matter (and reviews on our tests of netbooks confirm this) - the mass of the device, battery life, reliability. We will venture to add design to this series. Firstly, choosing among devices that are practically identical in technical characteristics, the user will inevitably give preference to a model with best design... After all, any high-tech "toy" also has an image function. Secondly, the share of women among netbook users is obviously higher than among users of full-size laptops. It is not for nothing that some manufacturers focus on white models; moreover, there are even pink netbooks on the market! However, until recently, all netbook manufacturers have tried to make their devices as affordable and inexpensive as possible. The first netbooks were created under the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) concept, which limited the cost of a netbook to $ 100- $ 200. Accordingly, there was no need to demand special design refinements from them. After all, the development of a bright style, and, most importantly, the quality materials necessary for its implementation - all this increases the total cost of the netbook.
Aspire One developers clearly focused on the design of the model
Nevertheless, there are models whose developers have focused on design. One of them - Acer's Aspire One - visited our laboratory. What advantages, besides interesting design, can this model offer to the user?
Contents of delivery
The keys next to it will help you evaluate the compactness of the Aspire One box
The Acer Aspire One looks impressive even before the netbook is out of the box. This model comes in a colorful miniature cardboard box that's smaller than any of the competition - perfect for retail.
The package includes a branded case
However, the compactness of the package in this case does not mean a poor package bundle, in the box, in addition to the netbook itself, the user will find:
- storage battery,
- carrying case,
- oS recovery CD,
- detailed user manual,
- power supply and power cord
Specifications
| Eee PC 901 | Acer aspire one | |
| CPU | Intel Atom N270 1.6 GHz | Intel Atom N270 1.6 GHz |
| Chipset | Intel 945GU + ICH7-M | Intel 945GSE + ICH7-M |
| Graphics controller | Intel GMA 950 | Intel GMA 950 |
| Screen | 8.9 inch, 1024x600 | 8.9 inch, 1024x600 |
| RAM | 1024 MB; DDR2-667 | 512 MB, DDR2-533 |
| HDD | SSD, 4 GB + 16 GB | SSD, 8 GB |
| Flash card slot | SD / SDHC / MMC | SD, SD / SDHC / MMC / MS / xD |
| Interfaces | 3x USB 2.0 & 1x RJ45 & 1x VGA (D-Sub) |
3x USB 2.0 & 1x RJ45 & 1x VGA (D-Sub) |
| Wi-Fi | 802.11b / g / Draft-n | Atheros AR5007EG (Acer InviLink) |
| Bluetooth | + | - |
| Network adapter | 10/100 Mbps (Atheros) | 10/100 Mbps (Realtek RTL8102E) |
| Sound | Realtek High Definition Audio | Realtek High Definition Audio (ALC268) |
| Additionally | 1.3 megapixel webcam | 0.3 megapixel webcam |
| Key pitch, mm | 15,5 | 17,5 |
| Battery | LiIon, 48.8 W * h | LiIon, 26.6 W * h |
| Size, mm | 225x176x39 | 249x170x29 |
| Weight, kg | 1,1 | 1 |
| Retail price, rub. | 16 000 | 13 660 |
| operating system | Linux (Xandros) or Windows XP | Linux (Linpus) |
| Official manufacturer's warranty | 12 months | 12 months |
Like most modern Acer netbooks, the Aspire One is equipped with a 1.6 GHz Atom N270
The configuration of the Acer Aspire One confirms the words from which this article began - the design and hardware of all netbooks are very similar, and the list of differences is much shorter than the list of identical items. Like most modern netbooks, the Acer Aspire One is based on a motherboard with a mobile version of the Intel 945 series chipset - 945GSE. The 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 processor is paired with 533 MHz DDR2 memory (one module is installed in the laptop). It is noteworthy that the Aspire One does not have hatches for access to replaceable components - to upgrade the netbook, the bottom panel will have to be completely dismantled.
GMA 950 graphics core built into the chipset
The graphics core - Intel GMA 950 - is built into the Northbridge and reserves part of the system memory under video RAM. The LCD screen of the netbook is 8.9 inches and has a resolution of 1024x600, which is also familiar, although more manufacturers are announcing models with a larger screen size. But unlike most competitors, the Aspire One boasts a glossy screen finish that visually improves image clarity. However, not all users will like this, because the glossy coating glares and gets dirty easily. A 0.3-megapixel web camera is built into the screen frame. A single 8GB SSD with ATA66 interface is used as ROM - the capacity is modest by modern standards. Apparently, the developers understood this very well, since the Aspire One is equipped with two slots for memory cards at once. One of them is only compatible with SD / MMC and, according to the creators' intention, should be used as an additional drive. The second allows you to work with SD / MMC, Memory Stick (including Pro) and xD cards. Communication controllers are 10/100-Mbps adapter Realtek RTL8102E and Atheros AR5007EG wireless module, which in the manufacturer's specifications is presented under the name Acer InviLink. But, despite the brand name, its characteristics cannot be called outstanding - it is compatible only with 802.11b / g, and does not support the faster 802.11n standard. And the saddest drawback is the lack of a Bluetooth module in the Aspire One configuration, because most of the competitors are already "blue teeth".
However, it should be noted here that most users connect GPRS or 3G modems via Bluetooth, and in the future Aspire One will acquire a built-in modem for 3G networks - this has been officially announced. The SIM card slot is already there - it is located under the battery, which will have to be removed to install the SIM card. However, there is no doubt that along with the 3G modem, the new Aspire One models will also have a Bluetooth module - after all, most competitors have it and the gap needs to be made up.
Miniature 3-cell battery included
The supplied battery capacity is 26.6 W * h
The scope of delivery includes a compact 3-cell accumulator battery, its capacity is 26.6 W * h. For an additional fee, the manufacturer also offers a six-cell version of the battery, according to the manufacturer, such batteries will soon appear in Russian retail. It should be noted that the dimensions of the six-cell battery model are, of course, larger - it noticeably protrudes beyond the dimensions of the netbook and with such a battery it will not fit into the branded case. Perhaps the most interesting feature Aspire One configurations are active cooling. The netbook has a built-in miniature fan hidden under a circular ledge located closer to the center of the bottom panel. The noise level of this fan is very low, even in a quiet room you have to strain your ears to hear the sound of its operation. At the same time, it provides a relatively low heating level - the Aspire One is noticeably "cooler" than many competitors. Summing up the description of the configuration, it should be noted that a modification of the AOA110-A was provided for testing. In the Russian market, Acer also offers the 150th modification (AOA150-B), the main difference of which is that instead of an SSD-drive, a 120-GB hard drive (Serial ATA interface, 5400 rpm) is used.
Design and ergonomics
Glossy lid with Acer logo
Of course, there are no comrades in taste and color, but, according to the author, the Aspire One is the most beautiful netbook presented in the Russian retail at the present time. The glossy case with a mother-of-pearl shine can be white or dark blue - it is obvious that the white models are intended for the fair sex, and the blue version will be more popular with men. As you can easily guess from the photographs, a blue netbook has visited our laboratory, we will describe the design in more detail using its example. The bottom of the case is made of regular black plastic, while the top and lid are blue with a lacquer finish. Unfortunately, the glossy surface of the lid and screen gets covered with fingerprints very quickly, but this is perhaps its only drawback.
Lid hinges are decorated with red metal rings
LED indicators are visible when the lid is open or closed
The lid hinges are adorned with red metal rings, and a few other highlights are the silver Acer and Aspire One logos on the lid and hinges. On the left side of the hinges there are four LED indicators that are visible both when the cover is open and when the cover is closed.
The light of the LED built into the power button is not annoying in the dark
The silver power button has a built-in green LED window - its light is soft and dim, it doesn't irritate at all in the dark. On the front edge of the operating panel there is a silver insert, on the sides of which there are LED indicators that display the mode of operation of communication devices.
The netbook is compact and, most importantly, very light (in comparison with competitors) - exactly 1 kg. This is partly due to the active cooling system - it does not need a bulky and heavy radiator. The location of the I / O ports is well thought out and very convenient to use. The right side panel houses two USB ports, a 3.5mm audio jack for a microphone and headphone, a primary memory card slot and a Kensington lock eyelet.
The left side panel houses a power supply connector, as well as an analog VGA connector, network RJ-45, a third USB port and an additional slot for SD / MMC memory cards. There are no ports or connectors on the front and back (the only exception is the wireless module slide switch on the right front panel) - this is reasonable for a model that the user will often work with while holding the case on his lap.
Keyboard
Typically, it is the keyboard that becomes one of the weakest points of a netbook. Models with screen sizes up to nine inches have small and uncomfortable keyboards. Netbooks with 10-inch displays and slightly less cramped keyboards are considered by some users to be too bulky and expensive for this type of device. But the developers of Acer found a middle ground and managed to offer a compact netbook with a comfortable keyboard. First of all, the Aspire One is equipped with a keyboard with 17.5 mm alphabetic key spacing - previously only ASUS 1000 series netbooks could boast of such. At first glance, two millimeters (most netbooks have keyboards with 15.5 mm pitch) seems insignificant, but in practice the difference is more than noticeable. After all, the size of 17.5-mm alphabetic keys is much closer to full-size laptops (their key spacing is, as a rule, 18 mm) and typing is therefore much more convenient.The key pitch is 17.5 mm and the "arrows" are placed in a separate block
In addition, the keyboard of the Aspire One is distinguished by the "arrows" placed in a separate block, full-sized and, well, the location of other function keys. Only the key is not too wide - the same as the alphabet keys.
The manipulator buttons are located on the sides of the touch panel
The wide touch panel of the netbook also seemed comfortable to us. The manipulator buttons are located on the sides of it, and not under it, as usual. This option is more convenient, since there is no risk of touching the touchpad with your middle or ring finger while pressing the button with your index finger.
Linpus
We have already mentioned the 150th Aspire One modification on the market. In addition to the type of drive, it has another important difference - the operating windows system XP. Indeed, on the 110th model, including the one we tested, the Linpus OS is installed - a specialized version of GNU / Linux prepared by Acer engineers, which has a simplified interface and all the necessary drivers.Are the Aspire One makers trying to highlight the high quality of the LCD?
The owner of Aspire One has the opportunity to feel like the head of the Energy Center
The system interface of the netbooks supplied to the Russian market is completely Russified. It is really extremely simple - even the most inexperienced users can easily handle the netbook. Unless they get confused in translation - the main items and sections of the menu are translated quite correctly, but in depth dialog boxes you can find sayings such as "Enable power management for a specific monitor." However, the main menus can please, for example, "Energocenter".
But on almost all pages of the interface there is a search box that allows you to search for both local documents and send a request search engines on the Internet - both are very convenient. But, nevertheless, for any experienced user, the capabilities of Linpus will not be enough, and the interface will seem too limited. Although, at first glance, everything you need is in stock, with long-term use you will definitely find the lack of the necessary codecs and some programs. Updating Linpus on your own is troublesome even for someone familiar with Linux. So if you're willing to take the time to tweak the drivers, it's best to install full-fledged Linux, and if not, Windows XP.
Tests
| ASUS eeePC 901 (4GB SSD) |
ASUS eeePC 1000 (8GB SSD) |
Acer aspire one | |
| MobileMark05 Productivity, score | 70* | 127 | 71 |
| PCMark05 score | 1212 (1077*) | 1213 | ND |
| PCMark05 CPU, score | 1398 (1448*) | 1444 | 1443 |
| PCMark05 Memory, score | 1902 (1901*) | 1908 | 1863 |
| PCMark05 Graphics, score | 458 (455*) | 436 | ND |
| PCMark05 HDD score | 1604 (908*) | 1927 | 812 |
| 3Dmark01, score | 2728 (2772*) | 2867 | 2955 |
| 3Dmark03, score | 710 (706*) | 693 | 698 |
| HDTune, Average Read, Mb / s | 29,3 (26,4*) | 29,3 | 24 |
| HDTune, Access Time, ms | 0,5 (0,5) | 0,5 | 0,8 |
| MobileMark05 Productivity, hr: min | 4:22* | 4:32 | 3:18 |
| MobileMark05 Reader, hr: min | 4:27* | 4:41 | 3:36 |
| Battery Eater Pro 2.60 Classic, hr: min | 3:32 | 3:28 | 2:03 |
* 16GB drive was used in testing. While other netbook models are "awful on the face" in comparison with the Aspire One, they are noticeably "kinder inside" - they have a better configuration. However, the expected drop in performance of the memory subsystem did not appear - the lag of DDR2-533 from DDR2-667 on test tasks is minimal.
Onboard SSD performance lags behind competitors
As for the speed of the SSD, the Aspire One is noticeably inferior to the competitors' models, and this affects the results of other tests. Unfortunately, the PCMark05 test suite ran with constant failures and we could not find the cause during testing.
But the MobileMark05 Productivity score shows that the Aspire One's performance is nearly equal to the eee PC 901's performance when tested on the slower of its two drives (marked with an asterisk). It can be assumed that the results of the Aspire One on those tests that it did not pass will be close to the values \u200b\u200bmarked with an asterisk. And these values \u200b\u200bare generally less than the maximum performance of the eee PC 901. On the eee PC 1000, the Aspire One loses even more noticeably.
Acer Aspire One battery lasts two hours in Battery Eater Pro 2.60
Acer Aspire One also takes two hours to fully recharge
However, as noted above, hardly many buyers of netbooks are seriously concerned about their performance and compare the performance of individual subsystems. Enough power to view web pages, read mail and work Skype and ICQ - and enough. But battery life is important for any user, and here the Aspire One, alas, again lags behind the competition. Under maximum load (Battery Eater Pro 2.60 Classic) the battery life was just over two hours. When working in the mode of simulating normal office work (MobileMark05 Productivity), the battery charge lasted for three and a quarter hours, and in the most gentle mode (MobileMark05 Reader) - for three and a half hours. Good results for regular laptop, but for a netbook with a 9-inch screen, LED-backlit display and economical SSD-drive - not enough.
The speed of the built-in SD / MMC adapter used as additional storage
In addition, we measured the read speed of the memory card adapter using the HD Tune program, which the developers recommend using as an additional drive. To do this, we installed a 1 GB Apacer MMC Plus 290X card in the memory card slot (maximum data transfer rate - 43.5 Mb / s). The performance of the adapter is only marginally less than that of the built-in SSD, so given the availability of high capacity SD cards on the market, it really should be used to expand permanent storage.
conclusions
Let's sum up the testing of the Acer Aspire One netbook.- Minuses: relatively low performance and average battery life
- Pros: excellent design, light weight and compactness, excellent keyboard, well-thought-out ergonomics
As predicted by analysts, and it was obvious to everyone who closely monitors the laptop market, after the first wave of deliberately simplified netbooks (for the sake of lower prices), more and more advanced models of inexpensive ultra-compact laptops inevitably began to appear. Only in this way the manufacturers have a chance to interest the users who are demanding in comfort, who remained indifferent to the idea of \u200b\u200bsaving at the expense of all other characteristics. Indeed, the progress is impressive: for the first Acer One, released two years ago, even the process of installing Windows XP and the usual office suite was a serious test, subjectively reminiscent of a return somewhere in the days of 486 processors. Today's models under the same name make Windows 7 “fly”, and the one considered in this review does not even give way to 3D games, which was difficult to imagine a year ago.
Yes, and progress in other components is noticeable: the same screen is noticeably different in quality, the hard drive is installed with a capacious and has standard performance, without any discounts for a particularly compact class of laptop, the battery life has increased several times. Strictly speaking, it is probably time for such models to return from the frivolous term "netbook" to the respectable "subnotebook". Since, in fact, they finally implemented the idea of \u200b\u200bproviding the traveling user with a familiar working environment in the maximum possible mobile format. And, perhaps, the only parameter by which they still lose out to classic subnouts, to the considerable delight of users, is the price. Well, full-size laptops and desktops have since become much more affordable, and users in the mass are already accustomed to such price levels, so they are unlikely to agree to pay how much in the old days, and this factor should not confuse marketers!
Design and functionality
The laptop has a rather elegant appearance, as if the manufacturer has already forgotten the original positioning of netbooks in terms of "poor students". The coating, despite the gloss, is quite non-staining, fingerprints are not striking (probably due to the well-chosen combination of colors, so we cannot judge whether this statement is also true for a laptop in an alternative black case). But it cannot boast of special resistance to scratches, so it is better to handle the laptop with care, carry it in a separate pocket of the bag, where it will not come into contact with hard objects, including the power adapter, mouse and so on.
The lid is fixed in the closed position due to the design of hinges and, like most modern laptops, opens only up to a certain angle (about 130-140 degrees). Noteworthy are the thin sides of the keyboard, so that it takes up all possible space, which is commendable.
In the design, the only decoration can be called the power button, made of transparent plastic with a convex bottom, so that the pictogram is reflected in it on an enlarged scale.
The dimensions of the laptop are typical for models with a screen size of 10.1 ″, the thickness is about 25 mm, and the weight is also small (1.25 kg).
Now let's look at the location of interfaces and other structural elements.
Finally, the HDMI port occupies its rightful place on netbooks, which, given the predominantly home environment of such devices, can only be noted positively. It's good that the developers put 3 USB ports instead of the common two and spread them across two sides. There are also no special remarks about the location of the other elements, it may not be quite optimal from the point of view of left-handers, the placement of the ventilation grill in the middle of the left sidewall will seem. It is difficult to please everyone and, which is quite natural, the majority wins in the compromise, but it is still better when this grille is placed at the edge, of course, farthest from the user. On the other hand, the laptop does not have a hot temper, the air flow is small even at increased speeds under load.
Keyboard
Of course, in such a compact case it would be quite forgivable to have a keyboard of reduced size. However (I checked it on purpose!): The distance between the centers of the alphabetic keys exactly matches that of a standard desktop keyboard. True, there are no indentations in the center of the keys, but for traveling text editing and correspondence, the laptop is still very well equipped. The cursor keys are in the most constrained position, but this is even good, since attempts to space them in two rows within a laptop keyboard often end up with the user touching these keys when pressing Shift or Enter, because it is possible to separate them with empty space only in the largest ones. models, and certainly not in netbooks. And in this case, there is no such problem, especially since the developers tried to adjust the size of the Shift key to the usual for desktop users. And here is the height top row function keys could be made a little more, especially since these keys, as usual, got the functions of switching the image to an external monitor, disabling the touchpad, etc. - typical commands called simultaneously with pressing Fn.
Touchpad and positioning devices
The touchpad measures 3.5 x 6 cm and has the same coating as the body, but protrudes from it by a few millimeters. There is support for commands given by simultaneously touching the surface with two fingers. There are no complaints about the cursor positioning accuracy. And the separate keys can be praised for a clear press and the absence of any backlashes. So this laptop is fine with its own positioning device.
Additional keys and indicators
The indicators are located in the edge of the front panel, there are only four of them, and through one they have blue and orange LEDs, so it will not be difficult for the user to determine what is being signaled at the moment. There are no additional keys on the case, the corresponding functions are called by pressing the function keys from the top row at the same time as Fn.
Screen
The laptop has a 10.1-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 × 600, LED-backlit and glossy finish. The brightness of the screen, even with a 30% backlight level, is already comfortable enough for working in a room with moderate lighting, for example, at home or in transport, but with solar backlighting, you will have to set 80-100%. The visibility, unfortunately, is not the strong point of this model. Moreover, if in the horizontal plane the angles are sufficient for solo work (and hardly anyone will gather to show a video to a group of people on such a small screen), then the vertical visibility is really a little less comfortable. And even if you accurately position the screen perpendicular to the axis of view, you will notice that contrast along the top and bottom edges decreases compared to the center area. But the color rendering, in comparison with a number of "first wave" netbooks, in this case can be noted only positively. It's really nice to watch both photos and videos. The main thing is to carefully adjust the screen angle beforehand!
Sound subsystem
The speakers are small, but still there are two of them on the case, and not one, which is sometimes found in cheap models. However, in this case they are not even located on the front edge (there is no room there, the laptop is too thin), but they look directly at the table. Considering that their power is quite modest, with such an arrangement the user will have to turn the volume level to maximum, even with insignificant background noise, in order to more or less hear the music played by the speakers. It's funny, but there is also a positive moment in this: in this case, the inevitable flaws in the sound of compact speakers are perceived less noticeably, they do not rush into the ears, and if it is quiet around, then even acoustic music can be heard quite tolerably.
As for the analog headphone-out, here again we can only praise the work of this component in Acer products. Maybe in this case, the sound is a little dull and does not cause as much enthusiasm as we deservedly expressed about, for example, Acer Ferrai One or Acer Aspire 4553. But, at least, the noise level is in order, and in general, by the standards of netbooks, the sound is very, very decent, you can safely connect expensive headphones, including low-impedance ones, and have fun.
Configuration and equipment
In addition to two color options (brown, like our sample, there is also a black one), the Aspire One 521 netbook can be equipped with either an AMD Athlon II Neo K125 processor (1.7 GHz and 1 MB L2 cache) or a weaker V105 model with half the amount of cache memory and 500 MHz less frequency. Volume hard disk can be 160 or 250 GB, and RAM - 1 or 2 GB. The battery also, depending on the configuration, can be 4400 or 5600 mAh. Finally, in addition to the standard set of wireless interfaces, including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth adapters, there may also be an adapter for accessing 3G networks in the UMTS / HSPA / GSM frequency ranges with GPRS / EDGE support.
In our case, a senior processor with a frequency of 1.7 GHz and 1 MB of cache was installed, but we got only 1 GB of RAM (DDR3-800). Moreover, in this case, you can expand the memory only by replacing it with a more capacious module, since there is only one memory slot. For the same reason, the memory operates in single-channel mode.
But I think the strongest component of AMD's new ultra-compact notebook platform is the new graphics core in the chipset. As we remember, the previous version used a very old kernel with DirectX 9 support from the AMD 690G chipset. In this case, the chipset is similar to that used in the platform for universal notebooks, only the frequency is reduced. But all the same, given that netbooks, in principle, are not spoiled with any performance graphics cores, this fact is very encouraging.
Below are the specifications of the sample tested in our laboratory.
| Acer Aspire One 521-12Dcc | |
|---|---|
| CPU | Athlon II Neo K125 (1.7 GHz, 1024 MB L2 cache, 1000 MHz HT bus) |
| Chipset | AMD M880G + SB850 |
| RAM | single-channel, 1 GB DDR3-800 |
| Screen | widescreen, high definition (resolution 1024 × 600) LG Philips LP133WH1-TLA2 (10.1 ", LED backlight) |
| Video adapter |
|
| Sound subsystem |
|
| HDD | WDC WD2500BEVT-22A23T0 (232GB, 5400rpm, SATA) |
| Optical drive | − |
| Communication means |
|
| Card reader | 5-in-1 memory card reader with support for SD / MMC / MS / xD and derivatives |
| Interfaces and ports |
|
| Battery |
|
| Additional equipment | built-in web-camera (1.3 megapixel) |
| operating system | Windows 7 Home Starter / Basic |
| Dimensions |
|
| Weight | 1.25 kg with 6-cell battery (AC adapter - 180 g) |
| Guarantee period | 1 year |
| Link to description | Acer Aspire One 521 |
The package contains utilities for backup (Acer eRecovery), search for updates, management of power saving modes and a large package of "casual" games from Oberon Media, although most of them require a paid registration, as well as an anti-virus package from McAfee. Like "adult" notebook models from Acer, there is a backup area on the disk with an image of the original operating system and programs, so by pressing Alt + F10 on the start screen, the user can activate the recovery mode of the original OS in case of virus infection or any data corruption on the system drive.
Performance
Let's take a look at how the laptop handles typical tasks. For comparison, we took the Acer Ferrari FO200 laptop on dual core processor Athlon X2 L310 and MSI X-Slim X410, which in terms of format is larger and does not belong to netbooks, but is interesting because it used the Athlon Neo MV-40 processor, which can be called the most netbook of the entire previous family aMD processors... And it is it, perhaps, that can be considered the immediate predecessor in relation to Athlon II Neo K125.
The result, to some extent, even exceeded our expectations. It was logical to expect that the new product will be somewhere in the middle in terms of performance, but in reality, being a single-core, if it is inferior to the dual-core L310 in terms of the set of tests, it is only a tiny bit. A clear illustration of how important the architecture used is, and, of course, the clock frequency!
In games, of course, the absolute value of the result is still modest, but in practice it is quite possible to select the settings to get acquainted with modern 3D games. In everyday tasks, the response speed is also very good, including installing programs, downloading documents, here the fact of using a standard hard disk is clearly manifested.
Its performance is quite typical and corresponds to the level of modern notebook drives, including those installed in full-size models.
Battery life
Well, the fun is yet to come. With such an excellent performance by the standards of netbooks, you can hardly expect something interesting in the tests for battery life, especially since the declared time is 6.5-7 hours, which, in general, is already a familiar value for models of this class?
However, when testing in idle mode (imitation of thoughtful typing or editing of text) when using the maximum power saving profile (only for the hard drive, the "always on" mode is selected and the brightness is set to 30% level), the laptop worked no less 10 hours 20 minutes... Obviously, this is not a record by modern standards, but from a practical point of view, the result is simply magnificent. If a laptop is required for every nightly check of mail, then its resource is quite enough for a week's trip away from civilization. Well, when it comes to less exotic conditions, then most likely the user will simply put the laptop on recharging, without waiting for the battery to be completely discharged.
As for the work with the load, unfortunately there was not enough time for testing in the Mobile Mark 2007 program. More precisely, it would be quite enough for one run, if this test was not very capricious in itself. So in this case, he jumped out with an error after six hours of work, and there was no time left for charging and restarting. But it's safe to say that if a laptop is taken to watch video during air travel, then even on transatlantic flights, its owner will not have time to get bored. As for charging, a full cycle takes about 3.5 hours, but this is perfectly acceptable for such a long-playing laptop, since the user can schedule the charging so that it occurs during periods of inactivity, for example, at night.
Heat and noise
Let's take a look at the temperature regime. The data was taken from the Everest utility during the stress test. In the column "load" for the central processor, the average temperature during the test is given in parentheses.
In terms of heat dissipation of components, compared to the previous version of the platform, progress is also evident. Although for the user, of course, it is more important how hot the case of the laptop itself, that is, its sole, and whether it can cool normally if it is on the lap. The first question can be answered with confidence that even demanding users will not be disappointed. The user experience with this laptop had to be made just during the hot summer weather, and the performance tests were taken at an indoor temperature of at least 30 degrees. And even under such conditions, the heating turned out to be more than moderate. As for measurements at an ambient air temperature of 25 degrees, even when running the stability test, the temperature of the lower surface did not exceed 30 degrees, with the exception of the immediate area adjacent to the ventilation grill, which warmed up to 35 degrees. Well, you can, of course, put a laptop on a blanket or on your knees, but taking into account the fact that air intake occurs, like most laptops, through the grilles on the bottom. So if your laptop is idle or you are in a cool room, the cooling performance is likely to be sufficient anyway. And in hot weather and under load, it makes sense to make sure that the ventilation holes are not blocked, however, this is a universal rule for most modern laptops.
From the point of view of noise accompaniment, the laptop is not the record holder for noiselessness, and absolutely this point will not be a subject for criticism. The fan control algorithm was chosen well: it constantly rotates, and the minimum speed creates a noise of about 35 dBA, which is slightly higher than the background noise in a quiet room during the day, but definitely less than most users are used to desktop computers... In addition, the second and third speeds (in the operating mode with a load) increase the noise level only to 36.5 and 37.2 dBA, respectively, which may well go unnoticed by the user, since the speed change is also smooth.
conclusions
In fact, we have before us a model that fully realizes the concept of an ultra-compact computer for the active-traveling user who is demanding on performance and wants to have a familiar working environment at hand. That is, in old terms: a subnotebook. There were no significant shortcomings, but most of all I was pleased with the long battery life with a very playful response of the laptop to user commands. In general, it is nice to see a tendency that manufacturers did not follow the path of further cost reduction to the detriment of performance, but try to increase functionality while maintaining a reasonable cost. In the long term, it would be nice to see a further turn to face serious users, for example, as one of the configuration options to offer a matte display, ideally with extended vertical visibility.
Average current price (in brackets - the number of offers that can be clicked to go to the list of those available in Moscow retail) Acer Aspire One 521: N / A (0)
Today we will talk about the Acer Aspire One D257 netbook. The characteristics of this device are definitely worthy of attention. The current generation of ultra-thin Aspire One models are comfortable and mobile. They are simply irreplaceable on the road: with them you can do unfinished work or have fun. The presence of various colors has added to their popularity even more.
Model Description
The design of the Acer Aspire One D257 has the following characteristics:
- it is very compact, its dimensions are 256 x 184 x 24 mm;
- he has a comfortable weight data - 1.3 kg (with a battery);
- color style - blue, black, red and white.
Characteristics of the D257 model:
- black body;
- production material - high-quality plastic, due to which there are no deflections and creaks;
- standard appearance, smooth panels and rounded corners;
- a lid with a corporate logo in the form of a drop with voluminous "waves" from it;
- the inside is also black.
About the netbook screen
This model is equipped with an Acer CrystalBrite display. It is widescreen, measuring 10.1 inches diagonally. The resolution of the display at 1024 x 600 pixels allows you to do any job, and also allows you to watch movies, create videos and edit photos. The presence of a 0.3-megapixel webcam opens the joy of communication in Skype and allows you to participate in various video chats. The netbook Acer Aspire One D257 has a proportional screen (16: 9).
Input Devices
This model is equipped with a user-friendly keyboard. The keys are large enough to allow you to type without fear of pressing closely spaced buttons at the same time. The only block, "offended" by its size, is the switch. It has been significantly reduced, but this nuance does not reduce the overall attractiveness of the netbook. The Acer Aspire One D257 does not have the usual function buttons at the top of the keyboard. Here is an element for turning the device on and off. Users will be pleased with its size. They are relatively large. The form touch button looks like a rectangle elongated in length. She has a fairly high sensitivity. The touchpad's response is instant. The keys located below are covered with one solid "rocker". By clicking on the edges, you can activate all the necessary functions. For Acer Aspire One D257, Windows 7 is the main operating system. However, in some cases, the device may be equipped with a Linux platform.
Model D257-N57Ckk consists of:
- A dual-core processor with a clock speed of 1.66 GHz and a cache of 1 MB. Used 45-nanometer technology. The TDP is low at only 8.5W. There is a possibility of four-stream information processing.
- The RAM is 1 GB. The Winchester contains 250 GB, which is quite enough for work.
- The presence of an integrated video card (Intel GMA 3150) makes it possible to carry out high-quality graphics processing. There is 256 MB DirectX 9 provides the ability to display high-quality pictures and easy video decoration.
- Those looking to use the netbook as a gaming platform will be disappointed. The video card has insufficient performance. Only games that require minimum characteristics can be used.
Description of connectors
The Acer Aspire One D257 netbook has a very convenient connector system located on its sides. The left side contains:
- uSB output (2.0 standard);
- power connector;
- ventilation device;
- 15-pin VGA;
- network output (RJ-45), speed 100 Mbit / s.
The right side is equipped with the following connectors:
- 2 USB ports;
- outputs for using a headset (headphones or microphone);
The presence of a digital HDMI interface is not provided for this netbook model. He has an incomplete set of communications: only a Wi-Fi adapter. There is also no bluetooth. The netbook comes with a lithium-ion battery with a capacitive characteristic of 4400 mAh. The Acer device can operate autonomously for eight hours. 100% charging of the netbook takes only 2 hours. The equipment is not denied with three-section batteries, the capacity of which is 2200 mAh. This will ensure that the device works without charging for no more than 4 hours.
conclusions
The Acer Aspire One D257 is popular because it has:
- High performance that allows you to work for a long time without charging.
- Compactness, convenience and originality of design.
- Variability of the choice of body color.
The netbook is easy to use, convenient for both work and leisure. The Acer D257 will become an indispensable companion for college students, students and ordinary users.
Opinion
So we figured out the main features of the Acer Aspire One D257. Reviews about this device are very diverse, and now we find out what the owners say about the netbook. Among the indisputable advantages of the model are most often called the affordable price and long battery life. Speed \u200b\u200bis more often referred to as a weak point. The device is called comfortable and lightweight. According to the owners, it is great for browsing the Internet and working with office programs... Playing movies and playing music is also straightforward. Many people were pleased with the fingerprint resistance of the case. The absence of squeaks and noise during operation was also taken into account by the owners as a plus. The quality of materials, pleasant to the touch, and functionality are also highly appreciated by users. Some owners of this device note that installing a USB port on the rear panel would be advisable. A number of comments say that the screen does a great job as well. Also, the owners note that the netbook does not overheat even under significant loads.
