5 stars for fixed value

By Karen Kelly (Ventura, CA, USA)

This review is for: Acer AS5517-1643

I bought this computer on sale at another dealer (even after four hundred), but it's still worth the current market price here. At that time I bought it, I thought it would have a faster processor (was looking in the wrong information), so if I have the actual computer I was dismayed to see at 1.6 GHz on the field, got out. Thought about it again, but it was just a good business, and I was in a situation where I needed a computer immediately. Another disappointment was the lack of a webcam in the picture it looks like it has one, but it is just the place where it would have been.

It may seem strange to start, a five star review with disappointments, but this was an emergency purchase and was not my first choice, it was simply the best I could afford. However (and there is a big but), this little machine rocks very, very hard. It completely exceeded my expectations, and there are not too many things that do that.

The good:

* It is surprisingly fast - faster than the T7200 with 2 GHz dual-core 64bit laptop replaced. Much faster.

* It enough memory for most people has (unless you are like me, the mad multitasker, in which case, go ahead and increase it to 4GB - it will run all types of applications (eg Dreamweaver, Photoshop Elements Several browsers, local web servers, etc) simultaneously while running to 60-80% of the available 3836GB (of the 4 GB) of memory, without swamp.

* The screen is bright, clear, neat and has vivid color. Watching DVDs and HD video streaming is delightful.

* The keyboard is wonderful, and the trackpad is one of the first people I ever use in a position, without even a mouse. It is perfectly positioned just recessed enough and has a software smart enough to recognize inadvertent touches vs. unintentional. The scroll area on the right side is nice and accommodating.

* Battery life is reasonable, this is not a Low Voltage processor so that it goes to last 2-3 hours with moderate use and dims the screen (left it reports 4 hours, if I pull it, but I have never used more than one hour unplugged - one day I will test to see how long it, and then update this review). ** Update ** Battery life is another area that exceeds expectations is small computers. Power save mode does a good job running it efficiently and puts it to sleep when not in use, so I can bring it to work, use it when I personal e-mail or Twitter or check on my files, must and leave it unplugged all day, no problem. And to use solid, more than two hours.

* After the numeric keypad is a good thing. It is a little, so pressed the function keys and decimal places, rather than on the page, but it is light enough to be used.

* Runs external monitor with no problems (but that must be in the thing called "Acer Grid" really work right) are configured

The Hmmm ...

* The pattern on the cover should be resistant to fingerprints, but you can still see fingerprints. (It is still very nice, no complaints). But whatever they used on the keyboard and the trackpad frame a kind of miraculous substance that say no one is, is been affected. I've got my greasy paws on it for hours on end was stored for over a week now, they never wiped clean, it's just ... . Clean

* It was a little to remove crapware, no annoying, but I feel the need to mention it, hopefully one day the producers "get it to stop," and all pre-installed crap? Hey, can dream of a girl.

* Only two USB ports - when I set it at work (plugged external monitor, keyboard and mouse in front of the large monitor), this means I would need a USB hub, all other USB device to use. No big deal but.

The Meh ...

* Speaker not rock - but plugged in - in my old Altec Lansing speakers + subwoofer powered (Model VS2321 if you were wondering, nothing special, just basic laptop speakers) and the sound was watching Foo Fighters live stream Freakin 'awesome.

* Last night I plugged my new Droid to transfer into music, and all browsers have squirrels, while it was plugged in. Every browser (I have installed 5) fell steadily in the Android phone was connected. No big deal, just ... weird.

In conclusion:

This is a good, solid, basic machine, at an affordable price - (I paid more for my phone on deposits, fees, taxes, etc:) - and it is the only time I've been through the numbers in the disappointed specs but pleasantly surprised by the actual output * * - usually it's vice versa. It is a pleasure to type on, the trackpad is awesome, the screen is beautiful, and it provides a good balance in size between the large desktop replacement and the small ultra-portable that always feel a little cramped . And Windows 7 is a wonderful OS (using it since the end of beta) and the release version runs on a computer built for him is * sweet *.