Acer’s TravelMate 8481g came in a little over-size for our 2011 ultraportable laptop roundup, with its 14-inch display. However, I let it slip through as its weight (1,5kg) matches many of the 11,6-inch models on test, and despite the screen size its volume is actually less than that of the 11,6-inch Sony VAIO Y, MSI U270, and HP Pavilion dm1. Why? Because at just 22mm, the TravelMate is the thinnest non-Apple product in the roundup.
In fact, the TravelMate is rather close to our 11,6-inch MacBook Air in spec. It runs on the same Intel Core i5 2467M processor, includes 4GB RAM, and uses a 120GB SSD for storage (vs. the MacBook Air’s 128GB). The main point of difference is in the graphics: though the 2467M processor offers the Intel HD Graphics 3000 engine on-chip, Acer has also thrown in the Nvidia GeForce GT 520M with 1GB of dedicated video memory.
The addition of discrete graphics gives the TravelMate DirectX 11 support, which the Air and other Intel HD Graphics-based systems lack. It also provides the best graphical performance in this roundup, with up to 300% higher scores (100% higher in most tests). At the ‘extreme’ settings we use for our GPU benchmarks (the same we use to test top-end gaming rigs), frame-rates didn’t really enter the ‘playable’ realm, but you could certainly run many modern games at conservative settings with no issues at all.
As mentioned in our Air review, the TravelMate’s use of discrete graphics has one interesting side-effect: it disables the video transcoding features of Intel’s Sandy Bridge platform, biasing our all-around PCMark 7 test heavily toward the MacBook Air. In all other areas, the two perform near-identically. This may mean that the Acer is less than ideal if you intend to do large amounts of video editing, or conversion for smartphone or tablet viewing. Apart from that, the TravelMate’s DX11 support and higher graphical performance more than make up for it.
The Acer has the second-worst battery life in the roundup of just 2 hours 57 minutes (vs. 2 hours 17 for the MacBook Air running Windows 7 with the same workload). Unusually given its slim design, the slim battery is user-removable — there’s nothing (but cost) to stop you carrying a spare or two.
Acer’s TravelMate 8481g shows that you don’t have to sacrifice screen size, processing power, graphical capabilities or even the convenience of a removable battery to get something extremely lightweight and compact. If portability is your one major goal, or you need video editing performance more than GPU-power, the MacBook Air is still your best bet. Otherwise, the TravelMate is an extremely attractive option.
11/24/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Acer, TravelMate 8481G
LG has launched a new ultra-portable laptop, which it says is both thinner and lighter than Apple’s market-leading MacBook Air.
11/23/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: LG, Z330 Ultrabook
The ultraportable laptop market seems to be going gangbusters at the moment. Between the lovely MacBook Air, luxury thin-and-lights like the Sony VAIO Z and Samsung Series 9, and the recently launched ultrabooks, most of the action in mobile computing — at least so far as notebooks go — seems to be seems to be happening in the 1—1,5kg weight class.
11/14/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Review, Samsung Series 9
Specifications 13,3in HD LED-backlit 1600×900 display, Intel Core i7 2677M dual-core 1,8GHz processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, 128GB SSD drive, 1 x headphone-out and audio-in combo jack, 1 x USB 3,0, 1 x USB 2,0, 1 x micro HDMI, 1 x mini VGA, 2-in-1 card reader, 1,3kg, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
Price £999 as reviewed
11/13/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Asus Zenbook UX31E, laptop, Review
Dell has been slimming down its laptops, with newer models such as the Inspiron 13z measuring just 22mm. Its new XPS 14z has been launched in Singapore and Malaysia and claims to be one of the thinnest 14-inchers in the market. This is despite the presence of a slot-loading optical drive.
11/5/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Dell, XPS 14z
Dell unveiled the XPS 14z, an ultrathin laptop Monday that squeezes a 14-inch display in the smaller body of a 13-inch laptop. At less than an inch thin, and starting at just under $1000, the XPS 14z goes head to head with Apple’s 13-inch MacBook Pro-and just in time to make things interesting for laptop buyers, since Apple just recently refreshed the MacBook Pro line.
09/30/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Dell, MacBook
As Nintendo prepares its Wii U console for release in 2012, Sony and Microsoft continue to extend the lifespan of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 by adding new functionality.
The six previous console generations have averaged five years each, but Sony and Microsoft look determined to ensure their current machines have a significantly longer lifespan, even with competitor Wii U coming soon.
Microsoft is finally expected to announce an Australian release date for Xbox 360 voice control via Kinect this week, almost a year after the peripheral was first released in this country.
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At a media event tomorrow, Microsoft says it will share its «vision for entertainment featuring natural user interfaces» and the first Australia media preview of voice control on Kinect for Xbox 360.
Microsoft angered many Australian Xbox 360 owners at the Kinect launch last November by making no mention of the delay and heavily promoting Kinect’s ability to control the Xbox dashboard and applications like movies with your voice.
At this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo in June, Microsoft’s 90-minute press conference was dominated by Kinect, with many games presented that players can control with their voice, including Mass Effect 3 and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Future Solider.
Earlier this month Microsoft announced two new Australian television partners will be coming to the Xbox Live service with ABC Iview and SBS On Demand. YouTube, Crackle and The Daily Motion will also be accessible via the Xbox 360 console before Christmas.
The streaming video services add to the Foxtel on Xbox 360 subscription service and Microsoft’s own movies on demand service available to Xbox 360 owners.
Microsoft’s David McLean says over 215,000 Xbox 360 owners have tried the Foxtel service and Microsoft expects the ABC and SBS content also to be popular.
«Couple that with the unique experience that comes with Kinect through the wave of a hand and soon to be voice command, we are creating brand new ways for people to interact with their entertainment,” Mr McLean says.
«The Xbox Live service is growing rapidly, as is the demand for digital content. Last year we saw 51 per cent growth in overall Xbox Live subscriptions year-on-year in this market. Australians really have an appetite for using their Xbox for more than gaming, and these partnerships are just the beginning on delivering on our entertainment vision.”
Meanwhile, Australia’s leading online movie rental subscription company will soon offer movies on demand via the PlayStation 3 console.
QuickFlix entered into a streaming agreement with Sony in July to deliver content direct to Bravia television and Vaio computer owners , and now the partnership has been extended to the PS3.
«Over 1,3 million Australian consumers who own an internet connectable PlayStation 3 will have access to Quickflix’s on-demand movie streaming service,” says Quickflix chief executive officer Chris Taylor. «This is a significant moment in the evolution of IPTV delivered entertainment in Australia.”
In the US and UK, PS3 is estimated to account for over 30 per cent of the rapidly growing movie streaming market.
The price for a subscription to the new Quickflix service has not yet been revealed, but the company promises unlimited movie viewing from a constantly updated catalogue.
PS3 owners are already well-served for movie-watching options. In addition to the console’s capacity to play Blu-ray and DVD movie discs, Sony launched its own movies-on-demand service in Australia in May 2010. The PS3 service features movies available to rent or buy from studios including Fox, MGM, Paramount, Universal, Warner Bros, Disney, Roadshow and Sony Pictures.
The MUBI online film library is also accessible via PS3, offering independent, international and classic cinema.
Sony Computer Entertainment Australia managing director Michael Ephraim says that movies-on-demand is the future, although he admits it is relatively «early days» yet.
When asked by Screen Play whether Sony’s own movies-on-demand service is paying its own way, Mr Ephraim says «we haven’t announced numbers. I think like any digital movie service right now, it is early days.”
But Mr Ephraim says Sony does strong believe that digital distribution is the future for movies. «We are improving on the service every day, the range of titles are as competitive as any other movie service you can find.
«But it’s a long-term plan. We’re still in a transitional period. I think for the next three years disc-based movies are still going to sell as digital movies grow. I think we’re on par with the growth that other services are providing, whether it is paying the rent right now, it’s never meant as a short-term revenue, it’s a long-term strategy.”
Mr Ephraim does not believe there is demand from consumers, developers, publishers or retailers for a successor to the PlayStation 3.
«Not at this point,” he says. «We’re just starting to hit the mass market with the price. We’re adding more and more functionality to it every couple of months with firmware upgrades.
Mr Ephraim says sales of both disc-based games and digital content on the PlayStation Store were continuing to grow. «It’s thriving right now. There’s no need for another console. In fact, I think retailers are looking for rationalisation of the console market. ”
09/26/2011
— Filed under: Games,Hardware
Tags: Nintendo, Xbox 360
Of all the laptops available at the moment, the two categories that interest me most are ultraportables and full desktop replacements. Ultraportables can be incredibly useful for life on the move due to their small size and incredibly light weight. For regular laptops to be useful though for anything more than light use is unusual however as they have neither the advantages of an ultraportable nor a desktop replacement.
09/25/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Acer, Review
The good: The Dell Precision M4600 is a flexible and powerful mobile workstation thanks to an abundant component selection, plentiful ports and connections, and ample warranty, support, and security options.
The bad: Judging from our Dell M4600 review system, quality control is a little lacking.
The bottom line: If you’ve got the money-and a strong back-the Dell Precision M4600 is a very good mobile workstation.
As mobile workstations go, the Dell Precision M4600 delivers everything we expect. There are several configurations available with plenty of options for fine-tuning it to your performance needs. It’s stacked with ports, inputs, and outputs so it can easily connect up to a number of external devices and just as easily stand on its own. And Dell offers the warranty, support, and security options professionals need to make sure their data is safe and they stay up and running.
Our review system was loaded with high-end components and it performed accordingly. No disappointments there, really. What we were less than thrilled with was either personal preference or things that might have more to do with the quality of our particular laptop than the M4600 on the whole.
Also, while we expect mobile workstations to be expensive, the M4600 seems a bit pricier than similarly configured competing systems. Then again, the regular price is never what you end up paying; the starting price for the M4600 was $1,798 at the time of our review, but «Dell’s price» was just $1,119.
09/4/2011
— Filed under: Hardware
Tags: Dell, Precision M4600
