BB: Acer AS3050-1092 14.1" AMD Sempron 3500+ 1.8GHz Laptop $399

[yoshi838]

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0926INGFS10089347&catid=20354&logon=&langid=EN


AMD Sempron 64 Mobile Technology 3500+ Processor & 1.8GHz Processor Speed.
14.1" CrystalBrite TFT LCD Display with 1280 x 800 Resolution
80GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
512MB DDR2 memory for multitasking power, expandable up to 2GB.
Integrated Super-Multi drive (DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD-RAM)
10/100 Ethernet, 802.11b/g WLAN
Weighs only 2.4 kg and measures just 3.5 cm thin for easy portability.
5-In-1 Card Reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS PRO, xD)
I/O Ports: 3 x USB 2.0 Ports, External Display (VGA) Port, S-Video/TV-Out (NTSC/PAL) Port, Headphones/Speaker/Line-Out Jack with S/PDIF support, Microphone-In Jack, Line-In Jack, Ethernet (RJ-45) Port, Modem (RJ-11) Port, DC-In Jack for AC Adapter


Windows Vista Home Basic operating system preinstalled; software package includes Acer Empowering Technology (Acer ePower, ePresentation, eDataSecurity, eLock, eRecovery, eSettings, ePerformance Management), Acer Launch Manager, Norton AntiVirus, Adobe Reader, CyberLink PowerDVD, CyberLink PowerProducer, NTI CD-Maker

Time of post: 50 units availalbe

Cheapest laptop from bigbox retail i have seen.

[nsx]

Is it part of the weekly BB sale starting on Fridays?

Current Price:
"On Sale: $499.99
After $100.00 instant savings"

[alwaysbuylow]

Is it part of the weekly BB sale starting on Fridays?

Current Price:
"On Sale: $499.99
After $100.00 instant savings"

Yes. Add it to the cart, it will show $399.

Cheapest notebook, buy another 1G of RAM from NCIX to make it 1.5G, the Crucial RAM is on sales this week for $37.99 plus $10 Express Shipping. Then you will have a very usuable notebook under $520 tax in.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24079&vpn=CT12864AC667&manufacture=CRUCIAL%20TECHNOLOGY&promoid=1055

[yoshi838]

Is it part of the weekly BB sale starting on Fridays?

Current Price:
"On Sale: $499.99
After $100.00 instant savings"
Shows up $599 - $200 instant!

IMO very good deal. Take it apart and I bet you cannot put something together at this price...

And for those who will bash about 512MB for Windows Vista Home, DON'T. You get what you paid for.

[Formula1]

Meh. Only a Sempron but good to see notebooks dropping in price alot the last year.

[rayl]

still show $399.99 and the flyer show $399.99 too.

[diddy321]

DEAL IS DEAD

Back to $599 - $100

Add it to your cart....will show as $399

[nopn]

nice for a internet computer.

[yoshi838]

Oh my god, I first saw it at $599 - 200 = $399

5 minutes I thought deal is dead at $599 - 100 = $499

Now it is $599 - 200 AGAIN.

Not hot if it is $499 IMO.

[Formula1]

Oh my god, I first saw it at $599 - 200 = $399

5 minutes I thought deal is dead at $599 - 100 = $499

Now it is $599 - 200 AGAIN.

Not hot if it is $499 IMO.
Sale starts Friday which is why their website is messed up right now. It's $399 in the flyer so don't worry.

[yoshi838]

Sale starts Friday which is why their website is messed up right now. It's $399 in the flyer so don't worry.

Guess what, IT IS $499 now!!

What's wrong with their system??

I wish they will make an error and make it $299. :cheesygri

[bobbytomorow]

shows up as $399 for me.

Good deal imo, I mght just pick this baby up and chuck in another 512mb. Good for surfing :)

[Candiana]

batt life is only 2.5 Hours....

[yoshi838]

batt life is only 2.5 Hours....
And?

[Rehan]

You can also add an inkjet printer for free.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/marketing/laptop_promo/EN/default.asp?logon=&langid=EN

[yoshi838]

You can also add an inkjet printer for free.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/marketing/laptop_promo/EN/default.asp?logon=&langid=EN

I tried... but it didn't Zero the printer... does the sequence of adding the printer/notebook matter?

[Rehan]

I tried... but it didn't Zero the printer... does the sequence of adding the printer/notebook matter? Oops. The free printer is only with HP and Compaq laptops, but the other two are valid for any laptop purchase.

[DaVibe]

My price just went up to $499.

[cloneman]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but couldn't you replace the CPU with a turion X2 from ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/AMD-TURION-64-X2-TMDTL52HAX5CT-MOBILE-DUAL-CORE_W0QQitemZ180154164090QQihZ008QQcategoryZ86712 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


that would be mighty sweet.

if this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMD_Sempron_microprocessors#.22Keene.22_.2 8Socket_S1.2C_F2.2C_90_nm.2C_Low_power.29

list is accurate the only mobile sempron 3500+ is socket s1... making it a swappable with a turion... no?

EDIT: shows up as 399.99 In my cart. Seems hot.... my only gripe would be the screen quality... probably not too good at this price.

[yoshi838]

You can also add an inkjet printer for free.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/marketing/laptop_promo/EN/default.asp?logon=&langid=EN

The $29.99 printer offer goes thru online. It shows $29.99 after added to cart, whereas the other 2 printers show their regular sale prices.

[Formula1]

Don't worry about the price. It's $399 in the flyer, when you add it to your cart and on their front page for laptops:
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/dept.asp?logon=&langid=EN&catid=20352

[yoshi838]

I ordered the machine twice

1st order
Pick Up @ STC, received processing confirmation, not finalized, no discounted printer

2nd order
Pick Up @ Ajax, received both processing and finalized email (it is available for pickup) and added the $29.99 AIO printer

... I wonder if they actually have stock @ STC... cause it was ordered before I made another order for the Ajax store...

[anytimes]

I just bought one!
Thanks!

[killuminati]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but couldn't you replace the CPU with a turion X2 from ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/AMD-TURION-64-X2-TMDTL52HAX5CT-MOBILE-DUAL-CORE_W0QQitemZ180154164090QQihZ008QQcategoryZ86712 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


that would be mighty sweet.

if this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMD_Sempron_microprocessors#.22Keene.22_.2 8Socket_S1.2C_F2.2C_90_nm.2C_Low_power.29

list is accurate the only mobile sempron 3500+ is socket s1... making it a swappable with a turion... no?

EDIT: shows up as 399.99 In my cart. Seems hot.... my only gripe would be the screen quality... probably not too good at this price.


can anyone confirm this?

[vanroessel]

For $50 at FS you get the same CPU, double the RAM, larger screen and Premium instead of Basic which will allow you to play DVD's out of the box. Basic has no DVD Player software.

[Derek]

Posted! It's hot!

I wasn't even thinking of buying a notebook, but I don't know if I can resist... I have a p3 500 Compaq that I've been fairly happy using...

[yoshi838]

For $50 at FS you get the same CPU, double the RAM, larger screen and Premium instead of Basic which will allow you to play DVD's out of the box. Basic has no DVD Player software.

FYI, usually a 14" screen laptop has a price premium over 15.4"...
More is not always better, for one, weight.

[Derek]

FYI, usually a 14" screen laptop has a price premium over 15.4"...
More is not always better, for one, weight.

I'd probably skip the $449 one from FutureShop as well. For $50 more you, might as well get the Vostro 1000 from Dell with a dual-core processor. This $399 one hits a very sweet under $400 pricing spot... almost an impulse purchase (still thinking about it...)

[DaVibe]

I'd probably skip the $449 one from FutureShop as well. For $50 more you, might as well get the Vostro 1000 from Dell with a dual-core processor. This $399 one hits a very sweet under $400 pricing spot... almost an impulse purchase (still thinking about it...)

14 Days to return it :)

[yoshi838]

I'd probably skip the $449 one from FutureShop as well. For $50 more you, might as well get the Vostro 1000 from Dell with a dual-core processor. This $399 one hits a very sweet under $400 pricing spot... almost an impulse purchase (still thinking about it...)

If you really did miss the deal, I have placed my order twice and I can let you have one of the pick-up order!! LOL.

I am still waiting for the one @ STC to fill...

[alwaysbuylow]

I'd probably skip the $449 one from FutureShop as well. For $50 more you, might as well get the Vostro 1000 from Dell with a dual-core processor. This $399 one hits a very sweet under $400 pricing spot... almost an impulse purchase (still thinking about it...)

It's hard to say which one is better, it all depends your budget and needs. The $449 one does have advantages over this Acer, double Ram (1G instead of 512K), 120G HD instead of 80G HD, Vista Premium instead of Basic.

[willpoon]

I totally impulse bought this item for pick up about 10 minutes ago. I might not actually use it so I'll probably use the return policy.

[mahjongmaniac]

I'd probably skip the $449 one from FutureShop as well. For $50 more you, might as well get the Vostro 1000 from Dell with a dual-core processor. This $399 one hits a very sweet under $400 pricing spot... almost an impulse purchase (still thinking about it...)

buy 1st, think later... that's the "RFD way"... :razz:


resistance is futile. give in to your temptation :D

[cloneman]

buy 1st, think later... that's the "RFD way"... :razz:


resistance is futile. give in to your temptation :D

I made myself a rule to no impulse buy past 2AM.... :cheesygri

[ComicGuy]

http://www.staples.ca/ENG/Catalog/cat_sku.asp?webid=683515&affixedcode=WW
- it's showing as $392 when added to my cart, along with coupons 50933 and 60448

-~VERSUS~-

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0926INGFS10089347&catid=20354&logon=&langid=EN
- $399 plus shipping

The main difference between the two is the processor (Celeron vs Sempron), and the video (ATI 1100 vs Intel GMA 950). Everything else looks pretty much the same, doesn't it?

Any opinions?

[akosh]

Future Shop also has a $399 laptop.

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10089803&catid=

[ComicGuy]

Future Shop also has a $399 laptop.

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10089803&catid=

I think this is the same one as at Staples - only FS isn't in stock.

[Fritz the Cat]

Vista? Meh, I long for the old days of XP laptops with a min 1 gig ram.
Dell Vostro deal at $499.00 with a gig of ram and XP won my 499 votes.

[bolufromthesoo]

Out of curiousity,, what are the subscores on this laptop? I want to compare it to the compaq that my dad bought for 50$ more.

The subscores on the comapq is 3.8, 4.5, 3.1 (3.2 after bloatware), 3.0, 4.6

[nopn]

so cheap, i never see a laptop can go to that low.

[Chocolinx]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but couldn't you replace the CPU with a turion X2 from ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/AMD-TURION-64-X2-TMDTL52HAX5CT-MOBILE-DUAL-CORE_W0QQitemZ180154164090QQihZ008QQcategoryZ86712 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


that would be mighty sweet.

if this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMD_Sempron_microprocessors#.22Keene.22_.2 8Socket_S1.2C_F2.2C_90_nm.2C_Low_power.29

list is accurate the only mobile sempron 3500+ is socket s1... making it a swappable with a turion... no?

EDIT: shows up as 399.99 In my cart. Seems hot.... my only gripe would be the screen quality... probably not too good at this price.

Most laptops allow for their CPUs to be swappable just like their RAM. So far the only laptop makers I've ran into where it's not as easy (but still do able) is HP. To swap out the CPU you should check where the fan is, usually the screw and cover is there. You'll end up pulling out the CPU heatsink/fan just like a normal PC. Make sure to have thermal grease handy.

As for HP laptops, you have to be EXTRA careful when swapping the CPU, because you'll have to take the entire notebook apart! Keyboard and Bezel frame and all. It's a pretty messy job and you can easily loose the screws (there's lots of them). If you're experienced with taking other small electronic apart than this should be a pretty simple job as long as you're organized. You can find guides online how to do it.

Bottom Line: YES, CPU is swappable. But the difficulty level of doing it varies from laptop to laptop. eg. Toshiba Very Easy! and HP Very HARD!

[Chocolinx]

http://www.staples.ca/ENG/Catalog/cat_sku.asp?webid=683515&affixedcode=WW
- it's showing as $392 when added to my cart, along with coupons 50933 and 60448

-~VERSUS~-

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0926INGFS10089347&catid=20354&logon=&langid=EN
- $399 plus shipping

The main difference between the two is the processor (Celeron vs Sempron), and the video (ATI 1100 vs Intel GMA 950). Everything else looks pretty much the same, doesn't it?

Any opinions?

When you play games like Starcraft or Warcraft III you'll notice the ATI video chipset has an advantage over the GMA 950. I think you can also allocate more memory to the video on the ATI than the Intel one.

Between Celeron and Sempron, at the same speeds (for this generation of celeron) Sempron beats it.

[willpoon]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but couldn't you replace the CPU with a turion X2 from ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/AMD-TURION-64-X2-TMDTL52HAX5CT-MOBILE-DUAL-CORE_W0QQitemZ180154164090QQihZ008QQcategoryZ86712 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


that would be mighty sweet.

if this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMD_Sempron_microprocessors#.22Keene.22_.2 8Socket_S1.2C_F2.2C_90_nm.2C_Low_power.29

list is accurate the only mobile sempron 3500+ is socket s1... making it a swappable with a turion... no?

EDIT: shows up as 399.99 In my cart. Seems hot.... my only gripe would be the screen quality... probably not too good at this price.

Does anybody know if you can upgrade to a duo core with this motherboard? And if so, how?? I've never changed a processor on a laptop before.

[cloneman]

Does anybody know if you can upgrade to a duo core with this motherboard? And if so, how?? I've never changed a processor on a laptop before.

It seems to be possible replace the sempron 3500+ with any Socket S1 cpu. There are no guarantees that this will work (although it seems likely), and as someone else pointed out, also no guarantees in the difficulty/easyness of this task.

You are likely to void your warranty... though if you put the sempron back in before sending it for repair, they probably won't notice... unless theres some sort of seal (unlikely).

[Bolo!]

It gets pretty silly when you buy something that doesn't meet your standards and you begin rebuilding the notebook so that it meets your needs. You might buy a cpu from ebay, find that its far more involved to change it (which it is-the heat pipe assembly is usually quite large and necessitates cracking the notebook in half and its not fun) and once you put it all back together you find that the bios doesn't support the new cpu so you have to install the old one. I would just buy a new computer which cpu meets your needs and upgrade the ram which is generally easily upgradable as is the hard drive.

[chuckfredgoose]

This laptop doesnt run vista too well. probably the 512 ram and sempron has something to do with this. :|

& the

Speaker volume is absolutely horrible.

[mystery]

This laptop doesnt run vista too well. probably the 512 ram and sempron has something to do with this. :|

& the

Speaker volume is absolutely horrible.

The Sempron processor is fine with Vista. I upgraded my Mom's Acer AS3050 to 1 GB and it FLIES.

The video card (Raden Xpress 1100) on this is good as well, far surpassing the ubiqitous Intel GMA 950. It is a bit faster than the Nvidia 6150 as well.

[willpoon]

So I just finished talking to an ACER CSR and found out which processor works with this motherboard and the laptop.

AMD 31W Single Core Turion 64 MK-36 processor (2.0Ghz, 1M L2 cache)

AMD Mobile Turion 64 X2 Dual Core processors:
TL-52 (1.6GHz, 1MB L2 cache)
TL-50 (1.6GHz, 512KB L2 cache)

The following AMD Sempron 25W processors are also supported:
3500+ (1.8GHz, 512KB L2 cache)
3400+ (1.8GHz, 256KB L2 cache)

There is a service guide you can download to see what parts need to be taken apart.

LINK
(http://www.eserviceinfo.com/downloadsm/16545/Acer_Aspire%203000-3500-5000.html)

It looks like more of a labor job but if you really wanted to change processors, it's not impossible.

[chuckfredgoose]

The Sempron processor is fine with Vista. I upgraded my Mom's Acer AS3050 to 1 GB and it FLIES.

The video card (Raden Xpress 1100) on this is good as well, far surpassing the ubiqitous Intel GMA 950. It is a bit faster than the Nvidia 6150 as well.

Then it has to be the RAM. ;)

My bro returned this for the HP at BB because the speaker volume sucked. Not sure if it was a defect or if all of these models have really low volume. You can hear the difference between the HP and the acer. Vista also ran faster and smoother on the HP too (1 GB ram & Athlon TK-53)

[chenimen]

sold out =(

[chuckfredgoose]

sold out =(


Go to the store ;)

[cloneman]

It gets pretty silly when you buy something that doesn't meet your standards and you begin rebuilding the notebook so that it meets your needs. You might buy a cpu from ebay, find that its far more involved to change it (which it is-the heat pipe assembly is usually quite large and necessitates cracking the notebook in half and its not fun) and once you put it all back together you find that the bios doesn't support the new cpu so you have to install the old one. I would just buy a new computer which cpu meets your needs and upgrade the ram which is generally easily upgradable as is the hard drive.

You are probably right. Until laptops start selling for 299$, it's probably not worth toying with their CPUs, heh.

In this respect I have to agree with the rest; go for the 499$ dell. In fact, for most dell laptops, you can download the service manual right off their site, that tells you how to open it up and everything (not that it's really necessary to upgrade anything on the vostro deal).

[willpoon]

You are probably right. Until laptops start selling for 299$, it's probably not worth toying with their CPUs, heh.

In this respect I have to agree with the rest; go for the 499$ dell. In fact, for most dell laptops, you can download the service manual right off their site, that tells you how to open it up and everything (not that it's really necessary to upgrade anything on the vostro deal).

It's always fun to take things apart. Or maybe that's just me.

[kel]

Plenty of stock in B&M locations.

Just picked one up at Heartland Best Buy, lots left in the back.

Also called Downsview BB, they said they have 37 'in transit', probably on the truck. They won't put those out until tommorow morning.

[ShaTR]

When you play games like Starcraft or Warcraft III you'll notice the ATI video chipset has an advantage over the GMA 950. I think you can also allocate more memory to the video on the ATI than the Intel one.

Between Celeron and Sempron, at the same speeds (for this generation of celeron) Sempron beats it.

um.... FALSE. a turion 64 would be the only AMD that would beat the Celeron mobile. But id love for you to try and prove that rediculous statement.

bottom line, if you don't know, don't assume and make false statements. You're just spreading ignorance.

[mystery]

um.... FALSE. a turion 64 would be the only AMD that would beat the Celeron mobile. But id love for you to try and prove that rediculous statement.

bottom line, if you don't know, don't assume and make false statements. You're just spreading ignorance.

Care to post a link proving your point of view?

[ShaTR]

Care to post a link proving your point of view?

nah, i too lazy. Besides, im not the one who's making false statements. ask the other guy to prove his statement first.

but i WILL explain it this way.

celeron M = dothan with 1mb L2 cache and no speedstep. which is the same specs as a banias core Pentium M, (but the banias has speedstep).

As we all know, even early Pentium M's (banias) beat A64's given the same clock speed. not to mention, they have double the L2 cache as their A64 counterparts. so logically, tell me what you would rather have

Sempron 1.6Ghz 512kb L2 cache
Pentium M 1.6Ghz 1mb L2 cache with speedstep disabled

[mystery]

The Sempron 3500+ is 1.8 Ghz, not 1.6, plus it has 'speed step' technology that AMD dubs PowerNow, allowing for longer battery life that the Celeron M can't offer.

[yoshi838]

After full charge, battery shows slightly more than 2 hours of life with Wifi on, and medium brightness.

Added 1GB ram into the laptop and is much better now. I think I am keeping this.

The only thing left to be tested is the DVD burner. I had an Acer about 1.5 years ago. It cannot burn a DVD properly because the mobo they used has only 1 IDE channel... hence HDD and optical drives share the same IDE and data cannot be sent to the optical drive speedy enough to complete a burn @ anything above 2x speed.

Only thing I don't like is the thick frame around the laptop... If they made this a 14", why put the extra plastic to make it looks like a 15.4" from outside...

[ShaTR]

The Sempron 3500+ is 1.8 Ghz, not 1.6, plus it has 'speed step' technology that AMD dubs PowerNow, allowing for longer battery life that the Celeron M can't offer.

well, i was merely arguing Chocolinx statement that "Between Celeron and Sempron, at the same speeds (for this generation of celeron) Sempron beats it.". but i'll bet the celeron 1.6 still beats the sempron at 1.8. especially if the celeron M is a yonah core.

furthermore, tests show that the sempron with PowerNow vs the celeron M have similar battery life regardless of hte semprons added powersaving ability. some model notebooks seem to get better battery life than others, sometimes sporting a celeron, other times a sempron. seems like luck of teh draw, but times are similar enough. and if the celeron M is a yonah core (65nm), it probably will have better battery life.

[mystery]

well, i was merely arguing Chocolinx statement that "Between Celeron and Sempron, at the same speeds (for this generation of celeron) Sempron beats it.". but i'll bet the celeron 1.6 still beats the sempron at 1.8. especially if the celeron M is a yonah core.

furthermore, tests show that the sempron with PowerNow vs the celeron M have similar battery life regardless of hte semprons added powersaving ability. some model notebooks seem to get better battery life than others, sometimes sporting a celeron, other times a sempron. seems like luck of teh draw, but times are similar enough. and if the celeron M is a yonah core (65nm), it probably will have better battery life.

--not without speed step. Now who's talking out of their ***. Try to back up what you say. What kind of lame excuse is 'I'm too lazy'. If you are going to flame someone for saying something without proof, at least you can provide your proof that his statements are incorrect.

[ShaTR]

--not without speed step. Now who's talking out of their ***. Try to back up what you say. What kind of lame excuse is 'I'm too lazy'. If you are going to flame someone for saying something without proof, at least you can provide your proof that his statements are incorrect.

I'm not hte one making incorrect statements, im just correcting other peoples. he made the first statement, and a blatently false one at that, so its his job to prove it to be true.

and i dont know how many laptops you've personally benchmarked, but from my VAST experience, yonah based celerons havfe a very long battery life, usually better than semprons EVEN WITHOUT SPEEDSTEP.

So are you saying that a sempron will get better battery life than a yonah based celeron every time??? Do you as well believe that the celeron is slower than the sempron??? a little off topic, but do you also believe that an San Diego is faster than a dothan???

But wutever, if you guys dont wanna belive me based on steriotypes associated with the name celeron, be my guest. (although, remember the celeron 300a??) It's not like i have anything to gain by you being imformed.

btw, i still bought this laptop ;)

[Aggy]

Picked one up today at Scarb Town BB...lots in stock the guy said, but didn't tell me how many.

[bcti]

The Sempron processor is fine with Vista. I upgraded my Mom's Acer AS3050 to 1 GB and it FLIES.

The video card (Raden Xpress 1100) on this is good as well, far surpassing the ubiqitous Intel GMA 950. It is a bit faster than the Nvidia 6150 as well.

I noticed that the xpress 1100 on this notebook has a better rating in the vista ratings than the 6150. My question is how much better is it than the 6150 when playing games is it anything to consider or should they be considered equal.

[rysx]

BB downtown on Dundas had 20+ units in stock as of last night

[W.I.C]

--not without speed step. Now who's talking out of their ***. Try to back up what you say. What kind of lame excuse is 'I'm too lazy'. If you are going to flame someone for saying something without proof, at least you can provide your proof that his statements are incorrect.

From my own personal experience with Sempron, Celeron and Pentium M notebooks, ShaTR's statements regarding battery life is correct.

I believe Anandtech has (or had) a review from a few years ago which included the Celeron M and Sempron versions of Compaq's budget v2000 series laptops where the Celeron M version had marginally (5-10 mins) to significantly (40+ mins) better battery life in almost every realtime test. The GMA 900/950 GPU likely requires less power than the SIS, Nvidia or ATI onboard GPU's in Sempron based notebooks and undoubtedly this would result in better battery life.

Ah, found the review : http://anandtech.com/mobile/showdoc.aspx?i=2625&p=14 :)

Regardless, if 3D gaming/GPU processing is of high priority get the Sempron based Acer otherwise I would opt for the Celeron M Acer for the extra battery life and "Core 2 Solo" esque processing power...and I may actually do so since the eeePC is no longer desirable :mad:

[jdewit]

Pooh. Bought this for $495 7 weeks ago. Ran like a dog with Vista so I opted for a clean install of XP instead of a RAM upgrade (though I will likely add that soon). Runs decently with XP & 512MB.

Note for others changing to XP: I had difficulty getting the WLAN to work. Use the Atheros Portugese driver. The internal antenna is pretty sensitive - using a Blanc USB wi-fi adaptor I picked up only my immediate next-door neighbour's network. When I finally got the internal wifi working it found eight more networks :)

A portable DVD player with 10" screen runs $200-250 right now, I think. At the very least, this is a 14" DivX dvd player with internet capability. And a DVD burner.

[Chocolinx]

I'm not hte one making incorrect statements, im just correcting other peoples. he made the first statement, and a blatently false one at that, so its his job to prove it to be true.

and i dont know how many laptops you've personally benchmarked, but from my VAST experience, yonah based celerons havfe a very long battery life, usually better than semprons EVEN WITHOUT SPEEDSTEP.

So are you saying that a sempron will get better battery life than a yonah based celeron every time??? Do you as well believe that the celeron is slower than the sempron??? a little off topic, but do you also believe that an San Diego is faster than a dothan???

But wutever, if you guys dont wanna belive me based on steriotypes associated with the name celeron, be my guest. (although, remember the celeron 300a??) It's not like i have anything to gain by you being imformed.

btw, i still bought this laptop ;)

Okay I haven't checked this thread in a while, and I come back an notice I got flamed lol Anyway to straighten out my point: Firstly I wasn't commenting on the battery life at all. I was stating at the processing power of the two laptops the guy picked out. I would never doubt the Intel Mobile CPU's battery life, I know it's better, but most people would usually have an outlet near by if they plan on using their laptop for a game.

I tried checking the link to the Celeron laptop top but Staples seems to have killed the link now (probably no longer in their system).

But from what I've read, the AMD chips have built-in memory controllers allowing for faster reads and writes. Where as Intels usually have the memory controller built on the MB? (Insert Reference Later). Although Intel makes up for this when they add more Cache to the CPU like the Quads that have 4 and 8MB cache. But then it was a Celeron M with either 512KB or 1MB. Anyway out of those 2 laptops it was the AMD that would come out on top. AMD 1.8Ghz over CM 1.6Ghz (referencing this over what you said earlier).

But the difference would be so miniscule, the big kicker was the video, the 1150 should give a better gaming experience on games like Warcraft III and Diablo II.


I noticed that the xpress 1100 on this notebook has a better rating in the vista ratings than the 6150. My question is how much better is it than the 6150 when playing games is it anything to consider or should they be considered equal.

I doubt in real world applications, like Warcraft III, it would make a difference. You'd probably see a difference of like 3-5 FPS. But when playing your games you might want to try to allocate as much RAM as you can to it, it'll make for a smoother gaming experience. And then when back to desktop work, allocate it all back to main memory lol

[agepag]

Hmmm this looks like a pretty good deal for a laptop for home use, plus I need a dvd burner anyways for burning from my camcorder...

[ShaTR]

But from what I've read, the AMD chips have built-in memory controllers allowing for faster reads and writes. Where as Intels usually have the memory controller built on the MB? (Insert Reference Later). Although Intel makes up for this when they add more Cache to the CPU like the Quads that have 4 and 8MB cache. But then it was a Celeron M with either 512KB or 1MB. Anyway out of those 2 laptops it was the AMD that would come out on top. AMD 1.8Ghz over CM 1.6Ghz (referencing this over what you said earlier).

This is true when comparing to the Pentium 4 (Netburst) Architecture. However, celeron M (Dothan) are P6 based (Pentium 3 architecture) and will beat out a 1.8Ghz Sempron with 512kb L2 in the majority of things. Yonah is based Intel's new "core" and would be even faster still.

I'm not sayhing this sempron is a bad chip. quite the opposite. Its closer to a Athlon 64 3000 (dual channel, 512kb L2) than a sempron, and thats a very nice chip. but if you look at what a dothan can do on a socket 479 board(DESTROY an Venice/San Diego A64), then it only makes sence that this celeron can do the same thing to a sempron. It's just logical.

Anyways, just so you guys know. Do with the info as you will.

[waz]

this laptop can take on any ram as long as its DDR2 right?

[agepag]

Ok so for someone who is not to computer savy, such as myself, and wants a laptop for surfing the net, downloading movies, and burning them, this should be fine? I don't feel like spending $1000 on a laptop that 95% of the features I will not use! So please give me the cons of buying this acer for $400 as oppose to something that is double the price. Like I said I don't really know too much about computer, just that they seem to change every 6 months.....

Thanks for you input

[dangerousfob]

this laptop can take on any ram as long as its DDR2 right?

It needs ddr2 sodimms (different from ddr2 dimms from desktops)

Such as

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=11180BD2982&vpn=VS1GSDS667D2&manufacture=CORSAIR




Ok so for someone who is not to computer savy, such as myself, and wants a laptop for surfing the net, downloading movies, and burning them, this should be fine? I don't feel like spending $1000 on a laptop that 95% of the features I will not use! So please give me the cons of buying this acer for $400 as oppose to something that is double the price. Like I said I don't really know too much about computer, just that they seem to change every 6 months.....

Thanks for you input


This should be fine for you. I do suggest putting an extra gig of ram in the machine to get things flowing in Vista.

The only downfall I see in getting this system instead of a $1000 system is that it will run slower, not able to play 3d games too well, and possibly battery life.. Should be ok for what you are using it for...

[Blackjack]

Price up to $599.99 now>:(

[flamenko]

Went to Futureshop tonight and talked them into giving me the below system for 399.

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10090301&catid=

It was the last 'factory fresh and sealed' in their stock and I think they just gave it to me because it was the last and I asked politely.

So...got Vista, the larger hard drive, 1Gb ram, larger display and better graphics for the same price.

Edit...grabbed the 20 buck 'All in one' printer as well.

[yoshi838]

Went to Futureshop tonight and talked them into giving me the below system for 399.
It was the last 'factory fresh and sealed' in their stock and I think they just gave it to me because it was the last and I asked politely.
So...got Vista, the larger hard drive, 1Gb ram, larger display and better graphics for the same price.
Edit...grabbed the 20 buck 'All in one' printer as well.
That is a very good deal. Yet for many of us who is on the road all the time, bigger (screen) is not always better.

I am happy with the Acer 3050 now with 2GB of ram.

[dangerousfob]

In case someone's wondering... there is a free sodimm slot to put in an extra gig. No need to remove any existing dimms

[syncmaster]

for those who want this labtop
bestbuy.ca now has ""93"" unit on their website !!

[agepag]

for those who want this labtop
bestbuy.ca now has ""93"" unit on their website !!

Hmmm, I think I am going to check this out today

[agepag]

That is a very good deal. Yet for many of us who is on the road all the time, bigger (screen) is not always better.

I am happy with the Acer 3050 now with 2GB of ram.


I just called b/b because I want to go and check it out, the guy said for the price its good, but if you want to upgrand the ram its going to cost you $200 so for $599 you can buy a better laptop? What do you guys think?

[flamenko]

Dont ever buy ram at FS or BB because of their prices...

Look around especially here...you will find great prices available.

[Spiderpal93]

I got this yesterday...remove Vista and install XP(a bit of a hassle since you've to download and install the drivers back in) and you are good to go!

So far so good for $399..

[yoshi838]

I just called b/b because I want to go and check it out, the guy said for the price its good, but if you want to upgrand the ram its going to cost you $200 so for $599 you can buy a better laptop? What do you guys think?

Of course I didn't buy the ram from FS/BB...!!

The 2 x 1GB costed me $80 plus tax, and I took the 512MB that came standard into another Toshiba laptop I have.

Vista Home Basic is quite slow... I may revert to XP like many others did.

[weedb0y]

Just picked up this unit for my dad from Markville Mall in Markham.

[killuminati]

any ideas how much an extra battery would cost? Not much details on what kind of battery it uses. Are most batteries the same?

[weedb0y]

I just called b/b because I want to go and check it out, the guy said for the price its good, but if you want to upgrand the ram its going to cost you $200 so for $599 you can buy a better laptop? What do you guys think?

another 1 GIG chip is $39 at Canada computers

[chuckfredgoose]

Of course I didn't buy the ram from FS/BB...!!

The 2 x 1GB costed me $80 plus tax, and I took the 512MB that came standard into another Toshiba laptop I have.

Vista Home Basic is quite slow... I may revert to XP like many others did.

Even with the 2GB?

[isitin]

Bought 2 of them for the kids, not bad for the money.

[cobretti]

Well I have to say it's a good deal for the price...I bought the extra 1Gb today and performance is much better. I am dual booting so ran the Vista index which went from 2.0 to 3.1 with the memory addition. I'll stick to XP as the main OS though.

[bovolu]

Went into bb today to pick one up and every sales person that i talked to tried to convince me that this comp was a piece of garbage. i know its not the best computer but is it that bad? I dont plan on using it for anything serious really. any insight? thanks

[mystery]

Went into bb today to pick one up and every sales person that i talked to tried to convince me that this comp was a piece of garbage. i know its not the best computer but is it that bad? I dont plan on using it for anything serious really. any insight? thanks

It's a solid notebook. I bought one for my mother (before it went on sale for $399), added 512MB and it FLIES. All she does is surf the internet, and do word processing.

It's also a nice size: not too big, not too small.

[rohit_enigma]

it's fine as long as you're not going to use it for gaming or running many applications at once, for basic internet and the occasional word processing, for the price, you simply can't go wrong.

[weedb0y]

Mind you, they know that they aren't making decent margin on this. Hence the push to more $$ laptops.

[killuminati]

http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php?do=ShowProduct&cmd=pd&pid=014086&cid=RAM.187

is that ram fine to add to this machine?

also do I just open the memory compartment in the back and install?

[cobretti]

http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php?do=ShowProduct&cmd=pd&pid=014086&cid=RAM.187

is that ram fine to add to this machine?

also do I just open the memory compartment in the back and install?

Yes and yes - it's the one I bought and no issues

[senow]

Does anybody have a copy of e-recovery?

Ｉ just bought a Acer 3050 two months ago, but I forgot to burn a e-recovery CD/DVD. And right now, I meet a difficuty to reinstall the OS. So I'm wondering could you send me a copy of e-recovery? I'll very appreciate your help.

[cloneman]

Does anybody have a copy of e-recovery?

Ｉ just bought a Acer 3050 two months ago, but I forgot to burn a e-recovery CD/DVD. And right now, I meet a difficuty to reinstall the OS. So I'm wondering could you send me a copy of e-recovery? I'll very appreciate your help.

that's gonna take someone with a huge heart and even fatter internet pipe... that's over 6 gigs of content.

I say put xp on it.

[bluespecv]

I tried putting XP on it but can't seem to get the drivers right from the website. :(

Anyone know what kind of wifi card this uses? is it the Atheros?

[cobretti]

I used the 2 below:

ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_3050/driver/Atheros_WLAN_XB63_Driver_5.1.1.9_XP.zip

ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_3050/driver/Audio%20Driver%20Realtek%20Ver.5.10.0.5273.zip

Another note the modem driver only loads after the audio driver is installed and you have to download hotfix from MS for HD audio:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=74AD4188-3131-429C-8FCB-F7B3B0FD3D86&displaylang=en


HTH!

[mlerner]

If you can get a hold of a copy of an XP OEM CD, you can use that with your product key.

[mystery]

Does anybody have a copy of e-recovery?

Ｉ just bought a Acer 3050 two months ago, but I forgot to burn a e-recovery CD/DVD. And right now, I meet a difficuty to reinstall the OS. So I'm wondering could you send me a copy of e-recovery? I'll very appreciate your help.

Give Acer a call. They may ship you a set of recovery discs (but may charge a bit for it).

[rafiki]

will one extra still of 1gb ram work or would (should) you have 2 sticks of 1gb or just 1 extra stick (2 total) of 512mb because it's dual channel?

[Tonerbox]

I just called b/b because I want to go and check it out, the guy said for the price its good, but if you want to upgrand the ram its going to cost you $200 so for $599 you can buy a better laptop? What do you guys think?

The $599 computer probably will have 1gb(2x512) ram in it, and 1gig ram for vista premium just isn't enough, you would still need to upgrade your ram to at least 1.5gb(of course 2gb would be a lot better), if you just get 1 gb ram, it will cost you about $40. So, even if you get the acer that has 1x512megs ram in it, you still just need to get another $40 1gig stick for it, so to make it 1.5gb. So, either one you get, you will probably spend the same amount of money on ram upgrade.

[yoshi838]

will one extra still of 1gb ram work or would (should) you have 2 sticks of 1gb or just 1 extra stick (2 total) of 512mb because it's dual channel?

Yes extra 1GB will work. Dual channel is not required to boot up the machine. As a matter of fact, I don't think AMD uses this technology anyways... (someone correct me?)

So 1.5GB you are good.

[rafiki]

My next question would be is there a huge performance difference between 1.5gb and 2gb? (Performance increase because of having two 1gb sticks and not because of having 512mb more ram)

I tried googling about dual channel ram, but didn't find anything useful.

[yoshi838]

My next question would be is there a huge performance difference between 1.5gb and 2gb? (Performance increase because of having two 1gb sticks and not because of having 512mb more ram)

I tried googling about dual channel ram, but didn't find anything useful.

2x1GB is what my setup right now. I do not see that much of a difference moving from 1.5GB to 2GB.... I got 2x1GB only because I found a place to put that extra 512MB into an older Toshiba which runs on XP...

[rayl]

how's the Heat and Noise with this laptop?

[yoshi838]

I think it is on par with most other laptops by HP or Toshiba, and of course, far from the what the IBM T- or X- series are.

[jdewit]

I tried putting XP on it but can't seem to get the drivers right from the website. :(

Anyone know what kind of wifi card this uses? is it the Atheros?


Link (http://www.acerpanam.com/flex/acerdrivers/bin/drivers.html?CFID=3423039&CFTOKEN=95497315)
Yes, its the Atheros. I used the 1st one listed, that says in the details "Portugese systems only". Other one didn't work. And install the AMD CPU driver 1st.

[techliquidators]

picked up one of these!
not bad.
killed vista and stuck xp on it.
Well worth every penny!

[senow]

Give Acer a call. They may ship you a set of recovery discs (but may charge a bit for it).

Thanks for your advice. I'll try to call them.

[KenA]

got myself one of these and upgraded to 2gb ram as well... still running a bit slow.. but i guess its the cpu that can't keep up with me now.

[mystery]

Uninstall Norton Internet Security. It is a resource hog.

If you need anti-virus, download the free AVAST.

[KenA]

Uninstall Norton Internet Security. It is a resource hog.

If you need anti-virus, download the free AVAST.

haha i unintalled everything... all the acer stuff went.. and the norton stuff went too..

mine is completely clean with 2 gb ram... avg free.. and daemon tools the only extra software on startup.. but when opening up intense apps like photoshop.. everything just hauls

[mahjongmaniac]

Uninstall Norton Internet Security. It is a resource hog.

If you need anti-virus, download the free AVAST.

true for NIS end-user editions ... but f/ what i heard there's another ed. for businesses(?) that are supposedly MUCH MUCH better.

EDIT: IIRC, it's called the "enterprise ed." of NIS that's supposed to be "good"

[yatta]

pffft why shop at best buy when you can get it on Craigslist for 490!!!

http://toronto.craigslist.org/sys/421333088.html

:rolleyes:

[yoshi838]

pffft why shop at best buy when you can get it on Craigslist for 490!!!

http://toronto.craigslist.org/sys/421333088.html

:rolleyes:
What are you talking about? It is $399 from best buy... who would pay more for a 'used'?

[chuu]

What are you talking about? It is $399 from best buy... who would pay more for a 'used'?

i think that was sarcasism...

Anyways, i bought this computer last saturday and i'm happy with it, i hated how slow and incompatable vista was, it wouldn't even connect to my wireless router, so put xp on it and now it's great, i did have some trouble finding drivers until i found this site http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/forms/acerdrivers.cfm

From there, just use the pdf to download all drivers and you're golden :D

[Spiderpal93]

Have been using this for a week now(posting now using this laptop:cheesygri )

It's a good basic laptop for the price. Just make sure to remove Vista and install XP if you are not putting in extra RAM. It's much much faster with XP and painfully slow with Vista.

[yatta]

What are you talking about? It is $399 from best buy... who would pay more for a 'used'?

lol

[realize]

picked up one of these!
not bad.
killed vista and stuck xp on it.
Well worth every penny!

how are u still picking this lappy up when its oos online and local? well atleast for me anyways

=/

[rayl]

how are u still picking this lappy up when its oos online and local? well atleast for me anyways

=/

sometime local bestbuy put it oos, but they have it, just don't want to let people have in store pick up, have to go to check the local store or call.

[antira]

never mind

[Arcticsilverfox]

Expired deal, but wanted to add a few bit of info.

The Celeron based one that was on sale @ FS for $399 was the 520. This Celly is based on the Merom core, and is quite a bit faster than the Sempron that was being sold @ BB. So the one at FS was the better deal. At FS, you could also get an AIO HP inkjet for $20, which is a good deal as well.

Regarding all this Vista bashing, if you put some more ram in it and do a completely clean install of Vista, it runs great. It only runs like dog poo if you use the stock setup Acer provides, a lot of junk software and processes that don't really do anything. Take the original Vista disc they provide, download the drivers from Acer's site, and do a clean install. Vista is not bad people, it comes down to how you configure it.

Also, clean out the recovery partition on the HDD. It uses up about 8gbs or so, big waste. You'll need to use like a Linux LiveCD to format it, as the windows setup partition manager will not "see" the recovery partition.

[Good]

I've been looking for an entry level laptop for temporary usage in these days. What a pity that I found this thread just now!

However, it's Good. It's good to know this site and I'm expecting for incoming good news.

[Good]

Well, I find this:

http://www.thesourcecc.com/estore/Product.aspx?language=en-CA&catalog=Online&product=2515753

Any comments?

[cloneman]

Well, I find this:

http://www.thesourcecc.com/estore/Product.aspx?language=en-CA&catalog=Online&product=2515753

Any comments?

It's a demonstrator, meaning it's been sitting in a glass case for 8 months sweating.