Considering buying an Acer laptop...

Hi there!

I'm considering buying an Acer Laptop, the Aspire 2000 actually. I've been doing alot of research and so far from what I've gathered is that Acer is so far the best I've come across. I plan on doing alot of CAD work on it, Drafting, DVD playback, and maybe playing a game here or there...[ ] It does not have to be super mobile and weight is not a factor at all. What I do want from it is that I would like the Centrino chip for it has less heat problems and the longer battery life. Do you all think the Aspire 2000 is overkill for what I'm doing? Oh and this will be a desktop replacement as well. Can anyone suggest any other Acer laptop that would take it's place? Money isn't that much of a factor. I've gotten some quotes and the Aspire 2000 will roughly cost $2600(canadian). I was also considering a Dell but have heard some iffy stuff about them. Any help and suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Be Different...Like Everyone Else...

 

I agree, the 2000 is a great laptop. However; you did say "It does not have to be super mobile and weight is not a factor at all." in which case I would suggest the 1700 series, its huge and battery life is poor but it screams for a more than decent price point.

Much like Mike Tyson vs Evander Holyfield's Ear, there is only one clear winner in the Dell vs Acer debate--and it isn't Dell.

Edit: I forgot to mention, what does your name imply? Curious to know. It reminds me of a short story my Grandpa told us--he used to take a straw, shove it into a frog's anus, blow it up and watch it swim around and try to dive to the bottom (it obviously couldn't). After tiring of this he would shoot it with a BB gun.

 

Salut Lord des canadiens,

You seem to be looking for an interesting combo, full-sized notebook with relatively long battery life. These days, it seems that the bigger the notebook (especially past 8 pounds), the shorter the battery life. Big notebooks tend to have big processors.

You should ignore the whole Centrino label, which is just an Intel marketing gimmick, and focus on the Pentium M, if that is indeed what you're looking for. If possible, check out this thread on this forum for info on the Pentium M and Centrino: http://www.notebookreview.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=129

You definitely did not make a bad choice in identifying the Aspire 2000 as an overall attractive notebook. If you haven't seen it already, here's a review: http://reviews.cnet.com/Acer_Aspire_2000/4505-3121_7-30589601.html?tag=pdtl-list

If weight isn't a factor AT ALL, then how about the 14-pound/6.4-kilo Acer Aspire 1710? Just make sure to not put on a flimsy desk/table [ ].

As for Dell vs. Acer, I too would opt for Acer.

Vive Paul Martin!

 

I was just at BJ's Warehouse today.

They are selling Acer Travelmate 230 for $899 only!!
w/ 512mb, 15in screen, DVD/CD-RW combo, Wireless network..etc.

Too bad, I've already purchased Ferrari 3000. [B)]

 

I just purchased my Acer Aspire 2002Lci in Toronto for $2095(cdn before taxes) and I love it after 3 weeks of daily use. I mostly draft CAD using AutoCAD and the screen is fantastic - especially the wide aspect ratio, it allows you to have the properties dialog open all the time and still get a 4:3 screen ratio. The screen is beautiful to look at, I was hoping for a higher res screen like 1400X1050, but drafting on this 1280X800 is perfectly adaquate especially if turn ClearType on. The Centrino is fantastic, especially in 3D, the Radeon9200 is OpenGL compliant, so I also run 3dsmax and Sketchup which flies on the laptop - out pacing a Pentium 4 2.8Ghz in real-time 3D model rendering.

I've posted my pros & cons for this baby onto the other thread in this forum regarding new acer owners

Good Luck - I highly recommend it - especially for CAD!

 

I was just considering to buy an Acer Aspire 2000WLMCi. I have actually ordered it already and am waiting for it to come...in 2 weeks[ ]
but I'm convinced it's the best laptop in relation performance/battery life.
and i really like the idea of a 4 in 1 memory card slot.
btw, as i have understood, there's a bluetooth button...but no bluetooth connected...is it possible to connect bluetooth?
any further opinions on this laptop would be appreciated...

 

Unfortunately the Bluetooth option isn't available to north america. The slot and wiring harness is accessible in the battery compartment - so theoretically the enduser can install it - but I have phoned Acer and cannot obtain the bluetooth module. However if anyone else has any other ideas or a more positive experience than I, I would gladly like to know about it.

I posted my pros & cons list to here:
http://www.notebookreview.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=563

 

I read in the CNET review of the ACER ASPIRE 2000, that the keyboard is uncomfortable and was badly placed in design. Anyone on here have first hand experience with one, and could perhaps shed some light on the situation.

HILL

 

hi did anyone experienced system lockups while running 3dsmax with a notebook with a screenresolution of 1280x800?

 

After mre than 2 months, I can tell you that the keyboard is as comfortable as any other laptop I've ever tried (at least these newer design ones where the keyboard is near the top with the palm rest towards you). Its not too far up as the review suggest - in fact almost all the current crop of laptops are around the same location - so I don't really understand CNET's rant. Yes the mouse buttons are a little stiff, but you can program the corners of the touch pad to act as the right and left mouse buttons - which is better than the physical buttons anyways.

I've ben running 3dsmax r4 on it and its perfectly stable. Have you configured it for OpenGL? Is it a legit version of the program?

Aspiring fan

 

hi,
Im using 3dsmax 5.1 tried both openGL and DirectX and it is a legit version. thx for the reply