Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3 Review: A True 15-inch Ultrabook Discussion

One simple problem has been troubling us since the arrival of the ultrabook category of thin, Intel-based premium laptops last year: Ultrabooks don't really deliver premium performance. Acer hopes to change that with the new Aspire Timeline Ultra M3; the first 15-inch ultrabook with high-performance NVIDIA GeForce 640M graphics inside. Can a thin-and-light ultrabook really give you "ultra" performance?

Read the full content of this Article: Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3 Review: A True 15-inch Ultrabook

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well if its meant to be "thin desktop replacement", then 3 flaws you mentioned doesn't matter..
nice graphics performance, btw

 

Wish they hadn't cheaped out on the display so much. A 1440x900 display would make this perfect.

On another note, is it normal for notebooks nowadays to come without mic jacks? (I haven't been keeping up with the latest notebooks for a while now)

 

martynas, you are correct. If you are using the Ultra M3 as a thin desktop replacement then none of the "cons" I mention in the review really matter. That said, I think at least "some" people who buy this ultrabook will still want to use it as a "laptop" from time to time.

darrickmartin, I wouldn't be surprised if Acer releases a configuration of the M3 with a better display. Acer usually has multiple SKUs for every model and based on what I understand Acer views the Timline Ultra M3 to be a top-of-the-line ultrabook ... so it would make sense to offer a version with a premium 1080p (or at least 1600x900) display.

The headphone jack is actually a "headset" jack so you can plug in headphones, a microphone or a combination headset. Yes, this is a growing trend with thin and light laptops because there isn't as much room for ports. That said, this is a 15-inch machine so Acer probably could have used separate headphone and microphone jacks if they wanted.

 

4.4 pounds? It's not an ultrabook. It's just another freaking laptop.

Coming next: 6.5 pound 17-inch "ultrabooks". Come on!

No backlit keyboard = fail.

Power button - Uber-fail.

Come to think of it, I'll just call it the Failbook.

 

Little harsh don't you think? Sure the power button is a fail but for they squeezed every ounce of power out of that form factor while keeping a long lasting battery life thats actually better than advertised (something you barely see).

The price of this would be a turnoff for me though, when will they have that?

 

I would be very surprised. The lack of higher resolution display has been the Timeline's most obvious shortcomming of this flagship model for the past 3 generations. At least the 14" is not likely to have a higher res option IMO.

As far as price, my bet is that Acer keeps this in line with past prices and lists a base I5 model at $850ish.

 

I remember the new CEO's focus on high-end... So, resolution???

 

oooohhh nice laptop but the powerbutton sure is a deal breaker for me.

I cringe at the thought of losing important work after accidently pressing the powerbutton on my lap

major fail

 

I strongly disagree. Consumers don't want to pay because they don't know any better. If the displays were marketed better and consumers get to experience them they will want these better displays. Regardless, the cost is not much more...certainly less than $100 per display.

The Sony SE 15.5" laptop with an IPS display on display at a local shop here in town simply wows the heck out of everyone who sees it, even with the panels "orangegate" issues. It is night and day better than any laptop display I have ever seen.

 

Commenting on the review, I bet it's the wireless card making all the heat. SSD's are not very hot.

If the basic Acer Ultrabook (S3 Series) is $799-$1199 and every single one of them has the same 13.3 inch 1366x768 display, then they need to have an upgraded model with an upgraded display. The M3 should have been that model. 1366x768 and 1440x900 and 1600x900 don't cut it. 1080p or bust, people!

Acer, if you're listening, I'm a low-end customer who has bought 5 laptops and a desktop from you totaling over $3K in the last two years. I'm in the market for a laptop with an HD display, quad core Sandy Bridge i7 processor, full size keyboard with numberpad, webcam, DVD burner, the works. I expect to spend $800-$1000 or more on this laptop. Won't you offer an HD display in something so I don't have to go to the competition? Because they have them. I see Dell, HP, ASUS, MSI, Toshiba, and Sony all have 1920x1080 displays on good speedy laptops and it's pretty sad you've abandoned this end of the market.

I could care less if it's labeled an "Ultrabook" or weighs 3 pounds or 8 pounds. Laptop to me means a computer I can set on the bedside table in a hotel room, plugged into the wall, with a wireless mouse in hand. It won't get used in my lap. I'd rather have HDMI-out and a 17 inch display than light weight or longer battery life.

 

Simple settings change will fix it so the power button does nothing when the computer is on. The deal breaker is its going to come with a 5400 RPM hard drive (based on the other models they have released.) And im not paying that much for a laptop just to have to put an actual useful hard drive in it.

 

Consumers don't want to pay more because they do not know any better? That goes against the way the whole thing works. Manufacturers market the crap out of everything else that a basic consumer would never need (16MP in a point and shoot camera anyone?) so why not a nicer screen on a laptop? They will make more money on it also.

Average consumers do not care about a screen, they care about cpu/hdd/ram/appearance. The more discerning consumer cares about viewing angles, port placement, and backlit keyboards. But this is why the makers should give us the option. But it is easier to change the memory/hdd configurations than it is to change the screen.

 

Why not putting a standart voltage Ivy Bridge CPU on this unit? Why not offering a higher resolution? I agree with others skeptical about the classification of this notebook. I don't think this is an ultrabook. 2 kilograms of weight is just funny for an ultrabook.

Again, I'm insisting on the CPU question. Ivy Bridge CPUs will be producing less heat than the Sandy Bridge CPUs, because of the 22nm architechture. So, put a standart voltage in this one and let it become a real ultra-thin gaming monster! As we all see, CPU benchmark is a failure, which led to a bottleneck for GPU. Acer is wasting the potential of this GPU with an ULV CPU. Furthermore, if GT 640M is a Kepler one, it will be a pity.

Acer; please surprise me, do your best just this once and release this notebook with a greater panel, greater resolution, greater CPU and a better locationed power button.

 

Acer will be selling configurations of this giant ultrabook with Ivy Bridge ... but they won't be using standard voltage Ivy Bridge unless those CPUs fit within the thermal limits of the chassis. As I mentioned in the review, there's already a nasty hot spot on the bottom of this machine so I'm sure Acer will be careful about putting in any CPU with higher TDP.

As for the CPU serving as a performance bottleneck for the GPU, the GT 640M did GREAT in our tests even with the ho-hum low-voltage i5 processor. Keep in mind that this is part of NVIDIA's "GT" family and not a "GTX" card. Yes, the new GT 640M exceeds the performance of last year's GTX 555M and isn't too far off from the GTX 560M, but it's a GT card.

My point is that I would have a hard time criticizing this GPU even when paired with an average low-voltage CPU.

 

How will the GT 640M compare to the 7660D in the upcoming A10?

Edit:

I found my answer.

AMD A10-5800K - 9396 3DMark 06
GT 640M - 9591 3DMark 06

So it is close. I wonder if the A10 variant will make it into any laptops. I read there is a low wattage version to the 5800 (5700 i believe) that has the same 7660D.

 

The real variable will be in-game performance and texture rendering. NVIDIA should have some impressive things to show with Kepler. Rumors are that NVIDIA has some impressive changes to AA to help create smoother, more life-like textures in games without sacrificing frame rates. I should know more about how the upcoming AMD Radeon mobile GPUs perform in game within the coming weeks.

 

Just a question; is there a card named GTX 555M? Because I couldn't find it on the web. There is only one card with number 555 and it's GT 555M. Could you be making a little mistake here?

 

You are correct. 555M is GT class not GTX. GTX in the 500M series starts with the 560M.

 

Very interesting laptop. I may be in the market for very portable but gaming capable laptop soon (Diablo 3 is just around the corner ). I haven't kept up with notebooks, I've noticed this new "ultrabook" trend though, and I now I know that this Acer is the first one I could actually buy for gaming.

It is definitely unfortunate about the lower screen resolution, and I suppose the 5400 rpm hard-drive as well. I don't think the power button will be an issue for me, and as someone else stated, Windows allows you to easily change the button to do nothing. Also, 3 USB ports is a little on the short side.

My biggest concern is the heat issue you mentioned. Some of you might remember the prevalent heat issue with the 8600M GT (which I'm running, and I've discovered is 5 years old now!!).

Can you comment any more on the high heat levels you registered, i.e. will that have short (freezing, artifacts etc.) or long-term (more freezing, artifacts, failure) on any of the components? I presume if the heat is simply on the frame and somehow not actually on any internal component, then it could be a non-issue, however I have my doubts.

Also do you have any insight into price? If I could grab one for $1000 CAD or less, I might be able to overlook this notebook's shortcomings.

 

I have been diligently waiting for a ultrabook with a GPU like this but man does the design totally blow. I might possibly still get it if no other OEMs come out with some of the same caliber, but I will be sad every time I look at the thing. Every laptop should have to come with a backlight KB now, its just soo much better because I always use my laptops at night and if I cant see the keys, how am I going to type fast or game fast. ACER needs to redesign this ultrabook, use some carbon fiber to shed weight and make it sturdier and it will add on to the looks.

 

This laptop is almost perfect but why on earth does it have such a puny resolution? My 13" laptop from 2008 has the same resolution! This is a 15" for crying out loud.

 

Ports at the back are by no means "Cons" !! How can the ports at the back be considered as "Cons" ?? Can someone explain ??
In the past I had about 10 laptops that have ports at back, now working on a modular Fujitsu X9525 (every designer/engineer should learn from this model). Even the new Fujitsu laptops follow the DUMB left/right ports positioning !! I cannot find myself an upgrade notebook, because the new laptop designers ARE SO DUMB. Did I said EXTREMELY DUMB !?

A+++++++++++ for this Acer Ultra M3 model. THUMBS UP.