Ultra Portable? Look no further...

DefiantAsh

DefiantAsh

DefiantAsh

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13.3" Acer S3 Ultrabook.


Don't know much about it other than the words said in the video, its only a hands on, don't think its been released yet, but looks promising.

It also has that eagerly awaited integrated touchpad like the Macbooks, so it seems like a pretty nice machine, slick, thin, and looks like a competitor with a quoted "up to 6 hours battery" as said in the video as well.

I will browse for more specs and update :)
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Some articles

http://www.gizmag.com/acer-unveils-aspire-s3/19722/

The Aspire S3 has a 13.3-inch, high definition, LED-backlit display and will be powered by a choice of Intel Core i3/i5/i7 processors, with storage offered as either a 240GB SSD or 320GB/500GB HDD with embedded SSD to cater for fast startup. Acer is making a big play over its Acer Green Instant On technology, which may result in users putting their S3's into sleep rather than switching off given that standby battery life is claimed to be in the region of 50 days.

If the Ultrabook is just having a light snooze, Instant On is said to wake the device to full operation in just 1.5 seconds, while a Deep Sleep takes a touch longer at 6 seconds. Acer goes on to say that Instant Connect will get users online in a super fast 2.5 seconds. Once up and running, the battery is claimed to offer some 7 hours of usage between charges.

A new airflow design (including fan optimization) is said to dissipate warm air away from the rear of the notebook, Acer saying that any warm components have been positioned away from where the user has contact with the notebook so users won't feel any heat discomfort.

Other specs detailed include cinema-style surround sound audio courtesy of Dolby Home Theater v4, an integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam for high resolution video conferencing or online chat over an 802.11b/g/n wireless connection, Bluetooth 4.0, a 2-in-1 media card reader, a full-size HDMI out port and some USB ports.

The Aspire S3 Ultrabook also features a full-size chiclet-style keyboard, which we found rather strange to use because of the short travel to the keys. We also noticed that the steady stream of IFA attendees wanting to get their hands on Acer's new baby had left its mark on the space bar on one of the demonstration units, which barely functioned at all. The plastic trackpad that sits underneath also left us seriously wanting given the spacious glass offering on the MacBook Air.

Acer will start rolling out its S3 this month at prices starting from EUR799 (we've no word on U.S. pricing at the time of writing).
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If true, 799euro is a very impressive price for something with so much power yet so portable. As well as being a healthy competitor to the Current range of Macbook Airs :)

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http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/369679/acers-debut-ultrabook-boasts-50-day-deep-sleep-battery

Acer has become one of the first PC manufacturers to launch an "Ultrabook", Intel's ambitious attempt to breathe new life into the laptop market, writes Sasha Muller at IFA in Berlin.

Several PC manufacturers have ushered in Ultrabooks - Intel's term for a new class of exceptionally small and lightweight laptops - at the Berlin tech showcase.

Acer's Aspire S3 Ultrabook partners a "mainstream" price with "uncompromising performance", according to the company. Measuring 13mm at its thinnest, and 17mm at its thickest point, the magnesium-alloy chassis of the S3 weighs a claimed 1.3kg.

The ultra-slim 13.1in, 1,366 x 768 LCD is actually bonded to the aluminium lid to keep it as thin as possible, and Acer's "thermal comfort" design moves all the hot-running components away from the wrist-rest, and positions them near the single exhaust vent at the rear of the laptop, which blows hot air away from the user.

Read more: Acer's debut Ultrabook boasts 50-day "deep sleep" battery | News | PC Pro http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/369679/...oasts-50-day-deep-sleep-battery#ixzz1X6zPryU9

InstantON technology allows the Aspire S3 to resume from sleep in under two seconds, and Acer claims 50 days of standby time in the laptop's "deep sleep" mode.

A claimed battery life of seven hours puts Acer's Ultrabook just behind Lenovo's claims of eight hours for its IdeaPad U300s, but Acer gave no details of battery capacity or the type of battery testing conducted.

Intel's low-voltage second-generation Core processors take centre stage, and we expect Acer to follow suit with the other manufacturers by using a 1.6GHz Core i5-2547M CPU.

With models available with both traditional HDDs and SSDs, Acer said that pricing would range from 799 Euro (around £700) for the entry-level model, right up to 1,199 Euro (£1,050) for the SSD-equipped version, but made no mention of UK pricing. The S3 should arrive at the end of September.

Read more: Acer's debut Ultrabook boasts 50-day "deep sleep" battery | News | PC Pro http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/369679/...oasts-50-day-deep-sleep-battery#ixzz1X6zU5E13
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http://crave.cnet.co.uk/laptops/acer-aspire-ultrabook-s3-thinner-than-macbook-air-50004979/

A new Acer laptop that rivals the MacBook Air not only for looks, but specs too? No wonder we were a little giddy when we reported the leak a few weeks ago.

Well we were wrong. Turns out we weren't excited enough about it, and now the S3 is official, we can confirm it's thinner and cheaper than the MacBook Air. Apple, it's on.

The S3 is Acer's entry into the Ultrabook category, a new type of laptop made possible by Intel shrinking its Atom chips. (Think netbooks on steroids.) The screen is the same size as the top tier 13.3-inch MacBook Air, yet the Aspire Ultrabook S3 is just 13mm thick. That's thinner than the Air, at certain parts only, admittedly, but impressive nonetheless. It also tips the scales at an impressive 1.4kg, which is just a little more than the equivalent MacBook Air.

There's no confirmed UK-specific price yet, but we do have a European one we're thinking isn't far off the money. And the good news is it starts at just €799 (about £700), compared to the MacBook Air's £849. Oh yes.

And it's quick too with a choice of ultra low voltage Core i3, i5 or i7 CPUs. You can have a solid state or normal hard drive, and it's no slouch to get going, waking from sleep in 1.5 seconds and finding and connecting to Wi-Fi hotspots in about 2.5. That's a lot quicker than us in the morning.

Because it's an Ultrabook you can expect low consumption, meaning a mammoth 50 day battery life (in deep sleep mode) and low electricity bills. Good news all round.

The S3 will hit Europe in the next few weeks, we'll bring you a full review as soon as we can.
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Some pictures

aspires3-0.jpg


aspires3.jpg
 
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Looks well... like a MBA. Plastic inside and no backlit keyboard though.

Although at £800 for the base spec (i3, 320gb HDD) this doesn't seem like a great buy to me, you can get an i5 MBA with a 128gb SSD, higher res screen, backlit keyboard etc. for not that much more (£940).

Hopefully it'll sell for less than the RRP.
 
Raikiri said:
Looks well... like a MBA. Plastic inside and no backlit keyboard though.

Although at £800 for the base spec (i3, 320gb HDD) this doesn't seem like a great buy to me, you can get an i5 MBA with a 128gb SSD for not that much more (£940).

Hopefully it'll sell for less than the RRP.
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I've just seen some pricing and indeed it doesn't at the moment, maybe once it hits market (late september i think) then maybe it will come out of the light and some decent pricing will follow.

As i can't see people taking this over a MBA for the same price margin (i wouldn't think) as the MBA offers so much, and for build quality too.

But its the first Notebook (windows based) i've seen with the integrated mousepad/touchpad, im surprised Apple haven't trademarked it and filed a law-suit over Acer :)

As for pricing too, with Sony, Lenovo and ASUS all making ultra-portable notebooks, i assume they will have similar sizes when they release their one models, which may decrease the price slightly, maybe? As there isn't much contest at the mo in comparison to the MBA Top Spec for ultra-portability :)
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http://crave.cnet.co.uk/laptops/acer-aspire-ultrabook-s3-thinner-than-macbook-air-50004979/

Apparently it is thinner than the current range of MBA's :) (only selected areas are thinner though)
 
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Raikiri said:
Yeah, it looks good but unless it's a fair bit cheaper I can't see it being a viable option over the MBA.

Lenovo have some new 'ultra books' coming out as well which looks pretty good, using a similar touchpad and again are very slim. http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/01/lenovo-announces-u300s-ultrabook-u300-and-u400-ideapads-we-go/
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Wow, they look amazing, better than the Acer as well, seen how thin that screen is on the top picture :eek:

Say whatttttt!!!!!!!111111!!!!1
 
I wonder how these will compare to the ultra thin notebooks already on the market such as the Samsung series 9 and the Lenovo x1 and to an extent the Sony Z series (although that's not really a competitor to these). They are a bit more expensive and already have click touchpad (afaik). I'm still not entirely sure what the differences between these new machines and the above actually are.
 
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