Update: The Live Testing session is over. Some notes below.
I’ve just started a live stream while I test the Acer Aspire V5 122P, the AMD Temash-based laptop. The stream will run from now and at 2100 Berlin (15 minutes from this post) I’ll start to introduce the Acer and do some interactive active testing, Q&A with anyone that joins in the chat.
I previously highlighted AMD Temash as a potentially good platform for a mobile Windows 8 experience and after my first tests today I’m more convinced that we’ll see some interesting high-value Windows 8 designs including low-cost touch-enabled tablets. I’ve just received an Acer Aspire V5-122P running on the Temash platform (A6-1450) and have some first test results and thoughts for you in a video.
Update: Detailed A6-1450 performance tests are being performed here.
The Acer Aspire V5 122P is an 11.6” sub-notebook running on an AMD Temash processor which I’ve highlighted before as being potentially interesting for mobile Windows 8 because it, theoretically, offers performance that sits between netbooks and Ultrabooks while offering very good efficiency. I’ve unboxed the Acer V5 122P and found a well-balanced, very good value touchscreen notebook that could appeal to many people looking at the sub-$500 bracket. It’s not an Ultrabook in terms of raw performance but it feels like it hits a nice sweet-spot.
The Acer Aspire V5 has always been a notebook to keep an eye on. It’s not quite an Ultrabook but comes with a very nice price which probably explains why it appears to have been a big seller. Variants range from an AMD C-70 version with an 11.6” screen at netbook pricing up to a Core i5 with 15.6″-inch touchscreen and 750GB drive. An AMD Temash A6-1450 4-core 1Ghz with 1.4Ghz Turbo is also now available. The 11.6-inch screen will be multi-touch and the price about $450. We’ve ordered one.
Use the European comparison engine Skinflint.co.uk today and do a search for Core i5 Ivy Bridge laptops with a screen size up to 13.9” and a weight of under 1.5KG [link] and you’ll find about 32 solutions. 5 of them are Apple MacBook Air solutions, 11 of them are Ultrabook alternatives over 1000 Euros and the rest are Ultrabooks…apart from one which sits nearly 30% cheaper than any other offering. Take the screen size limit down to 11.6” and the Acer V5-171-53314G50 is about half the price of any 11.6 Ultrabook out there; and it’s very difficult to see where the differences are.
The 11.6” version of the V5 (AKA as the Aspire One in low-end version) will launch at an entry-level price of €499. There was talk of discreet graphics, Core CPU and optical drives but this only applies to larger models with 14 and 15” screens. There will be a V5 11.6” with Core CPUs though and later this year you can expect an update to Ivy Bridge.
It’s an interesting low-cost ultrathin option although we’re seeing a rather small battery and learning that there won’t be an SSD version. The Acer Aspire One will be targeted at the netbook market although with no Atom versions planned, it’s an indicator of price and not performance.
Acer just launched an 11.6” ‘ultra-thin’ notebook that might interest some looking for Ultrabook alternatives. Pricing starts at €499 and there are options for Nvidia discreet graphics (GT640M,) but only in the larger 14 and 15” versions.
The 11.6” version is going to be targeted at two markets. The netbook market will receive a low-cost ‘Aspire One’ version of this with Pentium or Celeron CPUs (no Atom version) but there will be a V5 version with Core CPUs. Target weight for the 11” version is 1.4KG. Launch is expected in Q2 but there’s talk of upgraded versions with Ivy Bridge versions later in the year. The screen resolution for the 11.6” version will be 1366×768
Update: The Live Testing session is over. Some notes below.
