Acer Aspire TimelineX 3830TG-6431

You don't find many 13-inch laptops with discrete graphics for less than $800, nevermind one that looks like this. Acer's new $779 Aspire TimelineX 3830TG-6431 (price as reviewed) weighs just 4.2 pounds, yet it packs both a second-gen Intel Core i5 processor and Nvidia GeForce GT 540M graphics. Like blue? Then you'll definitely want to take a look at this vibrant metallic chassis. Read on to find out if this Timeline has what it takes to win you over.

Design

One of the most intriguing designs from Acer yet, the Aspire TimelineX 3830TG sports a very unique cobalt-blue metallic lid and matching palm rest. The thin chassis is chiseled in flat planes and blunt edges, held together by a solid cylindrical hinge. Framed in silver, the recessed keyboard has black keys, which match the display's hinge and glossy frame.
This retro-futuristic look isn't for everyone, but we're glad to see someone adding a splash of color to laptops. Like an increasing number of 13-inch notebooks, this one lacks a DVD drive.

Above the keyboard sits a long speaker bar prominently bearing the Dolby Home Theater moniker. A power button glows blue next to the speaker, while the status lights gleam in blue and orange on the notebook's front lip. The undercarriage is a plain black plastic punctuated with slotted vents.
Measuring 12.6 x 9 x 0.9 inches and weighing 4.2 pounds, the TimelineX 3830TG is slim enough to slip into laptop bags and carry around without any trouble. That's the same weight as the ASUS U31JG and lighter than other 13-incher, the Samsung SF310 (4.6 pounds). The 13-inch Toshiba Portege R835 is much lighter (3.2 pounds), but it doesn't offer discrete graphics.
Unfortunately, Acer saddles the TimelineX 3830TG with a big and heavy (1.2-pound) power brick and a three-prong adapter. A small two-prong power adapter would make much more sense for a system this svelte.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The Aspire TimelineX 3830TG uses a chiclet-style keyboard with square island keys. The Enter key is oddly shaped, kind of like what you'd find on a typewriter, but overall we found typing comfortable. On the far right of the keyboard sit Home, Pg Up, Pg Dn, and End keys, which double as multimedia controls.
Measuring 3 x 1.5 inches, the Synaptics touchpad on the TimelineX 3830TG is fairly small for a 13-inch notebook. By comparison, the ASUS U31JG (3.1 x 1.8 inches), Toshiba Portege R835 (3.3 x 2 inches), and the Samsung Series 9 (3.9 x 2.7 inches) all provide more surface area. In fact, Acer's Aspire One D260 netbook has the same size touchpad as this Timeline.
Nevertheless, the touchpad proved responsive when moving the cursor. Pinch-to-zoom worked smoothly, but performing this gesture felt cramped because of the pad's small size. Under the touchpad are two discrete mouse buttons that click with authority without being too stiff.

Heat

The TimelineX 3830TG got a little toasty on our heat tests. After we streamed a 15-minute Hulu video, the touchpad measured 93 degrees, the keyboard's center reached 96 degrees, and the underside hit 100. The typical thin-and-light laptop delivers cooler temperatures in the same spots (87, 89, 92). We consider anything over 95 degrees to be uncomfortable. We can also verify that the notebook felt warm in our lap through jeans, though not alarmingly so.

Display and Audio

Equipped with a 13.3-inch (1366 x 768-pixel) widescreen display, the TimelineX 3830TG offered a fairly bright picture with natural colors when watching an episode of Fringe in 720p on Hulu. However, like most glossy panels, this one is prone to reflections.

With a long speaker bar above the keyboard proclaiming "Dolby Home Theater. Professionally Tuned", the TimelineX 3830TG raises your expectations for a quality audio experience. And this laptop delivers. With the Dolby enhancement turned on, Linkin Park's "Bleed it Out" got nice and loud with minimal distortion when we cranked up the volume. You can select three settings, depending on the entertainment: Game, Movie, and Music.

Webcam and Ports

The TimelineX 3830TG offers three USB ports, one being high-speed USB 3.0. Other offerings include an HDMI port to output HD video to TVs and monitors, VGA for SD video, Ethernet, and a 5-in-1 media card reader. There's also headphone and mic jacks, plus a Kensington security lock.




In our test Skype calls and recorded movies, video recorded by the 1.3-megapixel camera looked clear. However, color fidelity ranged widely depending on the lighting conditions. By windows, colors were too warm, verging on orange and red. Under our office's fluorescent lights, images were a bit dark and had a bluish tinge.

Source

Posted in: notebook Acer