Introduction:
Asus opened up the netbook segment with the E701 last year. Even though it was promised initially at at 200$ price-point but launched for 400$ and came with a hot (literally!) Celeron 900Mhz running at 630Mhz, Asus was first to market and sold a lot of units. The E701 was an imperfect portable, but a good first attempt by Asus. With no competition, Asus had the house to itself. The HP mini-note and the Everex cloudbook which followed it soon enough were both crippled by the slow Via processors they used. The mini-note is also much more expensive, putting it squarely into the mid-budget laptop category.
As a second iteration, Asus followed up with the (more expensive) 900 series which was again Celeron based and now currently the (even more expensive) 1000 series powered by the new Intel Atom low power processor series. Although Asus had the lead, they seem to have diluted their market with much more expensive models while what consumers really want is better models in the same 400-500$ price bracket. With ever dropping budget laptop prices, you don't want customers getting too confused over which one to buy.
Other companies are running to catch up. MSI came up with the Atom based Wind laptop soon for <500$ and todays subject, the Acer Aspire ONE is the new kid on the block. Having looked at Asus, Acer has the advantage of knowing what to do right the first time. And they had better deliver. Both Dell (the mini) and Lenovo (the Ideapad S10) are waiting in the wings, for what promises to be a competitive year for these companies and a great year for anyone looking for a portable laptop.
With such a competitive market, Acer needed to deliver a notebook which looked good while also keeping the price down, in between the two extremes of the 701 and the HP mini-note. And with the Aspire ONE, I would say they have delivered. With a starting price of 350$ (US $) and the initial 22k approx. pricing (Indian rupees), this is a tempting portable. The Aspire ONE has launched in India with the Xp version first, including 1Gb RAM, a 120Gb HDD and a 3 cell battery (for now).
Surprisingly, there aren't many reviews for the Windows version of the 'ONE' on the Internet.
Most of the direct comparisons in the following review will be with the E701 which I have also used for some time before gifting it to someone. Theres a separate comparison based on features/weight/pricing etc with other netbooks towards the end.
Technical Specifications:
Anyway, first for the main technical specifications for the Aspire ONE:
(Complete specs at acer India - Products View )
Intel® Atom™ processor N270 (1.60 GHz, 533 MHz FSB, 512 KB L2 cache)
Mobile Intel® 945GSE Express Chipset (DDR2 400/533 MHz)
802.11b/g Wi-Fi
Operating System Genuine Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition
Memory DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM 1 GB RAM
Resolution 8.9" WSVGA LED backlight high-brightness (typical 180-nit) Acer CrystalBriteâ„¢ TFT LCD, 1024 x 600 pixel resolution
Audio High-definition audio support
Built-in digital microphone
Hard disk drive: 2.5" 9.5 mm 120 GB HDD
Multi-in-1 card reader:
Acer Crystal Eye webcam, supporting 0.3 megapixel resolution
Dimensions and weight:
249 (W) x 195 (D) x 36 (H) mm (9.8 x 6.7 x 1.42 inches) for SKUs with hard disk drive
As per specs, weight is as follows:
995 g (2.19 lbs.) for SKUs with NAND flash module and 3-cell battery pack, and, 1.26 kg (2.78 lbs.) for SKUs with hard disk drive and 6-cell battery pack.
So, the unit with the HDD and the 3 cell battery will be in between 995g and 1.26g.
Power:
30 W adapter with power cord
24 W 2200 mAh 3-cell Li-ion battery pack
Up to 3-hour battery life for 3-cell battery pack
Ports:
Three USB 2.0 ports
External display (VGA) port
Headphone/speaker/line-out jack
Microphone-in jack
Ethernet (RJ-45) port
DC-in jack for AC adapter
Keyboard 84-key keyboard with 1.6 mm (minimum) key travel
Touchpad pointing device with two buttons 12 function keys, four cursor keys, one Windows® key for Windows® XP Home Power button with LED
Easy-access switches with LED: WLAN.
Colors:
Sapphire blue ONLY for now in India.
Warranty One-year International Travelers Warranty (ITW)
[BREAK=Unboxed, Bundle]
Unboxing the 'ONE':
The original box
The 'ONE' was delivered in a plain brown cardboard box. Having seen the packaging of the E701, I was a bit disappointed till I opened the box. It turns out that its actually a box within a box, with the outer box for transport/carrying purposes etc.
The box inside the box
The whole bundle seems quite well packed. The box is actually quite small, you need to see it to realize the fact. Its smaller than that of the E701, though a bit thicker.
Nice Pamphlet
The funny thing in the box is this warning pamphlet. Its a warning asking you to watch were you keep your fingers when closing the netbook since they could accidentally be placed in the empty space between the bottom of the screen and the base of the netbook. Very considerate though I bet there is an obscure law somewhere forcing them to do the same. Or perhaps just some legal eagle in Acer not wanting to chance a lawsuit!
The Bundle:
The 'ONE' comes with a basic bundle. Theres the user manual/warranty info, power adapter/power cord, 3 cell battery, a sleeve to protect the laptop while you dump it in your bag and the netbook itself. The one thing I found missing was a DVD/CD with drivers etc which was present with the E701. However, as we will see further on, thats not really required.
[BREAK=The Chassis]
The fingerprint magnet
The Acer Aspire ONE is a good looking netbook. After the aluminum clad HP Mini-note, this is the next best looking thing in the market. The exterior is glossy and as expected, it is a fingerprint magnet, especially when people want to look at it and try it out (I had quite a line forming up in my office to try it out). You will need to keep a cleaning cloth handy to keep it smudge-free.
The build quality of the netbook feels quite decent. I have heard stories of how Acer notebooks are flimsy and build quality is not so good but the Aspire 'ONE' shows no such 'flimsiness'. The hinges are sturdy and the keyboard doesn't flex as much as some others I have seen. The body might be plastic but it is put together rather well.
The Screen:
The Screen
Viewing Angles
The 'ONE' has a beautiful 9" LCD backlit screen running at 1024X600. The screen is very well lit and color reproduction is quite good. Viewing angles for an LCD are excellent and I have no complaints over the screen at all. 10" notebooks like the Wind and the E1000 have the same resolution as well, so you are not giving up anything here in terms of real estate. The horizontal resolution of 1024 pixels helps while browsing since a lot of websites are optimized for this width. Horizontal scrolling is kept to a minimum as a result, which is good. Plus another advantage of the smaller screen seems to be the lighter weight/size of this machine as compared to some of its competitors.
Camera, Mic on top
There is a standard 0.3Mp webcam built into the top of the screen along with a microphone to the left. The webcam has decent framerates and average picture quality, similar to any other basic sub-1k webcam available in the market. Low light performance is grainy but still usable for chatting, skype conversations etc.
The Keyboard:
Keyboard
After having used the miniature (cramped!) keyboard on the E701, the 85% (i think) keyboard on the Aspire feels like a blessing for my fingers. While I have small hands and could use the keyboard on the E701, it still felt uncomfortable to use. The keyboard on the Aspire, on the other hand, feels comfortable within a few minutes of use. The keys are all in their right places. Acer even provided separate page down and page up keys which are essential in my opinion on any keyboard.
Also, there are available shortcuts to switch off the screen (for using only for music maybe?) to save battery life as well as to disable the touchpad. Nice additions.
Power Button:
Theres a small recessed power button on the top right hand side that lights up when the machine is powered on.
Lights:
Indicators
There are four indicator lights on the top left of the device above the keyboard for battery/power (red - charging, green - fully charged), hard drive activity, Num Lock and Caps Lock.
Touchpad:
The touchpad on the 'ONE' is a bit unconventional. Similar to the HP mini-note, the touchpad has a widescreen aspect ratio and unusually, the mouse buttons are placed on the sides instead of the top. From a design perspective, this is smart since it helps to reduce the width of the notebook without compro0mising on keyboard or touchpad size. Although it may appear strange at first, one gets used to this minor change relatively quickly. The buttons are firm and provide clear,audible feedback when pressed. The touch pad sensitivity felt comfortable to me although this would probably vary from person to person. Anyone wanting to use this machine for longer stretches should look at getting a notebook mouse to prevent fatigue. I recommend this for everyone who uses a laptop, not only these small netbooks.
The touchpad also has vertical and horizontal scrolling along the edges, though these are not marked.
[BREAK=Chassis (contd.)]
Speakers:
There are two stereo speakers built into the bottom front of the machine which provide basic sound support for the laptop. These are just acceptable for normal use. Volume levels are ok though you would not want to play music at full blast through these basic speakers. Sound seems tinny at louder volumes as might be expected.
Connectivity Options:
Wi-fi Switch
There is a spring loaded sliding switch at the front to enable/disable the Wi-fi capability. There are two lights above the switch to indicate presence of Wi-fi signal. Signal reception seems good. It picked up the Wi-fi network in places where the E701 had a couple of low signal strength issues earlier.
The left of the unit has the RJ-45 100/10 Mbps fast ethernet jack, 1 USB 2.0 port, 1 built-in card reader, the VGA-out port and the port for the power adapter.
SD-Cards can be fully inserted into the reader. This card-reader is marked as 'Storage Expansion'. This is specifically for the Linux version of this netbook. The card-reader is used to expand the 8Gb SSD storage available in that version. The storage for any card inserted into this slot gets automatically added to the total free space available in the SSD. In the windows version, this functionality is redundant due to the 120Gb HDD already present. Hence you actually end up with 2 card-readers.
More on the VGA-out port later on. There is also an exhaust for the fan on the right hand side.
The back of the unit is bare with no connectors, only the hinges which appear quite sturdy. Two red rings at the edges lend a dash of color to the netbook.
The right side of the unit has the remaining 2 USB 2.0 ports, connectors for earphones and a microphone and the second card reader.
Protruding card
The only difference between the two card readers is that this one doesn't let the card sit flush with the body of the netbook. One must be careful not to attempt to force the card into the reader because its NOT going to go completely in. This is strictly a read/copy and remove reader for transferring data etc as you could accidentally strike and damage any card in this reader while carrying the netbook around.
The bottom of the 'ONE' is plain looking. The small 3 cell battery goes into the back of the netbook. The vent below the battery contains an inactive slot for a SIM card, probably for 3G support, if it is enabled later on.
[BREAK=Hardware, Temps, Noise]
The Acer Aspire 'ONE' uses Intel's latest and greatest Atom processor running at 1.6Ghz. The most important feature of the atom is its low power draw (only 4W at full load). However, this is somewhat offset by the antiquated 945 chipset that Intel has paired with this processor. The chipset eats up several times the power used by the processor itself. Hopefully Intel can come up with a more frugal chipset soon designed specifically for the Atom series. A dual core version of the Atom is also expected soon.
GPU-Z correctly recognizes the chipset as a 945:
GPU-Z
The processor has hyper-threading enabled. Hence you see two virtual processors in the task manager window:
Hyperthreading CPU
The latest versions of Coretemp and CPU-Z also correctly identify the Atom processor.
CPU Idle
CPU Load
Interestingly, even though this is inherently a low power/low heat dissipation processor, it still benefits from Intel's speedstep feature. The processor automatically downclocks to 800Mhz when idle and goes back to 1.6Ghz when required as shown.
Temps: Idle and load temps are 73 C and 88 C respectively with coretemp showing a Tj maximum of 125 C for the processor.
Noise: Even at full load the fan doesn’t get very loud though you can feel as it ramps up from idle. It still remains quiet enough. The temperature of the netbook doesn’t exceed the comfort zone and one can continue using it for long stretches as well.
[BREAK=Hardware (contd.)]
The battery identification is as follows in windows:
Battery Info
Power Adapter:
The Adapter (100-240V to 19V DC) is manufactured by Liteon. For a pretty small power brick it has a huge 3 pin plug!
RAM:
The Aspire 'ONE' motherboard has only 1 RAM slot. The saving grace is that 512Mb of DDR2 RAM is directly soldered on the motherboard itself.
The Linux version ships with only 512Mb RAM and hence the slot is empty and can be added to later.
The windows version ships with 1Gb of RAM which will be 512 Mb soldered on the board and a 512Mb stick in the RAM slot. The machine supports a maximum of 1.5Gb of RAM and hence a 1Gb stick max. can be added in the RAM slot.
HDD:
The hard-drive is a Seagate 2.5" SATA laptop hard drive spinning at 5400rpm (this one: Seagate Technology - Momentus 5400.4 SATA 3Gb/s 120-GB Hard Drive )
The performance of the HDD is pretty decent. HDTune gave the following information about the hard drive:
HDTune Info
HDTune Bench
NOTE:
Now we come to one of the negatives of this lovely machine. Even though 120Gb of hard drive space and 1 Gb RAM on a netbook running Windows Xp should be sufficient for most of us, there will always be some who want to upgrade these two things. The only problem is that there are no access slots built into the bottom of the chassis. So upgrading these two things involves disassembling the netbook. I couldn't try the same for fear of retribution from the owner of the 'ONE'. But then someone who wants to upgrade these wont be put off by such minor inconveniences.
[BREAK=VGA-Out Tested]
Now before we go onto the software, I am going to cover my favorite feature in this laptop. Of course the same or something pretty similar is present in other netbooks too, but anyway….
Most of us are going to use this as a secondary/download machine and will carry it around. However, when you are back home, you might want to plug this into a normal monitor. After all, why look at a 9†screen when you can look at a 19�
The video out on this thing is pretty impressive. I hooked it up to my Dell 19†SE198wfp (1440X900). I just had to set the resolution once and it was all set. The best part is that the next time you connect the VGA-out, it remembers the last resolution used.
Both *.avi (XviD @ 500kbps) and *.mp4 (h.264 @ 600kbps) files played properly on it without a hitch at 1440X900.
That’s not the only part, the video out button gives you multiple options:
i.Laptop screen active.
ii.Both laptop and monitor screen active (@ same resolution)
iii.Only monitor screen active.
iv.Projector mode: Both screens active at 800X600 res.
TV-Out Options
[BREAK=BIOS, Software]
BIOS:
Main Screen
Boot Options
The BIOS of the 'ONE' is very basic. The only 2 screens worth mentioning are the first screen showing hardware information about the processor etc and the Boot priority screen showing the many different options available for Boot including USB disks and USB optical drives.
Software:
The 'ONE' comes with Windows Xp Home preloaded. The good part is that SP3 is already installed, thus saving you from downloading and installing a ton of updates when you connect to the Internet for the first time.
Installed Programs:
Other software included are:
1. McAfee Internet Security 60day trial: My recommendation, dump this the first chance you get and install a free lightweight anti-virus like Antivir, AVG etc in its place.
2. Microsoft Works: Free copy. Keep it or replace with OpenOffice as per your preference.
3. Microsoft Office Home/Student version: 60 Day trial.
4. InterVideo WinDVD: Useless for a netbook with no optical drive! It doesn’t even play *.avi or *.mp4 files. Uninstall as soon as possible.
5. Misc. software like adobe reader 8, drivers etc
6. Acer Ez Recovery: Now this is my favorite piece of software provided by Acer and the reason why Acer didn't bother to provide a driver/ recovery DVD/CD. The software provides a one-touch recovery process that restores your drive to the condition it was when you first got the 'ONE'. The interface is basic and helpful enough with two options: either a complete restore or an option to install drivers/default programs etc.
Windows Recovery GUI
Partition Recovery
Now the partition structure as well while we are on the topic of recovery:
The recovery partition still has about 2 Gb of free space which we can reclaim using a suitable tool for resizing partitions.
As a test, I tried web browsing using Firefox. Browsing using the Firefox F11 option (full screen) looks really sweet:
NOTE:
1. I suggest a backup of C: once using Acronis just to have a backup in case your Hard Disk crashes (god forbid!) taking the recovery partition with it. There is still around 100Gb of free space available for use.
2. If you still want drivers, you can either try the recovery partition (It does contain various installs, like Adobe reader etc), or download them. They are available on the Acer ftp site.
[BREAK=Benchmarks]
Benchmarks:
I wasn't able to run many benchmarks on the machine. Both PCMark and Sandra had some issues and I had the notebook for very limited time so I couldn’t spend much time on troubleshooting the same. Though for a netbook I don't think you need many of those anyway. Performance is the same as the MSI Wind and the Asus E1000H since they share the same processor/motherboard chipset combination.
Winrar In-built Benchmark:
Winrar 3.71
Everest Benchmarks:
[BREAK=Battery Life, The Challengers]
Battery Life:
Acer claims a battery life of 3 hours with the included 2200 mAh 3-cell battery. While this does seem inflated like all manufacturers, with sound/wifi off and screen brightness set to minimum, and with the notebook just sitting there doing nothing, a battery life of 2hr:50min+ is achievable.
I had the netbook for a short while so couldn't do extensive battery testing.
One test I did run is as follows:
Speakers on medium, Screen brightness on medium, Wifi off. I started playing a movie. The 'ONE' lasted for 2Hr:10min in this test.
Note that this involved continuous hard drive access. And no-one realistically needs full brightness for this netbook at least. So for normal net browsing purposes, a battery life of 2hr:30 min is definitely achievable.
While this is decent and not great, Acer has announced a 6-cell version of the 'ONE' already in the USD along with a larger 160Gb HDD for the SAME price as the existing 120Gb/3 cell battery model and has dropped the price of this model by 50$. The 6-cell has a battery life of ~5 hrs or more and should be a good deal. Its a good idea to buy the 6Cell battery separately once its available.
The Competition:
1. The Asus 900: The 900 is similar in pricing to the 'ONE' (in India). However, it runs the hot Celeron 900Mhz processor and is lacking in HDD space as well thus putting it out of the picture.
2. The MSI Wind and the Asus 1000H: Both these machines are nearly identical though the MSI comes with a 3-cell battery compared to the 6cell on the Asus. Pricing on both is in the 25-26k range currently as per reports. Hard drive space in these both is again smaller than the 'ONE'. Even on the weight front, the 'ONE' has a smaller 9" screen (same resolution though) which might be the reason for the lower weight. Hence the 'ONE;' is more comfortable to carry around. Build quality is good while that of the MSI Wind at least has been criticized (weak hinges).
3. Lenovo Ideapad S10 and Dell Mini: Both of these machines are expected soon and should provide a wide variety for consumers to choose from. Competition is always good for us. As of now, we have to wait and see where these fit in terms of features and value for money.
[BREAK=Conclusion]
Conclusion:
Pricing:
In India: Available at a price of Rs 21750 (including tax) with a 1 year international travelers warranty, the Acer Aspire 'ONE' is a steal. The icing on the cake will be once the 6cell/160Gb HDD version gets here. I pray that Acer prices it at the same price and drops the price on the existing version thus making it even more tempting.
Both the MSI Wind (and its re-badged avatar, the HCL MT04) and the Asus 1000H will need some serious price cuts to remain viable over the Acer Aspire 'ONE'.
Pros:
1. Cool running Atom processor
2. Roomy 120Gb hard drive
3. Sweet 9" LCD (1024X600) keeping it lightweight
4. Best pricing out of all netbooks available in India.
Cons:
1. No Bluetooth (Dongle required, using up 1 USB port)
2. 3 Cell battery (6 Cell coming soon, existing users should get it separately, later buyers: this con is gone)
Bottom line:
With missing bluetooth (USB dongle anyone?) and a 3cell battery, the Acer may not be the perfect netbook, but for now, with the sweet 9" screen, the roomy 120Gb hard drive, the coming 6cell battery and with this pricing, Acer is going to sell a lot of these.
PS:
Thanks to:
1. My friend who let me play with the laptop before he had even touched it.
2. Shripad for all his guidance on the quick review, where to post pics, and watermarking them as well.
UPDATE:
1: I had put in a query on the acer site and got a call from one of their marketing/sales guys in charge. As per him, the 6cell batt will be available as an accessory soon, but you will need to get it separately. wouldnt say anything on a 6cell version or exact costs (~4k) or any coming price drops.
2: Theres ALSO a version of the aspire one available WITHOUT XP, ALL OTHER SPECS same. Retails for <19.9k
3. Added on digg:
Digg - Acer Aspire One Netbook review: Windows version.
4. Price Update:
Acer Aspire One 120/linux 17500/-
Acer Aspire One 160/linux 18000/-
Acer Aspire One 120 xph 19500/-
Acer Aspire One 160 xph 20000/-
Asus opened up the netbook segment with the E701 last year. Even though it was promised initially at at 200$ price-point but launched for 400$ and came with a hot (literally!) Celeron 900Mhz running at 630Mhz, Asus was first to market and sold a lot of units. The E701 was an imperfect portable, but a good first attempt by Asus. With no competition, Asus had the house to itself. The HP mini-note and the Everex cloudbook which followed it soon enough were both crippled by the slow Via processors they used. The mini-note is also much more expensive, putting it squarely into the mid-budget laptop category.
As a second iteration, Asus followed up with the (more expensive) 900 series which was again Celeron based and now currently the (even more expensive) 1000 series powered by the new Intel Atom low power processor series. Although Asus had the lead, they seem to have diluted their market with much more expensive models while what consumers really want is better models in the same 400-500$ price bracket. With ever dropping budget laptop prices, you don't want customers getting too confused over which one to buy.
Other companies are running to catch up. MSI came up with the Atom based Wind laptop soon for <500$ and todays subject, the Acer Aspire ONE is the new kid on the block. Having looked at Asus, Acer has the advantage of knowing what to do right the first time. And they had better deliver. Both Dell (the mini) and Lenovo (the Ideapad S10) are waiting in the wings, for what promises to be a competitive year for these companies and a great year for anyone looking for a portable laptop.
With such a competitive market, Acer needed to deliver a notebook which looked good while also keeping the price down, in between the two extremes of the 701 and the HP mini-note. And with the Aspire ONE, I would say they have delivered. With a starting price of 350$ (US $) and the initial 22k approx. pricing (Indian rupees), this is a tempting portable. The Aspire ONE has launched in India with the Xp version first, including 1Gb RAM, a 120Gb HDD and a 3 cell battery (for now).
Surprisingly, there aren't many reviews for the Windows version of the 'ONE' on the Internet.
Most of the direct comparisons in the following review will be with the E701 which I have also used for some time before gifting it to someone. Theres a separate comparison based on features/weight/pricing etc with other netbooks towards the end.
Technical Specifications:
Anyway, first for the main technical specifications for the Aspire ONE:
(Complete specs at acer India - Products View )
Intel® Atom™ processor N270 (1.60 GHz, 533 MHz FSB, 512 KB L2 cache)
Mobile Intel® 945GSE Express Chipset (DDR2 400/533 MHz)
802.11b/g Wi-Fi
Operating System Genuine Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition
Memory DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM 1 GB RAM
Resolution 8.9" WSVGA LED backlight high-brightness (typical 180-nit) Acer CrystalBriteâ„¢ TFT LCD, 1024 x 600 pixel resolution
Audio High-definition audio support
Built-in digital microphone
Hard disk drive: 2.5" 9.5 mm 120 GB HDD
Multi-in-1 card reader:
Acer Crystal Eye webcam, supporting 0.3 megapixel resolution
Dimensions and weight:
249 (W) x 195 (D) x 36 (H) mm (9.8 x 6.7 x 1.42 inches) for SKUs with hard disk drive
As per specs, weight is as follows:
995 g (2.19 lbs.) for SKUs with NAND flash module and 3-cell battery pack, and, 1.26 kg (2.78 lbs.) for SKUs with hard disk drive and 6-cell battery pack.
So, the unit with the HDD and the 3 cell battery will be in between 995g and 1.26g.
Power:
30 W adapter with power cord
24 W 2200 mAh 3-cell Li-ion battery pack
Up to 3-hour battery life for 3-cell battery pack
Ports:
Three USB 2.0 ports
External display (VGA) port
Headphone/speaker/line-out jack
Microphone-in jack
Ethernet (RJ-45) port
DC-in jack for AC adapter
Keyboard 84-key keyboard with 1.6 mm (minimum) key travel
Touchpad pointing device with two buttons 12 function keys, four cursor keys, one Windows® key for Windows® XP Home Power button with LED
Easy-access switches with LED: WLAN.
Colors:
Sapphire blue ONLY for now in India.
Warranty One-year International Travelers Warranty (ITW)
[BREAK=Unboxed, Bundle]
Unboxing the 'ONE':
The original box
The 'ONE' was delivered in a plain brown cardboard box. Having seen the packaging of the E701, I was a bit disappointed till I opened the box. It turns out that its actually a box within a box, with the outer box for transport/carrying purposes etc.
The box inside the box
The whole bundle seems quite well packed. The box is actually quite small, you need to see it to realize the fact. Its smaller than that of the E701, though a bit thicker.
Nice Pamphlet
The funny thing in the box is this warning pamphlet. Its a warning asking you to watch were you keep your fingers when closing the netbook since they could accidentally be placed in the empty space between the bottom of the screen and the base of the netbook. Very considerate though I bet there is an obscure law somewhere forcing them to do the same. Or perhaps just some legal eagle in Acer not wanting to chance a lawsuit!
The Bundle:
The 'ONE' comes with a basic bundle. Theres the user manual/warranty info, power adapter/power cord, 3 cell battery, a sleeve to protect the laptop while you dump it in your bag and the netbook itself. The one thing I found missing was a DVD/CD with drivers etc which was present with the E701. However, as we will see further on, thats not really required.
[BREAK=The Chassis]
The fingerprint magnet
The Acer Aspire ONE is a good looking netbook. After the aluminum clad HP Mini-note, this is the next best looking thing in the market. The exterior is glossy and as expected, it is a fingerprint magnet, especially when people want to look at it and try it out (I had quite a line forming up in my office to try it out). You will need to keep a cleaning cloth handy to keep it smudge-free.
The build quality of the netbook feels quite decent. I have heard stories of how Acer notebooks are flimsy and build quality is not so good but the Aspire 'ONE' shows no such 'flimsiness'. The hinges are sturdy and the keyboard doesn't flex as much as some others I have seen. The body might be plastic but it is put together rather well.
The Screen:
The Screen
Viewing Angles
The 'ONE' has a beautiful 9" LCD backlit screen running at 1024X600. The screen is very well lit and color reproduction is quite good. Viewing angles for an LCD are excellent and I have no complaints over the screen at all. 10" notebooks like the Wind and the E1000 have the same resolution as well, so you are not giving up anything here in terms of real estate. The horizontal resolution of 1024 pixels helps while browsing since a lot of websites are optimized for this width. Horizontal scrolling is kept to a minimum as a result, which is good. Plus another advantage of the smaller screen seems to be the lighter weight/size of this machine as compared to some of its competitors.
Camera, Mic on top
There is a standard 0.3Mp webcam built into the top of the screen along with a microphone to the left. The webcam has decent framerates and average picture quality, similar to any other basic sub-1k webcam available in the market. Low light performance is grainy but still usable for chatting, skype conversations etc.
The Keyboard:
Keyboard
After having used the miniature (cramped!) keyboard on the E701, the 85% (i think) keyboard on the Aspire feels like a blessing for my fingers. While I have small hands and could use the keyboard on the E701, it still felt uncomfortable to use. The keyboard on the Aspire, on the other hand, feels comfortable within a few minutes of use. The keys are all in their right places. Acer even provided separate page down and page up keys which are essential in my opinion on any keyboard.
Also, there are available shortcuts to switch off the screen (for using only for music maybe?) to save battery life as well as to disable the touchpad. Nice additions.
Power Button:
Theres a small recessed power button on the top right hand side that lights up when the machine is powered on.
Lights:
Indicators
There are four indicator lights on the top left of the device above the keyboard for battery/power (red - charging, green - fully charged), hard drive activity, Num Lock and Caps Lock.
Touchpad:
The touchpad on the 'ONE' is a bit unconventional. Similar to the HP mini-note, the touchpad has a widescreen aspect ratio and unusually, the mouse buttons are placed on the sides instead of the top. From a design perspective, this is smart since it helps to reduce the width of the notebook without compro0mising on keyboard or touchpad size. Although it may appear strange at first, one gets used to this minor change relatively quickly. The buttons are firm and provide clear,audible feedback when pressed. The touch pad sensitivity felt comfortable to me although this would probably vary from person to person. Anyone wanting to use this machine for longer stretches should look at getting a notebook mouse to prevent fatigue. I recommend this for everyone who uses a laptop, not only these small netbooks.
The touchpad also has vertical and horizontal scrolling along the edges, though these are not marked.
[BREAK=Chassis (contd.)]
Speakers:
There are two stereo speakers built into the bottom front of the machine which provide basic sound support for the laptop. These are just acceptable for normal use. Volume levels are ok though you would not want to play music at full blast through these basic speakers. Sound seems tinny at louder volumes as might be expected.
Connectivity Options:
Wi-fi Switch
There is a spring loaded sliding switch at the front to enable/disable the Wi-fi capability. There are two lights above the switch to indicate presence of Wi-fi signal. Signal reception seems good. It picked up the Wi-fi network in places where the E701 had a couple of low signal strength issues earlier.
The left of the unit has the RJ-45 100/10 Mbps fast ethernet jack, 1 USB 2.0 port, 1 built-in card reader, the VGA-out port and the port for the power adapter.
SD-Cards can be fully inserted into the reader. This card-reader is marked as 'Storage Expansion'. This is specifically for the Linux version of this netbook. The card-reader is used to expand the 8Gb SSD storage available in that version. The storage for any card inserted into this slot gets automatically added to the total free space available in the SSD. In the windows version, this functionality is redundant due to the 120Gb HDD already present. Hence you actually end up with 2 card-readers.
More on the VGA-out port later on. There is also an exhaust for the fan on the right hand side.
The back of the unit is bare with no connectors, only the hinges which appear quite sturdy. Two red rings at the edges lend a dash of color to the netbook.
The right side of the unit has the remaining 2 USB 2.0 ports, connectors for earphones and a microphone and the second card reader.
Protruding card
The only difference between the two card readers is that this one doesn't let the card sit flush with the body of the netbook. One must be careful not to attempt to force the card into the reader because its NOT going to go completely in. This is strictly a read/copy and remove reader for transferring data etc as you could accidentally strike and damage any card in this reader while carrying the netbook around.
The bottom of the 'ONE' is plain looking. The small 3 cell battery goes into the back of the netbook. The vent below the battery contains an inactive slot for a SIM card, probably for 3G support, if it is enabled later on.
[BREAK=Hardware, Temps, Noise]
The Acer Aspire 'ONE' uses Intel's latest and greatest Atom processor running at 1.6Ghz. The most important feature of the atom is its low power draw (only 4W at full load). However, this is somewhat offset by the antiquated 945 chipset that Intel has paired with this processor. The chipset eats up several times the power used by the processor itself. Hopefully Intel can come up with a more frugal chipset soon designed specifically for the Atom series. A dual core version of the Atom is also expected soon.
GPU-Z correctly recognizes the chipset as a 945:
GPU-Z
The processor has hyper-threading enabled. Hence you see two virtual processors in the task manager window:
Hyperthreading CPU
The latest versions of Coretemp and CPU-Z also correctly identify the Atom processor.
CPU Idle
CPU Load
Interestingly, even though this is inherently a low power/low heat dissipation processor, it still benefits from Intel's speedstep feature. The processor automatically downclocks to 800Mhz when idle and goes back to 1.6Ghz when required as shown.
Temps: Idle and load temps are 73 C and 88 C respectively with coretemp showing a Tj maximum of 125 C for the processor.
Noise: Even at full load the fan doesn’t get very loud though you can feel as it ramps up from idle. It still remains quiet enough. The temperature of the netbook doesn’t exceed the comfort zone and one can continue using it for long stretches as well.
[BREAK=Hardware (contd.)]
The battery identification is as follows in windows:
Battery Info
Power Adapter:
The Adapter (100-240V to 19V DC) is manufactured by Liteon. For a pretty small power brick it has a huge 3 pin plug!
RAM:
The Aspire 'ONE' motherboard has only 1 RAM slot. The saving grace is that 512Mb of DDR2 RAM is directly soldered on the motherboard itself.
The Linux version ships with only 512Mb RAM and hence the slot is empty and can be added to later.
The windows version ships with 1Gb of RAM which will be 512 Mb soldered on the board and a 512Mb stick in the RAM slot. The machine supports a maximum of 1.5Gb of RAM and hence a 1Gb stick max. can be added in the RAM slot.
HDD:
The hard-drive is a Seagate 2.5" SATA laptop hard drive spinning at 5400rpm (this one: Seagate Technology - Momentus 5400.4 SATA 3Gb/s 120-GB Hard Drive )
The performance of the HDD is pretty decent. HDTune gave the following information about the hard drive:
HDTune Info
HDTune Bench
NOTE:
Now we come to one of the negatives of this lovely machine. Even though 120Gb of hard drive space and 1 Gb RAM on a netbook running Windows Xp should be sufficient for most of us, there will always be some who want to upgrade these two things. The only problem is that there are no access slots built into the bottom of the chassis. So upgrading these two things involves disassembling the netbook. I couldn't try the same for fear of retribution from the owner of the 'ONE'. But then someone who wants to upgrade these wont be put off by such minor inconveniences.
[BREAK=VGA-Out Tested]
Now before we go onto the software, I am going to cover my favorite feature in this laptop. Of course the same or something pretty similar is present in other netbooks too, but anyway….
Most of us are going to use this as a secondary/download machine and will carry it around. However, when you are back home, you might want to plug this into a normal monitor. After all, why look at a 9†screen when you can look at a 19�
The video out on this thing is pretty impressive. I hooked it up to my Dell 19†SE198wfp (1440X900). I just had to set the resolution once and it was all set. The best part is that the next time you connect the VGA-out, it remembers the last resolution used.
Both *.avi (XviD @ 500kbps) and *.mp4 (h.264 @ 600kbps) files played properly on it without a hitch at 1440X900.
That’s not the only part, the video out button gives you multiple options:
i.Laptop screen active.
ii.Both laptop and monitor screen active (@ same resolution)
iii.Only monitor screen active.
iv.Projector mode: Both screens active at 800X600 res.
TV-Out Options
[BREAK=BIOS, Software]
BIOS:
Main Screen
Boot Options
The BIOS of the 'ONE' is very basic. The only 2 screens worth mentioning are the first screen showing hardware information about the processor etc and the Boot priority screen showing the many different options available for Boot including USB disks and USB optical drives.
Software:
The 'ONE' comes with Windows Xp Home preloaded. The good part is that SP3 is already installed, thus saving you from downloading and installing a ton of updates when you connect to the Internet for the first time.
Installed Programs:
Other software included are:
1. McAfee Internet Security 60day trial: My recommendation, dump this the first chance you get and install a free lightweight anti-virus like Antivir, AVG etc in its place.
2. Microsoft Works: Free copy. Keep it or replace with OpenOffice as per your preference.
3. Microsoft Office Home/Student version: 60 Day trial.
4. InterVideo WinDVD: Useless for a netbook with no optical drive! It doesn’t even play *.avi or *.mp4 files. Uninstall as soon as possible.
5. Misc. software like adobe reader 8, drivers etc
6. Acer Ez Recovery: Now this is my favorite piece of software provided by Acer and the reason why Acer didn't bother to provide a driver/ recovery DVD/CD. The software provides a one-touch recovery process that restores your drive to the condition it was when you first got the 'ONE'. The interface is basic and helpful enough with two options: either a complete restore or an option to install drivers/default programs etc.
Windows Recovery GUI
Partition Recovery
Now the partition structure as well while we are on the topic of recovery:
The recovery partition still has about 2 Gb of free space which we can reclaim using a suitable tool for resizing partitions.
As a test, I tried web browsing using Firefox. Browsing using the Firefox F11 option (full screen) looks really sweet:
NOTE:
1. I suggest a backup of C: once using Acronis just to have a backup in case your Hard Disk crashes (god forbid!) taking the recovery partition with it. There is still around 100Gb of free space available for use.
2. If you still want drivers, you can either try the recovery partition (It does contain various installs, like Adobe reader etc), or download them. They are available on the Acer ftp site.
[BREAK=Benchmarks]
Benchmarks:
I wasn't able to run many benchmarks on the machine. Both PCMark and Sandra had some issues and I had the notebook for very limited time so I couldn’t spend much time on troubleshooting the same. Though for a netbook I don't think you need many of those anyway. Performance is the same as the MSI Wind and the Asus E1000H since they share the same processor/motherboard chipset combination.
Winrar In-built Benchmark:
Winrar 3.71
Everest Benchmarks:
[BREAK=Battery Life, The Challengers]
Battery Life:
Acer claims a battery life of 3 hours with the included 2200 mAh 3-cell battery. While this does seem inflated like all manufacturers, with sound/wifi off and screen brightness set to minimum, and with the notebook just sitting there doing nothing, a battery life of 2hr:50min+ is achievable.
I had the netbook for a short while so couldn't do extensive battery testing.
One test I did run is as follows:
Speakers on medium, Screen brightness on medium, Wifi off. I started playing a movie. The 'ONE' lasted for 2Hr:10min in this test.
Note that this involved continuous hard drive access. And no-one realistically needs full brightness for this netbook at least. So for normal net browsing purposes, a battery life of 2hr:30 min is definitely achievable.
While this is decent and not great, Acer has announced a 6-cell version of the 'ONE' already in the USD along with a larger 160Gb HDD for the SAME price as the existing 120Gb/3 cell battery model and has dropped the price of this model by 50$. The 6-cell has a battery life of ~5 hrs or more and should be a good deal. Its a good idea to buy the 6Cell battery separately once its available.
The Competition:
1. The Asus 900: The 900 is similar in pricing to the 'ONE' (in India). However, it runs the hot Celeron 900Mhz processor and is lacking in HDD space as well thus putting it out of the picture.
2. The MSI Wind and the Asus 1000H: Both these machines are nearly identical though the MSI comes with a 3-cell battery compared to the 6cell on the Asus. Pricing on both is in the 25-26k range currently as per reports. Hard drive space in these both is again smaller than the 'ONE'. Even on the weight front, the 'ONE' has a smaller 9" screen (same resolution though) which might be the reason for the lower weight. Hence the 'ONE;' is more comfortable to carry around. Build quality is good while that of the MSI Wind at least has been criticized (weak hinges).
3. Lenovo Ideapad S10 and Dell Mini: Both of these machines are expected soon and should provide a wide variety for consumers to choose from. Competition is always good for us. As of now, we have to wait and see where these fit in terms of features and value for money.
[BREAK=Conclusion]
Conclusion:
Pricing:
In India: Available at a price of Rs 21750 (including tax) with a 1 year international travelers warranty, the Acer Aspire 'ONE' is a steal. The icing on the cake will be once the 6cell/160Gb HDD version gets here. I pray that Acer prices it at the same price and drops the price on the existing version thus making it even more tempting.
Both the MSI Wind (and its re-badged avatar, the HCL MT04) and the Asus 1000H will need some serious price cuts to remain viable over the Acer Aspire 'ONE'.
Pros:
1. Cool running Atom processor
2. Roomy 120Gb hard drive
3. Sweet 9" LCD (1024X600) keeping it lightweight
4. Best pricing out of all netbooks available in India.
Cons:
1. No Bluetooth (Dongle required, using up 1 USB port)
2. 3 Cell battery (6 Cell coming soon, existing users should get it separately, later buyers: this con is gone)
Bottom line:
With missing bluetooth (USB dongle anyone?) and a 3cell battery, the Acer may not be the perfect netbook, but for now, with the sweet 9" screen, the roomy 120Gb hard drive, the coming 6cell battery and with this pricing, Acer is going to sell a lot of these.
PS:
Thanks to:
1. My friend who let me play with the laptop before he had even touched it.
2. Shripad for all his guidance on the quick review, where to post pics, and watermarking them as well.
UPDATE:
1: I had put in a query on the acer site and got a call from one of their marketing/sales guys in charge. As per him, the 6cell batt will be available as an accessory soon, but you will need to get it separately. wouldnt say anything on a 6cell version or exact costs (~4k) or any coming price drops.
2: Theres ALSO a version of the aspire one available WITHOUT XP, ALL OTHER SPECS same. Retails for <19.9k
3. Added on digg:
Digg - Acer Aspire One Netbook review: Windows version.
4. Price Update:
Acer Aspire One 120/linux 17500/-
Acer Aspire One 160/linux 18000/-
Acer Aspire One 120 xph 19500/-
Acer Aspire One 160 xph 20000/-
hyeah: wait for a month and then decide 
n this keypad is a nightmare in comparison with the Acer and every other 9/10' i guess 
