Acer TravelMate B1

Vote 4 Pedro

Hi, I'm looking to get a smallish laptop for using on my train journey to work, nothing fancy as i have a good desktop at home.
I was thinking 11.6" would be the best size for me, budget is €400 max.
I'm looking at the Acer TravelMate B1 at €375 from elara.ie
I know it would not be the latest or the best but like i said it's just for something to do on the train to break the bordem.
Basically i just wanted to ask if it's any good as i don't want to make the wrong decision and i'd value you opinions before parting with the cash.

It has a Intel Pentium 967 - 1.3GHz which gets 1304 on cpubenchmark/passmark which seems reasonable for the money,

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_TravelMate_B113_Windows_7_Laptop_NX.V7PEK.003/version.asp

http://www.elara.ie/productdetail.aspx?productcode=MME8653D40

Thanks

freestyla

Sounds like good enough for train trips

Pentium is dual core, handles well basic surfing and movie watching but has no hyperthreading and virtualization. Just something to take in concern IF you have applications which requires that.

In other hand, have you look at tablets? should be better choice for that purpose unless you are doing something Windows specific?
There are many good Android tablets (dual or quad core processors) in price range 200-400. These play all multimedia and web surfing stuff better than Pentiums and low-end AMD. Battery life is also way better.

Torqay

Battery life should be OK, it's a ULV processor. But you're right, I'd rather use a tablet on a train ride, unless you plan on doing a lot of typing.

Vote 4 Pedro

Thanks for your replies guys,
I know tablets are great for the money but i would rather have netbook/notebook type rather than a tablet as it may end up with other uses,
If i got a tablet the kids would just end up "borrowing" it and i'd never see it again. maybe i'm just older and more set in my ways but i still prefere the more conventional machine and as long as it's a decent enough thing for the money i'm just about to order it from Laptopsdirect.ie as elara.ie put the price up over €30 since last night

Torqay

If you may end up "other uses" and can afford paying a little bit more, Argos is selling the new ASUS K56CA for €540. A slim (21mm) and robust laptop and yet not too heavy (2.3 kg) with a Core i5 ULV processor. A very good deal all round.

Sleek Design with Full Functionality

The ASUS K56CA grey hairline design gives this notebook a professional look. In spite of its slimness it does not shed critical features necessary for everyday use such as an optical drive or 3 USB ports and a SD card reader. ASUS has focused on build quality, giving the exterior a strong rigid finish and a one-piece molded top casing. In terms of audio, ASUS has included its Sonic Master technology offering powerful sound and a rich base.

freestyla

Can tell from my experience -was difficult decision to give up ageing 12 inch size and 1.7Kg and go for that Asus! And that's when you know you need portability, going to use it on the move weekly, sometimes few times a week.

But processing power wins over smaller size nowadays unless you can afford €800+ for a 13.3" ultrabook/macbook.

There is simply no modern fast 11.6 to 14 inch PC laptop for a decent price. All they got is cheap stripped down incarnations of dual-cores, and not even great battery life.

However, in this particular situation, to use it on a lap for daily train journey to work.. would say 13.3" is max, mainly because of width/depth. Everything wider than that is not easy to position in a small space, turn around, pack/unpack.

Get that Pentium if you are not playing a lot with demanding stuff.. like HD games on a full screen or editing/encoding/outputting HD videos. Pentium has integrated HD2000 graphics.
OR
check if can find 11.6" with AMD E-450 APU processor. This has bad CPU benchmark test results but integrates better graphic card HD6320 with support of DirectX 11 and all kind of fancy video coders. Gives better boost in real life multimedia apps. People even play some games with it.

Between these 2 processors I would decide based on other factors -battery life, connectors (USB 3.0 is here to stay) , screen, keyboard, thickness, color etc.

Whatever you choose:
1. Uninstall bloatware (don't remove hotkey app which lets you use FN key combos) and use maintainance tools frequently -Disk Cleanup weekly and Disk defragmenter monthly. You can schedule to run them automatically.
2. Upgrade to SSD disk as soon as got extra funds. Don't use defragmenter with SSD then!

Vote 4 Pedro

Thanks freestyla,
I ordered the Travelmate today, i think i'll be happy enough with it for what i want it for. just waiting now for it to be delivered.

juicet3rry

Hi,
Just wondering if you're happy with the purchase?
My sister is thinking of picking one of these up for general internet use and with Microsoft Office.
Thanks

Vote 4 Pedro

juicet3rry wrote: »

Hi,
Just wondering if you're happy with the purchase?
My sister is thinking of picking one of these up for general internet use and with Microsoft Office.
Thanks

Hi, I didn't get the B1 in the end, I ordered it from laptops direct but it was out of stock so I cancelled it and bought a Acer Aspire One 756 from Amazon instead

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008MKNSW2/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

Its just about the same as the B1, Its not available now but it was cheaper than the B1 at the time, It's only got a 1.3GHz pentium processer but its fine for Internet and MS Office and even plays some newish games, I've had it nearly 2 months now and its been really good, So I'd say get one.