Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 13.3-Inch Ultrabook

Mar 2
08:16

2012

Roberto Sedycias

Roberto Sedycias

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The Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 has just made it harder to determine whether to purchase a full-sized laptop or to stay with a Mac Book Air-style micro-laptop, also known as a netbook, as the Acer has features that rival full-sized laptops at a fraction of the size and weight.

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The Acer Aspire is one of the more interesting netbooks to have appeared on the market in the last few months. Obviously inspired by the rival MacBook Air-style micro-laptop,Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 13.3-Inch Ultrabook Articles the Aspire has features that are aimed directly at its Apple rival, although it seems to have outdone the Mac in one or two areas.

The common area where the Acer and the Apple compete directly is in the processor where both use Core I5 Intel second-generation high-speed processors. The Acer runs at 1.6 GHz and, if it is like other Intel-based products, it is likely to include a Turbo boost mode that will shoot its speed briefly up to 3 GHz. It will also support up to 4GB of DDR memory.

Where it outshines the Apple product is in its display. It uses the latest generation Intel-based 3000 high-definition, high-resolution chipset that puts the Aspire into the 1366 by 768 high-definition club as it runs at the native resolution for this sized screen. It also runs in a screen mode of 16:9 which is also high-definition standard. These features, combined with an HDMI output means that you can easily interface this with a high-definition monitor and, thanks to its Dolby sound system and its built-in AcerSonic stereo speakers, your netbook can be the heart of a full-fledged high-definition video and audio system.

It is true the MacBook Air does allow flash drives of up to 64 GB, but, the Acer is no slouch in this department. The MacBook Air lives by the flash drive system, while the Acer uses it as a jumping off point. You can save all you are going to the 20 GB memory flash drive as you shut down. If you need to start right up again, then it takes about two seconds for the flash to load your screen and you're back in business as the Windows 7 machine pulls all of the apps up that you were using instantly.

The place where the MacBook and the Acer differ is in long-term storage as the Acer offers a standard 320 GB SATA hard drive. This means that you can quickly back up your flash memory to disk and keep on working. The Aspire could also acquire more storage, as it supported another digital card reading port. There is was also a port through which you could upload separate video memory so you could expand the amount of memory available in the 1066 front-side bus ultrabook (ultra/netbook).

The Acer's memory support included 128 MB of video memory which helped the 13.6-inch high-definition Widescreen CineCrystal in its high-definition modes. The color palette is rich with vibrant colors and bright whites. This supports a wide ranging contrast capability so that blacks are richer and highlights can be brighter. The screen is also video-ready having a 16:9 video ratio built in.

Network-ready, the Aspire can find and "remember" hotspots so that one seldom loses touch with the Web at the built-in radio supports WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, all standards that are either used in public hotspots (n) or at home in older routers (b/g). The Aspire also supports standard USB ports and 1 HDMI, high-definition port that includes HDCP support. It also sports a 1.3MP front-facing camera for videoconference.

Bluetooth capable, the Aspire supports Bluetooth 4 so once you have paired any of the many devices now on the market that support Bluetooth, you can have access to that device without extra wires. Bluetooth is used today in more than just cellphones as it is also used to interface microphone/speaker options and more.