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Following yesterday's announcement of the Lenovo U300s ultrabook, Acer and Toshiba have thrown their hats into the ring: Acer with its Aspire S3, and Toshiba with its Portege Z830.

Let's start with the similarities: Both feature a 13.3" screen with a 1366×768 resolution, Sandy Bridge ULV processors, DDR3 memory, an HDMI port, an SD card reader, wi-fi, a webcam, and bluetooth. Both also feature SSDs of varying capacities, though the Aspire S3 will offer a higher-capacity but slower mechanical HDD option (sources indicate that HDD models will feature an embedded SSD to retain the fast boot times required by Intel's Ultrabook spec, but specifics are hard to come by). Both will also launch later this year: Toshiba is commiting to November, while Acer declined to be more specific.

And the differences: the Toshiba model also features built-in Ethernet, a VGA port, a backlit keyboard, and a third USB port, while the Acer model is slightly thinner at 0.51 inches but heavier at about 3 pounds (the Toshiba is 0.63 inches high and weighs about 2.5 pounds, though it should be noted that the weight of each model may vary based on component selection). The Toshiba will also be cheaper, starting at around ,000 (compared to the Acer's ,179).

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Looking at these early Ultrabooks, it's becoming clear that these laptops, like netbooks before them, are going to have to fight to differentiate themselves. In these particular models, this is mostly being done with ports: the Acer is the only one to lack a wired Ethernet port, while the Toshiba is the only to offer a VGA out and a third USB port.

This sort of heavy competition can be good, to a point, but I'm hoping we don't see the same thing we already see in the netbook and low-end laptop market: dozens of unexciting computers that are, for most intents and purposes, indistinguishable from one another.

Source: BusinessWire, PCMag

LAPTOP MAKER Acer has announced its line of Aspire Timelinex laptops with updated design and specifications.

Acer has announced two series of laptops in as many days with the Timelinex range following hot on the heals of the Aspire Ethos series that we saw yesterday. The line-up consists of three different sizes that Acer has said will be available from 1 August.

The three options are a 13.3in 3830T model, a 14in 4830T model and a larger 15.6in 5830T model. They will all have Cinecrystal LED displays with 1366×768 resolution.

These laptops span from 22.2mm up to 31mm in thickness. Weight-wise the smallest weighs 1.87kg and the largest weighs 2.49kg.

Much like the Aspire Ethos models, the Timelinex laptops are equipped with Intel’s range of Sandy Bridge Core i processors. There is the option of Nvidia Geforce discrete graphics and up to 750GB of internal storage. You can also opt for a solid state drive for improved performance.

Connectivity includes HDMI and USB 3.0 ports as well as WiFi, Bluetooth and a 1.3MP webcam.

Acer said the Timelinex laptops will have 25 per cent more power than last year’s series. This apparently equals to up to 10 hours of battery life on a single charge. As with the Ethos series Acer claims that the battery will last over 1,000 charge cycles, which supposedly means a total lifespan of up to 4 years.

Acer’s Timelinex series seems to be quite similar to its Ethos range except with more of a focus on portability and less on multimedia features. µ

LAPTOP MAKER Acer has announced two Aspire Ethos laptops for the multimedia enthusiast, which include detachable touchpads that double as remotes.

The Aspire Ethos series laptops will be available later this month starting at £999. There are two different sizes including a standard 15.6in model and a beastly 18.4in version.

The screens are Cinecrystal LED backlit units that offer full HD 1920×1080 resolution on the 18.4in model and 1366×768 on the smaller 15.6in model.

Windows 7 is the operating system pre-loaded in 64-bit versions of either Home Premium or Ultimate. Also pre-loaded is Acer’s media sharing software called Clearfi.

Under the black brushed aluminium chassis is a Sandy Bridge Intel processor ranging from a Core i3 up to a Core i7. There is 4GB of DDR3 RAM and either 1GB Nvidia Geforce GT 540M or 2GB Geforce GT 555M graphics.

Multimedia nuts will be pleased to hear that the 18.6in Ethos 8951G comes with 5.1 channel surround sound whilst the smaller 15.6in Ethos 5951G comes with stereo speakers and Acer’s Tuba Cinebass booster.

The laptops also have a unique feature where the touchpad on the laptop can be removed and used as a remote control. Acer said, “An orientation sensor allows the touchpad to be used either horizontally or vertically.”

An Instant on Arcade key allows for fast booting and Acer said that the battery life is 5.5 hours. It also claimed that the battery has a longer life span of over 1,000 charge cycles, which is apparently more than three times that of a traditional notebook battery. µ

Acer is launching a series of new notebooks in their Aspire TimelineX range boasting mobile form factors, Intel Arrandale processors, and up to 8 hours of battery life. These new models come in a variety of sizes, starting with an ultra low voltage 11.6" model. 13.3", 14" and 15.6" models with full voltage processors are also available. All models feature Acer's CineCrystal 16:9 LED-backlit displays. These new notebooks are available today starting at 0 for the ultra mobile 11.6" model.

Reviewing the Dell Studio XPS 7100 recently seemed like a reasonable enough move: we felt it was competitive with rolling your own machine at that price, or at least an excellent alternative to building one for friends or family and fielding their tech support questions. But what can you get at a much lower price? Acer has certainly produced solid bargains in the notebook space, but how do they fare in the desktop space? We review their M3400 tower to find out.

Acer has announced four new editions to the Aspire One netbook line. The AO521 and AO721 feature AMD Athlon Neo II processors, while the AO533 will come with an Intel Atom N475 processor and the AOD260 will round things off with an Intel Atom N450 processor. Acer states the AMD models will bring smooth HD graphics and video playback to the netbook market. The AMD models are available now for 9.99 for the 10.1” AO521 and 9.99 for the 11.6” AO721. Meanwhile the Intel powered models will be available later this month with the AO533 at 9.99 and the AOD260 at 8.00.