Acer Plans A 16 lb. Notebook

jagger writes "Well not exactly gigantic but at 16 pounds and sporting a 17-inch screen this thing is stretching the term portable. It also features a 3EGHz Pentium 4, 1GB of RAM, a 7200rpm 160gb hard disk, DVD-burner and the kitchen sink. ZDNet has a rundown of all of this beast's features." This sounds like a joke (or a typo), but the story says otherwise.

Comments

Poor move..

[grub]

The company is marketing the Aspire 1710 as a replacement for desktops or PC workstations primarily in the workplace.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

A laptop with docking station does the same thing with far less luggable weight, albeit at a higher price.

3 GHz P4. OK, that's pretty nice.

1 GB RAM. Nothing special about that.

160 GB disk. So what? How many offices don't have a server to store everything on?

DVD burner. Optional on some laptops and you can always use an external to a docking station.

Kitchen Sink. So what? Carry a small bottle of Purell in your pocket.

This has got to be a "Hail Mary" to keep brand recognition in the portable market or one of the worst marketting decisions this year.

Re:Poor move..

[metlin]

I agree. The only thing thats actually big about this notebook (other than the size ofcourse) is the hard-drive - the rest are nothing *that* great.

However, one selling point maybe the fact that this notebook is just $1,499 - which is quite cheap considering the configuration (and the fact that if you are a gamer, it comes with Nvidia's GeForce FX Go 5200 graphics card).

The rest of the features are cool, but nothing *so* special. Honestly, I would rather have a desktop for way lesser price than a beast that weighs so much.

Re:Poor move..

[efflux]

160 GB disk. So what? How many offices don't have a server to store everything on?

Umm.... how about most of them? Or better yet, maybe their desktops workstations out-perform their server. There are a variety of different office environments, with varying levels of technical support.

That said, I still think this notebook would be overkill for less tech-savy environments. Note: We have a rather low-end iSeries, so I recognize my shot was rather cheap.

Re:Poor move..

[kfg]

There's a real use for large, heavy, transportable desktop replacements. The problem is, that once you get up to that size and weight the laptop is a very poor format. What you want is an "old fashioned" lunchpail type machine.

KFG

Re:Poor move..

[dave420]

It uses the 5700, actually.

This is a good machine! It fills the void between desktop and notebook, with a price that's affordable. The only notebook I'm aware of that's trying to fill the void with that much gusto is Dell's Inspiron XPS, which offers up to a 3.2GHz Pentium 4 Extreme Edition, as well as the stuff you get in this Acer.

Students might love this - they can have desktop performance in something they can take to lectures. slowly. in a cart. :-P

Re:Poor move..

[DR SoB]

I disagree with all these posts, this laptop is cool for 1 reason: 17" monitor.. Now if only there was a airplane seat other then FIRST CLASS that could actually fit it, I might even consider buying it. My first laptop was a compaq AT, and it weighed almost 25 lbs, so this is actually pretty light still :)

Compaq AT specs:
30 Meg HD
Running MS-DOS 5.0
Monochrome 12 " monitor
1 floppy drive :)
No mouse - Use an external (Who needs a mouse for DOS NEwayz?)
Weight = 25lbs
Battery life: ~30-60 minutes.
BUILT IN 2400bps modem (Blazing fast at the time!)

And the year? 1989.

Oh yeah, and it was a BETA laptop given to me as a gift from Compaq, hense you couldn't open the case without the self-destruct mechanisms destroying it.

Re:Poor move..

[nixel]

Hey, I've had that computer for a while now, my 17" powerbook. Way to be innovative Acer. I'm glad apple didn't put lead in mine though.

Re:Poor move..

[An Onerous Coward]

It's not really a bad idea. Carrying an extra eight pounds is no big deal, especially since that means you can take advantage of cheaper desktop components.

What I think would be really cool: Drop five pounds or so by doing away with the battery entirely. Use the weight savings to pump up the specs even more, or to use more cheap desktop parts. Just keep it hefty, cheap, and lug-and-pluggable, and I'll be happy.

Sure, some will whine about the no-battery thing. But the last laptop I bought would only last 2 hours on a full charge anyways, so it wouldn't be a big loss.

Re:Poor move..

[afidel]

Hmm, there's some major contradictions going on in Acer's site. Under features is says "Under 7 lb. (heaviest model)" but then under dimensions it says "14.1 lb. (6.4kg) with combo drive, 15.7 lb. (7.1kg) with combo drive and battery". Either way you know it's bad news when the manufacturers claimed battery life is only "up to 1.0 hour life depending on configuration and usage"! Btw for anyone who really wants a desktop replacement and they don't mind the weight they should look at lugables, these are integrated boxes the size of a carry-on suitcase that contain a standard desktop motherboard, an LCD, and a keyboard which is normally positioned to cover the LCD for travel. I've seen em used by RGIS to dump the data from the counters little numeric pads for inventory purposes. It looked like they needed these instead of a laptop because the interface board was PCI.

Re:Poor move..

[dslbrian]

However, one selling point maybe the fact that this notebook is just $1,499 - which is quite cheap considering the configuration

Given the cost and weight, mabye they saved money by swapping out the titanium or aluminum case for the much lower cost cast-iron case...

Re:Poor move..

[kommakazi]

Hell, a 17" PowerBook G4 only weighs in at 6.9 lbs... it's called "poor design"

Re:Poor move..

[kommakazi]

Why not get a 17" PowerBook G4, it only weighs 9.1lbs less... You could lug around two PBG4's and it would still weigh less than that abomintion

Re:Poor move..

[beeblebrox87]

Its not so much that the 5200go sucks, its that nvidia also produces 5600go and 5700go chips, which are faster, better, eat more battery, and have higher version numbers. The market for this laptop is the sort of gamers who want to be able to brag that they have a 3EGHz laptop at a LAN party. A graphics chip that is any less that the absolute biggest number available detracts substantially from said bragging rights. Thats all.

Re:Poor move..

[plover]

With a 3GHz Pentium 4, not only could this be your lunchpail but it could also be your stove.

Re:Poor move..

[kfg]

Well, obviously I disagree. :)

The primary value of the laptop is it's small form factor, low weight and unitary design that allows you to use it, well, on the top of your lap.

A 16 pound desktop replacement is never going to be used on your lap, except, perhaps, under some sort of duress. You're going to put it on a desktop to use. The ergonomics of a desktop machine are superiour to a laptop's ergonomics when used on a desktop. The unitary desktop machine died for good reason.

When I just need to stick something in my bag so I can write a paper or something, say while doing research at the library, I take my notebook, but I don't enjoy using it.

When I need the full power of a desktop in a remote location I take a lunchpail and bless it for not having the laptop form factor.

If all you want is a handle on your laptop, well, that's what the carrying bag is for.

KFG

Re:Poor move..

[trb]

Well I agree maybe a carrying handle would be useful since it is 16 lbs, but other than that keep the latptop/notebook form factor. It is superior to the lunchpail.

With three nicely spaced holes, you could use it for bowling.

Re:Poor move..

[Anonymous Coward]

mabye they saved money by swapping out the titanium or aluminum case for the much lower cost cast-iron case...

And it doubles as a Dutch oven.

Re:Poor move..

[kisielk]

Major contradictions? They just have a 7.1lb combo drive. That's one damn heavy DVD writer.

Re:Poor move..

[Gherald]

The primary value of a lightweight laptop is that, yes, you can put it on your lap.

The primary value of a heavy, desktop-replacement notebook as oppossed to a lunchbox is that its a simple brick with a screen that folds up, meaning its easier to carry from place to place.

There'll allways be some strange people who prefer lunchboxes, but they are the minority and I doubt the general desktop-replacement-buying-public gives a shit.

As for my suggestion that a handle might be useful to carry 16 pounds, I agree a carrying case is better for long distances but if you are moving a relatively short distance like, say, one side of a large room to another, you aren't going to want to stuff it back in the carrying case for such a short time.

Re:Poor move..

[Gherald]

*sigh, yes, but you have to have a solid surface to set on. It is not as versatile as a large laptop, which can be used pretty much anywhere, even on your lap if you can stand the weight for awhile and are only using it briefly.

Re:Poor move..

[MyFourthAccount]

The only thing thats actually big about this notebook (other than the size ofcourse) is the hard-drive

Yeah, and did you notice the article says this relating to the harddrive:

Although Acer simply dipped into the desktop PC parts bin to get the two components

I certainly hope that's not true. Your typical desktop harddrive has nowhere near the shock and vibration resistance as a notebook harddrive. I think we are talking almost an order of magnitude.

It's hard to believe that they actually stuck a 3.5" HDD in there, but looking at my (relatively big, but not too crazy) notebook, I suppose it's possible. And incredibly stoopid.

If you want a 7200 RPM drive, just get the 2.5" 60GB Hitachi one. I have one of those and it works as a charm. Still the notebook drive shock and vibration though.

Re:Poor move..

[Tailhook]

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

3 GHz P4. OK, that's pretty nice.
That's damn nice. Certainly not stupid...

1 GB RAM. Nothing special about that.
Not for a desktop. For a portable it's still on the high end.

160 GB disk. So what? How many offices don't have a server to store everything on?
Depending on file servers for large amounts of storage you need to use remotely is stupid...

DVD burner. Optional on some laptops and you can always use an external to a docking station.
Docking stations are somewhat heavier than this machine...

These are my requirements; High performance that is not compromised when I'm not at the office. All software, storage and media devices available regardless of whether I'm at the office. Just enough portability to make it from the office to the car and back in short order. Enough battery life to survive 60 minutes in a meeting, assuming it never goes standby. Cost low enough that I can get it in the budget with adequate frequency.

Given that set of requirements this machine is a good setup. It has no appeal to the dainty, sandal wearing consultant types of the .com age, but most of them are using 3 year old laptops and thankful for it.

Re:Poor move..

[EverDense]

I bought a Clevo D470W about six months ago.
Clevo make the Alienware gaming notebooks.

It weights 4.2Kg, which, considering the processing power of the PC, doesn't bother me at all.
I use it for playing FPS games and coding. The Unreal Tournament 2004 demo, for instance, runs
smoothly with all the graphics settings maximised.

It is a VERY portable desktop replacement.

Re:Poor move..

[Sylver Dragon]

Spend some time looking at the benchmarks. The older GForce4 Ti4600 and Ti4800 tend to outperform the FX5200 by a huge margin. Heck, they even tend to outperform the FX5600. This isn't to say that your card it absolute shite, but you would have done better to by a higher end GF4 card, as opposed to a low end GFFX card. You'd get better performance for about the same price. Sure, you don't get the pretty DX9 features, but then you probably won't need those for a while, and by the time you do, the lackluster performance of the FX5200 will start to be a problem.

Re:Poor move..

[Ancient Devices King]

The top end model actually comes with a 5700, not a 5200, but that's already been pointed out.

However, the $1499 model:

comes with 2.8GHz P4 (not P4E) instead of 3.0 P4E

has an 80GB hard disk instead of 120GB

has only 512MB of RAM instead of 1GB

has a CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive instead of a DVD-R drive

comes with XP Home instead of Professional, and

uses the graphics chipset that comes with the Intel 865G instead of the GeForce.

If you still think that's a good deal, that's your choice. Personally, I can think of other $1500 and $2000 laptops I'd rather have which weigh less, have longer battery life and/or more CPU power.

Re:Poor move..

[bellings]

The primary value of a laptop is that everone else at the meeting is going to have a computer that looks exactly like yours. The primary value of a lunchbox is that everyone you meet is going to look at you like you have two heads and three arms.

A lunchbox may certainly be better, but I haven't seen one in real life for almost 20 years (well, I have one in my garage, but it's 20 years old). I'm not big on the whole "do what everyone else does" thing away from work, but at work I enjoy drawing attention to myself in positive ways, not by being strange and different.

Re:Poor move..

[brucmack]

You are exactly right. I was working in local IT support and development last year... all of the new laptops they've bought since the IBM P4 laptops came out have been faster than all of the servers save one. And adding up the disk space on all the laptops and desktops in the building would dwarf the total size in our server room.

The one server that was more powerful was a terminal server that 20-30 users ran on while in the office. This is actually rather on-topic, because it was a very cost-effective way of doing things. All of the employees had laptops for working at home, and having a terminal server with lots of dumb terminals was a cost-effective way to give them a higher performance machine while in the office. And since they were all getting Centrino notebooks, they were happier using their laptops as laptops as well, without having the need to use it as a desktop.

Re:Poor move..

[The Kiloman]

Given its size, perhaps the the void inside the Grand Canyon?

Wondering what battery it uses?

[Professor_Quail]

See this story for more information...

Re:Wondering what battery it uses?

[TimmyDee]

What? A link? This is Slashdot -- I want your post to be funny without having to click any more.

Powerbook.......all the way

[Anonymous Coward]

16 pounds? Man I would much rather tote around a 6.9 pound Apple 17in Powerbook. Yeah the Acer starts around $1500, but if you configure it with WinXP, a DVD burner and wireless networking, we are pretty close in price to Apple's solution. Besides I am more than willing to spend a bit of a premium or so for something that I don't throw my back out hauling across the country on a long flight.

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[Wateshay]

Here! Here!

I've only got a 15" (and 5.6 lb) version, but it is by far the best laptop I've ever used.

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[dreamchaser]

Except for the fact that, believe it or not, some people *prefer* a Wintel or Linux on Intel solution over an Apple solution. You're comparing apples to oranges really.

I agree with the other comment made here, just because YOU aren't the target market doesn't mean there isn't one.

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[qwertme]

I have the same model, and it's not only the best laptop, the best computer I have ever had period. It's also my first Mac :)

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[haystor]

Just out of curiousity, how much does a 17" powerbook with 1G of ram cost?

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[Slack3r78]

I just hope you're ready for the screen problems nearly every Vaio I've seen eventually develops. After a couple of years, the bottom half of the screen tends to go dark while the top half remains as it was. I've seen this across many models and generations of Sony laptops and I've heard other techs that have noticed the same thing. Don't know what it is, but it seems to be a common thing with the Vaios.

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[dave420]

Yes, but you can play games on this one.

With all due respect to macs, the games are slightly lacking.

The article states that you get the 3EGHz, 1gig ram, 120gig hard disk, Windows Pro, .11g wifi for about $2000, which is a lot less than a 17" powerbook with the same features (can you even get a 120gig HDD for a powerbook?)

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[zerocool^]

Yeah the Acer starts around $1500, but if you configure it with WinXP, a DVD burner and wireless networking, we are pretty close in price to Apple's solution.

Crack?

Check it: From the article - the notebook with WinXP Professional and a DVD burner will run about $2000.
From Apple's website, a powerbook with a 17" screen, 512 megs of ram (half that of the acer), 80 GB hard disk (half that of the acer), and an ATI mobility radeon 9600 (less good than the NVidia counterpart in the Acer) runs a whopping $3000.

So, to recap -
$3000 Apple laptop
1.33 Ghz G-4
17" screen
80GB hard drive
512 MB ram
DVD burner

$2000 Acer laptop:
3.0 Ghz P-4
17" screen
twice the hard drive space
twice the RAM
DVD burner

Please. Research first. Apple laptops are:
1.) extremely high quality
2.) aesthetically pleasing
3.) lightweight
4.) really really expensive

Please don't take this as an endorsement of one over the other: I love apple hardware, and am probably soon to be in the market for an apple laptop; however, it bugs the shit out of me when people claim that Apple hardware is cheap. It's not.

~Will

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[Chanc_Gorkon]

That as they say....depends.....

I was looking for a small laptop equipped with:

DVD burner
Decent amount of ram
Ability to edit video
Firewire
USB 2.0
At LEAST 40 GB hard disk
WiFi

I found all of this for around $1799 in a 12in Powerbook. I know, I said I wanted to edit video.....I added a 120 GB external hard disk. I use this to archive projects and when I am working on a large project. The CLOSEST I came in a laptop not only cost more, but weighed more as well.

Also, the 17 inch PB is not much thicker then my 12 inch. Just like people did not understand why folks paid 400-500 for ye olde Palm V when it was released (when the Palm III with mor memory cost less), people don't understand why the 17 Inch Powerbook costs less. The smaller it is, the harder it is to make. Almost every PC laptop I see is thicker then most Macs are and if they are the same thickness, there's tradeoffs....like external CDRW/DVD_R drives. My only beef....include packet writing to RW media in the OS. Even windows doesn't do this yet.

I also hazard to guess that the LCD in the Acer is no where near the quality of the one in the Powerbook. I have NEVER seen better LCD's then the ones in all Apple products.

YMMV, but Apple does have decent systems and while somethings aren't cheap, there's enough variety in the line to make the price similar.

Re:Powerbook.......all the way

[Naikrovek]

Apple laptops are:
1.) extremely high quality
2.) aesthetically pleasing
3.) lightweight
4.) really really expensive

you forgot this: 5.) as comfortable as a beesting in the eyeball.

i don't care how great ibooks are or aren't i won't EVER buy one until they offer a mouse BUTTON instead of that all-too-annoying touchPAD.

Touchpads are the most asinine pointing devices ever devised by mankind and I'll never own one.

I don't care if the iBook prints $100 bills legally every minute for the rest of my life, I will NEVER own a laptop that has only a touchpad.

I will throw myself between a mother bear and her cubs before I'll own a touchpad pointing device.

no ibooks for me i guess. no big loss from what i can see anyway.

OMG!

[acxr is wasted]

It's like the laptop version of my sister!

Re:OMG!

[Wolfier]

No, it is like a PDA FOR your sister.

Re:OMG!

[shystershep]

laptop version of my sister

[insert sexual innuendo or crude comment here]

Re:OMG!

[Dukael_Mikakis]

[insert sexual innuendo or crude comment here]

Okay.

You're sister's the laptop version of your sister.

She's on top of my lap right now, actually.

Re:OMG!

[freeze128]

Is your sister the crushinator?

Re:OMG!

[gosand]

It's like the laptop version of my sister!

Too big for the lap, but is doable on the desk.

Has it owns sun too!

[bdigit]

It's also powered by it's own sun in a jar!

What the hell?

[jimmer63]

Does this come with a few vouchers for chiropractor appointments?

Perfect plan to design a laptop that won't sell...

[bc90021]

1) Make it weigh 16 pounds.
2) Price it at $1999.00.

Granted, I know it's supposed to be a "desktop replacement" that is sometimes portable, but I have desktops that weigh less than this and cost a third of the price!

History lesson

[tholomyes]

Acer is bound to succeed! Historical precedent shows us the Osborne-1 was.... ah...

never mind.

Re:History lesson

[jcr]

Umm... The Osborne-1 was a runaway hit. The company grew to 200M+ in annual revenue in under two years.

What killed them was Osborne bragging about the next model before it was available.

-jcr

Whats the point?

[j0keralpha]

A notebook is really meant for portability... I understand that this way you can cart a full desktop-capable machine short distances, but its a niche solution for people who want to lug things from their office to the conference room and back. Anyone who seriously needs portability (yours truly, for example) will sacrifice some performance... the target notebook market is still businesses and they dont need a p4EE

More large portables, great!

[Sparr0]

This is very much not a joke. The world needs more large portables. A laptop has its place, but there are times when I need a desktop PC that is just portable. I am working on putting a modern PC into an old IBM luggable right now for this very reason. Check out the Max Pac for some more insight into this, they put a desktop PC into a briefcase with a 21" LCD on the side.

Re:More large portables, great!

[SuperBanana]

Check out the Max Pac [maxvision.com] for some more insight into this, they put a desktop PC into a briefcase with a 21" LCD on the side.

Portables aren't anything all that new- I used a portable PC with an LCD(the size of a postage stamp, and a nice orange monocolor- not even greyscale) for a science project back in the days of DOS. It was about the size of a very small sewing machine, and the keyboard(which was infrared-based) popped out of one side to reveal the screen. Can't remember the name of it for the life of me, but it had a hard drive, floppy, etc. Datapack? Data-something...hmm.

There's also the infamous Macintosh Portable, aka the Lugable. It was the size of a typewriter, and weighed about 3 times more. The first Powerbook wasn't a leap in portability- it was like a cross-country trip. I think my 17" powerbook probably weighs about the same as the original powerbook, but it's taken about 15 years for that to happen.

Re:More large portables, great!

[Aphrika]

This is true. Turn the argument on its head and view it as a lightweight all-in-one desktop and it starts to make sense - albeit a bad implementation in this instance.

It makes sense to IT departments who have to lug these things off to install/fix/upgrade them.

It makes sense to people who need all the computing power they can get, and move between offices on a weekly basis, rather than 'road warriors' who work from the front seat of their car.

Put simply - there's a market for all-in-one mobile computing devices - not a huge one, but it exists. Laptops are fine, but there are always trade-offs in performance for you to get that mobility. Ironically though, this is where the Acer falls down; there are better performance mobile components out there that will do this job better. So while the concept is right, the component mix is a little behind the times and I for one would prefer something like a Dell Inspiron 9100 to get the job done. It's not the Calista Flockhart of mobility, but it's not the 900lb gorilla either.

more storeable than portable

[pwarf]

This would be great for some college students. A large part of the appeal of a laptop is that you can put it away and reclaim your desk space easily. Also, occassionally moving it to a friend's apartment or a research lab wouldn't be nearly as big a deal as a normal desktop system.

Anyway, I think my physics book weighed about that much ...

Re:more storeable than portable

[nukem1999]

I disagree, at least in my laptopless mindset when I was still in college, the laptop should be pretty well portable, specifically to take it basically *everywhere* with you. All the CS and CompE areas are covered with wireless, better than scribbling in a notebook, be able to build sample code as it's being discussed, and there's always games for the spectacularly boring classes. And if you have a tues/thurs class without an available outlet, good luck with this laptop's expected battery life of 1 hour (when most tues/thurs classes run 1:15)

Acer has *nothing* on Apple

[coupland]

I cough in Acer's general direction. 16 pounds, that's nothing! Apple already has a 40lb notebook for sale. That's a full 24 pounds heavier than Acer's, and it has a 20" LCD to boot! Yupm you guessed it, it's called an iMac.

Really now, the article says this brick actually uses a 120GB desktop IDE drive, just cause you throw a hinge on a desktop with integrated LCD doesn't make it a notebook. If this is how Acer plans to recapture the North American market I wish them luck.

Its a great idea.....

[loserbert]

for the road warrior that doesn't have time to go to the gym when traveling.

A Hummer of a Lugtop

[Anonymous Coward]

So will they co-brand this with Hummer?

And will Rob Enderle be infatuated with it?

Kitchen sink?

[Anonymous Coward]

Considering the hygene standards of the average geek, adding a kitchen sink to a laptop is a bit pointless.

Luggable

[kwandar]

When I bought my first computer, a heavy metal Kaypro (those of you who had an Osbourne might remember), it was referred to as a "luggable".

I think this falls into that category.

Re:Poor move... I disagree

[timmy0tool]

If they can put laptops on peoples desk, that means a less open architecture, and therefor more revenues later in the product cycle.

Everyone who has meetings will want one if it's as fast as a desktop simply for the fact it's a laptop. I've known directors who get a new laptop every year, but don't even move it, it's simply for looks.

Great for home use?

[Stone316]

Personally since I don't play many games anymore (well cutting edge ones anyways) so I was thinking of getting a laptop for my next home computer and setup a wireless network. This would seem to be what i'm looking for... Not as mobile as a laptop but I don't expect to lug it around with me but its compact enough to fold up or bring to any room in the house.

And it appears to be powerfull enough that even if I did play games I could bring the 'laptop' to a friends house for a gaming night and not have to worry about lugging around a desktop system.

Clock speed!??!?!

[Bingo Foo]

3EGHz Pentium 4

3 exa-giga Hertz? Let's see, that's 3 * 10^18 * 10^9 = 3 * 10^27 Hertz. Maybe Intel will always be faster than Apple.

Battery life?

[lake2112]

Who wants to a laptop that will probably have a 45 minute battery life?

Oxymorons

[abhisarda]

Its like stating "64k cable broadband" or a "a fast tortoise"..

16lbs and notebook used in the same sentence. Hah

In other news...

[percepto]

Acer corporation today announced that it has merged with the American Chiropractic Association. Their first joint project is a 16-pound "laptop" that, when carried around in a backpack, should produce revenues for both organizations.

Lead brick

[cybermace5]

Sorry, the specs aren't that outstanding.

And at 16 pounds, and with that 3Ghz processor in there, it will burn your legs AND cut off circulation to them at the same time!

In other news...

[Hayzeus]

AP -- Detroit, MI

Ford has announced plans for a new steam-powered roadster. "We believe this new vehicle will set a new standard for vehicle perfomance and efficiency, easily surpassing both oxen AND mules for both speed and maneuverability", a spokesman said.

lug nuts

[Doc Ruby]

It's the spirit of Adam Osborne, pioneer of the luggable computer!

Why should it be a joke?

[Lurks]

The boom in notebooks/laptops is a large part of the revival of the fortunes of IT. What's more, it's actually consumer notebook use which is the big sector which has been on the rise and most of the notebook vendors realise this.

Even business stalwarts Toshiba launched bulky widescreen notebooks into the market last year. Barely portable, these devices are designed as crosses between desktop replacements and media PCs. Sony even have a compact PC system which comes at it from the other angle.

Why is all this happening? It's because notebook prices are now at around the price which consumers are willing to pay for new computer systems. So if you walk into a shop and you can afford a notebook, it's an attractive proposition in the home. You don't need to build a huge permanent home for it, you can move it from room to room and people like the idea they can take it with them if they need to.

But really they're after compact luggable home computer systems, the real desktop replacement if you like.

The real news wont be 'is this is a joke' (which indicates to me that the poster doesn't understand the current market very well but this is Slashdot after all...) but when a vendor makes a notebook without a battery.

The day is coming.

Not a poor move

[sczimme]

I don't believe it's positioned as anything "special" (cue 'short school bus' comments). It would indeed be a handy desktop replacement, requiring less real estate than a desktop CPU + monitor (even an LCD, unless you mount it on the wall). I suspect it would also require less overall power, leading to lower heat output than that of a similarly configured desktop.

No, you probably wouldn't want to try to use it very long on battery power - or on your lap - but it would be nice to be able to fold up such a capable machine and transport it from point A to point B with minimal fuss. For the record, external devices often == "fuss".

Not to flame, but a product is not a dumb idea (or a "poor move") just because you personally don't want one. To each his own, right?

Re:Not a poor move

[skiflyer]

Couldn't agree more.

My situation is an apartment setup such that there is no real desk/work area. There's the counter, the kitchen table, and a little table by the couch/tv.

Now, if I needed this kind of power/screen real-estate, it would make sense to me, it's never going to leave the apartment, but it's a nice computer that I can work on where I want within my apartment, and put in the closet when company comes over.

I also have other requirments which have lead me to a different purchase, but my point is simply to provide an example for your point.

Re:Not a poor move

[haystor]

I'd gladly "suffer" 16 pounds just to be able to move this around my house easily...oh and to be able to afford it easily.

Sheesh, 16 pounds is easily portable. My son is 30 pounds, but we don't leave him at home because he's too heavy to lift into the car seat.

Sure it might be a pain for someone that takes their computer everywhere, but there are lots of more expensive options for those people.

Re:Not a poor move

[Anonymous Coward]

My son is 30 pounds, but we don't leave him at home because he's too heavy to lift into the car seat.

Then why do you leave him at home?

Re:Not a poor move

[haystor]

To make room for the new Acer laptop.

It's less than 7 lbs

[morcheeba]

The heaviest model is under 7 pounds... all it took was a google search for "aspire 1710".

I'd buy it

[microbox]

I've always wanted a portable desktop computer. Desktops costs less, but they're a pain to take too/from work. I don't think 16lb is any more than the books a high school student has in their bags (well mine weighed that much). Sure there's lots of people out there who want a laptop that's the size of a PDA, but there _is_ a middle ground =)

why would anyone buy this

[pummer]

when you could just get a 17" powerbook?

Re:why would anyone buy this

[pummer]

you call that an advantage? I've never owned an Apple product since the AppleII, and even I think this is ludicrous.

Re:why would anyone buy this

[mst76]

> when you could just get a 17" powerbook?

Because it costs about $1500 less.

1-hour battery life, 2 hours to charge

[maliabu]

according to Acer's website, this monstop is powered by a 12-cell lithium ion battery: up to 1.0 hour life depending on configuration and usage. Battery recharge times: 2.0 hours with system off, 4.0 hours with system in use.

Re:1-hour battery life, 2 hours to charge

[easyfrag]

So basically its more of a UPS than a battery.

Re:1-hour battery life, 2 hours to charge

[PCM2]

Whaa-a-aa-aaa?

By comparison, Apple's 6.9-pound, 17-inch PowerBook packs a "58-watt-hour lithium-ion battery (with integrated charge indicator LEDs) providing up to 4.5 hours of battery life."

So basically, this is a notebook that's too heavy to carry and has too short a battery life to use when not plugged in. I am ... baffled.

And a workplace system that comes with a DVD burner? Terrific. I know IT departments that don't even allow CD-RW drives for most of the workforce. I predict a new software market: "virus" scanning software that will alert admins whenever a copy of DVD2One is installed...

Re:1-hour battery life, 2 hours to charge

[Rob Simpson]

Well, it might be okay as a "desktop replacement". Though I'll bet that with trying to cool the 3GHz P4, I'd find the roaring fans to be extremely distracting, especially since they're probably of the laptop variety that are quiet on idle then ramp up as soon as you start a program that uses more than 2% of CPU load. But the battery is pointless - why not just remove it and make the thing a little less massive?

(OT) Personally, I'm more interested in finding a small, light, Pentium M system with great battery life and low noise - but I haven't seen any with more than 256 megs of memory, which is ridiculous. Any suggestions?

Re:Is it really so much work, Timmy?

[Zed2K]

Yet further down it says:

Average Dimensions and Weights
14.9" (378.0mm) W x 12.6" (320.0mm) D x 1.9" front - 2.2" rear (47.0mm - 55.0mm) H / 14.1 lb. (6.4kg) with combo drive, 15.7 lb. (7.1kg) with combo drive and battery

Bad idea

[mao che minh]

Bad idea. Our local HP reseller can get the ultra slim D530 and comparable Compaq units for about $1,000 cheaper, and after adding peripherals and a monitor we would still be saving at least $200-300.

Any pro's won in the portability of these systems over traditional desktops is easily countered: there are far lighter laptops available.

This is the most tremendously ignorant engineering move in laptop computing that I have ever borne witness to.

Ferrari laptop?

[FattMattP]

Yeah but will it play race car sounds when I start it up?

like alienware

[QEDog]

16pounds, desktop processor. Sounds like an Alienware Laptop. Those puppies have 3 fans (!!!) to cool it down. In fact, I don't think it can technically be a laptop. If you put it in your lap, the high temps would boil your sperm...

Re:like alienware

[RevDobbs]

... as if being a Gamer Geek wasn't enough of a form of birth control...

Not really a laptop

[drix]

Notebook/laptop is really a bit of a misnomer, this machine sits squarely in the "desktop replacement" segment of the market. HP ZD7000 is another example. If you think of this thing as a notebook, sure it sounds like a joke, but you're failing to recognize that the old laptop-desktop dichotomy isn't valid anymore. These machines are actually quite useful. Lots of people don't ever actually take their laptop on the road, but they also don't want the big footprint of a desktop. Or they're like me, a student, and so the only time they transport their laptop is in a suitcase, to and from home. They need a smidge of portability, nothing more. (Some of these machines don't even have onboard batteries.) Desktop replacements make perfect sense. They're cheaper--you don't have to pay for the space-efficiency premium of a good notebook--and you're not stuck typing on a cramped keyboard, squinting at a miniscule screen and listening to tinny music from miniscule onboard speakers.

Laptop Evolution

[psbrogna]

Is it time to bring back the term "Luggable?". This trend is reminiscent of the original portable PC's, ie. the 35 lb monsters from Kaypro & Compaq usually depicted being lugged by a sumo. Course we've progressed from the 9" bw screen to 17" and all the colors of the rainbow.

It's obviously not a "portable"

[aengblom]

These are just the PC markets' answer to the iMac type customers.

It's not supposed to be portable. It's to serve the people out there who don't want to deal wire wires or don't have the space in/on their desk for a full tower etc. But they want desktop performance.

They don't need it to travel with, but being able to move it around the house might be nice. Or they move frequently and don't want to deal with taking the thing apart and putting it back together each time (My desktop sure is a bitch to move.)

Re:Perfect plan to design a laptop that won't sell

[CowboyNick]

Hey!, by the time you add the extra battery, external HDs, keychain USB drives, digital camera, iPod, bose headphones, bag, DC/AC power supplies, voltage converters. I've got mine to 23.4lbs in the bag! Beat That!

Re:Compare to a 6.9 lb 17-inch PowerBook

[Zed2K]

And with a gig of memory its $3200. I don't think the apple is worth $1700 more.

Re:Perfect plan to design a laptop that won't sell

[theLastPossibleName]

3) Short battery life

The acer site says the battery lasts only 1 hour.

Re:Perfect plan to design a laptop that won't sell

[Cruciform]

Not exactly their best selling points.

I have a Shuttle SB61G2 with a 2.4 GHz HT P4, a gig of ram, a 120 gig hard drive, and a Radeon 9600. It probably weighs about 7 or 8 pounds.

It's readily upgradable, has a small desktop footprint, and is easy to transport. As long as I have a monitor or TV I can use at my destination it's perfect for work or gaming.

Without the video card it cost me 1000 CDN. I could have shaved off another hundred or more by going with an Athlon, but I was taking heat into consideration with the tight airflow restrictions.

You get a laptop for the convenience of portability at the cost of being able to upgrade. And generally a desktop is a statically placed computer that can be upgraded, but isn't all that portable. They just hybridized the negative aspects of both, slapped on a nice big screen and put it to market.

What type of user is going to derive the most benefit from this?

Only if. . .

[Anonymous Coward]

the Netork card is set to Promiscuous Mode

First: Ferrari laptop, now: Hummer

[chmilar]

Since the Ferrari laptop has a logo and red paint job, does this one have an ugly Hummer-style case? Does it make machine gun sounds when you fire it up?

Will Rob Enderle buy one?

And people made fun of Apple...

[jht]

Back to the future here - I remember all the criticism of the Macintosh Portable back in 1989 when it came out. "16 pounds!" was the cry. But what it had was the first active matrix LCD and a big honkin' lead-acid battery that would run forever (for the time).

Of course, I think Apple sold like ten of them.

It's kind of funny that it's taken 15 years to get back to the 16-pound laptop again. Go figure. You knew this was coming, though, when Apple and all the Wintel companies started going to 17" screens. Someone was bound to try it.

Untethered from the desk

[skoda]

I'm interested in this notebook. It's priced and featured closer to a desktop than most portables, but it would allow me to move around the house and work in the office, kitchen, living room, etc. I don't need lightweight for that; I'm not traveling with it. I may represent a small market, but I find this very interesting.

Some people are missing the point

[-noefordeg-]

These notebooks are not for using on your lap while traveling etc.

They are instead excellent replacement for desktop computers which take A LOT of space, have multiple cables running everywhere and most importantly are almost impossible to put away when space is needed for something else. And if need you can take it with you without having to drag with you a keyboard, mouse and several extra cabels.

Right now I use one desktop compter and one Dell Inspiron 8200 (luggable laptop) with 1600x1200 lcd screen and I would love to have two of those or this one.

3E gigahertz? thats impressive

[psycho]

I must say that 0x3E = 62 Gigahertz laptop
is well worth the 16 pounds it weights. Yet again acer has shown itself to be well ahead of
the curve. May the innovation continue.

Those interested in a direct link

[donovangn]

Doesn't look terrible. I wouldn't mind having an inexpensive luggable desktop myself. Dragging my machine into my living room when I'm watching TV would help me pretend to get that much more work done.

Re:Compare to a 6.9 lb 17-inch PowerBook

[Glonoinha]

Damn that thing is nice. 'Cept I don't do anything remotely served by the OS/X (or whatever) platform.

At the risk of being burned at the stake as a heretic I would say that if Apple make hardware that I could install Windows 2000 Pro / Win XP Pro on I would be all over it. The case of the G4 is simply amazing with the handles on top and smooth edges, their displays are top notch (although I like my Logitech keyboard and mouse) - everything about the exterior of their hardware is simply amazing. Too bad I can't use it.

I know, crazy talk - but with IBM (et.al) looking at adopting Linux as the desktop there are going to be a few open spaces in the partner list for Microsoft - who better than Apple? It would be like USA and USSR cooperating to the effect of a new world order and maybe a space station or something. Stranger things have happened, and it would be one way for Apple to gain market share.

"Never mind the quality, feel the width!"

[TintinX]

It's all about the footprint, honey

The subject line is an old reply to an even older English joke related to picking carpet or something, but it relates well to the perception of laptops/notebooks for the 'home' market today.

If you're a mobile professional like me, then you probably make the most of your 'not too heavy, not too light, reasonably powerful' (invariably) Dell laptop your company supplies you with.

However, a lot of laptops these days are sold on their size rather than their power/capacity.

I recently helped my sister-in-law buy a laptop that she is going to 'write a book on' (yeah, right!). But the point is that although she has no plans to ever take it 'on the road', she wanted a laptop purely for its footprint in her smallish London apartment.

Many of us are geeky enough to demand that we live in a house where we can occupy a whole room for our server and four workstations (not to mention the other three over the house, but I digress).

News flash! Not everyone is like this! They want a computer that is as pack-away as the ironing board and that's why high spec notebooks are a good idea from the point of the vendor, almost regardless of their weight.

Lan parties?

[techstar25]

Seems to me this would be nice at lan parties where you would have all the performance and speed and a good size monitor without having to lug your desktop system around.

more like a gap

[GunFodder]

This product fills the gap for those who don't really want the portability of a laptop or the low price and ergonomics of a desktop.

Film, Video, Lights

[VoidEngineer]

This has ideal applications in the film and video industries. Technicians in these industries are used to lugging around amplifiers, mixing boards, and computer equipment. With 160GB of hard drive and a DVD burner amd a 17" monitor, this is an ideal portable video editing station for on-set editing. Typically, technicians in the film and video industies will set up their equipment at the beginning of the day on set, and strike at the end of the day. At 16 pounds, it's light enough that it can be easily set up and put away once a day.

One thing it's not meant for, I suspect. is the latte drinking Starbucks crowd who are just word processing and working on the next great American novel. No... this thing is meant for on-set video editing, if you ask me....