Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 Ultrabook Review
If you've been drooling over ultra-thin and ultra-light laptops like the Macbook Air, but just can't bear to part with so much cash, then the Acer Aspire S3 could just be the best affordable Windows option for you. It looks and feels like a Macbook Air, but can it stand up to the high standards set by Apple? Keep reading to find out whether saving a few hundred dollars on this model is ultimately worth it.
Key Specs For The Acer Aspire S3-951-6646
- RRP: $899.99
- Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium
- Size: 12.6” x 8.5” x 0.7”
- Weight: 2.98 lbs.
- Display size: 13.3”
- Storage: 20GB SSD + 320GB HDD
- Processor: Intel Core i5 1.6GHz
- RAM: 4GB DDR3
- Battery life: 6 hours
Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 : The Pros
Price: The first thing any potential buyer will notice about the Acer Aspire S3 is that it's cheap! It may not be cheap when compared to your average Windows laptop, but this model far exceeds average expectations. Designed to look and feel like high end models such as the Macbook Air, it actually comes in at around $400 cheaper. Even when compared to other high end Windows ultraportable laptops, such as the Asus Zenbook, the Acer Aspire S3 comes out on top based on price.
Design: The Acer Aspire S3 looks and feels much like the Apple Macbook Air, which seems to be the aim with the newest range of ultraportable Windows laptops. It features the same ultra-thin lid (that gets thinner towards the front), the same metal casing, and the same clean, minimal look – all for a much lower price!
Portability: Although slightly heavier than the Apple Macbook Air, the weight difference really is negligible. This is about as portable as portable can get for any Windows laptop, making it easy to carry around on the go. The 13 inch screen is still big enough for a huge range of features, however, making it a step up over tiny netbooks.
International Warranty: The Acer Aspire S3 ultraportable laptop comes with an international travelers warranty as standard. This is excellent for those who may be thinking of buying this laptop for traveling or going on vacation, as it means you can get it repaired (within the two year warranty) in several Acer service centers around the world.
Ports: Although the Acer Aspire S3, like many of the ultra-thin laptops, doesn't come with an optical drive, it does come with a useful number of ports for transferring data on the go. This includes 2 USB 2.0 ports, a 2 in 1 card reader, and an HDMI port.
Keyboard: As with the Macbook Air, the keyboard on the Acer Aspire S3 is compact and stylish, removing any unnecessary keys. Instead, you can use the function key to access extra features that don't come with their own separate key, helping the Aspire S3 to feel more sophisticated and far less cluttered than standard Windows laptops.
Multi-Touch Trackpad: There's one thing about Macbooks that no Windows laptops have, so far, been able to match: the trackpad. Although the Acer Aspire S3 can't quite match it (nor can any other ultraportable laptop), it comes pretty close. The trackpad goes beyond simple movements and scrolling to include a pinch feature, two finger rotation, two finger scrolling and more. This helps avoid the need for an external mouse and gives you far quicker control of the laptop.
Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 : The Cons
Battery Life: In the world of ultraportable laptops, a 6 hour battery life (which is what the Acer Aspire S3 has to offer) certainly isn't bad. That said, it doesn't quite match the 7 hours of the 13 inch Macbook Air. Note, however, that the 11 inch Macbook Air, which comes closer to the price of the Acer Aspire S3, only runs for around 5 hours, making the Acer a good buy for the price. It'll also last for an impressive 50 hours on standby.
Hard Drive: One of the most notable features of a true ultraportable laptop is the fact that it comes with a solid state hard drive. These drives are far better designed for travel, and mean you can access your data and programs a lot faster than ever before.
Although the Acer Aspire S3 does include an SSD drive, it's only part of the whole picture. The SSD drive itself is 20GB, and comes paired with a 320 GB HDD to give you more disc space. Although the total 340 GB disc space is excellent for this class of laptop, the small SSD drive is a little disappointing when compared with the Asus Zenbook and Apple Macbook. Thankfully the price means that it's worth the compromise!
Is The Acer Aspire S3-951-6646 Worth Buying?
In short, the Acer Aspire S3 is pretty much the cheapest laptop you can get if you want a model that looks and feels like the Macbook Air. At under $1000, it really is a bargain for this class of laptop. That said, you do have to compromise on some key areas, including the battery life and the SSD drive. For most, these compromises will be well worth it for the huge savings and still superior design and performance.