Acer Aspire 5942G Owners Lounge

Got my Acer 5942G on friday, been working with it all weekend and I am very satisfied with it so far.
I am a student and use my computer mainly for writing and powerpoint. When not using it for work internet and HD movies. I needed a silent, fast laptop with 2 monitor outputs.
The Acer 5942G seemed to me like a good choice. It replaced a HP 6910p 2,5ghz dual core laptop, which was to slow and noisy.

I removed the 640HDD and swapped it for a Corsair P128 and installed W7 ultimate instead of the W7 home.

Specs:
15,6 (1366x768)
Intel i7 720qm
8gb DDR3 (1067)
ATI HD5650 (1gb DDR3)
Blueyray, HDMI, eSATA, Bluetooth



Initial impressions:

Good:
Fast
Silent
Cool
Good trackpad and keyboard
Back lid keyboard
Bright screen with good colors
«music controller» on the right side of the keyboard
Easy acess to RAM and HD
Good camera
Fast charging
Digital SPDIF output
Good connectivity: 4 usb 2.0 (3 Left / 1 right), eSATA, HDMI
Good overall built quality

Neutral:
2 hours battery time
Windows premium (not professional)

Bad:
Rather big for a 15 inch laptop
Reflective screen
Lots of bloatware on in the preinstallation
Somewhat bad contrast ratio on the screen
Poor speakers
Wireless indicator blinks annoyingly as long as WIFI is on
Screen tilt is maximal 110 degree

Benchmarks:
PCmark Vantage






During idle

 

Did a little GPU benchmarking:

The 5650@625/1000 (550/800)
The GPU temp: 69C with fan at 30%
Catalyst 10.3
Win 7 ultimate 64bit
3DMark06:1280x768, default settings




@625/1050 (550/800 stock)


The overclock potential of this ATI gpu impress me.

 

There's a reason your battery life is so low - you've got a quad-core processor! The Aspire 5942G is a beast of a machine, and the fact that you've additionally tacked on a solid state drive makes me wonder, as a fellow student, where on earth you're getting this money from.

All OEMs load up their systems with bloatware - Lenovo's the only one that actually provides useful software, and even then it's buried under muck.

If you want Windows 7 Pro, try looking at The Ultimate Steal and see if it's available in your geography.

 

Yes, it is a beast I am quite happy with 2 hours, and I am especially happy that this machine has a good thermal design, because it is really quiet. I can only hear a soft blowing sound when it is completely quiet around me.

The machine is priced pretty aggressively and I think it can be bought for less then some of the i5 machines out there. And the SSD I already had in my old computer, so no extra cost there

I can warmly recommend this for anyone who need a fast and quiet desktop replacement.

 

For reference I have the i520M version and find light web browsing on balanced power profile with wifi on gave me 2hrs 40 minutes of battery life.

The screen is a compromise all around, the same unit is found on some samsungs etc and it is a value for money job, optimised for a 'look down and type, viewing angle'.

You can make some significant improvements using windows or the ATI gamma correction settings to lift the black level and lower the optimum viewing angle. A touch more video gamma makes DVD watching possible face on rather than looking down.

On the plus side having fiddled around for hours with colour corrections etc the image in the sweet spot is barely worse than my £600 colour matching screen. However that does 120 degree viewing angles where the screen here goes iffy at 20 degrees.

You will find you can now download the ATI mobility radeon 10.3 driver I posted a link in my other thread on the 5942G

 

Thanks for the tip!

Does anyone know if there are any "fan controls" that work on acer computers?


Some practical links:
Catalyst 10.3 for various windows versions or here from ATI.com

ATI GPU clock tool for HD5000 series

GPU Z 4.0 for GPU monitoring

HWMonitor 1.15.0 for monitoring of CPU temperature and power consumptions

 

Hi,

The ATI link you posted currently takes you to the desktop graphics card drivers.

You can use them on a notebook if your really must (if you use an inf file modder to hack them into accepting the card ID presented by a laptop).

HOWEVER I was pointing you and others at a somewhat hidden (from main ATI pages anyway) link to genuine reference notebook 'mobility' drivers from ATI that check your system and install without any hacking and therefore with ATI support. (And work really well too, being about 6 months on from the one supplied with the Laptop).

For W7 x64These are at http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/windows/Pages/radeonmob_win7-64.aspx?

Other OS's have predictable nearby URL's

 

Final observation regarding speakers. If you are using the supplied Acer version of the Realtek HD driver then the additional TUBA speaker will operate to produce additional bass. (I am not going to call it a subwoofer . . it still won't do much below 250Hz while my cinema subwoofer is a subwoofer and rattles doors and teeth at 18Hz)

If you installed the Default windows 7 driver you have lost drive to that unit as it is NOT recognised as a 5.1 subwoofer by the standard Realtek driver.

To check go to Sounds (NOT Realtek HD audio) under control panel, to speakers and then levels and see if you have a slider for subwoofer. Taking the slider from 100% - 0 - !00% with music playing should be very easily heard in the audio. If not or no slider download the OEM audio driver from Acer.

All that said the sound is still not anything for music or cinema to get excited about - little bass below 250Hz and limited volume. However on my careful but subjective side by side music comparison it is better than the 'samsung 580' or the non subwoofer Dells' I was considering and it is fine to listen to for a while if you have no headphones and can't be bothered to plug it into external audio..

 

Regarding the Fans I imagine you have the Insyde system BIOS that I have. This new concept BIOS is currently regarded as fairly impenetrable so there is a lack of modding /hacking tools at this time.

(Although the BIOS has an advanced interface where we would traditionally start to play with fan profiles it is in chinese and not accessible from the user interface at present. I would call this a downside to the system at present but I am not looking to play until it is out of warranty anyway by which time there may be some proven tools.)

The ATI card of course has it's own BIOS but as far as I know no separate fan so caution would be needed if detaching fan control from the common system BIOS

 

Hi everyone!

I just want to warn you about the display problem with all 5942G models described in detail here.

 

Hello to the owners.

I am going to buy a new laptop this week and i am doing a search.
I narrowed the search down to two laptops.
The one is the 5942g and the other one the ASUS N61JQ.
The prices are the same, with a slight difference in favour of the Asus.

Specs of the Asus here: http://www.bestdeals.gr/index.php?target=products&product_id=32168&ref=bestprice

A slightly better gpu is capable of being the ''x'' factor to buy the Asus?
Because it is the only thing it is holding me and thinking about it again and not buying the 5942g.

 

Hello 5942G Owners,

I also own an Aspire 5942G (Core i7-720QM, 4GB Ram, Radeon 5650, 640GB HDD). It's a good and fast Notebook.

Looking at PaAra's benchmarks, the Windows Index for Memory is very impressive: 7.3. I only get 5.9 for the Memory. How can this be ?

Also, Windows, Everest, Intel CPUID reported that my processor doesn't support hardware DEP, or No Execute Disable bit. How about yours ?
Is this disabled in the BIOS ? As I know this processor supports the Execute Disable bit, Even an Atom Netbook supports this.

Am I the only one experiencing this ?

 

The Windows experience index is bit more devious that you think.

IF I recall correctly : You cant get above 5.9 for memory with 4GB, to go above that you need more GB's AND for it to be fast. So I guess the other user has 6 or 8 ?

Likewise a mechanical drive maxes at 5.9, only drives with no moving parts can exceed 5.9 and then only if they are pretty fast too

And ms seem to delight in not writing this down clearly leaving people baffled why faster RAM doesn't change the score but more slightly slower RAM improves it in some circumstances

Probably worth pointing out that
1) There are far better benchmarks that WEI
2) The things windows uses WEI for (mainly the initial visual effects complexity settings ) are based on the lowest score in any part. You can do everything W7 does at 5.9 but if some wonder feature emerged that needs 6.0 you cannot get there by upping the memory if the HDD or some other element remains at 5.9

 

forget your other point:

If you can get your hands on one search CMD, right click run as administrator
Type in the following and press enter
wmic OS Get DataExecutionPrevention_Available
If it responds
DataExecutionPrevention_Available
TRUE
then it is working in BIOS and available to the OS

If (and this is the case on my i5 version) it responds

DataExecutionPrevention_Available
FALSE

Then it is not operational and given a compatable Chipset and OS the BIOS settings are prime suspect.
However The Insyde BIOS interface has nothing for advanced users :-( so unless ACER decide to turn it on at some point you will just have to wait until the hacks start appearing.

In fairness DEP can be triggered falsely which creates support headaches the vendor can avoid by turning the feature off

 

Oh by the way you can get hardware virtualisation support on mine

 

Would you guys say that this is a pretty good laptop that's worth the money? I am looking for a laptop now and this one caught my eye as its pretty good value for what you get.

 

I think you have to look at individual models, there are numerous 5942G options that vary CPU, Graphics HDD size ODD type etc. Buyer beware especially in retail where they will slip you a down-spec graphics card and no bluetooth under the save £££ of 5942G banner

I went for the Acer Aspire 5942G-524G64BN (LX.PMT02.018) catchy name that.

The i5 processor /4GB RAM is a good compromise between all the power you really need and moderate heat/battery consumption. there are i3 and i7 options which cut or boost power and heat/power accordingly

I went for the 1GB HD5650 graphics, there are lower spec graphics versions out there too but this will just run current games on minimum settings and has no problem with video play etc. Graphics heat also under control

This model has a 640GB HDD. 500GB is also around. i have only managed to half fill it with my enormous audio/video/photo collection. So ok.

Blue Ray play on this model. A particularly good blu-ray execution. no problems playing BlueRay disks with the above spec. Acer player needed re-installing but then smooth.

Nice inclusions Bluetooth, eSata, Express card, backlit keyboard, very decent webcam

Overall the spec is certainly within the top few % of laptops out there now according to PC pitstop etc.

Obvious compromises

Build quality is solid although the design is utilitarian rather than wow.

Battery. The 6 cell battery supplied plays blu-ray or DVD for 110 - 115 minutes in the real world. SO it is not a free standing player. Browsing life gets closer to the 2.5 / 3 hour mark using Wifi depending on what you do.
But this is an issue with every competitor system of similar spec. Moving onto solving this limitation I could get a second genuine original acer adapter for £20 and compatible batteries seem to cost about £50. Compare to e.g. Sony prices for these items

Screen
To be honest this is the most obvious compromise. The acer uses the near ubiquitous 1366x768 LED screen from the same manufacturer used by Samsung and many others. Acer add a colour and contrast boost engine whose best feature is it's off switch. Some have noticed that looking at the screen from too low an angle shows a pattern on pale colour areas. My solution is to look at the screen from the correct angle whereupon it is fine but that approach has not pleased everyone here. Looked at from the centre of its modest left right and quite limited up down viewing range colours and text are clear and vibrant and pictures (once tweaked a bit) subjectively rival the rendering of a £700 pro colour matching monitor. (that has 120 degree H/V viewing angles and sRGB compliance so I am not saying the screen is the same - just that looked at from the sweet spot photos are just as satisfying in normal conditions). The screen is only 1366x768. To be honest internet explorer was a lot more usable in the vertical space on an older 1440x900 screen but in this 16:9 world any higher resolution gets more in but makes it too darn small. Going full HD 1920x1080 is NOT wise on a 15 inch laptop as many have remarked.

Recovery/Support.
Supplied with recovery partition from which you can burn your own recovery disks. And/Or test it, back it up, delete and clean install windows 7 without the apps you don't need. Up to you.

Sad to say E-mail and on site support etc is NOT up to the speed or standard of e.g. Dell in many way based only on my personal experience, but Dell charge you for this service. Other premium manufacturers also get away with being in the same place as ACER. If you want your defective optical drive replaced on site the next day you are looking in the wrong place. If you would be happy replacing your own optical drive you can save some money towards it

Conclusion.
At the time I bought this Acer
DELL would not let me configure a blu-ray drive option laptop and if they had done it would likely have cost more than the Acer and there were some nagging doubts in forums over thermal issues too with the i7 processors they were then fitting.
Sansungs I looked at were smaller cheaper, but with worse processor and graphics, no blu ray and the exact same screen or much larger and close in cost with similar spec and near HD.

I have no regrets over the choice I made

 

Owner of a Acer Aspire 5942G-726G64Bn at last!

http://www.smart-blogs.com/acer-aspire-5942g-726g64bn-laptop.html

 

Thanks for that BruBoo

I was thinking of getting the i5 model with the 5650, I looked up the GPU and it seems quite good, its ranked quite high on notebookcheck anyway. I was disappointed with the resolution of the screen but I think the pros outweigh the cons on this laptop, so I think ill be purchasing it soon.

 

Actually the screen is the only real con.
It is a good laptop.

 

g47 I think you are right on the screen which is why I did the strengths and weakenesses thouroughly. I couldn't find a 'better screen' on a similar widely available laptop though so . . . .

I have to say that after a couple of weeks the screen is not causing me any worry at all, it feels a tad on the large /heavy side when used on my lap which makes me so glad I ignored the temptations of 17" models.

All in all I am picky as can be so if i'm happy then that's to be read as high praise

 

Well I ended up purchasing the laptop, all in all I feel that it is pretty good, its looks nice and the specs are great. I have only ran a few games on it so far but it handeled the Just cause 2 demo with ease. The only con, as most people have said is the screen, it is far from brilliant but it isn't intolerable. The laptop is a bit heavy and the volume control can get confused sometimes but all in all I am very happy with my purchase.

 

Thanks, for the Information BruBoo...

I've checked my DEP using your method

wmic OS Get DataExecutionPrevention_Available

It responds
DataExecutionPrevention_Available
FALSE

So I guess it's the same problem for the i5 and i7 version of the 5942G
So for now this laptop will not be as secure as an Aspire One (with just an Atom processor)...

Looks like this DEP problem also occurs in the Aspire 4740 (from another forum).
Its a BIOS problem that Acer should fix.

 

For Anyone interested in buying the Aspire 5942G, it's a good and powerful laptop. Most apps runs and opens fast in this laptop. It also runs most games in high settings.
And it also has the VT (Hardware Virtualization) Enabled, so we can run Virtual PC or VMWare.

According to me some cons are :
- Cineboost, better set this to off, this can cause flickers on some color patterns if turned on.
- DEP disabled, there is no way to turn this on in the BIOS. This prevents installing Hyper-V if anyone's interested.
- BIOS, too simple, nothing to play with, I prefer to have some settings to control VT, HT, DEP, AHCI. These settings won't harm the laptop, so why did the manufacturers hide it.

The pros :
- Fast processor (I have the i7 version)
- Big memory
- Big HDD
- VT enabled (runs virtualization)
- DX 11 graphics, runs most modern normal games in high settings.
- Backlighted keyboard (can be switched off)
- Runs cool (my previous one the Aspire 5920G runs hot).

Overall, I'm very happy with this laptop.

 

By saying that, i believe you have some numbers.
Can you share?

 

g47, I'm using 2 sidebar gadgets from OrbLog
One is the Intel Core Series gadget to monitor activities of all the cores, frequency and temperature of the processor.
The other one is the GPU observer gadget which monitors the GPU temperature, frequency and load.
These are nice small gadgets.

I'm running windows 7 using balanced power profile.
My system is 5942G (Core i7, 4GB Ram, 640GB HDD, Radeon 5650)

Under normal work (Typing, compiling, browsing, email) :
- The CPU temperature varies between 46-55 degree Celcius.
- The GPU temperature varies between 45-53 degree Celcius.

While I'm typing this, the CPU temperature shows an average of 50 degree Celcius and the GPU temperature 45 degree Celcius.
The fan is also silent.

I don't feel anything hot under my palms (I'm resting my palms near the touchpad on the laptop)

On my old laptop (Aspire 5920G, Core 2 Duo T7500 2.2 Ghz, 320 GB HDD, 4GB Ram, GeForce 8600m GT)
The temperatures are around 58-65 degrees under normal work.
And I feel hot under my palms. and the fan is noisy, especially after the last BIOS update which fixes the issues with the GeForce.

When I'm compressing a 12 GB file using WinRar or encoding a video using mediacoder, on the Core i7 the temperature is around 78-82 degrees celcius, while on the Core 2 Duo, the temperature is around 90-92 degrees celcius.

So compared to my old laptop (Aspire 5920G), yes the Aspire 5942G runs cooler and silent.

 

Thanks for the answer.
I have the 5942g with the same specs as yours and previously i had a 5920g as you did.
The last one had an average temp of 45-50 at idle and 75 when playing games with advanced graphics.

But my 5942g at idle (and when i am in the net or typing) hits with ease 55, which i find to be a little high.
I have not pressed it yet though to see its max temps.

 

g47, yes I guess it hits with ease 55, the gadget which I'm using shows individual temps of the cores, some cores are at 48, some cores at 51 and some others at 55.

This gadget also shows that under normal work (just typing, emailing) the processor runs at 933 Mhz with temps at 48-55 degrees, but when I'm compiling for a few minutes, it hits easily to 2.4 - 2.6 Ghz and the temps are around 65-70 degrees celcius. When finished, it drops easily to 933 Mhz and the temps are back to 48-55 degree celcius.
I guess its the effect of the turbo boost which makes the temps raise and drop quickly.

 

Btw, the Turbo boost is amazing, besides the numbers above, when im compressing a large file with winrar or encoding with mediacoder, all the cores of the processor are fully loaded, the frequency hits to 2.4 Ghz but quickly drops to 1.73 Ghz for a few minutes and then drops to 1.6 Ghz for the rest of the time, at this point the temp reached around 78-82 degrees celcius.

Maybe if I put some external fan then I can keep the frequency to 1.73 Ghz all the time, but the cooling design of this laptop is different because there aren't any holes at the bottom except at the front so using an ordinary laptop cooler at the bottom will not be optimal.

 

That is something important that i had on mind to mention.
On a usual laptop, you could easily reach the heat-sinks and the fans and have them cleaned with some air, with some paper with a little water or whatever.
But what can you do on this laptop when dust builds up?
I opened the small case that allows you to have access to the dimms and the hdd but no sign of the heat-sinks or fans.
I think this is not good.
What you will do in this case, in one year for example, when you will need to get rid of the dust?

 

The main heatsink and fan assembly looks hard to reach. On this sort of construction You usually have to disconnect a bunch of stuff to remove the bottom cover containing the MB and then remove the MB from it's mounting and finally you see the fan and heatpipes.

I would say that the 'year 1' dust in the main cooling radiator is probably capable of being cleaned by gently blowing air or poking a short brush into the air outlet while the fan blows what is dislodged in the opposite direction. Do NOT blow hard enough to stop the fan while it is running or expect a shutdown.

Year 2 . . well it is time for a proper spring-clean and de-dust of the board by then anyway

Water btw is a very bad idea period. In the unlikely event that something actually needs really cleaning Isopropyl Alcohol is the safest bet near electronics but keep it off the case plastic and screen etc

 

Here is as link with a problem which seems common for the 5942g.
I have it too, but not so big and i am thinking if i am going to repair it.
It seems that sending it for repair is a big trouble.
Does anyone else have it?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/465586-acer-aspire-5942g-display-problem.html

 

Everyone else has it. Commented in your other thread's posting.

 

New bios's out.
Has anyone used it?

 

Claims DEP activated and iPhone sync fix. Looks like they do listen after all

I guess as I don't use either on mine someone else should try for us

 

In what way is the upper left macro button used?
It is for exchanging files with some way, but when i press it nothing happens.

Also, the button that is on the upper right that is supposed to save energy, what does exactly?
Because when i press it, also nothing happens.

 

Hi

The top left key is acer backup manager
the energy saver key will change the power profile to power saving

IIRC Neither will do anything if Acer Launch Manager (hot keys and OSD) is not installed. Backup manager still won't work if backup manager is not installed, and the same applies to the acer power app

 

Where can i find acer backup manager available for download?
It wasnt installed when i got the laptop.
Also, i have launch manager installed but the energy saver key does not work.
What can i do?

 

Backup manager almost certainly WAS installed , but like several other programmes is not available for public download. If you installed a clean OS You will have to find it on your 'final' backup DVD. hopefully you burned these . . .

install ePower which is downloadable and the power key should then work - although it is really nothing to get over excited about

 

I have updated my BIOS to 1.04
Now windows shows that my processor supports hardware based DEP.
Intel CPU ID also shows that I have Execute disable bit.
And most important VTx is still enabled as before.
I'm testing other things now (VMWare, etc.)

 

Can I change the function of the backup manager key, for example to run windows backup ? How ?

 

There's a new ATI driver version 10.4 in AMD's website, has anyone tried it ?

There's also a newer driver for the memory card reader in JMicron's website (it's the JMB38X), on my experience it fixes the problems with removal policy settings.

 

Nop, it wasnt installed.
As it wasnt acer arcade too.
It was the same with my 5920g.
I will email acer to see.

I have already the epower installed but when i press the button nothing changes or at least nothing that i can see.
Should i be able to see a difference somewhere?


I have also installed the new bios.
It has enabled some things as captnemo mentions and i think it is running a bit cooler now. (edit: No, it doesnt.)
I have the ati's 10.4, i have not noticed something to change, fps's staid the same.
captnemo can you give us a link for the new drivers for the card reader?

 

The 10.4's are a bit of a placeholder as ATI like to issue drivers each month . . 10.3 was a big step forward so it will probably be 10.5 before they change anything much. Availability of new hack-free 'full flavour' graphics drivers each month is a treat for gamer ATI notebook owners though

 

Re New BIOS

Has anyone who was having iPhone sync problems tried this update ?

 

G47 I see an on-screen graphic flash up for a moment for power state change.

Where did you get your 5942G and what spec is it? I am surprised that acer shipped a system with two key applications (and selling points) not provided and must have made a different drive and recovery image to do so.

Did you make the Applications and Drivers recovery DVD and have you looked in it for these applications

 

I have a graphic flash up on the other buttons, these are wlan and bluetooth.
That means that quick lauch is working.
But i dont see one when i press the epower one even though i have installed the program.
What is wrong??

I live in Greece and i bought my 5942g from a multistore in my town.
Specs from the stores site (sorry for the language, but the specs are visible):
Acer Aspire 5942G-726G64Bn - Laptop - plaisio.gr

No, i have not a recovery dvd.
But when i first used the computer i looked for all the programs that were preinstalled, i am sure i did no miss anything, it is not possible.
And from day one, before even i change anytging, the acer backup button and epower button did not work.
So, it came from the factory that way.
Is there a possibility for the epower button to work only if you have the battery in?
Because i dont, i use only ac until now.
If not what else could it be?
Any ideas for what i can do?

 

Spec on the site is very clear (even in Greek)
Software
Operating system Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
Supplied Software
Acer Arcade Acer Grid Vista Acer Launch Manager Acer eRecovery Adobe Reader

I cannot see how the Blu Ray playing is going to work if you don't have Acer Arcade (deluxe) as there is no native blu-ray capability in W7. Did you get the BluRay demo disk in the package and does it play. (Does the tray have the BluRay logo ?)

The situation you describe sounds like someone overwrote the original Acer W7 install and downloaded the drivers they could find on line. Is Alt-F10 working (as you boot and while the acer logo shows). (Also use F2 at boot to check D2D recovery is enabled in the Bios)




You should in any case make (burn) the recovery DVD's from the images in the recovery partition by following the instructions on screen (eRecovery application IIRC).

I have never tried saving power while using AC supply so it would be worth trying in battery mode . . otherwise I really don't know

 

Yes the player is a blue ray one.
I have downloaded acer arcade deluxe and now i can play bluerays just fine.

Yes the keys are working fine.
I have an image of my system from acronis true image home, i use this program for my backup.
I will put the battery on and see if anything changes.
Just to check, i uninstalled the epower utility and i pressed the button which does not light up.
Then i installed again and it does light up but i dont get any on screen message.
It is probably because of the battery and i will confirm it.
Can you confirm that on ac it does not work?

So, the only ''problem'' is the backup manager which i can not find.
If anyone has the install file i would be grateful.

 

Can't check now . Working elsewhere on a **mac**. Just stick your battery on and try it !

Regarding backup manager if you have an image you are happy with you don't really get much extra from backup manager or the recovery partition UNLESS you need to return the unit for warranty repair. First step will be restore system to factory and I understand if you can't do that they charge for re-imaging the HDD before they fix the fault. . .

Assuming the recovery partition is there and working you are fine . . you don't need to do anything else to be able to restore in a crisis.

If not then hope you don't have a crisis but I really wonder about this laptop's history if the Arcade SW was not provided on a Blu Ray system . .

Has anyone else ever seen this ?