Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG Owners Lounge

Thanks for the reply Bronsky, yes you are correct i have a router in the basement, I've tested the cable on my netbook and it was working fine, so it shouldn't be the ethernet cable.

Nope, none of the network adapters have anything on them, seems to be ok.
How many network adapters should i have? I only have 2 and they both seem to be related to wifi. I have the:
-Broadcom 802.11n network adapter
-Microsoft virtual wifi miniport adapter
Am i missing any?
Yes i do have the ethernet connected most of the time and as a matter of fact there was a bad storm last night, while i was out, there was apparently a quick black out for maybe no more than a second; one of those quick flashes

 

Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum but I'm looking to get myself a 4820TG-3195 as soon as possible. After shopping around for a week or two I had narrowed my search down to this computer and the Envy 14, which are basically the only two decent 14" laptops with the ATI 5650.

Unfortunately I live in the US and the only place that sells this model is Microcenter. Apparently they are low on stock or something because online ordering has been disabled and I don't live anywhere near their B&M stores. Amazon doesn't carry this model period.

I don't really want to shell out the extra cash for the Envy, but I just sold my old laptop and I'm not sure how long I want to wait for the Acer to become available again. Any suggestions?

 

Run Everest and go to File/Preferences/Logging. Under logging, checkmark "Log sensor readings to CSV log file:" and your path should be similar to C:\Users\Aylafan\Desktop\New Text Document.csv

Checkmark "System, Date, Time, CPU Clock, CPU Multilplier, CPU FSB, Temperatures, CPU, CPU #1 / Core #1, CPU #1 / Core # 2, GPU, GPU Diode, etc.

Every time you run Everest with Preferences opened, two .csv files will be created to the path you chose on your computer. Do this before you run Starcraft 2 for temperature results. Close Everest when you want to stop the logging. Then upload the .csv file with the recorded temperatures to www.megaupload.com and post it in this thread.

 

I think the atheros driver operates the ethernet adapter.

 

Microcenter usually replenishes their stock in a few days. If not, maybe an individial store will sell you one and ship it to you. I hate to make you decision more complicated, but have you looked at the Asus N82JV? I would probably still go wtih the acer but it's worth a look and it's available as an aternative to the Envy 14, given your time constraints

Bronsky .

 

hmm I've updated and reinstalled everything network related

Any idea what could be wrong or what I can do?

 

hey guys im wondering if this is normal

sometimes my hard drive on my 4820 glitches. the hard drive light at the top left would stay on and whatever im doing would freeze up, like firefox not responding or vlc freezing (watching videos on the hard drive). it would stay frozen for about 5 seconds and then the hard drive light at the top would go off and the computer would unfreeze.

im wondering if this is normal because it happens for my desktop computer as well

 

When you boot, do you see the loading line for the atheros driver? I think you should see version 2.0.1? Does it then give you the rotating asterisk that shows it trying to connect to the ethernet?

You see the green light but you don't see the orange light on the otherside of the ethernet socket at all? It doesn't blink?

When you load, do you have wireless on? What happens if you turn it off?

Can you connect wirelessly?

You know my real concern is that the ethernet socket got fried somehow. If it was working and now is not, that would make the most sense.

 

Sounds like a slow drive loading ... you have the original 5400 rpm drive in there?

Bronsky

 

yes i have the original

 

Sounds like a normal loading delay.

 

When i boot it shows the acer splash with bios option then a flashing line, blank screen (no boot GUI) and then windows loads. No when i plug in a ethernet cable there's no response at all, nothing happens at the socket.

Yes the green light is always on, steady no flashing or anything. This is with or without a cord plugged in. When i plug in a cord the green light remains the same and orange doesn't turn on.

Yes wireless is on for the most part, if i turn it off it simply says no network connection, and when i try to create a new network my only option is to turn on wireless. Wireless is still ok no problems there.

what happens if it is fried? I live in Canada but my timelineX is from the states. Is there a way i could use the travellers warranty and get it repaired here in canada?

 

It doesn't sound like the driver is loading. Do you have the original software on there or did you do a clean install? If you did a clean install, did you keep a restore disk and image? If you did, before i send it back, I would restore it to factory and see if the Ethernet works.

No matter which warranty is implicated, I think it has to be shipped for repairs to the depot in Texas. AcerInsider could tell us better, but my understanding is that all Acer warranty work in the pan american region (canada, US, mex?) have to be sent to the repair depot in Texas. I would reach out to Acer and let them know that your ethernet has stopped working (don't voluntarily mention the storm ).

Even if you use a travelers warranty, it would go to texas anyway I think.

Bronsky

 

Yup all original, I cloned my original harddrive onto the Momentus XT, i made the recovery disks and everything i will try that or maybe even swap back the old harddrive and see if that works as it was done a couple weeks ago when everything was almost brand new.

So I shouldn't have any problems using my warranty despite my laptop being from a different country? if so that would make things much easier Edit: just checked warranty its good both Canada and USA.

edit: just tried, reinstalling drivers again, when i got to the atheros drivers it said the card was not plugged in. So windows isn't detecting my card. Is there a way I can do something about this without opening up the laptop?

 

Well, I just spoke with a customer service rep at Microcenter and it was not very encouraging.

The bottom line is that the 3195 model is not available for online ordering and can't be shipped from their B&M stores even though it is in stock in several locations (they don't take credit card orders).

When I asked about restocking I was told that there is limited supply and they don't know when or if they will be restocked.

I'm pretty disappointed - this is really the laptop that I wanted to buy, but I can't buy it ANYWHERE.

Bronsky - thanks for the suggestion of the ASUS N82JV. Unfortunately it doesn't really appeal to me - looks too cheap and ugly, much like the Lenovo Y460 which I had also initially considered.

 

Microcenter has been selling 30 to 50 units a week of the 4820TG, do you really think they are going to let it run out of stock? Give it a few days. There might be some new CPU's on the horizon and that might cause some delay.

 

I think you've done about everything that can be done. It's time for an RMA from Acer. Sorry. Now aren't you glad you got a 4820TG instead of a 3820TG? You would have to ship it back to Taiwan or Germany, not Texas.

Bronsky

 

haha yeah just my luck that storm messed something up, will try swapping back original harddrive to see if its something with windows or if its hardware. otherwise guess its going Texas, any idea how long the RMA process takes? i need this laptop for school in about 2-3 weeks tops.

Thanks so much for your help btw

 

Putting the original HD makes sense. I would call rather than try to make an email contact. Acer phone personnel are much better to deal with than online chat. I have dealt with the people at the Depot in Texas and they are very helpful. The online people - not so much. Have your serial number, etc ready. They will probably have a tech walk you through some software checks but I think it's going back.

Good luck with it.

Bronsky

 

Also, remember to always have a surge protector for your laptop. An ungrounded electrical outlet at the college library once fried one of my Acer Aspire 5740G laptops. Not a pretty sight when you are typing a 6 page essay.

 

it's been plugged into a surge protector the entire time so i don't understand why this happened

 

I've fried a notebook and a desktop with lightning surging through electrical power and cable coax lines. I'm still guilty of not using a suppressor on the road (although most travel connections are wireless). I now have a supressor that protects the power line and the Ethernet line at work and a similar system at home.

Bronsky

 

Thank you!

This is where I'm supposed to download it from, right?

EVEREST Ultimate Edition - PC Diagnostics | Lavalys.com

EDIT: Nm, got it. Will have benchmarks later

 

was just thinking, if it really came down to it, would it be ok for the laptop to run with the port broken for a while? im concerned i won't have enough time to get the laptop to texas and back before the start of school. Is there any risks to running the laptop with the port being undected?

Bronksy what was the number you called? i called the support number for Canada and they weren't very helpful.

 

What wireless/bluetooth cards do you have in your 4820TG's?

I have the Aspire TimelineX AS4820TG-3195 and it came with Broadcom wireless and bluetooth. Is it really worth upgrading the wireless card to intel? I have yet to notice any issues with the Broadcom card.

 

anyone having any problems with hibernating?

I left my computer in sleep mode for a while and when i came back the power button was on as well as my indicator light at the bottom left. it felt like the computer was running because the left vent was pretty hot. i also couldn't get my computer to turn back on (tried hitting some keys and the power button)so i had to restart manually by holding down the power button. after i restarted it i noticed that my battery was drained about 40%.

I think this is a problem with hibernating... although it didnt have any problems hibernating before and its hibernating fine now.

so anyone have a problem like this? and does anyone know what is causing this?

 

Sure if you can still run wireless, it won't hurt if you need it for school. I'll have to look around for that number. Did you actually have your ethernet cable run through a surge protector as well? If so, that should not have burned out the socket. Maybe it's something else.

 

Thanks, and no I never knew that was necessary and that it could burn through the ethernet cable This is my first laptop so I'm used to just flipping the switch on my PSU and pulling the cable out and that normally does the trick on my desktop if after a bad storm it won't turn on.

And don't worry about the number Thank you though. I just went ahead and did it online through the "Fix My Acer" thing on Acer's support website. The email support even told me to just send it in as I've really done everything possible Turns out I can drop it off somewhere nearby only about a half hour drive. So I'll see how that goes

 

Sounds great. Hopefully, the repairs won't take too long.

 

Hi all, just got my 4820tg with the i5 and 5650 and am loving it. Thinking about doing some overclocking of the video card and I was wondering, what temps are considered "safe" for the 5650?

Thanks

Joel

 

Not sure what temps are considered "safe", but I overclock the gpu to 650/950 and it runs without a hitch.

 

hey guys out of question what ratings are you all getting from the window experience index? is getting 5.9 for the ram, i have 4gb ddr3, and 5.5 for the HDD, 500gb at 5400rpm, good? the rest are 6.7. can someone with the i5 version let me know? thanks

sorry to ask another thing but also whenever i bootup the cpu meter gadget is sitting on 30s-40% just on start up and idle is that also normal?

 

Well I can't get an Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG-3195 and I'm NOT loving it. I just got off the phone with one of the sales managers at one of the local Atlanta Microcenter's. They have been out of stock of the i5 model for 2 weeks now and I've been waiting for it to get back in stock. Today I finally was able to get a call through to someone. According to "John", this specific model/verson is marked "discontinued" and they are not going to get any more in. Needless to say, I'm not happy about this as I really wanted to to pick one up.

John's comments were that laptops there typically have a 12 week shelf life before a new version of it comes down with slightly better components. I'm hoping that this means Acer is releasing a model of the 4820TG soon with slightly better content. He did not have any info on any new model that might be "in the wings" waiting to go out on the floor (like he'd tell a customer beforehand anyways).

Posting this here, not to troll or stir things up, but to share the info and hopefully see if anyone else has a better line where to either pick one of these up or perhaps knows something about the new "model" coming down that will replace this. Microcenter still has the i3 model (for now) and it's available on Amazon, but I can't find the i5 model anywhere except at a Microcenter in another state.

Sigh. Should have picked that one up that was at the Duluth, GA store back the first of the month. Now my dilemma is do I order one online from another state or do I wait and see what better version of the TimelineX shows up?

 

There's a floor model of AS4820TG-3195 available at the Tustin, Orange County, California Microcenter for $809.99.

Micro Center - TimelineX AS4820TG-3195 Laptop Computer - Carbon Black LX.PSE02.228 (select CA - Orange County/Tustin at the top)

They won't ship - in store pickup only.

 

@jlovell2105

Sorry to hear that, can't you ask your local MC to ship the item from another store ? When the one near my house was out of stock, I requested that they ship the item from another MC. The sales rep said its possible but then they were having a fresh batch coming in so I did not have to go that route.

 

The current Microcenter circular just crossed my desk and the Acer 4820TG is listed on page 3 with prices guaranteed through September 5, 2010. We have seen the new Intel CPU's showing up (the 370M and the 460M are in some new product listings). I have no doubt that Microcenter will have 4820TG models to replenish those it has sold out, and all the better if they have the new CPUs. Otherwise, they would not be advertising them in the circular.

Bronsky

 

That's extremely interesting that they are advertising this specific model in the new circular. I'm hoping that you are right. This advertising indicates to me that Microcenter thought that they would have this item but that Acer has a newer version coming out with slightly different components that will be "standing in" instead of the 3195 version. That would explain why it's in the circular but that most of the stores show out of stock on the item. You don't spend money advertising what you can't sell.

I could get one by ordering it online from a store that has it and having it shipped to me, but I think I'll gamble and hold out and see if they get more of these in in some form or fashion. This is quite possibly the perfect laptop considering the combination of components, size, and price and I want one!!!

 

If you can wait a little bit, I would see if there are new processors coming out. The 460M would give you a hair more speed for the same price. Can't beat that.

 

Hello, just a crossposting from the 3820 scene.
In the germany are the first 3820TG with the i5-460M are listed. The delivery date should be the 23 september 2010.

I think Acer or Intel is not able to bring enough processors/notebook to the market.

 

Intel keeps rushing new chips to market and then can't keep up with production. Acer is already refreshing its models and there is still not an I5-520M or better to be found in the US. I have feeling that the sandy bridge CPUS are going to be the same story.

Bronsky

 

my 5650 is hitting 90C without overclock so if u stay under that im sure that it will be fine

 

Yea I have the same problem... this size isn't very popular with sleeves manufacturers... I managed to get a supposedly 14inch sleeve but its still 1 inch bigger

 

Funny too, since there are so many 14" notebooks.

 

Seeing that the timelinex series is quite popular I don't think acer will kill the goose that lays the golden egg... have faith

 

i nearly bought this notebook.

but i found the screen, KB and optical DD all to have flex.

is this common or was it just the display model at my store maybe?

love the specs and price, just really concerned about the quality.

 

Oh man the flex thing all over again...

I would be really surprised if something thats as thin and light as the timelinex notebook does not flex a few millimeters if subjected to some forced bending...

There are many many owners and would be owners that already said the construction is rock solid... I don't think we should revisit this topic ever again...

 

lmfao, happy camper much......

not a few mm, normally flex does not bother me in the slightest.

 

To each his own, if you have "flexed it" and don't like it.. don't buy it, why ask the forum peeps about build quality when you have "tried it" and don't like it? Does the many people who have found the build quality good even after "flexing it" will in any way "change" your own personal perception or experience in "flexing it" .....

 

Why would you flex it anyway?
And what's normal flex?

This isn't a normal laptop; it's revolutionary.

 

why are you so friggin defensive? your missing the point through being so keen to get defensive.

perhaps it could be a variance in flex. a few mm is not the flex i refer to.

i wish they sold the 3820tg where i am;-(