Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG Owners Lounge

The one I ordered yesterday while it was in stock has been stuck in "processing" all day. Not feeling too confident.

 

Was just about to order this laptop when i got the e-mail today (well, i got it yesterday, but didn't read it til today) and it has been deactivated like previously mentioned. So sad Now i have to wait to see if they even will re-stock it!

 

Can someone verify the following. I would like to pull the optical drive, i have read that i need a 9.5mm sata caddy here in the forums. Is the internal drive caddy also limited to 9.5mm drives. Can anyone recommend a specific Optical Drive Bay Caddy which is known to work with 4820tg? Can you boot from either drive via bios change? I am considering having boot from Optical Caddy and using a 2nd caddy, 1 for work and one for play.
Last i am trying to make a decision between a seagate momentus xt 500gb or an SSD as primary boot drive. Has anyone tried both and made a decision about this? Perhaps just a single momentus xt and skip the Optical Caddy.

Thanks

 

Anyone remember how to disable to touchpad lock when playing FPS?

 

So I did more research. It looks like the Agility 2 SSDs have the Sandforce SF1200 controller.

Are there any known compatibility issues with this controller?
I also heard that your PC must have ADHI compatibility to take advantage of the full dpeed potential of this drive. Does the 4820tg support this profile?

 

I bought the 4820tg about a week ago, and already I am having issues. My "h" key is squeaking very loud and I need help.

How do I go about fixing this, is there a special way to remove the keys?

And if i really have to send it in for repairs, what costs am i looking at?

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/6851743-post6922.html

Bronsky

 

Sorry for the requote, but just wanna double check and see if anybody else has experienced this and if a new hard drive helped the issue. I've been eyeing the WD Scorpio Black 500 gig on newegg, but i'm not totally sold on it if its not going to help the issue.

 

I appreciate the quick response and I apologize about posting twice.

Are there any sprays that you can recommend and where to buy them? I did a quick search on amazon, and those teflon sprays are for like bike gears or something.

And is there a reason i need to be extra careful with the teflon touching on top of the keys? Does it leave a permanent residue or something?

 

Download and use QuietHDD.

 

Thank you for those links.

I decided to try the MSI Driver without the Q,
and it has the highest version number.

The speaker volume seems to be louder and improved. The sound quality of the output seems audibly better from the speakers and the headphone jack.
Not sure if it's just psychological. LOL

So far, no problems with these drivers. So I'll keep them installed. Hehe!
Thanks!

 

Damn guys, we missed a GREAT deal.

Newegg had a G.Skill 60gb SSD w/SF1222 controller for ONLY $60!!!!!! (also free shipping)
This was yesterdays deal. How the hell did I miss that?

I could of had 2 for the price of what I paid for my 60gb Agility 2.

Sorry, just a little frustrated.

 

Double post error.

 

Just wanted to add another plus with the 4820TG over the 3820TG.

Since you can install an additional HDD/SSD on the 4820TG, you can
maximize Windows 7, apps, games, etc. performance.

For maximum Windows 7 performance, you can configure a small page file on the OS HDD/SSD, the main, larger page file on the other HDD/SSD.
(* Not on a separate partition on 1 HDD/SSD but on the other HDD/SSD).
So for example, if your OS is on the SSD, definitely configure the main, larger page file on the HDD.
If you have 2 HDDs or 2 SSDs connected, place the main, larger page file separately from where the OS is installed.

 

this seemed to fix the issue. thanks!

 

2 in stock on amazon and I immediately ordered 1. Will be an owner in a few days' time!!

 

Awesome!

Nice to see you were able to order it this time around before it
became out of stock again.

 

The G.Skill 60GB was only $60 at Newegg yesterday?!?!? Aaarrggghh!

That model received lots of positive reviews.

Can't believe I missed that either!
And I was looking around regularly on Newegg the last few days. Aaarrggghh!

 

Thanks. It seems that this time they have a larger batch in stock.

 

Did you guys install the optical pm drivers? wat did it do? i don't see it installing any programs or anything

 

Mine should be getting delivered tomorrow, and I ordered a G.Skill Phoenix 120GB drive from newegg thatshould show up on thursday. I'm pumped for this...

Been jonesin' for this thing for a couple of weeks now.

 

Does anyone have the firmware for the DVD drive or know a program that can be used to dump the firmware? I'm having problems with burning DL DVDs and thought a firmware update might be helpful but I don't want to try the new one without dumping the current firmware to a file.

PS. I have a 5820TG with a TS-U633F drive and I guess the 4820TG has the same unit.

 

hey guys,
gotta a dilemma,
momentus xt 500gb or crucial c300 64gb.
which one would you go for?

 

I bought the 128GB C300 when they first came out and returned it. There were problems with the drive when it was released. Wound up getting the M225 when it went on sale for $229.

Bronsky

 

JUST GOT MINE! Wahooo! Lol. So, now I have a few questions since this thread is so freaking long searching in nearly impossible:

1.) I want to do a clean install of Windows, how can I go about this? I have an old license from my other laptop (RIP) if necessary; I just need to know what drivers or utilities NEED to be installed for my new toy to work properly.

2.) Are the 3820 and 4820 keyboards the exact same size? I'm sooo wanting to throw a backlit keyboard into this puppy...

3.) How do I check what display I have? I heard a lot of people complaining about theirs but mine is freaking wonderful... More a curiosity than anything.

 

The keyboards are the same size but the backlit model is a bit thicker so the clips have to be filed down to make the KB fit in the 3820TG and 4820TG. http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/491169-acer-timelinex-3820tg-backlit-keyboard-mod.html

To check your display go to Control Panel > Device Manager > Monitors > Generic PNP Monitor > Details Tab and select Hardware ID in the pull down menu. The manufacturer and model will be displayed below.

Here is my guide to converting an imported 3820TG, it addresses a clean install as well. http://forum.notebookreview.com/6465732-post1613.html

Congratulations on your new 4820TG.

Bronsky

 

mine is on a delivery truck somewhere, I'm dying to get my hands on this thing! Gah!

 

Deactivated on Newegg.

 

<S>Just ran a real world test on battery life with default Windows 7 settings. Started it up at 11am, and it finally went into hibernate at 5pm, so roughly 6 hours, and during this time I was browsing the internet about 80-90% of the time it was on. Pretty impressed!

Also, I was thinking about getting a momentus XT hard drive to replace my stock one. When I tried to run the activation tool, it copied over the serial key but not the acer certificate, am I doing something wrong?

I get this error message "File does not exist: C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\NetworkService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Softwarelicence\tokens.dat

!!! Could not find activation certificate !!!"</s>

Never mind! I wasn't using the beta version.

Could I just clone my old drive to the new XT?

 

Just received my 4820TG from Amazon. I am not impressed with the screen at ALL. Having it side by side with my old Inspiron 1420, the Dell looks much better for some reason. The 4820 almost seems grainier and the contrast is worse as well. Do you guys think I have a bad screen? The manufacturer is CMO if that matters.

 

so my laptop just came in from amazon as well, I got an AUO screen and the screen quality seems pretty great. I will say that blacks and dark colors are rather angle dependent and wash out grey rather easily, but in a dark room I'd just drop the brightness and bump the contrast to mitigate the effects.

Overall I'm happy! This thing looks, feels and runs wonderful

 

Hey guys just got my laptop today, should i charge the laptop till I'm fully charged before I turn it on ? I.e do full battery cycle charge

 

also got a 4280 with CMO...doesn't seem grainy, but washes out quickly from vertical. I didn't expect a HP dreamcolor out of this screen when I bought though, so no matter.

Lid is kinda quirky, fold back past a certain point and I feel a bump or click in the hinges as it goes past 90 degrees

 

Plug the charger in, boot it up, and enjoy... no need to wait until fully charged.

 

Just for kickers, I just checked the screen manufacturer in my 3yr old HP dv2000. It show it is a AUO4444. This is a 14" screen @ 1280x800. So basically the same DPI just stretched differently. I compare the two side by side and the HP looks much better. So AUO can make a quality panel, just not the model in th 4820tg.


Now I have a problem. I just installed my Agility2 SSD in my lappy. I powered it up and attempted to install Win7 via Bronsky's TUT. The first boot started and began loading the files from the DVD (i made a DVD image vs a USB). I walked off and came back about 3min later. When I came back the laptop was stalled at a black screen with a blinking cursor. I gave it like 30min, but no change. So I held down the power button to shut it down (it was un-responsive to any input). I started it back up again and same thing happened. I restarted several times and finally made it to the Installation screen. It took forever to Extract the files which I thought was weird for an ultra fast SSD. Anyhow it made it to like 39% on the Extraction before I walked away. I come back 20min later and it is at the black screen w/blinking cursor again. I restarted once more. Got to the windows loading splash and it just hangs. Restarted multiple times and finally got to the Continuing Installing Windows screen.]
Now it is saying that "The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered a error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows, click "OK" to restart the computer, and then continue installation"
After a restart it goes right back to the same screen or back to the black w/blinking cursor. It is about 50/50 and happens at random.

Did I get a bad SSD? It took me like 30-40 restarts to get it to install the first time. I do not think this is normal. Is there something I am missing?

 

Is this still applicable to the new ion batteries cycle charging? I.e for the first few times, charge till full, deplete completely, charge to full again repeat for 4 times?

 

It is NOT recommended to completely deplete a Li-ion laptop battery. You'll cause permanent wear on the laptop battery by doing this.

This is a different case with NiCad or NiMH batteries used on older laptops.

 

Aylafan is so much right!

DO NOT!

Read this:

Batteryuniversity

 

Thanks, what do you guys think of the screen. I have to say I'm a little disappointed that my old 5 year laptop has a finer screen than this. You can see the large grains on the screen, I thought he led screens would be finer than the lcd screens? Any thoughts how to fix this problem?

Btw i got the Acer Aspire TimelineX AS4820TG-7805 Intel Core i5 460M(2.53GHz) 14"

 

Technically, it's not a LED screen. It's a LCD screen with backlit LED lighting on the 4820TG. LED is brighter than the typical Cathode lighting you see in most budget laptops.

My 7 year old Dell Inspiron 700m has a better screen than the 4 laptops I have owned after it. So, I know how you feel.

 

joker, if it's really bad you may have a bad screen. There were some reports earlier in this thread of guys getting bad screens, you may want to read through the first 40 pages (gah, I know...) to hear about their symptoms. Frankly, my screen looks great. No graininess to speak of, and I have extremely good vision.

 

Any tips on trying to do a fresh install of Windows7 on a SSD?
Apparently I am not doing it right or something. I followed Bronsky's guide, but so far no go.

 

The screen is really bad, there is nothing wrong with it, it's just a really low end quality screen.

The 4 laptops I had before this had better screens.

Edit: I have the OUA panel on the 5820TG and the LG panel on the 3820TG, they are both below average in terms of viewing angle and maximum brightness.

 

Please speak for yourself only. The screens may have bad quality control, but my screen is definitely not "low-end quality." I work on high end computers all the time at work, and I am very impressed by the quality of my 4820TG screen. The only complaint I have is in the glossiness. But there's certainly no graininess or pixelation.

 

Which panel do you have ? I heard the Samsung is better.
The other 2 panels are below average.

 

My AS4820TG-7805 is on the way
Can anyone recommend a neoprene laptop sleeve that protects and fits well?
Thanks.

 

Looks like Amazon is $50 more than newegg? I also didnt see an option for 12 months interest free like newegg... I hate to have to use my cash when I can get a loan for free!

 

Only if you are lucky enough to find the 4820TG in stock at Newegg.com. The 4820TG is usually out of stock and restocking doesn't happen that often.

 

another plug for JR pricematching newegg, f/s and no tax in cali.

ayla - i also have a 700m and it's hard to believe after all these years how few screens have been comparable, esp. at the price (my 700m was around $1100 in 2005)

 

There is no rhyme nor reason to the displays. What we have seen with 3820TGs is that every display varries considerably from another in QA/QC. My first display is perfect. This new one okay, but doesn't have nearly the viewing angles of the first. At least I don't have the pixilation reported by others.

Bronsky