Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG Owners Lounge

You guys in Europe are lucky to get the i7. We don't have that in the US.

 

I did not see ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 listed in HWMonitor. You need to use both the Core i5 + HD 5650 at the same time for temperatures to be accurate. The Intel GMA doesn't generate as much heat as the HD 5650. If GPU temperature rises, so will the CPU temperature in the 4820TG.

 

I noticed that too, but I don't know how to get the ATI listed i the monitor! It was selected and active @ the time I ran the tests

 

I was in the USA today and i went by a microcenter in the AM

i saw the demo 4820gt,

and who ever says the build quality is crap, sorry to disappoint, but it's the same as the 3820tg. it's steardy and is based on the same design excluding the dual heat sink, the rest is the same

same built, same everything, i dunno how anyone can complain!

 

I have been telling everyone that the Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG does not have poor build quality. Yet, people still go to the Envy 14 forum or some online review to search for advice about the 4820TG. It's all bias from those sources.

Listen to the people who actually own & use the 4820TG.

Sighs.

 

exactly aylafan.

the quality is superb like the 3820tg

 

i wonder if amazon will sell the i5 series

i wanna get the i5's for the heat problem

 

Anyone know what touchpad the 4820T uses, I am experiecning mouse jumping. Not sure whether to download the alps or synaptics driver.

 

How do you install the Dolby Home Theater audio driver? I install the driver from Acer site and look like it doesn't have Dolby.

 

Control panel > device manager > mice and pointing device

You will see the type you have there.

Bronsky

 

I think the problem is, the laptop reviewers clearly got prototype models. I'm pretty sure they mentioned that fact in their reviews.

 

Back from vacation, nothing more to add to last update really. I have to say this computer really rocks for how much it costs.

I put this thing against a friend who has a MBP 13" when I was in Japan. He had just gotten DIRT 2 and he was very disappointed because it was running like crap (well, relatively speaking) compared to mine. Obviously it can't match the keyboard, the screen and the aluminium unibody construction of MBP but I didn't pay $1,300 either. I got a little flimsier laptop with more power AND a full-on quad core desktop tower for less than how much MBP 15" costs.

Heat is really not that bad but it will get upto low 80's in sustained torture testing. I was never able to push it above 82 regardless of tests. Build quality is good enough for a laptop this thin and this powerful. Lid does flex a little bit but I'm in the habit of opening the lid with both hands so that doesn't matter to me. Battery life is way above average - I was able to play 4 hours of 720p video on the trip back. It looked like I could have squeezed out even more if I played regular DVD quality stuff.

Last thing, the laptop cooler doesn't seem to be helping all that much - I've reloacated fans near where the exhaust is but I think it just interferes with air flow and actually makes it worse. Anyone else try a laptop cooler on 4820TG?

 

Where in USA and online I can buy this notebook ?

 

microcenter is selling the 4820tg.


anyone tried a cpu OC with setfsb? The 3820tg settings might work for it.

I'd imagine the i5 model is the only "safe" model to do this on. The i3 is already at it's limit.

 

Finally got mine form MicroCenter today Very happy so far. I got the i5 version.

EDIT: It seems that the DVD drive is making weird noises. I'm not sure why. I'm attempting to create the eRecovery disks, and it always freezes at 44% of the first disk when verifying

 

someotehrs i believe had the same issue Kolosok. search this thread..

i believe it was in here.

 

how do u like it so far?

 

There is a new driver for the DVD drive on the Acer website. Maybe, that could fix the problem.

 

Haven't been able to play with it much. First thing I did was use eRecovery to set up the driver and system recovery disks (which took over 3 hours because of mishaps) and then I installed Windows 7 Professional 64-bit. The furthest I've gotten is installing the windows updates and antivirus software. Then I had to go to sleep since I have work today Can't wait to get home!

I've been using the default drivers. I'm not sure whether the problem lies in the quality of the DVD-R's that I'm using (Phillips brand). I ended up wasting 3 DVDs, which wasn't that much of a big deal, since it did end up working in the end

Are the drivers it ships with outdated already? Which ones should I upgrade?

 

will be returning something to best buy later today...

there is a microcenter next door...

must, resist, buying, 4820tg... lol

 

im gonna sound like a total n00b here but, there are 2 bios updates for the 4820TG: 1.13 and 1.15

do i need to install 1.13 then 1.15 or can i install 1.15 only and have the benefits of 1.13 aswell

sorry but updating the bios really scare the heck out of me for some reason

 

You only need to install 1.15. Usually, just the latest BIOS.

Make sure you have your battery inside the laptop and your power adapter plugged in, otherwise something could go wrong or the BIOS update won't go through the process.

 

Just ordered a 4820TG (i5 model) from my local microcenter. I cannot wait to go pick it up after work! The first thing I'm going to do with it is a clean install of Windows 7 Pro 64-bit.

I'm so freakin excited

 

Since ngaw is the only one I can recall having throttling issues with his i3 4820tg. Does any other owner have this issue with their i3 while doing a normal gaming session for 1-2 hours?

But then again is throttling all that bad? Its a safety mechanism that prevents the CPU from getting too hot and in short would prolong its lifetime in the long run? I mean i rather not see my CPU go anywhere near 90C even though the thermal threshold for the i5 is 105C. Or am I just being optimistic in an attempt to make myself feel better?

Im still contemplating the i3-350M 4820TG since I do not believe the 100$ is justifiable going to the i5-450M since I will be upgrading to SSD anyways and the extra $100 puts it outside my budget. Then again, I could just go for the i5 4820TG and forget about the SSD and have a few bucks left over.

 

Why not get the i5 then sell the HDD on eBay or such? Also, you can just use the HDD for now and buy the SSD around Christmas; I'm sure there will be sales.

 

I can't seem to find the i5 version on Microcenter's website anymore. Did they pull it?

 

They pulled it last time when they ran out. They take it off the main Acer page when they are out.
They had 12 available a couple of days ago. They are selling the crap out of these. Down to 1 I3-350M I see.

Bronsky

 

Micro Center - Acer Aspire TimelineX AS4820TG-3195 Laptop Computer - Carbon Black LX.PSE02.228

You have to manually search through the links. The search bar doesn't work that well.

 

Ah, thanks for the prompt responses guys.

I was originally going to go for the i3 from Amazon (no tax,) but after reading about the throttle, I'm starting to consider the i5 again...grrr, hate making these decisions.

=D

 

I5 - all the way.

 

I am ready to by the 4820tg and I have a question.
What is the stock clock speed of 5650 in the 4820tg? 550/800?


Thank you for the info



envy 14 520m 5650 RMA due to under-clocked 5650
http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-envy-hdx/503246-hp-envy-14-gpu-clock-undervoltage-poll.html

 

Once I create the Recovery DVDs will I be able to delete the 13GB recovery partition?

 

no.

Bronsky

@S.M. you have the stock clocks right. There is no problem OC'ing the HD5650. BTW, the 5650 is not technically underclocked in the Envy. The card's clockspeed was made to be variable and set by the manufacturer within a certain range. The Envy settings are within that range.

 

Thank you so much for the information. If it is no trouble can you please tell me the 3dmark 06 score on the stock(no oc) 4820tg.

 

I'll let you know as soon as I get windows 7 pro and drivers up and running.

So there's no way to get rid of the partition then? lol

 

I found it.


Envy 14 5650 stock 3dmrk score 6876
The best oc score is below 8000

VS

acer 4820tg 5650 stock 3dmark score 7640
oc score 10082


Acer is the winner.

 

You can buy a set of backup disks for $19. Or you could do a clean install and use windows backup to restore from an image of your computer. But, if you want the F10 restore program from Acer to work, it needs that partition.

Bronsky

@S.M. I have a 3820TG but they should be similar. Mine is ~7600

 

Sorry for the stupid question, but I feel this is the best place for it.

Where can I buy one of these damn things? I want to compare prices as I have a budget constraint(also looking for info on the (3820TG) but I have nothing to look at. I've been searching the net for a good half hour and can't seem to find a distributor/reseller.

 

Micro Center - Acer Aspire TimelineX AS4820TG-3195 Laptop Computer - Carbon Black LX.PSE02.228

 

Amazon is getting the I3 version soon and I guess the I5 model next.

 

Date first available at Amazon.com: July 15, 2010

still not available

 

Thanks for the quick reply, that actually works out well as there is a Micro Center within an hour's drive and those in stock. For gaming I should not even look at the i3 model correct? And warranty is something that I'm looking at as well, through Acer is it possible to buy an extended one that would cover 'accidents' for 2+ years?

Thanks for the help.

 

Back from my trip to MC...

Spent over an hour with the 4820TG i5 display model...

Build quality - awesome
Screen - awesome
Speakers - awesome
Keyboard flex - BARELY any, was very surprised
ODD swap - should be super easy. confirmed its 9.5mm and SATA. they are actually using the same ODD found in the 4810 model
Backlit keyboard swap - the plastic clips are very easy to disengage... I did a few with my credit card in seconds. this mod should be super easy

weight, size, footprint... i love every part of it.

dual HDD 4820 is definitely not a bad runner up to the 3820 i originally wanted.

and DAMNNNNN the brushed aluminum lid looks baller!!! the brushed palmrests look sick too.

was so tempted to buy it on the spot and play starcraft 2 with it at midnight. hahaha.

 

ODD swap would really be interesting. That way, you could put just an 80GB SSD in there and go with a 500GB to 1TB 7200rpm HD's for storage. Glad you liked the unit. Hard part of the KB swap is not getting the KB out. The fun only starts then. Who knows, maybe we'll have the switch figured out soon.

Bronsky

 

7621 marks in 3D Mark 06 with Fresh install of Windows 7 Pro x64, ATI Catalyst Ver. 2010.0706.2128.36662

This laptop IS AMAZING! Build quality is wayyyyyy better than I expected. The only thing kind of lacking is the step down to the 5,400RPM hdd, but I'm going to put a Momentus XT when the next gen ones come out. I really love the keyboard btw.

 

Bronsky,

If you dare, what we used to do in the C90s for a switch for the fans were to take power from the battery. Our fans were powered by the 12V rail so we took that, but the battery offers 5V rails too. You need to probe for them with a multimeter.

Before my EE friend destroyed my laptop, we were able to use a Texas Instruments Voltage Regulator and a potentiometer to give variable control over fan speed. We hooked these up in line from the battery to the fans. An alternative is to put a simple switch between the battery and KB. Don't mess up though, I promise you, you will regret it.

 

Just read through the entire thread, some great information in here

Just a suggestion, you might want to add somewhere on the first page (if you haven't already) that you can get these at Micro Center. At least 4 times it has been asked, myself included

I will most likely wait a bit longer for news about the 3820TG for the US or a great deal to come along to buy, I still have a month or so and even then this garbage HP with integrated graphics will last for a bit when I start at the university.

 

Done. Added Micro Center links to the title, updated spec information on the main image and updated the processor section.

 

Going to the store where I bought my Dv6 SE today because of the fan noise and if they don't give me a new one straight away I will return it and probably go to another store and buy this one.

So how is the fan noise while gaming? If it's like a jetplane as my Dv6 is I'll probably wait til' something else comes around here in Sweden.

 

Mine is already wired and working. I used the power and ground of the USB. Here's the link to my pics. http://forum.notebookreview.com/6504731-post26.html I'm just trying to find a switch that is small enough to fit in my kensington lock. I think I've found it.

Bronsky