Acer Timeline Ultra m5?

I don't know how hard to test this is, but did you notice throttling while gaming?

 

I did not have any sort of logging programs running in the background when I was, so no. If I get to doing the BF3 test later on I will log temps/clocks in the background if anyone can suggest what app to do it with -- my guess is Throttlestop based on some of the comments in the 4830TG thread, but I personally have not used it yet.

 

does it heat up while using ?? both plugged and unplugged from power outlet

 

I posted a screenshot of core temp earlier -- max temp while browsing was in the 60 C range, so doing simple tasks it did not really heat up much.. only under heavy gpu/cpu load.

I posted a review on Amazon with most of the information here, it's a bit more streamlined and organized.

 

60C seems fairly warm for simple browsing. My 3820TG doesn't get above 48C for simple tasks, even browsing with multiple tabs. I'm at 43C ATM. And, the thermal paste in my Acer is 2 years old and is probably due for a refresh, as is my vents, which need a cleaning.

 

I agree, I might redo the paste job at a later time, but it's working fine for what I need it (developing CUDA code on a Kepler platform)

 

Some moreq uestions:

Can you replace the mSATA SDD, (maybe 60gb for the SO, and keep the HD for music, photos and videos)? If not ,how would the cache affect if I install a SSD?

Can you overclock the video card? I have seeing some crazy speeds at the sony S13A (around 950),

 

You can replace the MSATA SSD, however, looking at the BIOS I did not see a selection to boot from it directly, although maybe it was because I still had the HDD/SDD in place when I looked. Presumably one is able to, since the specs hint that there are models that come with 128/256GB MSATA SSDs:

http://support.acer.com/acerpanam/notebook/2012/Acer/Aspire/M5-481TG/M5-481TGsp2.shtml

I did a fresh Windows 7 reinstall over the weekend and reconfigured the Intel Rapid Start hibernation partition to 10GB to match the installed RAM. There is a video on Youtube that shows how to re-create that partition in case you have deleted it -- much like I did when I installed Windows 7, and recreated it again

Here is that link to the video, it is for an Aspire S3, but the same procedure applies. -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8gV9o8F4uM

I installed a 7mm Samsung 830 256GB SSD... man does it fly compared to the Plextor M3 and Crucial M4 drives I have used!

As for the video card, yes, it can be overclocked, but bear in mind that if the heat goes over a certain heat threshold, the card itself will downclock. Throttlestop might be able to mitigate that, but I haven't experimented with that yet.

If you do a fresh re-install, you have the option of not installing either the Intel Rapid Start or the Diskeeper Cache. You could probably also use the recovery DVDs and uninstall the software afterwards as well, but I like starting from scratch. I installed Rapid Start because this is what enables some sort of deep sleep mode where supposedly battery savings are greatly enhanced. Note that you might have to install the Rapid Storage drivers before the Rapid Start installer stops complaining that your system isn't supported. (as well as creating the type 84 hibernation partition on the mSATA SSD and rebooting after this is done)

Note that installing the Realtek audio drivers does not install the Dolby Home Theater v4 audio driver -- those drivers are an .msi file on the Realtek audio drivers subdirectory of the original hard drive, or on the drivers CD created by the eRecovery software. Also, installing the .msi file installs the non-branded drivers -- the default image comes with Acer branded ones.

 

how is the battlefield 3 test going?? did you also test diablo 3 yet??

thanks!!!!

 

Beem busy with life/research, haven't had time to. Some reviews have popped up on Newegg, check and see if it's relevant.

 

Would you care to tell me which RAM are you using?

Crucial recommends PC3-12800 DDR3 RAM only. They only offer 4gb modules for the M5-481tg (I assume using manufacturer specifications), both of the 1.5V and 1.35V variety. In fact, the recommended module was the one with 1.35v.

For those interested, the Crucial 4gb available modules are:

CT3377948 (1.35V)
CT3377950 (1.5V)


However, using CPU-Z I checked my M5-481TG-6814 and it has this module:

PC3-10700 (667 Mhz)
NT2gC64B88G0NS-CG
Nanya Technology
1.5V, CL9


I plan to go the 8gb SO-DIMM route, but would like more info as what will work, and what will not, before I buy/upgrade/open the laptop.

Will update on how this laptop works when I install the Samsung SSD, and the extra RAM.

However, so far (coming from a first gen Timeline):

- Build feels stronger.

- Metal palmrest (and most of the top of the case is metal) feels nice, and since there is no paint, it won't get damaged with sweat.

- Keyboard backlight might be nice for some. I don't like it, so I don't use it. Nice to have it available, though.

- Having to open up the entire computer in order to change RAM/HDD is a pain. It's one of the things PCs have in favor of them, compared to Apple.

- Another thing I like about PCs, that Mac lacks, are the TWO trackpad buttons. This one lacks them, and uses the Synaptics software to emulate the right click.

- User interchangeable batteries were beter than the integrated one, since I could go two days without charging, just by buying extra batteries. In that area, the 3810 and 3820 Timelines are superior, IMHO.

- Trackpad is OK, not great. If you define regions/areas it, it works almost perfectly, both for scrolling and right clicks. However, it will randomly miss multi-finger gestures, though not frequently. I had a Macbook Air that also randomly missed multi-finger gestures that used more than two fingers. It worked almost perfectly with two finger gestures. I'm using the Timeline trackpad with defined areas and - as long as I go only with defined areas - it does work great. Defined areas + multi-finger gestures = Just OK. YMMV.

I forgot to talk about the keyboard:

- The keyboard is fantastic. No missed keys at all. For those that need to write a lot (like me), this keyboard is a blessing. I prefer it over the first gen Timeline, since that keyboard was/is a dirt/hair magnet. The new Ultra has a great keyboard regarding both performance and cleanliness. You will love it if you have pets.

- The speakers are definitely an upgrade, compared to the first gen Timeline. Of course, if you are serious about music you'll use external speakers. However, for occasional use (as in watching a YouTube video, listening to music while working, or maybe watching a movie with another person), it'll do a pretty good job.

- I would have gladly payed $1100-1200, maybe even more, for a version with BluRay-writer, 10gb RAM, and a 128/256gb SSD.

 

is there a way to tell if the laptop is using the dedicated gpu instead integrated one? i play tera on medium and get like 45 fps so i assume automatically turn on?

 

You can use NVIDIA control panel to force your game app to use the dedicated GPU. It probably did turn on, yes, but you can change particular settings with the route I mentioned.

 

Whatever was cheapest at the time, haha, that happened to be a Patriot PSD38G13332S. I'm sure the Komputerbay SODIMMs at Amazon would work fine, those are a great price as well, but they only sell 2 x 8GB sticks at a time.

The MSATA SSD would be nice, but the price premium is high over the regular Samsung 830. Here is one:
Newegg.com - Mushkin Enhanced Atlas Series MKNSSDAT240GB-DX mSATA 240GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Here is another:
MyDigitalSSD 256GB SandForce SATA III Smart Series mSATA SSD | My Digital Discount
I hadn't even been aware of this one until now -- Crucial makes mSATA drives:
CT256M4SSD3 - 256GB, mSATA Solid State Drive , from Crucial.com

They come in 128GB capacities also. As far as Blu-Ray writer, the UJDA242 has a bit of a lip on the top edge of the case that requires the two screws near the ODD to be partly loosened in order for the tray to be able to open/close. It might also require a bit of bending on the side of the top cover of the M5. The lip could probably be machined off, but it's not an easy task.

The case of the drive that comes with this laptop is VERY THIN compared to the UJDA's -- for that matter a case transfer will not work, as the screw holes/standoffs that hold the PCB of the optical drive on the UJDA do not match up with the drive case that comes with the laptop. I did not look at it too closely to try to engineer a solution up though... too much work.

Again a word of warning, be very gentle with disconnecting/connecting the flat flexible cables (FFCs).... aka ribbon cables. I almost managed to kill my Realtek audio when i slightly bent a contact on the FFC interfacing between the daughterboard and motherboard. I fixed it, and bought a spare (slightly longer) cable from Digikey in case the original ever goes bad, but just wanted to point that out.

Edit: To make the post complete, here is the replacement flat flexible cable that I purchased: 687716200002 Wurth Electronics Inc | 732-3586-ND | DigiKey. It's a bit less than 1 inch longer than the original one, but it can be folded in order to be taped down, just like the original one.

 

If anyone puts in an mSATA and gets it working as a boot drive let us know, thinking it would be sweet to have a 60-128 boot drive, then a large capacity normal drive for storing files and movies

 

Crucial claims their mSATA SSDs are compatible -- they have a 45 day return policy. I'm almost sure they should work as well, barring the canadian/european versions with SSDs have a different BIOS version, but that's a bit doubtful. They are currently out of stock of the 256GB variety, though -- I called and asked earlier, but they mentioned they might be in stock by end of the week or next week.

They might have other sizes in stock, though, if anyone else is interested and wants to be the guinea pig.

 

Got my M5 today, does everyone recommend doing a clean install of Windows and then resetting up the SSD?

 

If you're adding the extra RAM, at a minimum I think you'd have to re-set up the Hibernate partition so that it matches installed RAM, not sure how it'd behave in deep sleep if RAM exceeds hibernation partition size -- the app I believe is called Intel's Rapid Start. I think you might need to reboot system after you change partition sizes for the Intel Rapid Start installer to stop nagging with the message saying it's an unsupported system... either that or installing Intel Rapid Storage Drivers beforehand, or both.

I did it because I wanted Windows 7 Pro on mine, but if you have no reason for the domain/RDC features it might just be easier to uninstall the crapware. If you're getting an SSD to replace the main HDD though, might as well just wait and install from scratch on that drive and leave the original as backup, that's what I ended up doing.

 

Sounds good, so within rapid start when I install my new ram I can simply change the hibernation partition size?

 

The only GUI application I found for Rapid Start was called RapidStartConfig.exe, buried somewhere in the drivers or OEM folder. It does not have an option for re-sizing, which is why I mentioned uninstalling from Control Panel and reinstalling app from the drivers folder on your computer -- I forget where it's located as I'm running on my SSD. It's also on the drivers restore CD you can create using eRecovery software.

You can also just change the RAM and let it enter deep sleep and see what happens... if it bluescreens or doesn't come up right or hangs, then you know you have to fix delete/recreate the partition to adjust for RAM size -- the software might be intelligent enough to only store x amount on SSD and dump the rest on HDD, not really sure.

 

I'll update when ram comes so other people know how it went, also been considering replacing the internal drive with one of the new hitachi 7200rpm 7mm drives (pretty cheap) while I decide about large expensive SSD vs small mSATA bootdrive, think I'll see much improvement over the scorpio blue at 5400rpm?

Nevermind, just found this link comparing the hitachi 720 to the scropio blue 5400 Hitachi Travelstar Z7K500 Review | StorageReview.com - Storage Reviews amazingly the scorpio blue comes out on top in nearly all tests!

 

Geil 8gb DDR3 sodimm from newegg installed and recognized fine for 10GB total

 

I'm upgrading my M5-481TG today. I'll post pics later in the week as I wish to identify some parts / locations in the pics.

CT102464BF160B - Crucial 8gb low voltage (1.35V) 204 pin SO-DIMM has been recognized by the BIOS. 10GB total ram.
It's PC3-12800, CL 11.

Samsung 830 SSD 256GB SATA III Hard Drive has also been recognized by the BIOS.


I also removed the 20gb mSATA HD, in an effort to further reduce temperatures and power consumption. I hope there is a noticeable effect, along with the low voltage ram.

RAM was kind of expensive, but I have not found value, low voltage, 204 PIN, 12800 RAM.

As it is, now I have an ultrabook with a good dedicated GPU, 256gb SSD and 10gb RAM for less than $1100.

 

This is a great SSD. I just put one in my Acer 3820TG, which does not even support Sata III and it is blazing. Congratulations. Looks like you're doing nice things with your M5.

 

Here are some pictures that will help people wanting to open up the case and upgrade the hard drive/RAM/mSATA SSD. They are clickable thumbnails to 800 X 600 pics.

 

Ok I can report success in installing a 128gb crucial M4 mSata and using it as a boot drive. Windows experience went from 5.9 with the blue scorpio to 7.9 with the M4 installed.

Only issue I ran into was the M4 wasn't properly detected after install and booting into the pre-installed windows, however, when I booted off my windows 7 recovery DVD it was recognized fine and I was able to format it and install.

Pretty excited to have this machine setup this way now.

 

Nice! One question, do you still have another drive in the 2.5" bay? Does the BIOS let you select booting from both?

 

I just wanted to add, doing that was pretty much how I almost ended up having to put a new flat-flexible cable in -- leaving the cables in place in the board and putting it aside might seem fine, but the force might be enough to mangle some pins. Just wanted to add a small disclaimer with that.

 

Do any of you feel the CD drive moving sometimes, even if you don't have any cd inside?

It's happening to me. Maybe 2 times daily.

 

So I left the blue in there but reformated it during my win 7 install, so I cant be completely sure.

However, what I can say is my windows Boot manager still detected a win 7 boot on the blue scorpio (showed two Windows 7s to choose from on boot screen) that I then went in and deleted after my first restart so it seems you would definitely be able to have OSes on both drives.

 

Hmm, makes me wonder if I can place grub in mSATA MBR and still keep a hibernation (Intel Rapid Start) partition on it for Windoze. I'll have to see if they have the 256GB mSATA drives in stock now. Thanks for the update! But what I wanted to know is solved it seems... if you have a bootable mSATA the BIOS will try to boot from it first, presumably... I believe that's what you mentioned.

 

mmm do you think you can fit a regular siza SSD in the msata place? I guy in new egg said you can fit a 2.5, 7mm hard drive.

 

he means a 2.5" 7mm drive on the normal hard drive bay, msata ssd footprint is much smaller, about the size of a internal wwan card or so. see the pictures that me and the other poster have posted for reference.

In other words, you have 2 slots -- 1 mSATA footprint slot, 1 (slim) footprint 2.5" 7mm slot.

You could
a) leave as is
b) replace mSATA SSD w/ bigger SSD and leave the HDD it comes with
c) replace mSATA SSD w/ bigger SSD and remove HDD it comes with
d) replace mSATA SSD w/ bigger SSD and replace HDD w/ 2.5" 7mm SSD (2 SSDs)
e) not replace mSATA SSD and replace HDD with 2.5" 7mm SSD

plenty of options

So far I've done (e), but tempted to switch for either (c) or (d)

 

what about a caddy in the disc bay?

 

f) remove mSATA SSD and replace HDD with 2.5" 7mm SSD

I've done (f), with a Samsung 830 256gb SSD. It's fast.

I wonder if someone can pull off a raid setup with a mSATA Crucial M4 SSD and a 2.5" M4 SSD...

For the gamers, I've already played Fallout New Vegas with the highest possible settings. Everything plays smoothly.

For some games I've had to change the NVIDIA Control Panel settings. I've set the Global Settings to use the NVIDIA dedicated GPU for stubborn games that wish to use the integrated Intel video.

A question. Will I be able to stick there a Mini PCIe video decoder card like BCM70015 or BCM70012 in the mSATA slot? Sure, right now we might not need them, but maybe in the future this can be used for something similar.

 

There's no point really. Those decoders are 2010 technology meant mostly for Atom-based devices. Your notebook would easily decode several bluray videos at once without breaking a sweat.

 

I have 2x RAID0 Plextor M3s 128GB's in my desktop, and stability is iffy -- I had to get rid of my wireless card that was conflicting with RAID drivers, causing freezes that I couldn't recover from without physically powering off/on the system. That, and I don't believe there is TRIM support for RAID volumes still.

So while this could certainly be possible, I would not do software RAID again. As it is, I bought a SanDisk Extreme SSD 240GB for something like 60ish cents/GB, a few weeks ago, and when I get the time, I am replacing the RAID array with the bigger single drive. The performance should be relatively comparable to the Samsung 830 256GB which I have in my M4-581TG. And yes, the Samsung 830 is crazy fast. Kinda wish I would have bought another when it was at the $200 price point and returned the SanDisk, but no big deal.

My commentary is, well, I just don't see a point to do RAID0 on a portable device like a laptop. Even with my desktop I cannot do any disk operation intensive enough to bottleneck the throughput. Well, I take that back, sort of... if I run Prime95 and run CPU to 100%, the throughput of RAID is diminished about half or more... so if your CPU is doing something extremely intensive, the software RAID might not be worth much. Just my 2 cents.

On a related note, I bought a CT256M4SSD3 just a little while ago, I'm going to put Ubuntu on it and attempt to put the Rapid Start Hibernation partition on it and keep the rest of the drive as spare storage between OS's.

 

You are right, but I did not explain myself well.

What I mean is if we could use - in the future - that port for something similar. I read somewhere that this computer does not use the dedicated GPU for the external monitor. Don't know if it's nonsense or not because I haven't tried it yet. I'll give an example of what I was thinking about: maybe we could use the mSATA in a couple of years for a 4K resolution 3d decoder IF such an mSATA 4K 3d decoder existed. Just thinking out loud about possibilities. Apparently, HDMI cables can be used to carry 4K data.

I came to know those 2010 HDTV decoders as they were being put into old, intel video Mac Minis in order to watch HD content.

 

That sounds like a pretty sweet setup, how much benefit do you think youd get with the Rapid start hibernation partition? Currently my boot, sleep, wake, shutdown are pretty quick just from the M4 mSata.

I am thinking about the future when I can grab a 480+ SSD for<.60c/gb for the 7mm slot to replace the scorpio blue what would I do with my mSata heh

 

Any thoughts on switching to Intel Rapid Start (IRS) instead of Diskeeper without a re-install from recovery disks? If that's do-able, what about then adding a larger SSD without installing from recovery?

 

The deep sleep works fine (IRS) to install it after a fresh re-install, you just might have to install the Rapid Storage drivers first and leave the SSD hibernation partition intact, or recreate it if you change the installed RAM. I only used the recovery driver disk to install the needed apps.

What you mentioned is pretty much exactly what I did -- I installed Win 7 slipstreamed with SP1 and update patches and then added the needed drivers/apps from the Acer disks. I didn't even burn the physical recovery disks -- I used a virtual drive emulator to create recovery disk ISOs on the factory hard drive and then moved them to a network share.

I was curious myself, so I just timed boot speeds. From deep sleep using the stock 20GB SSD, it's 16-17 secs from the time I hit power button until I am able to type password. I'm excited to see how much the Crucial M4 mSATA lowers this 16-17 second time.

Back from hibernation is about 25 seconds from power button to typing password. Regular sleep is nearly instant... <2 secs.

And you'd be right -- from power off to windows password screen with Samsung 830 for me is 13-14 seconds. The main benefit of the rapid start partition as I understand it is the deep sleep mode where the battery can last a lot longer than doing regular sleep mode, and that you wouldn't have to shut down any applications running. For an extra 4 seconds, it's pretty solid.

 

Hi I was hoping you could answer a few of my questions

a) Can I replace the ODD with a caddy? (this was asked before but there was no answer)

b) Using the default configuration of 20gb mSATA ssd and 500gb hd can I still access the 20gb SSD and use it like a normal drive? I read your entire thread and I'm not sure if this was mentioned so I just wanted to make sure. I tried one out in a local Acer store and I couldn't access it.

Thanks for your time.

 

(a) No short answer for this one. I'm assuming you want to put a hard drive in the caddy -- you didn't specify. I've mentioned previously that the ODD case is pretty thin compared to other standard drives of the same 9.5mm height, however this might not matter with a hard drive caddy since there aren't any moving parts. Owners of the previous revision of this laptop (3830/4830TG) note that when putting in a caddy, they could not boot off it from the BIOS, and they had to remove the power management utility because it sent commands to power off the ODD drive, which having a hard drive in the port would not be the greatest idea.

So if you can live with those 2 restrictions assuming the M5-481/581 behaves the same way, a caddy with HDD in the ODD bay should be fine.

(b) Not unless you uninstall Diskkeeper and/or Intel Rapid Start and format/repartition the drive yourself. You'd lose the caching and/or deep sleep modes respectively. You'd be better off replacing it with a bigger mSATA SSD altogether if you want to use it as a storage drive as well.

 

Thanks for your answers, they were exactly what I needed.

If you don't mind how's your experience with the laptop so far? Do you have any regrets? I'm currently deciding between buying this and an MSI GE60 (i5 3610QM, GT 650M, 500GB 5400 RPM, 1366x768 Gloss LED, 3-4 hours battery life, and no OS). I'm siding with the Timeline right now because of its portability and better battery life (despite its weaker specs). That and I get a Win7 Home Premium which I can upgrade to Win8 cheaply once it comes out.

 

[/QUOTE]And you'd be right -- from power off to windows password screen with Samsung 830 for me is 13-14 seconds. The main benefit of the rapid start partition as I understand it is the deep sleep mode where the battery can last a lot longer than doing regular sleep mode, and that you wouldn't have to shut down any applications running. For an extra 4 seconds, it's pretty solid.[/QUOTE]

If you can get rapid start working on your crucial let me know I am interested in partitioning off enough space to do the same if it works for the deep hibernation mode.

 

So far I am liking the laptop quite a bit, I upgraded from an old Lenovo Y510 (core 2, 8600GT).

The stock config was quite a bit faster with the rapid start cache drive, and since I upgraded that to a 128gb mSATA for boot drive this thing flys.

Additionally the GT640mLE is a decent upgrade for me and I have had no trouble with running anything at native Res.

The portability and size coming from a nearly 7 pound 15 incher are great for me, though I could see where someone who has used something like an Air
would be dissapointed.

Battery life is great to, I have been using it during lectures and meetings with no problem making it through the day with the occasional quick charge at my desk.

I have no regrets so far, but I also did not need a high powered Quad processor (I have a workstation for CPU demanding applications) and a graphics card capable of 1920x1080 gaming.

 

No regrets, well maybe a tiny one, but it is very specific, and not relevant to me. I was attempting to help a coworker debug come code written using NVIDIA's OptiX 2.5.0 SDK, and the current version of it is not compatible yet with Kepler based cards -- all the examples throw a "No binary for GPU" error, as did her compiled code. Once I tried it on my desktop with a GT 430 it worked fine under the same configuration. At any rate, that will be fixed once NVIDIA releases the next version of that SDK, so it is just a temporary annoyance.

Edit: For what it's worth, I found a later version of OptiX -- 2.5.1, released on May 2012 that mentions support for CUDA 4.2, but that one still does not seem to support Kepler-based cards.

The only thing I have noticed that's really odd to me is that the area under the LCD (where the acer logo is) tends to capture some sort of sticky dust particles. I noticed that on two different M4-581TG's.. one that I got for a friend and mine. Not sure if it's just some residue from when it's manufactured or what.

So far it's done everything I want it to do, especially with the SSD upgrades and no stability issues resuming from sleep or deep sleep that I've noticed. Overall I like the keyboard layout that mimics my old 4830TG, and while I'm still iffy about the clicker, I've gotten used to the double finger scroll which is very consistent now for me -- that and an Apple user the other day showed me how to 'right click' on her Mac... turns out that also works with mine too... tap with two fingers.... you learn something new everyday!

As far as battery life, it seems to be less than my older 4830TG by about an hour or so... I might end up eventually calling Acer and see if I can request a spare battery as I did with the old 4830TG claiming that it was well below par, haha.

I will be attempting the install either this weekend if I have time or next week at some point -- already have it in my hands. I will post the results once I'm done. I don't anticipate having any issues, but we'll see, ha. I'm pretty sure I can recreate it as I did when I first deleted it when I first installed Windows from scratch on the Samsung 830, but I'm not sure yet if altering the mSATA MBR with an Ubuntu install will confuse the Rapid Start software.

 

@willmgordon Thanks for your answer. Unfortunately I don't have my own desktop so I'm torn between portability and power right now. I'm currently thinking about the Acer V3 as well, which has an i7 3610QM and a GT 640M. It has much less battery life though and isn't as slim a M5 ... but that's another story Thanks for you feedback

@vacaloca I'm not in to programming so I won't probably run in to your "regret" ) I like the clicker as well. I've been using the two finger thing on my old netbook and to be honest I'm more used to it than click on physical buttons. I think you will too Anyway thanks for the replies. Your answers are more objective than what's being said in other forums so kudos to that.

 

I have another question. Let's say I have no plans of buying a large capacity SSD yet as it's too expensive for me (my country sells tech stuff at a premium and shipping from the US costs too much) however I do want to eventually have an mSATA SSD with around 60gb along with my stock HDD just so I can place the OS and programs on the 60gb. This is actually one of the reason I like the Acer M5. However I'm also eyeing another laptop, the Acer V3. While it doesn't come with an mSATA SSD like the M5 it does have the same motherboard. Will the fact that the V3 have the same motherboard as M5 mean that I can also install an mSATA SSD in the future? Or will it depend on how the parts inside are arranged meaning other parts might block the mSATA SSD slot?

By the way here's the specs of the V3 just in case you need it

Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM processor (6 MB L3 cache, 2.60 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.60 GHz, DDR3 1600 MHz, 45 W)
Mobile Intel® HM77 Express Chipset
8GB (4GBX2 DDRIII)
750GB
8X DVD-Super Multi double-layer drive
14" HD 1366 x 768 resolution, high-brightness (200-nit) Acer CineCrystal™ LED-backlit TFT LCD
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 640M with 2 GB of dedicated DDR3 VRAM, supporting NVIDIA® CUDA™, PhysX™, PureVideo® HD technology, OpenEXR High Dynamic-Range (HDR) technology, Shader Model 5.0, Microsoft® DirectX® 11, OpenGL® 4.1, OpenCL™ 1.1
Optimized Dolby® Home Theater® v4 audio enhancement, featuring Audio Optimizer, Audio Regulator, Volume Leveler, Volume Maximizer, Intelligent EQ, Dialogue Enhancer, Surround Virtualizer (for headphones and built-in speakers), and Dolby® Digital Output technologies7
LAN: Gigabit Ethernet, Wake-on-LAN ready
Bluetooth® 4.0
Acer InviLink™ Nplify™ 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi CERTIFIED
2.30 kg (5.08 lbs.)11 with 6-cell battery pack
342 (W) x 245 (D) x 27.2/33.4 (H) mm (13.5 x 9.6 x 1.07/1.31 inches)
48 Wh 4400 mAh 6-cell Li-ion standard battery pack
Up to 4.5 hours
Multi-in-1 card reader
Acer Crystal Eye HD webcam with:
1280 x 1024 resolution
720p HD audio/video recording
Multi-in-1 card reader (SD™, MMC, MS, MS PRO, xD)
USB 3.0 port with Power-off Charging
Two USB 2.0 ports
HDMI® port with HDCP support
External display (VGA) port
Headphone/speaker jack, supporting 3.5 mm headset with built-in microphone for Acer smart handhelds
Microphone-in jack
Ethernet (RJ-45) port
DC-in jack for AC adapter
Multi-gesture touchpad, supporting two-finger scroll, pinch, rotate, flip
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
1 Year Limited Local Warranty - Parts and Labor

 

Assuming you're referring to the V3-471G. Not sure where you get the claim that it has the same motherboard as the M5-481TG, though. The service guide for the V3-471G does not show any other slots to fit mSATA SSD and the motherboard design looks nothing like mine -- mine has a soldered CPU, the V3-471G does not, it has a socket. That being said, you could probably still do the extra HDD via a caddy in the future with the disclaimers I mentioned previously. The benefits to the V3-471G are 16GB RAM max (2 slots) and the 2GB VRAM on the GPU. Otherwise, they seem pretty comparable minus the high-end CPU on the model you mentioned. In fact, that V3-471G model is probably more of a direct TimeLineX 4830TG upgrade with the plus of the removable battery. It's up to you do decide what benefits between the models outweigh which.