Acer TimelineX 3820TG Owners Lounge. Info, benchmarks, tweaks, mods and upgrades

Use BatteryBar (it's free) and tell us what your capacity and discharge rate are.

 

Yes, I have seen them. That was the point to test the new feature(s).

But the AMD tries to disable the card at the moment and these means in the 3820TG the card will work with full clock speed.

Let us wait for the 10.9 or 10.10.

 

Use HWmonitor or HWinfo32. Download the shareware version and see if the G73jh clockgen works. If you don't get a PLL error, pay the 500 yen and get the full version. Then you can overclock

 

Anyone know if a external slim USB or 12.7mm Blu-Ray burner that supports lightscribe too?

I know of the UJ-220 by Panasonic. But not sure if it has lightscribe?

 

Tried it again.

If I push the keyboard really hard - let's say hitting it - it does show a slight flex, but I have to watch carefully to notice it, however, it doesen't bother me when typing, and I do type quite a lot nowadays.

 

The 3820TG-3022 from Staples rates as:

Processor..............6.6
Memory.................6.6
Graphics................5.0
Gaming graphics......6.3
Primary HDD...........5.9

That's with a Momentus XT and 8GB of Mushkin DDR3

 

If any of you have a unit that shows PLL error when you try to run Asus G73h clockgen definition, I would be interested to know if you have TME enabled on the PLL. So far, even those units that do not overclock on the normal clockgens are not indicating that TME is enabled. It just seems that there is no current Set FSB definition that works on those units.

If your unit does not OC, please download SetFSB and run PLL Diagnosis. Look under the 09h byte, bit 6 and see if it is a 0 or 1. A 0 means that a pin mod would do no good on your unit becuase TME is not enabled on the PLL. I would be interested to see if "any" 3820TG's are made with a PLL that has TME enabled.

Here are some pics of the registry to show you what to check. http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/513560-possibly-overclocking-unclockable-3820tg.html I suspect that none of the PLL's installed in the 3820TGs have TME enabled. I think we will find that, if your CPU is not OC'able, it is merely because no one has a clockgen definition matching the one in your unit.

Bronsky

 

Looking on the web it seems there no such thing as a 12.7mm Blu-ray burner that also has lightscribe. Would have thought HP would have one...

Would be a great external USB drive for our 3820TG's

 

If you are refering to 12,7 mm height, I'm doubtful. But otherwise I found this one: LG BE08LU20 LG BE08LU20 test - Review and specs for blu-ray LG BE08LU20

 

Thanks folks!! My 3820T (Not TG) is the same as zsero's. It has quite an amount of flex in the 3,4,5,E,R,T keys. I am not hitting it hard, just typing regularly. My 4820TG on the other hand is the same as kiskapu's.

The 3820T is from TigerDirect and the 4820TG is from Microcenter.
Since the blacklit kb is a bit thicker i might do Bronksky's mod on the 3820T.
I guess it depends on the unit you get.

Too bad the 3820TG staples version is not sold in the US though, it would have been a powerhouse netbook replacement .

 

I also have a Seagate Momentus XT 7200 rpm hybrid HDD and I'm very happy with it. Is it useful to use the QuietHDD for this drive and disable the APM and AAM? Is there any drawbacks in doing this?

 

Nice tgoode !!

i3 350M Intel GMA HD VS. ATI HD 5470 ?

Graphics................4.6 | Graphics................5.0
Gaming graphics......5.1 | Gaming graphics......6.3

I wonder if its possible to overclock just the GPU on the i3 M hmm...

 

try a single piece of double sided tape under the keyboard.

 

Hi, I downloaded the profile, how do I do to use it?

 

Control panel > color management.

All profiles tab in Color management > add new profile.

back to first tab - click "use my settings" find profile and add it.

That should do it. If you get lost, I'm sure you can google instructions.

Bronsky

 

I will try that!! Thanks Bronsky.
Also, sorry for the typos in the earlier post.

 

Inbound parts:

- Spare screws have arrived.
- IC Diamond has arrived.

Switches and I5-540M have met up in Louisville, KY (odd). Both are tracking from the same location. Traveling together?

No word from Shark on shipping my motherboard yet. It was supposto ship today. And, my speaker is still slowly making its way from Germany, thanks to just_a_nick. Looks like I won't have everything by this weekend, but should have everything by next. Can't wait to get this done. I'm looking forward to trying out the I5-540M.

Bronsky

@Hendrickson - anything different about using the IC diamond? I read that it is thicker. Even still, you have to tint the surfaces and use a rice grain (long grain - not broken rice ) sized line application method?

 

Thanks for the fast answer, worked just fine as you described it. I don't know if there is any difference though. Can't say I see any changes made, do I have to restart the computer or something to make the changes apply?

 

I think you have to restart. The changes from my stock settings were subtle. There was a bit more contrast and some more depth to the blacks.

 

Yes its thinker and its not as easy as AS5 to apply. I used the rice grain for the intel GPU die and the pea for the CPU die. Seems to have done the job

Thanks, well those specs but in the notebook form factor. This one seems massive = 10.2 x 6.4 x 2 inches ; 3.3 pounds Almost weighs as much as our notebooks.

Seems there is no such thing as a BR burner with labelflash or lightscribe. However I guess I can live without the label burner part.

I found this 6x BR burner slim and usb powered: Panasonic UJ-240 6X Blu-Ray External Slim Burner NEW - eBay (item 170531201978 end time Sep-22-10 01:41:11 PDT)

Not bad looking.

P.S I should have my 2 x 2GB OCZ sticks of ram this week. And I reinstalled 10.8 driver and that seems to have given me back my lost 10fps Its a bit buggy!

 

I now restarded the computer and I think I can see a small difference. And btw I pressed the add to reputation button on your post, I guess this is the reps I hear people talk about? You always seem to be very helpful.

 

OC-Freak, I think you are not quite right with quietHDD. This afternoon my HDD was constantly spinning up and down every 10 seconds, and nothing changed when I disabled AAM and APM in quietHDD. When I enabled them but set both to 255 and 254, the noise finished.

So in my case the solution was to enable both, but set them to 254 and 255 (the max values).

 

Thanks, that's very nice of you.

Bronsky

 

Bronsky, for only fixing this flex issue what kind of tools do I need? I saw you used some special plastic tool, but would any kind of small screwdriver work? Shell I start with the top ones or the bottom ones?

 

It was hendrickson who used the plastic tool. http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/491169-acer-timelinex-3820tg-backlit-keyboard-mod.html I used the small blade of a swiss army knife that has been dulled and flattened on the tip a bit. http://forum.notebookreview.com/6504731-post26.html A screwdriver blade may be too thick unless it is very small.

You don't have to touch the clips on the bottom only the 5 (6?) up top and the 2 on the sides. Look at the backlit KB thread, it is a good source of information. I used scotch double sided poster tape to tape doewn the KB. You can run a single strip about 3/4th the way up on the KB base and get any flex out.

Bronsky

 

Anyone playing Mafia II and getting graphic glicthes with broken glass and textures? This is with the default clocks too. ATI driver issue?

Edit: heres an example

 

AMD is retiring the ATI name later this year.

It's the end of an era....

 

10.8 is Okay on my 3820TG but the desktop version is driving my ATI 5870 crazy. I'm getting all kinds of artifacts. I'm tempted to roll back to 10.7.

Bronsky

BTW how do you like Mafia II? Never played Mafia I - FPS? Like GTA?

 

Everybody seems to recommend the Zeroshock cover. But when I look at it looks a little big, 45 mm height? It doesn't seem that slim to me. I have purchased a Targus cover for 13,3". It fits pretty good, but there's about 20 mm of freespace in front of the computer. But with the computer in it's maximum 40 mm thick.
Most of the times I will use my cover just as a scratch protection and but in a bigger bag.
What's your reflections?

/ZooZ

 

Mafia II is good, runs better than GTA IV. Part from the stupid glitches which are driving me mad....

I own one of the ZS III cases. Its slim and fits snug. So all good in my books. I happen to like it alot.

 

Try the demo

Just download it from steam, no install and all the other worry things to do.

 

Its almost 2GB i recall the demo. Also let me know if you get this odd gfx glitches? Kinda annoying paying 49.99 euros and waiting 6 hours to download a glitchy game.

Pretty sure the demo version didn't have this issue for me

 

The glitches are mostly a driver problem.

 

My motherboard shipped on Monday. I received confirmation and a tracking number today. All of my parts are in transit.

Bronsky

 

Good stuff, my ram is also here from Singapore. Can pick it up tomorrow I hope.

@ Just a Nick, Also my screen goes dark after exiting Mafia II....Damn AMD and these bugs....

 

I will give the demo a try on my 3820 with 10.8 tomorow.

 

what ram did u order? i assume its 1333mhz. may i ask what website did u get it from ? cheers

 

So far i am pleased with the notebook.
Though i'd wish for a better keyboard and a better screen though.

Which tool do you use to read the displaypanel type?

Also, i haven't updated any drivers yet.
Can i use the original ATI drivers or would i lose the ability to switch the graphic cards then?


I will most probably switch the HDD (only 5.8 score on the Win-Index) with a Seagate Momentus XT 250GB.
A pure SSD is still too expensive in my eyes.

 

Device Manager > Monitor > Generic PNP > Details Tab > device description > Hardware ID. Brand and model in lower window.

Bronsky

 

Yep, its 1333Mhz ram (Only useful the extra speed for overclocking) 9 9 9 24 timiungs. Got it from ebay for 100 bucks including shipping costs.

Try the backlit 3810T keyboard, even if you don't connect power to it, its a much better quality keyboard once fitted correctly. Just ask Bronsky too as he has one.

The keys are more sturdy, responsive, with better feedback and the keys are of a better quality plastic. The numbers are also not paint on. But a part of the keys.

 

Ok I'm using my 3820TG on the battery. I have removed Epower manager and ATI driver 10.8 is buggy. I have 21watts power consumption.

It seems the switch to the IGP hasn't disabled the 5650 card....I don't recommend 10.8. Stay on 10.7 or wait for 10.9

Both cards are on. But im using the Intel HD one...

 

Love the keyboard. Look at the backlit keyboard thread, fitting it is not the easiest thing in the world. You might try some double sided tape. Oh - the keys are sparkly in the sunlight.

Bronsky

 

Thanks Bronsky.

"MONITOR\LGD023F"


Hm, tells me nothing . Guess it's an LG display?

 

Aye, that's an LG display.

So far it seems the samsung display is the best out of the displays seen in the various 3820TG models.

I played games for 4 hours yesterday and I'm very pleased with the quality of my Samsung SEC3030 display.
Sure it's not the best, but it's crisp, colour details are good, and contrast is above average. Viewing angles are so-so and blacks are not as dark as I would like them though.

 

It's an LG. You're the second person who has gotten a unit with an LG and the second person who was not all that thrilled with it. I have an AOU and it is fine. The Samsung seems to be getting a good reception.

Bronsky

I5-540M arrived today. It's beautiful. Hope it works.

 

Damn it..bad luck then.
Why must Acer use so many various displays anyways..

 

Part 16: Anti-glare Screen Protector

I finally received the anti-glare screen protector for my 3820TG LCD screen that I purchased almost 1.5 weeks ago. It's the same version that Hendrickson bought.

The anti-glare screen protector came well protected. It was wrapped in a piece of plastic, and then sandwiched between 2 rigid pieces of cardboard. It also had numerous hand-written warnings about not folding the shipping package. It is clearly evident that the Seller went through great lengths to ensure that the package arrived undamaged to the Buyer's destination.

The anti-glare screen protector also came with instructions and web links to application videos, which clearly show how to easily apply the screen protector.

In addition to the anti-glare screen protector, 2 cleaning cloths and a mini test anti-glare screen protector are provided.

After applying the anti-glare screen protector, I took it outside for a test. It was a bright, sunny day with no clouds in the sky. Did the anti-glare screen protector work?

Yes and no.

Yes, the anti-glare screen protector reduced the sharpness of reflections in the glossy LCD screen to a fuzzy blur. Without it, you could use the LCD screen as a mirror.

No, anti-glare screen protector didn't result in making it any easier to read what is on the screen. With the Sun fully reflected in the screen, you still can't read anything easily on the LCD screen, whether the anti-glare screen protector is on or not.

In fact, when outside and the Sun is not directly reflected in the screen, it is easier to read the screen without the anti-glare screen protector, despite the presence of reflections. That's because the anti-glare screen protector also dulls the LCD screen's output to the point that images don't appear as bright or sharp when the anti-glare screen protector is off.

When indoors, the anti-glare screen protector results in dulling and dimming the LCD screen's output. Colors are not as vibrant and images are not as sharp.
Everyone has their own preferences.

For me, I prefer to have bright, sharp LCD screen images even with reflections around. Others may refer dimmer, duller images without reflections on their LCD screens. As I use this laptop mostly indoors, there is no intrinsic benefit for me to use this anti-glare screen protector, based on the effects that I've seen.

In conclusion, if you're looking for a screen protector for your LCD screen, this product does the job. However, if you're looking for an effective anti-glare screen protector that will allow you to clearly read your LCD screen free of reflections outdoors in sunlit conditions, you should keep looking.

 

Wierd too cause LG usually makes a great display. Maybe you can try the color profile listed back a few pages in this thread and see if that improves the display. A part of your dissapointment may just be the video card/GPU with its original driver. Maybe when you update it to 10.7 or 10.8, it will give you a better picture on the display. Let us know how it goes.

Bronsky

 

Like, you should keep looking for an X201T w/a non-reflective 400 nit outdoor display.

Bronsky

 

LOL!

I used to have a work-provided IBM Thinkpad at one of my former jobs. It had a very effective non-reflective high nit screen for outdoors use. However, it was terrible to look at indoors.

I suppose that's why the IT group gave us dock workstations with LCD monitors at the office to use when we weren't traveling.