Acer Travelmate 8100 is Hot!

Anyone who missed the boat on a 2025 should look at this, 15.4" WSXGA+ (1680x1050), ATI X700 w/128MB, DVD Dual layer burner, 100GB HD, 512MB. I'm getting one as soon as I sell my 2025.

 

They're not shipping yet, but yes, the TM8100 is my favorite new Acer.

Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com

 

Yes it's by far the best sonoma notebook announced thus far. Only thing hard to confirm is the processor and memory. I talked to Acer pre-sales on the phone and they did confirm the HDs are 5400rpm(both 8103 and 8104 should have the 100gb variety) The 8104 lists the new 533fsb 2.0Ghz(760) Dothan, but the 8103 lists the older 1.8Ghz(745) 400fsb dothan and this was confirmed by acer usa pre-sales. Both should obviously support 533mhz DDR2, but if the processor on the 8103 is correct, they are going to use the slower DDR2 memory on that model. The sample that Digit-Life reviewed( http://www.digit-life.com/articles2/acer-tm-8100/index.html ) did have 1 gig of DDR2 at 533mhz but the 8103 may use DDR2400. Hard to know for sure until they are in stock. Should be soon.

-Kevin

 

The only setback seems to be the ram, 512 is little compared to the other specs.. but if it is expandable, then its fine.

Calvin
Acer TM 3201XCi

 

Acer pre-sales in the USA told me both models(8103&8104) will have a 100gig 5400rpm drive.

-Kevin

 

duh - dock44, I read over your previous post and realized that you had the info on it already. anyways, I'm going to place the order on pcnation and let you guys know if it's available.

 

Is it definitely not shipping yet? Most online retailers (pcconnection, pcnation, etc.) seem to indicate that they are available for shipping. I guess I will find out definitively when I pull the trigger and purchase one in the next couple of days.

Also does anyone know the spin rate on the 100gb hard drive that comes on the 8104 model? I couldn't find the specs anywhere on acer.com or in any of the preview articles. I'm assuming that it's 4200rpm since most notebook hd models that size that have been shipping are at that speed but I know seagate makes a notebook 100gb drive that spins faster... It's not a huge deal breaker but I would rather have the option to choose the 80gig model that spins at 5400rpm.

Anyways, I would appreciate any insights on this model since I'm almost 99% convinced to buy the acer since I've been holding out for months on buying a laptop (like a lot of other people) for sonoma to launch and if I wait any longer I might talk myself into waiting until 2006 for yonah (or more realistically for amd turion and win xp64 to launch in a few months. arrrgh) to come out =)

 

My only concern is weither Acer will make the Bluetooth module available in a timely manner or do we have to hunt around for grey market units.

 

8104 just went backorder at PC Nation. Maybe dkoo got the last one [ ]

-Kevin

 

Acer USA have just updated their site and now the 8100 is shown as coming with bluetooth installed (instead of being an option). This is cool.

 

very good notebook,but it will be hot in temperature as same as hot in market...[ ]

THY soul shall find itself alone
'Mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone;
Not one,of all the crowd,to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.
Be silent in that solitude,
Which is not loneliness
Edgar Allan Poe

 

I just received the 8100 so I'll post some first impressions and maybe a review soon.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by dkoo

 

Just for those that were wondering, the 8103 definitely has the new 750 1.86Ghz 533fsb CPU, so I'm sure 533Mhz DDR2 as well. It has been changed on the Acer USA site now, though the memory is still listed incorrectly.

-Kevin

 

Well. those of you that wants one better get in line, this unit is already backorder at all major online site with deliver date being quoted to the end of Feb. My Acer contact told me that their stupid marketting only estimate sales of 250 unit a month for North America so they never got in enough units and the situation don't improve till at least March

 

i read it somewhere that it doesn't come with sata drives though... is this true?

but x700 is nice... better than others...

thanks

 

Another review done here:-

Here:-

»www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php..

According to this review the battery performance is not that impressive.

Quote on review pg 5

".....a battery life of 165 minutes (about 2.5 hrs). That being said, the Acer TravelMate 8100 is better suited for the occasional shuffling around rather than as a notebook to accompany you to work or to school on a daily basis."

Thats bad! My Acer TravelMate 8005LMi can last about 4 - 5 hrs with the main battery and about 7 - 8 hrs with the 2nd battery inserted in the hot swappable bay.

Also, on pg 2 of the review you can see the USb ports just in front and in way of the DVD/CD writer. USB ports are meant for connecting to devices or hubs with/without cables. Obstruction is definitely there.

Another bad point is that the casing is light color especially where the palms rest. In the long run the light color areas will turn brown due to our sweat and stain from our palms. I still prefer dark color casing like the 8005LMi.

One thing good is that the keyboard has reverted to the normal layout (compared to 8005LMi) with dedicated 'Home' and 'End' keys

 

Sorry, the review link is here:-

http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=14&id=1395

 

so far very good...

to clarify some questions on this thread regarding specs on the 8104WLMi model

the HD is indeed a 100GB Seagate Momentus model running at 5400rpm and it is PATA. there are no currently available 2.5" SATA HD's at this capactiy - i know fujitsu makes a 80GB SATA 5400rpm but on which laptops is this available in currently?! all in all i'd much rather have 20 extra gigs than the lower power comsumption (i wasn't expecting this model to be an ultra portable laptop anyway). yeah performance is lower too but once laptop sata drives become widely available then win xp 64 will release then one has to wait for mobile 64 bit processors from amd then intel 65nm dual core processors will launch then wow no buying a laptop until 2006 2nd quarter

bluetooth is builtin (broadcom chipset) with dedicated on/off switches (same for wireless) that serves as a LED indicator. very nice!

gigabit ethernet! i didn't know this when i purchased it

2.4X dual layer 4x dvd+/-rw dvd burner (panasonic uj-831s)

no expresscard

1GB 533 ddr2 RAM

couple of things i didnt like on a personal preference level - keyboard - the curved design seems to have made the keys closer together. i've been pressing two keys simultaneously more times than i would like.
fat32 partitions and no win xp cd to make reformatting easier

i am going to be submitting a first thoughts article for notebookreview with some pics (definitely not in the same ballpark as the hardwarezone pics which are top-notch) but hopefully one of the shots will give you a better idea of what the case material is like - there is a closeup of the case). hope this helps - this notebook is definitely first rate

 

Thanx for your mini-review dear dkoo! [ ]
This overall seems to be the kind of laptop I've been waiting for, however, I'd really appreciate it if you answered a couple of questions:

1) How is the LCD panel? Is the WSXGA resolution maybe too much for a 15.4 screen or is it just fine? How's its legibility? Is the response time adequate?

2) How about 8100's noise & temperature levels?

3) What's the actual battery life when: a) browsing/editing documents, b) gaming [ ] c)watching a DVD ?

4) Is there anything strikingly negative or odd about this laptop? (apart from your keyboard gripes that is)

Thanx in advance for your answers!

 

Hi to all!

I really want to buy a laptop to use for my studies etc. and I was wondering, isn´t a 15,4 inch laptop a bit too big for everyday carrying to and from school?

 

Hi Petulda.

It's not that much bigger than a traditional notebook. Check the dimensions of a few of each from specs. Probably much more important is the weight (including power supply if needed).

Undoubtedly there are more portable devices available. The 8100 looks like sitting in the middle between a powerful/heavy/big desktop replacement and a lower-specced more portable machine. It's horses for courses, but it seems like the 8100 will suit some people very well - you have to decide what feature set you want and need, and then see what matches up.

 

Hi, I’ve been looking at the Acer 8100 and I have some questions about the differences between the 8103 and the 8104. I recently looked at the specs of both an 8103 and 8104 from CDW and I was a little confused.

Here is the link to the 8103:
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/specs.aspx?EDC=733813

And here is the link to the 8104:
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/specs.aspx?EDC=733812

Now at first glance I thought that the only difference between the two computers was that the 03 just used a slower Sonoma (1.8 ghz) as opposed to a higher end Sonoma in the 8104 (2 ghz). However, upon closer inspection, I noticed that the processor number on the 8103 is 745. I thought that the Intel 745 was not a Sonoma chip but rather the older Dothan. However, oddly enough, the website says that both computers are using the 915 PM chipset from Intel.

Also, the websites says that both the 8103 and the 8104 are using DDR2 ram but I thought that only the new Sonoma's could support DD2 ram.

Comparing the 8103 and 8104’s at PC Connection further confused me.

Here are the links
8103:
http://www.pcconnection.com/ProductDetail?sku=5586995&SourceID=k15505

8104:
http://www.pcconnection.com/ProductDetail?sku=5586987&SourceID=k15505


At PC Connection the 8103 is also listed as having an Intel 745 processor but it is also listed as having a 533 mhz FSB, which is not possible. Additionally, both the 8103 and the 8104 are listed as using DDR333 ram, which does not make sense either.

I am confused about what the differences between the 8103 and the 8104 really are. If the 8103 is exactly the same as the 8104 but with just a slightly slower processor speed then I am definitely willing to save the $300 and go for the cheaper one. However, if the 8103 is using the old chipset and is not really using the new Sonoma’s then I would surely pay the extra money for the newer chipset.


Aside from that, I am impressed by the new Acer 8100 and I think that it is definitely the best Sonoma laptop that has come out so far. If I can get the hardware differences sorted out then I will most likely buy one, when they get more in stock that is.

 

Ray, it was just a mis-print on the specs. The Acer USA site has been updated now(though the memory is still listed incorrectly) but all of the resellers have the incorrrect original info. The 8103 does indeed have the 750 1.86Ghz 533fsb CPU. It will come with 1 512mb stick of 533Mhz DDR2 memory. The 8104 owners have already confirmed the memory as 533Mhz DDR2 in their units.

-Kevin

 

Thanks for the help reg.t, but I have one more question, this time to people who actually own the laptop or have seen it: Is the text legible and not too small with such a resolution on a 15,4 inch display?

 

I can read it fine in a regular position (hands on keyboard) but it does get a bit small at about 3 feet away which is where I usually have my laptop on my desk as I have a desktop PC and Mac sharing a monitor to my front. The closest thing you can test is to go find a 15" laptop with UXGA (1600x1200) and take a look as the font size is about the same.

 

Damn nice, and here I was trying to figure out how to get a 2026WLMi in the U.S. I guess now I don't need to.

Now I need to decide between the TM8104WLMi and the Dell 9300.

It'll be interesting to see how the performance of the TM8104WLMi stacks up to the Dell 9300. particularly the 128MB X700 Pro vs. the 256MB GeForce FX 6800 Go http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,1752364,00.asp. Other than that and the Dell having the 17" WXGA, they are very similar and very close in price when configured identically.

If the ports are laid out on the 9300 like the 9200 I'll go that way. I like the layout of the ports on the 9300 better everything but the headphone jack is in the back. Sounds like the layout on the 8100 is a little messed up.

Acer Aspire 1680WLMi w/ Hitachi 60GB 7200RPM Drive

 

I'm thinking that I'll go with the 8104. Found a gamer in another forum that was clicking along in HL2 with 60 fps @ 1280x1024. Looked like he was also running the original CounterStrike at a full 1680x1050 at 100fps (not sure, I'm not a counterstrike player).

The Dell i9300 specification for a not-yet-available product confuses me by comparison -- they're putting a larger screen on an otherwise thin-and-light laptop that has substantially fewer pixels (27%) but a more powerful GPU to drive it? (Heck, my GeForce4 Ti 4400 is currently driving more total pixels than that Dell will have and it's doing fine.) I do not trust the market analysis that came up with that device. Especially since there were reports in January about second-time notebook buyers shying away from the 12lb desktop replacements and the 17" screens... I don't need much portability, but do I want to be able to use it from any chair or couch in my house.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Ziptar

 

@dkoo:

What about heat and fan noise?
What about power consumption?



Jorlin

 

Here is another review:

http://www.hothardware.com/viewarticle.cfm?articleid=637&cid=10


Jorlin

 

I still can't decide.... But I have some time.

Acer Aspire 1680WLMi w/ Hitachi 60GB 7200RPM Drive

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Jorlin

 

i've been looking for people that have reviewed the acer 8104 for about 3 weeks, with no luck. no that i've found this forum, i'm very pleased. looking at the pictures of the keyboard, i'm not very happy, but i was wondering what the people that own the laptop thought about it. reason for asking, is that i like using a full sized keybaord, and this keyboard is about half the size of a full one. if you guys could please tell me what it's like, that would be great.

 

I really like the 8104...EXCEPT for the 100GB HD...any chance they'll offer it with a Hitachi 60GB 7200rpm drive? That would make it super!

 

The 8104 is the only model available here in Asia and that seems a bit out of my budget. What do people think about the Aspire 1690 as an alternative? Im no big gamer so the X600 is fine with me. The CrystalBrite screen looks nice, unfortunelty only in WXGA. The other thing is that it is only equipped with DDR RAM.

 

P.S. on the HD question for the 8104...I spoke with the Acer presales staff...100GB 5400rpm is IT...no option to "upgrade" to a 7200. Anyone know if I purchase an alternate drive and swap. I'd really prefer the performance of the 7200 Hitachi.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Dadoc7

 

Shouldn't void the warranty as long as you don't break something. That's what I was told by acer support when I asked them about putting the 7200 in my 1681

Acer Aspire 1680WLMi w/ Hitachi 60GB 7200RPM Drive

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Dadoc7

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by dkoo

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by petulda

 

Hi all,
I am in a hunt for a new notebook - for heavy applications but no 3D games, for $2000-2200.

(I have a topic in Dell forums:
http://www.notebookreview.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=12195)

Ballin4Life recommended the Acer 8100. However, I dont know much about new Acers (except printed specs). I would certainly appreciate if you could help me decide on Acer v/s Dell Latitude

Acer notebook taken from:
http://www.pcconnection.com/ProductDetail?sku=5586987

Pros:
1. The Acer seems to have best graphics this side of a gaming notebook (would certainly like that - all my notebooks have been low on graphics)
2. DVD R/RW, 100 GB HDD
3. Widescreen SXGA
4. Slim (1.2") and relatively light (6.3lbs) for its category
Cons/Unknowns:
1. Std Warranty is 1 yr: Because of my usage 3 years + accidental is a must. Does Acer provide this, or does a retailer provide this
2. Unknown reliability: Has anyone used Acer notebooks for 2-3 years? How has the reliability been.
3. Price: I am guessing with 3 years warranty it will come to $2600-$2700+tax. Its somewhat more than what I had in mind
4. Build quality: Is the case mag-alloy, or plastic? Does the hard drive have a protection system (like IBM/HP/Dell)?



IBM T41 1GB/40GB 1.5GHz 32MBVid
Compaq 2710US 512MB/20GB/1.2GHz(P3)/8MBVid
Dell 600sc(server) 2 GB/160GB/ 2.4GHz/2x128MBVid
Next one TBD

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by ankurg
Cons/Unknowns:
1. Std Warranty is 1 yr: Because of my usage 3 years + accidental is a must. Does Acer provide this, or does a retailer provide this
2. Unknown reliability: Has anyone used Acer notebooks for 2-3 years? How has the reliability been.
3. Price: I am guessing with 3 years warranty it will come to $2600-$2700+tax. Its somewhat more than what I had in mind
4. Build quality: Is the case mag-alloy, or plastic? Does the hard drive have a protection system (like IBM/HP/Dell)?
<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>

1. Upg to 3yrs+Acc is $199 in US, I believe
2. I've not seen any complaints, and know of others who are upgrading to 8100 from other Acer TM notebooks
3. You'll have to do the maths
4. Plastic, I think, but seems pretty well put together - very little flex in lid etc. As for shock protection, another forum quoted the Seagate site as saying the HDD has "Operating shock of 250 G's to withstand rugged notebook environment", but I can't pretend to understand quite what that means in practice.

HTH


Reg

 

Although many posters have said that if a notebook lasts 1 year, it'll last 2-3 more years...

With careful use, like no chucking it around the office as a football, or using it as a chair warmer [8D]

I feel Acer is a good company, however, their notebooks are getting crappier and crappier. They switched HD sizes and speeds, ATI radeons off, and others. They used to be a great deal for notebooks, now they are not a great deal but not bad neither...

The notebook is pretty much all plastic, perhaps a mix of plastic plus other materials, but it still kinda feels plastic. and it has that plastic glow too on some models.

No clue on the HD system but i doubt it, but thats why you dont let your LT fall. ever. EVER. [ ]

 

Coriolis: Just one small bit of advice - just like handling babies (ask your Mom for a second opinion if need be) don't drop a laptop - it's just like a BABY! If you're looking for a Panasonic "Toughbook" - then ACER is not the brand for you! I've owned "leading edge " ACER laptops for the last three years - mainly because they are one of the only companies on the "bleeding edge" of laptop technology! Hey, if you are scared of plastic - say you're scared - and do like the rest of us and buy the $200 extended 3 year warranty - which BTW - covers you if you do drop the "baby"!

 

No washing dirty laundry in public please (or diapers) .

Coriolis, I dont have personal knowledge of Acer - hence the forum.

Raguu - thanks for inputs - which Acer line is more dependable from your experience.

BTW (and believe me) - I have dropped my old Toshiba Tecra, and the current IBM T40 - about 3 ft to hard floor. This was while they were running (no parked HDD). Not that I wanted to test them out but one cannot prevent accidents in meetings. Both kept working just fine.

BTW For those with time on their hands - how about configuring a loaded Dell Precision M70 on dell.ca for CAN$3100. You will find the same thing costs US$3100 here! Inputs on how to get that PC here (US)are welcome


IBM T41 1GB/40GB 1.5GHz 32MBVid
Compaq 2710US 512MB/20GB/1.2GHz(P3)/8MBVid
Dell 600sc(server) 2 GB/160GB/ 2.4GHz/2x128MBVid
Next one TBD

 

Hmmm... You might like to try this short video (.wmv format) showcasing ACER's 13-step "torture" testing procedure carried out to verify notebook reliability... [ ]
I, for one, am "sold" and waiting anxiously for the TM8100 to ship here in Greece (presumably in mid March)... [ ]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by raguu

 

Yea - I still have not owned a LT yet, so i wouldnt really know, but the funny thing is that I'll probrably end up with the 3 year warranty and treating it as if it was my only reason to continue living

And that video is pretty neat...i can see why you are "sold" immediately

hmmm....

and is quietude even a word?[xx(]