The Official Arrandale Timeline Thread

Been following this thread for a while now, i'm in Toronto but really eyeing that 4820TG from micro center. I contacted them and they only ship within the United States. Does anyone know other stores with the 4820TG preferably the one with the i5 that will ship to Canada or simply how to get the one from MC?

 

Is the Staples 3820TG model the only TG model coming to Canada?

 

Any Microcenters near the border? I recall someone in this thread talking about a service that will buy the computer and ship it to Canada. Try the search feature.

Bronsky

 

Here are new photos of my 4820TG when I was in Las Vegas. Someone was asking for them earlier.

 

Computer looks great ... but, did you win?

Bronsky

 

haha. no. I lost a few hundred dollars. =(

 

There is but its almost a 5 hour drive. Is there a name for this kind of service?

 

seeing the pictures of the 4820TG is making me want to buy it already. too bad the only ones i have in my country are the i5/5470 configuration. how i wish we had the 5650 -.-

 

Canada or UK? Notice a pattern here? You think this payback for 300 years of colonial rule?

Bronsky

 

It's some kind of reseller but I have no experience with it so I really can't tell ya. I just remember some Canadians talking about it. 5 Hours is not too bad, pack a lunch and make a day out of it.

Bronsky

 

ok ill look around lol is microcenter the only place with the 4820tg with the i5/5650 config? any other alternatives to this laptop? doesn't seem like getting the envy14 will be any easier The vaio Z is a bit too expensive for me.

 

I thought they only had the i3-350.

 

Not any more . Micro Center - Acer Acer Aspire Timeline AS4820TG-3195 Notebook LX.PSE02.228

 

If I wasn't getting such a good deal on the Envy 14, I'd probably drive three miles down the road to pick one of these up.

 

WTH, if they can provide the 4820TG why doesn't worthless Acer not provide the 3820TG as well.

 

All of us in the US have huge fingers that can only work 14+ inch laptops. Didn't you know?

 

We drink too much soda, eat too many hot dogs and are too fat to type on a 13" keyboard.

 

hey guys lets say you have 3820tg with i5 5procs and another one i7 6 procs and the price difference is usd 225+ or more which one will you buy?? other specs are same

also is there a way to upgrade the proc? anybody done that before on 3820tg?

 

Stay tuned to this station,as soon as Bronsky gets his 3820TG he`ll be doing just that!He`s promised to document the process and post it on this very thread,I believe with pictures no less!

Correction: Look for that info @:" Acer TimelineX 3820TG Owners Lounge " thread.

 

@wasabi323

where in canada are you at?

 

Toronto, may i ask why?

 

For those that care, Engadget recently posted up a review of the 4820T...

Acer TimelineX 4820T review -- Engadget

 

Thanks for that.

I like how the reviewers (not just Engadget) keep complaining about Acer build quality. Well nothing is free - why don't you pay extra $200~$300 for better screen and better build quality? Well then you are probably going to complain about the price so we are back to square one.

At $700-$800, nothing beats this laptop for balanced performance (ie. CPU/GPU) and mobility.

 

Wow, almost the entire article was negative, like the author was bias from the start. Come on, it's a thin-and-light laptop priced around $700-900. Don't have Envy 14 expectations. haha. The only positive thing I read in the article was about the battery life and the price. The 4820TG has better battery life than the Asus U30JC? Really? I thought it was the other way around.

I mostly disagree about the keyboard section. My keyboard does not entirely bend in when I press the "G" button (or any button) nor does it make any squeaking sound when I type. It does have some flex, similar to the Asus UL50VT I tested at Best Buy, but not enough to bother me when I am typing. Did the author receive a defective unit? I also disagree about the plastic hinges reinforcement argument. I doubt the laptop hinges will break so easily under normal usage.

Nevertheless, I agree that the LCD has bad viewing angles. It only seems good enough for 2 people to watch a movie side by side. I also agree that the left palmrest gets quite warm while playing games.

Overall, I don't think the build quality is substandard. It's a step up from my Sony NW series laptop or my old Dell Inspiron 700m. You should see the laptop in person and make your own judgement about the build quality.

 

I find the build quality of the timelinex line to be good, and I've used several laptops.

Sure, it could use a better keyboard and screen, and the cooling system is a tiny bit weak, but other than that it's very good.

 

i was trying to figure out where the nearest microcenter was from you. because there's one in michigan (madison heights) which is about an hour from the detroit and port huron borders. i was actually going to stop by microcenter and check out the 4820.

 

still no 3820TG i5/5650 in USA???

 

There's one here.

 

bronsky you finally got it? please post reviews abt proc upgrade

is it possible to run 2 hard drives?

 

hey bronsky, I'm again with some thoughts of going otherwise the 3820TG. I have decided that I don't need game playing in the notebook, will keep my desktop and play in it, so the weight is tempting me to other models. I've come to 2 options, one is an used vaio z (I will be delivering to brazil, used ones are easier to import here):

Sony Z Series VAIO Notebook VGN-Z570N
(2.53ghz C2D 6mb cache)
$700 in upgrades
4GB RAM ($125)
120GB SSD OCZ Vertex 64GB Cache & Trim ($400)
Windows 7 Ultimate Genuine Registered copy ($175)
Office 2007 (outlook, word, excel)
has a 10/10 user rating:
http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/sony-vaio-z-series/1707-3121_7-33198612.html



the other one is the new toshiba R700 line, with full power core i5 520m, 13.3 screen and 3.2lbs weight.

What do you say?

 

Hey everyone,
I've been following this, and the Envy 14 thread for 3ish months now, and I've decided to get the 4820TG i5 450M from MicroCenter tomorrow. I'll be in Cambridge, so it makes sense to pick one up on my way. If there's anything you'd like me to test/if you'd like me to take photos, I'll do my absolute best. I figure it's only fair, given all the information you guys gathered for me without me even asking for it!

 

Seems like a decent review to me, rather than all negative, I'd call it all positive except for the keyboard and screen. Both issues are fair. They liked the battery, design, weight, thickness, and the M performance in the UM form factor. If you don't want the negatives mentioned because of its price point, how would you expect them to review a $299 walmart special - all thumbs up too?

 

Congrats on your imminent purchase!

If you can, please post a screenshot of your Windows Experience Index score.

 

You won't be disappointed with 4820TG. I just picked up i3 350M version and frankly build quality is definitely above average, unless all you've been using is MBP's or Z's. This laptop is just unbeatable for performance, battery life and form factor at this price point (except 3820TG, but we don't have that option )

 

@Bron, did you get yours yet? Show pix/vids/gametests before you upgrade to the 620m plz!

 

oh ok, yeah i was looking at that and it's very tempting considering they have about 10 when i checked their stock online, not sure how often that's updated. It's still about a roughly 5 hour trip one way. I may be visiting new york and there's a MC about 50minutes drive from where i'll be so i may just get there. I may just check out the 3820T and 5820T that are in Toronto to get an idea about the laptop before i make the journey to MC

Also anyone idea how the warranty works? i read a while back in this thread acer wont be able to determine if were a traveller? so we could kinda use that aspect of their warranty?

 

Got my 3820TG today. Went to the post office and picked it up before they could load it on the delivery truck. I made them open it up in the parking lo to make sure there was no problem with the box inside. It was in perfect condition. I had a busy day so I had to leave it at the office. I haven't even had time to unpack it. I'll do so tomorrow. Probably do an unboxing video and start to set it up with windows, the keyboard and an SSD. I will wait to hook up the power to the KB until I'm ready to do the CPU. I would guess, I'll get on that in a couple of weeks. I'm very busy at work these days.

Glad it is finally here.

Bronksy

 

Congrats! Finally. Rep to you.

 

Oh man you must've been waiting for this moment.

 

BOY OH BOY, Bronsky got his 3820TG!!!

I came.

 

repped....

 

congrats on your 3820 bronsky =) could you or anyone else give some clue on this? thanks!

 

If you don't need a GPU, other than integrated, the Toshiba looks like a decent unit. It is only a few ounces heavier than a Sony Z12. You should check out the owners threads on this model as I hear that there may be some issue on stutter-free 1080p HD playback.

I think, unless you absolutely need the Core I processors, i would go for the Sony instead. These were state of the art in their day. They are still adequate for most purposes. If you're looking at the Toshiba, why not just look at a 3820T from Amazon. Will they ship to Brazil?

Bronksy

 

If I'm not mistaken the 3820T weight the same as the 3820TG, an in that situation I would go for the TG with no second tought. I find the 100-200 USD more for a 5650 a certainly well invested money. But since I don't need the VGA, the 3820 becomes a heavier system than the toshiba or vaio z. I do agree with you and that's what making me confuse, whether to apply the money in a used but proven gold standard notebook (old vaio z) or the same ammout of money for a more modern (core i5, probably bigger battery life) note. I don't understand the 1080p playback problems since even older models are capable of playing those with intel core i architeture (chipset + cpu) and since R700 produces almost identical 3dmark06 score as the old vaio with 9300GS gpu. also, one thing that is not clear to me is why in some webpages they talk about a 1.1kg for the R700 and others 1.45kg.

 

The Toshiba is nearly $200 USD more than the 3820T. If that is not an issue, I like the Toshiba. I'm sure the HD issue will be addressed by driver and bios updates. I guess you're right about the weight. Have you given any thought to an I5-430UM 1830T?

Bronsky

 

No cause my display minimum is 13.1 and my display maximum is 13.3 =D

I found some info on R700 weight. The core i3 model is the only one to weight 1.25kg. The core i5, which is the minimum I find acceptable weight 1.42kg. The old vaio Z weight 1.45kg if Im not mistaken. That's the weight I'm aiming at, 1.4-1.5kg. Based on new info I found:

old sony vaio Z has a better quality, including the screen, mostly the KEYBOARD and trackpad. It weights the same as the R700, has a slighter slower CPU (2.53ghz C2D, which can be upgraded) and probably a smaller battery life (if anyone has any info on this). User reviews of the old vaio Z are all around a SUPERB machine, a gold standard for that year, that makes me confident in buying an used unit. The one in ebay has a screen resolution of 1280x768, while there are old vaio Z with 1600x800 resolution. Since I will NOT be using it with any resolution over 1280x768 I find that not an issue, but I'm thinking if the higher screen quality of the 1600 model would give me benefit even using with not native resolution of 1280x768. I believe that's all the questions I have for now if you can help. I see you have good experience on notebooks.

 

Keeping in mind that this is on the Intel integrated graphics, here it is.

Enjoy.

 

Can you give us your first impressions and/or a review?

 

Since the Z is a 16:9 display, I would assume there is a 720p model out there as well. The display resolution is really a function of what you need. Higher resolutions in this model will probably bog down the 9300 GS video card.

Bronsky

 

The Core 2 Duo Z had two resolutions: 1366x768 or 1600x900. Here is a comparison.