Big events like CES 2016 are all about showing off the newest, shiniest, brightest stuff. But they’re also the best venues to do the tech-world equivalent of a photo dump. So yeah, go ahead, people, just unveil everything you’ve got—and give writers and observers like us enough material for a week, at least. Hah.
Acer did the expected gadget dump this year, outing 10 different products before CES’ first official day if we’re going to be real technical about it. Thanks a lot, guys. Now that we’ve gotten our act together, we’re all ready to give you a brief look at what went under the spotlight in Las Vegas.
Lap them all up
The Taiwanese company started the year with three new lappies: one for gamers, one for the C-suite, and one for the budget-conscious folk. Oh, and a hybrid device that can also be a laptop. Guess that counts, too.
We’re going with the gaming rig first. The Acer Aspire V Nitro Black Edition keeps a few traits found in its predecessor, but also steps up with some new tricks. The biggest one is found above the display—this gaming laptop has Intel’s RealSense camera. Imagine it, fellas: 2D and 3D video streaming of you defeating and taunting your foul-mouthed, boost-begging opponents. Oh, yes. Slashgear notes that the RealSense camera can also remove your video background. CNET adds that it has support for Windows Hello, Microsoft Windows 10’s password-less login feature, and lets you scan faces and objects to add to supported games.
This latest Nitro is also equipped with a 4K display, Intel Skylake CPUs, NVIDIA GeForce graphics, support for SSDs, and four TruHarmony Plus speakers with Dolby Audio. No word yet if this will land on our shores, but for North America and Europe/the Middle East/Africa (EMEA), it’ll be available in February 2016 with a base price of US$1,099 (around P52,000).
On to more commercial fare. The Acer TravelMate P648 takes the mantle from the P645, and is marketed as a must-have for travelers and business folk alike. The touted features include connectivity via Qualcomm Atheros 802.11ad multiband wireless tech, Thunderbolt 3 interface, 6th-gen Intel i5 to i7 processors, a carbon and fiberglass lid and magnesium-aluminum exterior for drop protection, a spill-resistant keyboard, 14-inch HD IPS display, NVIDIA graphics, and a projected eight-hour battery life.
Again, there are no details on local availability, but customers in North America, EMEA, and China will be able to buy the P648 before everyone else. As for base prices and variants, China gets first dibs next month for Y6,999 (around P50,500), while North America and EMEA will play catch-up in April, the former for $799.99 (around P37,800) and the latter for 999 euros (around P51,600).
For the low-end side of things, Acer adds to its Chromebook lineup with the Chromebook 11. As expected, it sports basic specs, looks great, is light and thin, can be paired with a separate keyboard for laptop usage, and has a long battery life of nine hours. It’s also sturdy enough to withstand the hard knocks associated with regular usage and semi-brutal urban commutes, and then some. According to The Verge, the 11-inch device will live on despite sustaining downward forces of up to 60kg, or drops from up to 60cm.
The $179 starting price (around P9,000) is going to make this Chromebook a worthy option for those on a really tight budget, and want a no-frills machine for everyday use.
Acer hasn’t forgotten about the convertible range, too. Its newest kid, the Switch 12S, goes for a more traditional look, but also kicks it up a few notches in some aspects. According to Engadget, there will be 4K and 1080p-display variants, as well as Thunderbolt 3 alongside the now-standard USB 3.0 and micro HDMI ports. PCWorld adds that it will have the aforementioned Intel RealSense camera, along with 802.11ac wireless tech, Intel Skylake, and up to 256GB SSD storage. It will go on retail starting at $999 (around P47,200) with an HD display and a 128GB SSD, with North America, EMEA, and China as the first consumer markets come February.
More toys!
In case you don’t need a new laptop yet, Acer hopes to entice you with one desktop PC and one tablet.
We gotta admit, we haven’t even bothered with desktop rigs for years. That could change with the Acer Chromebase 24, touted as the first Chromebase AiO with Intel Core computing brains. This rig also comes with a 23.8” 1080p IPS display with a 178º wide-viewing angle, up to 8GB of DDR3L memory, 802.11ac wireless, four onboard noise-canceling digital mics, a chassis/stand that tilts from -5º to 30º, and adjustable HD webcam. Oh, and the lightweight Chrome OS. Don’t forget that part.
Unlike the other Acer products in this rundown, we have absolutely nothing to give you regarding the Chromebase’s availability and price.
Hold on. We’re talking about toys, right? Why do the adults have all the fun? The 8” Acer Iconia One 8 is made for both the kids and the pretend kids. The wee ones can use the tablet as much as they want since it has a Kids Center app that makes sure they see only age-appropriate content.
Adults, you can also set how long the kids can use the tablet, or what websites they can access. In case you’re curious about the specs, it runs on Android Lollipop, thinks with a MediaTek quad-core processor, and has 1GB of memory plus 16GB of storage space. Pretty basic, but still a good option for parents and godparents who want to let the kids handle their own gadgets. And at $99.99 (around P5,000), you won’t take much of a hit in terms of finances.
Hello from this side
OK, right back to grown-up tech toys. What about smartphones, you ask? Acer has a new one out: the Liquid Jade Primo. The curvy Windows 10-powered phone was announced “way back” September 2015, but made a splash at CES 2016 and is scheduled to formally debut this February.
It doesn’t stray from the formula in terms of aesthetics. It’s also been given USB-C and an OLED display capable of 1080p visuals. But the biggest draw for this handset (at least for us) is Windows Continuum. With a separate dock manufactured by Acer, you can hook up the Liquid Jade Primo with a compatible monitor to see your apps and view content up close. Basically, your smartphone can be turned into a PC. That’ll come in handy for presentations, product and software demos, hours and hours of getting lost in the entertainment black holes that are YouTube and Vimeo, or basic computing and editing tasks that used to be too cumbersome on smartphones.
As for price and availability, there are no specifics yet for the US and PH markets, though Acer told The Verge that the Liquid Jade Primo will be in the US in Q2 2016. European customers can expect to spend 569 euros (around P27,000) when it comes out on that side of the world next month.
Stop and stare
Acer caps off its CES 2016 announcements with three monitors, all with special treats.
We’re going with the H7 monitors first. Available in 25” and 27” variants, this eye-candy IPS device has a USB-C interface, claimed to be the first when it comes to monitors, along with the usual HDMI, DisplayPort and USB-A options. Ars Technica also says this monitor can juice up your laptop or other USB-C devices. You’ll have to set aside $499.99 (around P24,000) if you want this monitor in your home or office.
Following closely is Acer’s R1 monitor, with thinness as its primary characteristic, 7mm to be exact. That’s like putting your screen on the Christian Bale diet. Unlike the H7, the R1 gives you more screen sizes to choose from, from 21” to 27”. Other details from Tom’s Hardware: tilt range is from -5º to 15º, and viewing angle is at 178º. And for people like us who are plagued with eye strain due to our line of work, we’re thinking Acer’s Blue Light Feature will be a boon for OT sessions (or, OK, movie and TV marathons). The North American market will have the R1 monitors during Q1 2016 starting at $129.99 (around P6,100), and EMEA, for 139 euros (around P7,100).
The Acer XR342CK monitor rounds up this roundup. This 34” UltraWide QHD display has a 1900R curvature and, like the aforementioned H7, has “100% of the sRGB color gamut.” Other perks include six-axis color adjustment, DTS Sound, AMD FreeSync technology, and an adjustable base. Start making your list of series to binge-watch, or games to play, then make sure you have 1,099 euros (around P56,500) to shell out.
Source: SlashGear + The Verge + The Verge 2 + Engadget + PCWorld + ZDNet + GSMArena + Tom’s Hardware
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